Stomping Through the "Savoy" (2007–2008)

[eje]

Well, sweetness is always relative.

I think my tastes are being permanently skewed by Savoy Cocktails.

In any case, as with many Savoy Cocktails of this sort, small and very cold are the keys to enjoying it.

If you made this cocktail at 3 oz or larger, with the chance to significantly warm in the glass it would get cloying.

However, at around 2 1/4 ounces, stirred well with very cold cracked ice, it isn't bad at all.

But, you know, it's probably less sweet than most soft drinks or many modern cocktails (Margarita, Daiquiri, vodka and red bull, Jaeger bomb, Irish Car Bomb, etc.) as served in mainstream American bars and significantly more sophisticated.

[eje]

Dry Martini Cocktail

1/2 French Vermouth. (Generous 1 oz Dolin French Vermouth)

1/2 Gin. (Generous 1 oz Junipero Gin)

1 Dash Orange Bitters. (1 dash Fee's Orange Bitters, 1 dash Regan's Orange Bitters)

Shake (Stir - eje) well and strain into cocktail glass. (Squeeze lemon peel over glass.)

As always, it's fun to give a classic a spin with a new ingredient.

I've wanted to try Dolin Vermouth since hearing about it at a cocktail seminar at Absinthe Brasserie & Bar a couple years ago. Finally found some at a local liquor store. It's quite tasty in a different way from the Vya Vermouth. It seems to use a dry white wine base closer to the Noilly Prat Dry in body and flavor, but is pumped up in the herbs and bitterness department. Further experimentation is assuredly required!

This is definitely one of the better "Fifty-Fifty" Dry Martini type combinations I've tried in recent memory. Quite possibly in the top 5 all time, at least to my current taste.

[eje]

Du Barry Cocktail

1 Dash Angostura Bitters.

2 Dashes Absinthe. (Marteau Verte Classic)

1/3 French Vermouth. (3/4 oz Noilly Prat Dry)

2/3 Plymouth Gin. (1 1/2 oz Plymouth Gin)

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass. Add slice of orange.

Close, but no cigar?

If I hadn't made my version of the Fourth Degree Cocktail recently, I would probably enjoy this more. It's OK. But, splitting the vermouth between sweet and dry is waaaaaay better, at least to my taste. Though, I should try it with my spiffy new Dolin Vermouth. It's possible, my Noilly Dry was getting a bit tired.

Googling DuBarry, one of the first things that comes up is Marie-Jeanne, Comtesse du Barry, professional courtesan and royal mistress to Louis XV.

Executed during the French Revolution, her last words to the executioner were reported to be, "Encore un moment, monsieur le bourreau, un petit moment," ("Just a moment, executioner, just a brief moment").

Even though I enjoyed the Fourth Degree a bit more, there are certainly worse ways to pass the time while waiting for the executioner, than the Du Barry Cocktail.

[Chris Amirault]

Seems like you need to invent The Perfect, Albeit Brief, Moment Cocktail, Erik.

[eje]

Dubonnet Cocktail

1/2 Dubonnet. (Generous 1 oz Dubonnet Rouge)

1/2 Dry Gin. (Generous 1 oz Tanqueray)

Stir well and strain into cocktail glass.

A fine, if somewhat plain, cocktail.

I can't really think of anything to say about it other than that.

I've read the Dubonnet they have in Canada and Europe is different from the Dubonnet we get here, so perhaps this is a more interesting cocktail elsewhere.

[Paul Stanley]

To my shame I watched a TV show about Buckingham Palace yesterday. To my greater shame I rather enjoyed it ...

It seems the Queen's preferred drink is something along these lines. She has 1/3 gin (Plymouth), 2/3 dubonnet, slice of lemon, 2 perfectly square ice cubes.

[eje]

re: Queen & Dubonnet. Paul, I do remember reading that somewhere. I believe in Eric Felten's "How's Your Drink". He has a section about Dubonnet and the history that resulted in Heaven Hill owning the US rights to the brand.

Duchess Cocktail

1/3 French Vermouth. (3/4 oz Noilly Prat Dry)

1/3 Italian Vermouth. (3/4 oz Cinzano Rosso)

1/3 Absinthe. (3/4 oz Marteau Verte Classic)

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.

