Happy Hour: The Secrets Behind Manhattan Mixology

Summary

Podcast Summary: Kennedy Saves the World Host: Kennedy | Guest: Matt Burkhart (Founder, Manhattan Mixology)
Episode: Happy Hour: The Secrets Behind Manhattan Mixology
Date: April 10, 2026

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Episode Overview

This lively episode dives into the world of modern mixology with guest Matt Burkhart, founder of Manhattan Mixology and the bar program at Laziza in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. With Kennedy’s curious, irreverent wit and Matt’s deep expertise, the conversation explores the skills, science, and artistry behind outstanding cocktails—ranging from flavor balancing to molecular mixology, current trends like "fat-washing," the rise of mocktails, and the sensory delight of drink-making. The episode brims with laughter, storytelling, and actionable tips for both cocktail enthusiasts and aspiring bartenders.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Matt’s Path to Mixology and Manhattan Mixology (00:43–01:31)

• Matt’s Journey: From working in bars as a teen, pivoting to a marketing career, then returning to the drinks industry and launching Manhattan Mixology.
• Company Scope: Offers creative consulting, bartender training, public classes (including bachelorette and birthday parties), and business consulting for NYC bars.

"Mixologist is a loose term. I've been working in bars and restaurants on and off the last 18 years." – Matt [00:45]

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2. Cocktail Fundamentals: The Art of Balance (02:11–03:03)

• Teaching Approach: Focus on understanding equipment, ingredients, and especially flavor balance, likening the approach to a chef perfecting a dish.
• Experimentation: Discussing how sometimes unusual flavor pairings—like sumac onions in a Gibson—surprisingly work.

"If you understand the basics of balancing flavors the same way a chef does, you can really make anything." – Matt [02:22]

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3. Modern Cocktail Trends and Techniques (03:31–04:33)

• Meat & Fat in Cocktails:
  • "Fat-washing" trend adds a velvety texture; Wagyu Old Fashioneds and bacon infusions are in fashion.
  • Matt prefers plant-based fats (olive or coconut oil) for a subtler effect.

"It's a new trend called fat washing to add a layer of fat from a meat to a cocktail. It's pretty interesting... creates more of a velvety mouth feel." – Matt [03:53–04:20]

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4. Step-by-Step: Crafting a Signature Cocktail (04:51–10:03)

Matt crafts a spring/summer cocktail from Laziza:

• Base: Macerated strawberries in sugar (no refrigeration needed, long shelf life, "smells like a hippie Jolly Rancher" – Kennedy [06:10])
• Additions: Bergamot liqueur (Italicus), coconut water, kefir lime-infused Lebanese gin, yuzu, fresh basil.
• Technique: Shake with a protein ball for froth, double strain for smoothness.
• Final Experience: Sensory focus—aroma, appearance, and taste.

"In my world, I think it's more important to focus on flavors, ingredients than names." – Matt [09:32]

Memorable Tasting:

• "This is a goddamn delight. This is very dangerous because you can't taste the gin." – Kennedy [10:51]
• "My cocktails are always dangerous because you can never understand how much you're actually drinking because they're very well balanced." – Matt [10:57]

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5. The Bar Experience—Vibe & Culture (11:19–12:34)

• Laziza’s Focus: Community, vinyl record DJs, and Middle Eastern flavors—creating an immersive, multi-sensory experience.
• Flavor Exploration: Matt highlights the untapped potential of Middle Eastern spices, herbs, and techniques in cocktails, such as clarified watermelon and molecular mixology.

"I think it's really important to work somewhere that you actually have fun and enjoy... somewhere you would want to hang out yourself." – Matt [11:51]

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6. Science and Innovation in Mixology (13:08–14:10)

• Clarification Process: How acid and milk filter out color and solids for a clear, silky watermelon cocktail—akin to molecular gastronomy.
• Scent as a Layer: Use of atomizers for rosewater and other aromatics to create immersive cocktails.

