Save the Drinkers!

Moscow is my muse.

2008-08-20T11:37:00.000-07:00

Save the Drinkers is taking a little break these days, as if it weren't obvious, since I've moved myself into the tiny college town of Moscow, Idaho and am busy setting up shop. As soon as I get my head above water, (and my dishes into the cupboards,) I'll put together a little post inspired by my new job at The Garden Lounge. It's a college town, so work with me on this one... but what about an exhaustive history of the Long Island Iced Tea? According to Ray Foley of Bartender magazine, the LIIT comes from Oak Beach Inn in Hampton Bays, and was invented by a man named Bob Butt. No joke. Bob, if you're reading this, go to hell.

I'm also thinking about a new drink composed of whatever is on top of my new college apartment refrigerator. I have two different bottles of vermouth, a couple bottles of bitters, several bottles of shiraz, Fernet-Branca, gin, The Scarlett Ibis, Sambuca, Jura Single Malt, and Erik Ellestad's Orgeat from Tales. Come to think of it, that actually sounds like the contents of the bar mats after my going away party last week, with the exception of rye whiskey which was gone in a couple of hours. (How many house parties have you gone to that run out of rye?!)

At any rate, I'll be resurfacing in the next week or so, as soon as I find a formidable muse for my writing here in Moscow, and as soon as I unpack my office.

XXX Monday!

2008-08-12T13:43:00.000-07:00

MxMo XXX is officially over, (it's over dammit so stop with the emails,) and we have swept up the barroom floor and have a pretty good pile of history, locally inspired cocktails, and a glass of Ohio tap water to boot. (Not kidding.) Thanks to everyone who participated... I had a great time reading all of your blogs and learning about each of your places. I even gave out some awards to entertain myself as I typed for, like, hours. So you better read every damn word. As soon as I finish typing, I'm getting drunk, so here we go...

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First up in the roundup is Tiare at A Mountain of Crushed Ice. Tiare gives an exhaustive history of Aarack and Swedish Punsch that every serious cocktailian should review. She provides us with recipes for the Revenge of Hannah and the Karlstromare on the Rocks, while giving props to Erik's Underhill Punsch recipe that I agree is phenomenal. She also provides photos of throngs of Caloric Punsch (available readily in, um, SWEDEN,) that make me swoon.

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Sunday Cook at Cooking 4 the Week tells the two stories of Boston's Ward 8, one of my favorite simple whiskey drinks featuring citrus juice and grenadine.

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At Cocktail Virgin (Slut), Fred (the Slut) mixes up the Winter Hill using a local Boston low-shelf vodka called Ruble. Although the vodka is caca, Fred pulls the drink together with flavors that compliment the vodka's chemical qualities. He also offers alternatives to said turpentine that could be used were it not for my damned theme.

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As a Spanish speaker, Ana Bolena perdió su cabeza wins my personal award for the most unique blog name in MxMo Triple X, and Stevi's recipes for Blackberry Shrub Syrup, Blackberry Wine Syrup, and the Blackberry Gin Shrub all sound like great ways to deal with the pest that is blackberry bushes in the Seattle area.

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At Flyboyz, Max makes what I can only imagine is one of the most delicious Manhattan variations ever, The Yorkville. Not only does he use Tuthilltown Rye, (of which I cannot even dream of getting ahold,) but he combines it with Carpano Antica Formula, Fee Brothers Aromatic Bitters, and a simple/effective/kick-ass addition that you'll have to read for yourself. Way to go, Max.

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Xiphias contributes the second recipe for the Ward 8, along with a variation for pre-boozers invented by her 10 year old, Winter. Winter, if you're reading this, I think you're recipe is bitchin'. But listen honey, just add the Rye. Give your palate a jump start... It wouldn't hurt, and I won't tell.

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M ark Sexauer provides a recipe for both a Baked Apple Puree and a cocktail using it with Washington's Dry Fish Gin called the Washington Orchard Apple. Nice job, Mark. This sounds like a perfect drink for the coming Fall season.

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Blair at TraderTiki offers us the Bridgetown Shamble, a Portland, Oregon cocktail that seriously represents from the name to the berries to the beer. This drink is a perfect example of representing your place. Yeah Blair, you represent.

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Jamie Boudreau manages to only sort of be a smart ass with his post, featuring equal parts snark and song with his homage to Canadian cocktails, spellings, and funny phoenetic expressions. (I'm excluding the bromidic "eh?" at this point, but he didn't.) Each of the four drinks he posts offer a date and a source, which makes me want to do more research. Later. Jamie gives recipes for the Martin Casa of Montreal, the Habitant of Quebec, the Hotel Georgia of Vancouver, and the Vancouver of Stan Jones Complete Bar Guide. This is a veritable cocktail road trip sans DUI. Nicely done, Jamie.

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Cocktailians takes us through the various histories and recipes of the New Yorker cocktail, featuring an interesting mixture of whiskey and red wine, and offers various pieces of trivia that I found very interesting. Vidiot's photo of the NYer is one of my favorites in the whole roundup.

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The ever-charming Chuck Taggart lives in my concrete hometown of Los Angeles and still manages to grow figs?! Aaaand a "large grove of pomegranates?!" Chuck, how do you do it? Gumbo Pages graces MxMo Local Flavor with two L.A. bourbon cocktails, the Brock & Co., and the Los Angeles Cocktail. Chuck's research is, as usual, exhaustive and generally badass, as are the comments that follow the post, arguing the use of the whole egg or only white, according to this author and that historian. I had no damn idea about any of it, to tell the truth, but I'm sure going to try both of these drinks. Thanks, Chuck.

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Tilen Krivek hails from Slovenia and publishes Slocktail, where he's posted recipes for the Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster (ahem,) and the Heart of Slovenia. Both drinks feature natively Slovenian products, Absinte Supreme and Fukoff Vodka, respectively. Tilen points out that the PGGB is indeed a cocktail invented by a fictional character in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which I think is nothing short of rad.

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The Scribe at A Mixed Dram, (the blog formerly known has A Dram of Brine), offers up, or should I say throws down "Mixology Monday: Gimme Some Flavouh." He reluctantly posts on the grounds that things should come from everywhere, but manages to give us recipes, (locally themed or not,) and suggested alterations for the New York Sour, the Rum Swizzle, and the Twilight Squall Cocktail.

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I am about ready to propose marriage to Jacob Grier after reading his post. No, no, no, it's not the late, late hour. Or the coffee. Or cocktails. Or pills. Jacob nailed this theme with his as of yet unnamed Spruce Cocktail. Jacob finds a local vodka, infuses it with a flavor/aroma that is characteristic to his home in Upper Peninsula, Michigan, and combines it with other ingredients to create very place-based drink. Tip of the hat to you, sir, as the winner of my personal award for most context-appropriate post.

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Anita at Married (... with dinner) posts on the Cable Car, a San Francisco classic. She offers a higher quality contemporary version that sounds amazing at the very least. Even more valuable in her post is a weekend full of cocktails to try and where to try them. I've got a trip planned soon, Anita, and I'm taking your drink tour.

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Tennessee-based Ponteuf at Southbound Train gives us the Cool Cucumber, a corny name, (for which she makes no apologies, and certainly shouldn't,) for a drink that sounds light, crisp, and well, cool. The akvavit is the real turn-on here for me. I imagine that dry flavor of caraway blending so well with the other bright ingredients in her CSA basket.

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Felicia's Speakeasy goes fist to cuffs with a bottle of

Ithaca reisling and fistfuls of sage, two ubiquitous ingredients in her northeastern region. She comes out clean with the Sage Reisling Cocktail and cheers from the crowd ensue at Atomic Lounge. Reisling and Sage are both readily available where I live as well. I may have to try this pairing on for size.

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Doug Winship is drunk-posting, I think, while offering hot coverage of a glass of water at The Pegu Blog. No photo, but I guess we can pretty much imagine what it looks like. Let's give Doug some traffic, shall we?

