The NOLADrinks Show with Bryan Dias

Pictured above – Author John DeMers pictured (inset) with the cover his book, The Vieux Carré.

On this edition of The NOLADrinks Show with Bryan Dias, we once again speak to an author from the terrific book series “Iconic New Orleans Cocktails” by LSU Press. This time around, we talk with John DeMers, a native of New Orleans, who recently penned a book on the classic Vieux Carré cocktail.

John, who has written nearly 60 books, both fiction and non-fiction, including numerous cookbooks, lets us know about his writing background and his New Orleans roots. We also discuss...

Pictured above from left – Head judge Wayne Curtis, Director of Operations Matthew Sharpe, Managing Partner Andrew Faulkner, and Bryan Dias of The NOLADrinks Show at Tales of the Cocktail 2023 in New Orleans.

On this The NOLADrinks Show, we convene with the guys behind the New Orleans Spirits Competition, which culminated at Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans recently. We chat with noted cocktail industry luminaries Wayne Curts, Andrew Faulkner, and Matthew Sharpe.

We taped this episode in two parts. The first was before Tales (the first two segments of the featured interview) where we le...

Pictured above from left – Bryan Dias of The NOLADrinks Show, Erika Flowers, Shauntaye Merritt-Williams, Rachel Johnson, Touré Folkes, Thomas Moore, and Geoffrey Wilson all of Turning Tables at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum.

On this edition of The NOLADrinks Show with Bryan Dias, we are chatting with our friends, once again, from Turning Tables bringing you our annual show on this amazing organization! They do critical and trailblazing work advocating for equity for black and brown persons in the drinks, bartending, and hospitality industries. We chat with Turning Tables founder, Touré Folkes, program mentors Geoffrey Wilson, Erik...

Hey, All! Tales of the Cocktail is turning 21 this year and we’ve got our annual preview for you! It’s always one of our favorite shows every year! Joining us as she has before is our friend Eileen Wayner, CEO of the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation. We discuss this year’s seminal event and many of its connected activities. Of course, we let you know how you can participate whether you are a drinks business industry professional or an enthusiast.

We are back at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum where Eileen joins us to chat a...

And… We’re back! After some time off, we’re back with new episodes of The NOLADrinks Show with Bryan Dias. We welcome author Marielle Songy who recently penned a book on the famous New Orleans cocktail – the absinthe frappé.

Marielle joins us at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum where we discuss her book, how she came on board to write it for LSU Press, and some on her background.

Though the book, entitled The Absinthe Frappé, focuses on this important drink, there is much more to the story than just that! We discuss how she co...

On this week’s The NOLADrinks Show, it’s our last broadcast on WGSO! After several years, we’ve decided to move to a podcast-only format and focus efforts on the Nitty Grits Podcast Network at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum. Thanks to WGSO for some great times! It’s just our time to move on!

With this episode, we’re joined by three good friends who are experts in the world of wine. We chat with Miriam Matasar and Darrin Ylisto of Spirit Wine, the fine Uptown wine shop, and Noah Bonaparte Pais, a wine industry v...

On this week’s The NOLADrinks Show with Bryan Dias, we’re talking Port! Our guest is winemaker, Carla Tiago, of Kopke – the oldest Port wine house in the world, founded in 1638. Carla joins us from Portugal (the land of Port, of course!) We discuss what Port is, the typical grapes that are used, how it is made, their terroir in the Douro, and much more! We also taste through several of their expressions including colheitas, aged Ports, and white Ports! If you love Port or are “Port-curious,” this is the show for you!

Pictured above – Kopke’s vineyards, w...

On this week’s The NOLADrinks Show with Bryan Dias, we’re back after a bit of a break! We are over at Ecology Beer Creative, a new brewery opening in the Central City neighborhood of New Orleans in spring 2023. We’re joined by our good friend (and one half of our “Unpaid Beer Correspondent” duo), Matt Horney. He’s been a regular guest talking brews on the show for years and, if you’re a regular listener, you know he’s an exceptionally talented beermaker. Well, this new brewery is his baby and we hear all about Matt’s new spot and get...

On this week’s The NOLADrinks Show with Bryan Dias, we visit with filmmakers, Abby and Jeremey Lavoi. They have recently produced the terrific film documentary “Roots of Fire.” It explores Cajun music and a host of connected topics and ideas – cultural preservation, linguistic preservation, food, and much more! The film, which features terrific musical performances and fascinating interviews, is making the documentary film circuit rounds, including a screening at the upcoming New Orleans Film Festival. We discuss the making of the film, its themes, and more about how you can connect with the documentary and many other components related...

On this installment of The NOLADrinks Show with Bryan Dias we’re back at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum. We talk about their new “Juke Joint” exhibit open now through February. What’s more? We visit with chefs and farmers, Tia and Matthew Raiford. This terrific couple was in NOLA for the exhibit’s opening event serving up delicious bites. We talk about their farm in Brunswick, Georgia, their cookbook, and lots more. Additionally, Tia has a special connection to juke joints that we discuss in the interview. It’s a fun and very interesting conversation!

Pictured abo...