"Molecular mixology, as it's known. Something I'm getting more into recently." – Matt [13:56]

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7. The Rise of Mocktails and Inclusivity (15:17–16:27)

• Approach: Matt is dedicated to creating non-alcoholic versions of his craft cocktails that are as thoughtfully constructed as the originals.
• Critique: Many bars phone in mocktails; Matt’s "mocktail" menu is just as meticulous.

"It's important too, because a lot of mixologists and bars... have mocktails... but they're often not as well thought out as the cocktail program." – Matt [15:52]

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8. Canned Cocktails, Consumption & Balance (16:39–18:42)

• Freshness vs. Convenience: Matt believes fresh cocktails are far superior, with canned options best left to planes and boats.
• Personal Drinking: Despite being a mixologist, Matt drinks sparingly—emphasizing quality, flavor, and balance over volume or sweetness.

"It takes a lot of energy away from experts like myself that are making things fresh. And something like this would not be as good unless it was made with fresh strawberries..." – Matt [16:39]

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9. Spirits, Hangovers, and Favorite Flavors (18:48–20:55)

• Favorite Spirit: Reposado tequila—for its spiced, oak-rich complexity.
• Worst Hangovers: Attributed to wine and to sugary cocktails; rum is flagged as especially dangerous due to sugar content.
• International Influences: Matt notes the superiority of tiki culture in Bangkok compared to the Caribbean.

"You want to taste the spirit especially." – Matt [18:47] "I was in Bangkok, Thailand, a few years ago, and their tiki culture over there is honestly much better than the Caribbean." – Matt [20:48]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "I've had a wagyu Old Fashioned recently in the city... they serve their Old Fashioned with thinly sliced wagyu carpaccio over the top." – Matt [03:37]
• "Do you like the adult Capri sun idea?" – Kennedy [16:27]
  "No." – Matt [16:32]
• "You're a goddamn danger, Matt." – Kennedy [15:00]
• "If you have the ability to do things fresh with the right equipment—highly recommend." – Matt [17:20]
• "This is a goddamn delight. This is very dangerous because you can't taste the gin." – Kennedy [10:51]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:43–01:31: Matt’s background and business
• 02:11–03:03: Cocktail flavor balance insights
• 03:31–04:33: Fat-washing and meat cocktails trend
• 04:51–10:03: Step-by-step craft cocktail demo and tasting
• 11:19–12:34: Creating a multi-sensory cocktail bar experience
• 13:08–14:10: Clarification and molecular mixology
• 15:17–16:27: Crafting thoughtful mocktails
• 16:39–18:42: Fresh vs. canned cocktails and healthier drinking habits
• 18:48–20:55: Favorite spirits and the science behind hangovers

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Episode Takeaways

• Balance over Booze: Craft cocktails should harmonize flavors, not just pack alcohol.
• Science in a Glass: Modern mixology is as much about chemistry as creativity.
• Senses Engaged: Aroma, texture, and even the music in the bar shape the drinking experience.
• Inclusivity Matters: Great mocktails deserve as much thought as spirited drinks.
• Freshness First: There’s no substitute for fresh ingredients and skillful craftsmanship.

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This episode is a flavorful tour through New York’s cutting-edge cocktail scene, blending deep expertise and playful banter—perfect for anyone who wants to drink smarter, not harder.

Transcript

[A]

Hello, and welcome to this episode of Kennedy Saves the World. It is so rare in the Kennedalia universe that someone beams in to make me a cocktail. And today is one of those days. We have a professional mixologist here, Matt Burkhart, who is the founder of Manhattan Mixology. Matt, welcome to Kennedy Saves the World.

[B]

Thanks for having me.

[A]

You have a job that I aspire to. You have tubs of goo and creations. It looks like you have basil. And you are here to save the world with a cocktail.

[B]

I am.

[A]

How long have you been a mixologist?

[B]

Mixologist is a loose term. I've been working in bars and restaurants on and off the last 18 years.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Since I was a kid.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Working in bars and restaurants, put food on the table. When I was younger, I had a whole corporate career in marketing, and I missed it so much, I came back to it and started my own thing.

