I went to the big giant whiskey bash, WhiskyX, a couple weeks ago. A hybrid whiskey tasting slash concert by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys and The Arcs, this was a Millennial’s dream combo.

First off, my friends Steve, Johnny and I got there early so we had access to some free bites. Johnny, who wasn’t on a media pass but had a VIP ticket, also received $10 to the food trucks outside, and $25 for an Uber back home. A GREAT thing for us, because our ride back to Harlem together was only $21 from the event (which was in RED HOOK).

After we shoved a bunch of food in our faces, we went on the hunt for the best whiskey of the night. I was overstimulated by all the vendors, and hopped from one to the other VERY quickly.  Too quickly? Nah.

A few stops we made were at Johnny Walker Red Label – where you could mix your own scotch & soda drink. SO CUTE. I made mine with tonic water, a lime and a sprig of mint. WHY NOT?

I hopped over to Teeling Whiskey – my new fave since I stumbled upon the distillery while I was in Ireland. They use leftover wine casks to distill their whiskey! Delish.

Next up, Guinness. I just love Guinness. They know what they’re doing over there. For this event, they partnered with Bulleit Bourbon to give out Boilermakers (beer and bourbon drinks!)

I also met this guy. Major highlight.

I loved the fact that there was a Women & Whiskies section. Tried a few whiskies there that had a different flair than the rest, like the spicy Forty Creek.

Johnny and I tried our first Scotch Eggs. #BabysFirstEggs

Then, we met our favorite whiskey. I mean, what’s more solid than The Macallan Rare Cask? Too bad I’m never drinking it again because the bottle is $350…

After a couple of hours of drinking and meeting new friends, and collecting free keychains and T-shirts, the concert area opened up and we were ushered in. We were paying attention, so were only three rows back from the stage. Dan Auerbach came out and basically did his ENTIRE new album, Waiting on a Song, with a band of oldies but goodies. He was no-nonsense. I mean, no opener, right on time…solid performance by a solid performer.

While I would definitely go again, a few improvements could be made. For example, I went through the media line with ease, but some of my friends were held back by some confusion in the line. It took them a little longer to get in even though they had VIP tickets. VIP tickets cost $75, and while they received the Uber and Food benefits if they arrived before 7pm, there was no difference between the tickets throughout the event.

Either way, we all had fun. I would have been pleased with the $50 general admission cost – a full live concert by Dan Auerbach PLUS a whiskey event beforehand? So worth it. 

Anyone else attend? How was your experience? Check out a Dan Auerbach video clip from his concert on my Insta: @maryinmanhattan.