Elite Event: Whisky Throwdown @ Palace Ballroom

The event was well planned with a nice lobby/​check in area and people to explain each of the six whiskeys. Then different stations for each bartender to make their drinks. There was plenty of food even though there seemed to be a rush right at the beginning. It was fun to see the judges’ reactions to the drinks and for the bartenders to explain their reasoning for creating them.
What an awesome experience! I typically don’t like whiskey but when it’s in a cocktail and esp the ones that Elizabeth made, omg, I could definitely grow to like it. It was like what the rep from 2 Gingers Irish Whiskey said — he was there to convert some new whiskey drinkers. DING DING! Right here!

Pretty much what everyone else said is pretty much valid. I’m not sure if my input will give any additional credence to this Event.
For this EE, six bartenders around the local Seattle area got together to show what skills they have with whisky cocktails.
My knowledge with whisky leaves much to be desired, and this was a great way to expand my knowledge on whisky. My favorite ended up being from Liberty with their 2 Ginger’s Irish Whiskey, and Elizabeth Powell’s presentation of the drink, and process of making the drink.
Although, the first drink I had at this event was Rocco’s with their Canadian Club 12 Year — smoky, and it had hint of spice if those terms are valid in this industry. This drink did make a discernible impression, which I want to explore more of.
Besides the drink were various small plate dishes, including Chicken Waffles, Sandwich’s, Biscuits, Apples with what appears to be Caramelized Bacon.
In any regard, I did enjoy this event, exploring these various cocktails and the food here; I send my appreciation and gratitude towards Beam, Katy H, and the Palace Ballroom.

Hands down, favorite Unilocal Elite Event (and there are many awesome ones I’ve been to over the years).
The food was incredible — chicken & waffles, biscuits w/​bourbon butter & honey, sandwiches on that amazing Dahlia bread, fried potato balls with an insanely good whiskey BBQ sauce and more!
The drinks? Wow. Seattle indeed has some skilled bartenders that know how to mix a whiskey cocktail! There wasn’t a single drink I didn’t like after trying all 6, and definitely went back for 2nds on most to help me narrow down my favorite.
Everyone I encountered was wonderful — Katy (as always), the bartenders, the servers, the fellow Unilocalers.
Couldn’t have asked for a more ridiculously fun event — Thanks Unilocal,Palace Ballroom, whiskey companies, etc!

Thanks Katy for the great event and congratulations to Marc!
It’s a great opportunity to get to know whiskey. There were 6 bartenders making good whiskey cocktail drinks. I enjoyed all of them. However, each of us can only pick one winner. I chose the one served warm cocktail because it fit to the holiday theme very well and it tasted like holiday as well. I had to leave early. Therefore, I didn’t know who the winner was. Regardless, all the bartenders did great jobs!
The complimentary food from Tom Douglas’ team was great! Their service was friendly.

This was a totally awesome event. I enjoy whisky, but I’m pretty much a Manhattan or neat kind of guy. Not only did I get to try lots of different whiskys, the bartenders (Top Seattle bartenders, all) all wanted to share their knowledge about their creations.
The food came out a bit late, but they kept it replenished during the event. Drink a little, eat a bunch was my motto and it worked out well. The Dahlia Bakery Biscuits with whisky honey butter were awesome and I’d grab one of the chicken and waffles every time I walked by.
I was introduced to some new ingredients (Cardamaro) and some habanero bitters, which were pretty cool to try out, and got to try some new whiskys. My wife (a non-​whisky drinker) and I had a great time.

Much Love to Beam and Unilocal for teaming up together and letting us in on this fabulous event.
It was a great mix of folks, fabulous bartenders, amazing food and whisky.
I brought along a co-​worker to induct her in to «what is Unilocal» (people actually still say that??). I think she may be hooked already. She doesn’t drink (but despite that small flaw) had such a great time meeting new people, tasting the food and several hours of not-​talking-​about-​work.
I think the Laphroaig 10yr was my favorite. Their pitch and explanation was fun, the cocktail was fabulous, the bartender was super cute and it was unlike anything I’ve ever had ever before.
I had fun. I learned things. I met people. And I got plenty of food and drink to enjoy the evening. A superb example of a total win.

