- The former Pump Room may be getting a new name. The new owner of the Ambassador East, Ian Schrager, has announced that the public will get to decide on the new name. The Sun-Times reports that the name will either be "The Pump Room" or "Gold Coast Kitchen," possibly the least inspiring name ever. We vote for Pump Room - keep the icon alive - and you can too. Votes will be taken online until June 22, at which time the name will be chosen. more ›

When mixologist Adam Seger of hum Botanical Spirits was tapped to devise a cocktail menu for the wrap party celebrating the Oprah Winfrey show's series finale taping, held Tuesday night at the Four Seasons Hotel, he mustered a spread with pomp fitting of the occasion. A dose of that "look under your seat" penchant for drama, if you will. Well, that plus about 18,000 fruit "caviar pearls" and a host of other fanciful goodies. more ›

Whether you are moving into your first home, trying to jump into the craft cocktail craze or just looking to improve your home mixing, choosing bottles for your home bar can be confusing and expensive. To help you out, Chicagoist will sit down with some of Chicago's best booze experts and get their opinions about what to stock, what brands are worth trying, and how to make your home bar complete. For the first entry, we chose vodkas with The Boozehound, Kyle McHugh. more ›

Drinks Over Dearborn, Kyle McHugh's hidden gem of a wine shop in River North, announced today that they'll permanently close the doors on December 31 after a roller coaster ride of over two years that saw McHugh come up with some of the most creative ways we've ever witnessed to keep the store open. more ›

For a city that raises its bartenders to the level of some chefs, Chicago put on a decidedly weak display last year for World Cocktail Week. The anemic list of events was not lost on Drinks Over Dearborn's Kyle McHugh, whose "Speakeasy Over Dearborn" was, by default, the best of last year's events. more ›

Two weeks ago Drinks Over Dearborn owner Kyle McHugh, facing the closure of his River North liquor store, unable to pay his vendors and receive a small business loan to float him until his books were in the black, announced an ambitious plan to raise funds to keep the store open long enough for his projected profits to start to show. The "500 Benjamins or Bust" campaign was created to raise the necessary funds for McHugh to pay off his creditors, but only if DoD was able to find 500 customers to open $100 accounts with the store. If McHugh couldn't reach that goal, DoD would close its doors March 5. more ›

Drinks Over Dearborn was transformed into a modern speakeasy last night, in honor of World Cocktail Week. All guests at the event had different passwords to gain entry to the boutique liquor shop. Owner Kyle McHugh set up a blackjack table, an absinthe room, a blues band in the main room and had bartenders mixing some very potent cocktails. Guests were given a gambling chip to use at the blackjack table. The top three winners won his or her choice of the liquors used to make the cocktails. Meanwhile, the backing band for Shirley King (B.B.'s daughter) played in McHugh's main room. more ›

World Cocktail Week 2009 started yesterday, and what's shaping up to be the major local event in honor of this is "Speakeasy Over Dearborn." From 9 p.m. until midnight Monday, Kyle McHugh is turning his Drinks Over Dearborn boutique liquor store and salon (650 N. Dearborn, 312-337-9463) into a speakeasy, complete with password entry. If you don't know the password, you don't get in. more ›

When it comes to liquor stores we tend to be equal opportunity. We'll search high and low, near and far, for the best deals at stores large and small. While the boxy superstores like Sam's, Binny's and Armanetti's have their merits, the smaller stores are noted for their more personal touch. The LUSH Wine & Spirits locations in University and Roscoe Villages are wonderful for customers because they can sample practically everything LUSH has to offer and will work with customers to acquire hard-to-find wine, beer and spirits. more ›

Goose Island brewmaster Greg Hall has been telling anyone who will listen that "sour is the new hoppy." It's unsurprising to find Goose Island at the vanguard of what's becoming a shift in American craft brewing. Breweries like Goose Island, Dogfish Head and Jolly Pumpkin are shifting from boldly hopped ales to experimental fermentation, brewing with fruit, and aging for long periods of time in whisky or wine casks. The template now is not how thick a beer can be, but how tart can you make it. India Pale ales and Extra Strong Bitters are taking a back seat to lambics, saisons, krieks and brett yeasts. more ›