Not the most wildly appealing looking cocktail. The combination of the louched Absinthe and Italian Vermouth gives it a murky brown tan color. Kind of like tea with milk in it.

Fairly tasty, however, if you enjoy Absinthe.

[eje]

Duke of Marlborough Cocktail

1/2 Sherry. (Fino)

1/2 Italian Vermouth. (1 1/2 oz Punt e Mes)

3 Dashes Orange Bitters. (Dash or two of Fee's, Dash or two of Regan's)

Stir well and twist orange peel on top.

Cheating slightly here by using Punt e Mes instead of regular Sweet Vermouth and as always making the vermouth cocktails on cracked ice instead of up.

I guess the question is, which of the 10 (at the time) Dukes of Marlborough this was named after. It appears likely that they were a Spencer, Churchill, or Spencer-Churchill. The seventh, John Winston Spencer-Churchill, 1822–1883, was the paternal Grandfather of Sir Winston Churchill.

With Punt e Mes, this is quite tasty. Almost Americano-like. Still, I wouldn't blame you if you chose to add an ounce or so of Gin. I have no doubt that Sir Winston would. Though, now that I think about it, he might just glance at the bottles of Sherry and Vermouth, shrug, and pour himself a big glass of plain gin.

Edited December 8, 2007 by eje (log)

[eje]

Dunhill’s Special Cocktail

(6 People)

In a shaker filled with cracked Ice place a spoonful of Curacao (Dash Brizard Orange Curacao), 2 glasses of Gin (1 oz Beefeater Gin), 2 glasses of Sherry (1 oz Fino Sherry), 2 glasses of French Vermouth (1 oz Dolin Vermouth). Stir thoroughly with a spoon, shake, strain, and serve. Add an olive (uh, oops!) and 2 dashes of Absinthe (Verte de Fougerolles) to each glass.

As usual downsizing this to a single (slightly large) portion.

Aside from the puzzling directive to, "stir...shake, strain and serve," this cocktail's ingredients intrigued me. And indeed, served to illustrate another side to Absinthe's flavors.

In this case, the combination highlighted the savory aspects of the ingredients, almost to the point where it tasted like an Aquavit cocktail instead of a Gin cocktail. I'd definitely swear there was some caraway in there somehow.

A very nice dry cocktail, that I could imagine going well with food of some sort.

[eje]

Dunlop Cocktail

1 Dash Angostura Bitters.

1/3 Sherry. (3/4 oz Don Nuno Dry Oloroso Sherry)

2/3 Rum. (1 1/2 oz Diplomatico Rum)

Stir well and strain into cocktail glass. (Squeeze lemon peel over glass - eje)

Pretty wide open drink here on the ingredient front. At least it specifies which type of bitters!

I started by picking the sherry, and then headed down to the garage to investigate the smells of the various rums I have stored down there. I was thinking dark and dry in combination with the Sherry, and the Diplomatico stuck out as an interesting combination.

Ended up quite tasty, but really needed the added aromatic zip of the peel to bring the drink to life.

[thirtyoneknots]

I'm not familiar with Diplomatico, what type of rum is it?

[evo-lution]

I'm not familiar with Diplomatico, what type of rum is it?

←

See here - http://www.ministryofrum.com/rumdetails.php?r=613

[eje]

I'm not familiar with Diplomatico, what type of rum is it?

←

Yup, it's a Venezuelan, Molasses based, medium dark rum.

Quite nice and not dissimilar from the also very good Santa Teresa.

[thirtyoneknots]

Thanks for the info, I now recognize the label from the liquor store, might have to check it out.

[eje]

Duppy Cocktail

Pour 4 1/2 glasses of Whisky (2 oz Asyla Scotch) into a large glass and soak in this a few cloves (for an hour or two - eje). Add 5 or 6 drops of Orange Bitters (Healthy Dash Regan's, Healthy Dash Fee's), and lastly put in 1 1/2 glasses of Curacao (3/4 oz Brizard Curacao). Place the lot in the shaker; shake (stir, strain - eje) and serve.

This is a cocktail that got a lot more interesting as it warmed. Chilled, it just tasted pretty much like cold Scotch. As it warmed, the clove and other spices of the orange bitters expressed themselves more fully.