The exclusive Whiskey Throwdown of Seattle’s top six bartenders from some of the top bars in the city, all who were featuring a different Whiskey craft and with an original drink of their own. Along with unlimited samples of whiskey drinks (and shots of it to try the «base»), we were provided scrumptious food from Tom Douglas’ Palace Kitchen, the event was hosted at Tom Douglas’ chic venue Palace Ballroom, there was a DJ, an emcee, and coffee and tea to tame the palate.
The six bars representing were:
Tommy Gun
Rob Roy
Liberty (took Chad and Allie here)
Nabob (Amy’s old favorite bar)
Brave Horse Tavern (Tom Douglas’)
Rocco’s
The six crafts showcased were:
Knob Creek
Maker’s Mark
Jim Beam
2 Gingers Irish Whiskey
Laphroaig 10 yr
Canadian Club
The food offered was very southern comfort, upscale, and went very well with the whiskey:
Chicken and waffle bites with bourbon red eye gravy (surprisingly addictive)
Shaved ham and cheese sliders
Biscuits with honey whiskey butter
Potato and cheese fritters with whiskey BBQ sauce
Caramel bacon bites (um yum)
The venue was awesomely decorated with Christmas wreaths in the window and the atmosphere was lively. You didn’t have to wait in line to get to the drinks or the food and the bartenders really knew their stuff and it was fun to hear their stories, their career records, and their visions for their drinks. We each got a chip to vote for our favorite drink. All of the drinks were pretty darn good and we had a blast trying them all!

Was a really fun night, we enjoyed the lovely handcrafted cocktails and learning about a couple new goodies that we didn’t know about. (Who knew that Knob Creek had a RYE whiskey that is to die for?!)
The cocktails were AWESOME, the food was nice, but it wasn’t very veggie friendly (we were stuck with biscuits, which were super tasty, but not exactly what you want to eat at a party).
Katy is always great at planning fun events, nice job!

As a general rule, I am not much of a hard alcohol drinker. But, I do likes me a good whiskey. So, when I caught wind of the Great Whisk (e)y Throwdown, I knew I wanted to be part of that event.
Happily, my +1 and I made the cut.
I’d never been to the Palace Ballroom and I was excited for the chance to check it out. And, I was excited to check out the bourbon, and the Irish, and the rye, and…
As others have mentioned, the event was very well organized. Each of the six tasting stations featured a different whiskey, a product representative providing information about it, and a bartender whipping up a fabulous cocktail she or he had concocted for it.
All these folks were personable and informative; we learned a lot about how a fine whiskey — and a fine cocktail — are crafted and imbibed in tasty samples of each. (All were lovely. Though, the Irish girl in me agreed with the majority and voted for the 2 Gingers creation.)
Along the way, we enjoyed some lovely Tom Douglas small bites. (Who knew Chicken ‘N Waffles could be a finger food?) All were yummy, but I was particularly taken with the Caramelized Bacon.
The Palace Ballroom provided a comfortable, intimate setting for the occasion. This was a completely fun and relaxing event.
Thanks to Beam for sharing their fine selection of product, to the Palace Kitchen for hosting, and to Katy H for, once again, pulling everything together and creating another outstanding event.

What a fantastic event! Whisk (e)y? Yes please! Bites from Tom Douglas’ kitchen? Don’t mind if I do!
The evening got off to a famous start with some whisky samples, trivia and prizes, courtesy of our hosts from Jim Beam. I especially enjoyed trying the delicious Two Gingers Irish whiskey, which I had never seen before.
Inside the ballroom there were six excellent bartenders from local restaurants mixing six different whiskey cocktails for us to try. All of them were different and delicious in their own way. We got to vote for our favorite and it was a difficult choice. My favorite was the Laphroaig cocktail from Brave Horse Tavern’s bartender Michael MacFarlane (I love a smokey scotch cocktail). Runner-​up for me was the Knob Creek Rye and mulled wine libation from Great Nabob’s Terrence Jackson.
The food was delicious as well, though they could have made things run a little smoother with a couple different serving stations. I especially loved the cheesy croquettes, which came with a tangy, spicy barbecue sauce.

I haven’t had much exposure to whiskey, so what better way to dip my metaphorical toes in the booze bottle than a free! event featuring six different whiskey creations by six awesome bartenders (plus assistants) from six awesome bars/​restaurants around Seattle. The 2Ginger creation by my neighborhood bar, Liberty, was the clear winner all-​around, but I have to give a shout-​out to the smooth Canadian Club whiskey offered up by Rocco’s which was a close contender for my vote. Further praise goes to all of the bartenders who were fun, friendly, and happy to chat even in the face of a swarming horde of Unilocalers and others.
The event space was fairly nice, and had a pretty good flow to it. Keeping the voting out in the front room was a smart move, but having all of the food lined up in one spot didn’t work quite so well. Fortunately, once the initial crush passed, it was pretty easy to go back for additional, tasty nibbles — my absolute favorite being the biscuits, with the caramel apple/​bacon also being delightful.
Throw in some music, friends, and Unilocal swag, and you have a perfectly crafted cocktail of an Elite Event. The food drive/​donation was also a nice touch.

