Finally!

The readers (reader?) have spoken and I'm putting up a new post. Yay! Anyway, I've been trying some of the recipes from my Imbibe Magazines. Even my bar didn't have the ingredients for all of the holiday drinks in the November/December issue, especially since several of the drinks call for infusions or special syrups and I've been a bit lazy lately. Why? Because the Manhattans I've been making with Carpano Antica Formula for the vermouth have been so good I haven't felt a need to experiment. Still, a little experimentation never hurt anyone so I mixed up a drink from the "Life of the Party" article in the November/December issue called The Swafford.

The Swafford (Imbibe Magazine)
1 oz. applejack
1 oz. rye whiskey (I used Sazarac, out of everything else)
1/2 oz. maraschino liqueur (Luxardo)
1/2 oz. Green Chartreuse
2 dashes Angostura orange bitters
Ice cubes

Add ingredients to a mixing glass, add ice, stir to chill and strain into a glass.

Desperately Seeking Suze...

Last night some friends and I enjoyed another of Adam Bernbach's creations at Bar Pilar, the Brown Brothers. This cocktail, made from Buffalo Trace Bourbon, Suze liqueur, and Adam's homemade "Yarmouthport" vermouth, was quite good and the aroma was AMAZING. I wanted to keep smelling the drink forever. Anyway, this drink has me on a mission to find Suze liqueur so I can approximate the drink at home.

Suze is apparently a French bitter liqueur flavored with gentian. It has become very difficult to find, the distributor may have gone out of business. I've been told that there may be a bottle somewhere about 15 blocks from my office. I'm contemplating a quest to procure it later this evening.

Taking a walk... to the liquor store

I'm sure it's not a surprise, but I really like going into liquor stores and checking out what they have on the shelves. I've discovered some good deals by looking at the dusty stuff back behind other bottles that way. I'm currently working in a different neighborhood than I have for the past two-and-a-half years, so there are different liquor stores to explore. Today I really needed an afternoon walk around the block to stretch my legs after a long day in front of the computer, so I strolled over to one of these stores.

Since all the other cocktail bloggers seemed to be writing about these days and I didn't get a free bottle myself since no one actually reads my blog, I decided to pick up a bottle of Matuselum Gran Reserva. Because I was looking at rums, the liquor store pointed out the bottle of Depaz Blue Cane Rhum Agricole that was on sale for half price. Depaz for $20? Sold. He threw in a mini-bottle of Bulldog Gin since I hadn't tried it, and I was set.

The Last Word

As I said in my previous post, I mixed up my first Last Word the other night and my maraschino was running low. Well, I finished off the bottle with another Last Word last night. The drink is made up of this:

• 1 part gin (last night I used Tanqueray 10)


• 1 part green Chartreuse


• 1 part maraschino liqueur


• 1 part fresh lime juice

Oh, and this is the first photo I've taken for the site with my new iPhone. Didn't turn out too bad, probably because I took it in a spot where I could shine a light right there. The pretty green color of the drink doesn't show that well, but I haven't played with the photo or anything either.

Apologies, again

I really need to get back on the horse and start posting again. I really don't have any excuse other than that I was too busy doing... nothing for a month and now I'm always at work. I do have some posts with pictures still waiting in the wings at home, so maybe I'll get them up this week. In the meantime, I will leave you with the following:

1. I did use a fat-washing technique to infuse some bourbon with bacon flavoring. This definitely added a bacon flavor to the Jim Beam I used, but I did this with pretty crappy bacon and I think it would turn out better with something good. I'll try again. I took some pictures for a planned post for this month's MxMo (Local Flavor) using the bacon bourbon for my home state of Iowa. After all, what's more Iowa than hogs (bacon) and corn (bourbon)?
2. I finally got my hands on a bottle of green Chartreuse and mixed up a Last Word last night. I really like this cocktail. The only problem I have is that after mixing up Aviations all summer my bottle of maraschino is almost empty and the prospects of me hitting a liquor store outside of the greater downtown/Dupont Circle area anytime in the next few weeks is somewhere between slim and none. Hopefully I can find a new bottle, but I'm not going to hold my breath.
3. My favorite sipping rum of the moment is El Dorado 15-year old. Yum.

