This March, I was blown away by the creativity of some of the best bars in the world. Not only were they making cocktails, but they were saving the planet. On the 17 and 18th of March 2024, the third edition of the Paradiso Sustainability Summit, organized by Giacomo Giannotti and his team, in partnership with Ketel One Vodka through their Garnishe…

Last episode of Lush Life celebrating the last 7+ years of my favorites: Aimee-Jo Benoit, Kenna Burima, Rita Payés & Elisabeth Roma, Emily Steinwall, Ostara Project, The Westerlies, Sophie Alour, Caity Gyorgy & Mark Limacher, Sean Mason, Melissa Pipe Sextet & Melissa Pipe, Gretchen Parlato & Lionel Loueke, Dominique Fils-Aimé, Endea Owens, Audrey O…

The butterfly effect is the idea that small things can have non-linear impacts on a complex system. The concept is imagined with a butterfly flapping its wings and causing a typhoon. Our butterfly, in this case, is one small sip of bourbon. That specific sip of bourbon started off a chain reaction that would see not only the world of drinks but the…

Celebrating the best of the last 7+ years of Lush Life featuring: Nicky Schrire, Gabi Hartmann, Julieta Eugenio, Christina Von Bülow, Mariel Bildsten, Who Cares, Ana Carla Maza, Asher Gamedze, Turboprop, Jihye Lee Orchestra, The Heavyweights Brass Band, Freak Motif, Lettuce, Hedvig Mollestad Trio, and Jacob Chung Playlist: Nicky Schrire - Love Is f…

Jocelyn Gould, Resistance Revival Chorus, Hutchinson Andrew Trio, Baritone Madness, Aretha Tillotson, Maridalen, Way North, Jennifer Wharton, Claire Daly & George Garzone, Kati Briens Dream Band, Anne Mette Iversen's Ternion Quartet, Nicole Glover, Rosa Brunello, Yazz Ahmed, Maurice Louca & Marco Frattini, Jamie Branch, Emma Donovan & The Putbacks,…

I think relaunch is the word of the moment. It is Spring, after all. Not only will I be relaunching Season 8 of Lush Life, bringing you exciting episodes about sustainability, horse racing, the Beatles, absinthe, and so much more! But the big news is I have just re-launched my cocktail tours in London’s Soho- Long story but I first started them in …

Playing all my faves from the last 7+ years on the show: Fred Hersch & Esperanza Spalding, Tricia Edwards, Jen Hodge All Stars, Evan Arntzen, Emmet Cohen, Jorge Roeder, Nina Simone, Lauren Sevian, Ariane Racicot, Melissa Weikert, Toronto Tabla Ensemble, Teri Parker, The Sons of Kemet, abd Brad Turner Quartet. Playlist: Fred Hersch & Esperanza Spald…

Few people would have the courage to leave a very secure future in academia for a very uncertain life behind the bar. Our guest did, and he has never looked back. Are you crazy for Thomas Shelby and also have a passion for Japanese Whisky? Do you have no clue who Thomas Shelby is but love your Japanese whisky? Or do you not know either about Thomas…

You asked for it, and you got it - all of you kind people who filled out my survey asked for more interviews with more legends. Our guest is the world's most-awarded bartender & bar owner. If Mr Lyan isn’t a legend, I don’t know who is. If you call yourself a cocktail connoisseur, then you will have come upon the name Mr Lyan in your travels. Ryan …

Throughout history, artists and writers have been drawn to the Northern Italian hill town of Asolo; some say it’s because it’s the “city of a hundred horizons,” I think it’s because it’s the home of Asolo Prosecco! At one time, you might have caught a glimpse of poet Robert Browning, actress Elenora Duse, or writer Freya Stark sitting enjoying a gl…

School is back, and a new season of Lush Life commences! How exciting! I’m Susan Schwartz, your drinking companion, and this is the Lush Life Podcast, every week we are inspired to live life one cocktail at a time. Yes, next Tuesday, I bring you the first episode of Season 8 of Lush Life. This season, we’ll have even more great conversations, enjoy…

Just when you thought my season was over, I’m surprising you with a little mid-summer episode dedicated to a place and spirit I love. If you’ve been listening to Lush Life for a while, you would probably know that I love Venice. If you are a first-timer to Lush Life, I'll say it again I love Venice! So how excited am I to be joined by my friend Rud…

What a great way to start the summer by celebrating with a guest whose job it is to celebrate the best of the best. Mark Sansom has been Director of Content at The World’s 50 Best Bars, 50 Best Discovery, The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, and soon to be the World’s 50 Best Hotels for the past 5 very momentous years! Today he guides us through a bit …

Join Christian Jensen, Founder of Jensen’s Gin on a journey to create a gin that harks back to the vintage gins he revered. Who would have thought that sitting in a bar in Tokyo you might sip a gin that reminded you why you fell in love with the spirit in the first place? Christian Jensen dreamt about gins gone by until the fateful sip….and upon re…

Are you ready to be comfortable with discomfort? Our guest was. Now after nearly 25 years in the Guinness and beer space, he’s making a name for himself in the spirit world. Jason Kidd, founder of Outcast Brands, spent most of his career trotting around the globe working with beer; now he’s home in Ireland making Blood Monkey gin and Two Shores Rum…

As if organizing the biggest cocktail week in the world isn’t enough, my two guests have created the Michelin guide for the drinks industry! More than 10 years ago, Hannah Sharman-Cox and Siobhan Payne joined forces and made London Cocktail Week what it is today. Every cocktail lover’s favorite week of the year, including mine! It’s been running co…

What cocktail combines three days of activities, collaborations, guest shifts, and seminars in Barcelona and bar industry legends from some of the most famous bars in the world with one serious message? That would be the Paradiso Sustainability Summit 2023. On 21, 22, and 23 March 2023, I was fortunate to attend the second edition of the Paradiso S…

How many of us can’t wait to leave home, but then circumstances involving a global pandemic sent us right back to where we began. Joining on this episode, sponsored by Louisiana Tourism, is Olivia Stewart, President of Oxbow Rum Distillery. After a childhood surrounded by sugar cane, she thought her future was in the big city. Now she is helming he…

Do you remember Plato’s work, Symposium? Yep, that took place at a drinks party. Philosopher David Hume said that drinking was an antidote to philosophical depression, and Kierkegaard wrote an entire treatise on wine. Our guest today is another student of philosophy who found her calling in the drinks industry. I am so pleased to have my friend and…

You’ve finally done it - opened your bar, launched your spirit, won your first cocktail competition. So now what do you do? Time to call today’s guests! Since the moment I met them, Alex Chatwin and Alex Irving, Co-Founders of LX PR, have been Lush Life’s number-one fans, and it is such a privilege to have them on the program with me. These women h…