"The PDT Cocktail Book"

[Tri2Cook]

Tonight I tried Gerry Corcoran's #3 Cup (Cognac, ginger beer, curaçao, sweet vermouth, Cherry Heering, lemon juice, mint, cuke, orange). It tasted like a kale smoothie.

"It tasted like a kale smoothie"... so Gerry Corcoran's #3 Cup is now marked as one not to try.

 

[Rafa]

In all honesty, it's not a pan. I've enjoyed a kale smoothie in my time.

That said, fair warning to those who react as Mr. 2Cook did.

[pto]

Blackbeard

Beefeater, Aquavit, Lemon juice, pineapple jiuce, agave nectar, blackberries.

 

Oops, made it a bit wrong muddling in the shaker and straining, but still was a nice drink. Subbed SS for Agave nectar.

Edited December 1, 2014 by pto (log)

[FrogPrincesse]

The Blackbeard looks interesting, although I have a fear of pineapple juice. But without it, I suppose it's just a Bramble with aquavit, which sounds pretty good actually.

 

This one is nothing offensive, mostly a major snooze. (I wanted to kill my bottle of Plymouth in a vague attempt to streamline the liquor cabinet.) I suppose it would be a good drink to introduce people to gin or cocktails in general.

Vieux Mot (Don Lee): Plymouth gin, lemon juice, St. Germain, simple syrup.

 

 

Anthony Schmidt used to do something similar at Noble Experiment as a long drink with muddled cucumber called Easy Street, which is in the Bartender's Choice app.

[pto]

The Blackbeard looks interesting, although I have a fear of pineapple juice. But without it, I suppose it's just a Bramble with aquavit, which sounds pretty good actually.

 

It is pretty pineapply, I was thinking of cutting it back a little next time.

[FrogPrincesse]

Rattlesnake last night with the PDT ratios.

2 oz Rittenhouse rye bottled in bond, 1 oz lemon juice, 3/4 oz simple syrup, egg white, rinse Vieux Pontarlier Absinthe (St. George absinthe).

 

 

I love this cocktail and Rittenhouse is perfect in this. With the creamy egg white it's like an adult smoothie. (I don't follow PDT's prep procedure. I use a stick blender, much easier.)

 

Good recap of various Rattlesnake recipes on reddit.

 

[Fernet-Bronco]

Hey, I just made a PDT Rattlesnake! Delicious and a little weird--hard to pick out the Rittenhouse and absinthe. This is one where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Very nice.

[Darcie B]

Haven't checked into eG recently - glad to see this thread was still active! I (almost) made a Conquistador tonight - it's an egg white drink and I didn't want to bother with it so I didn't use it. Tequila, aged rum, lemon juice, lime juice, simple, house orange bitters (1/2 Regans 1/2 Fees). I used a resposado tequila instead of blanco, but even with that substitution it was damn tasty. Surprisingly vegetal (in a good way). FrogPrincesse - I saw your comment on the drink in EYB which is why I tried it. I hope you are still posting comments there - I value your opinion!

[FrogPrincesse]

Haven't checked into eG recently - glad to see this thread was still active! I (almost) made a Conquistador tonight - it's an egg white drink and I didn't want to bother with it so I didn't use it. Tequila, aged rum, lemon juice, lime juice, simple, house orange bitters (1/2 Regans 1/2 Fees). I used a resposado tequila instead of blanco, but even with that substitution it was damn tasty. Surprisingly vegetal (in a good way). FrogPrincesse - I saw your comment on the drink in EYB which is why I tried it. I hope you are still posting comments there - I value your opinion!

I most definitely am. I left about 75 comments on PDT cocktails on EYB. :-)

Most recently, I've been busy with the Death & Co Cocktail Book which is great. I am also adding my comments to EYB (and eG of course). I am glad to read that they are useful to other people!

[Rafa]

Hot off the presses, the PDT Cocktail app (a collaboration with Martin Doudoroff) is here.

Says Doudoroff:

PDT Cocktails is a legacy. The recipes comprise pretty much all the original drinks ever served at PDT as well as the fine-tuned classics PDT has featured on their menus.

Included are four hundred precise, carefully-worded drink recipes spanning all of PDT’s eight years of service

Every one of the recipes was re-tested by Jim Meehan and his staff for this anthology

Every drink was carefully photographed, documenting PDT’s choice of glassware and garniture (“We taste with our eyes first,”—Jim Meehan)

Nearly every ingredient was photographed, too, to provide a visual reference (!)

This is a flagship app—exactly what you would expect from the first James Beard Award-winning bar program—and a leading document of the contemporary “craft” cocktail movement.

[Fernet-Bronco]

This last week I've been going on a "make what I can from PDT with the stuff I've got" run through the book. We made a Cloister (very nice with the Junipero) and a couple Milk Punches (supremely quaffable after dinner drink, pairs nicely with a bowl of raspberries). Mostly though, this week has resulted in a lot of Improved Whiskey Cocktails and an almost empty Rittenhouse bottle. Not sure if the proportions are original to PDT, but I like it:

 

2 oz Rittenhouse

.25 oz Luxardo Maraschino

.25 oz simple syrup (scant)

2 dashes Angostura Bitters (I use one dash Ango and one dash Bitter Punk Alpino*)

absinthe rinse (St. George)

 

*We picked up the Bitter Punk Alpino bitters last time we were in Denver. (They're from Boulder, Colorado, I guess.) It's got pine characteristics, hence the name, but also a fair amount of citrus peel, some grassy herbaceous notes (playing well with the maraschino),  and maybe a bit of cardamom? And it's, for lack of a better word, just more "bitter" than the ango.