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If you haven't noticed yet, I'm into giving out awards in this roundup that mean nothing but teal font. (If I'm roundin' 'em up, you're gonna hear what I like, dammit.) But Jay at Oh Gosh! gets my personal award for the overall coolest blog in the lot. I burnt up my eyeballs just clicking away. Oooooo, the colors, the content. For this episode of MxMo, Jay gets after the G&T, explaining what makes it good, some of what's given it a bad rap, and where it came from. Jay, why don't you ever call me?

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The Bloody Fairy is a drink that speaks to me in a way that none of you can possibly understand. It's anise. It's clams. It's blood. It's fairies. Check out Matthew Rowly at Rowly's Whiskey Forge for great writing and great drinks, namely the Bloody Fairy, inspired by drinking traditions in San Diego and the Baja.

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Erik at Underhill Lounge is re-posting with something I'd be glad to read twice. His various musings about Old Fashioneds, bourbon and rye and brandy alike, are a great reminder of this drink's origins.

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The boys at Scofflaw's Den have taken on the Rickey in two variations, the Dupont "gin" Rickey and the Falls Station Rickey. Along with various accounts of the drink's origins, they provide two very good recipes for either the gin or bourbon lover, respectively. Well done, gents.

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Aside from having the coolest business cards in the group, Orange County-based Matt Robold at Rumdood gets the award for the most artistic angst expressed in his submission. I can't really say anything clever about the Tragic Kingdom because he just says it so damn perfectly. The drink sounds pretty good too, featuring Pyrat XO rum, orange liqueur, fresh lemon and mint, and brut champagne.

Kudos, Matt.

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I was actually getting really tired of reading when I stumbled upon the post from those crazy fruits over at Infusions of Grandeur. I tell you this because I was so thankful for the audio link of their tasting notes, complete with catversations and no less than three uses of the word "fruity." I am seriously LOLing right now. Check out their North Cackalacky Sangria and seriously, listen for that kitty. Meow.

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Next up is Darcy at Art of Drink. Everything Darcy touches turns to gold, so it's no surprise that his drink is great and so is the photo. He posts about gathering local ingredients and making local drinks with them, namely the Blueberry Crush, a mixture of many ingredients that sounds very good right now... okay, you're right. I'm tired and need a drink. Just read the damn post.

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My good friends at Cocktail Buzz make easy work of giving compliments. Not only is the Brooklyn Nonino a beautiful drink, but its way of reflecting their locale is so beautifully stated.

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Another Rickey submission by Fred at The Mixology Lab. Check out his post on the Old Line Rickey using rye. Fred also offers a good history lesson on the drink and some good tips for preparing them properly. I was foolishly unaware that Maryland and Pennsylvania were the rye whiskey capitals of the US until prohibition closed the distilleries' doors. Good info, Fred.

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Cindy at My Beautiful Mistakes writes about an abundant supply of blackberries at her parents' home in western Pennsylvania and makes the delicious Blackberry Gin Daisy. The drink features a syrup made from the blackberries and rosemary. This is so simple and so effective. I haven't tried it but it sounds great. Nicely done, Cindy.

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Back over at Scofflaw's Den, we have another Rickey post, this one featuring a Mixed Berry Shrub for The K Street Rickey. Now, I confuse easily at this hour unless I have booze, and I do not have booze, so I don't really know who is whom at SD. But this post is decidedly more process-oriented and I like that. The shrub recipe is very good, and the K Street follows suit. One thing's for sure, these guys know their stuff.

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Shrub, shrub, shrub! Our daddy, Paul Clarke, offers up the Apple Bramble Buck at Cocktail Chronicles. Though the shrub thing always has and will continue to elude me, (I drank too much turned wine at high school garage parties, I guess,) I love the use of Clear Creek Apple Brandy in this drink. Paul's missives about procuring berries in storm-ridden western Washington are damn near poetic as well.

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Speaking of Clear Creek, our next blogger is Lance Mayhew from My Life on the Rocks. He features a drink called the East of Beaverton Cocktail using Clear Creek Pear, Dolmen Worker Bee Honey Sprit, Sake One Joy G Sake (huh?), lemon juice, and as an afterthought, Fee Brothers Orange Bitters and Clear Creek Pear Liqueur.

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Seamus at Bunnyhugs (that makes me feel snuggly,) has provided us with the Rainbow Warrior featuring 42 Below Feijoa Vodka. We agree that sometimes a flavored vodka can actually make a vodka interesting, and Seamus has done a nice job with the 42 Below. I've had it, and I can imagine this drink tasting very good.

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More berries from the Oregon folks; Craig at Tiki Drinks and Indigo Firmaments brings us the Summer Berry Smash, featuring berries, mint, lemon juice, and Aviation Gin. It's looks delicious with an entire bush of some kind as a garnish, very reminiscent of the Summer in Portland. Craig also takes us thorough his tour of Kruger Farms, where he rounded up said berries.

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MxMo Triple X really has gone uncensored at this point as Ted Munat drops the f-bomb in his post as he waxes poetic about a recipe inspired by Don Quixote and channels his mother in the author's notes. Please pass the Lithium, stirred if you don't mind. Recipes for the aforementioned Balm of Fierabras, lead to a more serious cocktail called the Carkeek Club, inspired in part by the Clover Club. The Rosemary Gin in the Carkeek is also featured. Good post, Ted. Now take your medication.

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Next up is Metagrrrl who mixes up the Princess Alice Cocktail, inspired by the Victoria cocktail found in William Boothby's The World's Drinks and How to Mix Them. Metagrrrl's variation features an intersting mix of maraschino, grapefruit, and creme de violette to which she adds absinthe. The mixture was also inspired by her discovrey that grapefruit and maraschino, when combined, release the floral notes in both ingredients.

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Cocktailnerd provides us with both an excuse for his tardiness and whole new drink abandoning said excuse in his contribution. He and I agree that watermelon is an innocuous thing, and I'm glad for the change, despite his delay. The new drink, the Do-si-Do, features peach and raspberry mixed with Gold Rum, allspice, prosecco, and more.

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Marleigh at Sloshed! wins my personal award for mentioning a tabloid superstar in her post, and then gives us a great recipe for Jim's Special, inspired by a bar superstar, Rasta Jim, regular at the Tiki-Ti. I really like Marleigh's culture-oriented approach to this post. Very creative, even if we couldn't get coke of a hooker's ass to mix into the Lindsey Blohan Sling. (Oh yes I did.)

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Over at Blotto is a post featuring one of my favorite of Oregon's 1,400 craft distilleries, Clear Creek. The post takes us through the author's tour of Clear Creek, and then offers up the Pepper Delicious, a... delicious... mix of Aviaton Gin, bell pepper, mint, and lime. Way to go with the peppers, Blotto! Very unique.

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Over at Science of Drink, we have a beautiful photograph of the Honey Pepper Manhattan, an equally beautiful and unique cocktail. This was my first exposure to the Ukrainian national drink, gorilka, and it's almost too much to handle. The author describes it as a "cocktail for real men with big heart." Bartender!

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The last drink in this roundup in my own. And if any of you make it down this far, here you have it. It's the Huckleberry Sour, inspired by the state fruit of Idaho, the huckleberry. It features 44 North Huckleberry Vodka, local huckleberry syrup, and local ice wine from Koenig Wineries. It's pretty good.

Thanks to everyone for posting on local flavor. This has been a wonderful, red-eyed journey for me, and I have learned so much.