Duppy, from what I can tell, in Jamaican folklore refers to, "restless spirits of the dead that are believed to haunt the living."

Not sure what Jamaican ghosts have to do with Scotch, cloves, bitters, and curacao. I noticed no otherworldly effects resulting from consuming the cocktail. Perhaps it helps to get rid of them?

[Chris Amirault]

That sounds a bit like the Bairn, a go-to cockail at my house, though with a bit of clove. Seems a bit fetishistic, given the presence of bitters with, I assume, clove in it -- not that there's anything wrong with that, of course.

Speaking of bitters:

Add 5 or 6 drops of Orange Bitters (Healthy Dash Regan's, Healthy Dash Fee's)[.]

←

Having just combined about 4 oz of Regan's with 4 oz of Fee's to free up a bottle for John Deragon's grapefruit bitters, I think that this approach benefits both, giving a bit of nose from Fee's to Regan's and a bit of body from Regan's to Fee's.

[eje]

[...]

Having just combined about 4 oz of Regan's with 4 oz of Fee's to free up a bottle for John Deragon's grapefruit bitters, I think that this approach benefits both, giving a bit of nose from Fee's to Regan's and a bit of body from Regan's to Fee's.

←

To give credit where credit is due, Mr. David Wondrich first turned me on to the idea that combining the two orange bitters gave results superior to using either singly.

It's not as obvious in this cocktail, as there are more flavors going on from the spirit, but it makes a big difference in a Dry Martini.

[eje]

This is the Fourth in an ongoing series of bartender features in the Savoy Topic.

Previously, I had experimented by asking the bartender at Montgomery Place to make me a Bombay Cocktail No. 2, but this just seemed to result in a grumpy bartender.

To make it less of a shock, I thought I would contact some local bartenders and give them a choice of the dozen or so Savoy Cocktails that might be coming up in the book.

Surprisingly, some actually were game.

---

Continuing with the of out of town bars, I traveled to Lincoln and Sherman in Alameda, CA to meet up with Martin Cate at the bar he co-owns there, Forbidden Island.

Now, it's true that the Tiki phenomenon really didn't take off in the US until after World War II, but, a lot of the philosophies Martin takes with the bar fit in with Pre-prohibition ideas of bartending. Home made ingredients, (Falernum, Arrack Punch, etc.) fresh juice rather than mix, really hard working bartenders. In fact, should you feel like a sidecar or Martini, you can be sure it will be made with the same care the bartenders put into their exotic, complicated tiki creations.

This Tiki guards the door...

And Martin Cate guards the bar.

Martin Cate is co-owner, designer, and chief mixologist of Forbidden Island Tiki Lounge in Alameda, CA, the first new tiki bar in America to be dedicated to recreating vintage exotic cocktails with authentic ingredients, premium spirits, and fresh squeezed juices.  Martin and his original cocktails have been featured in San Francisco Magazine, Imbibe, Sunset, Food & Wine, the San Francisco Chronicle, USA Today, the Today Show, and more.  Martin trained as a bartender at Trader Vic’s flagship San Francisco location and is a member of the United States Bartenders Guild.  He is also a passionate rum collector, bar consultant, and columnist for the Difford’s Guide.

First off, I have to apologize for the quality of photos here. Tiki bars are very dark and I should have brought along an auxiliary light. As Martin explained to me, the philosophy of the bar is all about escape. Pretending you are on a tropical island, not just on the way home from work, you don't want to see the laundromat or nail salon across the street.

Also, I don't know what it is about the Regan's Orange Bitters, but it seems like every time Gary Regan's face is in the frame the camera chooses to focus on him instead of the cocktail. Must be his magnetic personality, even just in picture!

East Indian Cocktail

Equal parts of French Vermouth (Noilly Prat) and Sherry, with a dash of (Regan's) Orange Bitters.

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.

Not much to say here, we tried this other than it tastes like Sherry and dry vermouth. A nice aperitif cocktail, would probably go well with food. We tried it with an Osborne Fino and a Manzanilla. We both preferred the Fino.

Eclipse Cocktail

1/3 Dry Gin. (Plymouth)

2/3 Sloe Gin. (Plymouth Sloe Gin)

Put enough Grenadine (Forbidden Island Home Made) in a cocktail glass to cover a ripe olive. Mix the spirits together and pour gently on to the grenadine so that it does not mix. Squeeze orange peel on top.

