Whiskey Workshop @ Zauber W/Jameson & Whiskey Barrel Society

This took the cake — it was well and above the tasting at #DiF14. My favorite part was being able to play with our own infusions. Take a little Jammie and add fruits, herbs, candy — whatever it may be and make it your own infusion!
I loved the participatory learning aspect possibly more than the tasting, That said, the black barrel was fab. It was nice to be able to compare not only labels in the Jameson line, but different (and sometimes confused) products to fully understand the nuance.
Great work to all and huge thanks to Zauber for hosting us — and Bryant too for corralling the masses!
Thanks too, to Five Doller Holler for spectacular onion rings — and the dinner I later purchased that evening.

This was a wonderful event. My 1^st time tasting Jameson Whisky, which was great!
It was also my 1^st official Unilocal event. So double WooHoo for me! Claire our Jameson host was a very sweet young lady from Ireland. I could have listen to her talk all night.
I can say I have tasted other whiskeys and I thought them to sweet. I tried all three cocktails made with Jameson and they were all wonderful. So good I stuck with Jameson and ginger ale after the event. Whiskey does make you frisky! LOL
Loved the people at the event and the bar folk were also very sweet. So glad I made this event! I had to travel a long way to go to it though! Thanks Tabitha & Bryant!

Favorite Elite event so far!
First off, loved the space. I cannot wait to go back to Zauber to find out more about their brewery. I was fortunate to sample all three of the cocktails they served especially for our event. They were all tastastic!
Second off, Claire — I could literally listen to her for hours. Her Irish accent was mesmerizing. The whiskey fare she had us sample was awesome. I was nervous about sampling straight whiskey… but it wasn’t harsh or horrible at all! The comparisons to scotch and American whiskey really opened my eyes (or taste buds) to differences I had never realized. (Probably because I don’t usually drink any whiskey straight.) We got to sample Jameson’s black and gold barrel — gold was my favorite… it went down so smooth.
Third, Whiskey Barrel Society — whiskey infusion workshop. This was so much fun! I am quite eager to learn more about the society and hopefully get involved. There were a ton of ingredients, so flavor combos were wide open to the imagination. I opted for pear and jalapeño with a spot of honey. In twelve days this concoction should be ready.+
Fourth, appetizers provided by Five Dolla Holla were all very tasty. Our table got mac and cheese balls — the sauce was magic. We also had egg rolls that were really good.
Lastly, great conversation and interaction with my fellow Unilocalers is what makes a well planned event something awesome to behold. Cracking jokes and sharing experiences with each other is what it is all about. Shout out to Bryant M. for being his usual amazing self and for somehow topping himself with each event! How does he do it?!

Truly a kick-​ass Unilocal event! Knowledgable speakers, well organized, awesome drinks and snacks… pretty much all the ingredients of a great Elite event. Oh and plus ones being allowed always make it more fun to share the experience.
Great job guys!

So I have to admit, I’m kinda into Whiskey and when this event came up I made sure that I was a part of it. Bryant has not let me down with any event I have been a part of this year (my first Year as Elite)
The event showcased Jameson Whiskeys and walked you through the History of how they came about. We started off with a Jameson Cocktail that Zauber Brewery had created which was delicious. We then experienced a taste of Scotch, American Whiskey and Jameson. I must say that there is a big difference in taste between them and glad we were able to do a side by side tasting. Claire (Jameson Ambassador) also had with her a few extras that we tasted after the comparison Jameson Gold and also Jameson Black Barrel. If you have not had the chance to try these please run out right now and grab a bottle and I will come over, lol.
Claire and Bryant also had a Infusion with Jameson Whiskey that we were able to put together with some different fruits, vegetables and spices of our choosing. My choice was Pear and Jalapeño. I will let you know how they turn out.
My overall experience at this event was simply amazing as there were so many people that enjoyed it and I think it made the event that much better. Bryant /​Claire /​Zauber nice job.

Thank you Bryant, for another great event. Thanks also to Zauber, and the Whiskey Barrel Society. I’m not a big whiskey drinker, but I liked the samples, and the mixed drinks I had. The veggie sandwich I ate from the food truck was excellent. Nice to see fellow Unilocalers again!

Events like this are why I loved becoming an Elite. Jameson (pronounced Jemeson, note for the future Ireland trip I’m taking) tasting of the original, Black, and Gold, combined with knowledge, and talk of infusions.
Our table setup, the snacks, the choice infusion ingredients, all of which helped facilitate discussion (it was great chatting with Shea and her husband!) and the perfect environment for relaxing, sipping cocktails, and drinking some première whiskey.
Bryant did a fantastic job getting this setup with Claire and Kyle — both in scope and depth (and kudos to Kari/​Zauber, to boot, and their excellent Jameson cocktails).
Fuckin’ A.

Bryant M. does it again!
I’m not a huge liquor drinker but whiskey is one of the few I’ll drink. So, when I saw the event, I thought «Why not?» And, I am so glad that I did. This was such a great event. It was full of fun and interesting facts and fun and interesting Unilocalers.
The whiskey tasting was fun and informative. I liked that there was an American whiskey and a scotch to compare with the Jamesons. I loved the Jamesons Black and the gold was phenomenal. The original cocktails dreamed up by Zauber were fantastic. I had one called the 7 Bow Street, which featured the Jamesons Black. The boy had the Easy Breezy and it was both of our favorite, a perfect summer whiskey cocktail. The food was damned tasty but, probably due to the whiskey, I can’t remember the name of the food truck. Anyone?
Now, onto the infusion workshop. I’d never done any infusing before so this was completely new to me. I ended up making a ginger and pear infusion, I am really looking forward to how it turns out. Kyle D. and the Whiskey Barrel Society had lots of options for us to use as ingredients. We could have gone as safe or as crazy as we wanted. If I’d known it was this easy to infuse liquors, I’d have done it years ago! Cheers to Bryant, Claire, Kyle and all the folks at Zauber for putting on a fabulous event!

