Life Behind Bars with Noah Rothbaum & David Wondrich

Life Behind Bars, which is hosted by the Daily Beast’s Half Full editor Noah Rothbaum and its legendary columnist David Wondrich, allows listeners to be flies on the wall as two of the world’s foremost drinks experts talk about cocktails and spirits. It is a mix of engaging stories and historical facts about the greatest bartenders and drinks of all time. In 2018, it won the Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Award for the world's best drinks podcast.Please drink responsibly.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Episodes

Life Behind Bars - Episode 12 - The Boilermaker

No matter if you call it a Boilermaker, a shot and a beer or a depth charge, you can find this simply yet delicious combination around the world. It’s a pairing that is often now identified with American dive bars but its roots are actually in Europe, where it was drunk as far back at the 1600s. On this episode of Life Behind Bars, we discuss the ritual and joys of drinking spirits with a pint. We’ll also talk about our personal favorite Boilermaker combinations.Life Behind Bars features the Dai...

Oct 03, 2017•19 min

Life Behind Bars - Episode 11 - The Old-Fashioned

Anybody can make an Old-Fashioned cocktail: It’s just sugar, water, bitters and spirit (usually whiskey, these days). That’s it. But this deceptively simple list of ingredients yields a complex cocktail that has satisfied drinkers for hundreds of years. On this episode of Life Behind Bars, we discuss the long history of the Old-Fashioned and how it’s essentially the very first cocktail ever stirred up. We’ll also address whether or not it’s acceptable to include club soda, and muddled cherries a...

Sep 18, 2017•27 min

Life Behind Bars - Episode 10 - Bartender Drinks

Shhh! Can you keep a secret? There’s a whole list of cocktails and spirits that are off the menu, which professional bartenders serve each other and their most favorite customers. These so-called bartender drinks can vary geographically and on occasion, like the Cosmo, cross over to become wildly popular with consumers. On this episode of Life Behind Bars, we discuss this niche category of concoctions and try to forecast which bartend er drinks will become mainstream. Life Behind Bars features t...

Sep 05, 2017•23 min

Life Behind Bars - Episode 9: The Martini

Join the Daily Beast’s Drink + Food editor Noah Rothbaum (@NRothbaum)and its Senior Drinks Columnist David Wondrich (@DavidWondrich) as they discuss the greatest bartenders of all time and how they changed what the world drinks. Whether you like it shaken or stirred, with vodka or gin, we can all agree that the Martini is the world’s most famous cocktail. But the origin of the classic is very murky with several popular creation stories and even more historic recipes for it. On this episode of Li...

Aug 21, 2017•37 min

Life Behind Bars, Episode 8: The Cocktail Dark Ages

Join the Daily Beast’s Drink + Food editor Noah Rothbaum (@NRothbaum) and its Senior Drinks Columnist David Wondrich (@DavidWondrich) as they discuss the greatest bartenders of all time and how they changed what the world drinks. Thanks to the rebirth of the cocktail you can now, once again, easily find well-mixed drinks across the country. But we’ve become so accustomed to great bartending that it’s easy to forget the cocktail dark ages when menus were dominated by a range of bizarre concoction...

Jul 27, 2017•31 min

Life Behind Bars - Episode 7 - Cocktail Pet Peeves

Join The Daily Beast’s Drink + Food editor Noah Rothbaum (@NRothbaum) and its Senior Drinks Columnist David Wondrich (@DavidWondrich) as they discuss bars and the drinking life. No matter how easy going or laid back a drinker is, there are still things that nobody wants to encounter when they’re enjoying a cocktail. Join our hosts as they talk about their personal bar pet peeves. Spoiler alert: Their list includes fruit flies floating in Manhattans, sticky glassware and weird smells. Hosted on A...

Jul 17, 2017•32 min

Cuban Cocktails - Life Behind Bars - Episode 6

Join The Daily Beast’s Drink + Food editor Noah Rothbaum (@NRothbaum) and its Senior Drinks Columnist David Wondrich (@DavidWondrich) as they discuss the greatest bartenders of all time and how they changed what the world drinks. From the Mojito and Daiquiri to the Presidente, it’s no wonder cocktail lovers are scrambling to get to Cuba and follow in Ernest Hemingway’s footsteps. Get the fascinating history of the island’s cocktail scene and the stories behind its most famous drinks. Edited by A...

Jun 28, 2017•31 min

Mixologist vs. Bartender - Life Behind Bars - Episode 5

Join The Daily Beast’s Drink + Food editor Noah Rothbaum @NRothbaum and its Senior Drinks Columnist David Wondrich @DavidWondrich as they discuss the greatest bartenders of all time and how they changed what the world drinks. On this episode, they try to figure out why the term “mixologist” is so divisive and if it’s ever a complement. Edited by Alex Skjong Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 02, 2017•30 min

War-Time Drinking - Life Behind Bars - Episode 4

Join The Daily Beast’s Drink + Food editor Noah Rothbaum (@NRothbaum) and our Senior Drinks Columnist David Wondrich (@DavidWondrich]) as they discuss the greatest bartenders of all time and how they changed what the world drinks. On this special Memorial Day episode, learn about war-time drinking during World War II. Edited by Alex Skjong Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 18, 2017•37 min

Midwestern Mixology - Life Behind Bars - Episode 3

Join The Daily Beast’s Drink + Food editor Noah Rothbaum @NRothbaum) and its Senior Drinks Columnist David Wondrich (@DavidWondrich) as they discuss the greatest bartenders of all time and how they changed what the world drinks. On this episode, learn about the history of Midwestern bartending centers Chicago and Detroit. Edited by Alex Skjong Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 04, 2017•36 min

Jerry Thomas - Life Behind Bars - Episode 1

Join The Daily Beast's Drink + Food editor Noah Rothbaum and our Senior Drinks Columnist David Wondrich as they talk about the impact of bartenders from drinking history. On today's episode hear about country’s first celebrity bartender Jerry Thomas whose 1862 book has become the blueprint for the modern craft cocktail rebirth. Edited by Alex Skjong Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mar 31, 2017•33 min

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