Mixology Monday... almost wrapped

2008-08-12T02:54:00.000-07:00

I'm just about finished with the wrap-up for MxMo XXX, and am getting a little sentimental about what has truly become a journey into the thoughts of a group of great writers, mixologists, and artists. And, without typing more than you care to read, I'm reminded of the time when I stumbled upon Mixology Monday. I was entering a logo design contest initiated by Paul Clarke, and although my submission for the contest did not ultimately win, it got me involved and I began reading through the archives of everyone's work. I found so many great thoughts and questions and began to understand a small piece of what was really fueling the forward-motion of the craft drink movement. When I had a turn to host MxMo, I never truly thought that the topic of locality would inspire such hard work from so many bloggers. My point with the theme, and I could have articulated a bit more clearly, (although everyone came through beautifully despite,) was to address the subject of mixology as both a culinary craft and one of cultural expression. A cultural, culinary art. Although several decades have passed us by and left us drowning in giant liquor company, energy drink insanity, cocktail-making is truly a culinary tradition. Food itself is an expression of our culture, and hopefully we are thinking about what we put into our bodies when we make dinner or prepare drinks for ourselves or anyone around us. Getting into each of our respective cultural surroundings and manifesting a drink with a historical or current timestamp should be an artistic expression and make us think, like any art form might. I'd like to take the chance, while this site is actually getting some traffic, to say thank you to everyone who makes that expression happen for their own city, in their own time. Thanks to every artist in the medium of liquor for showing us your reflection of your place.

Now, on to the roundup, which should be posted below by this afternoon, after I sleep a bit and return to my normal, more sarcastic self.

MxMo Triple X: Huckleberry Sour

2008-08-10T11:24:00.000-07:00

When I first came to Idaho at the age of 15, the term huckleberry was reserved for that dog on the Yogi Bear show. There was also Huckleberry Finn, but I was, and still am, more into cartoons than literature. Oddly, both characters are from the South, where there are no huckleberries. (When traveling in the Northeast, people often think Idaho is in the South. This is obviously not the case. We all know this, right?)

The huckleberry is the state fruit of Idaho. It's a small, round berry ranging in color from dark blue to burgundy. Huckleberries are often tart, but in most cases have a flavor similar to that of a sweet blueberry. Additionally, people in Idaho make everything, (everything!) you can imagine from these berries. They're a part of our culture. As such, 44 North Huckleberry Vodka is very, very popular where I live. And until working up this post, I hadn't even tried 44 North. Unfortunately, the kids here in town have mixed it with Energy Drink and started calling it Doc Holliday, (I think inspired by his famous quote in Tombstone, "I'm your huckleberry.") The waste of a good drink name aside, 44 North has always seemed like a kid's product to me. You know, stuff the kids drink, like Capri Sun or Bartles & Jaymes or that Beer & Taurine drink. But after doing some research on 44 North, I found that it was definitely a high-quality product with a lot of integrity. I contacted Ken Wyatt from 44 to get a little more info on exactly how Idaho his vodka is, and his response? Totally f-ing Idaho. I like what Ken says about the craft vodka and craft flavored vodka (for lack of a better term,) movement as well. "Our desire is to develop a line of quintessentially American vodkas to rival the best imports." This philosophy of American Vodka as a truly craft spirit is a good direction. When the US legalized home-brewing in 1979, states that lifted their bans along with President Carter allowed a craft beer movement to begin. As a result, we have an amazing amount of great American beer 20 years later. While home-distilling is not yet legal, we're seeing a trend shift from macro- to micro-distilling in many American products. Hopefully, these are the early days of the movement to bring a certain giant crap liquor company and vodka brand to their knees. (You know who you are.)

With all of that being said, 44 North is really good! It has a strong, sweet flavor of fresh huckleberry and light notes of vanilla and citrus on the nose. Its alcoholic heat provides a little kick on the finish, which is nice because it isn't all flavoring. It's made from Idaho russet potatoes and distilled in Rigby along with other craft vodkas like Square One and Teton Glacier. The Huckleberry Sour is a very simple use of 44 North. It is inspired by a popular dish on Red Feather's brunch menu last spring, huckleberry lemon crepes. (Yes, they're as good as they sound.) It's also worth mentioning that our bar uses 100% farm fresh local duck eggs from Morning Owl Farm, and chicken eggs from a local farm co-op organized by Turkey Ridge Farms, all located in Boise. I'm also using Greg Koenig's Ice Wine as a sweetener in place of simple syrup (last minute change here, but a very nice one.) Greg is soon becoming one of the most respected winemakers in Idaho, and his ice wine is one of my favs.

Huckleberry Sour
1.5 oz. 44 North Mountain Huckleberry
1 oz. Koenig Ice Wine
1 oz. Fresh Lemon Juice
1 Egg White
Combine all ingredients and shake with big ice for 30 seconds. Double strain and serve up.

I garnished mine with organic huckleberry syrup from Dorothy's in Boise, which I purchased at our local grocery co-op. A twist of lemon will do if you're not located in the Northwest.

I've had an amazing time reading everyone's posts for this round of MxMo. It's been great to see what everyone is coming up with as a reflection of their city or region. I'll post a roundup tomorrow afternoon with highlights from every article, so keep an eye out. Until then, go out into your city, think, and drink local!

Mondays are dropping like flies.

2008-08-05T11:49:00.000-07:00

It's already that time again?!

If you'd like to be in the roundup for MxMo Local Flavor, please copy and paste a link to your post as a comment on the original post anytime before 11:59 p.m. on Monday, August 11th. (In reality, I'll check it on Tuesday at noon, so we have some wiggle room here.) I'll pull a roundup together sometime on Tuesday evening.

Drive, drink, listen, drink, pass out, drive.

2008-07-27T17:17:00.001-07:00

There's only so much you can do on a day trip from Boise to Portland.

Several months ago, I fell for a musical artist by the name of Jay Brannan, (who also happens to be an actor unafraid to show it all, which certainly helps.) When I found that he was coming to Portland immediately after Tales of the Cocktail, and immediately before I move to Moscow, I thought, what the hell, I have 30 spare hours. To Portland we go!

Oh Martinez, the only thing I love more than you is two of you.

The show was great, (Jay and I will be married in the winter,) and I also got the chance to catch up with my new friend Daniel Shoemaker who owns the enchanting Teardrop Lounge in the Pearl District. Rachel and I enjoyed a Martinez (of which she has enjoyed many, and is becoming an expert), a Straits Sling, and an Ex Nihilo while talking with Daniel about west coast cocktail this and that, making your own Amer Picon replica, (it's Daniel's own recipe, so eat it Boudreau,) and the coastal bartender exchange program, of which those of us in Red Feather will probably never be a part.

As far as bars on the west coast are concerned, Teardrop is now one of my favorites. The drinks are clean and classic. And the ones that are original are tasteful and flavorful. Talking with Daniel about drinks and drinking culture is exactly the same. No buzzwords, just flavor.

A drink worth mentioning is the Ex Nihilo, pictured at right. This beautiful anise cocktail is made with Magellan Gin, St. George Absinthe Verte, Teardrop's own dry vermouth, hawthorne berry tincture, and a little cava. The flavor is dry and crystal clear anise with a light bitterness; no sharp angles or asymetry in its balance, just intense flavor.
Another thing about Teardrop that I love, (and then I'll stop gushing,) is the overall style of the drink menu. If I saw the menu without knowing the place, I would probably guess Portland. It's not produce-y enough to be from San Francisco, but not Rye Whiskey-y enough to be New York. There are liquor-forward drinks, but they don't dominate the menu. There's plenty of interesting fresh juice, but the menu doesn't emit organic cucumber essence. I see housemade tinctures and antique, obscure spirits, but I don't feel like I'm drinking moonshine in the basement of chemist turned bartender. Everything about Teardrop says balance, and that's how I like to think of the Northwest. (I consider Idaho part of the Northwest because I refuse to be middle-America, so just let me have this one, okay?)

Cheers to Portland and Teardrop lounge, and I'll see you all at the Distiller's Festival...

MxMo NOLA: Bienville at Dawn

2008-07-27T15:53:00.000-07:00

When I drunkenly stumbled into the Louis Armstrong International Airport with my bags of swag and cloudy judgement last Sunday, I had forgotten about a forbidden carry-on item in my possession. I checked my roller bag, attempted to conceal my juniper breath, and politely thanked the United ticket agent before heading to security for what was about to be a difficult travel day. You see, the boys from Cocktail Buzz basically forced liquor down my throat that afternoon as we sat around the Monteleone rooftop pool, and I was not thinking clearly.

