The Chilled 100 Roundtable Series – Washington DC

It was another great night for the Chilled 100.

The ongoing roundtable discussions continued as this past Monday, February 22nd director Steven Dragun and Chilled Magazine team members Jeff Greif, Thom Meintel and Max Ferro gathered up 16 of the best bartenders in the D.C. area.

The festivities took place at Kapnos, a popular Greek restaurant in downtown Washington. The wood-fired grill and rotating spit-type joint is owned and operated by award winning chef Mike Isabella, from TV’s Top Chef. The group enjoyed spit-roasted chicken and suckling pig along with numerous small plate apps. The outstanding dishes perfectly complemented the wide array of spirits the members tasted with dinner.

The evenings sponsor, Palm Bay International, sent two of their local experts with a collection of premium spirits to try and consider. The Chilled 100 Ambassadors were schooled on all things whiskey, calvados and brandy as the night fled by. Local ambassador Scott Holman, with the assistance of Glen Fischer, presented 15 expressions in all including the Irishman Single Malt, Boulard Calvados VSOP, Los Amantes Mezcal Joven and Chase Elderflower Liqueur to name a few. Then the tasting began. The Chilled 100 team got to mix and mingle while tasting these spirits and the entire evening was snapped by photographer Violetta Markelou.

Chilled 100 Member Rachel Kling was instrumental in the success of the evening. She had this to add:

“DC is home to an incredibly tight-knit and passionate bartending scene. There is a deeply engrained camaraderie that allows us to constantly learn and grow together and our cocktail scene has developed by leaps and bounds over the last several years. The notion of “together we rise” rings true, and while there is a healthy culture of competition and ego to keep us sharp (we are in the nation’s capital, after all) our community is what grounds and inspires us in a city of lawyers, lobbyists and politicians.”

A tight-knit group for sure. And like most fun evenings spent with good friends, no one wanted it to end, so afterwards everyone headed over to the Jameson’s Bartender’s Ball, an awesome, elusive, password only, VIP event that recognizes the areas best bartenders. Not surprisingly, our Chilled 100 Members had VIP passes and everyone had a blast.