Best Big Booze: Where to Drink with a Crowd

Jimmy Van Heusen sang it best in the 1964 hit song, "My Kind of Town":

This is my kind of town, Chicago is
My kind of town, Chicago is...

Perhaps he was imbibing in a glorious cocktail of the time. Fortunately, Chicago's cocktail culture has continued to flourish. EDGE recommends sipping with friends at two of the city's most iconic watering holes.

Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba!
We can't consider drinks for a crowd without embracing the mother ship: sangria. And there's virtually nowhere better to grab a pitcher (or two) than Chicago's iconic Spanish tapas restaurant, Caf� Ba-Ba-Reeba.

Celebrating more than 30 years of wine-infused reveling, it offers six takes on signature sangria that range from classic red and white to seasonal flavors (served on tap) like white peach, black raspberry, passion fruit and cava sangria made with sparkling Spanish wine. Our favorites include:

White Peach Sangria - white wine, peach schnapps, Absolut Apeach Vodka
Cava Sangria - sparkling Spanish wine, Licor 43, cr�me de cassis
Black Raspberry Sangria - red wine, Skyy Infusions Raspberry
(Prices range from $17 for half a pitcher to $28 for a full pitcher)

Three Dots and a Dash
Chicago may be smack-dab in the middle of the country, but that doesn't mean you can't find classic Tiki staples. Three Dots and a Dash (Morse code for the letter V, for victory) delivers "group excursions" - large-format libations featuring selections from its celebrated rum list.

Bali Bali - Passion fruit, orange, falernum, Puerto Rican rum, Armagnac, London Dry Gin (Serves 4 to 5, $85)

Diver Down - Plantation Multi-Island Rum, Campari, allspice, lime, orgeat, ripe strawberry (Serves 5 to 6, $125)

Treasure Chest - Blend of rums, pineapple, guava, fresh lime, served with a bottle of Dom P�rignon Champagne (Serves 6 to 8, $385)

Zombie - Jamaican and overproof rums, lime, grapefruit, cinnamon, pomegranate (Serves 3 to 4, $65.)

Go West

Tuck Room Tavern
Los Angeles spirit aficionados appreciate the attention to detail in executive bartender Adam Seger's handcrafted cocktail menu. Tuck Room Tavern is also home to the city's only "Ice DJ Booth," where bar masters carve ice by hand from a 45-pound block for its signature punch bowls.

Those who appreciate molecular gastronomy can delight in liquid nitrogen bottle service, while classicists will appreciate the housemade syrups, bitters and infusions. Two standouts include:

Lookbetternaked Margarita - Azu�ia Tequila, organic agave, citrus, sweet herb of Paraguay ($40)

Southern Decadence - Bacardi Maestro de Rum, El Dorado 8-Year-Old Rum, Balsam Amaro Americano Liqueur, Rare Tea Cellar Magnolia Blossom Oolong, strawberry, passion fruit, pineapple ($40)