You guys, I can't drink anything else. I am a responsible traveler, and I have church and yoga this evening when I return home. Please pass me that ginseng-infused Vitamin Water.

Steve & Paul

Drink this gin you little troll or I'll tell everyone what you stole from the bar at Simon and Audrey's midnight breakfast! You Idaho people are soooo tired. Pass over that big bong full of bourbon. Wooooooo!

My resulting impairment led to a frantic departure from my hotel, thereby causing me to forget about the bottle of Angostura Orange Bitters for which I had graveled at the feet of a marketing director at Napoleon House earlier that day. I stuffed the bitters into my computer bag and slithered out of Napoleon House a la Golum & The Ring before heading straight to the aforementioned waterboarding by liquor at the pool.

I nearly missed the plane because I was not leaving my bitters in the hands of that croc-wearing TSA vodka-lover. I ran from security in a drunken rage and checked the bitters in my otherwise empty computer bag and carried my mac home in my St. Germain swag bag, which wore terribly with my boots. For this, I will never forgive the Transportation Security Administration.

Aaaaneeeeway, this drink is called Bienville at Dawn, named for the approximate time I returned to my hotel to startle the desk clerk with the smell of sin each morning before the conference. Aside from the bitters which I procured by force, this drink reminds me of New Orleans with its earthy anise nose, rich cognac body, and spicy, bitter finish. The only way it could be more of a New Orleans culinary experience would be to butter baste and fry it, but I just couldn't make it work with the gin.

Bienville at Dawn
1.5 oz Plymouth Gin
1 oz Hennessy VSOP
2 dashes Angostura Orange Bitters
Splash of Lucid Absinthe (don't be shy)
Splash of Simple Syrup (be shy)
Stir, serve up with a twist of orange.

(I think it's important to always photograph your drinks (or food/home/weaponry) with very, very handsome men gazing into the camera in the background. In this case you get Mark, who obviously just hates the camera.)

Popularity Contest!

2008-07-21T16:28:00.000-07:00

This is what those of us in the business and marketing world call "Shameless Self Promotion"!

Please click on the banner below and vote thoughtlessly for Red Feather or Bittercreek in every category you can possibly imagine. (One of my favorite awards to win would be "Best Place To Get Wet.") If you work for a different bar/restaurant/den of sin in town, please consider this your reminder to vote for your own people... depending on how well you think they tend bar or make dinner or scare up smack.

Happy ballot stuffing! Please tell your friends!

Love the Chick, Hate the Clothes:

2008-07-19T13:19:00.000-07:00

That's LeNell Smothers.

She's a wild girl with a big ol' mouth for drinkin'. And... I can't resist the urge to tell everyone that I saw her wearing a black leather fanny pack last night, (ahhhh!), nor to say that although I think she is one hot chick with a great talent for booze, I hate her clothes. And I think she might be a slut. I'm just saying! I love sluts!

I don't even know her and I'm trashing her clothes, which is why I'm posting here and not on Tales Blog. Because it would be just like a bratty blogger to tell everyone that she can suck a golf ball through ten feet of garden hose, but not actually introduce myself to her, ever. LeNell, if you're reading this, I just want to say that I love trash. And I love you. And I'm a cowardly gay scribbler.

LeNell and Gary Regan hosted what was barely an educational experience yesterday: The Essential Guide to American Whiskey. And although it was not essential in the least, is was a fuckload of fun. ("Fuckload" is a technical tasting term I learned in yesterday's session.) Everybody in attendance expected nothing but this. I did have the chance to try a wheat whiskey called Bernheim Original that was deeeeelish. And I also had fun listening to LeNell talk about her whiskey collection, which is apparently incredible. Oh and also, I'm drunk.

Important note: I sat next to Sammy from Milk & Honey who has 1,000,000 friends and whom everyone loves, and I was jealous because nobody knew me and I didn't get any attention from LeNell the Slut or Gary the Crackhead. But Sammy gave me some Green Chartreuse, which I'm pretty sure is his way of saying that he thinks about me lots.

I was actually quite pleased to just drink a bunch of whiskey and watch as LeNell and Gary burped out inside-jokes about Gary's wife on the mic. I didn't have the brain power to actually learn anything since getting out of bed yesterday morning, (after consuming what I am sure will be a life-truncating amount of rye whiskey the night before,) was a lot like being ripped out from the middle of a collapsed tool shed.

This is what you folks at home should consider a casual update.

Now, here's me getting busted rifling through Shana's purse. Oh, and pulling off a bottle of Beam. Wooo!

Absinthe fanatics are kind of goth, only green instead of black.

2008-07-16T19:37:00.000-07:00

After having foot to ground in New Orleans for around 18 hours, I'd already had a serious case of heartburn, a hangover, regret that I don't live in a larger city, and a new set of neat people to stalk, (you know who you are...,) before I found time to post. I also learned that one must have a panama in their collection to be a cocktail writer traveling to New Orleans...

I do not... and nor will I ever... own a panama hat.

Since I'm a research-free writer at the moment, and I don't know a ton about the subject already, I can't go into great depth about my visit to the Preview Opening of the Absinthe Museum of America and the simultaneous consumption of several glasses of that funny stuff. But I can tell you that I was surprised about the complex differences between Lucid, Marteau, and La Fee absinthes. Lucid has a rich, earthy flavor that I prefer to the others, while the La Fee has a bright, full-bodied sweetness that I think has more universal appeal to our culture's less-than-1700s appreciation of absinthe. These differences are probably the result of the different styles and philosophies associated with each spirit-maker, but you'll have to do some research to find out. (I don't feel like it.)

I basically had to threaten a pipe bombing at the ISLD to get Lucid into Idaho, and I've since grown to love the stuff. I was equally loving the vast collection of pastis and absinthe brands and accessories at today's preview... and these chicks:

Hold on to your liver!

2008-07-12T12:33:00.000-07:00

After posting my basic tips for newcomers on the Tales Blog last week, I realized that I'm trying to fit in a lot during this year's reunion. Combine the number of sessions I'm attending with the fact that I actually have to write/work during this thing, and you've got a busy little Kevin on your hands... especially considering that I'm neither a serious blogger nor writer nor person. What's happening here is grown-up behavior. Eek.

To give everyone an idea of what I'm not going to miss, and to get myself organized in the first place, I'm posting the schedule for the whole Save the Drinkers and Red Feather cast and crew. Here's what we/I be doing at Tales this year, extra delinquent galavanting implied:

Wednesday, July 16th

2:00 p.m. Toast to Tales of the Cocktail
4:30 p.m. Cocktail Bloggers Reception
Before 6 p.m. Sneak into Green Hour
Before 7 p.m. Sneak into Warhol Party

Thursday, July 17th

10:30 a.m. How to Taste
12:30 p.m. Juniperlooza or Molecular Mixology
2:30 p.m. Cognac and Armagnac or Nano-Distilling
4:30 p.m. Latino Libations or British Invasion!
8:00 p.m. Commander's Palace, Spirited Dinner

Friday, July 18th

9:00 a.m. I'm not entirely sure how the world looks at this hour, but I'll be at the Media Breakfast at Brennan's
10:30 a.m. Bitters (I'm wondering if Toby will be wearing Converse.)
12:30 p.m. The Whiskeys You've Never Tasted
2:30 p.m. The Three Amigos
4:30 p.m. Sensory Perception

Saturday, July 19th

10:30 a.m. Regional Trends or Morning Glory Cocktails
12:30 p.m. Green Seasonal Bar
4:30 p.m. Making Your Own Ingredients
Midnight Audrey and Simon's Breakfast

Sunday, July 20th

10:30 a.m. Bartending Techniques
12:30 p.m. Famous New Orleans Drinks

Catching all of this is, of course, baring extreme mental disability related to late nights in the Sonnema and Faulkner Suites. I'm also going to miss the ribbon cutting at the American Cocktail Museum since I'll be leaving on Sunday. At any rate, it's going to be a great week. See you all on Wednesday!

