Clients | Press | Testimonials
  • About Us
  • Services
  • Please The Palate

  • Wrtiting
  • Events
BLOG

  • Wine

  • Cocktails

  • Food

  • Lifestyle

  • Travel

Tag Archives: whiskey

Three Experiences In One at Miro Restaurant in Downtown Los Angeles

Written by Allison Levine on October 10, 2016
Food Cocktails

Miro Restaurant on the corner of Figueroa and Wilshire in the Downtown Los Angeles Financial District may look like just another new modern restaurant in town but there is more than meets the eye. From the street, the restaurant is dwarfed by the surrounding skyscrapers, especially the under-construction 73-story Wilshire Grand Center, which will be the tallest building west of the Mississippi. But, enter through the dramatic wooden doors where three different experiences await you.

miro

On the ground floor is the brightly light dining room. With floor to ceiling windows that face out to both Wilshire and Figueroa, the space is illuminated by the sun during the day. As you enter, you will be met by an elongated marble bar that is home to a pasta station, a charcuterie station and the bar which focuses on classic cocktails. The decor is modern with art deco touches.

miro-dining-room

Chef Gavin Mills has prepared a menu that is pan-Mediterranean, meaning it is influenced by Italian, Spanish, Greek and North African cuisine. The focus is on hyper-local seasonal ingredients with Mills purchasing ingredients from multiple weekly farmers’ markets. Mills prepares all of the charcuterie in house and a board of charcuterie and cheese is a great way to start your meal. Our board had duck prosciutto, ungherese (Hungarian salami, paprika, garlic and white wine),  cacciatorini (dry salami with black pepper), Drunken Goat cheese from Spain, Mont Vully Rouge from Switzerland and Smoke Blue from Oregon. Presented on a magnificent slice of a tree trunk, the board also comes with house-made mustard, mostarda and pickles. Our board also included the chicken liver mousse topped with port jelly.  Read More +

Tagged Chef Gavin Mills, Cocktails, downtown LA, DrinkWire, Liquor.com, Miro, Miro Restaurant, pan-Mediterranean, The Basement Bar, The Whiskey Room, whiskey, whiskey bar

Startup Stories of Spirits Entrepreneurs: Teeling Irish Whiskey

Written by Allison Levine on October 29, 2015
Lifestyle Cocktails

This post originally appeared on FoodableTV.com

The Teeling family has been in the whiskey business for 200 years and Irish whiskey is in the blood of brothers Stephen and Jack Teeling. But Teeling Irish Whiskey wasn’t launched until 2015.

Irish whiskey had been one of Ireland’s main products and the top selling spirit prior to Prohibition. During Prohibition, Irish whiskey saw a decline in exports from 60 percent of the world market to only one percent, says Stephen. To survive and recover from the 40-50 year implosion of the industry, Ireland created one company which ran as a monopoly for 50 years. This monopoly was purchased by Pernod Ricard in 1987.

Stephen and Jack’s father saw the opportunity for an independent distillery. He challenged the monopoly and set up the Cooley Distillery in the 1980s, the first new independent Irish distillery in 100 years. Stephen was 8 years old at the time, his older brother Jack was 12.

Stephen Teeling

The Teeling Transition

Growing up in the family business, neither brother wanted to work in it. They both went to university where they studied marketing and international business. Jack worked in finance and Stephen worked in international business. Then, in 2005, Jack joined the family business. Stephen followed him two years later. “It’s only when you step out of the family business that you realize the passion you have for it and that everyone is in it together,” says Stephen. As their father took a step back in 2009, the brothers began running Cooley Distillery.

In 2012, Jim Beam bought the Cooley Distillery. To survive financially, the Teeling family took their family casks with them. With this stock, Stephen and Jack started Teeling Irish Whiskey in the heart of Dublin. Unlike traditional distilleries, they have taken a more urban approach. The working distillery is also a visitors’ center, allowing customers to see firsthand how whiskey is made. “We are a new personality,” Stephen says. “We are respectful of the past but confident of the future and are willing to take risks.”

