KD1191

If you can get it, Havana Club. If not, Flor de Caña or Matusalem.

Got a new ingredient to play with...Blis and Red Boat have teamed up to release a quality fish sauce that's been aged in bourbon barrels that previously held Blis maple syrup. When I first heard about it, I thought barrel aging may have jumped the shark, but the result is pretty awesome. It's a funky, salty, slightly sweet umami bomb that will likely be the secret ingredient in many future recipes. When I think about salt in cocktails, the Campari 'Martini' sticks out. Using some of the fish sauce in place of the saline solution (I went 7:1 Campari to Fish Sauce) produced a very interesting result. You got the diminished bitterness with a savory/sweet finish. The nose was a tad too funky, so I used a healthy amount of orange oil for garnish. I then made up an Italian Fisherman (above), but something in the translation wasn't quite right (or, more likely, there's a significant difference in the citrus available in Chicago versus an island off the coast of Vietnam). It was tasty, but needed something more...a barspoon of Batavia Arrack on top definitely brought things together.

Trying to find uses for the coconut distillate that I brought back from Ben Tre...started off thinking tiki, ended up going more straight up daiquiri. I used 3 different r(h)ums, so naturally I called it the 'Tre Daiquiri'. 1.25 oz Havana Club Blanco 1 oz Inner Circle Blue Dot 3/4 oz Lime Juice 3/4 oz 'Special Ben Tre Coconut Alcohol' 1/4 oz La Favorite Rhum Blanc 1/4 oz Demerara Syrup 15 Drops Bittercube Jamaican Bitters #2 This was shaken and strained, then topped with a few drops of Bittercube Jamaican Bitters #1. A daiquiri with a well rounded sweetness and plenty of depth of flavor. The rough coconut funk peaks through at the finish.

Cheap/late-ish eats on the NW side are mostly going to be more exotic options...here are a few of my favorites: Khan BBQ - Pakistani/Indian. The barbecued chicken boti and tandori fish are both amazing. Open until 10:30 PM daily. 2401 W Devon Ave, Chicago 60659 Spoon Thai - Thai. Has the typical range of dishes you'll find at any Thai place, but also many unique specialties. Open until 10 PM daily. 4608 N Western Ave, Chicago 60625 Noon O Kebab - Persian. Wonderful kebabs and home-style middle eastern food. Open until 10 PM on Thursday. 4661 N Kedzie Ave, Chicago 60625 San Soo Gap San - Korean BBQ. An interactive dining experience great for groups. Open more-or-less 24 hours (I think they close from ~3-5 am sometimes). 5247 N Western Ave, Chicago 60625 Hoanh Long Vietnamese - Vietnamese. Fresh, delicious preparations away from the usual Argyle strip. Open until 10 PM on Thursday. 6144 North Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL 60659 Any of these places should be able to accommodate a group relatively easily, though Khan and San Soo Gap San might find it easiest.

Those tables were made available tonight via Dutch Auction, with the starting prices in the $4-5,000 range for a table for 2. 16 of the 73 available tables have already been sold, raising $76,000 for charity.

Broke out the swizzle stick tonight...seemed appropriate on the first real cold night we've had this winter. 2 oz Inner Circle Red Dot 1 oz Lime Juice 1/2 oz Chartreuse MOFS 1/2 oz Carlshamns Flaggpunsch 1/4 oz Simple Built over crushed ice in a Collins glass. Swizzled until frost formed on the outside of the glass. Floated Lemon Hart 151. A straw was a must.

Sounds like this might work where genever is called for, do you think? Yes and no. It's certainly evocative of genever in the malty character that comes from the rye grain base, but there's a lot more juniper in the Dry Rye than what I associate with most of the genevers I've had. I guess I wouldn't feel a need to be as careful about using it as a straight substitution where genever is called for, but I think some tweaking is probably going to be necessary.

I've been playing with the St. George Dry Rye gin quite a bit lately. It's a bit too bold and malty for me to use as the primary spirit in most cocktails calling for gin, but splitting time with the more traditional gins I would use in a French 75 or Martinez has produced some outstanding results. It's been more successful on its own in place of cognac or whiskey in certain drinks, like the Jimmie Roosevelt or Old Fashioned.

I got a copy of Stan Jones' Complete Bar Guide from Powell's a few weeks ago and am working through it slowly (mostly because it's too large to reasonably travel with and I'm in Houston 5 days a week lately). It appears to be quite a comprehensive study, but at the same time it's also very clearly a period piece (late 70's). There is a nice amount of detail on the history of distilling and the industries in various countries, along with a fair share of risible claims, like how Canadian Whisky has a leg up on the competition when it comes to flavor due to a lack of regulation on the types of grain that must be used. It also introduced me to the concept of "Light Whiskey" which was something of a fad around the time the book was published and is thankfully all but non-existent today. From what I've seen so far I'd recommended it highly to the committed hobbyist or professional looking for a fun read that might not teach you a lot, but will definitely give you a few laughs and an interesting look at one of the less examined periods in American drinking. The recipe section is also quite voluminous.

It's too late to help Chris, but for posterity's sake I'll add that the burger at Three Aces has consistently trumped any other I've had in town. I'd only had it once prior to my initial post, but it has stood up to repeated samplings. I tried the Owen & Engine burger last night and was relatively pleased but far from wowed. ETA: I'm referring to the "Ace Burger" (aged cheddar, trimmings, bacon jam, aioli), not the In-N-Out style burgers they also do, usually late night...though those are pretty good, too. Also, get the Bolognese on the fries. You only live once.

