Modern Bar Cart

What Modern Bar Cart does

Modern Bar Cart, LLC is a privately held, founder-operated media and education company based in Washington, DC, founded in 2017 by Eric Kozlik. Its core asset is The Modern Bar Cart Podcast, a free spirits and cocktail podcast that has produced more than 300 interviews, audio essays, and deep dives since launch, distributed across Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, YouTube, and the company's own website. The podcast is community-led, supported by a Discord server with 3,000+ members and an active social presence on Instagram and Facebook, and has earned third-party validation including Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Awards recognition, a Feedspot Top 15 Cocktail Podcast ranking, and a New York Times feature in August 2020.

The company serves three primary customer segments: home bartenders seeking to improve their technique, professional mixologists pursuing continuing education, and broader spirits enthusiasts wanting deeper category knowledge. Its content spans virtually every major spirits category — rum, whisky, baijiu, sake, mezcal, awamori — alongside cocktail technique, tasting methodology, and distilled-spirits history. Production is essentially single-operator, with Eric Kozlik serving as host, producer, and CEO, supported by contract editing and sound design from Samantha Reed and audio production handled through Direct Fire Studios (Kozlik's own production entity).

Beyond content, Modern Bar Cart operates a small live-event services arm offering mixology classes, bitters-making classes, and tasting seminars for corporate, private, and public audiences. The company positions itself as an educator only — it does not hold a liquor license and partners with venues that do — and monetizes events directly while the podcast remains free. The technology stack is conventional podcast production tooling with no proprietary algorithms, no AI/ML components, and no platform integrations beyond standard distribution feeds. Revenue mechanics are not publicly disclosed, but appear to combine podcast sponsorships and affiliate partnerships with fee-based event bookings, with no subscription paywall, advertising network beyond sponsorship reads, or marketplace transactions in evidence.

Name

Modern Bar Cart

Legal name

Modern Bar Cart, LLC

Website

https://modernbarcart.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Modern Bar Cart, LLC is a Washington, DC-based podcast media and education company operating The Modern Bar Cart Podcast — a free spirits and cocktail show with 300+ episodes — plus in-person mixology, bitters-making, and tasting classes for home bartenders, professional mixologists, and spirits enthusiasts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Spirits and Cocktail Podcast Media

NAICS

Other Sound Recording Industries (512290)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Podcast Networks & Multi-Show Publishers (MPACADAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Audio Production & Podcasting (BPAFAIAE)

Keywords

• Spirits podcast
• Cocktail education
• Mixology classes
• Spirits tasting events
• Bartending content

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Podcast Content: Free podcast content monetized through potential sponsorships, brand partnerships, and affiliate marketing within the spirits and cocktail industry

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Modern Bar Cart produces and distributes The Modern Bar Cart Podcast, a free spirits and cocktail audio program featuring interviews with bartenders, distillers, and cocktail authors, plus audio essays, deep dives, and book reviews. The company complements this audio content with paid live and virtual educational services, including themed mixology classes, bitters-making workshops, tasting seminars, and corporate or private event bookings delivered through licensed venue partners.

Product overview

Modern Bar Cart is a podcast media company centered on The Modern Bar Cart Podcast — an industry-leading spirits and cocktail podcast — supplemented by in-person and virtual educational services including mixology classes, bitters-making classes, and tasting seminars. The podcast, hosted by Eric Kozlik since 2017, features interviews with bartenders, distillers, and cocktail authors, deep audio essays, and book reviews, while the events arm offers themed classes and corporate/private event services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Modern Bar Cart Podcast An industry-leading free spirits and cocktail podcast featuring interviews with bartenders, distillers, and cocktail authors, deep dives into mixology topics, audio essays, and book reviews, hosted by Eric Kozlik since 2017.
• Mixology Classes Hour-long themed classes covering the history, technique, and tasting components of various corners of the cocktail universe, taught for corporate, private, and public events.
• Bitters-Making Classes In-person and virtual classes teaching the scientific process of botanical extraction, where participants create and bottle their own bitters to take home.
• Tasting Seminars Spirits and cocktail tasting instruction sessions, developed in collaboration with distilleries and brands to create product-specific or themed tasting classes.
• Corporate and Private Event Services Custom event offerings including private tastings, corporate events, and team-building experiences, structured around spirits education without the possession of a liquor license.

Quantifiable outcome

• 300+ episodes produced since 2017
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Venues with Liquor LicensescoreOthersModern Bar Cart partners with venues that possess valid liquor licenses and liability insurance for hosting spirits tasting events, mixology classes, and tasting seminars. The company is an educator-only and does not hold its own liquor license.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Liquor.com: A mass-market spirits and cocktail recipes and education site, owned by a larger media group. Comparable as a large-scale cocktail content destination competing for the same home-bartender audience and brand sponsorships.
• VinePair: A large-scale drinks media outlet covering wine, beer, and spirits, with a substantial editorial team and broad advertiser base. Comparable as a higher-reach incumbent in adjacent drinks-media categories.
• Gimlet Media: A well-known independent podcast network and production company. Comparable as a business-model reference point for how a niche-content podcast brand can scale into a multi-show media business.
• Punch: A drinks media brand covering cocktails, wine, beer, and spirits culture with a well-resourced editorial team. Comparable as a broader incumbent drinks-media brand with overlapping audience and sponsorship model.

Direct peers

• The Whiskey Sour Hour: A long-running spirits and cocktail podcast covering whiskey, cocktails, and bar culture. Comparable as a direct podcast-format competitor targeting the same enthusiast and home-bartender listener.
• The Cocktail Guru: A cocktail and spirits education media brand producing podcasts, video content, and live events. Directly comparable as a cocktail-focused content publisher targeting home bartenders and industry professionals.
• Difford's Guide: A long-running cocktail reference and review platform with an extensive recipe database, editorial content, and industry guides. Comparable as a deep, authoritative content destination for cocktail enthusiasts and professionals.
• A Bar Above: A mixology education company producing bartending courses, podcasts, and YouTube content. Highly comparable as a content-plus-education business serving home bartenders and aspiring professionals.
• BarSmarts: An industry-recognized mixology education and certification program for bartenders and enthusiasts. Comparable as a structured cocktail-education offering targeting the same professional-mixologist segment.
• Tales of the Cocktail: The leading spirits and cocktail industry media and events organization, which administers the Spirited Awards that Modern Bar Cart has won. It operates a content platform, annual conference, and educational programming in the same niche.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC1vmQNqmyuyA0pqtFl3insw
• Facebookfacebook.com/modernbarcart
• Instagraminstagram.com/modernbarcart
• Xx.com/modbarcart

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Modern Bar Cart