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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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We are sometimes asked: Where do you find content? What inspires you to write about one particular topic or another? How do you come up with recpies to post? While completely original ideas do come along, it’s far more common (and often more interesting) to find inspiration among existing sources. We certainly didn’t invent the recipe for falernum, nor did we make the first homemade tonic or cola. Even barrel-aged cocktails are documented at least as far back as the first published cocktail book. Acknowledging previous accomplishments is one thing, but confirmation is so much more rewarding. Drink books both old and new are good places to start. The online cocktail community is also very collaborative. But nothing quite compares to sitting opposite a professional and watching a master
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Here's a great and somewhat unusual cocktail for those of you looking for a spirit-driven tipple that's a bit out of the ordinary. It comes by way of Ben Dougherty of Seattle's Zig Zag Café. It contains equal portions of bourbon, dry sherry and Ramazzotti, with a splash of Cointreau and a couple dashes of o-bits. Wait. Back up. Ramazzotti? I guess we couldn't slip that one past you. Like we said, this drink is a bit unusual, so it stands to reason that it might include an odd ingredient.
So, bourbon—no problem. Sherry isn't that common in cocktails but it's not unheard of. Cointreau and orange bitters—easy. But what's with this Ramazzotti? Actually, it's not that hard to find. It's another Italian Amaro, or potable bitters that happens to be a lovely aperitif. This one comes from Milan and it's not very bitter at
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It's one of several drinks by this name which shouldn't be too surprising. Plenty of cocktails are inspired by sporting men, the sports themselves and often the events that bring them all together. One of the more popular venues in bourbon country is the Kentucky Derby where the Mint Julep is king, but it's not the only thing worth trying. At least that's what somebody thought way back when this was invented.
This version comes to us from Trader Vic, but it also appears in Ted “Dr. Cocktail” Haigh's Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails. It's presented here as our Drink of the Week not because we recently watched the Belmont Stakes which reminded us of Churchill Downs, but because we read somewhere that it's Bourbon Day. We're not exactly sure this is an official holiday, but it's a good enough reason to mix up
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We have been enjoying the second season of Boardwalk Empire, the HBO television show set in Atlantic City during Prohibition. On the show there is a character played by Dabney Coleman who is called the Commodore. This reminded us of a cocktail we mentioned a few years ago. We suggested it as a classic recipe you could try that makes use of homemade grenadine, but we never actually reviewed the drink itself.
Whether you like the TV series or not, this is a delicious drink worth trying. It's based on a whiskey sour formula, but instead of using simple syrup to balance the lemon juice, the Commodore uses creme de cacao, a chocolate flavored liqueur that has appeared a few times before in the 20th Century, the Floridita and the Chimp in Orbit. It may not be the first time we have used creme de cacao, but it
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Every few years the first weekend in May brings a conjunction of two events—the Kentucky Derby and Cinco de Mayo. On some occasions the two events coincide on the same day. There are spans of time when that doesn't happen for over a decade, but every six years or so, May 5th lands on a Saturday. Each celebration is known for its respective cocktail. Derby Day's official drink is the Mint Julep, and what could be better for celebrating Mexican heritage than a Margarita? Even if thoroughbreds aren't your thing, it's hard to deny the luxury of sipping a Julep on a hot day in May, but you can say the same thing about the Margarita. So what's the solution? Make them both, right? In past years we have posted references and recipes commemorating one event or
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This Drink of the Week week is actually three drinks in one. The Eastern Sour is the first of a small family of sour cocktails invented by none other than Trader Vic, one of the founding fathers of the mid-century Tiki movement. Although it isn't as complex or as difficult as many Tiki drinks, for some people that's not necessarily a bad thing. The more ingredients—or often, the more obscure the ingredients—the less likely most folks will be able to execute the recipe. At least that was my theory as I looked for a tropical style drink to post this week. I thought we needed a change from all of the Manhattan variations I have been posting.
My source of reference is a groovy little iPhone/iPad app called Beachbum Berry's Tiki+. This app was developed with the full endorsement of Jeff "Beachbum" Berry and it's filled with recipes
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The Kentucky Bourbon Festival is just around the corner, and ever since the US Congress officially declared it as such in 2007, folks in Kentucky consider the month of September "Bourbon Heritage Month". The bill passed four years ago by unanimous consent, although I suspect it was supposed to be for that year alone. Still, the idea was meant to celebrate the 1964 Act of Congress that declared bourbon "America's Native Spirit". You could certainly argue that Applejack was distilled in America before anyone decided to make whiskey, but bourbon is by definition an American product. But there is more to the legal definition than that:
Only whiskey produced in the United States can be called bourbon. Bourbon must be made from a grain mixture that is at least 51% corn. Bourbon must be aged in new, charred oak barrels. Bourbon must be distilled to no more than 160 (U.S.) proof (80% alcohol by volume). Bourbon
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Tomorrow is the day I normally post the Drink of the Week. It's also Cinco de Mayo, which is a great excuse to post a tequila cocktail. However, this Saturday is the Kentucky Derby, and I don't want anyone to think I forgot about that. Of course, the traditional cocktail served at Churchill Downs is the Mint Julep, and it's one of my favorites. However, since I already covered it, I thought I would post a quick reminder with a few convenient links related to Kentucky Bourbon and of course, the Julep.
It has been a slow start for spring here in the Twin Cities, so I only just planted my mint a few days ago. I picked out a couple large "Kentucky Colonel's Mint" plantings at the farmers market last weekend, and I am hoping now that they are in the ground, we will have a summer with plenty
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Twenty years after Booker Noe, sixth generation distiller and grandson of Jim Beam, introduced Knob Creek bourbon, we will soon see their first ever single barrel bottling. Those of you who live in the Twin Cities will have a chance to taste this new whiskey at a release party being held during happy hour this Thursday at Prohibition in downtown Minneapolis. Like the Maker's 46 party last year, this event is open to everyone of drinking age and is a great way to sample something new as it enters the market.
Normally, the flavors associated with a particular bourbon are achieved by carefully combining whiskey from many different barrels. This process allows master distillers to create the same flavor profile year after year, maintaining a consistent and recognizable product. The single barrel concept is exactly the opposite: individual barrels of aged whiskey are tasted for specific flavor characteristics.
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