For some, surviving a Seattle winter means heading to Washington’s snow-covered slopes. Others jet off to someplace full of blue skies and sunshine. At our downtown Seattle restaurant, we think the best fortitude for winter comes with spirits. So, we asked our bar team to assemble five essential winter cocktails, including a punch for your…

Beverage Director Amanda Reed loves rum. Asking her to choose the best is like asking what her favorite wine is. That, or the fact that the categories of rum are so different, may explain why our downtown Seattle restaurant has more than 40 rums on the menu. A Rum Primer Fundamentally, rum is a liquor…

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…

While everyone else is trying to decide what Washington wine to pair with their favorite holiday dish, we suggest you spend some time putting together a punch. Punch is the great equalizer. It’s something everyone from Uncle Joe (still muddy from the late morning pickup game) to perfectly-put-together Aunt Mary, in her elbow length tea…

In our last blog post, Chef Varin Keokitvon regaled us with tales of his fig passions, and teased us about the forthcoming fig menu. Not to be outdone, Beverage Director Amanda Reed dropped the mic with a fig cocktail of her own. We had to share the recipe below. Summer Fling 2 oz Blanco Tequila ¾…