We don’t often think about how the products we use end up on the shelves of our stores, and in our homes. We know that milk comes from cows, and someone has to milk those…
Cold Weather Cocktails
Just like restaurants change up their menus according to the seasons, craft bartenders do the same thing. I imagine these spirit-obsessed bar keeps, tinkering around with shrubs, bitters, the latest liquors—adding a drop of this,…
Gettin’ Fizzy With It
When Kate Hodges was a child, she remembers picking wild-grown, red clover on the Michigan roads nearby her home. She recalls how she would lift the stem to her lips and drink the nectar. Kate…
Compassionate Coffee
When I am running around town, trailing a group of young writers with me like so many creative mines, I am always looking for a quiet place for us to settle and let their ideas…
Heaven in a Mug
It’s hot chocolate season and I took on the deliciously arduous task of uncovering the best hot chocolate in the city. It’s been a tight race, but the results are finally in. Chocolate Cafe in…
2016 Holiday Cocktail Competition
Thank you so much to everyone who attended the 4th annual Holiday Cocktail Competition presented by (614) and Campari. Below are all of the recipes from this evening for you to recreate at home or your…
Up a Creek?
Did you get a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle this year? Maybe the 15-year-old? The 20? The 23?! They usually release them around late October, did you see any at the stores? Neither did I….
Unchain My Hops
It’s been easy to take Gordon Biersch for granted all these years. As a restaurant, it’s been a solid fixture in the Arena District pretty much since the area was developed, serving up an American-casual…
Taste Profile: @eatplaycbus
In Columbus, it’s not just the chefs and cocktail artists and writers pushing our palates forward, it’s the everyday folks who via social media are leaving a trail of crumbs for the rest of us…
Sip and Stitch: Fall Cocktails
Fall is ending, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it. Beautiful golden and crimson leaves are falling from the trees and will soon be rotting under snowdrifts as you hole up under a…
Hadley’s: Culinary Casual
The Fourth Street strip has come a long way. Where once you could merely catch a bus out of town, now you can listen to vintage records, catch a football game, or play Super Mario…
101 on 451: Absinthe
There has always been an interesting relationship between the producers who distill spirits and the bartenders who sell them to the public. Between them, you will find a veritable army of distributors, representatives, marketing agencies,…
The Common Good
We’re voting for Lenny Kolada. The man known as “Brewdood” sat down a few years ago, a quarter of a century of Columbus brewing under his belt, and started ruminating about the state of his…
Ducks in a Row
“Retro” is a term overused. Given the cultural zeitgeist and the rapid recycle of style that still feels like only yesterday, the ’90s are now considered “retro.” The same winsome memories are attached with equal…
Postcard Patios
Condado’s Tacos: Columbus Commons Debuting its second location early in the summer, the downtown Condado’s is part of the Highpoint Building. Tacked on to the north end of the development like a taco-fueled caboose, it…
Ace of Cups
Ah, the power of the almighty meme. When I told friends I was going to a cupping, they immediately thought I was going to let hot glass globes bruise my skin, a la Michael Phelps….
Cocktails: The Second Wave
There was a time not too long ago, when bartenders struggled to convince their managers that it was worth it to squeeze fresh juice daily. When house-made anything was unheard of… Tonic came from Schweppes…
Bar Bet: Derek Reno
It’s easy to become jaded when you create or drink cocktails for a living. Ingredients and flavor combinations spread slowly throughout the country, or around the world, until every cocktail menu you see has some…
Stock & Barrel: Volume 10
I love the fall. I mean, I really really really love the fall. With the leaves, and the smoky smells; the cowl necks and chunky boots; the awesome rich and deep flavors of the season….