Fresh Eyes on an Old Business

Making the only craft Irish whiskey in Dublin, people thought their innovations were crazy. Sometimes, Stephen explains, “If you are close to something for so long, you start to think that is how it has to be done.” Breaking with tradition, instead of putting their family coat of arms on the label, they chose a more iconic image, the phoenix, representing the rebirth of Irish whiskey. The label is a diamond shape in honor of the golden triangle of distilling, Dublin’s historical center of production. Every bottle of Teeling Irish Whiskey has the bottle date on it, as well as the wood treatments. The whiskeys are all 92-proof and non-chill filtered, which adds texture. Most importantly, as Stephen sums it up, “We lead with the liquid.”

The three expressions available in the United States are Teeling Small Batch (aged in rum barrels), Teeling Single Grain (95 percent corn, 5 percent malted barley and fully aged in California red wine barrels for six years), and Teeling Single Malt Whiskey (100 percent from a range of different ages of malted barley, including Malt whiskey distilled 24 years ago and aged in Sherry, Port, Madeira, White Burgundy and Cabernet Sauvignon casks).

Q&A With Stephen Teeling

Below, we glean firsthand insight of the biz from Stephen Teeling:

Foodable: What’s the most challenging part of the job?

Stephen Teeling: You can have the best product but getting into the market is tough. I can only be so many places and there are a lack of resources because we don’t buy placements. It drives us to work harder.

Foodable: What is the biggest lesson you learned in the first year? 

ST: Don’t be afraid to hire talent. We are small and sometimes try to hold tightly. We thought we could do it all but now hired the right people with the right skills.

Foodable: What is your favorite cocktail to feature your spirit in? 

ST: I prefer to drink it neat but a couple of my favorite cocktails* were created by our global brand ambassador, Kevin Hurley.

*Check out the recipes below!

Foodable: Where do you draw your inspiration from in crafting your spirit?

ST: We look at what is liked about Irish whiskey and think about how it can be enhanced. The goal is to try to have balance in all you do, to find a rhythm to it.

Foodable: What is the biggest piece of advice you could offer to those looking to work in the spirits industry? 

ST: Don’t be afraid to try things and fail. Without taking risks you don’t achieve anything. Don’t chase volume for the sake of it. You can only compete if you innovate and add to it.

Today, Irish whiskey, according to Stephen, is the fastest growing spirit in the world. It has grown double digits in sales over the last 10 years and is expected to grow another 60 percent. Teeling Irish Whiskey is undoubtedly part of this renaissance.

Bonus: Stephen Teeling’s Favorite Cocktail Recipes

The Redleg Rebellion

  • 30 ml Teeling Small Batch
  • 20 ml Clement Creole Shrub
  • 10 ml Taylor’s Velvet Falernum
  • 20 ml Lime Juice
  • 20 ml Pineapple Syrup

Pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously for 10-15 seconds. Strain into a rocks glass/Julep cup filled with crushed ice. Garnish with a pineapple slice, mint sprig and cherry.

Liberties Sours  

  • 40 ml Teeling Single Malt
  • 20 ml Draught Guinness
  • 20 ml Lapsang Souchon Tea Syrup*
  • 10 ml Fresh Lime Juice
  • 20 ml Egg White
  • 3 dash Angostura Bitter
  • 1 dash Chocolate Bitters

Add all ingredients to cocktail shaker with ice and shake vigorously for 10-12 seconds. Strain off the ice and dry shake without ice for 10 seconds (reverse dry shake method). Garnish Angostura bitters on top.

*To Make Lapsang Souchong Tea Syrup:

  • Into a pot, combine 1 liter of water, 1 kg of Demerara sugar, 50 gm loose Lapsang Souchong tea
  • Bring to a simmer and allow to infuse for 4-5 minutes ensuring all the sugar is dissolved
  • Strain out spent tea and store syrup
Tagged DrinkWire, Foodable, FoodableTV, Irish Whiskey, Liquor.com, Stephen Teeling, Teeling Irish Whiskey, whiskey

Whiskey Wednesdays at Next Door Lounge

Written by Allison Levine on April 15, 2015
Cocktails

When Wednesday evening rolls around, there is a fun thing to do mid-week. Head to Next Door Lounge in Hollywood for a whiskey tasting.

