J_Ozzy

oh, solid callout; I read it over the holidays and definitely enjoyed it. A worthy reference complement to The Oxford Companion, particularly for filling in detail and developments in more recent years (past the Oxford's self-imposed cut-off) ... and now I can't find my copy, it seems I've got some investigating to do

Coming Soon (and releases into the summer, per Amazon's listing) The Connaught Bar: Cocktail Recipes and Iconic Creations (Agostino Perrone, Giorgio Bargiani, Maura Milia) April 2024 The Cocktail Parlor: How Women Brought the Cocktail Home (Nicola Nice, foreword by Robert Simonson) April 2024 A Quick Drink: The Speed Rack Guide to Winning Cocktails for Any Mood (Ivy Mix, Lynnette Marrero, Megan Krigbaum) April 2024 The Bartender's Pantry: A Beverage Handbook for the Universal Bar (Jim Meehan, Bart Sasso, Emma Janzen) June 2024 Liqueur: A Global History (Lesley Jacobs Solmonson) July 2024 2023 release retrospective: The Maison Premiere Almanac, Tropical Standard, and The Ice Book were all solid additions to the repertoire. The Maison Premiere Almanac covered not only the drinks and service program at the now venerable Williamsburg establishment, but also much of the initial design process and detail on the initial open and evolution (what worked, what did not). Tropical Standard is both a creative and analytical take on the tiki and tiki-adjacent drinks landscape. The Ice Book is the practical summation (along with some further ideas around creative execution) of more than a decade of Camper English's deep dive into the near-universal cocktail ingredient, direct and to the point in a small form factor. Honorable mention to For the Love of Cocktails (Evelyn Chick) as a very well-rounded home bartending tome covering the gamut of novel full-proof, low-ABV, and non-alcoholic cocktail options. Back-catalog pickup mention to 2022's Dicktales, an intensely personal journey through the stories, notes, and letters of the late Dick Bradsell's life and career, an (strong arguments can be made for the pre-eminent) anchoring force of the early cocktail renaissance in London.

An early look forward into some 2023 releases: The Maison Premiere Almanac (Joshua Boissy, Krystof Zizka) April 2023 The Ice Book (Camper English) May 2023 Tropical Standard (Garret Richard, Ben Schaffer) May 2023 The Book of Cocktail Ratios (Michael Ruhlman, Marcella Kriebel) May 2023 How to Fix the Perfect Cocktail (Adam Elan-Elmegirab) August 2023 Drinks With Friends (Sother Teague, Dale DeGroff) February 2024 2022 release retrospective: I particularly enjoyed (in no particular order) Drink Lightly, The Bartender's Manifesto, Cure, and Paddy Drinks for original content. Drink Lightly presents an interesting take on a fun-yet-still-serious, lower-ABV program, and is a beautiful swan song to Nitecap, for those who never had the pleasure of visiting. The Bartender's Manifesto walks the reader through an impressive drink design approach, which provides an interesting contrast to that of The Cocktail Codex and other works. Cure is the bar-centric New Orleans book I've wanted ever since Rogue / Beta Cocktails was released over a decade ago. Paddy Drinks is a serious deep-dive into Irish whiskey, backed up by the talented folks from The Dead Rabbit. Honorable mention to Modern Classic Cocktails as an excellent curation of great drinks from the late-80's forward.

Spring 2022 new/updated releases: Soon Drink Lightly (Natasha David); April 2022 Claridge’s – The Cocktail Book; April 2022 Looking Forward The Bartender's Manifesto (Toby Maloney, Emma Janzen) June 2022 Doctors and Distillers (Camper English) July 2022 The Art & Craft of Coffee Cocktails (Jason Clark) September 2022 Modern Classic Cocktails (Robert Simonson) October 2022 Raising the Bar (Brett Adams, Jacob Grier) October 2022 A Bartender's Guide to the World (Lauren Mote, James O. Fraioli) October 2022 Cure (Neal Bodenheimer, Emily Timberlake) October 2022 Drinks With Friends (Sother Teague, Dale DeGroff); February 2024 (!) (per Amazon.ca)

