Spirited Cocktails

I know, I know. Once again, I’ve fallen way behind on my writing. But there have been some exciting events over the past few weeks, and I want to give you a quick update. I promise to try to get some new drinks up very soon, too.

Let’s start, though, with a quick recap of the Manhattan Cocktail Classic. Described as “part festival, part fête, part conference, part cocktail party,” the Manhattan Cocktail Classic included five days of seminars, parties, tastings, and other assorted revelry with some of my favorite people in all of New York City.

Due to a previously scheduled trip this past week (which I’ll tell you about very soon in an upcoming post), I was only able to enjoy the first few days of the MCC. Yet I still managed to enjoy a plethora of amazing cocktails, and great times with great friends. My weekend included the following:

-The Manhattan Cocktail Classic Gala: An evening of music, dancing, performance art, food, and of course, a slew of cocktails prepared by some of the countries top mixologists.  Among my favorite cocktails that evening were a South Side (using gin, lime, cucumber and mint) prepared by the good folks at Tanqueray, and a very refreshing mint julep prepared by the team at Bulliet bourbon. But of course, the best part was getting all decked out to spend the evening in a beautiful space with my fellow cocktail connoisseurs.

-Behind the Bar at Death & Co.: I’ll make no secret of the fact that one of my favorite bars in the country is Death & Co., located on 6th Street in Manhattan’s East Village. Of course, I’m hardly alone in that opinion. Death & Co. is consistently listed among the best cocktail bars in the world, and with good reason. So along with my fellow twitterati @sweetblogomine and @daisy17, I spent last Saturday afternoon learning everything there is to know about one of my favorite haunts, directly from owner David Kaplan, Head bartender Thomas Waugh, and bartenders Joaquin Simo, Brian Miller, Jessica Gonzalez, and (briefly :-p) Jason Littrell. Of course, as they shared their stories from behind the bar, they also introduced us to the new summer menu, which is going to keep me busy for quite some time.

-The Three Hour Tour: Organized by The Tippling Point crew (Jason Littrell, Gianfranco Verga, Paul Tanguay, and Tad Carducci), this was easily my favorite event of the weekend; in part because we were lucky enough to have simply perfect weather for a cruise around Manhattan. Of course, the cocktails didn’t hurt eaither. Two cocktails in particular stuck out:

The Scotch Fix prepared by Jackie Patterson of Heaven’s Dog in San Francsico:

-1.5 oz Ardbeg 10 year old scotch
-1oz 1:1 honey syrup
-3/4oz Fresh lemon juice

The Landing Strip prepared by John Lermayer of The Florida Room in Miami:

-1.5oz 10 Cane rum
-1.5oz fresh pineapple juice
-1oz coconut water
-1 dash of lime juice
-1 dash simple syrup
-2 dashes Angostura bitters
-4 sage leaves

Of course, this was just a sampling of the events that took place over the course of five days. You can find the full list at http://manhattancocktailclassic.com/events.

Many thanks to all of the amazing bartenders, brands, and enthusiasts who made the first annual Manhattan Cocktail Classic a resounding success. And thanks especially to Lesley Townsend, director of MCC, for bringing this wonderful event to New York. And special thanks as well to my wonderful friends from the cocktail world: Lindsey Johnson, Dave Harrison, Laren Spirer, Karen Nachbar, Leo Borovskiy, Lincoln Chinnery, Kathleen Reynolds, Selena Ricks, Hal Wolin, Emily Malinowski, Jenean Chapman, Jordana Rothman, and everyone else who made the weekend so much fun.

Cheers!

-Josh

Earlier this week, I was fortunate to join many of New York’s cocktail twitterati for a celebration of Mardi Gras at one of my favorite new bars, Rye House. At an event hosted by the Time Out Dining & Libation Society, we were lucky to find proprietor and master mixologist Lynette Marrero behind the bar furiously shaking and stirring the classic cocktails of New Orleans, including the Sazarac, the French 75, and my favorite of the evening – the Vieux Carre.

I was introduced to this cocktail during my trip down to New Orleans last year for Tales of the Cocktail – it’s a mainstay at the Carousel Bar in the Hotel Moteleone (which is where Tales takes place).  As Ted Haigh tells it in his book Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails, the name comes from the local term for the French Quarter – le Vieux Carre, meaning “the Old Square.” The cocktail was invented sometime prior to the 1937 publication of Famous New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix Them, by Walter Bergeron, who worked behind what would eventually become the Carousel Bar. It fell out of favor for years, but I loved the one I had in New Orleans last year, and I really loved the… let’s just say more than one… I had at Rye House this past week.

Here’s what you’re going to need:

1oz rye whiskey
1oz cognac
1oz sweet vermouth
1/4oz Benedictine
2 dashes Angostura Bitters
2 dashes Peychaud Bitters

The preparation is simple: combine all the ingredients in a mixing glass with ice, stir well, and strain over fresh ice in a rocks glass. Garnish with a simple lemon twist.

The result is a smooth yet complex cocktail, sure to transport you directly to Bourbon Street.

Cheers!

