Evan Rail

2 months ago | vinepair.com | Evan Rail

When Devin “DJ” Ballard heard his name announced as the winner of Elijah Craig and VinePair’s 2025 A New Era of the Old Fashioned Cocktail Contest, he had trouble believing what was happening. “They call my name and I’m just like, ‘No, I must be mishearing this,” he says. “They’re handing me the trophy and I’m looking around. I’m just like, ‘Oh my God.’”As one of just five finalists, Ballard knew he was up against some truly excellent bartenders. “Everyone there was so good,” he says.

Feb 26, 2025 | vinepair.com | Evan Rail

The total number of breweries in the U.S. might be at a temporary plateau, but the quality of what those breweries are serving is only getting better. Around the country, craft brewers keep pushing the boundaries to achieve new flavors, developing hitherto unknown ways to pack the most refreshment possible into a single glass. Beer professionals on either side of the bar carefully follow who’s doing what — and have strong opinions about which beer makers you should keep an eye on going forward.

Feb 20, 2025 | vinepair.com | Evan Rail

Few occupations have as much insight into contemporary beer culture as the people who actually make the stuff. Throughout their years behind the kettles, brewers have been the first to watch possibly iffy new releases grow into nationwide sales stalwarts, traced the trajectory of overhyped styles as they soared close to the sun before crashing back down to earth, and witnessed personal favorites seek out and eventually find their audiences.

Feb 3, 2025 | vinepair.com | Evan Rail

By now, most beer fans are aware that they have way more — and, overall, wildly better — options for non-alcoholic (NA) lagers and ales, compared to just a few years ago. But for Josh Harris, founder of the celebrated San Francisco bar Trick Dog, today’s highly drinkable NA beers can also take another important field position: as an unexpected yet charismatic ingredient in creative, non-alcoholic cocktails. “It’s like the possibilities are endless,” he says.

Nov 12, 2024 | vinepair.com | Evan Rail

If you’ve been outside of the U.S. for a while, several things might surprise you when you return. Cars and trucks are somehow even bigger than before. Fewer people smoke. And flavored whiskey is everywhere. At least that’s how things looked to me recently, on my first trip back home since before the pandemic. From news reports, I was prepared for the first two shifts.