I had finally made my way to the elusive Top of Tacoma Bar.  "Follow me, " said Carmen Jones, batting her eyelashes as she gets in her car.  I had no idea which way we were heading, just that I was leaving downtown Tacoma.  You mean there are bars outside of downtown?  Who knew?

Happiness is walking in to a Tacoma bar, hearing Mother Love Bone playing in the background, seeing rare microbrews on tap, and being greeted by beautiful Jaime Kay Newton, owner of Top of Tacoma Bar.  I was there to talk Tacoma Beer Society, and what does she put in front of me?  Patron XO Cafe, on the rocks.  She says,  "You gotta try this, you're not going to believe it."

This girl knows her shit.

It's a drink all it's own.  Nothing else is needed with Patron XO Cafe, which is an offspring of Patron Spirits Company.  It is smooth, it is dry, and it lends itself to nothing but the purest taste of coffee.  Not sweet, not bitter, and not tequila-ish at all.  That night I learned a new lesson in life:  all you need is Patron XO Cafe on the rocks, some time to sip, some time to enjoy, and some old school Depeche Mode blaring from the best jukebox in Tacoma. â€" Steph DeRosa