Bars & Breweries

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‘Merica: Like the Country, It’s Pretty Great

By Zach Fowle

Beer: ‘Merica Brewery: Prairie Artisan Ales Style: Saison ABV: 7.5 percent America: It’s great. Inventors of football and tailgating, back-to-back World War champs, land of the free, home of the brave, etc. Despite the occasional government shutdown, it’s a pretty sweet place to live. ‘Merica: It’s also pretty great. The…

How to Make an Awesome Apple Pie Cocktail

By JK Grence

This time of year, a favored drink special of many bartenders is a cocktail that evokes the taste of warm apple pie. Or at least, it’s supposed to taste like apple pie. More than a few I’ve had these days taste like nothing more than apple juice spiked with Red…

19 Great American Beer Festival Winners You Can Get in Arizona

By Zach Fowle

Denver is a sadder, quieter place this week. The vendors have broken down their booths; the brewers have packed up their jockey boxes; the drinkers have sobered up. The 2013 Great American Beer Festival is over and done. But all is not lost. Held every year since 1982 in the…

Drie Fonteinen Oude Geuze: Good to be Bad

By Zach Fowle

Beer: Oude Geuze Brewery: Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen Style: Gueuze ABV: 6 percent Acidic. Funky. Skunky. Barnyard. Vinegar. Cat pee. Horse blanket. Usually, these are not words you want associated with your food. But beer, as we know, is a magical nectar in which even the most unexpected, obnoxious flavors can…

Drink a Boulevardier Cocktail, Wow Your Favorite Bartender

By JK Grence

As crafty as some of my favorite bartenders are with their cocktails, I’m surprised that the old, forgotten Boulevardier cocktail is just starting to gain traction. Quite a few libationists I know drink Negronis with abandon. Most of these same folks also greatly enjoy whiskey drinks, especially ones made with…

5 Best Gin Cocktails in Metro Phoenix

By Heather Hoch

It’s tough to be a gin girl in a Wild West whiskey world. Although whiskey still dominates the conversation in most imbibing circles, gin does have a strong presence in the craft cocktail world, due to its unique botanical flavor. How each mixologist chooses to expand on that herbal base…

Iron Maiden Made a Beer. That’s So Rock ‘n’ Roll

By Zach Fowle

Beer: Trooper Brewery: Robinsons Brewery Style: Extra Special Bitter ABV: 4.7 percent Ever wanted to brew a commercial beer, but don’t want to go through all those tiresome steps like investing in equipment, buying ingredients or, you know, actually learning to brew? Well you’re in luck, my friend! These days,…

All About Chartreuse, and How to Make the Last Word Cocktail

By JK Grence

These days, a sure sign of autumn’s arrival (or at least what passes for it in these parts) is the reintroduction of pumpkin spice-flavored everything on store shelves. I have a better idea. Let’s break out the Chartreuse. What is Chartreuse, you ask? For starters, it’s a yellow-green color. It’s…

Green Flash Green Bullet: Give It A Shot

By Zach Fowle

Beer: Green Bullet Brewery: Green Flash Brewing Co. Style: Imperial IPA ABV: 10.1 percent Science tells us that, biologically speaking, the best time to taste a beer is in the morning, when your senses are sharpest. So when evaluating a beer for a review, I’ll often wake up early and…

How to Make the Best Appletini Ever, “An Apple A Day”

By JK Grence

Cocktail trends come and go. I was talking with some friends, and realized that the appletini had quietly become passé a few years ago. I do have a certain nostalgia for them. I blame their popularity in my nascent drinking years. I remember extensive discussions with friends about what places…

Crème de Menthe and Crème de Cacao: How Sweet It Is

By JK Grence

Goodness, I’ve been getting lots of questions lately. I love it. Send me more! Leave them in the comments if you so desire. This week’s burning question reads: “What’s the difference between white and green crème de menthe, and white and dark crème de cacao? And why is it ‘crème’…

Four Peaks Peach Ale: Now In Cans!

By Zach Fowle

Beer: Peach Ale Brewery: Four Peaks Brewing Co. Style: Fruit Beer ABV: 4.5 percent Screw you guys; I like fruit beer. A combative start to the column, sure, but a necessary one, for although craft beer has made immeasurable strides in becoming an accepted — if not integral — part…

Arizona Wine Gets a Shout Out from SF Chronicle

By Pavle Milic

By Pavle Milic In this occasional series, FnB’s Pavle Milic spills about his current mission to learn how wine is made, literally, from the Southern Arizona ground up. I have lived in Arizona on and off for twenty-four years. In that time I’ve seen a lot of growth and change…

Fernet Branca: Why Does Your Bartender Love It?

By JK Grence

A curious reader recently asked me: Why do all you bartenders love Fernet Branca so much? You know, that’s a really good question. I partake in Fernet Branca on a semi-regular basis. I enjoy it enough that I’ve written about cocktails with it. But calling Fernet Branca an acquired taste…