My sincerest apologies

To Nick and Kate, who had the two Mai Tais I made last night. At least, I thought they were Mai Tais at the time. Only this morning did I realize that I accidentally poured from the bottle of falernum instead of orgeat. Those were most decidedly NOT Mai Tais. Oops. Probably a little on the tart side, too.

I'll make you real Mai Tais to make it up to you sometime. Or bacon bourbon Manhattans. Yeah, bacon bourbon.

Slacker

I've really been slacking on the posting so far this month, but since no one actually reads this I'm not too worried. I haven't been completely slacking on the cocktails front, however. I finished my first batch of tonic syrup, based mostly off of Jeffrey Morganthaler's recipe but with a few personal touches. I kind of messed it up a bit, and the flavor profile was too heavy on the cardamom for my tastes. I'll be mixing up another batch this evening, I still have PLENTY of quinine powder and all of the other ingredients. I also started a batch of Tequila por Mi Amonte, so I'll have that to test when I return from the Mayan Riviera later this month.

Over the holiday on the 4th, I got a chance to try some homemade sangrita with tequila at the residence of Dr. and Mrs. P. Pretty tasty stuff. They got their recipe from a Mexican bartender in Spain, but substituted a bit of maple syrup for the grenadine. I've also attended the Tuesday cocktail sessions at Bar Pilar twice this month, but neither visit offered anything that really struck me as fantastic. I really want to get over to Central Michel Richard to try the black pepper gin rickey that I've been reading about, it sounds fantastic.

I'm going to try my best to interest some of my friends in cocktails more interesting than simple vodka-based things or highballs tomorrow. Maybe it's time to mix up some tiki drinks now that I've gotten my hands on some orgeat. Hmmm...

Tailgate!

I mixed up some bloody mary mix on Saturday night in preparation for a Sunday morning tailgate for the DC United game. It was pretty damn good. I can't quite remember exact proportions, but the 46 oz bottle of V8 contained V8 (obviously), Worchestershire, A1, celery salt, Texas Pete hot sauce, minced garlic (one clove), horseradish, and fresh cinnamon basil from my garden. We also had beer and mimosas. It's always a fun Sunday when you can say you stopped drinking at noon.

That's right, stopped. Fun times. It was DAMN hot, though.

Bleccch.

This one looks pretty, but doesn't taste good. I'd been experimenting with some basil-infused vodka made with the "cinnamon" basil growing on my patio and some Smirnoff. The vodka tasted decent on its own, so I thought I'd combine it with some tomato flavor. I muddled a few cherry tomatoes in a mixing glass, added the basil-infused vodka and a bit of dry vermouth, and strained into a chilled glass.

I didn't finish it.

Hey, at least it looked pretty, right?

Summer Drinks

I discussed a list of summer drinks with pals James Poulos and his beautiful wife at Bar Pilar several weeks ago. I agree with most of the selections on his do list and several of the don'ts, but I have some additions:

1. The Dark & Stormy. A Bermudan concoction of rum and ginger beer. Delicious. For more details, see the previous post.
2. An Aviation Cocktail, bitterly cold. Gin and lemon juice, a perfect summer combination, made even better with the addition of maraschino liqueur. I make mine without the creme de violette.
3. REAL Margaritas. On the rocks, never blended, and always with fresh lime juice and decent tequila. Never, never, never with Jose Cuervo. Jose is not your friend.

If James ever returns from his globehopping long enough for a drink, I will force these libations on him and make him see the error of his ways in not including these on his list. Maybe I'll start by winning over his wife...

Dark & Stormy

I love a Dark & Stormy on a summers' day, and after I got my hands on some Barritt's Ginger Beer it's an even better treat. It's an excellent way to prepare for my trek over to RFK for the D.C. United game this afternoon, I think.

• 2 oz. Gosling's Black Seal Bermuda Black Rum
• 6 oz. Barritt's Ginger Beer
• lime wedge

Mmmm, tasty.

