Get ready, folks, because our third Liquid Insights Tour stop was a wild ride through Austin, the "Live Music Capital of the World," that's quickly becoming a culinary and cocktail powerhouse! This booming city was a new frontier for us in Texas (we visited Houston during our last Tour). One possible reason for its rise, like Tampa, is Austin's explosive population growth. It was the #1 fastest-growing metro area for a remarkable 12 years straight before settling into the #2 spot in 2024, based on the U.S. Census Bureau. Now it's attracting new residents as the 10th largest city in the U.S.!
But has all this newcomer frenzy tamed Austin's trademark weirdness? Is the food and drink scene even more vibrant and unique? To find out, my Liquid Insights Tour partner and National Accounts Mixologist Debbi Peek and I recruited a seasoned explorer and market expert, Florian Minier - the Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits Brand Development Manager for Austin with mixology roots from NYC to Austin (where he’s lived for the last 13 years). With such savvy guides, creating and kicking off this tour was an absolute thrill!
Our first watering hole typified the Austin vibe - a casual, laid-back "re-imagined" bar and tavern that felt well-established despite recently opening in December 2023. Sure, the drink presentations were simple, but the flavors and techniques were stunning. It was here we spotted trends popping up at previous tour stops - miniature cocktails, acid-adjusted "magic OJ", dirty negronis with olive bitters and salt tincture (an emerging craze, perhaps?). They offered the Eastside Cocktail with booze (gin) or Seedlip Garden for the same price, plus chilled sparklers like Cava and Lambrusco alongside aromatic orange wine, Gruner Veltliner, and Chablis by the glass. No need to dress up, but you could still kick back with trend-forward cocktails and wines over a leisurely lunch, dinner, or late night with friends. They even had periodic "Steak Nights" pairing hanger steak not with wines – but with three martinis (one non-alcoholic)! One delicious Austin quirk (probably given its hot climate) was most places serving one to two frozen cocktails like this spot’s decadent Brandy Alexander or the Mexican Martini at our final stop.
Speaking of local touches, Austin had a blossoming business support network providing fresh juices, crafted syrups, and variety of orgeats for bars to batch cocktails ahead of shifts, freeing up bartenders' skills for precise mixing vs. squeezing a ton of fruit, etc. It was also here I enjoyed one of the whole tour's top drinks - brace yourselves for "Silver Meadows" made with Tequila Ocho Plata, Caravedo Torontel Pisco, Junmai Sake, foie gras-washed St. Germain, clarified lime and grapefruit, maguey sap, Sweetgrass beer tincture and grapefruit oils for $16! Tons of layered flavors all kept in balance and super easy to drink. This established cocktail saloon also let you upgrade to premium spirits like single barrel-selected bourbons, ryes or rums picked by their bar team in their signature Old Fashioned for $50 to $75. A clever way to spotlight local barrel picks! If antiquated classics are more your vibe, they had a massive chalkboard menu dating back to pre-1800s through modern classics of today with 53 cocktails featured.
While most cocktails came standard, one swanky new dining spot got experimental with full-on cocktail theatrics for a section of their menu. We opted for the "Magic Mushroom" - tequila, genepy, cucumber, sweet pepper, ashwagandha-infused agave and lime served in a mini forest scene with a hibiscus fog billowing from under a cloche lid (finally put that fancy word to use!). The misty magic came from dry ice in an aromatic brew, removed with cloche once the drink was presented. Their cocktail menu followed a simple path from "light and bright" to "spirit forward" to "bold and rich" with an espresso martini where vodka was infused with their house-made buttery croissants and mellowed by amaro and cold foam. Unsurprisingly, this brand-new upscale joint had an expansive wine list and delivered unique pours like dry muscadet and (you guessed it) Gruner Veltliner, even offering Dom Pérignon by the glass for $80 using the Coravin sparkling preservation system. Nearly 60% of their wines were white or bubbly, with nearly 25% sparkling!
Our tour hit a real gem at the next farm-to-table spot flaunting an incredible "low ABV" quaff simply combining Montenegro and Nonino amari with lemon, orange and Fever-Tree tonic for $16. A super tasty way to rein in the alcohol while still balancing bolder beverages. It was here too that I enjoyed a delicious Falanghina wine for the first time - an ancient Italian white-wine grape, reportedly of Greek origin. Like Gruner and Alberino in a way, it was dry with high acidity; floral, herbal with tropical fruit flavors – incredible with the shellfish like their Oysters “Rockafella.”
At our final stop, martinis took center stage with their own section for dirty, dry or lychee (on draft)! They even whipped up a signature "high toned, demi-sec and silky" martini with Old Tom gin, Greek vodka, Martini & Rossi Ambrato vermouth and citrus oils, kept frozen and poured into a chilled glass to frost right up.
According to Debbi, what set Austin’s cocktail scene apart for her was how “they take pride in crafting their concoctions, using fresh, locally sourced ingredients and spirits made in Austin. Also, they pretty much have a cocktail bar to match your every mood.” Florian agreed, also adding, “over the last decade we’ve seen high-end and super casual start to come together in a lot of new openings to support the city’s growth. One obvious example was a place we visited that featured Champagne and High Life practically next to each other on the menu, and more generally, reflected in each account’s unique take on the Espresso Martini from straight-forward to elevated and luxurious.”
So, while Austin may now be #2 in growth, it's still a top destination for mouthwateringly bold yet casual wines and cocktails bursting with everything from smoky umami to bright citrus. The collegiate spirit and trendsetting crowd are keeping Austin's culinary character delightfully weird...even with all the newcomers! What a fantastic stop!
