The summer after my senior year of college I took the opportunity to work at a distillery in upstate New York. The distillery was called Finger Lakes Distilling Company and had a reputation for some of the best craft gin and whiskeys in the country. After training and starting to work on my own, I started to realize one major thing. Simply put, I was in no way prepared to talk about the liquor I was selling, aside from the corn whiskey, because I hadn't drank enough of the product line. The master distiller at the time told me one piece of advice that I have held with me since that day. He said "Nick, if you're always drinking to get a buzz and maybe meet someone then you're not drinking right. You aren't appreciating the hours of work that go into creating a craft spirit. What you are doing is drinking dumb." Throughout the rest of that summer that man and others I worked with taught me how to drink "smart."

I'll be the first one to admit that I still enjoy getting a solid buzz going when I'm out with friends and having a great time. What I learned though was how to truly appreciate liquor. That summer I began experimenting with drinks like Manhattans, Martini's, having cocktails stirred as opposed to shaken, deciding whether or not to have a spirit over ice and figuring out if I really needed that soda mixer. Having the background on liquor from selling spirits like Vodka, Gin, Bourbon, Rye Whiskey, Pot Still (essentially Irish) Whiskey, and Brandies, I began to delve into how the spirit tasted in three different stages; Straight, over ice, and mixed. The flavor you get from your favorite Bourbon or Rye Whiskey in a Manhattan is entirely different than that same spirit poured over ice or straight. Add some Coke or Pepsi to it and the soda should completely mask the flavor. Ordering drinks like this began to slow my drinking down because I was typically enjoying the flavor profile of the spirit or fighting off some of the burn.

There would be the occasional day where I would wander into the distilling area and the master distiller would show me what he was working on or have me help in the process. There he would have me try the whiskey unaged against other spirits of a similar variety. There I learned that the amount of grain, whether it be rye, corn or wheat, could completely change the end flavor of the whiskey. I then began to find myself in the liquor store looking at what certain bottles of spirits were made out of to better know what meals or mixers I wanted to use while drinking it. It had me pairing bourbons with sweet teas and gins with different citrus to really bring out the botanicals. Before I would just grab whatever cheap bottle of booze or beer I could find.

The distillery really made me mature as a drinker. All the times in college I spent making jungle juice or other primarily alcoholic concoctions started to seem like I was just wasting the experience. As I've come home and started going out to drinks with my friends, I really appreciate the two or three cocktails I get because of how well they are typically made. Also it makes me enjoy the company I'm with that much more. I could just get hammered off of a bunch of beer but then I wouldn't fully appreciate the time I had with these friends. Don't get me wrong I'm not writing this to chastise anyone who does that, I'm just saying take some time and appreciate what you’re drinking. Having helped make and sell liquor there is a lot of work that goes on behind the bottle you’re chugging.