We knew right away our Sunday in Burlington was going to be a bit of a wash. The weather forecast was calling for rain all day and that left us with limited options. We could have tried to leave the city, but the weather pattern that was bringing the rain was spread across the whole state of Vermont. We were basically stuck.
Given our predicament, and foresight,
The theater itself was quite old, you could tell just by looking at it. I mean check out the decor in the photo above. If that doesn't scream 80's or 90's, I don't know what does. The fabric on the seats was worn and the whole place smelled a bit like cat piss if I am being honest.
We took our seats at the back of the small theater and settled in for the show. It was mostly older folks that were joining us to watch "Killers of the Flower Moon" on this rainy Sunday. There was an older lady ahead of us to the left that was talking very loudly on her phone. She was apparently some kind of lawyer and was dealing with a crisis.
We thought sure she was going to talk through the whole movie, but she graciously ended her call before it started and we didn't hear another peep from her.
The Movie
The movie itself was pretty spectacular. At over three and a half hours, it was the perfect way to spend a good chunk of our day. The acting is phenomenal, Scorsece did a great job with the directing and the story itself is absolutely heartbreaking.
I had read an article before watching the movie about how the author of the book went down to Oklahoma simply to start investigating the story of the Osage tribe and how they became one of the richest groups of people in the world after the oil boom that happened on their land.
It wasn't until he got there and started investigating that he slowly uncovered the whole story. I'm not going to spoil it for you, you will have to watch the movie or read about it yourself. The fact that the movie is based on true events is beyond sad. If you can find a good four hours to set aside, I highly recommend you watch the movie.
I have heard that some theaters were putting an intermission in the middle of the movie just to make it easier for the audience. Ours did not.
After the movie, we headed back to our hotel room so we could freshen up before our dinner reservation at Bluebird Barbecue.
The Whiskey Room
After our great dinner at Bluebird BBQ, we decided to spend a little time in downtown Burlington before we headed back to our hotel for the night. There was a place on one of the corners that I had seen in our exploration called The Whiskey Room. Being the whiskey fan that I am, I knew we needed to check it out.
While not being a true speakeasy, it definitely had that feel to it. Lots of wood paneling, dim lighting, and an atmosphere and libations to keep you warm and cozy all night.
There was a group of people at the bar who were clearly regulars here and then throughout the place were groups of others who seemed to be a mix of out of towners and locals. In the back room past the glass case on the left in the photo above was a large group that were cheering for either the hockey or football game that was on.
In the front area, there were no TV's.
For example, if you want to cater to the right clientele, you need to carry some high end whisky's and getting your hands on those or being able to afford them can be difficult. The Whiskey Room did offer food, but we have been to places before that do not and cutting that expense out could make it easier to get off the ground.
It's kind of hard to see in the photo, but in this cabinet were some of their more expensive bottles. They also had bottles behind the booths that were in a glass cabinet that ranged all the way back to 30 or 40 years old.
This was one of the few places I have been to where they had whisky's on the menu that were $500 per pour or more. I don't like spending more than $80 on a bottle most the time, so I can't even imagine what a whiskey is like that costs hundreds of dollars for a dram.
We had planned on having only one drink and then moving along, but we ended up staying for several and finally headed back to the hotel from here.
The photo didn't come out great, but I started with a local rye from Vermont that wasn't too expensive. They had some offerings from the local Smugglers Notch distillery, but since I had already purchased a bottle of that to take home, I decided to try something else.
I can't recall now what it was I got, but it was nice. I got it on the rocks and I was happy to see they used the single large ice cubes like I have at home.
While it was good, it wasn't my favorite taste of the night.
That honor would have to go to the drink you saw in the opening and the one you see above. My first ever dram of Macallan 12. I've been wanting to try this for a long time, but I have never been able to bring myself to buy a bottle of it. It retails for around $80 where I live, so that is just at the top of my comfort zone price wise.
I decided to get it neat so I could really appreciate the flavors. Plus, when you are spending over $20 for a glass, it felt a little wrong to have them put ice in it. Then again, the old saying goes that "the best way to drink whiskey is however you like it".
I have to admit, this one blew my socks off. I can understand why it gets such high regards and why the older offerings from Macallan are some of the most expensive in the world.
It was delicious with a plethora of flavor notes to assault the senses. I'd love to try some of the older offerings from Macallan one day if I can ever afford it. Maybe after the next bull run?!
While one of the trends in bourbons these days is barrel strength offerings that have such a high alcohol content, this whisky has a reasonable abv and made it quite easy to enjoy it neat.
While this probably isn't the Sunday we would have hoped for while on vacation, we made the most of it and ended up having a really great and memorable day!
If you make it to Burlington, I highly recommend you stop into The Whiskey Room on the corner of College and Church streets next to City Hall Park.
Sports Talk Social - @bozz.sports
All pictures/screenshots taken by myself or