You Don't Have To Be Jewish To Love Buffalo Trace's Kosher Whiskey

Way back in, oh, 2008 or so, I tried to write an article about kosher cocktails. The article never happened because kosher cocktails weren’t a thing. They’re still not, with the occasional exception, because they’re really tough to make. Think about, say, a martini with a twist. The gin has to be kosher. The vermouth has to be kosher. The orange bitters, if you use them, have to be kosher. The lemon has to be kosher. The cutting board and the knife have to be for kosher ingredients only. It a nutshell, it’s a pain in the ass. The best thing about trying to write the article was that it’s how I met Leo Robitschek, one of the most influential people in the cocktail world in the last decade or so, and someone I’m proud to call a friend, even if he likes my daughter more than he likes me (not that I blame him, she’s awesome). But I did find out what Jews who keep kosher drink. “Whiskey,” a liquor store owner in an Orthodox section of Brooklyn told me. Why, you may ask? All — or some, at least — will be revealed in this article I wrote for Robb Report about Buffalo Trace’s latest endeavor. L’chaim!