Beer folks will flip for a Kebo bottle opener. Photograph courtesy Rush3 product design studio

Shopping for booze nerds can be tricky—they tend to be rather particular about their books, bottles, and gadgets. So to take the guesswork out of gift offerings for the wine, beer, and craft cocktail lovers on your list, we consulted pros like Kathryn Bangs, sommelier at Komi and Little Serow, and the Passenger’s Derek Brown.

Turns out they’re full of ideas.

Food & Wine magazine released its list of 50 best bars in America this week, and two local lounges got a nod: Tom and Derek Brown’s the Passenger, which the magazine described as “divided into two distinct spaces: a raucous saloon with a punk-rock soundtrack (Tom’s realm), and a quiet cocktail club (Derek’s);” and PX, the Alexandria lounge from the Restaurant Eve folks where Todd Thrasher mixes the drinks.

The bars are in good company. Also on the list is the drape-lined Violet Hour in Chicago—where drink enthusiasts regularly wait more than an hour for the chance to order up something bitter and brown—and the legendary New Orleans lounge Arnaud's French 75.

Check out the full list here.

Leon Panetta

“Leon called me at about 7:15 on a Sunday evening and told me to turn on CNN because the President was going to make an announcement, and, by the way, to call Ted and tell him to get ready to open that bottle of wine.”
—Sylvia Panetta, wife of Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, recalls the night Osama Bin Laden was killed.

The wine in question, a $10,000 bottle of Chateau Lafite Rothschild 1870, belonged to Panetta’s friend Ted Balestreri, a California restaurateur. Balestreri had promised the wine to Panetta under the condition that he caught or killed Bin Laden. Panetta poured the wine at a recent dinner party, sharing it with several dozen friends. 

Bartender Lindsay Nader competing in a previous leg of the Speed Rack tour. Photograph Lush Life Productions

If you’d like to see your favorite barmen dressed in funny costumes, you might consider heading to Jack Rose this Sunday. Todd Thrasher, Gabriel Rosenkoetter, JP Caceres, and others will be barbacking—that’s right, barbacking—while dressed in some pretty interesting outfits, helping out female bartenders participating in Speed Rack, a national women-only cocktail competition. Twenty-two bartendresses from Philly, DC, Virginia, and Maryland will show up at Jack Rose on Sunday morning, where they will compete to qualify for the national event in New York City Among them: Gina Chersevani from PS 7's, Jade Aldrighette and Julia Hurst from the Passenger, and Jack Rose's own Rachel Sergi. At 2 PM, the public (that’s you!) starts filtering in to watch the show.

Photograph by Erik Uecke

“Order: A Widow’s Kiss. This is a tricky one, as its meaning depends entirely on the restaurant. If you’re at a place like Eleven Madison Park, which prides itself on a bar program that can compare to the finest in America, to order an apple brandy–Benedictine-Chartreuse concoction from 1895 is merely putting the scholars behind the bar to use and thus a sign of good sense. In most restaurants, however, such an order is nothing more than an attempt to play “stump the bartender,” and indicative of deep personality flaws.”
—David Wondrich, “What Your Drink Says About You”

For the full list, head to Gourmet.com. A word of warning to those ordering multiple double Scotches on the rocks: “Your bartender will be watching you. Your server will be watching you. The manager will be watching you. And you know why.”

Photograph courtesy Almond '22

Today, Imbiber’s Agenda devotes itself to two promising drinking opportunities that both happen to take place this week.

First, be honest with us: Did you know the Italians were even making craft beers? Until quite recently, we did not. But they are, and Eastern Market Italian restaurant Acqua Al 2 has just ordered up some very good ones to go with the fare on offer. But due to a bunch of stuff having to do with importers and Italy, they’re kind of expensive. So to entice you to try them, Acqua is offering free tastings through Thursday, December 1, at the bar, between the hours of 5:30 and 7:30 PM. That’s right: free beer.

Notable among the offerings is the Almond '22 Torbata (a bottle regularly goes for $20), which has a smoky-peaty quality that inspires tasters to describe it as “Scotch-like.” Certainly if you’re a fan of Islay Scotches, you should have a sip. Equally lovely: Nora, from Birrificio Le Baladin in Piozzo, which has winning citrus and spicy ginger notes.

Jeff Faile behind the bar at Fiola. Photograph by Erik Uecke

Jeff Faile, bar manager at Fabio Trabocchi’s buzzy Italian restaurant Fiola, has it pretty good: a gorgeous bar stacked with the bottles he loves (Faile is known for his bitter drinks—he’s even contemplating creating an entire Negroni page on his cocktail menu), a discerning clientele that appreciates the flavor variations between Campari and Gran Classico, and the staff support to ensure his fastidiously measured Americanos and Aperol spritzers achieve perfect consistency each time.

But Faile wasn’t always set up so well. Before making a name for himself behind the bar at Palena in Cleveland Park, he toiled at several high-volume spots where testosterone-fueled crowds call out for shots and vodka sodas and expect them to arrive immediately. At one such bar, Faile experienced his worst shift ever. Here, in his own words, is what happened: