fatdeko

I'm on the fence with the abso Razperri. It's got a very intense nose, chambord like really, and it'll fill a good bit of a small room with the aroma, but it's still got that absolut attack on the palate. Stoli Raz, Vox Raz, and the rest who got there first-est with the mostest have made a soft, Hi-ball/martini friendly Raz flavored vodka. This is NOT Absolut's methodology at all. The fruit expression is intense to be sure, but the mouthfeel and "alcoholi-ness" is equal to the task. This is not a solo player or even a lead guitarist. This dude needs a choir to fit in. I've tasted the Absolut Raz around town and nearly everyone I've talked to has had 'trouble' with it--as far as sales. I'm getting my first bottle tomorrow and will spend the weekend trying to get it to 'play well with others'. I'm thinking this guy is ripe for 'floating', where the aroma can tickle the nose w/o messing with the mouth. We'll see......... Regarding packaging: Give it up, Absolut. Put it in a clear bottle like everything else. The cheese factor is a de-tractor. Myers

For a Gin and T, I'm hard pressed to find a better match than Tanq 10. Sure, it's a little spendy, but the fresh citrus--grapefruit even--and the low concentrations of barks really makes this a tonic friendly quaff. For my tastes, it makes a somewhat lousy martini, a better gimlet and a pretty good gibson. But it's the inherent citrus-y nature of the 10 that really screams "G & T" to me. your mileage, will of course vary. Myers

I got back late Sunday afternoon and need a day or 2 to decompress before I can give a more than half assed report. That and waiting for sound Judgement to return. This I can say: I fell in love last week with a girl named Nola. She walked like a woman and drank like a man, to be sure, but.......... And some exciting news was made (or at least officially announced). The Museum of the American Cocktail soon to be a reality and taking up residence in NOLA. Look for updates and details from the MOTAC crew. And a very special thankyou goes out to Robert, Audrey, Dale, Jill and David for letting me hang-out with them. You guys turned what was only gonna be a great trip into a truly memorable and awesome experience. A big "Here's How!" to the Liquor-atti. Over and Out, Myers PS: To the girl at Harrah's with the cute n freckly shoulders: I suppose I WILL have another of those whiskys.

Here's a little cocktail porn from my trip to NOLA for Tales of the Cocktail First up, Behind the Scenes at Cocktail Porn. That's Drinkboy himself taking a composed shot of some Gin Fizz debris at brunch on Friday. (Look for his shot in this space in the not too distant future.) Next, I tottered off to Pat Obrien's for the obligatory Hurricane. The Bartender on the patio offered me the choice of the $9.00 Hurricane where I could take the glass home with me or the $6.00 set-up in a paper cup. I offered to rent the glass version, cuz it seemed unseemly, pornographic even, to drink a Hurricane at Pat O's outta paper. Eureka! Paper it is! (I found out later that she was new on the bar and that might not be policy) Checkpoint Charlie's is a sorta combination punk bar, Diner and Laundrymat. Yes, Laundrymat. I was on a mission to get one of their T-shirts for a fellow 'tender here in ME who used to play there "in the day". I immediately liked the place and thought I'd hang out for a beer while the band set-up and chat with the lovely Shane. So.... an overexposed picture of a Budweiser and a Tshirt in the background do not Cocktail Porn make. Once again, the lovely and Vivacious Shane was more than happy to assist. The gent on the right is Antoine who owns the joint--I think.

You know what they say......... The only thing better than free booze is stolen booze!

I can't help but agree with you, Q, and in fact, I do. BUT... Hands-on, Home-made, crafty, artisanal etc is the goal and has its place (I can't help but allude to Mothra Stewart's jail cell) But I was slouching towards another point. Yes, I agree that pre-packaged crap is crap and we're all better off making our own crap. But the horns upon which I struggled to get off of are these: When I walked through this one particular spice shop, I wasn't thinking about cooking, but rather, bartending, and how I could maybe use some of these thangs in dranks. Call it a moment of weakness--it was, by the way, a FISCAL weakness--but I didn't buy the ingredients and i reconciled that by creating pangs of cheating-ness. Lemon oil and Lime oil may have been the wrong items to express my dilemma-ness because they're so readily had "craft-style" behind the bar, but I really had my eye on various nut oils and chile oils. My mind was thinking that a drop or two, judicously, of course, would lend that certain je ne cest merde that bitters adds. Lemon oil, I thought, would punch up those lemon drops a bit. That's when the whole "What's use-able?" taxonomic crisis occured. So...........Still........... What's off limits? Anything, Nothing, something....... I hadn't intended this as it's own thread but, here we are.

Alright, so Down the Rabbit (rabid) hole I go: Towit: I was in a shop the other day and they was selling Lime Oil and Lemon Oil (as well as a bunch of other stuff too.....) And I thought they'd be really handy behind the bar. It got me to thinking: In the Cocktail, or the "Cuisine de Cocktail", or "Cocktailian" or whatever you call what we do, what's out of bounds? Is there bounds? Is there an out of bounds? If everything goes, than DeKuyper/Jim Beam has won. Or what were we fighting about in the first place? How much of the kitchen do we employ behind the bar before the differences are merely distinctions? If I can use herbs, why not extracts? If I can use extracts, why not Monino flalvors? If Monino, why not......... and on and on. Chew, swallow, discuss........

Living as I do in the Milds of Maine, we only get Pitu cachaca. Say what you will, it is what it is. So I was whiling away the hour at the Eastland Park Hotel the other day and they had Caiprinhas as an Happy Hour special. I went for it but was a tad let down 'cuz there was no stick action. Dude simply made me what amounted to a Cachaca Rickey. Not awful, actually pretty good. I had two, in fact. There's something bordering on Tequila--flavor wise--with cachaca that's so subtle, yet such a signature lead, that I was happy enough that Pitu was in my drink and not Bacardi like so many faux caip's I've had/made.

Beans, You should just do it. I was on the fence too. I got on the outside of a little too much Bushmills one night and thought I'd poke around on ExpediOcityLine just to see what deals could be had. I Clicked when I should have Clacked and BOOM! "Congratulations, click here to print your Itinerary" So here I am going and I haven't had a second thought about it. (Incidentally, RT Air from Portland ME and three nights <$500. This was 3 weeks ago--deals could be even better now.) Mayhaw--Kerri will be there and I believe she's giving a walking tour the day after. Also the main event(s) are at the Monteleone. A couple of these are free (simply RSVP) so you should take part.

I was just curious how many fellow gullys would be making an appearance down in NOLA. Should we maybe get together for our own little outing? And: which dinner are you going to? Me, I'll be at Arnaud's w/ Wondrich. Voulez le bon temps roulez!

My complaint/suspicion with using a microplane is if the room I'm planing in is so filled with lemony goodness, it won't be going into my 'cello. It seems like a pretty brutal process, ripping those precious oils out of the peel and spraying 'em all over everything except the booze. Just a thought.

Jbonne, Before you go on Jeopardy or Millionaire with that info, please realize there's a caveat lurking between the lines, and its probably on a Union Negotiated Smoke Break. The wines/varietals mentioned are TRADITIONAL and generalized. You'd have to check w/ Noilly Pratt, M&R, Stock, Carpano and the rest to discover what each House is doing/using. While it takes a long time from harvest to bottle, things DO change in Vermouth Town

Such a rich and tangential thread we have going here. I hope I can further mess up its questionable taxonomic virtue. Firstly, regarding the wines of "vermouth" For French Vermouth, the wines traditionally came from the Midi so we're talking about PicPoul and Clairette. Depending on the producer, some of these vineyards may have given way to Viognier, Muscat, Sauvignon Blanc etc. For Italian vermouth, we're still talking white grapes, mostly regional Apulian varietals and/or some Moscato. Again, these are traditional generalizations. Individual producers may have something else going on. Of course, with Vya and King Eider, your mileage may vary. So I was at Cocktails in the Country a couple of weeks ago and I shoulda got a picture. Side by side, the 2 (known) extant copies of the Hoffman House bar books were being pawed by the other's owner. Kewl. Very Kewl. BUT! I had also brought along an odd, undated pamphlet which I thought was a prohibition-era bootlegger's recipe book. Gary, of course, set me straight by speculating that it was turn of the century because the recipes were too exact. Bootleggers wouldn't have measured in drachms. Towit: IRISH or SCOTCH whiskey To 40 gallons proof spirits add 60 drops of creosote, dissolved in 1 qt of alcohol; 2 oz acetic acid; 1 lb loaf sugar. Stand 48 hours AND: Bourbon Whiskey To 100 gallons pure proof spirit, add 4 oz pear oil; 2 oz pelargonic ether; 13 drs. oil of wintergreen disolved in the ether; 1 gallon wine vinegar, color with burnt sugar. Back to the question at hand: I'll often disregard a customer's specification about the dryness of his/her martini IF I get the impression that they're ordering by rote. Adding that smooch of vermouth is an eye opener to these folks, and they won't be able to put THEIR finger on it, but they'll usually exclaim how this martini is the best they ever had. Some of the others, they actually know how they like their martinis and I'll follow their specs. How do I know the difference? You just do. I've got one guy, comes in once a month or so, and loves an upside down martini, on the rox in a pint glass--"Gimme 3 oz of vermouth, splash of Tanqueray. If you think you're doing it wrong, you're on the right track." The first time he ordered it this way I gave him a wink and delivered it with the Angostura bottle on the side. He grinned and shook my hand in a manner reminiscent of Freemasons or other conspirators tacitly aknowledging a fellow traveler. One of my partners behind the bar was overheard having this exchange: Customer: I'm new to this Martini business, so forgive me if I don't know the Lingo. Bartender: No sweat my good man, I promise to be gentle. Customer: How would I order a Vodka Martini without vermouth? Bartender: You'd say, "Gimme a Double Vodka straight up w/ olives" Customer: (Skeptically) Okay. Can I have that? Bartender: No. Have a martini instead. You can thank me later.

Thanks for the "oyster Bar" plug JohnnyD, we don't ever get mentioned on this board ( I understand why, of course) As far as your visit goes, Sara, when your done walking from WIld Iris, please come have a drink at Old Port Sea Grill. As an old DC denizen, I'd love to hear what Slater and the boys have been up to in my absence, and all about the Cicadas too!

Kinsey brings up a good point. There are flavor compounds that are more soluble in alcohol than in water and vice versa and therefore you will have some taste differences. Also, regarding cold infusion vs. hot infusion syrups, the flavor nuances do differ significantly and I tend to do a combination. Background: Beer brewers have long known that WHEN hops are added, influences how Hoppiness is expressed nearly as much as how MUCH hops are used. Early in the boil, bitterness is extracted (a good thing) but to have that floral, hoppy aroma, hops are added later, or even after the wort comes off the heat. Sauciers do the same thing with herbs: Add early to get the "consequence" of the herb, add at the last minute to get the ethereal, bouquet/aromas, "brightness" . When it comes to syrups, I have my idiosyncracies. For straight simple syrple, I measure the sugar into a bowl, measure the water into a pot and bring the pot to a boil. The boiled water goes over the sugar, whisked and we're all done. (Weird, I know, but it keeps the kitchen happy) But this has led to the possibility of a "Double infusion" technique. I'll toss some of my chosen flavoring--ie. Mint, or Ginger, or Basil, or Cinnamon--into the water and bring it to a boil and hold it there for a few minutes so I'm making a sort of a tea. Once that goes over the sugar, I might add more of the ingredient and let that infuse off heat. I like to keep my syrups "simple": one flavor. I can add mint syrup and Ginger syrup together, but I can't take the mint out of Mint/Ginger syrup. (Which is not to say that I dont sometimes--or often--toss some lemon zest into the Ginger mix, but it's definitely not Ginger/Lemon syrup) I've also come to rely on flavored syrups more than infused liquors because you can't alter just the taste of a cocktail with infused booze, you also increase its proof and "heat" from the alcohol. Besides, I can flavor my never-further-than-arm's-reach Iced Teas with 'em when I'm working.

Hungry Chris: If the author is indeed James Heriot, then the book series is "All Creatures Great and Small" about a family of English Country Veterinarians. BBC made it into a TV series that was on PBS a number of years ago and the thing that struck me was how many episodes called for one of the family to insert his arm up the South end of a North moving bovine. Roger and Lan4: As cocktail legend, lore and mythology has it, the Bloody Mary was made with Gin when Pete Petiot brought it to the States after leaving Harry's in Paris--since Vodka was not yet available here. Apparently his new bosses were a bit squeamish about the name and he changed it to the more genteel "Red Snapper". (Which begs the question: with such delicate constitutions, would they prefer we order Virgin Marys or Virgin Snappers?) It took Smirnoff's marketing team to return vodka--and the original name-- to the Bloody Mary. For me, the simpler the Bloody Mary recipe, the more inclined I am to make it a Red Snapper, --the gin adds another layer of complexity But the way I tend to make my Bloody base--with lots of stuff, making it almost a loose "salsa"--I prefer vodka, and usually a pepper or citrus flavored one.