Recent and upcoming 2022 releases on my radar: The Way of the Cocktail: Japanese Traditions, Techniques, and Recipes (Julia Momosé, Emma Janzen) released November 2021 The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails (Noah Rothbaum, Dave Wondrich); released November 2021 Death & Co Welcome Home (Alex Day, Nick Fauchald et al.); released November 2021 The Regency Book Of Drinks (Amy Finley, Niege Borges); December 2021 Paddy Drinks: The World of Modern Irish Whiskey Cocktails (Jillian Vose, Muldoon & McGarry); February 2022 Drink Lightly (Natasha David); April 2022 Claridge’s – The Cocktail Book; April 2022 The Bartender's Manifesto (Toby Maloney, Emma Janzen) May 2022 Doctors and Distillers (Camper English) May 2022 Drinks With Friends (Sother Teague, Dale DeGroff); August 2022

Thanks for the heads up, I'm very much looking forward to reading this encyclopedia.

Jameson Cold Brew, in anticipation of Irish Coffee season

I've heard it works quite well in a Bloody Mary and other savoury cocktails of that nature, in the place of the traditional vodka base.

If cost is no object, come by Montreal once the province opens up again; there's a world-class cocktail bar here (The Cloakroom) with most of the Buffalo Trace antique collection and Van Winkle ranges (minus the ryes) along with a few even rarer bottles, though they are all priced at aftermarket valuations. Jack Daniel's Single Barrel Barrel Proof, which had limited releases in Ontario and Quebec last year (and is pretty widely available south of the border), is really quite something; I'm not generally a JD fan, but this bottle won me over.

My current slate of 2021-2022 anticipated pickups: Mezcal And Tequila Cocktails (Robert Simonson); April 2021 Cocktail Dive Bar: New Orlean's Twelve Mile Limit (T. Cole Newton); May 2021 The Cocktail Seminars (Brian Hoefling); May 2021 The New Kindred Spirits (Paul Pacult); May 2021 The Japanese Art of the Cocktail (Masahiro Urushido, Michael Anstendig); June 2021 The Big Book of Amaro (Matteo Zed); August 2021 The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails (Noah Rothbaum, Dave Wondrich); October 2021 Death & Co Welcome Home (Alex Day, Nick Fauchald et al.); November 2021 Paddy Drinks: The World of Modern Irish Whiskey Cocktails (Jillian Vose, Muldoon & McGarry); February 2022 Drinks With Friends (Sother Teague, Dale DeGroff); August, 2022

yes, aged peach brandy (suitable for 19th century recipes) unfortunately carries a significant niche price premium. If you're looking for a viable substitute for something like Fish House Punch, a high-quality apricot / peach liqueur will get you close, with the appropriate modifications to balance sweetness.

If you've got the budget, Masters of Malt has a recent release from Koval (2 bottles left as of this posting) https://www.masterofmalt.com/fruit-brandy/koval/koval-susan-for-president-peach-brandy/

Looking forward through to 2021 (barring any pandemic delays): Spirits of Latin America (Ivy Mix); May 25, 2020 Drink What You Want (John deBary); June 2, 2020 Unvarnished (Eric Alperin, Deborah Stoll); June 23, 2020 The New Craft of the Cocktail (Dale DeGroff); September 22, 2020 Drinks With Friends (Sother Teague, Dale DeGroff); April 13, 2021 The Japanese Art of the Cocktail (Masahiro Urushido, Michael Anstendig); June 1, 2021

A few more for on my list: A Drinkable Feast (Philip Greene) Cocktail Codex (Alex Day, Nick Fauchald, David Kaplan) Drinking Distilled: A User Manual (Jeffrey Morgenthaler) Wild Mixology (Wood-ing, Valeria Margherita Mosca) The Joy of Mixology, Revised and Updated Edition (Garry Regan)