Grapefruit bitters, part one

I've been getting packages from the US Postal Service all week, and today it was time to start putting them to good use. I rode my bike up to Giant to pick up the last of the remaining pieces, a grapefruit and an orange, and put some ingredients for grapefruit bitters in a jar to steep until tomorrow. I used:

• zest of 1 ruby-red grapefruit (some pith, I used a zester to peel)
• zest of 1 small lemon
• zest of half an orange
• 10 whole cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon milk thistle
• 1 teaspoon wormwood
• 1 oz. fresh ginger, julienned
• 1 inch piece of calamus root
  
• 375ml Everclear

I plan to let this steep overnight... well, probably until tomorrow night when I get home from work. Photos and taste updates to come.

UPDATE: I put some of this in a medicine dropper with a little superfine sugar and a touch of water. Verdict = pretty damn tasty. I've been using this in a few cocktails, and I really like the touch of grapefruit flavor.

Home Cookin'

I finally got around to starting my first batch of falernum last night. I'm running low on the Velvet Falernum and bought some jars and bottles at The Container Store to hold my experiments. Last night, I also picked up a bunch of limes and some toasted almonds at Trader Joe's and it was time to start it up. I put about six ounces of Wray & Nephew Overproof Rum into a jar with 40 cloves and a wee bit of crystallized ginger. I'm letting it sit until I get home this afternoon, when I'll add the lime zest and toasted almonds.

Mixology Monday: Bourbon -- Kentucky Kernel

This week's Mixology Monday is bourbon, and is being hosted by the guys over at Scofflaw's Den. I got this cocktail from a book I picked out of the bargain bin at Borders, called The Bartender's Companion to 750 Cocktails. I didn't expect much out of it, but the book does have pretty pictures and it only set me back $4.99. Anyway, this drink takes its name not from the kind of colonel in KFC but rather from the apricot kernels that make apricot brandy. That, and Kentucky is the home of bourbon of course. I tinkered with the recipe in the book just slightly, using a little more bourbon and a dash of Peychaud's Bitters.

• 2 measures Bourbon (I used Bulleit)
  
• 1/2 measure apricot brandy
  
• 1 measure grapefruit juice
  
• 1 tsp. grenadine
  
• Dash of Peychaud's Bitters
  

The bitterness of the grapefruit juice kept the grenadine from making the drink too sweet. In the original recipe, which called for 1 1/2 measures of bourbon, I felt that the other flavors overwhelmed the bourbon a bit. With the added bourbon, this problem is gone.

Update: The Kentucky Kernel is also the name of the University of Kentucky student newspaper. Coincidence? I have no idea.

The Sazerac

Another classic cocktail that I've started introducing my friends to is the Sazerac. I ordered one at Bar Pilar for a group of friends a couple weeks ago, and they were sold. I'm excited that P. has starting asking if I think some other bars will be able to make her one... even if she did spell it "Sazamarack."

She never spells well on IM anyway. She also usually drinks scotch, neat.

I made a batch at home on Friday night while three of us were watching a movie on fast-forward and doing dramatic readings of the subtitles.

• 2 oz. Rittenhouse 21-year old Rye Whiskey
• 3/4 oz. simple syrup
  
• 1 tsp. Kubler absinthe
• Couple dashes Peychaud's Bitters
• Lemon twist

I rinsed pre-chilled glasses with the Kubler absinthe and discarded the extra. The rye, simple syrup, and bitters were put into a mixing glass with ice and stirred with a bar spoon, then strained into the glasses. Lemon twist for each glass, and we were happy. I'd usually make this with one of my other ryes, but what the hell.

El Floridita No. 1

I've been drinking a lot of Aviations lately (without the creme de violette, since I have none), especially since the weather has been hot lately and an Aviation screams "SUMMER!' to me. However, the tropical weather also says "rum" (and I'm out of lemons) so I thought I'd make up an El Floridita No. 1 as found in Gary Regan's The Joy of Mixology.

• 2 ounces light rum (I used Scarlet Ibis for this one)
• 1/2 oz. fresh lime juice
• 1/2 oz. simple syrup (I have a 50/50 cold method bottle in the fridge)
• maraschino liqueur (Stock brand, I used 1 tsp.)

This was very enjoyable with Scarlet Ibis, but I plan to try this with other rums in my stash to determine a favorite. I just need to decide what's next: 10 cane or the Cruzan?