The Cocktail Guru

looks like great times, Katie! David's a really interesting chap to get to know. I'm sorry i never responded to your last response on my posting. we should catch up, two consultants, mono e mono, the next time i'm in philly, and your in nyc, to exchange stories. saw that you went to cocktails in the country! gary's the best. i'm his assistant here in NY, so that's how I knew. stay well!

It is normal after time for sediments to settle at the bottom of the bottle. So it's not abnormal. Some people prefer seeing sediment at the bottom of the bottle, and some don't. As far as how it tastes, should still be okay, but 10 years is quite a while to hold on to a bottle of single malt. So I would drink that sucker soon. What're you waiting for, anyways?

two words: thick straws

Glad all turned out well. The drink does sound good!

I bartend at a cafe in NYC called '202.' It's in the Chelsea Market at 16th St. and 9th Ave. The bar chef their, Stefan, makes sure to have this product behind the bar - he's an Austrian native. If you're in the NY area and want an awesome cocktail using Haus Alpenz Zirbenz, or to try it in a snifter, then take a trip over to '202' for terrific drinks. This stuff really is outstanding!

I usually will cut the fruit into smaller pieces to aid in the muddling. For example, a strawberry I will cut off the top, and then cut the rest into fours, and limes I'll cut into wedges, and then cut the wedges into three's. It's not necessary to cut the fruit, but it does make things a little easier on your part. And it also helps the fruit to absorb whatever else you may be muddling along with it, like sugar for instance. For cucumbers, thin slices are more than enough - no need to julien, unless you get a kick out of that - I sure don't. I love muddling - it's so much fun! If you're in the market for a muddler, the best by far is the PUG muddler! Hope this helps...

Some basic guidelines are that you always want your cocktail to be balanced. you begin with a base spirits, i.e. vodka, rum, gin... and then usually add a sweetener, (could be triple sec, or another sweet liqueur or syrup, and then sometimes some sort of sour element, i.e. lime juice, lemon juice - so you were right in your initial thinking... In your case, the fig syrup is sweetened in some way, making it a sweetener in a cocktail. I would say begin with vodka as a base spirit, (it's the most colorless and tasteless - most of the time, if you ask me), and just experiment by mixing just a little bit of vodka with the same amount of fig syrup. If I were in your situation, I would come up with a cocktail that had around 2 parts vodka, 1 part fig syrup, and perhaps a splash of lemon juice. Shake it and strain it into a martini glass, and garnish it with a candied fig in the glass, or a fig leaf. You could try mixing with rum too - that would probably taste nice - I would go with a dark, spiced rum. Also, bitters is a good product to use in cocktails - it usually marries different flavors very nicely. You can get Angostura bitters at any supermarket - and just try adding a few drops to the cocktail. You could try it with a splash of milk, too. Basically, there are no rules in cocktail-making - it's about experimentation and what tastes the best for you! Let me know how it goes!

mojitos = yum! if a vodka drinker says they don't like mojitos, they're lying! and if a vodka drinker refuses to drink a mojito, just make one for them and tell them it's made with vodka in it - then when they're half-way done, break the news that in fact, it's rum.

Well for me, I don't have that kind of pressure because I just started doing this and only have a handful of clients and haven't run into a conflict of interest or anything of that sort. I know that there are those contracted jobs out there in which one can only work for an importer's products, for example, and cannot work for any other spirit brand. I do tend to recommend the products that I've worked for, mainly because I know those products the best and feel confident that I can recommend them to others. I don't feel compelled to use the products in cocktails I make, but it's nice to because it shows them you are still thinking about the product, and maybe they'll hire you for more work!

There's a good one in Ybor City, FL called the Internation Cane Spirits Festival - you may be able to find a cheap ticket down there. I have info on my website about it: www.thecocktailguru.com

I'm not contracted to one or more companies. I freelance and I always mention my former employers in a good light. I take my experiences with various companies and use it towards whatever I'm doing next. It's never been a problem - then again, I've just started in the business...but if anything, I think clients appreciate my variety and experience - hopefully they do!

It was created by my father - using Richard Hennessy Cognac as a base, mixed in with oranges zest, cloves, raisins, some orange bitters, etc....he wanted to create something fragrant, flavorful, and complex - something that would blend well into cocktails.

Thanks DW! Always great to see you! Hopefully I can make it down to N.O. for the event in July. I must find a way to get myself down there...

My favorite drink of all time to drink is a Margarita - the infamous margarita. When made properly, a heavenly cocktail. Proportions in making the margarita are very important. Not too tart, not too strong...I also love making mojitos. I worked at a bar named Town on 56th st. in manhattan where i really learned how to make an amazing mojito. Hope they still continue on with the tradition over there. As far as spirits, I feel Grand Marnier is a very versatile spirit, I use it in margaritas as well as mojitos, for example, just to add a little extra fresh orange flavor. I just finished working for 10 Cane Rum, also a really wonderful spirit from Trinidad made from pure cane juice. Also very versatile - wonderful on the rocks and just as amazing in a cocktail like a mojito or cuba libre. Favorite vodka - Belvedere -- The come-back vodka: Smirnoff Gin: Tanqueray No. 10, Hendrick's (both infused with fresh ingredients) ← Ahh, the Margarita. One of my favourites as well. Interesting made with key limes instead of regular too. I think I prefer Cointreau or Triple Sec for orange flavour in them to GM though, GM seems to sweet to me. Tanqueray No. 10 - love it. Plan to have some as soon as I can get out of the office today. Do you strictly work for one company/distillery at a time, or do you often have projects on the go? ← I freelance, so I'm not tied down to any one specific spirits company or distillery. I will complete a project, and then move on to the next. I find time to concentrate on all of the projects that I have, even if I have more than one at the same time. My last project was just completed, so I'm currently searching for the next...Enjoy No. 10 - try it straight up as a martini with a twist. The twist is really amazing in a Tanq. No.10 martini!

Each project usually has different requirements, so I am very flexible as far as the working arrangements. I do work on a per-hour basis, on a weekly-basis, monthly, per-project basis...For example: I've created cocktails for restaurants cocktail menus, and trained the bartenders on proper bar techniques and cocktail-making (which are on a day-to-day basis. I've given product presentations at restaurants to train employees which have only lasted 1 hour. I've worked parties that lasted an entire night (and well into the morning) and mixed up cocktails at spirit companies' offices for brand groups. The last project I did I was hired to create cocktails for 10 Cane Rum and Monin Gourmet Flavorings, and I was given 2-3 weeks to create them. In the end, I came back to the brand group, gave a presentation in which I spoke about my experimentations, and I made them nearly 70 cocktails to taste. I was then given feedback, notes, they kept some of the cocktails and told me to re-work a few others. After 1 week of re-working a few recipes, I came back to them once again. So this process was really a month long. If you have any leads or ideas, please feel free to let me know and we can talk further. Thanks Chris!