Edited March 20, 2015 by Fernet-Bronco (log)

[pto]

21st Century, Agaveles Blanco tequila, Lemon juice, Creme de Cacao, Ricard rinse.

 

Not sure I'd make it again, but enjoyable none the less.

[Rafa]

Tonight I had a Pearl of Puebla by Jim Meehan (Sombra mezcal, yellow Chartreuse, lime, oregano, Ricard, agave). Perfect. Delicious.

[KK]

I know this is an older thread, but hoping there's still a few folks around   

 

I have the book, but I've read online that the PDT app has a bunch of updates regarding the ingredients/proportions of the drinks that are in the book (such as replacing Marie Brizard Curacao with Pierre Ferrand).  There isn't much info about the differences between the book and the app recipes, can anyone who has both shine some light on whether the app is worth it (and are the recipes actually different for the better on the app)?   Thanks!

[Rafa]

The app is worth it. In addition to the revised recipes, there are more than a hundred newer drinks, and photographs for new and old drinks alike.

[KK]

Looks like I'm going to have to find a way.  I've got all android/PC products, and PDT only made an iOS app

[FrogPrincesse]

Tipperary (PDT ratios on the left, and Bartender's Choice ratios on the right) with Green Spot Irish whiskey, Cocchi vermouth di Torino, green Chartreuse, and Regan's orange bitters for the Bartender's Choice version. Compared to the traditional (Harry Johnson) version, PDT only has a rinse of green Chartreuse. It still makes a great cocktail, but I feel it changes the feel of it quite a bit and makes it resemble a classic Manhattan compared to the Bartender's Choice version.

 

As a side note, I am slightly disappointed by the Green Spot. I am a novice at Irish whiskey and prefer Redbreast. Maybe it will grow on me.

PDT calls for Black Bush. I wonder how that compares in this drink?

 

 

 

Edited October 26, 2016 by FrogPrincesse (log)

[tanstaafl2]

Green Spot is relatively light and very fruit forward (usually described as green apple) to me with perhaps a bit more grainy character due to its youth compared to the Redbreast which is maybe 3-5 years older and probably has more sherry barrel influence. The Black Bush is blended whiskey that is also more heavily sherry influenced than Green Spot and I have always found it a fairly straight forward but enjoyable blend both for cocktails and on its own, if a bit thin. I think you might like the Black Bush better than Green Spot in this cocktail. It is probably a bit cheaper as well! 

 

If you are looking for a somewhat more "meaty" whiskey consider the Powers John's Lane. It is a very enjoyable whiskey to me in the Midleton pot still family and similar to Redbreast as both are 12yo but less sherry influenced and more bourbon barrels with a bit more proof at 92 compared to the regular 12yo Redbreast at 80 proof.

[FrogPrincesse]

I gave another go to the Green Spot with the Hôtel d'Alsace (David Slape): Green Spot Irish whiskey (instead of Bushmills), Cointreau, Benedictine, rosemary. Very aromatic and delicious.

 

 

[FrogPrincesse]

And another one...

 

 

Lake George (Brian Shebairo) with Green Spot Irish whiskey, Glenlivet 15 year Scotch whisky, Drambuie, lemon juice. It's well done, very interesting and not too sweet. It's a riff on the Prince Edward (but less rich), and a very good use of Drambuie.

[tanstaafl2]

18 hours ago, FrogPrincesse said:

I gave another go to the Green Spot with the Hôtel d'Alsace (David Slape): Green Spot Irish whiskey (instead of Bushmills), Cointreau, Benedictine, rosemary. Very aromatic and delicious.

 

Well, I should hope so!

 

2 hours ago, FrogPrincesse said:

And another one...

Lake George (Brian Shebairo) with Green Spot Irish whiskey, Glenlivet 15 year Scotch whisky, Drambuie, lemon juice. It's well done, very interesting and not too sweet. It's a riff on the Prince Edward (but less rich), and a very good use of Drambuie.

 

Interesting. A bit off topic but have you tried the Baie du Galion from Smugglers Cove? It is off the regular menu now but I had them make it for me when I was there several weeks ago. It has become a new favorite. Certainly another entertaining use of Drambuie!

[FrogPrincesse]

3 minutes ago, tanstaafl2 said:

Interesting. A bit off topic but have you tried the Baie du Galion from Smugglers Cove? It is off the regular menu now but I had them make it for me when I was there several weeks ago. It has become a new favorite. Certainly another entertaining use of Drambuie!

Well, as a matter of fact, I have!

I agree, it's another good use of Drambuie!

[tanstaafl2]

Hmm. I searched but did not find it. But I should have known you had! In fact now that I see it the post looks familiar.

[FrogPrincesse]

And more of the Green Spot in a superlative Cameron's Kick.

 

Cameron's Kick (Harry McElhone via PDT) with Glenlivet 15 year old French oak reserve whisky, Green Spot Irish whiskey, lemon juice, homemade orgeat. A slight upgrade from the Famous Grouse & Jameson that are specified in the book, but I used the same recipe.

 

 

[FrogPrincesse]

PDT's homage to the Last Word, the East Village Athletic Club Cocktail (Jim Meehan, John Deragon, Don Lee) with 1.5 oz Tequila Ocho plata 2014, 0.75 oz lemon juice, 0.5 oz yellow Chartreuse, 0.5 oz Grand Marnier. It's a little more subdued than the original, and the orange flavor from the Grand Marnier is almost like a small nod to a Margarita.