[Drinks (2009–2011)]

I'm drinking an 'autumn old-fashioned' made with 2.5oz of bourbon (Buffalo Trace), .5oz of Cinnamon Syrup (2:1 demerara with cinnamon sticks) and three dashes of angostura. De-licio-ous!

[Tips for the Bartender]

Bartenders put ice or crushed ice in a kir?! Ugh! I've never seen that anywhere from Paris to Marsaille, to New York, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, or even Peoria, IL. What a travesty.

[Tucson: Where to drink?]

I'm heading out to Tucson in a few weeks to visit a friend of mine for the weekend. I was wondering if there was anywhere in Tucson with a solid drink program? I'm from Chicago, and I realize there probably isn't anywhere at the caliber of The Violet Hour, or the Whistler/Drawing Room, but if there was somewhere that had a solid grasp of the classics and had a nice calm atmosphere that'd be perfect.

Any suggestions, or am I bringing my shaker with me?

[A question for cognac enthusiasts]

Another thing worth trying is armagnac. It's similar to cognac, except it's distilled in column stills instead of pot stills and it's a lot lower profile and usually a lot cheaper for the same quality. To me, Delord 25 year Armagnac was a revelation.

In terms of actual cognac, I like Maison Surrenne Petite Champagne Cognac. I use it, or Delord Napolean (depending on whats available) for mixing. I prefer the cognac for mixing and the armagnac for sipping, but your mileage may vary.