Welcome to another edition of the Podcast Sommelier! I’m Ashley and I’m the co-host of The Kindred Spirit podcast, which is available on the podcaster of your choice. On The Kindred Spirit, we explore history, one drink at a time. (Sneak peak – we just finished our shandy episode and our next one will be about Japanese beer!) But here I recommend a new podcast and a wonderful libation for you to consume, while enjoying that podcast.
This is one I’ve been wanting to recommend for a while since they have a graphic novel coming out this week and I’m going to the New York show during their book tour! So it seemed like the perfect time to recommend this podcast. This time I’m recommending two starting points but really this is a long haul podcast. Plan your road trips, cross country flights, boring classes now and it’s time…….for……THE ADVENTURE ZONE!!!!
Yes the first Mcelroy podcast. For those of your who don’t know the Mcelroy’s, they are the first family of podcasting. Justin, Travis and Griffin Mcelroy started My Brother, My Brother, and Me, an advice show for the modern era, in 2010. And they have created a podcast army. Collectively they have around 11 podcasts. I’m sure that these good good boys will be popping up again in the Podcast Sommelier. But we aren’t talking about their other shows, we are talking about The Adventure Zone!
In 2014 during Justin’s paternity leave from My Brother, My Brother and Me, they wanted to do something different and easy for a sleep deprived new dad. So they have their dad, Clint, on and record themselves all playing Dungeons & Dragons. And the Adventure Zone was born! Later that year, they decided to make it a biweekly podcast and create their own feed.
The Adventure Zone is a narrative podcast broken up into chapters. The first arc is the Balance Arc, which is broken up into chapters. Each chapter is a different tale/story leading up to the final. When Claudia Berger, my co-host, recommended this to me ages ago, she told me to start with Chapter 1: Here there be Gerblins. Now I’m going to give you the same advice she gave me … “Stay with it!” In the first chapter they are using a pre-made adventure and it can be a little rough and there are a lot of rules. The boys are trying to figure out how to play. It can get a little frustrating. But Griffin, as the Dungeon Master, knows how to tell a story and when he starts to create his own stories … it’s breathtaking. He creates a world so realistic that I legitimately started crying on the train while listening to the finale. While Griffin creates the Balance Arc, Justin, Travis and Clint inhabit the world. It’s amazing listening to them grow their characters and bond with each other. Justin plays Taako (pronounced taco), the wizard. Travis plays Magnus Burnside, the fighter (and my favorite). Clint play Merle Highchurch, the cleric. Throughout the 69 (noice!) episodes and the three years it took to tell this arc, the story grows as well. My favorite chapter is Petals to the Metal or Murder on the Rockport Limited. Petals to the Metal is a Fury Road/Fast ‘n’ Furious homage while Murder on the Rockport Limited is an Agatha Christie murder mystery.
When the Balance Arc is complete, the boys decided to mix up the format and retired their characters. Merle, Taako, & Magnus still show up at live shows. Clint and Travis each got to DM their own small arc (five episodes). Clint did “Commitment Arc” a superhero themed arc, with Griffin, Justin and Travis playing different roles. Travis did “Dust” a supernatural Wild West/steampunk murder mystery, with Justin, Clint, & Griffin playing different roles.
Griffin tried out his new story “Amnesty” for five episodes. And then they decided to continue with that story. So the new arc is called Amnesty, which is based off the Monster of the Week system. Justin plays Duck Newton (the chosen one), Travis plays Aubrey “The Lady Flame” Little, and Clint plays Edmund ‘Ned’ Chicane. While the story is just getting going, it is just as entertaining and spooky.
I actually created this drink for Claudia and I’s finale listening party. We had tacos and I made a cocktail. The cocktail is called “The Red Robe Rumble”, it’s based on the bramble.
Directions:
- 2 ounces of Gin
- ½ ounce of simple syrup
- To make simple syrup just add equal parts boiling water to sugar and stir until sugar is dissolved. Once cooled then add it to the drink
- ½ ounce of Creme de Cassis (Blackcurrant liqueur)
- This was also used in The Quenchening cocktail
- Add a splash of St. Germaine Elderflower Liquor
- Garnish with a Blackberry and Lemon
Add the gin, simple syrup and creme de cassis to your shaker full of ice, shake until cold and then strain into an ice filled old fashioned glass.
If you have finished the Balance Arc and want to turn the drink into “Lup’s Light ‘Em Up” add an extra shot of gin, cause you will get lit!
Thanks for joining me and we’ll see you next month for another edition of the Podcast Sommelier. Feel free to add your suggestions for a next episode in the comments below or reach out to me on Twitter at anwarren87. If you make this cocktail or see a cool cocktail/beer/drink in the wild, use the hashtag #KindredSips to be featured on our Instagram or Twitter. Check out the Kindred Spirit on Instagram, Twitter, and the podcaster of your choice! Be sure to rate & review!
Comments are closed.