Looking to Amazon's 2018 publication list, I see a few books I'll probably pick up: And A Bottle of Rum (Revised) - Wayne Curtis Finding Mexcal - Ron Cooper and Chantal Martineau Drink Like Ladies - Misty Kalkofen et al. I'm Just Here for the Drinks - Sother Teague Mixology & Mayhem - Muldoon and McGarry

They analyzed descriptions from a number of blogs (in addition to corporate rum product pages): Best of Luxury Bilgemunky Dowd’s Tasting Notes El Machete’s Rum Reviews Fahrenheit 173 Got Rum Proof 66 Refined Vices Rob’s Rum Guide Rum Dood Rum Ratings Scottes’ Rum Pages Spirits Review Tastings The Rum Howler The Rum Shop The Rumelier It's a neat exercise in building a consensus-based lexicon, but I'd want to dig deeper into additional non-corporate websites, forum-based material, and published books to be truly comprehensive.

Nice! I made it to the Violet Hour takeover of Cure as well. I was in the second Chartreuse session, did they also have the 1972 VEP Jaune in the first? The Ferrand / Plantation Chamber of Secrets and the Centrifuge session were the highlights for me. I thought the Johnnie + Soda Shoppe was my favorite pop-up, if only for the boozy ice cream floats in the New Orleans heat. I was 1 for 3 getting into Latitude (Monday as well), checked out Cane and Table, made it out to Bacchanal when I had a bit of downtime on Friday (and promptly got boxed in by a freight train for 30 minutes when I was done); some quick lunches at the Alibi, Erin Rose / Killer Po-Boys, Johnny's and Arnaud's Remoulade sustained me between sessions on other days when my schedule was tight. I saw johnder run by a couple times, and donbert co-hosted the centrifuge seminar, but had other responsibilities shortly thereafter; I didn't find a moment to say hi.

Anyone headed to Tales next week? I'll be there Monday to Saturday; looking forward to some really interesting seminars (bottle aging; centrifuge techniques with Dave Arnold), the "Montreal cocktail" event (hometown presence ), the annual d.b.a. non-event, and the food, drink, and merriment of the French Quarter overrun by bartenders.

Can't really help with scaling, other than to recommend doing so, by weight, with a decent kitchen scale. Ratios should be ratios, as long as potency is consistent. For any processing that does not involve cooking, flash infusion with an iSi whipper (or soon, centrifuge via a Spinzall); let gravities or the compression/decompression cycle do the work on the quantity of reagents you've chosen to use. Freezing can be tricky; you may not get back what you put in (separation, ice crystal damage), but it's unlikely to kill you once thawed if it wasn't poisoning you before hand. The produced ingredients with low shelf lives are often most vulnerable to oxidation, so keeping them isolated (pumped out bottle or inert gas layer) and refrigerated might stretch that out. Liquid Intelligence by Dave Arnold discusses some of this, and is an otherwise great read; I'd highly recommend it.

It's a pretty noticeable difference. Licor 43 is much more vanilla-forward in nose and body, and Galliano has wintergreen / herbal flavours that are much more prominent. Licor 43 is also a fair bit sweeter. If Licor 43 is prominently featured in the cocktail, you're going to end up with something quite different from a balance and flavour perspective. For example, a Tijuana Lady made with Galliano doesn't deliver the same experience as one made with Licor 43. Tijuana Lady 1.5 oz Tequila 1 oz Licor 43 3/4 oz lime juice 2 dash Angostrura They stock it in Alberta, if you have friends or family who might visit from out West; otherwise it's a suitcase import until it lists again.

