Why Great Drinks Ideas Need a Little Lunacy | Philip Duff

The BanterThe Guys revisit an incident involving an older Burgundy, a decanter and a difference of opinion. The ConversationThe Restaurant Guys have Philip Duff on the show to hear about his genever.  The conversation winds into Irish whiskey, Batavia Arrack, and a special vodka endorsed by an action film star whom Philip is teaching to bartend. The Inside TrackThe Guys have crossed paths with globe-traveling Philip Duff for decades. Philip has had his hand in many aspects of the bar world and here is what he thinks is the key to making it in this wild and wonderful industry.“You build something, be it a brand, be it a bar and people are right to tell you it's crazy because if it was a good idea, well, why didn't anybody else do it? But without lunatics, we don't get Teslas and Stage Left Steak and Old Duff Geneva and Door 74, right? A certain degree of lunacy has to be baked in,” Philip Duff on The Restaurant Guys Podcast 2025BioPhilip Duff began bartending at 15 in his native Ireland. In addition to working behind bars, he became an educator of spirits, bartending and cocktails and teaches at many spirits and cocktail conventions. He began Liquid Solutions, the on-trade consultancy. He founded Holland’s first speakeasy bar, Door 74 in Amsterdam, and owns the award-winning Old Duff Genever brand. Philip has published articles in Drinks International, CLASS magazine, Imbibe UK, Mixology (Germany), Australian Bartender, and Reuters. He also served as the educational director for Tales of the Cocktail and judged for the IWSR, the World’s 50 Best Bars, and the Spirited Awards.InfoOld Duff Geneverhttp://www.oldduffgenever.com/Philip’s podcasthttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-philip-duff-show/id1614308846Francis demonstrates decanting Burgundyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8MdkUr5dBAWe're bringing our kitchen to the farm!Join us at Dreyer Farms in Cranford, NJ for a Table-to-Farm Dinner.Sunday, September 13 @ 5:30https://www.stageleft.com/event/91326-table-to-farm-dinner/ Subscribe: Restaurant Guys' Regularhttps://restaurantguysregulars.buzzsprout.com/Magyar Bankhttps://www.magbank.com/Stage Left Wine Shophttps://www.stageleftwineshop.com/Our PlacesStage Left Steakhttps://www.stageleft.com/Catherine Lombardi Restauranthttps://www.catherinelombardi.com/Stage Left Wineshophttps://www.stageleftwineshop.com/Reach Out to The [email protected]