Alchemist

I think that "Resting" might be a better description of the very passive act of letting a cocktail just sit there. Cooking implies some sort of activity. But onto pimento dram. I love it with pineapple juice. 2.0 oz Cognac .75 oz Lemon 1.0-1.5 oz Pineapple juice .50 oz St. Elizabeth .25 oz Curacao 3 dash Regans #6 Glass: Coupe Garnish:Flamed Orange Or switch the cognac out for gin, curacao out for simple and put it on Crushed Ice. Cheers, Toby

Toby, if you wouldn't mind, what are the rest of the specs on the Tongue in Cheek? ← Tongue in Cheek 2 oz Weller Special Reserve Bourbon .75 oz Fresh Lemon Juice .75 oz Simple Syrup .75 oz Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth 1 dash Angostura Bitters 1 Strawberry (Cut in half) Top: Soda Glass: Collins Ice: Shard Garnish: Mint Sprig Under the Shard, Mint Sprig on top of Drink Shake briefly. Strain. We tried shaking the mint in the cocktail, and also throwing it in after shaking and giving it a swirl. It works best to just put it on the bottom of the glass under the ice. This is one of those drinks that on paper looks Meh. Then when you taste it it rocks your world. So simple & elegant. My hat off to Jane. Cheers, Toby

Beefeater is the way to go as foar as I am concerned. Also I belive this drink is not meant to be bombastic. It is an eyeopener, it is supposed to be gentle and easy and help to bring you back to life, or at least settle your stomach enough that your shrimp and grits are a pleasure not a Kafkaesque nightmare. Years ago I was talking to a bitter & jaded bartender from NOLA about the Ramos. He said something like... "You f*^king cocktail c#$ts and your obsession with the f$%king Ramos. It's a stupid brunch cocktail that only bluehairs order." That runs through my head every time I make one. I still like making and drinking them. Toby

That is seriously so very cool, and not just because it is hands down the most phallic ice I have ever seen. Instead of Ice spike I would say CUBE WITH WOODY Toby

Just to be clear that this is not a- shudder- equal parts drink... 2 oz Tanqueray Gin .25 oz Cynar .25 oz Campari 1 oz Dolin Sweet Vermouth 13 drops Bradstreet Bitters (Regans Orange bitters will work) Glass: Rocks Ice: Sphere Garnish: Lemon Peel Orange Peel Build in a mixing glass over 2 cracked KD cubes and 5 KD cubes. Stir. Strain over sphere into rocks glass. Cheers, Toby

I have yet to figure out why the Angostura sometimes scatters and sometimes just sits in dots. I think that there is some correlation between how aerated the cocktail is, if you garnish right after shaking sometimes you get this great whooshing drops that send the mint leaf from one side of the glass to the other. If you are going to measure the cuke I would measure the weight and not the volume. Because you need all the solids in the shaker not just the juice. Yes you need to be very careful with the incorporated Angostura. I think that 3-7 DROPS are enough. I am glad you are enjoying the cocktail. Cheers, Toby

Depends on the size of the egg white. But if you have 1 oz of egg white, 2 oz of booze and .75 oz of lemon, 1 oz of simple makes sense to me to achive balance. Though I have never made one so I can't be sure. Toby

I was thinking about how I would make a Carpano Silver sour. I would riff off a NY sour and float the Antica. 2.0 oz Whiskey (here it would depend on what you want. Big spicy to show through? Rittenhouse. Softer and more like a platfom on which the Carpano will shine. Beam Rye.) .75 oz Lemon 1.0 oz simple eggwhite Float: Carpano Mime, add Ice, shake, strain into a coupe + sidecar, float Carpano, lemon or orange twist. Toby

I would put it solidly in the sour family with .75 oz lemon. Toby

My friend Josh snapped a couple of pics of the Navy Sheets. I wish I knew where that name comes from. I think that it is because after a few you are tight enough to bounce a quarter off of. Cheers, Toby ETA: Second picture.

Has anyone seen any VERJUS in any wine/liquor stores recently? Thanks, Toby

Since it is summer you could try a SUMMER NY SOUR 2.0 oz Gin (Tanqueray or Plymouth depending on how ginny you want it) .75 oz Fresh Lemon Juice 1.0 oz Simple Syrup 1 Egg White Top: Dry Rose You can also throw a dash or two of Regan's #6 Cheers, Toby

Also you can cut it with cranberry or other juice, 7up, black cherry soda, or something else bubbly. Don't forget to add a bunch of simple syrup, the water will help it go further, and people can have a few glasses. And bitters, for the love of all things holy, DON'T FORGET THE BITTERS! Toby

Frigorific...Nice!!!

