Dusty Booze: In Search of Vintage Spirits

On Thurs. September 26, 2024,6-8 p.m., in collaboration with the Norwalk Historical Society, the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum will present award-winning author Aaron Goldfarb for an illustrated talk and book signing titled, “Dusty Booze: In Search of Vintage Spirits.” This event will be held at Mill Hill, 2 East Wall Street, Norwalk, CT.Spirits tasting and a signature cocktail will be offered following the presentation courtesy of SoNo 1420 America’s Maritime Distillery, South Norwalk, CT.  Mr. Goldfarb’s book, published by Abrams Books, will be available for purchase at the event through Diane’s Books, Greenwich, CT.To reserve tickets, attendees can visit the Events page on the Museum’s website at www.lockwoodmathewsmansion.com/events. Admission is $35 for LMMM members, $45 for non-members. Lecture Chair Kathy Olsen said: “From secluded NY cellars to Hollywood vaults this journey in search of vintage spirits will captivate our lecture goers as it taps into a secret world of collecting hidden-away and, at times, priceless liquor filled with history and mystery.”

This well-illustrated lecture provides an entertaining journey into the booming world of vintage spirits, the quirky and intensely passionate “dusty hunters” who chase them, and the history they reveal, from an acclaimed author and journalist. In “Dusty Booze: In Search of Vintage Spirits,” journalist Aaron Goldfarb goes on an adventure in vintage spirits. This is an intoxicating story of obsessives on the hunt for old bottles of whiskey, tequila, rum, chartreuse— you name it—from estate sales, grandpa’s liquor cabinet, and out-of-the-way and inner-city liquor stores that may just have a case or a few bottles lying around in the basement. Dusty Booze mixes the history of our drinking culture and the Indiana Jones-meets-Simpsons Comic Book Guy adventures of the collectors, including the hunt for rumored stash from a reclusive Hollywood legend. This is a buoyant, thirst-triggering voyage into a unique subculture that has exploded in popularity in recent years.

Aaron Goldfarb has written 12 books, including "Gather Around Cocktails: Drinks to Celebrate Usual and Unusual Holiday Drinks" and "Hacking Whiskey: Smoking, Blending, Fat-Washing, and Other Whiskey Experiments." In 2020 he was honored as Cocktail & Spirits Writer of the Year at Tales of the Cocktail's Spirited Awards. In 2022, he co-wrote "Brand Mysticism: Cultivate Creativity and Intoxicate Your Audience" with booze branding maven Steven Grasse of Hendrick's Gin fame. Goldfarb writes features for the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Esquire, and VinePair, where he serves as their writer-at-large. He lives in Brooklyn with family. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @aarongoldfarb.

About Mill Hill: At the top of Mill Hill overlooking the head of the Norwalk Harbor, visitors will find three historic buildings: the 1835 Town House, the 1826 Downtown District Schoolhouse, the c. 1740 Governor Fitch Law Office, as well as the 1767 Mill Hill Burying Ground and a Colonial Herb Garden. The c. 1860 Lockup and c. 1880 Barn on Smith Street are included in Mill Hill Historic Park. These buildings and this historic site have been preserved through the efforts of the Norwalk Historical Society and City of Norwalk in one location as a monument to early Norwalk.

LMMM’s 2024 programs are made possible in part by LMMM’s Season Distinguished Benefactors: The City of Norwalk, The Maurice Goodman Foundation, and Lockwood-Mathews Foundation, Inc. LMMM’s Founding Patrons: The Estate of Mrs. Cynthia Clark Brown;andLMMM’s Leadership Patrons: The Sealark Foundation; For more information on the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum please visit www.lockwoodmathewsmansion.com, email info@lockwoodmathewsmansion.com, or call 203-838-9799.