Next Door Lounge

Next Door Lounge is a speakeasy on Highland Ave that has been open for four years. If you haven’t been there yet, you have probably driven by many times. Outside is “The Dapper Doorman” Colonel James Anderson. Since day one, he has stood outside the doors, dressed in a top hat and tap shoes. Don’t mess with the dapper doorman. While he smiles and greets you and checks your reservation, he is also security. Read More +

Tagged DrinkWire, Hollywood, Liquor.com, Next Door Lounge, whiskey, whiskey tasting, Whiskey Wednesday, whisky
+ Older Posts

About Please the Palate

Please the Palate is a boutique firm specializing in marketing, event planning and writing for the wine and spirits industry.

Recent Posts

  • Getting to know Santiago, Chile Through a Food Tour with FoodyChile
  • Hop On, A Dry-Hopped Sauvignon Blanc
  • Please The Palate Pick of the Week: Champagne Billecart-Salmon Brut Rosé
  • Southwestern Flavor at Panxa Cocina in Long Beach
  • Solvang Restaurants And More – Top Eats In The Santa Barbara’s Wine Country

Archives

  • ►2018 (48)
    • ►April (8)
    • ►March (15)
    • ►February (12)
    • ►January (13)
  • ►2017 (165)
    • ►December (14)
    • ►November (14)
    • ►October (16)
    • ►September (17)
    • ►August (14)
    • ►July (13)
    • ►June (13)
    • ►May (15)
    • ►April (15)
    • ►March (13)
    • ►February (11)
    • ►January (10)
  • ►2016 (156)
    • ►December (13)
    • ►November (13)
    • ►October (13)
    • ►September (13)
    • ►August (14)
    • ►July (13)
    • ►June (14)
    • ►May (9)
    • ►April (9)
    • ►March (13)
    • ►February (14)
    • ►January (18)
  • ►2015 (165)
    • ►December (19)
    • ►November (18)
    • ►October (13)
    • ►September (13)
    • ►August (15)
    • ►July (8)
    • ►June (12)
    • ►May (11)
    • ►April (16)
    • ►March (13)
    • ►February (13)
    • ►January (14)
  • ►2014 (164)
    • ►December (15)
    • ►November (13)
    • ►October (10)
    • ►September (19)
    • ►August (13)
    • ►July (16)
    • ►June (9)
    • ►May (10)
    • ►April (21)
    • ►March (15)
    • ►February (14)
    • ►January (9)
  • ►2013 (114)
    • ►December (7)
    • ►November (13)
    • ►October (9)
    • ►September (6)
    • ►August (31)
    • ►July (9)
    • ►June (8)
    • ►May (6)
    • ►April (6)
    • ►March (4)
    • ►February (7)
    • ►January (8)
  • ►2012 (67)
    • ►December (7)
    • ►November (7)
    • ►October (5)
    • ►September (5)
    • ►August (5)
    • ►July (8)
    • ►June (2)
    • ►May (6)
    • ►April (8)
    • ►March (6)
    • ►February (5)
    • ►January (3)
  • ►2011 (9)
    • ►December (4)
    • ►November (5)

Tags

Brunch California Winery Advisor Cocktails downtown LA DrinkWire food Foodable FoodableTV France Greece Hollywood Italian Wine Italy lifestyle Liquor.com Los Angeles Maude Napa Valley Register New Orleans newsletter New Zealand Paso Robles pick of the week Pinot Noir Please The Palate restaurant San Francisco Santa Barbara Santa Barbara Wine Country Santa Monica Santa Ynez seasonal ingredients Sonoma spirits Studio City Tales of the Cocktail tasting menu Travel West Hollywood Wine wine country winemaker wine pairing wine tasting Wine Tourist Magazine
© 2017 Please the Palate. All Rights Reserved. | Contact Us
Follow Us
Twitter Facebook
| Sign Up for Updates