Yes the St. Germain is about .125 oz and added after the soda as a float. Sorry if that was not clear, I was-ahem-taste testing some Sazarac rye while typing. Toby

I have to get in on this one. NAVY SHEETS 2.0 oz Prairie vodka .75 oz Fresh Lemon Juice (fat?) 1.25 oz Lillet Blond .75 oz Simple Syrup .25 oz Aperol (skinny?) 3 dash Regan's #6 1 Blackberry 2 Raspberry 3 Blueberry Top: Soda+Saint Germain Glass: Collins Ice: Cushed (22 oz. Glass?) Garnish: Grapefruit pigtail(expressed above the cocltail) basket with a berry nestled in it. (then add the St. Germain) Fax: Gently muddle fruit. Add liquid. Shake hard and fast. Strain (double if you are persnickity) and tops and garnish.

So you take a sip of a cocktail...you close your eyes and go MMMMMMMMMmmmmmmm. And the rest is history. Toby

FB has a pretty hefty eucalyptis note on it in the finish. Toby

I think that it is interesting that 7 of the people in this book trained at The Violet Hour. I thought that I espoused the idea of minimalism to the bar tenders. I remember talking at length about taking classic cocktails and putting a little spin on them and then making the most balanced version of that possible, utilizing quality technique. Now there is more Fernet, Cynar, Campari, & Amari on the menu than I ever would have believed 2 years ago. But luckily less Chartreuse, that kills the liquor cost. Toby

Troy and I were talking about the inclusion of many flavors, Kirks theory of pushing the envelope of intensity. We have all had drinks that included everything and the kitchen sink. There is no center of the drink, it is all over the place. It tastes like everything therefore it tastes like nothing. Like adding all colors you get black. So he was talking about Green Chartreuse. It is so deeply complex, yet you can add flavors to it and it holds it’s own. Or a Negroni is just piling complexity on top of complexity on top of complexity. But it still works. So in this vein, And strangely before aforementioned conservation Josh Habiger and I came up with a cocktail using Zwack. The Red Danube 2.0 oz Zwack 1.0 oz Punt e Mes .50 oz Campari 3 big dash Regan’s Orange Bitters Stir, Coupe, Lots of Orange Oil. I think that this is a balanced cocktail. It is deeply complex and bitter. It is not for a cosmo drinker, but someone who drinks Aperol RX, or negronis it makes sense. 5 years ago I am not sure how big an audience a cocktail like this would have had. Today…It has a slightly bigger audience. Toby

Yes Mike_r is referring to my theory of a balanced cocktail. I began using it because I wanted people to think about each separate ingredient on it’s own but, when unified, it became greater than the sum of it’s parts. I was looking for a word that would go with the idea of gestalt. Trio didn’t work. Maybe I used triptych because it sounded like Mystic. Toby

Was at The Oyster House a couple of days ago and had a wonderful time. The Pimms and Ginger was just the thing coming out of the heat. Then a Gimlet with house-made lime cordial. Half a doz. Royal Miyagi, Lobster Roll and a Lobster Hush Puppie. Seriously, about as good as an afternoon can be. Toby

I have not read this book yet so If I am incorrect about what I am about to say, I ask to be forgiven. And in full disclosure not only did Kirk work with me at The Violet Hour, & I think he is a fantastic guy all around. The Cuba Libre, (Analyzed and Improved) specs are most probably from Charles H. Baker. For which his insurance carrier heartily disliked him. It was Bakers idea, to take a drink that was sloppy, and boring and try to make it interesting. I think that is what these gentlemen are getting at. Let's get beyond the rules that we at this point should take for granted. A Manhattan should be stirred, you need fresh lime/lemon. The newest generation of bartenders take these truths to be self evident. Each “generation” of bartenders hopefully builds on the work of the last. We are so very, very lucky to have the work of some unbelievably talented people to have as our teachers. This group, I am not going to mention any so as to not forget any, taught us the fundamentals and then showed us where we could go from there. Without Audrey’s’ Tantris Sidecar, Dales Whiskey Smash, & Gary’s Valintino (just to name a few) I think we (the new generation) would be making square wheels. They showed us the value of integrity and creativity in the art of the cocktail. Back to the Rouge Cocktails. I believe that what Kirk and Maksym are saying is there must be some way to break the rules that we all have ingrained in our bones, while still creating something we love to drink. I know that Kirk mentioned the Cynar Flip as something that was a major AH-HA moment for him. I think that this is iconoclastic in the best possible way. With out people trying to stretch themselves artistically we would still be drawing stick figures on cave walls. Toby

One of the most important things is to teach your class HOW to taste booze. I have seen many professionals slurp rum like it was wine. Air is the enemy. Keep those lips closed and move it around your mouth. The burn should only happen at the end to judge proof. I like tiny amounts (half Ozish) of the cocktail in little plastic glasses. So much of a cocktail is in the smell, and a straw taste will never get you there. I agree that there should be something to sip on ASAP. It helps if they have something interesting to taste from the beginning. A helper is very nessasary. Simeone to wash tins, maintain the bar, grab that one thing that is always forgotten. Have them taste fresh lemon and lime and talk about the sweetness in it. Its not just sour. Talk slowly and repete important points. Near the end, when everybody feels good, and gets really chatty, bring them back in line. You want your summation to be heard loud and clear. Have a good time. Let your passion show. Toby

We use the dropper bottles. Run the dropper inside kust below the rim. But you can just dash in and twirl the glass. Toby