⚡ 13 Underrated Bourbons + Poker Night

5 Rules for Hosting a Killer Poker Night

Anyone can invite a dozen guys over and deal cards. The trick is running a night so smooth they're texting you Monday asking when the next one is.

1. Set the stakes and the rebuy window.
Keep the stakes comfortable for everyone. If you're playing a tournament with rebuys, allow them early so a bad beat doesn't send a guy to the couch at 7:45. Then set a hard cutoff. Everyone knows the rules before the first hand.

2. Let the blinds end the night.
Nobody wants a poker game that drags until 2 a.m. Set a blind schedule designed to wrap things up in roughly three hours. Increase blinds every 20 to 25 minutes, adjusting the starting stacks and blind levels to match. Guys with early mornings will appreciate a night with a plan.

3. Feed them like you mean it.
One-handed food that won't wreck the cards: sliders, pretzels, pizza squares, and a charcuterie board. Put out one bottle better than the rest. The host who pours the good bourbon gets a full table.

4. Know your crew on the soundtrack.
Low and steady, nothing fighting the table talk. If you're into death metal but everyone else is into classic rock, do the right thing. Nobody gets the aux.

5. Run a clean game.
Real chips, two decks per table, a dealer button, and the blind schedule on a note card. A felt table topper rolls up when you're done and makes any room feel like a card room. Keep the rules clear and the game moving.

The Mettle Take
A great poker night isn't about the stakes. It's about guys knowing what they're walking into and wanting to walk back in next month.

Run the game. Own the night.

Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch Bourbon

The Story
Wyoming's first legal distillery opened in 2009 with help from former Maker's Mark master distiller Steve Nally. Made with locally grown grain in Kirby, Wyoming, this wheated bourbon spends at least five years in new charred oak barrels. And the 88 proof? A nod to Wyoming becoming the 44th state.

The Pour
Vanilla bean, caramel, and cherry on the nose, with floral notes and a hint of cornbread. The palate brings brown sugar, browned butter, baking spice, and cinnamon, with a lighter mouthfeel. The medium finish delivers toffee, vanilla, and a touch of spice.

The Move
Start neat to appreciate the softer, sweeter profile. A single rock works too. Expect to pay around $40–$55, depending on where you shop.

The Mettle Take
Soft, sweet, and approachable. Proof that great bourbon doesn't need a Kentucky address. Click here to learn more.

Not the bottle they expect. The one they remember.

Your Business Has Grown. Has Your Visibility Kept Up?
Guest Contributor: Nick Euspei

Most owners I meet aren’t short on information. They’re drowning in it, and very little of it tells them what’s working.

Reports show up late and the team spends more time building them than reading them. Nobody can say for sure whether the business is getting stronger or just getting bigger.

So you go with your gut. It got you this far, but gut feel doesn’t scale.

This is rarely a people problem. Good teams build companies that outgrow the way they’re tracked. Nobody decided what matters, so everything gets reported and nothing gets understood.

When I start with a new owner, I don’t ask for more reports. I ask which numbers they watch to know whether things are working. Most can’t answer. That’s where the work starts.

Here’s a simple test. Ask your team where last month’s cash went. If it takes a meeting and a few “let me get back to you” replies, your view hasn’t kept up.

The good news: it’s fixable, and simpler than you think.

Next month: The five mistakes we see in growing companies.

Nick Eusepi, CPA, is the founder of Maroli, where he helps owners of privately held companies understand what is holding their business back and what to do about it. He started in public accounting, spent nearly a decade as CFO of Commonwealth LNG, co-founded a private equity firm, and has served multiple non-profit board roles.

If you’d like to talk through your business, [email protected] is the best way to reach him.