Erica’s brother and sister-in-law sent her this Crouch White Rye Whiskey from South Carolina some time ago and she and Jen are finally trying it. Thanks, Christopher and Katie!

Live from the 2017 Chicago Womens Funny Fest, Jen and Erica are trying the turpentine-can shaped Stillhouse Original Moonshine Mint Chip Whiskey.

Drunk Monkeys were live at the 2016 Chicago Womens Funny Festival and here’s the first of five episodes we filmed during our appearance: Revel Stoke Roasted Pineapple Flavored Whisky.

Jen and Erica go local with Chicago Select Club Whisky…from Canada.

Jen and Erica take a dessert break with Single Malt Scots Whisky Liquid Center Chocolates.

Jen and Erica have a cup of Hochstadter’s Slow & Low Rock and Rye.

Jen and Erica try Columbus, Ohio’s OYO Bourbon Whiskey, Michelone Reserve.

Drunk Monkeys - Episode 90 - Drambuie.

Jen and Erica are trying the classic whisky and honey liqueur Drambuie.

Show Links

• The Surrealistic Drambuie Commerical
• The Rusty Nail)

Drunk Monkeys - Episode 64 - Jack Daniels Tennessee Honey.

Jen and Erica are sampling Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey.

Drunk Monkeys - Episode 60 - Risky Whisky (Part 3)

Jen and Erica start off Season 9 of the show by revisiting an old friend, the age-your-own-bourbon kit Risky? Whisky. They started aging it eight months ago in Episode 39 and checked in on after four months in Episode 47. Now they’re ready to remove the wood chips and water it down to drinkable levels of alcohol.

And don’t forget that we have a live show coming up in just a few weeks. Drunk Monkeys had a Group Spotlight this week on the CWFF website, promoting our spot in the festival. Musical group Sad Banana will be performing in the same slot.

Drunk Monkeys at the Chicago Women’s Funny Festival
Friday, June 7th, 11pm
Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont, Chicago

Drunk Monkeys - Episode 48 - Laphroaig.

Jen and Erica pull a bottle of Laphroaig off of our bar. Erica pronounces Laphroaig a couple of different ways in this episode. Here’s how to really say it. Or, maybe this.

Drunk Monkeys - Episode 47 - Risky? Whiskey.

Hey, we’re back after an impromptu holiday break with more of Season 7. Today Jen and Erica are revisiting the Risky? Whisky “Barrel-Your-Own-Bourbon” kit that they started in Episode 39.

Drunk Monkeys - Episode 41 - Breuckelen Whiskey.

Jen and Erica sample Breuckelen Whiskey, a New York-made whiskey that was a gift from Dave’s brother.

Show links:

• Breuckelen Distilling
• Jen’s shirt: Tastes of the Portions of the Swine
• Erica’s shirt: Beer Run

Drunk Monkeys - Episode 32 - Cocktail Time! Sazerac.

It's come up a number of times on the show, so Erica shows Jen how to make a Sazerac.

Drunk Monkeys - Episode 27 - Maker's White.

This week, Jen and Erica are drinking another moonshine (or "white dog")--Maker's White. I hate to have to correct the ladies, but Erica refers to Maker's White as a whiskey a couple of times. It's not. As I learned from Death's Door White Whisky, it has to age in barrels for at least 72 hours to qualify as a whiskey. Maker's White makes no such pit stop.

I like to have a special theme for my drinking each summer--just a little something fun to sample and learn about. Since two years ago was my "Summer of White" and last year was my "Summer of Weiss Beer," I dedided that 2007 would be my "Summer of Flights." To kick things off, Fuzzy and I decided to try the Duke of Perth's Whiskey Flights. Since we're big fans of the Duke of Perth (and their fish and chips), we've been eyeballing them for some time, but we always find ourselves with a car, or a show or some other reason to not drink. So when we found we had last Friday free, we went for it!They offer 4 flights--three of them are $18 each, and one is a whammy of a $70 flight, each with a different theme. Fuzzy opted for the Roving Dover, and I dove into the For Peat's Sake. As well as three samples each, they provide menus for each flight with descriptions of each's Nose, Body, Palate, and Finish. From left to right, they were weaker to stronger (not that the weakest was "weak"), and I found that my favorite was the first one, a Talisker 10 year from Skye. Likewise, Fuzzy's first one was his favorite, a Glenkinchie 10 year from Lowland. I was glad that our food came quickly, cause samples of six whiskeys on an empty stomach could have made for a different evening.All in all, it was delicious, and the awesome atmosphere (the patio is open!), friendly waitstaff, and delicious food and drinks makes this Highly Recommended in my book!The Duke of Perth is at 2913 N. Clark Street in Lakeview.

(Originally posted on the Chicago Metblogs, Jun 12, 2007: My Summer of Flights--The Duke of Perth)

Sadly, when people think of New Orleans and drinking these days the first image that pops into their mind is probably drunken frat guys at Mardi Gras. Which is true. But New Orleans has more than just drinking volume, it's got drinking history. I mean, this is the city where the modern cocktail was invented.

And the first cocktail that was invented was (arguably) the Sazerac. I was turned onto the Sazerac by a link from Making Light and started making them back in 2005. A Sazerac isn't too complicated to make, but it does involve three ingredients that you probably don't have in your standard home bar -- rye whiskey, Herbsaint liqueur, and Peychaud's bitters. If you've seen my home bar, you know that obscure liquors are my stock-in-trade, so finding all those pieces was no problem. And we've enjoyed the Sazeracs I've made, but never having had one that anyone else had made, there's always a lingering question of whether I'm doing it "right". So on a December 2006 trip to New Orleans, Erica and I decided to check in with some experts.

The place to get a Sazerac would be the Sazerac Bar at the then Fairmont, but the Fairmont was still closed from Katrina damage. (The hotel reopened in 2009 as the Roosevelt and the bar is open as well.) So we went to the Rib Room at the Omni Royal Orleans for Sazeracs and dessert.

So, yes, I was making them fine (the Rib Room uses Angostura bitters in addition to the Peychaud's bitters, but we'll let that slide).

Here's the recipe:
1/2 teaspoon Herbsaint (you could also use absinthe now that's it legal again in the US)
1 teaspoon of simple syrup
4 dashes Peychaud's bitters
You could use a tiny, tiny drop of Angostura bitters, but I think that's wrong
2 ounces rye whiskey (you'd think "Sazerac Rye" would be the best choice, but I prefer Old Overholt)
Strip of lemon peel

Chill a rocks glass. In another glass or Boston shaker combine ice, simple syrup, bitters, and rye. Stir gently to chill. Pour the Herbsaint into the chilled rocks glass and coat the inside of glass, pouring out the excess. Strain whiskey mixture into the rocks glass. Twist lemon peel over mixture to release lemon oil and then rub peel over the rim of the glass. Drink.

I got my recipe from Chuck Taggart's Gumbo Pages and he's got lots of more explicit directions and variations.

(Originally posted on FuzzyCo, December 8, 2006: Drinking our way across the South - the Sazerac)