[A]

Oh, good for you.

[B]

So Manhattan Dream. It's about two and a half, three years old now. The actual company and the focus for my career.

[A]

And do you train bartenders? Like what? What do you do with your company?

[B]

So Manhattan mixology, it's a lot of things. It's creative consulting, it's training. I do classes for the general public, for bars. I do a lot of, like, bachelorette party classes, birthday parties, and things like that. And then on the business side, I do a lot of consulting work with folks in the city.

[A]

What do people like? Normies. When they come in to learn how to make a cocktail, what do they want to know how to make?

[B]

Well, I look at it in terms of how I train a bar staff, so I always teach the basics of how to use the equipment.

[A]

Do you love bar rescue?

[B]

I love bar rescue. And I saw John Taffer was just here.

[A]

He was great.

[B]

He's a character. You know, I really appreciate what he does for the industry because there's a standard.

[A]

Yeah. And he's trying to save people from their own mistakes and bad choices.

[B]

Yes, exactly.

[A]

Okay. So when you're training bar staff and training people who don't really know what they're doing, but they want to learn, what do you have in mind?

[B]

I like to talk about balance a lot with cocktails. I think a lot of people are looking for the booziest cocktail they can find as an end to a mean. However, there is a way to do it correctly and balance your cocktails, balance your ingredients, and if you understand the basics of balancing flavors the same way a chef does, you can really make anything.

[A]

So I look at mixing the way I Look at baking in terms of ratios and weird flavors and things that you haven't necessarily tasted together before, but that might, you know, it's like pairing argyle and polka dots. Like, it seems like they shouldn't go together, but every once in a while it really works.

[B]

And some mixologists try to mix things that absolutely should not go together just

[A]

for the sake of making something weird.

[B]

And sometimes it works.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And people love that.

[A]

Like what? What's an example of something that shouldn't work but is actually like surprisingly amazing?

[B]

When I walked in, I was talking about a sumac Gibson. Gibson is a martini with cocktail onions. And in Middle Eastern culture, sumac onions is a very popular dish. Ok. You would never think of having sumac onions in a cocktail. I tried that for the first time the other day and I thought it was actually really, really tasty.

[A]

Are meat cocktails making a resurgence?

[B]

Yeah, actually bacon cocktails.

[A]

I've seen bacon in Bloody Mary's. That's pretty popular.

[B]

I've had a wagyu Old Fashioned recently in the city. Sip N Guzzle makes one. They're very well known cocktail bar downtown. They actually fat wash their bourbon and they serve their old Fashioned with thinly sliced wagyu carpaccio over the top.

[A]

That's kind of cool.

[B]

There's a lot of trends. You know, meat in cocktails has been around bacon flavored bourbons and things like that. There's a new thing called fat washing. Not a new thing, but a new trend called fat washing to add a layer of fat from a meat to a cocktail. It's pretty interesting.

[A]

And what does that mean?

[B]

It's all textural.

[A]

Okay. So it just, it's like, does the oil kind of cut the sharpness of bourbon?

[B]

It helps to create more of a velvety mouth feel, if that makes sense.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

The same way that fat makes cooking better.

[A]

Yes. Brown butter, like brown butter has changed my choc chip cookies. I'll never go back, ever.

[B]

I prefer to use olive oil or coconut oil to fat wash rather than meat because I think it's a little overwhelming.

[A]

That sounds smoother. It sounds like the way nature intended as opposed to forcing something, something in there just to be novel. All right, so what are you making today?

[B]

Today I'm making something from the bar I work with in Bed Stuy, Brooklyn, which is called Laziza. I've been learning a lot about Middle Eastern cuisine and flavors. And for the spring summer cocktail menu, I came up with a strawberry basil kefir lime cocktail.

[A]

That is so I have in the Past made a cocktail called the Passion Fruit of the Christ, which has strawberry. Yeah, Right. Because you have. With passion fruit, and because it's for Orthodox Easter, it has a little bit of ouzo in it. Just because you have to do that. But I make it with basil and grapefruit and passion fruit.