MxMo August: Local Flavor

2008-07-07T13:57:00.000-07:00

Yoo hoo... Over here! Hi. I'm Kevin: Busy social degenerate who happens to be hosting MxMo August. Don't look so surprised. I'm functioning, even if barely... Functioning and completely stoked about the August 11th roundup on Local Flavor. In short, the idea is to post one of two types of drinks:

Option 1: Gather ingredients that are representative of the culture/geography/tackiness of your respective cities and make a drink with a truly place-based style. For example, huckleberries are native to the geographical area where I live, as are elderflowers, potatoes, and extremely conservative, closet-case politicians. (I'm just saying!)

Option 2: Dig up an old drink that came from your city and revive it! If you can find the original bar, that would be even more interesting.

Those of you that know me, (so, like... none of you,) probably aren't surprised that I chose local-something as a topic for my turn to host. Locality is an interest of mine not only for environmental reasons, but also because of my passion for developing a culinary style that is unique and culturally sensible for each place. We live in a nation obsessed with globalization and it's killing our planet and, just as tragically, our style! I feel the same way about food globalization as I feel about Crocs... and take my word, it is a violent emotion.

This topic should dovetail nicely with the July MxMo following Tales, which is a similar idea but specific to New Orleans. New Orleans is rich is culinary history and should provide a good excercise for returning to your own city to put together something truly place-based.

Drop a link to your post as a comment below or email me at kevin (at) savethedrinkers (.) com by midnight on August 11th to be included in the roundup. Until then, have fun with the July MxMo... and for those of you gracing New Orleans next week, I'll see you (maybe in double/blurred vision) at the Carousel Bar!

Martini Mix-off 2008

2008-06-08T14:44:00.000-07:00

So many bizarre things happened on Friday night that by the time I walked into Red Feather after the Martini Mixoff awards party, I wasn't at all surprised to see no less than two sets of my co-workers' breasts standing at attention, t-shirts flying through the air in inebriated abandon; a sight almost completely wasted on me as I searched for a bathrobe or a fire extinguisher or anything to cover what would undoubtedly be talked about for months to come. "Remember that time when the Red Feather staff went completely crazy and staged an orgy in the restaurant after Martini Mixoff?!"

Jonny and Martinez

I wish I could say that such amorous energy was brought about as congratulations for the success of the Penicillin, but I'm sure it's actually the other way around. There was something in the air, or the liquor, or the bong water... and when Karen Ellis announced that the Penicillin had won the first place award I was truly convinced that I had fallen down the rabbit hole... or off my high heels. The Penicillin was supposed to be the loser of the whole damn thing!! And it won! First place!

The Penicillin took first in Savory, the Martinez took second in Classic, and the Lovelocker took third in Dessert. We also won the food award thanks to the onion ring stylings of one Chef Andrew Mayer, and thanks doubly to the chocolate and pink peppercorn ice cream made by the beautiful Pastry Chef Jami Gott. A fine finish to a very long month if I do say so myself, and a surprising one at that. A bourbon cocktail wins first place in a Boise cocktail competition... incredible.

Mark Allen, Martinez, Sean Early, Unidentified Pretty Person.

Other winners were Pat Carden with something that took ten minutes to dilute at rest, I think protecting his stirring wrist from what could have been carpal tunnel years ago. Also worth mentioning is Michael Bowers' second-place-winning dessert drink, the Morro de Saudade. It's an interesting mix of scotch, strawberry, chocolate, and balsamic vinegar that I've decided is a misguided bourbon cocktail, but still quite enjoyable as long as you're adventurous. I was very disappointed to see that Chandler's play on the Moscow Mule, the Hef-tini didn't make the finals in the Savory category. It's a very simple beer, vodka, and orange bitters cocktail that I found surprisingly delicious. The elegant and f-ing flawless Jen Koble of Pair took first in Dessert with her rich and spicy chocolate martini, the Fiery Francesca. Other winners were Sarah Proctor of Tablerock and Sean Early of Bardenay, who was the most deserving winner of the People's Choice award since he's the nicest and cutest person in the world. The photos below were taken with my iPhone camera which sucks. For better photos, check out Dave Day at Boisee.

Bingo Barns and his Ladyfriend, whose name I forget, and the Penicillin. Bingo in the closest thing Boise has to a Ted Haigh.

The darling Sarah Proctor.

Mark Allen, dreamboat, making the Penicillin.

Tori Spurlock and the Lovelocker.

Martini Mixoff Finals

2008-05-26T13:38:00.000-07:00

It's funny how I always forget the insanity that comes upon Downtown Boise the minute the sun comes out. And amid the patio dining which nearly doubles our business, there's the summer events. One such event, the May Martini Mixoff, brings tongues of thirsty martini drinkers downtown to watch judges determine who makes the best drinks, and to drink and judge for themselves.

Bittercreek competed two weeks ago, and Red Feather competed last week. At the end of it all, we made three drinks into the finals collectively; the Martinez at Bittercreek, and the Lovelocker and Penicillin at Red Feather.

These are three drinks I've posted on consecutively in the last month or two, and you can imagine my surprise when the third of which, the Penicillin, actually made it into the finals. (?!?) Dare I say that we have some whiskey drinkers in our panel of judges?!? I've been wearing this pompus badge noting myself as the victim of an adventurous palate; I've assumed everyone would hate it, and I've loved being such a bitch about it. I suppose this is what I get.

The charming and historically minded Bingo Barns seemed the most fond of the Penicillin, which I expected, but I didn't think it would be enough to put in the top three.

Only two bars were knocked out of the competition throughout the month of May, leaving a hefty seven competitors for the final judging to be held this Wednesday, May 28th, at Gusto Jazz Bar on Main Street between Capitol and 6th. The finalists are Pair, Chandler's, Bardenay, Tablerock, Modern Hotel, Bittercreek, and Red Feather.

Here's the Red Rye Bread at BitterCreek. This drink is a loser, but I love this photo! Aqvavit and tomato juice with a little spice. This defines savory!

The Lovelocker and a snifter of Cardamom Cordial. In an effort to turn the tables on their asses, Mark and I made a scorecard for each judge. Our egos are fragile! Forgive us!

Something about her expression just says "not happy." Poker face? Let's hope so.
Here's me making a Bourgeois Pig, which I understand was damn close at having a chance to compete against the slow-as-hell martini over at Chandler's. (Sorry Pat, couldn't resist.)

The photos in the body of this post were provided by Addis Manly, general dreamboat and the legs and eyes of the Martini Mixoff... The three photos below the post are the work of the generous David Day. For more great photos of Martini Mixoff and of general happenings in Boise, check out his blog, Boisee.com.

MxMo Rum: The Scarlet Ibis & Death

2008-05-12T14:44:00.000-07:00

I've been gearing up for this Mixology Monday post since I first tasted (the better part of a bottle,) and then smuggled home from New York last week, The Scarlet Ibis blended rum of Trinidad. The first thoughtful sip is pictured at right. The latter sips were not so carefully tasted, as I recall.

The Scarlet Ibis is subtle but hot, releasing light floral and caramel notes throughout the finish. It makes a great cocktail rum because of its versatile flavor and generous proof. It's imported by Eric Seed, (all-around great guy and my bar's personal portal between Boise and the outside world of fine spirits,) especially for Death & Co., my favorite dimly lit watering hole with heavy wooden doors in New York's East Village.

That being said, I'm not the most rum-oriented cocktail guy (I know, I know... sacrilege!) It's not that I don't like rum and its application in drinks, but is probably best explained by my general aversion to tiki culture, (just hang me already,) and the fact that the company I work for used to own a tiki bar, (in, cough, IDAHO, USA!) and I'm a little scarred from the labor of digging up old rum drinks only to sell margaritas and vodka tonics to college students with bad manners. After writing a few drink menus that nobody understood, and training a few staffs that simply did not care, we took a bow to the Idaho context, and tapped out of the tiki game all together. Although all rum is not tiki, I have a little PTSD related to this experience. And when I realized I was loosing my MxMo cherry to a rum post, I swear I heard Victor Burgeon himself snicker at me from the great Trader's in the sky, amused by the irony, watching me flounder.