An interesting experiment in physics and very difficult to get a photo of especially in a dark bar. The olive floats to the top of the grenadine and hangs at the intersection between it and the mixture of sloe and dry gin.

Martin was good enough to bring in his personal stash of Plymouth Sloe Gin for me to try and I brought along the bottle of Lindisfarne Sloe Gin I scored the last time we were in England. The Lindisfarne is much more tart and bitter than the mellower Plymouth.

I was surprised that the Sloe Gin really does provide enough tartness to make this a pretty interesting combination. Martin's comment was, "there's a good cocktail in this somewhere." The olive, though, is a bit odd. Some comparison between the floating olive and a finger came up. Maybe a good Halloween cocktail?

Eddie Brown Cocktail

2 Dashes Apricot Brandy. (De Kuyper)

1/3 Glass Kina Lillet. (Lillet Blanc)

2/3 Glass Dry Gin. (Plymouth)

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass. Squeeze lemon peel on top.

This Martini variation proved to be the most popular cocktail of the evening with much of the staff. It is a fine sophisticated cocktail.

East India Cocktail

1/8 Pineapple Juice.

1/8 Orange Curacao. (DeKuyper)

1 Dash Angostura Bitters.

3/4 Brandy. (Missed the brand)

Stir well and strain into cocktail glass.

This isn't an unpleasant cocktail, but it didn't it really stand out. Missed its photo op, unfortunately.

Eagle's Dream Cocktail

1 Teaspoonful of Powdered Sugar.

The white of 1 Egg.

The Juice of 1/4 Lemon.

1/4 Crème Yvette. (Hermes Violet Liqueur)

3/4 Dry Gin. (Plymouth)

Shake well and strain into medium size glass.

My friends Anita and Cameron over at Married...With Dinner were kind enough to loan me their bottle of Hermes Violet Liqueur for this cocktail. The Rothman and Winter Violette is a little too austere to be an appropriate substitute for Creme Yvette.

Also, interesting to taste just how different the Hermes and R&W violet liqueurs are. The R&W is clearly all about the violet and the Hermes has quite a few adjunct flavors. Some citrus, maybe vanilla.

Martin's comment was, "This tastes like Brunch." I felt like it tasted like brunch for blue haired grandmothers. The first few sips are good, but it's a little much for me after that.

At about this point, I began to realize that instead of choosing a couple of cocktails out of a dozen, Martin had decided to plow through all 12 (well, 11, we didn't have an appropriate substitute for "Prunelle".) Well, goddamn, that helps me get some speed on this thing!

In an evening of special treats, this treat was the real stand out. Martin convinced Lance Winters of St. George/Hangar One to part with a small sample of his soon to be released Absinthe for us to taste. I was impressed with how well distilled this product was. Very smooth and easy to drink. He's using a good portion of star anise instead of simply going with green anise, giving it a bit more of a bite and a modern flavor profile. He's also got some unusual herbs in there that stand out in the aroma and early flavors. Still, all in all, a very solid Absinthe.

Very cool that the first legally distilled American Absinthe since the ban is a good one.

The Earthquake Cocktail

1/3 Gin. (Plymouth Gin)

1/3 Whisky. (Cutty Sark Scotch)

1/3 Absinthe. (St. George Absinthe)

Shake well and serve in cocktail glass.

Note: So Called because if there should happen to be an earthquake when you are drinking it, it won't matter.  This is a cocktail whose potency is not to be taken too lightly or for that matter, too frequently!

Mostly because it is just not a very good cocktail. Having made the Bunny Hug, I knew what to expect. Maybe there is some magical combination of particular brands of Gin, Whisky, and Absinthe where this doesn't just taste like a big glass of booze, and maybe there are some folks who enjoy it. Mostly I felt a bit sad to be using a fine Absinthe in this cocktail which seems like nothing more than something to get you as drunk as possible as quick as possible. About the only thing I could think of to speed the path of the alcohol to your cortex would be to top it up with Champagne.

East and West Cocktail

1 Dash Lemon Juice.

1/4 Bacardi Rum. (Cruzan White)

3/4 East India Punch. (Forbidden Island house made Arrack Punch)

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.

