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The right vermouth can make or break a drink

If you’re a Manhattan or Negroni drinker, you don’t need to be told that the vermouth used in either should be just as good as the…

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You can’t please everyone – even at a bar

“Can you put the debate on?” asked someone clearly clueless as to how bars function. Want to see a fight? Mix booze and politics. Every bartender…

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Don’t listen to everyone’s ‘advice’

“You guys know what you should do?” asked the man standing two people back, wedged in sideways. He didn’t even know where or how to stand…

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San Anselmo man the driving force behind Kendric Vineyards

To say that Kendric Vineyards is off the beaten track is a gross understatement. It’s maybe 2 miles west of Highway 101, but that too is…

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My therapist says I should apologize

It was awkward from the get-go. Both women sat staring straight ahead with their hands clasped in their laps. Were they sisters? Or were they friends?…

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Is this for business, or for pleasure?

The stage of seduction was set, as it so often is, with both soft lighting and soft music. Wine was flowing, cocktails were being had and…

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4 red wines for autumn

It rained the other day, and if the smell of the woods after the first rain can be called petrichor, the smell of the freeway after…

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Offense can’t be taken if it isn’t heard

“Why didn’t you bring me any sugar?” asked the woman sitting by herself at the end of the bar. I scanned her place setting: appetizer plate,…

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Some bar patrons can’t see the forest for the trees

“I should write a book,” said the woman unbidden by anyone. In fact, it was such a non sequitur that two people turned away from her…

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4 refreshing drinks to make this summer

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet,” once opined William Shakespeare. But would it taste…

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The Press Loves “Twenty Years Behind Bars”

Top 25 iBooks Bestseller

Top 100 Amazon Bestseller

“more about mixing people than drinks”
Christopher Kimball America’s Test Kitchen

“racy and innocent”
Marin Independent Journal

“insightful writing about bar culture and human nature”
SF Examiner

“the best stories are of the clueless at their worst behavior — often before they’ve ordered their first drink” “juicier reads than you would find in the pages of a family newspaper”
Patch

“a book of riotous stories”
The Bold Italic

“great book, quite funny, and includes recipes!”
Joel Riddell, Dining Around, NewsTalk 910

“I love this book. It's insightful, sometimes laugh-out-loud funny, and includes expert cocktail recipes, too!”
Erika Lenkert, author of Last-Minute Party Girl and Raw: the Uncook Book

“Served straight up, with humor, irreverence and a one-of-a-kind perspective, Twenty Years Behind Bars takes us up close into the life of bars, bartenders, and those who frequent both. To get any closer, you'd need be an olive in one of Burkhart's martini glasses.”
Kimberley Lovato, author of the award winning cookbook, Walnut Wine & Truffle Groves

All Content Copyright 2025 Jeff Burkhart, All Rights Reserved