Meet Sam Vandegrift, the resident Whiskey Czar at Watson’s Shack and Rail in Downtown Champaign. Sam’s expertise behind the bar is only rivaled by his ability to turn whiskey tasting into an art form—he’s basically the Picasso of cocktails. When he’s not orchestrating whiskey wonders, he’s indulging in his other favorite pastime: pie. Yes, you heard that right—Sam’s bar skills are matched only by his love for a good slice. So, whether you’re sipping a perfectly mixed drink or chatting about his latest pie escapades, Sam is your go-to guy for a good time and a great story.
Tell us a little about yourself and how you got started at Watson's Shack & Rail.
Believe it or not, I actually started moonlighting at Watson’s the first year they were open. The other Sam and I slung tall boys and tacos every Tuesday for about a year and a half. The wine importer I was working for closed shop during COVID, and taking over the beverage program seemed like a great next step. Professionally, I spent about two decades in the fine wine world, so it’s quite a change of pace to focus so specifically on Bourbon and Whiskey.
What is your title at Watson's and is there a story behind how you became the Whiskey Czar?
Director of Beverage and Hospitality is what’s on my business card. I wanted a memorable e-mail address. I find the political use of CZAR to denote a person of great importance or absolute authority within a narrow mandate a curious and humorous feature of American English. Since taking over the whiskey program at Watson’s, I seek out independent, stimulating, and delicious whiskies to grow the program. I do hope my tenure has lived up to such a grandiose title.
What is your favorite part about working downtown and how do you think the downtown location serves Watson's?
It’s a vibe. I first worked downtown in 2003 when Bacaro opened. Since then, downtown always serves as anchor to our micro-urban community. Champaign Urbana remains deceptively cosmopolitan despite our agrarian roots. To people yet to discover our unique charms downtown provides a first look at how many things our town has to offer.
You just had Whiskey Fest last week, can you tell us how that went, what part you played in the planning process and if we can expect any other similar events coming up from Watsons?
Champaign Whiskey Fest was awesome! Everybody should plan on coming next year! This was our first year, and we reached almost 1000 people between the six events we held during the week. Highlights for me included a very well attended hospitality industry training led by the national director of education for Diageo, Rachel Kling and the sheer number of whiskeys (over 200!) to try at our Gala Event. My collaborators in the Downtown Unity Barrel (D.U.B. single barrel spirits) program, Punch! & Big Grove Tavern, love the idea of bringing more whiskey to people, so we hatched a plan to build a festival for our community. Champaign Urbana has always been a great whiskey town. Events like this help distilleries and other producers see the value in our market. This in turn lets us have access to more and more interesting and rare whiskey.
In terms of what else we have coming up, it’s going to be a busy fall and 2025 for us. We already have dinners planned featuring all 6 bottlings from Pappy van Winkle and the entire Buffalo Trace Antique Collection; whiskey walk fundraiser with the Champaign county forest preserve; our annual Holidaze Whiskey Extravaganza; and just around the corner on September 18th we have Marsha Milam from Milam and Green Distillery in to do a bottle release and signing event. Like everything we do in the program at Watson’s, we aim to bring awesome things to everybody in this town because you deserve it!
What is one thing that you think everyone should know about you and/or your time at Watsons?
I really like pie.
What is on the horizon for you and or Watson's.
From a mission standpoint, we are really doubling down on our core value of bringing great food and drink to great people. We are expanding our reach with new offerings at Memorial Stadium and the State Farm Center for football and basketball. I will continue bringing in incredible whiskey. And we will continue using hospitality as a way to improve the well-being of those around us.