Kitty Hoyne's

There is an Irish pub in downtown Syracuse, on the edge of Armory Square, that has the best selection of whiskies, especially malt whiskies, I’ve ever seen in upstate NY. It’s called Kitty Hoyne’s Irish Pub. Scotch whisky, Irish whisky, American ryes and bourbons, the works. The selection is so extensive, they have a whisky menu that runs about twelve pages, much longer than the menu for dining.

A couple weeks ago, Matt and I stopped in for a quick lunch before a trip to the dome, where we watched the Cuse get their butts whipped. Now it’s a good idea to have a drink or two to prepare you for watching an event like that. I recalled reading in Jackson’s guide about a peated Irish malt, but could not remember the name. So I asked the server if she knew which one of the Irish whiskies was peated. She came back with the bottle of Connemara, which I then recognized, after which she returned with a glass and a little flask of water on the side. Not bad, considering that Connemara doesn’t even appear in Kitty Hoyne’s twelve page menu. Another great thing about the bar is that they serve flights, not only flights of beers, which we’ve seen at other bars and brew-pubs, but flights of whiskies. How much fun is that?

Last weekend we had a family wedding in Syracuse, and rather than stay out by the thruway, we stayed at the Hawthorne in Armory Square, definitely a fun place to spend the weekend. Friday night we went to Kitty Hoyne’s and after trying several beers with dinner, and a malt or two, we stumbled across a wonderful pot-still Irish malt – Red Breast. Twelve years old, and finished in sherry casks, it was a touch sweeter than Scotch whisky finished in sherry – think of Macallan 12, or Aberlour 15. But its most distinctive characteristic was a fragrant fruity nose, an aroma that really enhanced the entire drink. After dinner, we ended up at the bar, listening to Irish music, watching game seven of the World Series, and continuing to enjoy Irish malts.

The next day, in the down time between the wedding and the reception, we found ourselves back at Kitty Hoyne’s, mainly because Tiffany’s new boyfriend likes scotch whisky and was expressing enthusiasm about a visit to this bar. Before long we were joined by Tiffany, Delilah, Marsha and their grandmom, all of us tasting a variety of malts, including Macallan, and Lagavulin, and our new best friend, Red Breast. In no time, we were in the perfect mood for celebrating cousin Amy’s wedding.

So G, when you come upstate, we’ll meet you in the Cuse, where you and I can sample the great selection of Scotch and Irish whisky, and then back in Rochester, we’ll pay a visit to my man Ben at Whitehouse, where you can leave a dollar or two in exchange for a few bottles to bring back to New Jersey. Now I know this isn’t as good as a visit to the Bronx or Kenmore square, to watch a baseball game, but it’s not a bad way to spend a weekend.