Celebrate February 5th--National Pisco Day!

Need a reason to venture out in the cold and rain and sleet? Looking for a February holiday unspoiled by Hallmark or memories of your ex?

Head out tonight, February 5 (or really, any cold winter's evening), to celebrate and warm up with an array of signature cocktails showcasing Pisco--Peru's national spirit--created by a dozen to DC's top mixologists. Most famously found in the foamy, potent, Pisco Sour; diverse, creative Pisco cocktails will be highlighted this weekend--and at several locations throughout the month of February. All around town, competitors will be highlighting a plethora of creative Pisco concoctions all created for Macchu Picchu Pisco's “100th Anniversary of the Encounter of Machu Picchu with Western World” Pisco competition, as judged by Peruvian Ambassador Luis Valdivieso and a panel of both Peruvian and local cocktail professionals.

Try overall winner Jason of Rasika's “Chicho Morado” (featuring Peruvian purple chicho liquor and a crunchy Quinoa topper) or one of our our personal favorites--Jordan of our U Street favorite Policy’s bacon-infused “Bacon and Eggs;” Clinton from Old Town Restaurant Eve’s dual chile-spiked “Tusan;” and Dean of new Midtown-hotspot Dirty Martini’s Pisco-Coca liquor fusion “Picchu Chasqui.” (We are big Agwa de Bolivia fans, here at DC Gastronome).

Also delicious and a fabulous deal—Ceiba’s Alex unveiled his dangerously tasty “Pisco Morado” which will be featured at five dollar Pisco happy hours every Wednesday. And, we’ll definitely be hitting Blue Duck Tavern for the brunch-ready, foamy basil-passion fruit Park Pisco and Mio for a pomegranate Pisco Sour Rojo to wash down one of their Friday night lechon feasts.

The rundown: try Pisco for the first time, or get to know it in a whole new way at:

• Chef Geoff’s; yerba mate-infused Gaucho Pisco; created by Elli Benchimol
• Majestic Café (Presentation Winner); South Asian fusion Punjabi Sour; created by Michael Saccone
• Rasika (Overall Winner); Chicho Morado; created by Jason Strich
• Mio; pomegranate delight Pisco Sour Rojo; created by Sarah Stafford
• Dirty Martini; coca-herbal-citrusy Picchu Chasqui; created by Dean Feddaoui
• Ceiba; chicho-chile-sour cherry Pisco Morado; created by Alex Batista
• Restaurant Eve (Relevance Winner) (Old Town Alexandria); Meyer lemon-agave-chile infused Tusan; created by Clinton Terry
• Blue Duck Tavern; basil-passion fruit infused Park Pisco; created by Robert-Rex Wallen
• Imperio Inca (Taste Winner) (Norfolk, VA); a sweet potato infused Imperio Sour we will definitely be stopping in for on our next trip South; created by Carlos Espinoza
• Woody’s Rum Bar (Baltimore, MD); basil-orange-agave Macchu Bingham; created by Bill Irvin
• Policy; brunch-in-a-glass bacon washed Macchu Pisco, maple syrup, cayenne Bacon and Eggs; created by Jordan Davidowitz
• Founding Farmers; grapefruit, chipotle, agave Inspiracion; created by Josh Tugjnyam

No matter where you choose to get your Pisco fix, we can guarantee you'll go home comfortably toasty, no matter the weather.