In my many freelance writing pursuits — as you’ll see if you keep up with my Instagram — I get to trek across North America and occasionally, the globe in pursuit of all sorts of stories. Think menswear, watches and whiskey — yes, whiskey and more whiskey, indeed. It’s been a big focus of mine as of late, especially this fall as I trekked to Wisconsin with The Macallan (I’ve also written recently about the best American microbrews to try this fall, though!).
And this week, in addition to writing about, say, the best gear to buy from Filson, I also had the chance to put some of those pieces into action as I hopped a flight south to Texas (ATX, more specifically) as a guest of Canada’s Bearface Whisky. Bearface, briefly, ages its whisky in the elements in northern Canada, out among forests and fields and not in traditional rickhouses.
This gives it plenty of character well-suited to the wilds of ranch life outside Austin, and Rambling Rose Ranch was where I found myself this week tasting a suitable number of Bearface expressions (that’s Rambling Rose pictured above here).
Austin, with its downhome character (in certain pockets) and its deep Western roots proved a fitting tie-in for Bearface, hailing from western Canada and making some curious whisky (including one elementally aged using wild Matsutake, which I tried at a tasting dinner in Brooklyn last winter).
It was yet another journey I’m thankful to get to experience in this freelance writing life, and it also included stops at Bearface-approved spots like the Firehouse Lounge and Midnight Cowboy. Other ATX favorites of mine include Zilker Brewing (as seen below) and Easy Tiger for a plentiful selection of outstanding local and regional beer.
With that being said, there’s more on the way from my Austin experience — horseback riding on a ranch and a longhorn tour (as you might have seen on my Instagram) tend to go nicely with whisky inspired by the wilderness.
On this front here at The Style Guide, it’s back to menswear in Brooklyn this weekend, starting with tomorrow’s very fall-centric Style Pick of the Week. I think you’ll find you could wear it quite easily to enjoy some standout spirits — that’s the M.O. here at your favorite Brooklyn style blog, after all. Cheers and as always, thanks for reading!
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