I love Whiskey. Love it, so when I heard the theme for this latest event I couldn’t help but be excited.
6 Whiskeys.
6 Bartenders.
6 cocktails. Who will win?
Well, actually. Liberty and the delicious 2Ginger’s Whiskey did. Both audience choice and professional panel. Kudos to them! Also — 2Ginger’s should have distribution here in January to boot! HOORAY. That was some damn fine Irish Whiskey.
It was a lot of fun chatting up each representative from each distillery. All the bartenders making their competition drinks were super friendly and informative. And Palace kitchen served as a lovely venue for the whole thing. Plus their whiskey themed menu of nibbles? Everything was delicious — the biscuits and chicken & waffle bites being my favorite.
Thanks so much Katy and Beam for throwing this together. Thanks Palace Ballroom for hosting and feeding. Thanks Unilocalers and Industry folks alike for pleasant conversations and a fabulous Monday night.

Oh my craw, corporate liquor industry events. They are reliably the best. Aaaaaaaaand, because Katy is ALSO the best, us lucky Unilocalers got to enjoy the scene!
The set-​up? 6 products from Jim Beam corporate — 2Gingers Irish Whiskey, Canadian Club 12yr, Knob Creek Rye, Devil’s Cut, Laphroaig 10yr, and Maker’s Mark paired with amazing bartenders from Liberty, Rocco’s, the Great Nabob, Rob Roy, Brave Horse, and Tommy Gun. The bartenders were given free reign to create a cocktail and good LORD this former whiskey-​eschewer is now a believer. Elizabeth Powell of Liberty — and her seasonal iterations of 2Gingers — took home my vote (and the overall audience AND the professional panel’s vote). My close second was Terrence Jackson’s (The Great Nabob) combination of Knob Creek with some chilled mulled wine and other goodies.
And did I mention the food? Because this was at Palace Ballroom, which meant Tom Douglas catering. Chicken ‘n waffle bites, delicious ham sliders, AMAZING biscuits, cheesy potato fritters, and candied pork belly with apple. What’s not to like? I was burping whiskey and biscuits (whiscuits?) for hours after.
Thank you Katy for finagling Unilocal in! Thank you Palace Ballroom & staff for hosting! Thank you distillery representatives for being so personable and informative! Thank you Jim Beam for throwing such a fabulous party! Thank you orthography for the exclamation point! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

My goodness. Friendly industry, friendly Unilocalers, top-​of-​their-​game bartenders, and several warm whisky drinks on a frigid day?
I’ve now got a new bar to try (Great Nabob), another demanding re-​visit (Liberty), and cards from many a distributor so I can keep track of when their products are available locally.
Thanks for the event, Beam Inc., Palace Ballroom, and Unilocal

The Whisky Throwdown at The Palace Ballroom was a great event: fabulous Whisky, Food, Friends, Music and of course, those freaking biscuits.
The Palace Ballroom was an excellent environment to enjoy 6 different types of whisky, both neat as well as in a signature cocktail (or two in the case of 2 Gingers). And while Jack Daniels and Jim Beam were always a little more prevalent in the dorm room, it was genuinely nice to sample a few new whiskys to add to the mix.
The notables included: 2 Gingers, Knob Creek Rye, Canadian Club 12 year, Devils Cut, Laphroaig 10yr (which is oh-​so-​peety!) and Maker’s Mark.
The favorite? 2 Gingers. Hands down.
I mean, come on… Elizabeth made her own gastrique!
We learned a little history, I made a few new Unilocaly friends (yay!), I found a new favorite bar to go to (Liberty!), and I ate about 6 biscuits…
All in all, a fantastic start to the week.
Thank you to everyone that made this event possible! Katy, Jim Beam corporate, Tom Douglas, the Palace Ballroom, whoever made those biscuits, all of the judges, the artistic bartenders, the DJ and the super friendly and knowledgeable distillery representatives.
Now all I need is a biscuit and a bottle of 2 Gingers…

