When Heartwood Provisions launched its brunch for Seattle this spring, Beverage Director Amanda Reed had a mission: Bring to the morning the same thoughtful approach to food and beverage pairing that Heartwood is known for at night. Together, Reed and team pulled together an offering that brings a very unique approach to brunch cocktails. Mary…

Part of what makes Heartwood so special is the fundamental pairing program in place here. Since the beginning, Chef Varin Keokitvon and Beverage Director Amanda Reed have worked closely together to develop dishes and drinks that riff off each other—it’s food with drink, not food and drink. With a program like this, Reed has had…

Once upon a time, chartreuse was exclusively the providence of monks in France. Today, it can be found in bars across the world. And yet, the herbal liqueur remains shrouded in mystery. Only one order, at the Monastery of the Grand Chartreuse just north of Grenoble, holds the recipe. Here, just two monks are entrusted…

Recently, beverage director Amanda Reed was thinking spring drinking and Beaujolais—the light, red-fruited, gamay from France—came to mind. If the flavors of fresh strawberries and earthy mushrooms work so beautifully in those wines, she imagined they’d work well in a cocktail too. So, she added some grassy rhum agricole and savory fennel and a fresh…

With fall in full swing and the holidays are around the corner, our drinking habits are experiencing their own seasonal change. Gone are the fruity citrus cocktails you crave on a warm day, in their place are spirituous drinks that are full of dark, rich flavors. While whiskey based classic cocktails are often a go-to…

Beverage Director, Amanda Reed, like so many of her colleagues in this industry, has a love affair with mezcal. It’s no surprise, given the recent upsurge in the potent Mexican potion, which is distilled from any of a variety of agave species. While mezcal may be the lesser-known agave spirit—tequila is the better known version—it is…