A Jack Of All Whiskies

Got whiskey? Jack Rose has whatever your liver desires.

And a master of every single one of them.  I refer not to a person, but to a place — Jack Rose in Washington, D.C.  Jack Rose boasts of having the largest whiskey selection of any establishment in the United States. I was skeptical about this claim before my wife and I recently set foot in the place. After a few hours, multiple conversations with different people behind the bar, and sampling many different whiskies (rye and bourbon for me, Scotch and bourbon for my wife), my skepticism, like my resulting hangover, vanished.  It took longer for the hangover to vanish.  Big surprise, right?

I really liked the Mother In Law and the Eva Peron (but I wouldn’t want to have Evita as my mother in law).

If you have the opportunity, plan ahead and make a reservation at Dram & Grain.  Dram & Grain is a small downstairs bar at Jack Rose where the focus is on cocktails.  Not all of the cocktails have a whiskey base. Fortune smiled upon us, as Trevor Frye (an award winning bartender) prepared our drinks and happily answered our questions.

Good thing the seatings at Dram & Grain only last two hours.  That meant I couldn’t sample every cocktail on the list.  In addition, I had the opportunity to go to the main bar, try new liquors (I love Willett even more after tasting two of its ryes), and meet other talented and interesting people (thanks to Andy and Brittany behind the bar).