thirtyoneknots

In re: syrup brands, I also like to make my own syrups, but some such as Orgeat are difficult and expensive to make. A local coffee shop carries a brand called 1883 de Philibert Routin (a cumbersome name if ever there was one). I have experience with their Orgeat, Raspberry, and Vanilla syrups, and am trying to get them to special order for me some of the others. The vanilla isn't really worth the effort, as it seems to be the most artificial of the three and making vanilla syrup is hardly more difficult than making normal simple syrup (though it's still not a bad product). The orgeat and raz are marvellous. The are extremely rich and flavorful, and very sweet. In many drinks it is possible to significantly reduce the amount of syrup used while still maintaining a flavor balance. They also add a wonderful silky mouthfeel that Monin, good though they may be, cannot match. Well worth checking out. Dr. Cocktail recommends the Smuckers syrups, but I must disagree with him on that. These are much better for drink applications (though Smuckers is good on pancakes!), though hardly easier to find. As an aside, does anyone know a source for brand-name soft drink syrups? (I already have Rose's Kola Tonic, not quite what I'm looking for). After reading The Gentleman's Companion, I feel like my home (and work) bar is incomplete without the full range of syrup flavors (which also come in handy for making the occasional kid drink). -Andy

I haven't gotten to try many new things at home lately, aside from a few experiments with my newly acquired Jade Eduoard Absinthe (the roommate got the PF 1901 and a friend from work got the Nouvelle Orleans, all delicious) I haven't really tried anything new in a couple of weeks. It's been hard to even find the energy for an Old Fashioned after the long nights at work, but tonight I celebrated the end of a long couple of weeks and the beginning of 4 days off due to a scheduling quirk. Started with the Nightwatch from Drinkboy.com. It looked intriguing to me from the moment I saw it and I was curious, although the odd combination of flavors had me ready to dump it at a moment's notice. 1 oz gin (Boodles) 1 oz coffee liqueur (Starbucks) 1/4 oz pastis (Henri Bourdain) stir/strain/up Such a precarious balance, the flavors wash over the palate in waves. The flavor was unusual as I suspected, but pleasant, and not nearly as sweet as might be expected. Not one I'll be having on a weekly basis, but a very nice changeup. Second came one I've been meaning to try for quite some time, the Police Gazette Cocktail as documented by the Cocktail Chronicles. So high was the praise heaped upon this that I had high hopes indeed. 2 oz whiskey (Wild Turkey Rye) 3 dashes french vermouth (barspoon Noilly Prat) 2 dashes bitters (Angostura) 2 dashes simple syrup (rich Demerara) 2 dashes curacao (1/2 tsp Brizzard) 2 dashes maraschino (1/2 tsp Luxardo) stir/strain/up (lemon twist) Definitely a complex drink, and worth making again, though I think it might have worked better with a softer rye like the baby Saz, or even bourbon. It seemed a bit austere, although this may have been due to drinking it after eating. Still, a keeper overall. Finally, another experiment with the new absinthe, the Third Degree: 3.5 oz gin (Plymouth) .5 oz vermouth (Noilly Prat dry) 3 dashes absinthe (Jade Edouard) stir/strain/up, garnish with lemon twist. This made two drinks in my small glasses. Very nice Martini variation, though I'd scale back the absinthe slightly next time, maybe to 2 dashes or so. The Edouard has an extremely powerful and distinctive flavor and it is somewhat destracting, though still delicious. I can't wait to revisit the Corpse Reviver Monkey Gland, and others with the real deal, and the McKinley's Delight is among the most anticipated new ones to try. Stay tuned. -Andy

In the interest of full disclosure, the sole bottle of Pama was present when the restaraunt opened in January and is at about 20% right now. When depleted it will not be replaced. For about the same price as a bottle of Pama, one can make a gallon of high quality grenadine, which will have a richer and more balanced flavor. I really don't care much for Pama, and when I used it here I was looking for a way to get rid of it. I really don't find the flavor profile very mixable, as liqueurs go. Brizzard Cassis de Bordeaux, I love. I'm actually looking forward to trying the Diablo (probably when the girlfriend is around to finish it if I don't like it :-P). -Andy