The Scarlet Ibis is a delicately sophisticated rum. It is, in my mind, beautiful respite from the tacky tiki nightmare that surrounds a culture, (and a style of dress for that matter,) that I simply do not understand. The rum is like everything I love about D&C; the classy and demure dark humor of the place, its beautifully gothic and morgue-like sensibility, the subtle air of something old. I made the punch below in a bowl that is so drastically ugly when set against the soft, alabaster punch pots I remember at Death that I refused to photograph it. It's melodramatic, I know, but that's how I feel about Death & Co...

Since anybody who's anybody has already had The Scarlet Ibis and the subsequent hangover, I decided to enlist the help of David Kaplan, co-owner of the nightlife establishment, and he directed me to Philip Ward who, from what I understand, is basically to Death & Co. what Mickey Mouse was to all those brooms in Fantasia.

The Gustad Noble Punch
In large pitcher disolve 12 demurara sugar cubes in 3 oz soda (Muddling is usually neccesary,) Stir in:
3 oz Lemon
1.5 oz Pimento Dram
6 oz Scarlet Ibis
4.5 oz fresh pressed Fuji apple juice
6 dash Peychaud's Bitters
Add ice and stir until chilled Pour into punch bowl over large piece of ice
Add 4.5 oz club soda
Garnish with slices of apple

Get Drunk!

Barring a few minor modifications, (my own dram and tart, granny smith apples,) I made this recipe for a group of friends in celebration of, well... The new Mixology Monday logo?... and am now feeling lucky that I wrote the majority of this post beforehand. Since the supply of Ibis is so effing limited, I would suggest dropping by D&C and ordering a bowl of this tart, spicy punch from Philip or whomever happens to be issuing libations at the time. On David's recommendation, I've also tried it in a Mai Tai. If you can rip yourself from the grip of Appleton's to try a Trinidadian variation, it's lovely. And, if you can get your hands on your own bottle of Ibis, do it before it's gone...

The Cure...

2008-05-02T11:35:00.000-07:00

I'm sure I don't need to tell any of who live in Boise about our recent media event, but for the sake of any out-of-state readers, I'll give you a little background on the Penicillin...

Last Winter, a server of ours went to Nicaragua to surf and unwind for three months. After having returned and worked for three weeks, she fell terribly ill. Two days later, Central District Health called and informed me that she had hep A. To make a long story-- which I am still living-- very short, the media got a hold of it and made news of a fluke. The news media in Idaho can be likened to a flatulent old dog dressed in drag; bored and stinky with bad hair and makeup. Sooooo, with morale at an all-time low, the Penicillin is helping us have a some fun with our bad press. Its medicinal flavor is sure to scare the hysteria from any hypochondriac-- of which, we have learned, there are many in our little city. We're entering the Penicillin in the May Martini Mixoff, and its less-than-universal flavor profile leads me to believe it may win the competition the day that I'm seen wearing a pair of beige dockers... which, of course, is never.

Penicillin
1/4 oz Fernet Branca
1/4 oz Brown Sugar Cordial*
2 oz Bourbon (We use MM for the competition)
1 dash of Angostura Bitters
Stir gently and garnish with a smacked mint leaf.

*Make a very thick simple syrup out of brown sugar and add 1 ounce of Lemon Hart 151 for every cup of sugar used.

The Penicillin is bitter and aromatic with an almost syrupy finish. Placing the mint leaf on your palm and giving it a good smack before placing it on the drink's surface creates an herbal aroma that is surreal and compliments the flavor of the Fernet quite well. The smacked mint leaf is a favorite garnish of ours-- thanks, Audrey.

The flavor of bourbon breaks down rather quickly when poured over ice and stirred. If you're using room temperature bourbon, don't go nuts with the stirring. You want this drink to be strong and hot so you can skip the vaccination. If you have big ice, stir with that. It will chill the drink without watering it down too much.

Oh, and for those of you wondering... there has not been a single case of hep associated with Red Feather. It's amazing what a small town will do on a slow news day...

May Martini Mixoff

2008-04-22T14:32:00.001-07:00

Boise's 5th Annual May Martini Mixoff is soon underway. For those of you living out of the area, the Mixoff is a cocktail competition sponsored by Future Brands of Idaho. Bartenders from the downtown area invent drinks in specified categories using sponsor products, and present their drinks to a panel of judges 3 bars at a time, every Thursday in May. There's a final party to announce the winners around the first weekend in June.

The organizers and a few chirping advisers have broken the competition up into three categories this year: Savory, Dessert, and Classic Martini. There's some flexibility with the Classic category as vodka is allowed to compete (puhtooey) and the use of vermouth is optional, as it seems. It should also be noted that this is a promotional, sponsor-oriented event. While I tend to make it way more culinary and serious than it is, the point is to have fun and raise money for a charity in honor of our late downtown friend, Lisa Villano.

Here's how I define each category, and how Red Feather and Bittercreek bartenders are being instructed to compete:

Savory
If you might enhance the flavor of a drink with salt and pepper, it's probably savory. Drinks in this category should have strong herbal, spice, or salty tones. The use of cream, coffee, chocolate, nut, or fruit cordials or liqueurs is discouraged. Simple syrup should be limited to use in fresh citrus juice or be infused with herb or botanical extract. The finish should range from menthol (hot not sweet), grassy, spicey, aromatic, bitter or umami.

Dessert
This drink should contain cream, egg, chocolate, sweet spice, nut or coffee cordial, vanilla, or caramel or caramelized fruit syrup. It should be considered post-prandial in flavor and not digestif, although both are usually considered appropriate for dessert. The finish should be sugary, milky, or syrupy.

Classic
For our bars in this competition, the Classic guidelines are quite simple. Gin and aperitif wine in a ratio of no less than 1 part aperitif wine to 6 parts gin. Bitters are optional.

Oddly enough, the most commonly asked question seems to be Where does the Cosmo fit? or Where does the Lemon Drop fit?... Repuesta? They fit in a different competition. The criteria is wonderfully designed to eliminate drinks of such an obvious and plaaaaaayed model. (It's a good model, just played-out as all hell.)

I hope we see some new trends this year, like the use of housemade cordials and garnish, and local, seasonally appropriate ingredients. As we develop our drinks for Red Feather and Bittercreek, I'll post the recipes here. Until then, pick up tickets for Martini Mixoff 2008 at the:

Kick-Off Party on April 29th at 5:30 pm in the Mode Building, 8th Street at Idaho, Downtown.

Tickets are $50 and will buy you one cocktail at each of the nine participating bars (expiring June 30th,) a drink at the Kick-Off Party, and entry to the final party in June and a drink there as well. Ticket-holders are encouraged to have a liver examination sometime in July. You may also purchase tickets at all of the competing bars starting this Friday, April 25th.

50 miles

2008-04-17T12:07:00.000-07:00

Has anyone every heard that eating local honey helps control seasonal allergies? This is a huuuuuge debate in my office lately, since I think it's hogwash, but I'm interested to know about the scientific backing, if there's actually any out there...

The point, though, is not seasonal allergies. Since mine are terrible this time of the year, the subject was at the front of my head... like, literally... when I told a bar patron last month that her cocktail, (made with vodka, rose cordial, sour apple juice, and honey,) was composed of ingredients sourced within a 50-mile radius. After I shot down her local honey shtick, we had a talk about locality that went basically like this:

"If you guys are all into fancy drinks, why don't you guys have raspberries or strawberries or anything? I like berries."

"Well, they're not quite in season yet. Not it this part of the West, anyway."

"You can get them at Win-Co."

"I know."

(awkward silence, which I really enjoy sometimes.)

"So you don't have anything on the menu that you can't get from like the Co-Op or something?"