Note: Created to mark the arrival in London of a Ruling Indian Prince.

Cocktaildb indicates that the now defunct East India Punch was likely, "Likely to have been a brand or other descriptive designation for a Swedish Punsch-style liqueur."

I brought my Swedish punch, but Martin has been making an Arrack Punch in house with lemon, cardamom, and sugar, so we used that instead. Whoa! Nice stuff, but that Arrack goes straight to your head.

Amusingly, even though Martin digs it, the Batavia Arrack has not been overly popular with some of the staff. I forget the exact words they used to describe its flavor, but they were not very complimentary. However, we did get a few grudging, "that's not bad," and, "pretty good," comments for this cocktail and they seemed to come back and try it again after the initial taste. Unfortunately, I also missed getting a photo of this one. To me, one of the more enjoyable cocktails of the evening.

Elk's Own Cocktail

The White of 1 Egg.

1/2 Canadian Club Whisky.

1/2 Port Wine. (Ruby Port)

The Juice of 1/2 Lemon.

1 Teaspoonful Sugar.

Shake well, strain into wineglass and add a slice of pineapple.

I kind of liked this one, though some felt it tasted a bit like "watered down wine." Certainly, there are not many modern cocktails with a similar flavor profile.

Elixir Cocktail

1/2 Kola Tonic. (Rose's Cola Tonic)

1/2 Calvados. (Calvados Cardinal)

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.

This was surprisingly tasty. The funk of the Calvados and the flavor of the Kola Tonic combined nicely. Not going to win any modern cocktail contests, but quite an interesting combination of flavors.

Empire Cocktail

1/4 Apricot Brandy. (DeKuyper)

1/4 Calvados. (Calvados Cardinal)

1/2 Gin. (Plymouth Gin)

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.

Pleasant, light, and not too sweet, this was good, but didn't win any popularity contests.

E. Nos Cocktail

1/3 French Vermouth. (Noilly Prat Dry)

2/3 Nicholson's Gin. (Anchor Junipero and dash of simple)

3 Dashes of Absinthe. (St. George Spirits Absinthe)

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.

From what I can tell, Nicholson's Lamplighter was an Old-Tom style gin, so I asked Martin to use the Anchor Junipero (he was doubtful) with a dash of simple. I really liked this cocktail, the touch of sweetness really brings the Gin and Absinthe to life. Probably, my favorite of the evening. I love the slightly translucent hint of the Absinthe louching out its oils.

The line up of dead soldiers and Mr. Cate's original cocktail:

The Dead Reckoning

2 oz Cockspur 12 year rum

.5 oz Navan Vanilla Liqueur

.5 oz pure maple syrup

.5 oz tawny port

1 oz fresh lemon juice

1 oz pineapple juice

dash angostura bitters

shake/strain into a hiball glass over fresh ice and top with 1 oz soda water.  Garnish with Pineapple wedge, mint spring, and lemon spiral.

As always, it's a lot of fun to taste these vintage cocktails with bartenders and see and hear their reactions. I had a great time, and was certainly treated with that famous generous Tiki hospitality. Not only that, but in a single evening, Martin helped managed to kill just about all of the "E" cocktails. Holy crap.

Interestingly, the next day my friend's Theremin Lounge band, Project Pimento, played a gig at Forbidden Island.

Late Saturday afternoon had been pretty quiet, with all of us in the bar having a chance to chat, bullshit, and try the Savoy cocktails.

Forbidden Island with Project Pimento playing was an entirely different matter.

The place was packed, standing room only with patrons lined up several deep at the bar. It was totally impressive to see the Forbidden Island machine going full tilt. Martin greeting guests, placing orders, and serving. The two bartenders at their stations making those incredibly complicated Tiki drinks non-stop. The other server carrying trays of huge drinks out to the tables and standing guests. I have to give a shout out to the bartenders Melanie and Lara, along with the server Stephanie. Not only were they incredibly personable and pleasant to talk to, but those girls kicked ass. Anyone who doesn't think bartenders work hard or that a bar can't do both quality and volume hasn't seen Forbidden Island in action.