I'm not much of a fancier of Tequila, although it is something I am trying to learn to appreciate. Long work hours and short sleep hours have left me with little time to experiment at home lately, although I did recently create a drink for one of the waiters at work. The name I call it to him is an inside joke that would probably offend most people out of context, so here I'll just name it for him instead. Weaver Special 1.5 oz Tequila (Sauza Hornitos is the house pour) .5-.75 oz lime (about 1/2 lime) .5 oz Pama (it also works well without, or sub a generous tsp grenadine) 2+ dashes Orange bitters (Regans) Build in tall glass on the rocks, top with tonic water. Not terrible, which from me is high praise for a tequila drink. -Andy Edit to add: in hindsight I realised this is a spin on the Diablo, though I suspect it tastes very little like it.

The Romans had it right, hair of the dog all the way. ← I will also recommend this treatment as it's always been my assertion that you cannot be (much like being pregnant and not being pregnant) drunk AND hungover at the same time.Thanks, Kevin ← Perhaps if you accept the definition of hangover as the after-effects of drinking too much (as opposed to drunkenness, which would just be 'effects'). I will assert in turn that it is very possible to be drunk AND feel shitty, even if it may not technically be a hangover.

I work at the bar in a restaraunt whose primary focus is wine, so I welcome the opportunity to hear people talk out their ass about liquor and cocktails instead of wine. With spirits and such I can at least turn it into a discussion, but wine is closer to religion for a lot of people and the ones who go on about it the most are often the least informed, wanting to sound sophisticated. Bring on the Pimms Snobs And yes, I love the stuff. On of the best ways to waste an afternoon.

I think this is just another symptom of the trend of overly sweet drinks. Many people do not view excessive sweetness, and certainly not powerful mint flavor, to be minuses. Mint is a flavor everyone knows. Bourbon is not. The more a drink tastes like a familiar flavor vs liquor the more successful it will be with the masses.

In my experience homemade mint syrup tastes about like using mint that was left out on the counter for as long as the syrup has been made (as in it has that fresh of a flavor). A day after making it it tasted like brown mint. blech.

Thanks for the link. Your comment brings up something I've always wondered about. How is it that a commercially prepared liqueur like Baileys, made with real cream, can be shelf stable for so long? I'm sure that even using ultrapasteurized cream to make a clone of that recipe would not give it stability at room temperature. How do they do it? ← The alcohol acts as a preservative, or at least that's the official answer. I wouldn't bet against the possibility that something else is involved as well.

When first getting into the whole cocktail thing I also mashed the mint into a pulp, and I thought it was fine until I tried it the other way. Mashing into paste makes a much more bitter drink (and not in a good way) and so needs more sugar to make drinkable. WHen the leaves are lightly bruised the mint essence is still released, and is more in harmony with the flavor of the booze, and much less sugar is needed, creating (to my taste) a more balanced drink. I'd give it a shot that way at least, and if you can let the mint sit a while in the sugar and water before adding the ice and booze, even better. If you prefer the other way, by all means continue to make them that way. -Andy

Ginger Beer in a Pimm's is like having it for the first time. You'll never go back.

Definitely have a goodly amount of fruit pre-juiced and bottled, it saves tons of time.

I am under the impression that the tall/fizzy drink didn't really come into it's own until the late 19th century, at least not in the US.

Well, ok, I kid. But they really do want to turn it into something great. It was pretty creaky in its old format, having grown form a quick what-do-I-mix site to an archive of cocktail lore, and they want to show it off. ← That should be wonderful, shame they had to take the old version offline while updating it though

I don't drink them often but I also prefer them sans sugar, it detracts from the refreshing nature. Lime is sweet enough already (compared to lemon). Although I'd really rather have a Tom Collins (or better yet, a French 75) nearly any day. -Andy

I don't think Grand Marnier has an appreciably different sweetness level than Marie Brizzard Curacao, but it does have a much more powerful and more distinctive flavor than 'regular' Curacao, which I don't think works in all applications. I love it's use in the Improved Holland Gin Cocktail, for example, but to me the more powerful flavor (as opposed to the sweetness) can unbalance something like a Pegu Club unless an equally powerful gin is used. I will have to try it out in a Mai Tai, which has been on my to-do list for some time. -Andy