[B]

Sounds wonderful. We work with a lot of arak, which is very similar to ouzo or sambuca at Laziza. It's a very popular Lebanese spirit. So first, this is macerated strawberry. So this is strawberries. That's in sugar for about a week. It liquefies naturally. I'm all about, like, natural.

[A]

Okay. And then you strain the seeds.

[B]

Don't even need to, really.

[A]

So you just put strawberries and sugar and put them in the fridge and hope for the best.

[B]

Don't even need a fridge, really. And then the strawberries.

[A]

And they don't grow fur.

[B]

They do not. Because the sugar actually creates a very long shelf life. And it's beautiful. It's bright. This is probably a week old.

[A]

Can they smell it?

[B]

Absolutely. It's one of the best parts.

[A]

Oh, that does smell like heaven. That's like a hippie Jolly Rancher.

[B]

I'm gonna slide this this way a little bit.

[A]

All right. I gotta see this on the tray. Oh, he didn't spill a drop. That was impressive. I think if that were in my hands, it wouldn't be in my hands. It would be all over the table. Okay, so you start with macerated strawberry. I like it already. What's that?

[B]

Bergamot liqueur. It's called Italicus. It's very smooth. It goes really well with gin cocktails.

[A]

Yeah, I like bergamot.

[B]

So you see a lot of ingredients, but it's about balancing them and understanding how much to use.

[A]

Okay. Do you think St. Germain is overused?

[B]

I do.

[A]

Yeah, me too.

[B]

A lot of people refer to it as bartender's lemonade.

[A]

Oh, I've heard bartender's ketchup.

[B]

Bartender's ketchup? Yeah, bartender's ketchup, bartender's lemonade. Same premise.

[A]

What's that?

[B]

Coconut water. Ew.

[A]

I mean, so far, those things sound great together.

[B]

Have you ever heard of kefir lime?

[A]

Yes.

[B]

So kefir lime is really popular in Middle Eastern and Southeast Asian cooking.

[A]

Oh, yeah. That's nice.

[B]

So I take the kefir lime leaves and infuse it into a Lebanese gin here.

[A]

Okay. Oh, that's cool. Are the Lebanese known for their gin?

[B]

Not necessarily.

[A]

Okay. The best gin I've ever had was from Malawi And I haven't been able to find it since. And I've had friends who've gone to Malawi, and I'm like, please find gin. And they're like, yeah, I didn't see any.

[B]

This is yuzu. So alternative to lemon or lime. Very popular in Japan.

[A]

Oh, it's the jam. It's so good. Trader Joe's makes a yuzu hot sauce that you can put on anything.

[B]

And then we're using some fresh basil. So I'm all about fresh herbs, fresh fruits and vegetables.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And what I do. The challenge is when you make things on a larger scale.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Is sustaining the shelf life of everything that you're working with and making sure that every time somebody.

[A]

Do you do that with Roundup?

[B]

No. No, absolutely not. All right. So that's the base of the cocktail.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

When I'm teaching people how to make cocktails, obviously the ingredients are very important, but the technique is also really important.

[A]

The basil smells really good.

[B]

This may get a little loud when I shake, so I'm gonna do it off camera a little bit.

[A]

Not loud.

[B]

Not too bad.

[A]

Our building is under construction, so that is very calm by comparison. And then you have a little thing. Thing in there in your shaker.

[B]

I did with this one.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

It just creates a better froth.

[A]

Oh, do you like.

[B]

A lot of people know that, like, protein shakes.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

That little thing I put in there

[A]

so you don't get clumps.

[B]

Exactly.

[A]

Oh, yes. Is that double strained? Is that what that means?

[B]

Absolutely. So double straining.

[A]

It's a pretty color.

[B]

It takes out all the

[A]

bad feelings.

[B]

Pulp, the basil, everything like that. But it also creates. It takes out the ice chips from when you shake it as well. So when you actually taste the cocktail,

[A]

it'll be very cocktaily and not icy smooth. Oh, she's stunning. She's just stunning. What's it called?