I think what you're looking for is here: http://www.barstore.com/affiliatestore/ind...w.webtender.com Go to the left frame and click on bartending tools and the item is the 12th item down.

Oh the vagaries of the French 75--both the gun and the cocktail(s). It's one of those rare instances where the name and features of the original item dovetail so wonderfully with the features and effects of the cocktail that bears its name. Gin base or Cognac? Grimes claims originally made with cognac and then switched over to gin, while Dale states exactly the opposite. The ealiest recipe for a French 75 in my library is in Savoy (1930) and it calls for Gin. Further perusals of my collection lists gin as the base when the cocktail is listed AT ALL. The 75, it seems is most conspicuous in his very absence. A brief list of where I expected to find him and didn't: Trader Vic: both Food and Drink '46 and Bartender guide' 47 New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix 'em '38 Baker's Exotic Drinks (not that I really expected to find it here, it not being exotic enough, but I fully expected some anecdote about being served one in some remote clime while dining with a charming, eccentric Brit WWI veteran. Or while crossing the Atlantic or something) Gaige's Cocktail Guide and Ladies Companion '46 and Standard Cocktail Guide '44 Old Waldorf Astoria Bar Book '03 reprint of '35 Saucier's Bottoms Up '53 The Overseas Press Club's Here's How '57 calls for gin, but adds that cognac turns it into a Howitzer. The 75 mm Field Gun, model 1897 (French) was a workhorse artillery for the French in WWI and when US Nat'l Guardsmen were sent "Over There" with obsolete American equipment, they were issued French 75's. What distinguishes the weapon is its brilliant anti-recoil system that gave it a real smoothness and its tremendous rate of fire--75mm shells flying out of the barrel 30 times a minute. Wet blankets were wrapped around the barrels for ten minutes every hour to cool them off. So regardless of the "Frenchiness" of the French 75, it is truly aptly named. They certainly have a smoothness that compels me to drink 'em at a quick rate that leaves me the next day wishing to be wrapped in blankets. And, as Craddock notes in one of his precious asides, "Hits with remarkable precision." It seems unlikely to me that French 75's were drunk by Officers before going over the top, simply because going over the top wasn't what officers did in WWI

If by PM you mean Post More, I'd be glad to try to clear things up. Although, I don't think I know who John W is, so I'd hate to take the 'Bad Johnny' title if he's a badder johnny than me. Fatdeko is none other than me, John Myers, former fixture on the DC restaurant scene. When I was @ Tahoga--3 years or so, starting from the beginning--Mark and I (as well as several others) would while away what remained of legal drinking time at the Guards or some other place. Saturday nights @ the Guards were notoriously inhospitable to us older, quieter folks and we took to creepin' over the bridge to Marshall's where a cute, but heavy-ish bartender loved to give us shots of 99 Bananas schnapps. To answer Mark's Q: I am indeed hiding. Up here in Portland ME. My old email is the same, except I'm now @verizon.net if'n you wanna chat.

Markie! My old chum, When did Tahoga actually close? I'd heard tale of it's wheezing decline and am curious: how bad did it get? Is the gang still doing Marshall's on Saturday nights? I'll have a shot of 99 Bananas tonight for old time sake.

You're absolutley right Beans. Beam IS 80 proof. Why did I think it was 86 or 90?

I actually spent a goodly amount of time with 2 guys in the R&D dept of Jim Beam 2 nights ago. After several Knob Creeks we'd addressed all that's wrong with the industry, the market and the Red Sox so not much else to address but the future and that's when they laid down their plans for the Starbux project. Test marketing June-August in Texas and Minnesotta--at least I think Minnesotta, or was it Wisconsin? Full product roll out slated for January '05. Price point is above Kahlua, but they swear the quality will blow the competition away. Base spirit will be Rum, my guess is from Ron Rico since they own it. It will be branded as a Starbux product rather than as a Beam. (I couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that I was actually enjoying hanging out with these two guys--liquor company suits usually make my skin crawl--till I realized they weren't Sales & Marketing.) They seemed awfully curious regarding my strong negative reaction to Jack Daniel's lowering the proof to 80. My suspicion is Beam has or is considering doing the same so keep an eye on those labels! Beam Black Label has turned into a priority for them so I can see them repositioning it as the "full" proof spirit while dropping the octane of the White Label. I also learned that Booker Noe had recently shuffled off this mortal coil and as far as this whiskey drinker is concerned, we've lost a national treasure.