By Bobby Tanzilo Senior Editor/Writer Published Jun 15, 2020 at 5:30 PM

It’s Father’s Day week and regardless of what he says, trust me, Dad wants bourbon.

With that in mind, Central Standard Craft Distillery owners Evan Hughes and Pat McQuillan – themselves dads – are educating news dads about this by offering a little surprise this Father’s Day.

All Milwaukee-area folks who become first-time dads on Sunday, June 21 – Father’s Day – will get a free bottle of Central Standard's Cabernet Finished Bourbon, which is sweet and soft and round – and slightly reddish in color – after having been finished in California wine bottles.

"Pat and I are both dads," says Hughes, father of Henry, age 4, and Merridy, age 2. "And, I actually got pulled over driving my wife to the hospital with our first, so I know exactly how nerve-racking, exciting and frantic, yet memorable, that day can be. In these odd times, Pat and I just wanted to do something special to celebrate all first-time dads this Father’s Day."

"The smooth finish of our Cabernet-Finished Bourbon makes it the ideal Father’s Day gift, no matter if your dad is a spirits aficionado or a first-time bourbon drinker," says McQuillan, dad to Keegan, age 4, and Winnie, age 2.

"We knew our Cabernet-Finished Bourbon would make the perfect surprise for those becoming new dads this Father’s Day."

Since you’ll be awake most hours of the day, new dads (sorry!), you’ll have plenty of time to log on to thecentralstandard.com, share a photo with your bundle of joy and you’ll get a free bottle of whiskey, though you’ll have to swing by the Clybourn Street distillery in Milwaukee to pick it up curbside.

Open to first-time dads in Milwaukee, Ozaukee and Waukesha Counties whose baby was born on June 21. And speaking of 21, you’ve gotta be at least that old to get the spirit.

No matter when his kids were born, Dad would love the Central Standard Father’s Day Care Package, too, which you can get curbside at the distillery weekdays from 10 until 4. It includes an Old-Fashioned Cocktail kit, with a flask, a pair branded cocktail glasses, Central Standard hat, Gary's Old-Fashioned mix and a bottle of Central Standard’s North Wisconsin Brandy.

Check out the website, linked above, for details.

Cheers, Pops!

Bobby Tanzilo Senior Editor/Writer

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.

He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.

With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.

He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.

In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.

He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.