"The goal is to feature things on the menu from our area that are in season because we're trying to develop a true Idaho-style of cocktail making, and because it's better for our city's economy."

Barring limitations with local liquor and citrus fruit, it is completely possible in Boise to work with ingredients that are mostly local. What happens when we do this is very multifaceted. We create a style of cuisine and drink that is truly regional, and we save fuel and money by working with purveyors that are close. Building relationships in a direct-source system is easier, too. Most suppliers will even agree to bringing products in reusable containers that can be taken and then refilled, thus reducing waste and saving money and resources.

The idea is not new. Cloverleaf Creamery in Idaho is now delivering milk to restaurants and grocery stores in reusable glass bottles, just like it happened before giant commercial dairies took over most of the cows and land. In feudal France, communities would trade and source all of their food within a day's walk. Everything that the home produced and was used in some way. (As an aside, I've always thought it strange that chefs trained in French techniques in modern-day America will put a pot of sauce on a natural gas burner and let it go for 12 hours as if they were cooking in a kettle over a fire of burning refuse, as in the origins of French cooking.)

As we build local community awareness of food systems through sustainability education, farmer's markets, and grocery co-ops, we should be watching the bar to follow suit. I am obviously not perfect at this; there are still plenty of components in my menus that could be traded out for something closer or omitted based on seasonality altogether... everything is a journey, and in a world obsessed with globalization, the jouney to a local food economy is a long one. Check out Farmer's Markets USA for information about a market in your area and to learn about community-based food systems.

Blogging Tales of the Cocktail

2008-04-16T14:18:00.000-07:00

Tales of the Cocktail is a yearly celebration of drinking and drink-making. It happens in the summer in New Orleans (July 16-20 this year,) and proves to be a great time of networking, learning, oogling, and of course falling off bar stools. Last year, Mark and I even went on a late night scavenger hunt in the registration area of the Hotel Monteleone.... This was naturally the night before I took a tour of New Orleans with a terrible hang over, and actually had to make the tour pull over because I was so green-faced from Absinthe shots. (I will never learn.) If you're into the above-mentioned antics, I'd encourage you to go... unless of course you're a fun-hater.

With Tales 2008 approaching, a bunch of bloggers, including the guy who inspired me to start writing this blog, decided to get together and give the general public the inside scoop. Click the link above to find out what you should check out this year in New Orleans. I was not invited to participate, since I'm off the frickin' radar in the cocktail community, and since I update my content about as frequently as I go to church. My otheredness is not going to stop me from plugging the hell out of it, though.

UPDATE: 4-17
I'm getting involved!

The Martinez

2008-04-15T08:58:00.000-07:00

There's a new Spring drink menu at Red Feather, and among the standard classics in the cannon this season stands the Martinez.

If you haven't tried a Martinez in your drinking career just yet, I suggest you do. It's a sublime, sweet drink that will shake up...er... stir up your ideas about what really makes a good cocktail. Not only is it robust and interesting to drink, but it's history served up. Here's the recipe we're using at Red Feather:

The Martinez
1 1/4 oz. Plymouth Gin
1 3/4 oz. Carpano Antica Formula
2 dashes Fee Brother's Orange Bitters
1 splash Maraschino

On the off chance that any of you are wondering if by "Maraschino" I mean that sticky, vapid red juice from those equally vapid red things in your garnish tray, think again. Maraschino Liquor is distilled directly from the Marasca cherry and takes on a hot, dry flavor. Maraschino also provides the interesting kick in the original daiquiri, but that's a different post.

On the note of ingredients in this drink, is anyone else in Boise using Carpano Antica Formula red vermouth yet? I'm sitting here trying to think of a single cocktail that contains vermouth that doesn't demand the highest possible quality, and I'm telling you that good vermouth is always important. This one happens to be the best I've ever tried, and in this application it is truly surreal.

The Martinez is widely considered the first stab at the gin martini by people who have done the research; the use of sweet vermouth being far more popular at the turn of the century, as well as the orange bitters. We've turned the Martini into something strange and nondescript in the last several years, taking both the vermouth and bitters out of the equation, sometimes completely, and often filling a cocktail glass full with cold vodka. I wish we would have stayed with the Martinez.

I take sick pleasure in subjecting my bar staff to drinks that no one will ever ask for on the off chance that we can develop a following for them. And so we spent about 20 minutes yesterday talking through the Martinez and its history. If you're a regular at Red Feather, don't be surprised next time you sit down if there's a Martinez in front of you before you have the chance to order. Here's what it looks like:

Love locked.

2008-03-31T11:42:00.000-07:00

Introducing the Lovelocker!

We've taken a basic Gin Sour and made it with cardamom cordial in place of sugar. The result is sublime summer love that gets ya feelin' funny fast. Here's the recipe:

Lovelocker
1 1/2 oz. Tanqueray
1 oz. cardamom cordial
1 oz fresh lemon juice
1 egg white

The cardamom cordial is also very simple. I recommend making a lot at once as most spiced cordials improve with a little aging. This is the recipe for one 750 ml bottle:

Cardamom Cordial

Add 4 cups of sugar and 4 tablespoons of ground cardamom to 4 cups of boiling water
Stir until sugar is disolved and syrup is golden-brown
Let cool for 20 minutes
Strain through 2 coffee filters and a china cap (or mesh sieve)

For best results, I recommend consuming several of these with a bowl of fresh berries.

South American Vehicles of Drunkenness, Part 2

2008-02-10T11:55:00.000-08:00

I spent the begining of this year living in Buenos Aires, writing a lot of mediocre poetry and drinking the afternoons into nights, contemplating the purpose of my life. Between infrequent swells of inspiration, I found myself browsing through my Lonely Planet, tempted by the images of Brazil... the beaches, the bodies, the architecture... In hindsight, my reasons for never going were really foolish; I spent so much time learning to speak Spanish, (and it was hard enough,) that I was terrified by the thought of having to speak another new language. I returned to the US having never consumed a single caipirinha in Brazil. No sex. No Rio. No Portuguese... what a drag.

Cachaca is the national spirit of Brazil and its playful and unique flavor embodies the spirit of the Brazilian people. While many bartenders refer to cachaca as "a type of rum", this is not the case. If cachaca is rum, then gin is vodka.

Rum is distilled from molasses, the risidual sticky matter left after reducing sugarcane juice. The origin of the sugar cane, the aging process, and the handling of the molasses itself give different types of rums their respectively unique flavors. Rum is made all over the world, and cachaca is only made in Brasil. The distinctively musky flavor of cachaca comes from the fermented sugar cane mash from which it is distilled. The woody notes of more artisanal brands come from the careful aging in barrels made from indigenous Brazilian oak, cherry, balsam, and almond trees. Among the sugar-based Latin American Spirits are also seco, charanda, and aquardiente.

A common lie about cachaca is that Brazilians think it's cheap and junky and meant for the lower classes. Although this rumor is probably rooted largely in the spirit's history, most liquor stores in the US stock huge, commercial, musky dishwater brands that really are junk. The truth is that Brazilians take their liquor very seriously, and drink the good stuff at home while exporting all the crap to us white folk. I use Batuque, pictured at right, not just because of the hot booty bottle, but also because it's a high quality brand that makes a caipirinha fit for the most discriminating, samba-dancing palate.

The subject of sugar is post-worthy in itself, especially when you consider how many cocktails are essentially a spirit, bitters, and some form of sugar. In the US, most commercial sugars are produced from beets and bleached to all hell. Don't be fooled by brown sugar in the US either, it's probably bleachy beety sugar with a little molasses syrup added for color and texture. At Red Feather, we use a natural brown sugar made from unrefined cane and containing risidual molasses of about 5%. I made the decision to use a brown sugar after doing a little research about popular sugars in Brazil. I think my decision is justified as it is probably the closest match in terms of flavor. Here's Mark, the best bartender in Boise, and a caipirinha made with the following recipe:

Caipirinha

Muddle:
1/2 a Lime (key lime if available) into
.5 oz Brown Sugar Simple Syrup until it looks like pond water.
Add:
2 oz. Batuque Cachaca
Roll or shake lightly with ice. Strain over new ice and garnish with lime quarters.

