On a tan"gin"t

If you read my post about craft brewers getting into distilling, you'll know I'm a big fan of gin. I still haven't tried genever yet, but have that in the planning stages.

This past Tuesday, we (finally!) made the trek to Manifesto, KC's not-so-secret speakeasy under 1924 Main. The drinks are fabulous, as everyone seems to agree. The main bartender, Ryan (of JP's Wine Bar), has created a fantastic menu that had everyone in our group oohing and ahhing over the tasty combinations of spirits, bitters, juices, tonics, and other ingredients. (Not to be forgotten, 1924 Main's bartender passed John's favorite Bartender Test with a properly-made Old Fashioned.)

Anyway, I came here to talk about gin. Yes, yes, I know this is a beer blog but surely you know someone who likes gin - perhaps yourself. It seems to be experiencing a resurgence which makes me blissfully delighted. Like beer, there is so much variability and flexibility in the production of gin that provides the gin drinker with a lot of options. I checked out Manifesto's (and 1924's) gin selection, and it's the best I've seen yet in Kansas City. If I remember correctly, they had Beefeater, Bombay Sapphire, Hendricks, Aviation, Junipero, Plymouth (my favorite!), and... I'm forgetting one; I'm pretty sure they had eight bottles.

Regardless, if you or someone you know is a gin drinker, this is a place for you. Go on a weeknight - there were fewer than 20 people in the entire place, and our group made up about half of them. And if you're on a gin adventure, Harry's Country Club also has quite the selection. We were there last weekend and I asked if they had either of Rogue's gins (spruce or pink, which is aged in Oregon pinot noir casks) since they had the white rum. They thought they had the spruce gin, but a search in the cabinets proved unfruitful. I'll keep my eye on them, though. That Rogue gin is some of the best I've ever had (however, since they're on of my favorite breweries hailing from my home state, I may be a teensy bit biased).