Looking ahead using Amazon's listings, I see a few books I'll be picking up in 2017: Meehan's Bartender Manual (Meehan, October 10th) Three-Ingredient Cocktails: An Opinionated Guide to the Most Enduring Drinks in the Cocktail Canon (Simonson, September 26th) A Spot at the Bar: Welcome to the Everleigh: The Art of Good Drinking in Three Hundred Recipes (Madrusan and Young, March 7th)

Regarding Cocktails (Sasha Petraske with Georgette Moger-Petraske) I never met Sasha Petraske, but knew of him by reputation and, much later, visits to his establishments. (I hope he would forgive me the false familiarity of referring to him by his first name, but “Sasha” in cocktail circles is indelibly his). I knew he was important to the cocktail bartending revival, but I never fully understood the degree of impact he had on the scene (both directly and through the people he fostered) in those critical early years. As recounted by those who knew and worked with him, Regarding Cocktails collects a series of guides, recipes and essays which serve as testament to his character and influence. The sections authored by Sasha include instructions for setting up a home bar and successfully running a cocktail party; theory on garnishes; the Milk & Honey comp policy; a tantalizing intro to 'Cocktails For Your Cat'; and bookended, fittingly, by Milk & Honey's closing menu. The recipes section, for me, really drove it home. 70+ elegant, dialed-in, formative classics and modern classics incubated through his beverage programs. Many of my favourite modern drinks (a number of whose origin I hadn't realized) saw first light under his tutelage. Each recipe is accompanied by graphical representation of the drink makeup, and accompanied by the story of its genesis (or perfection, in the case of classics) as told by people involved. The guides section includes contributions from Wonderich and Alperin, among others, and covers a wide range of topics, providing a personal perspective on the man and (mostly) genuinely useful information. Throughout the book, Moger-Petraske provides essays, anecdotes and quotes that bind the narrative together. I can't imagine the challenges tackling such a project, but I'm thankful that she did. I am left with a deeper sense of appreciation for the man, his establishments and his extended bartending family. And a little (selfish) sadness that I'll never get to meet him.

Prime reading season for me right now (Canon, Regarding Cocktails, and Tippling Bros all arrived in my mailbox in the same week). Canon arrived first, so that's what I've managed to tackle so far. The Canon Cocktail Book: Recipes from the Award-Winning Bar (Jamie Boudreau & James O. Fraioli) I very much enjoyed this book. It reminds me, in spirit, of a modern Harry Johnson's Bartenders' Manual, but weighted to more heavily to the drinks (to be fair, that original was a treatise for bars, restaurants and hotels, fully half its length an operator's manual). It covers a lot of ground: tips on planning, opening and running a cocktail bar; core cocktail theory; high-end equipment and substitutes; carbonated, aged, and bottled cocktails; shrubs, infusions and tinctures; flavored foams, Fernet cookies and Chartreuse ice cream. The drinks are nicely photographed, often alongside their vintage spirit or liqueur bottles. Drink descriptions helpfully explain less common ingredients, and (in the case of riffs) provide insight into the creative process behind them. The drinks are organized in broad categories, and stylistically run the gamut from elegant tweaks (Chrysanthemum #2) to playfully themed (The Elvis Ziggurat) to full mad scientist (Movie Night Float). Refreshingly, outside of the "Over the Top" section, there are very few recipes that require much more preparation than an infused syrup. There is a mix of standard, advanced and exotic (brain rum!) prepared ingredients, including the always-appreciated house Picon substitute, Amer Boudreau. Some of the exotic preparations call for specialized equipment, but conventional workarounds are provided for the truly adventurous. Outside of the drink recipes, the book provides a quality, high-level introduction on many craft cocktail topics. It doesn't delve nearly as deeply as some of the more specialized books (i.e. fundamental technique in Morgenthaler's Bar Book, or advanced wizardry as presented in Liquid Intelligence or The Cocktail Lab). It is instead an accessible, competent generalist, and an engaging read.

Just noticed that Regarding Cocktails (Sasha Petraske) is getting a late October release. Definitely going on my required reading list.

Just got my copy yesterday, so I'm still working my way through it, but I agree that Hamilton Jamaica black is the intended bottle for the Dr. Funk. It is indeed (relatively) unaged, black, pot still, and Jamaican, which hits all the qualifiers. It's also the only pot still rum listed on the referenced page (198).