Microhistory with Wayne Curtis

You can’t escape the topic. Seemingly, everyday Trump goes on social media announcing new tariffs in an effort to bully other nations into submission. But in the meantime, Americans are the ones getting hurt. And that hurt has the p0tential to metastasize across the global wine community. Today I have wine importer Lyle Fass on the show to talk about the damage that even relatively small tariffs will bring to the wine industry. It isn’t as simple as “buy American wine”. They’ll be suffering as much as everyone else. Lyle refers to the proposed 200% tariffs as an “extinction level event” for the wine industry. The nuance that gets missed in all the talk from politicians is the real-world effects they will have on hardworking American workers and entrepreneurs. It will touch everyone, especially those in ancillary businesses: importers, producers, distributors, truck drivers, warehouse workers, restaurants & bars, sales representatives, and the list goes on. Even the talk of tariffs is enough to send the industry into a panic and cancel orders from abroad. Listen in. It’s important. And, if you’re in the USA, please call or write your congressperson.

Cory Starr has helmed some of the most well-respected cocktail programs in the country. But a few months ago, he took his biggest job yet… he is now running the show at the Mai Kai in Fort Lauderdale. The Mai Kai is a tiki institution — in a class of “survivors” from tiki’s golden age. Originally opened in 1956, it was designed to be a Polynesian paradise to rival trendy Polynesian palaces of the West Coast. At the time, it was the most expensive restaurant that has been built in the United States. There was a catastrophic fire and resulting water damage in 2020. Millions of dollars of damage. And there were a lot of questions whether or not it would ever reopen. But, in November of 2024, the doors opened once again. And this time, respected barman Cory Starr was at the helm of the massive bar program.

Over the last 10 years, restaurants and bars have placed a much bigger emphasis on their cocktail program. And one segment where this is most apparent is the world of fine dining. Until recently, these Meccas for haute cuisine have largely only served wine and offered wine pairings. But as bartenders got more savvy and chefs wanted to integrate some of the drinks that they personally enjoy, that area of the industry started to offer cocktail pairings, and in some cases, open whole cocktail lounges that operate as their own fine dining experience. Today’s guest, Stevan Miller, is the Beverage Director at Esmé and Bar Esmé – Chef Jenner Tomaska’s homage to fine art as interpreted through his cuisine. This is a lofty goal in itself, but Chef Tomaska tapped Stevan Miller to work alongside him to bring that vision to reality with the beverage menu. Miller also hosts the Balanced Hospitality podcast where he interviews people in the food and beverage industry that are offering up new ways of operating and innovating the world of hospitality to make positive and lasting changes for our community and beyond. So “smash” that like button and subscribe!

For the final episode of 2024 I’ve got a fun one for you. This week, we departing from the norm a little. Well, a very little. We’re talking Tiki, but this week I’ve got two aficionados on the show to talk about seeking out the world’s best Tiki, tropical, and rum bars. When Tikiphiles travel, it’s a given that a search of bars in the area will be one of the first tasks before arriving. But what makes Dan and Kane McGee unique is that they travel for business. And that business is managing some of the biggest rock and pop tours in the world. They’re currently traveling with Justin Timberlake and the tour stopped by Indianapolis long enough for us to drink far too much, and to sit and have a chat about their unique lifestyle. I always have a lot of fun with these two (and Dan’s other son, Josh, that just wrapped up his tour with ELO, so couldn’t make it) and I hope you enjoy this conversation between friends that have a shared love of cocktails, tiki, and music.

Everyone gets everything he wants. I wanted another interview. And for my sins, they gave me one. It took 5 years to recover from the last “interview” on Shift Drink, and we’re finally ready to do it again. Given our personal history of overconsuming together, it was best to make this interview happen remotely to avoid the pitfalls that we know all too well. Beachbum Berry returns to the show this week to talk about his recent travels, cruising around the Caribbean with Dave Wondrich, the early days of the Tiki Renaissance, the frustrations of opening a tiki bar later in life and, of course, to talk about Sippin’ Santa’s Surf Shack! It’s all here and this time in Tiki-Vision-3D!

If this week’s guest sounds familiar, you probably recognize her last name. Eve Bergeron, granddaughter of the late Trader Vic Bergeron, is now helping to run the family business that just celebrated it’s 90th Anniversary. For those unfamiliar with Tiki and Polynesian Pop history, Trader Vic is one of the “Big Three” and his biggest claim to fame is the Mai Tai (or arguably Crab Rangoon). Eve is now protecting that legacy. Not only does she travel the world promoting the Trader Vic’s brand and helping to open new concepts, but she has been very active in preserving and archiving historical documents and ephemera surrounding her grandfather and Trader Vic’s. But she is no “nepo baby”. In fact, she wasn’t even really aware of the impact the restaurants had made on the world by the time she was eating there with her parents in the late 70’s and 80’s. She just knew that her family was in the food business. Nothing more. But after spending time in the hospitality industry in Europe, she made her return to the states and a return to the family legacy (yes, I know… I use that word a lot in this episode). She now wears a lot of hats, and today you’ll hear about some of them. Photo of Eve Bergeron courtesy of Jeffrey Bond Photography

During my first visit to Alaska, I had to check off the requisite activities… salmon fishing on the Kenai, Halibut fishing off Kachemak Bay, Denali National Park, and of course, Denali Brewing Company. So, on my way out of Talkeetna, I stopped by to chat with Co-Founder Sassan Mossanen. In a 15 years, Sassan has piloted his brewery through expansion after expansion, the launch of a large production facility, a new distillery, retail sales outlets, and… well, tune in to find out. This wasn’t his original intention. He’s moved around a lot throughout the United States, but mountaineering and Denali pulled him to Talkeetna, Alaska. Talkeetna is known as a home base for mountain climbers seeking to check Denali off their list. It’s a town whose motto is “A drinking town with a climbing problem”, and that is in no small part due to the fantastic brews and spirits available from Denali Spirits and Denali Brewing Company. A special shoutout goes to Sassan, too, for inviting me to join a meeting with his team to offer tasting notes for a whisky Denali Spirits bottled for Three Bears grocery. Those notes are for advertising to be used in their stores throughout Alaska. It was a fun project to join. 

Rum nerds and mid-century Mavens, Martin and Rebecca Cate are back on the show! Check out Tiki Guru and The Cult of Tiki to hear previous interviews. This week, we’re diving into their place in the world of rum and the Rumbustion Society at Smuggler’s Cove, where their collection of fine and rare rums tops the 1000 mark. Over the course of the years, their rum club has offered amazing perks such as distillery tours to Jamaica, Martinique, and all over the US. As the club gained in popularity, and the bar’s profile grew, it became a full-time job for the duo just to manage the inventory and memberships. This week it’s all about rum. Refer back to previous episodes to hear about Martin’s start in Tiki, and how to power couple became synonymous with Bay Area Tiki. You can buy those mugs and other Smuggler’s Cove merch at smugglerscovesf.com