I’ll have something to drink for you in just a minute.

The years have started to blend behind my own eyes. Life in Cincinnati is approaching a decade, so obviously, it’s time to recap. Maybe for my own sake, as the memory gets fuzzier. But I think perhaps, no. This little village has grown so much in just a few cycles round the sun. Ten. Years. This means the kids that were once street car racers, are now saving the world from global annihilation. Cincinnati is on record pace when is comes to the hospitality industry, and it’s high time we start to document the highs (and lows), least ye be misinformed.

Don’t get me wrong. Cincy has grown leaps and bounds in regards to its spirit education just as it has with its culinary counterpart (way more advancement on the food side). But I will pose the question no one seems to ask me, a bright eyed yet perceivably accomplished newbie behind the stick, “What makes a good drink?”

Take a minute. I can wait. The credit card waving, finger snapping clients on the other side of the bar? Well, they aren’t as patient.

The answer to that question lies further than the ingredients. It goes beyond the wait time. It’s somewhere past the anecdotes, and the storytelling. It’s just to the left of the greeting you received upon entering, but next to the impossibly intimidating menu with words you don’t understand because they don’t include familiar items like Captain Morgan or Peach Schnapps.

Cocktails. The great misinterpreted bylines. They are icebreakers, meant to fade into a conversation, but we like when they become the subject of it. Don’t we? From a really bad naming decisions to the outlandish ingredients, drinks have a way of making headlines. It’s time to go on a journey through the bottom of a glass. Cincinnati, in a very short time mind you, has birthed Innovators of Imbibing, Spirit Guides and Masters of Distillation. Allow me to help you navigate these murky waters as I introduce, inspect, respect, critic, and inform you on all ways to throw one back in the 513.

It’s time to start a new adventure, please join me for a drink.