-Josh

This evening, my friend Laren (@sweetblogomine) and I joined Jonathan Pogash for his Cocktail Lab class at the Astor Center Lounge. I’ve mentioned Jonathan here before (he was the source for our post on the Maple Plum Sparkler), but to refresh your memory, Jonathan is a cocktail development consultant, and the beverage director for Hospitality Holdings (which manages a number of major bars here in New York, including the Campbell Apartment and Bookmarks Lounge).

I’ve taken a number of classes at Astor Center in the past, and they’ve all offered an opportunity to learn a great deal from some of the country’s most talented mixologists. Be sure to check out their full calendar; if you’re in the area, I highly encourage you to give one a try. Jonathan’s class is actually offered monthly, so you can definitely take that one. If you’re just starting out, I’d suggest the Home Bar Basics course.

In any case, Jonathan’s class tonight was really about developing new cocktails – how to come up with your own recipes using classic cocktails as a guide, but also taking advantage of fresh, seasonal, and often unique ingredients. As an exercise, we broke up into groups and were each given one ingredient that had to make an appearance in whatever cocktail we developed. As long as that ingredient was included, everything else was up to us (think Iron Chef meets… something with booze.) Laren and I paired up, along with another member of the class, and were asigned Averna as our key ingredient.

Averna is a classic Italian liquer, often served as a digestif. It’s very herbal – almost bitter – with hints of citrus and caramel. We figured this would make for a great addition to an autumn cocktail. The result: The Pumpkin Pie

Here’s what you’re going to need:

1 1/2oz Rye (we used ri1, which has a nice spice to it)
1 bar spoon Averna
1 bar spoon maple syrup
1 bar spoon pumpkin puree
1/4oz orange juice
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 dash of pumpkin spice (the supermarket kind; a blend of nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, etc.)
1 egg white
1 orange peel (for garnish)

I know – that’s a lot of ingredients. But many of them are things you probably already have sitting around the house (if not, they’re certainly available at your local grocery store.) Once you have all the ingredients, simply combine everything in a mixing glass.

Because of the egg white in this, we did a double shake. That means that we combined all the ingredients in our shaker *without* ice, and shook well for about 10 seconds. Then we added ice, and shook well for another 15-20 seconds. The result, thanks in large part to the egg white, is a nice foamy cocktail, the consistency of which certainly brings pumpkin pie to mind!

We garnished the cocktail with a flamed orange peel. A regular orange peel will do, but flaming the peel helps to caramelize the citrus oils, giving a nice depth of character to the taste. If you’re unfamiliar with how to flame an orange peel, Jeffrey Morgenthaler has a great walkthrough on his site.

The result: a lovely autumn cocktail, with flavors of pumpkin, spice and maple. I hope you like it!

So thanks to Laren (@sweetblogomine) for a fun time; to Jonathan Pogash for the great instruction, and Astor Center, for hosting the class in such an awesome space!

While I have you – a public service announcement: Laren has actually organized a great event in the Astor Center space next Monday, November 2nd. The event is a fundraiser for the NYC chapter of LUPEC (Ladies United for the Preservation of Endangered Cocktails), and will be presented in conjunction with the folks from Chartreuse (including Chartreuse Brand Ambassador Todd Richman and Chartreuse Diffusion President Jean Marc Roger). I’ll be there for sure – I encourage you to join us as well. Tickets available from the Astor Center website.

Cheers!

Josh

Anyone who reads this blog knows that I’m a big fan of whisky – bourbon in particular. And in my mind, there’s no better bourbon cocktail than the Old Fashioned. Truly a classic (dating back to Harry Johnson’s recipes in 1888), and beautiful in its simplicity, the Old Fashioned adds some complexity with the inclusion of a small amount of sugar and bitters along with a twist of lemon and orange, but it still allows the unique flavor of whichever bourbon you’re using to shine through. As a result, I enjoy test driving new bourbons using this cocktail (after sampling them neat, of course!)

The recipe couldn’t be simpler. Here’s what you’re going to need:

2oz bourbon
1-2 sugar cubes (consider 2 if you’re using the small grocery store brand; only one if it’s a larger raw sugar cube)
A few dashes of Angostura bitters
Lemon and Orange peels for garnish

 

In the bottom of your Old Fashioned glass (a sturdy-bottomed rocks glass works well), place your sugar cubes and add a few dashes of Angostura bitters (generally 2-3 shakes is good, but you can experiment to taste; basically you’re just looking to soak the sugar cubes). Using a muddler, crush the sugar cubes and mix the sugar and bitters well until you have a syrupy liquid in the bottom of your glass.

Add 2oz of bourbon and several ice cues, and using your bar spoon, stir well. You want to stir this for a particularly good amount of time (generally at least a minute or so; some will argue for even longer), both to chill the cocktail, and also to dissolve the sugar/bitters syrup. Twist a peel of lemon and a peel of orange over the surface and around the rim of your glass, and drop them in to the cocktail. And voila – you’ve got an Old Fashioned.

