Mannion’s Pub and Restaurant in Somerville now a bourbon hot spot

There has certainly been a boom in bourbon consumption in the US; by one estimate, it has grown by over 11% over the past five years, and that boom is being felt right here in New Jersey, where a Somerville pub has earned a reputation as a bourbon lover’s destination.

Mannion’s Pub and Restaurant now features over 65 varieties of the whiskey and owner Pat Mannion told MyCentralJersey.com that sales have increased tenfold in recent years.

Sales of bourbon took off nationwide during the pandemic as did the sales of a lot of spirits, and Mannion plans on riding the wave, with plans to offer bourbon flights and host bourbon tastings at his unassuming pub.

While Jack Daniel’s and Jim Beam still lead the market, people have been searching out more craft like brands and Mannion offers a ton of them, with prices as high as $20 for a shot of Elmer Lee or $17 a shot for W.L. Weller 12 year aged bourbon.

According to the Distilled Spirits Council, sales of super-premium bourbon ($50 or more) grew from 1.5m cases to 3.5m, or by about 135%, in the five years between 2014 and 2019, the latest dates available.

Over the past 15 years, thousands of distilleries have opened across the United States, most of them producing bourbon, a whiskey made with at least 51% corn in its mash ingredients and aged in new oak barrels.

Mannion’s Pub and Restaurant is located on Main Street in Somerville. You can see their bourbon menu here.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Doyle only.

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