In the final days of the 1910s, Harlem experienced a cultural, artistic, and intellectual re-awakening that became known as the Harlem Renaissance was born. The neighborhood became the destination for New Yorkers. The city's best musicians, best new artists, best new writers, were being forged in that cauldron, all set to the sound of a new piano music called the Harlem Stride style. Harlem speakeasies became the very definition of the Jazz Age -- places like Tillie’s Chicken Shack, Pod’s and Jerry’s, the Rhythm Club, and Harry Hansberry’s Clam House.
The 2016 Harlem Whiskey Renaissance on March 25, 2016 seeks to celebrate the era of the Harlem Renaissance by providing an evening of music, performance, and of course, whiskey, that hearkens back to the era that gave us everything from Chick Webb to Claude McKay, Louis Armstrong to Zora Neal Hurston to Josephine Baker. We've lined up brands to pour whiskey from around the world and talk about the history of their spirits, with music provided by the Renaissance-inspired Dandy Wellington.
Most of the old speakeasies are long gone, but for one night at Mist Harlem, you can get a taste of the Harlem Renaissance along with several tastes of some of the best whiskies in the world.