Haven't seen it in Chicago yet, but did get to try the Kronan this evening at Anvil in Houston. Compared to the Carlshamns that I brought back from Europe, the Kronan actually seems less syrupy (though I couldn't say it's less sweet, because it's really sweet). The flavor is vaguely medicinal. There's some hogo there, just enough to make me want to mix it with some agricole.

I substituted chorizo for some of the ground beef in a chili recipe once and never looked back.

Smile bemusedly in self-satisfaction while simultaneously cursing under one's breath that one can't get a decent Cock-tail around here.

Follow their Facebook posts for notice on when tickets become available, or try for same-day tickets via same. The alternative is to randomly check the website and hope they've made some tables available (this very thing happened to me this afternoon, but it's a rarity) or try the secondary market.

I think the best burger downtown is probably at the Rosebud on Walton (192 E Walton St near the Water Tower). Great meat, always cooked perfectly to order, and a fantastic pretzel bun. However, the place can be a bit staid. For something a bit more modern, Sable Kitchen & Bar (505 N State St) makes an awesome burger to go with impeccable cocktails. Kuma's is terrific, but the waits can make Hot Doug's look tame, particularly during the winter when the patio is closed. If you're willing to travel a bit, head up to Evanston and stop at Edzo's (1571 Sherman Ave). It's only about 2 blocks from the Davis Purple Line stop. The burgers are very good, but if you fail to order some variety of tricked out fries and a specialty milkshake, you might not feel like the trip was entirely worth it.

The food wasn't very good, I agree. But, that wasn't the reason I recommended Highway 4...if you missed their line of spirits, you missed something special.

Recently added this item to my bar setup...I'm lead to believe that it is a Punch Cart.

In my opinion, Hanoi has the best phở anywhere. The simple, pure broth doesn't have as many spices as the southern style, and the garnishes are also used more sparingly in my experience. Nothing gets between you, the meat and the amazing noodles except for a few slices of pickled chile and some onions. Phở Gia Truyền (49 Bát Đàn) was the best bowl I had in Hanoi. That's it in the picture over there ----> Here's a close up: It's on the western edge of the Old Quarter...49 Bát Đàn, east of Phùng Hưng, near where Hàng Gà becomes Hàng Diếu. You can't miss it, but here's a picture of the sign: Fair warning...Bourdain visited this spot a few months after we were there in '09 and it subsequently appeared in the No Reservations episode "Food Porn II". I don't have any recent reports. As one who enjoys a good cocktail, you might want to check out Highway 4 & their Sơn Tinh line of liqueurs and brandies. I brought back their Apricot liqueur and Hibiscus brandy, both were great additions to my bar. I'll second the Water Puppets as a fun experience, but I will add that the seats are not built for anyone over 6'. I'm 6'4" and it was probably the most uncomfortable place I've ever paid to sit.

Without having to buy another bottle of gin I guess that would mean regular Tanqueray for me. It is probably the most juniper of the bunch milling about in my liquor cabinet. A quick inventory of the liquor cabinet, not counting the genevers, finds that in addition to the previously noted Plymouth, Bluecoat, Citadelle and Tanq Rangpur I have these options. Most of these were purchased because they offered a bit of something unusual: Aviation Cadenhead’s Old Raj, 110 proof Citadelle Reserve 2010 Hayman’s Old Tom Hendrick’s Leopold Brothers Magellan Ransom Old Tom Rusty Blade Single Barrel St. George Dry Rye And of course the Tanqueray "house" gin which is probably the most cost effective junipery option. So Tanq it is! Try adding a bit of the St. George Dry Rye along with the Tanqueray (maybe a 25/75 mix). I thought it was an excellent twist, particularly for anyone who might usually prefer theirs with Cognac.

Oh my, indeed...if ever I need to shed a false tear I only need think of the fact that a bottle has increased in price by over $100 in the past 5 years. I enjoy everything from the Balvenie, but the 21 year is my perfect Scotch.

You want The Butcher & Larder. Call ahead. 1026 N. Milwaukee Ave. Chicago, IL 60642 Tel: (773) 687-8280

Well, the obvious would be the "best pizza in the country" at Great Lake in Andersonville, but don't let them hear about your plan to reheat it. The sausage pizza at Coalfire is my favorite in the city, while others prefer Spacca Nappoli. Both would likely suffer heavily from the transit. If you don't want to deal with potential waits at GL and want something a bit more forgiving to travel than the super-thin places, I might look to Piece or Roots. The former is an old standby for New Haven style, the latter is relatively new to the scene, offering "Quad Cities" style pizza, which has an addictively sweet, malty crust.

I'll second the recommendation for Chinon (or Bourgueil, which is generally cheaper) as frequently producing excellent examples of "earthy," and add that there are quite a few that have a vegetal palate (many reference green peppers) to go with that dusty clay finish. The combination of the two is pretty much textbook "earthiness," for me.

Here are the menu descriptions of the other two fish sauce drinks. I didn't get the recipe for either: Juicy Gin - Gin, Passion Fruit Juice, Orange Juice, Fish Sauce Vietnamese Pirate - Rum, Mint Liqueur, Lime Juice, Fish Sauce ETA: These drinks, and the Italian Fisherman above, are from La Veranda Resort, Phu Quoc Island, Vietnam.

I recommend either dropping a zero or getting a really REALLY big glass. :raz Hmm...you're surely right. I just copied the recipe I was handed. I doubt they batch it, but who knows? Replace "0 cl" with part throughout for a better recipe, I guess.