[B]

In my world, I think it's more important to focus on flavors, ingredients than names.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

It may just be strawberry, basil, kefir, lime on our menu.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

But I haven't decided yet. Maybe you can help. You should have this one. There's more.

[A]

No, that's okay. Cause I have to do the vibe a little bit. Cheers.

[B]

Cheers.

[A]

Oh, it smells so good. Mmm.

[B]

I think cocktails are a sensory experience. So if you create something that has a nice aroma, a nice visual, it adds to the.

[A]

That is lovely.

[B]

When you actually taste it, the basil

[A]

in there is not overwhelming. And it's definitely, like, high fiving. The yuzu and strawberry is just like. I could have strawberry in everything. Don't go anywhere more. Kennedy saves the world right after this.

[B]

So this.

[A]

And that's a gin based cocktail.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Oh, that's really good. How do you find yuzu?

[B]

We buy it.

[A]

Okay. Is it a fruit or do you buy, like, you can buy the whole

[B]

fruit, but there is. There's a company called Yuzuko that sells yuzu. We buy through restaurant suppliers. You can find in most like organic stores as well. Whole Foods or Trader Joe's, maybe.

[A]

Like, do you find. Is it in the bottle or is there like an actual thing? Okay. Because I would absolutely incorporate that into my.

[B]

You can find fresh use.

[A]

Home sorcery.

[B]

You've got to think about how fresh that is.

[A]

Yeah, this is. This is a goddamn delight. This is very dangerous because you can't taste the gin.

[B]

Most of my friends tell me my cocktails are always dangerous because you can never understand how much you're actually drinking because they're very well balanced flavors. To me, this just tastes like strawberry and basil. You get the aroma of the kefir lime leaf as well.

[A]

Yeah, the citrus in it is really beautiful. Man, this is good. Matt Burkhart. Damn. I would hire you if I had a bar.

[B]

Thank you. Kennedy.

[A]

Yep. Do you work at a bar?

[B]

I do. So I have habits of getting very passionate about projects. And I used to live in Bed Stuy, and I started working at this. This vinyl record bar called Laziza, which is very broken. It's all about music. It's about community vibes. I started working there part time on the side of Manhattan mixology, and then recently I took over their bar program because I saw how much potential there is.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

And I think it's really important to work somewhere that you actually have fun and enjoy. And in our industry, somewhere you would want to hang out yourself.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

We have vinyl record DJs that come in and play funk and house and disco music.

[A]

And does that enhance the experience of having a nice cocktail?

[B]

I think so, because you're not just there for the cocktail, you're there for a great cocktail.

[A]

Well. And you talk about a sensory experience.

[B]

Exactly. And the food's really good too.

[A]

Oh, great.

[B]

I think it's important to learn about different cultures. And I've worked in a lot of different places with cultures across the world, and this is the first time I'm dabbling in Middle Eastern style cocktails, which I think is the road less traveled

[A]

because they're not known for having alcohol in their culture.

[B]

That's part of it. I also think it's Just not as well known in New York City or this part of the world. The cultural influence of, like, the Eastern Mediterranean, Middle east, and the flavors. And if you think about it from a chef's perspective, all the spices from the Middle east, all the herbs, the different ways they season food is very different than what we do over here. And if you apply that to cocktails, you can come up with some really, really interesting themes. I did a clarified watermelon cocktail the other day. Clear watermelon juice. Wow.

[A]

How'd you do that? How'd you get it clear?

[B]

Clarification. It's a scientific process. I'm a nerd. I'm a scientist.

[A]

I know how you do it with butter, but I can't imagine it with watermelon.

[B]

So you're actually. You add any kind of acid, like lemon, lime. You can use citric acid or malic acid.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

And then you actually add that mixture into whole milk, which sounds crazy.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

You let that sit overnight, and then you strain the entire thing through a cheesecloth.

[A]

Nice.

[B]

And the milk curdles.

[A]

Actually, I was gonna say there have to be curds from.

