Bars & Breweries

The Spot: Isabel’s Amor 1490 East Williams Field Road, Gilbert 480-658-0742 www.isabelsamor.com…

Beer: Fernet Aged Porter Brewery: Odell Brewing Co. Style: Imperial Porter ABV: 9.8 percent On almost any subject, you’ll find a group of nerds willing to fight you to the death to defend its awesomeness. Every day across the land, Star Trek nerds put on their crazy Klingon makeup, fantasy…

I do love this time of year, but I’m secretly relieved that holiday madness is drawing to a close. (New Year’s Eve is looming on the horizon, but I’m choosing to not think about that yet.) This week, you almost got a recipe for Whiskey on the Rocks, but what’s…

This week we’ve looked back at some of our favorite posts in Guilty Pleasures, Bites & Dishes and Chef & Tell. We’re rounding things out with a cocktail (what else?) with our five favorite Last Call cocktail recipes of 2013, courtesy of Chow Bella resident bartender J.K. Grence. How to…

The end of the year is nigh — presents are unwrapped, recycle bins are overflowing, bellies are bulging. I’m jumping on the bandwagon of ubiquitous end-of-year reflections. It’s as good a time as any to take a look at 2013 in the world of wine. Some really great things happened…

The Spot: Central Bistro 3160 East Camelback Road, Phoenix 480-646-8560 www.centralbistroaz.com…

Beer: Bipolar Express Brewery: Historic Brewing Co. Style: Spice/Herb Beer ABV: 6.8 percent Come on, everyone! Hop aboard the Bipolar Express! Or don’t. Whatever. I hate you. With so many new breweries entering the marketplace, the craft beer lover’s experience is becoming increasingly marked by opposite extremes. These breweries are…

As the year draws to a close, it becomes ever easier to find a reason to break out the bubbly. Not that Last Call has ever needed a reason, mind you. My current excuse? There’s a new social club, Rose. Rabbit. Lie., opening in my favorite vacation haunt, The Cosmopolitan…

Thank you, pink zin. If you are still reading you are probably looking for some seriously sarcastic snark. Sorry, that’s not what’s coming. Those of us who make a living in and around the wine world, and those of you who enjoy the gigantic selection of really great wines available…

The Spot: Clever Koi 4236 North Central Avenue, Phoenix 602-222-3474 www.thecleverkoi.com…

The bartenders at Virtu Honest Craft in Scottsdale and Cork in Chandler are mixing up cocktails to accompany your New Year’s Eve imbibing. While Kailee Gielgens, Virtu’s new head mixologist, takes a more culinary and experimental approach to the her cocktails, Jon Doholis goes for simple pairings that you can…

Beer: Voodoo Doughnut Pretzel, Raspberry and Chocolate Ale Brewery: Rogue Ales Style: American Brown Ale ABV: 6.75 percent Redemption, thy flavors are pretzel, raspberry and chocolate. Regular readers will remember that I wasn’t the biggest fan of Rogue’s last collaboration with famed Portland donut shop Voodoo Doughnut. That beer –…

Now that Thanksgiving is past we can all let out a small sigh of relief. Except for wine retailers, who now begin the struggle to sell off the annual river of Beaujolais Nouveau that invariably gets stuck on their shelves. Now don’t get me wrong, Beaujolais Nouveau is a fun…

So you want to be a mixologist, huh? Well, Jade Bar’s bartenders are all pitching in to teach weekend classes for the resort’s Mixology 101 series. Each week is separated by spirit with a different instructor showing you what you need to know to get started as a home mixologist…

The Spot: EVO 4175 North Goldwater Boulevard, Scottsdale 480-265-9814 www.evoscottsdale.com…

Beer: Hop Henge Brewery: Deschutes Brewery Style: Imperial IPA ABV: 9.3 percent In ancient times, hundreds of years before the dawn of history, lived a strange race of people: the druids. No one knows who they were or what they were doing, but their legacy remains, hewn into the living…

My mind works in curious ways. I really should be writing about some warm winter drink this week. Granted, if you’ve been playing along at home, your egg nog from a few weeks ago should be ready to serve any day now, so there’s your winter cocktail for this week…

I’ve bought wine from just about every place that sells it, online and brick and mortar. I’ve even bought wine from a gas station when funds were short. BevMo and Total Wine have changed the retail landscape of wine dramatically, one stop shops with comprehensive selections and aggressive pricing that…

In the wake of Black Friday madness and family dinner drama, we could all use a strong drink. You can easily up the merry ante with some truly craft concoctions courtesy of the city’s best bars and bartenders. While the mixology craze is saturating the scene in other places, it’s…

AZ Wine Lifestyle — formerly known as Arizona Vines and Wines — is printing its final issue this winter. I am disappointed. I have been involved in the local wine scene now for almost four years, and this publication was always my go-to guide for visitors and locals as well…

The Spot: Barrio Cafe 2814 North 16th Street 602-636-0240 www.barriocafe.com…

Beers: Crime and Punishment Brewery: Stone Brewing Co. Style: Chile Beer ABV: 9.6 percent and 12 percent Had you been born into the Vanatau tribe of the South Pacific, your test of manhood would have been to dive headfirst from a 100-foot-tall wooden tower straight toward land, hoping you’ve measured…