Generally speaking, I don’t think this cocktail needs much in the way of embellishment. There is, however, one exception, and one I would only make for Jim Meehan and Don Lee of PDT. The Benton’s Old Fashioned at PDT takes the Old Fashioned to the next heavenly level, which can only be achieved through the addition of bacon. Yes, bacon. The folks at PDT infuse bourbon with a smoky bacon, separate out the fat, substitute high-grade maple syrup for the sugar, and deliver a supremely excellent cocktail. They were kind enough to share their recipe, by way of New York Magazine (including a video of Don preparing the cocktail).

Cheers!

Last week, I told you about a mistake I made in preparing the Queens Park Swizzle (I used gin instead of rum, but I learned a lesson!) Well, since I teased you with one of my favorite rum cocktails, I thought it was time we walked through it for real.

A quick aside: this is the first cocktail I ever had prepared for me at a “real” cocktail bar – Milk & Honey (of London and New York City fame). Milk & Honey is largely credited (and rightfully so) with reigniting the love for the classic cocktail in New York, and whether or not that’s true, they definitely lit the spark in me. The staff and Milk & Honey are infamous for matching their customers with their ideal cocktail. Before serving you, they ask insightful questions about preferred spirits, flavors, and even mood. The first time I went to Milk & Honey, this is the cocktail they prepared for me, so it will always hold a special place in my heart :-)

So let’s get started. Here’s what you’re going to need:

2oz aged white rum
1/2 of a lime
1/2oz simple syrup
2-3 sprigs of mint
A few dashes of Angostura bitters
Club soda
Plenty of crushed ice

The technique for this cocktail is a little different than anything we’ve used in the past. There’s no shaking involved, so we’re going to build the entire cocktail right in the glass. Start by squeezing half a lime into the glass. (Some people will choose to drop the shell of the lime in once you’ve squeezed it – your choice.) Next add the simple syrup, and the leaves of 2-3 sprigs of mint. Finally, add the rum, and fill the glass with crushed ice. The use of crushed ice here versus cubes is important – you want the ice to really mix with the ingredients. Once you’ve added the crushed ice, use a swizzle stick to – yes – swizzle the cocktail. That is, use the swizzle stick to agitate the ingredients along with the ice, which will not only help mix everything, but also chill it (you’ll notice a nice frost form on the outside of the glass within 30-60 seconds.)

After swizzling, top off the glass with some fresh crushed ice, an ounce or two of club soda, and a few dashes of Angostura bitters.

So this cocktail is slightly more work than some of the others we’ve tried so far, but I guarantee you it’s worth it. I’m anxious to hear what you think.

Cheers!

Well sure, mistakes exist. But as far as I’m concerned, not when it comes to mixing cocktails. Just as in the culinary arts, recipes are templates. They’re guidelines that reflect the goals and tastes of the artist, but they’re never carved in stone. The purpose of the resulting dish (or cocktail, in our case) is to be enjoyed, and one must always adjust accordingly.

The other night, I set out to make a Queens Park Swizzle – one of my favorite rum-based cocktails – which I was preparing to introduce to you here. However, what I ended up making was a mixture of lime, sugar, mint, angostura bitters (all of which belong), and gin (which most certainly does not). I poured gin instead of rum by mistake. The funny thing about it is that I was already a sip or two into the drink before I realized it (I swear, I wasn’t drunk!)

What I ended up with was something very different than a Queens Park Swizzle. After all, rum and gin don’t have all that much in common when it comes to flavor. However, just because it wasn’t what I set out to make, that doesn’t make it wrong. Or bad. It was actually rather tasty (once I got over the fact that it wasn’t a Queens Park Swizzle). I don’t think this particular combination of ingredients and proportions already exists as a cocktail, so we may have invented something new. The King’s Park Swizzle? Of course, I could be wrong, and if I am, I hope one of you will correct me.

The moral of the story is that even though I made a mistake, I learned from (and enjoyed) the results, making it a lesson in my book. It’s also a reminder that experimentation – which is nothing more than a mistake made intentionally – is a very good thing.

The real Queens Park Swizzle to come soon. In the meantime, Cheers!

I make no attempt to hide my true love for Angostura bitters. A wonderful, proprietary blend of roots and herbal extracts, bitters are the perfect modifier to so many cocktails. They were originally used to mask the taste of quinine in tonic water. Supposedly, they’re also thought to cure a number of ailments, including the hiccups or an upset stomach. Personally though, I just love the taste, the look, and even the smell (they’re a terrific aromatic when used in cocktails such as the Pisco Sour, for example.)

The Fitzgerald, designed by Dale DeGroff, is one of the most straightforward demonstrations of Angostura bitters. This cocktail is essentially just a gin sour with bitters added. While it may sound simple, and while a gin sour on its own is great, something wonderful happens with that last little touch.

Here’s what you’re going to need:

1.5oz gin
1oz simple syrup
3/4oz lemon juice
2 dashes (a few good shakes) of Angostura bitters

Combine all of your ingredients along with ice in a cocktail shaker, shake, and strain over fresh ice into a rocks glass. Garnish with a lemon peel.

It’s as simple as that. If you’ve never tried Angostura bitters before, this is where you should start. Also be sure to check out our other cocktails featuring Angostura bitters.

Let me know what you think.

Cheers!