[B]

Yeah, milk curds filter the. The cocktail, which adds a. Like a smooth, milky texture.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And removes all the color.

[A]

Wow, that's amazing. Can you taste. Can you taste the watermelon?

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah. So if you were to just drink a glass.

[A]

So it's like molecular gastronomy, but with food.

[B]

Molecular mixology, as it's known. Something I'm getting more into recently.

[A]

Oh, that's so cool.

[B]

Understanding the science about what's actually in every ingredient.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And then adjusting it with acid, with sweetness, with, you know, different textures.

[A]

What about rose water?

[B]

Yep. Yeah. Actually, I have. Do you like rose water?

[A]

Yes.

[B]

So talking about sensory experiences, this is called an atomizer.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

A lot of people know this from the perfume world.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

But if you spray something like this over the top of the cocktail. Now smell.

[A]

I think this is what they do in Colombia to abduct airline workers. Too soon? Oh, yeah. It's nice and rosy. Yeah.

[B]

So this is just a little rose water spray over the top, but it completely changes the experience because that's the first smell. Then you get into the strawberry.

[A]

Yeah, My dad's friend used to do that with vermouth. He's like, never put vermouth in a martini glass.

[B]

You can do that too.

[A]

Spray it.

[B]

Yeah, exactly. Spray vermouth.

[A]

Vermice is really good. It changes it. But, like, for the better.

[B]

Yeah, it's really nice. They do this with orange blossom Water as well.

[A]

Mmm. You're a goddamn danger, Matt.

[B]

That's what they say.

[A]

Yeah. No, I. I see. And I love making strong cocktails that taste like Kool Aid. Come here, kids.

[B]

Maybe that's an 8. It's just Kool Aid. The other big thing I'm working on right now is making all of my alcoholic cocktails into mocktails.

[A]

Yeah, that's great.

[B]

Part of our culture.

[A]

Yes. And it's nice to be able during the week, to go to a place you like and still have the full experience without being like, I'm abstaining. And not only the food's good, it's nice to be able to go out and, like, you know, taste the different flavors and everything like that. I had a great cocktail in the West Village the other day, a mocktail, and it was made with pea flower syrup.

[B]

Butterfly. Pea flower.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

It was a bright purple.

[A]

Yeah, it was purpley. It was really good.

[B]

I think it's important, too, because a lot of mixologists and bars in general will have mocktails on a menu, but they're often not as well thought out as the cocktail program. And with these.

[A]

No, they just slap stuff together. Like, here's a mocktail. It's got pineapple.

[B]

So having them side by side, having, you know, a strawberry basil kefir lime mocktail right next to the alcoholic cocktail, I think is really nice for people to experience both.

[A]

Do you lengthen the mocktails? Yes, I would like that. Because then it takes longer to drink, of course. Yeah. Because if you just have that and

[B]

it's like, my mocktails are well thought out.

[A]

Nice. Do you like the adult Capri sun idea?

[B]

No.

[A]

Yeah, I think that's a little played.

[B]

I don't like bottled cocktails. Canned cocktails.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

It takes a lot of energy away from experts like myself that are making things fresh. And something like this would not be as good unless it was made with fresh strawberries and fresh basil and fresh yuzu.

[A]

Yeah. If there was a preservative in there,

[B]

it would be sitting in a can and in some hot warehouse. The flavor's gonna change. It's not gonna.

[A]

No.

[B]

I think there's a time and place for a canned cocktail.

[A]

Yeah. What's the time and place?

[B]

On a boat.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

On a plane, maybe.

[A]

Yeah, sometimes.

[B]

Right?

[A]

Yeah. That's also weird, like, because oftentimes when you're on a long flight and it's like, we have a mai tai, it's like, ah, it tastes like kerosene and barf.

[B]

If you have the ability to do Things fresh with the right equipment. Highly recommend.

[A]

Do you ever bring things with you on a plane and make stuff on a plane?

[B]

No, I don't drink. Complaints.

[A]

Oh, good for you.

