Happy New Year! We are going on hiatus.

Fredo at The Salon's New Year's Eve Eve (photo G. Porter)

Happy New Year Loungers! I hope your festivities were successful, safe, and classy. Loungerati will be going on hiatus for the next month or two while I decide on the next phase of this project. We have hit the five year mark and growth is necessary to keep Loungerati fresh and worthwhile for the community. That said, 2011 was a tremendous year for the team and included such noteworthy highlights as:

• The Loungerati section of the CLASS Magazine 2011 award winning Blythswood Hotel cocktail bar menu by Mal Spence
• Fredo's Cinquecento cocktail being selected as one of the 101 Best Cocktails of 2010 and published in Gaz Regan's Annual Manual  for Bartenders: 2011 and Mr. Boston's Guide: 75th Anniversary Edition
• An incredible Repeal Day 5th Anniversary Party at The Rum House sponsored by Angel's Envy Bourbon
• Contributing to Umamimart's Happy Hour for the second year, special nod to the Paystyles, Vanessa, and Kayoko for bringing me into the family.
• A record number of Loungerati curated cocktail menus at the following swank affairs: Bootlegger 21 NY Vodka Launch/Salute to Harlem Glamour, The Salon's 10th Anniversary Party: Salute to Frank Sinatra and Lounge series at the Edison Ballroom, The Liberty Belle Spectacular July Fourth Extravaganza at Empire Hotel, Michael Arenella's Silver Scream Halloween Party and enchanting Winter Ball, and The Salon's Annual New Year's Eve Eve  at the Copacabana.
• Special acknowledgement and gratitude to the following bar industry pros who stood toe-to-toe or supported us at these events: Nino Cirabisi, Kenneth McCoy, Francine Cohen, Payman Bahmani, Jonathan Forester, Miguel Aranda, Hal Wolin, Michael Neff, Damon Dyer, Ivy Mix, and bar staffs at The Rum House and Ward III.

Hopefully, Loungerati can return with a 2.0 version that will expand beyond the current blog format. Only time and commitment can tell. So until we are back, I leave you with the inspiring words delivered by the Senator, one of Loungerati's founding members, at the first Lounge Summit at the Algonquin Hotel in November 2007:

"We shall drink to the end, we shall drink in the morning, we shall drink in the night, we shall drink in the gutters and the streets, we shall drink in the hills, ... we shall order after dinner drinks and digestifs, no matter what the cost, we shall never throw up, and even if we do, which I do not for a moment believe, we shall boot and rally and make it to the last call!

And so my fellow Loungers, in closing, let the word go forth that the torch has been passed [from] an older generation. Let every dancer, lounger, and barfly know, whether they wish us well or premium, gin or beer, whiskey or soda, that we shall pay any cover, tip any bartender, meet any manager or maestro, in order to assure the survival and the success of the lounge." 

Til the next whiskey sours,

Fredo - Editor, Loungerati.com