As many of you know, I am an attorney by trade.  I have taken two bar exams in my life and am technically admitted to practice law in both New York and Massachusetts.  I'm currently in the process of taking my third bar exam: Bar Smarts Wired, which is designed by Pernod Ricard USA.  As I've started to write about cocktails in addition to food, I figured I should get a little more in-depth knowledge of my subject matter, and Bar Smarts is giving me the ability to learn from experts in the field, the team behind Beverage Alcohol Resource
(BAR), LLC, Dale DeGroff, Doug Frost, Steve Olson, F. Paul Pacult, Andy Seymour and David Wondrich.  They do a full-on live course, but the Wired course is jam-packed full of information — creation of spirits, categories of spirits, mixology, and practical application.  There's even a virtual drink builder in lieu of the live exam offered by the live course.  I'm halfway done, and proud to report I've passed the first two modules.  I am a bit up against a time crunch — I have 30 days total to complete the process, which I started on September 17th, but I'm hoping my trip to Boston this weekend on the Bolt Bus will give me some time to focus.  Registration for the Wired course is closed for the time being, but will be offered again in February 2010 — I highly recommend it for anyone wanting to learn more about the bartending industry, spirits, or cocktails.