[B]

I actually drink a lot less than people assume that I do because I'm a mixologist. I really appreciate the flavors. I appreciate the culture. I have my nights.

[A]

Yeah, but do you sip? Do you taste?

[B]

Always. Yeah, that's part of the fun. Always tasty.

[A]

We were on vacation, and one of the nights we got to go to a class where we learned how to roll sushi. And then there was a mixologist there. She was a non drinker. And those cocktails were so hard to drink because they were so sweet. And she was a French lady. She's like, oh, you're American. You love sweet things. And it was like, it tastes. I don't know if you've ever had a glucose tolerance test, but you have to drink this, like, syrupy, sweet stuff to spike your blood sugar. And then they test it over a few hours. It tasted like that. Like it was. I felt like we were in timeout and that was the punishment that we were doled out.

[B]

You can do things very wrong. There's a funny kind of bartending meme out there, if you will, where guests are saying, not too sweet, not too sweet, not too sweet. I really am proud of the fact that my cocktails are well balanced. You can still taste the fruit, but it's not gonna punch you in the face.

[A]

No. And the sugar shouldn't be the part that's giving you the old roundhouse.

[B]

You want to taste the spirit especially.

[A]

Absolutely. What's your favorite spirit to drink?

[B]

Reposado tequila.

[A]

Okay. Why? Because it tastes like vanilla.

[B]

The good ones taste more like spices and has a very smooth texture. I think some Reposado tequilas are overly sweet and do taste like vanilla.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

But again, mass production versus small batch.

[A]

Yeah. So someone was like. Because I like the blanco. And someone's like, no, you have to try Reposado. It tastes like vanilla. And I tasted. I'm like, I don't know if I like it.

[B]

It tastes like vanilla or baking spices, because it's actually aged in oak the same way that wine is or bourbon. So it picks up some of those flavors from the oak. And that's why the color is different as well. It's aged longer too.

[A]

Yeah. Do they. Are they stored in bourbon barrels? Like in single use bourbon barrels?

[B]

Because I know they can be.

[A]

But it's a lot close in Europe for wine, right?

[B]

Exactly. A lot of Spirits now are aged in similar ways to wine or cognac, and you're picking up a lot of flavor from the actual oak or what

[A]

is the most dangerous spirit that gives you a hangover?

[B]

Wine, which is not a spirit, but I'm gonna go with wine.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Always too dangerous.

[A]

Is it because. Is it American wine because of sulfites?

[B]

I'm not a huge wine expert, so I don't want to dive too deep into something I'm not familiar with. I believe that's why.

[A]

Yeah, I think so, too. I think that's why people can go.

[B]

Maybe people.

[A]

Italy people can go to France and drink wine and not feel sick, but they have one glass here, and in the morning, they just feel awful.

[B]

Yeah. I think with hangovers, we were talking about sugar and sweets, and the sweeter the cocktail, the sweeter the spirit, the worse the hangover is going to be because your body metabolizes and digests sugar slower than other ingredients. So rum, for example, is made from sugar cane and has a high sugar content. So that can cause a pretty hefty hangover.

[A]

And it tastes delicious. It does, yeah. I love tiki drinks.

[B]

I love tropical drinks.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I was in Bangkok, Thailand, a few years ago, and their tiki culture over there is honestly much better than the Caribbean.

[C]

Really?

[B]

I came back with so many ideas.

[A]

That's reason enough to go there.

[B]

Absolutely.

[A]

I had no idea. All right, well, cheers to you. Matt Burkhart, Manhattan Mixology, for all of your mixology needs. And if you take a class from Matt, make this and die happy. This has been Kennedy Saves the World. Along with Matt Burkhart, I'm Kennedy. Listen. Ad free. With a Fox News podcast plus subscription on Apple Podcasts and Amazon Prime, Members can listen to this show ad free on the Amazon music app. Oh, go ahead and leave me a review while you're there. I'd love to hear what you have to say. You've been listening to Kennedy Saves the World on the floor. Fox News Podcast Network.

[C]

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