Brew in the ‘Shoe
Beer on the hallowed grounds of Ohio Stadium? Seems like a fantasy world many Buckeye fans have imagined for decades; selling alcohol on the sacrosanct campus of Ohio State University, until this upcoming season, has…
Third Rock from Lancaster
Belgian beer empire eyes major expansion While it may loom large on the local booze landscape, Rockmill Brewery is still one of the smaller breweries in the area despite its success. The Belgian-inspired lineup has…
The Upper Room
To say that the Short North Parlor Room “went a different direction” would be the understatement of the year. Gone from the former Surly Girl space: the faded wallpaper peeking out between hundreds of ornately…
Setting the “Standard”
What do a brisk beer garden, an open-concept kitchen and an abandoned music hall have in common? Not much at a glance, but they are all part of the innovative expansion of Corso Ventures—marked most…
Still Innovating
When Ryan Lang and Brady Konya founded Middle West Spirits, the artisan distillery industry was scarce and the sky was the limit. It still is, but now that sky is a lot closer than it…
A Taste of Indonesia
Somewhere on a sunny farm in Indonesia, a farmer is planting the seed for your next cup of coffee—and Lokal Cold Brew wants to make sure you drink it right. Sam Ryo and Winny Tan,…
Hitting the Ale Trail
Athens might be the perfect college town. The rolling, emerald hills of Southeastern Ohio ensconce the venerable Ohio University and its host community with postcard-worthy scenery. Aside from the OU campus, there’s not a lot…
(614) & Cointreau Midwest Mixologist Challenge – RECIPES
Here’s everything you need to recreate the drinks from tonight’s event: BARCELONA **Unfortunately Barcelona was unable to attend so this cocktail was served by (614)** DISTRAIRE 1.5 oz Cointreau .75 oz Lillet .5 oz The Botanist…
Cocktails with a Summer Twist
When of my favorite things about writing is learning about entire worlds that exist within the landscape. These worlds have their own language, communities, and traditions. Within the food galaxy, there are so many spinning…
Big Beer Made Here?
Hold your horses there, cowboy. I can see you’re all riled up about the fact that Ohio no longer has a cap on the ABV for beer, and you’re counting the days until the floodgates…
Nooze
It’s not as if this town has been lacking when it comes to delicious pizza with a side of great cocktails (looking at you, Curio, and Harvest), but I have to say that Christina Basham…
Bar Bet: Issue 8
Ever stump a bartender? Maybe… but not here in Columbus. Throughout the year, our sister publication (614) Magazine hosts various challenges from one bartender to the next utilizing a variety of oddball ingredients. Much to…
Proust: Hoof Hearted
Everyday one of my friends posts some sort of questionnaire on Facebook. Name your 20 favorite albums/books/movies; leave a memory of us; if you were an animal, which would you be? These are irritating, but…
Drinking the ‘Burgh
The lure of the City of Bridges is strong these days and Stock & Barrel writers are not immune. Lots of “renaissance” banter, and it’s barely a morning drive from Columbus. I too have traveled…
Cocktail Garden
Your “I Wish I was in Brooklyn” Pinterest board is overflowing with recipes promising mysterious craft cocktails that nod back to the naughty days of Prohibition, in addition to being stacked with dashing drinks that…
The Anti-Cocktail
Combine locally-distilled gin, St. Germain, fresh-squeezed lemon juice, egg whites, and Cointreau in a cocktail shaker. Shake without ice for one minute, then add ice and shake for two minutes. Strain into a powdered sugar-rimmed…
Wine and Divine
Meeting a friend for a drink has turned into much more that a sip and chat. On any given night in watering holes across the city, there are trivia events, participatory comedy bits, drunk spelling…
The Next Level
Psst: We’re going to let you in on a little secret about the craft beer you’re drinking. Odds are pretty good that it’s flawed. This is especially true if you’re drinking a ridiculously hopped double…
Nocino
A little over a year ago, some eagle-eyed S&B readers may recall seeing our resident imbiber Chris Manis fist-pumping through the frozen streets to the tune of “Chasing Heather Crazy” by Guided By Voices. Although…
Drink Local
I’ve been accused of many things, most I’d rather not share in a public forum. However, the title of Coffee Cup Queen is one that I don’t mind putting out there. Others might say Coffee…
Coffee Talk: Nitro
Java Central in Westerville is a location scout’s dream of a coffee shop. Situated on the corner of State street and a charming brick alley, right across from Otterbein College, the location has a variety…