Sour Grapes.

2008-01-28T11:51:00.000-08:00

This post has been a while in the making. I've been dragging my feet for a couple of reasons, mostly related to being too busy and drinking too much because I'm too busy. It's a worthy discussion, though, since the season is changing and I'm asking myself the same damn question I ask every fall when considering how to make our program more LOCAL... What am I going to do about citrus juice?

It's a silly question without context, so let me lay it out for you. We live in what I describe as a less-than-lush part of the country. Although global warming is going to help us out with citrus pretty soon, we don't really have a lot of options for tart components that are local. I have a bad attitude toward the emphasis on citrus juice in cocktail making, but I think it's related to the lack of local availability... it's a sour grapes sort of perspective, for lack of a more appropriate term. Since we are working to create a cocktail style that is very regional and reflects our area, I'm interested in ways to cheat nature out of forcing me to ship a case of lemons from Florida so I can make new drinks with balance.

Enter the Citric Acid & Apple Juice trick.
Although you cannot twist an apple peel, you can produce sour apple (or sour grape) juice with the help of crystallized citric acid. Lemon is a very important flavor, but in a menu period of fall emphasis, why not try sour apple juice instead of lemon? Getting the balance right is key to say the least. The first batch of juice I put together burned my throat and locked my jaw for a few seconds... such is the nature of trial and error. The basic process is outlined below if you'd like to try it. I recommend using a sweeter, softer apple (red delicious would work just fine,) since adding citric acid will create a nice, complex juice. Softer apples also produce juice with more texture.

Heat 1 quart fresh, local apple juice to about 95 degrees. Stir in teaspoonfuls of citric acid, tasting the juice as it dissolves. The more tart the apples, the less acid you need. Cool juice and bottle for storage.

Aroma

2007-10-15T10:24:00.000-07:00

I had the opportunity to schmooze with Audrey Saunders a few months ago, but because I lack the pelotas, I chickened out. Instead, I just kind of stared her down from across the room, much like you might expect from a crazy blogger type, which I am not.

I mention Audrey because she's one of my big inspirations for much of what I'm doing with aroma these days. They say that smelling is around 80% of tasting, and as bar movements take us in a more culinary direction, the nose will help us determine balance in drinks if we learn to use the products we probably already have in our kitchens and bars with their respective aromas in mind. And while it's tempting to make your cocktail's aromatic components the same as their flavor components, (lemon bitters and lemon juice.. for example,) I like trying aromas that directly compliment the drink's components. Here's a great author for flavor pairing guidance, and here are some interesting fall pairings to experement with:

Gin and Star Anise
Bourbon and Peach
Pear and Freshly cracked Black Pepper
Rosemary and Blood Orange
Green Apple and Clove
Molasses and Roasted Pumpkin
Rose and Pomegranate
Highland Scotch and Meyer Lemon

I want to make one snarky note about the use of aromatics before giving some examples. In any craft, there often comes a point when a project's form completely defies its function. This happens in drink-making when we get carried away with a crazy flaming garnish or method of consumption. (I don't want to drink a cocktail that seems like it was designed by Yoko Ono. I'm not climbing a ladder or drinking through an eleven foot burdock root, for example.) It's important to consider this with aromatics; make it simple and ergonomic and contextual for drinking and it will work. I'm reminded of having a "Chanel no. 5" champagne cocktail invented by the very talented, but lost me on this one, Tony Conigliaro. Although the drink is extremely interesting and the level of craft involved in its creation is impressive to say the least, do I want to drink Chanel no. 5? I don't even like smelling it, let alone smelling it and drinking it. Ew.

The drinks pictured here are photographed with garnishes that are specifically designed to surprise the nose when approaching the drink. We refer to this moment of approach frequently when designing new cocktails because it's key in the first impression of their flavors. My Herbal Idaho (left) is garnished with freshly cut basil leaves wrapped in orange peel. Roll up the basil, slice it diagonally, and arrange it so that the cut portions of the leaves are facing up. Wrap and skewer as pictured.

The Cruiser (above) is a simple meyer lemon fizz topped with Peychaud's bitters and a fresh rosemary ring. This is another simple and effective use of fresh herbs and bitters for aroma. You can even break a few of the rosemary needles to release more fragrance.

Another drink on our menu is the Pepperbox Cocktail (right) which is an applejack-based cocktail with a thin slice of apple floating on top of the egg foam. Freshly cracked black pepper corns lay on top of the apple slice. The garnish is the only spicey flavor, though people often ask if there's actually pepper in the drink because the smell of freshly cracked pepper is so intense when you're that close to it.

If you're serving drinks at a party or bar, try something as simple as putting the drink in front of your friend/patron/potential paramour, and zesting a lemon or orange on top of the glass right in front of them. Of course, avoid zesting in their eyes since it will not improve the drink or your reputation at all... you will be surprised by how many people will act as though they've never had a Cosmopolitan before when they take their first sip and smell all of that fresh lemon oil. Another trick I've heard of, though I've never tried, is to scent your swizzle sticks with essential oils or by steeping them in hydrosols. There are many ways to make drinks more interesting. While we work in a culture that is obsessed with molecular this-and-that, flavored vodka, and energy drinks, we've forgotten one thing every person has... a nose! My philosophy is to use what I have first, then try and change the craft to incorporate the use of agar agar or get speedy from taurine while slowing on GABA inhibitors.

Psychosis on the Rocks

2007-09-25T13:30:00.000-07:00

I have a bar staff of about five people, and they're the most flexible and versatile bartenders I know. The reason is that while many bar bloggers work in their home kitchens and subject their spouses and adolescent children to their cocktail revelations, I have an entire city upon which to subject them. And I do, gleefully, with the help of the bartenders.

Although Red Feather has been obsessed with ice for several years, my most recent departure from reality has involved the systemization of freezing, storing, and using about 6 different kinds of ice (stay with me here...)

Because I'm completely psychotic, I feel that every single type of ice we use is perfect for its application, and none are expendable.

In the old days (last year,) we would buy huge blocks of mineral ice and crack it with a hammer and chisel. This, not surprisingly, was around the time the entire bar staff turned (save for the golden boy, Mark Allen.) Over the last several months, and with the help of my friend/person whom I stalk, Sasha Pertraske, I have discovered better ways of producing and keeping all of this crazy ice. Modified silicon ice trays, this little tool, and the 50 cubic feet of freezer space behind my bar have made the following possible:

Big Ice is cracked from small blocks to fit our shakers and is used to chill shaken drinks without turning them to slush or diluting them too much. Big ice is not for every drink, and is not for every spirit. Cocktails with eggs in them and classic juiceless whiskey drinks, (if you must shake them,) benefit most from the use of big ice.

Cubed Ice differs from machined ice in that, although it is small, it is not hollow. We use this cubed ice for drinks served in shorter, old fashioned style glasses.

Tall Ice is used, well, for tall glasses. We freeze these to fit the glass so that the ice touches the bottom of the glass, and rises above the surface of the drink. This helps to reduce dilution and keep the drink colder and full-flavored longer. It also quiets the little voices in my head...

While I admit to being completely obsessive over this matter, I am not alone. There are a couple of ice machine manufacturers making ice that is solid and dilution-conscious. Kold-draft, for example, was out of business until about last year, when they started producing cocktail-grade ice making systems again.

Although the choice of ice is often determined by the reaction of the drink's components to chilling, it is often a stylistic choice. For example, the Caipirinha can be served in a tall glass with tall ice, or in a short glass with cubes. The choice is completely stylistic in this case, and I would probably choose the short glass because it just seems more fitting for the drink. I should also point out that machined ice is completely acceptable for many applications. We still make about 11,000 mojitos every night at Red Feather, and all that lime juice tastes great shaken up with slushy, hollow ice. The same is true for a standard highball cocktail... a rum & coke with tall ice is just... silly.