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When we first saw the ingredients for this cocktail at The Violet Hour in Chicago, we couldn't bring ourselves to order it. It seemed just too over-the-top with bitter ingredients. That was our first mistake. When the recipe appeared in Beta Cocktails, a book we recently mentioned in conjunction with the Art of Choke, we thought it might be time to check it out, but we never had the right combination of ingredients—most notably, we didn't have a Blanc vermouth. That was our second mistake. Today, we finally corrected both situations by picking up a bottle of Dolin Blanc and using it to construct one of the most interesting and surprising results we have tasted in a very long time.
Eeyore's Requiem is another recipe we have collected by Toby "Alchemist" Maloney, one of the
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Pursuing a casual interest in cocktails will lead you through some delicious modern recipes and most of the classics. In fact, many cocktail books, either by way of documenting recipe categories and development, or out of respectful obligation, take their readers through the same forty classic cocktails adding just a handful of embellishments and additions. While that may satisfy some, the more adventurous among us are constantly seeking new flavors and exciting combinations. It's not always necessary to go out of your way to track down hard-to-find ingredients—there are still plenty of daring and innovative drinks that any well-stocked bar can create. Such recipes may break a few rules and challenge conventional thinking, but together they serve, at the very least, as a reference and a source of inspiration for trade professionals. That was the idea, anyway, behind Kirk Estopinal and Maksym Pazuniak's Rogue Cocktails book.
The collectible
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Dry vermouth—it's hard to find another ingredient that is so important and yet so unloved by the masses. Vermouth is aromatized wine, and as any wine appreciator can tell you, once opened, it won't last forever. Oxidation begins immediately upon opening a bottle. For the first few hours oxygen might help elevate the flavors in a good wine, but what might have tasted great during the party is probably going down the drain the next morning—unless it was vacuum-pumped and sealed. Although vermouth is fortified with spirits, it still needs to be treated with respect. We doubt many readers treat theirs with the same care as a delicate wine. A warm cabinet and an opened bottle will quickly lead to horrible flavor. It's no wonder most people cringe at the mere mention of vermouth in their Martinis! If your vermouth has been collecting dust, unrefrigerated, it belongs in the trash,
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Anyone with a sustained interest in cocktails inevitably collects a few books. Some of us find pleasure in the obscure, letting a beat-up vintage tome transport us to another place and time. Such was the case last holiday season when we were presented a gift of several old cocktail volumes. One of them entitled Prelude to Pleasure by Ogden Nash was published in 1934 as a 1000 copy limited edition for the Continental Distilling Corporation of Philadelphia. What made this book so intriguing wasn't the poetry or the dated photos and kitschy line art—it was the handwritten recipe on the last page.
The rest of the book confirms some delightful classics that appear in other publications, but we wanted to know more about this personal notation. The book was purchased in a used bookstore in St. Paul, Minnestota, and a little research reveals that a Charles Nybeck did indeed live
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If you are a frequent reader of Summit Sips (and we really hope that you are!) you may have noticed that activity here has slowed down a bit lately. You may have also noticed that we recently made a long migration to the Pacific Northwest. Moving takes its toll on free time with a never ending list of projects. It's an unfortunate coincidence because we often have a lot to share at this time of the year. But now that we are finally getting settled, it's time to resume where we left off.
The Paddington cocktail is one that we have been meaning to make for a while. It comes to us by way of Jim Meehan's PDT Cocktail Book. This one was created by David Slape in the fall of 2008. It's another recipe that always makes the list of favorites from the book whenever you do a
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Here's a nice cocktail to drink while curled up next to the fireplace. It's big and bold, salty and sweet, and a little bitter too. You could say it's everything but sour. It comes by way of Marvel Bar's Pip Hanson and appears in both The American Cocktail book and Northstar Cocktails. During the colder, darker months, it's hard not to get excited about cocktails like this one. It's also pretty easy to make for how complex it tastes, and it uses an ingredient we've never featured on Summit Sips until now.
The unusual ingredient is Nocino (no-CHEE-no), a dark Italian walnut flavored liqueur made from unripe green walnuts. The flavor is sweet, luscious and deeply nutty, but often still high in alcohol. We were first introduced to it a couple years back at the Bradstreet Crafthouse where it plays prominently in their Black Walnut Old Fashioned, a
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From the title you might expect something wild and exotic, but the Savoy Tango is a very simple cocktail. Boasting only two ingredients, it's also easy to make. But can a drink like this live up to its catchy name? You'll have to taste it yourself to find out, but if you'd like to take our word for it, the answer is yes.
When we first came across this recipe we had to wonder what all of the fuss was about. It appears in Harry Craddock’s The Savoy Cocktail Book, so it's been around for a while. It is also noted to have been a popular selection in its day. So, why don't we ever see it on the menu? Our guess is that it has something to do with Sloe Gin.
It isn't the first time the subject has come up. We have covered Sloe Gin before in
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One of the best ways to try new drink recipes is to visit your favorite craft cocktail bar and order something new and exciting off of their seasonal menu. If it's not that busy, you'd also have an opportunity to discuss the details of your selection with the bartender—many of whom are quite happy to share their knowledge. It makes sense. An informed customer is more likely to order something interesting and share the experience with others, often returning as a regular with new customers. Another great way to learn about cocktails is to find them in books so you can make them at home. Plenty of books are perfectly suited for this and are worth your effort and expense. But what if you could find a book that revealed details about original drink recipes from your favorite bartenders—drinks you remember from past visits and either loved or never
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