No. 107 January/February 2024

A brand-new year may just be getting started, but I’ve been filling up my 2024 calendar and wish lists for months already. High among my priorities this year (and every year, to be honest)? Checking out some great new places, and getting together with new and familiar faces, as I make my way around the country in the months ahead.

Our annual Imbibe 75 list of people and places shaping the way we drink makes planning out the new year a little easier. Is San Francisco high on your travel itinerary this year? Then be sure to stop in at Stoa, a new Haight Street bar that already feels like a classic, and make time in the schedule for a cocktail tasting-menu experience at Aphotic with Trevin Hutchins and his house-distilled spirits. Or if life takes you to the East Village in New York City, grab a meal and dive deep into the wine list at Foxface Natural, then take a tasting tour of Mexico via the mezcals selected by Noah Arenstein at The Cabinet.

You don’t need to venture far from home to experience some of the best of this year’s list. The canned cannabis beverages from Luke Anderson and Jake Bullock are available in multiple markets, as are the Bar Diver line of ready-to-serve bottled cocktails from Minnesota-based maker Joe Heron. And from the comfort of your own home, you can discover the world of Vietnamese tea from importer and retailer Anna Ye, and listen in on the exploration of agave spirits from Chava Peribán, host of the Heritage Mezcal podcast.

These are just a few of the people and places worth getting to know this year. We’ve got plenty more for you (including recipes) at imbibemagazine.com, and tune in to the Radio Imbibe podcast in the weeks ahead to hear full interviews with some of this year’s Imbibe 75.