Every elite event that I have attended this year has been amazing. The events are wonderful in and of themselves but, for me, meeting other people is the best part. All of Bryant’s events, somehow, incorporate a lot of interaction with others and that’s what I most appreciate about them.
The Whiskey Workshop was no different. Again, awesome event. Free drinks, well-​planned agenda, delicious food, informative presentation… all the markers of a well-​executed Unilocal gathering. Then, as a bonus, everyone was nice and willing to interact with others (instead of just limiting conversation to their plus ones).
Thank you Bryant, Claire, Kyle, Zauber and Five Dolla Holla for such a great event. And thank you for treating us so well.
I am looking forward to visiting Zauber and FDH on my own time.
FORGOT TO SAY: I LOVED Whiskey Barrel Society peeps Kyle and Angie. I had a blast infusing my Jameson with fruit and other goodies. Where can I find WBS membership applications? Please and thank you :).
Oh and guess who’s a whiskey fan, now! Who knew.

I am not a liquor guy. Like at all. I don’t like shots; I don’t like mixed drinks. I’ll pick beer every single time. But I wanted to try this anyway. Why not right? It turned out to be a really good time. I actually enjoyed a couple of the little whiskey tastes that we had. The first two I thought were the best. And I loved the infusion workshop. Having the ability to make your own unique flavor was really cool. I opted for a spicy, sweet combination of jalapeño, pear and honey. I’m looking forward to trying it!

Normally when I go somewhere and drink alcohol, I wait until the next day or two to write a review, but for an event revolving around said spirits, I think it’s appropriate to write while I’m still a bit in my cups.
From end to end, this was a great celebration of Whiskey (particularly Jameson, of course, since they sponsored this little shindig), but what really struck me was how each part of the evening highlighted the drink’s versatility!
Everyone thinks of Vodka as the quintessential mixer, but the bar staff at Zauber happily proved that whiskey can be used in sweet or savory concoctions, with each of the speciality cocktails for the event highlighting a different part of the Black Barrel’s flavor profile.
After a chance to mingle and sample those offerings, we were given a good explanation of the definition and creation of whiskey by Claire, who of course also spoke to the history and craft of her company’s product before leading us through the tastings.
I appreciated that we were given the chance to try American and Scotch whiskeys before going through the Jameson line, as each presented a different selection of flavors based on their aging and distilling techniques. The sweetness and smoothed out texture of the Jameson increased through each of the four samples, with the final taste of Jameson gold showcasing a beautiful, almost silky drink with strong notes of vanilla and brown sugar. Mmf.
Then we got the opportunity to build our own infusions with the help of Kyle (a fellow Unilocaler!) with the new Whiskey Barrel society — a wide selection of ingredients were available to place in your pre-​filled mason jar of whiskey, and hopefully in a few days my banana-​ginger-​apricot infused drink will become something quite special!
Another great event — I feel really lucky I got the opportunity to share it with a big group of fellow Elite friends.

«They should’ve sent a poet…»
Wow, Bryant, GRAND Event. Great people, great venue, great time. Superlatives galore. Started off with a free mixed cocktail of the Jameson’s variety. I am a huge fan of Jameson’s (RE: Irish Fest), and they did NOT disappoint.
Regular solid swag awailable, with a nice frosty beverage and great people to chat with. Met some great Unilocalists, had some nice convos and enjoyed solid company whist learning more about whiskey and infusions and a soon to be gathering of like minded individuals.
Bryant kicked off the festivities with a description of what was to come, a great presentation from Claire about Jameson’s, who and what they are and their rich background.
We got to sample five different whiskeys (on TOP of the free cocktail), trying an American whiskey (a bit sweet, single distilled), a scotch whiskey (a bit earthier, double distilled) and the Jameson’s original (NOICE, the classic, more vanilla and oh so smooth). Then, a treat I had recently had at the Irish Fest, their Black Barrel, just as smooth and more of a caramel undertone, aged 8 – 12 years. The finisher, Golden and true, aged 14+ and oh soo smooth.
Following all of this gloriousity, INFUSION TIME! We had many an option; I went with bananas and ginger for mine own concoction. I’ll wait ‘tween three to four days to enjoy. Oh, and did I mention that I was one of the lucky winners of a mini bottle of Jameson’s original, two shot glasses and a fantastical Jameson’s bottle opener, as well as a shirt from the Kyle’s forthcoming Barrel Society!
Throughout the event, Bryant, Claire and Kyle were very interactive and informative whilst entertaining. I’ll review Zauber’s separately, and they were equally impressive (my buddy Mike, ever so difficult to impress, admitted that we had to make the trek back to enjoy more of their offerings and ambiance — okay, that last word’s mine, not his). And the food truck, Stacey’s 5 Dollar Hollar, did NOT disappoint (they even deployed a Jameson’s infused sauce thanks to Claire which was oh so enjoyable).
All in all, I’ve had few evenings so enjoyable in recent memory. Unless you count Irish Fest. Which only slightly counts. ‘Cause of that whole remembering it thing. My only regret? Should’ve kilted up.