This was a fabulous event! My +1 and I had a great time tasting six different cocktail creations by six talented bartenders around Seattle.
We walked in and were immediately greeted by a coat check and received a menu explaining the stations.
The bartenders and the whisk (e)y representatives were incredibly informative and we were able to have tastings of each of their whisk (e)ys in their natural forms. I’ve recently started to enjoy whisk (e)y beverages, so it was fun for me to learn which ones I liked and actually get a chance to compare them side by side.
The food was delicious and perfect to munch on while we had drinks galore: chicken & waffles, ham sandwiches, biscuits with honey butter, cheese & potato fritters with BBQ sauce, and candied pork belly & apples. At one point, there was a group of people lingering around the food station, waiting for more chicken & waffles to be served. (I might have been one of them)
At the end of the night, Elizabeth Powell from Liberty took home both the judges’ and Unilocalers’ votes for best cocktail with her two 2 Gingers cocktail creations.
HUGE thanks to Katy, Jim Beam, and Palace Ballroom for putting together such a wonderful event!
And we can’t forget to thank the talented bartenders for their creativity, enthusiasm, and pure AWESOMENESS:
Elizabeth Powell (Liberty, 2 Gingers Irish Whiskey)
Leroy Thomas (Rocco’s, Canadian Club 12 yr)
Terrence Jackson (Great Nabob, Knob Creek Rye)
Añu Apte (Rob Roy, Devil’s Cut)
Michael MacFarlane (Brave Horse Tavern, Laphroaig 10 yr)
Andrew Dalan (Tommy Gun, Maker’s Mark)
I’m also glad we had the opportunity to donate some food to Northwest Harvest and give back a little, for all the events we are able to atttend as Unilocalers.
This Whisk (e)y Throwdown was so much fun! Let’s make it an annual event!
(I still haven’t decided if I like the «e» in whisk (e)y). I’ll report back to you next year…

Seattle rocks! Katie H rocks! Just wished I met some Seattle Unilocalers during this event. Since it wasn’t hosted by Unilocal,it was hard to tell who were Unilocalers without the usual name tag.
Thank you Beam Global for the invites! The event was well organized and it actually started on time. The booth by the check-​in was informative and provided great swags. Love it!
The six whiskey competitors all provided tasty treats. I voted for 2 Gingers Irish Whiskey who also happened to be the winner of the night! I am definitely gonna visit Elizabeth Powell again at The Liberty when I return. Thanks for teaching me how to make your drink, it was delicious!!!
I’m so happy and grateful I was able to attend this event; the perks of being part of the Unilocal community! Till next time Seattle!!!

You know you’re a REAL adult when you stop going to clubs and staying out till the wee hours of Friday night, drinking like a fish (which is a totally weird expression anyway because fish don’t drink) and getting hit on by (and potentially making out with) random dudes.
Instead, you go to a whiskey tasting on Monday night. Right after work and done at a decent hour, because everyone needs to be at work in the morning. Whisky, not wine… we don’t wanna be uppity or snobbish! And we take a few shots here and there, combined with some yummy bites of slider and chicken&waffles on a toothpick. No one needs to end up puking in an alley on the way home. We’re classy, yo.
I learned a lot about whisk (e)y, which is not necessarily my drink of choice but which can apparently be combined with a lot of interesting stuff (habanero? Caramelized pineapple?). I met some cool people. I cast a vote on the best cocktail of the night. In short, I really enjoyed myself, and from what I could see, everyone else did too.

The cocktails were delicious and the event was really well-​planned! We got to try each whiskey straight, and then in a cocktail crafted by local bartenders. Every station had a little story to tell about the flavors, and the Devil’s Cut lady even set her pot on fire (how’s that for a hellish drink??). Some whiskeys were better to me than others of course, and my favorite one was the Canadian 12 year.
The hot food bar had lots of variety and really good Dahlia biscuits with honey. SO DELICIOUS. The DJ was playing throwback hits and the Beam guy had jokes for days. On the way out, we casted our votes for faves and we answered a trivia question to win a tiny Maker’s Mark holiday sweater!
Great event, hope this becomes an annual EE!

My date & I thoroughly enjoyed our evening at this event. We are whisky and scotch lovers, so we were in hog heaven. I loved the hot foods (especially the chicken and waffles), the DJ, the emcee, the lay out and the coat check. VERY well planned! The only downside was choosing ONE winner!
Elizabeth from Liberty on Cap Hill was the most personable bartender with an unforgettable representation of 2 Ginger’s Irish Whiskey. But I personally loved Brave HorseTavern’s luscious libation from Laphroaig’s 10yr scotch — 3 stages of mixology heaven!!! Then to warm up with the Jim Beam’s Devilish Apple Cider concoction and end it with my personal fave, Maker’s Mark.