Swing-A-Way Ice Crusher (Amazon Link) This one works pretty well for me. The big pro, is, it has a decent size hopper which holds over a pint of ice. ← That's pretty similar to the one we have at work, it's a bit heavier and the hopper is bigger (and can be loaded while still cranking). I'd recommend it. -Andy

I have a cheap hand crank ice crusher from Ikea, it makes pieces on average the size of a pencil eraser, works dandy for me. Only annoying thing about it is that you can't crank it while the top is open and it has a relatively small hopper, meaning to fill a pint glass with crushed ice entails stopping and reloading about 3 times or so. For $10, though, I can deal. -Andy

Thank God it wasn't the procedure! I find there's no substitute for plain old American spearmint in these. After all, the Julep really isn't about the mint, no more than the Old-Fashioned is about the bitters. In honor of the harmonic convergence yesterday--Cinco de Mayo and Kentucky Derby--I made Tequila Juleps yesterday, following this procedure but using a reposado in place of the cognac, substituting a little Grand Marnier for some of the sugar/water and adding a teaspoon or so of lime juice. Not bad, IMHO. ← Tequila Juleps were sort of the running joke at work yesterday but the more I thought about it the more I figured it probably wouldn't be that bad (providing you like tequila). Unfortunately we were out of our only reposado (Hornitos) and I didnt want to push my luck with the bar manager by asking to pour the Don Julio 1942 for an experiment :-P -Andy

That is precisely what I ordered My roommate got the PF1901 and a friend from work the Nouvelle Orleans, so maybe a little taste test is in order. Will report back. -Andy

Agreed. Judging from people's reactions to the Anchor Distilling's single malt ryes, I can't see this stuff being a very appropriate mixer. Not that I'm averse to mixing with the good stuff on occasion: My one Old Fashioned with the Handy Saz was devine, and with the arrival of my Jade Absinthe imminent, the Ultimate Sazerac isn't too far away. -Andy

At home, I go through a bottle of Cointreau for every ounce of Grand Marnier I pour, but for some reason it gets requested a lot at work, most commonly in Margaritas. I personally attribute this to marketing, as I find that Grand Marnier really only works in drinks designed around it's flavor profile. Otherwise, I find that it weighs down a drink, especially one where Cointreau is intended, such as a Sidecar, Margarita, or Cosmopolitan. And as far as drinking it by itself, yeah I don't care much for it either. However, when I tried the Cuvee de Sequicentenaire (aka GrandMa 150) I thought that that was what the stuff should have tasted like all along, much lighter. Unfortunately it's over $200/bottle -Andy

The main difference being kirsch is a distilled spirit and maraschino a liqueur. Sort of like the difference between Scotch and Drambuie. A few other differences. Kirsch, being an Eau de Vie, is not typically aged. The base spirit of Maraschino may spend a couple years in wood before being sweetened and bottled. Not all Kirsch is made from a whole fruit distillation. Some is made just from fermented cherry juice. The base spirit of Maraschino liqueur typically involves the pits, giving it a slight almond-like flavor. I've never tried to sweeten a kirsch and then compare it to Maraschino. Anyone? Once in desperation, determined to make something like Floridita Daiquiris in a place where I couldn't find Maraschino, I did mix a 2-1 sugar syrup with a blue plum eau de vie. It was actually not a horrible substitution. Oh, and I will point out, that a lot of the stuff labeled kirsch or kirschwasser in the US is really awful. Some of the products from LeRoux and others are artificially flavored and sweetened, not Kirsch at all. ← I would also add to that that the process for making Kirsch includes the cherries and their pits, imparting a very nutty character, whereas Maraschino (to my understanding) includes some of the stems and leaves in there as well, imparting a characteristic not unlike grappa. It also has, to my taste, a distinct funk similar to that found in tequila, cachaca, etc. -Andy

Even with 3 ounces of Bourbon? We are talking about a Julep here. ← Well, you got me there. I'll drink just about anything containing 3 oz of Bourbon :-P

I think the danger with making blended drinks with Bourbon would be letting it get too watery. I personally do not enjoy watered-down bourbon (unless it started at barrel-proof or somesuch). -Andy