[Chris Amirault]

Eddie Brown Cocktail

2 Dashes Apricot Brandy. (De Kuyper)

1/3 Glass Kina Lillet. (Lillet Blanc)

2/3 Glass Dry Gin. (Plymouth)

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass. Squeeze lemon peel on top.

This Martini variation proved to be the most popular cocktail of the evening with much of the staff.  It is a fine sophisticated cocktail.

←

That looks like a cocktail that would benefit from johnder's grapefruit bitters, to provide a bit more "kina" to that Lillet. I'll do the research tonight and report back.

ETA: Benefit it did.

Edited December 13, 2007 by chrisamirault (log)

[eje]

[...]

Duppy Cocktail

[...]

←

Oh, also in the "credit where credit is due" department, when googling "Duppy", I ran across this article on slakethirst regarding the Sunset Gun.

I dunno why the name got changed from "Duppy" to "Sunset Gun" but they do appear to be the same cocktail. Also, I agree with Slakethirst's assessment that this is very good with Scotch instead of American Whiskey. Though, perhaps, given the pedigree of the name, experimentation with interesting rums might be in order.

[thirtyoneknots]

Elk's Own Cocktail

The White of 1 Egg.

1/2 Canadian Club Whisky.

1/2 Port Wine. (Ruby Port)

The Juice of 1/2 Lemon.

1 Teaspoonful Sugar.

Shake well, strain into wineglass and add a slice of pineapple.

I kind of liked this one, though some felt it tasted a bit like "watered down wine."  Certainly, there are not many modern cocktails with a similar flavor profile.

←

Killer Cocktails lists an Elks Club Fizz as essentially this exact same drink with an egg white and an implicit top-off with soda (though it doesn't actually specify that soda should be added, it's just implied by the inclusion in the fizz chapter). Whats the connection of Rye whiskey and Port to the BPOE?

Edited December 14, 2007 by thirtyoneknots (log)

[eje]

Eton Blazer Cocktail

The Juice of 1/2 Lemon.

1/2 Tablespoonful of Powdered Sugar. (1 teaspoon Caster Sugar)

1/4 Kirsch. (1/2 oz Kirsch)

3/4 Plymouth Gin. (1 1/2 oz Plymouth Gin)

Shake well and strain into long tumbler; fill up with sodawater.

Michael Jackson, in his "Bar and Cocktail Companion," says, "A metaphorical name, no doubt, since Eton College doesn't have a blazer. Nor is the college's color, black, evident in this drink. Not a blazer in the Blue sense."

A perfectly fine and enjoyable highball. I could have maybe been a bit more generous with the sugar. Thinking about it now, it might be more interesting to top it up with Kirsch, instead of shaking it with together the Gin, sugar and lemon. That way you would get the scent carried up on the bubbles as a kind of greeting when you first sip the cocktail.

[thirtyoneknots]

Thinking about it now, it might be more interesting to top it up with Kirsch, instead of shaking it with together the Gin, sugar and lemon.  That way you would get the scent carried up on the bubbles as a kind of greeting when you first sip the cocktail.

←

So a gin fizz with a Kirsch float? That sounds quite interesting.

Also making sure you aren't meaning you want to top off with Kirsch instead of soda

[eje]

Elk Cocktail

1/2 Prunelle Brandy. (1 1/2 oz mixture 1/2 Trimbach Kirsch, 1/2 Prune Syrup)

2 Dashes French Vermouth. (Dolin French Vermouth)

1/2 Dry Gin. (1 1/2 oz Beefeater Gin)

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass. (Garnish with a prune.)

So apparently, "Prunelle" is a difficult to find liqueur made from Prune Plums.

I decided I would approximate it by mixing prune syrup with eau-de-vie.

I thought of buying actual Prune brandy to mix with the Prune syrup, but figured might as well use the Kirsch I had instead. The oddest thing happened when I added the Kirsch to the Prune syrup. It gelatinized. I've no idea what is up with that.

The texture of the cocktail ended up really weird, with cold gin and vermouth floating between gelatinized globules of kirsch flavored prune syrup. The flavors were good, but the whole thing was a little bit of unintentional molecular mixology.

Does anyone have an explantion? I know prunes have a lot of soluble fiber. Is that what gelatinized when mixed with the kirsch?

[slkinsey]

Erik, are you sure it "gelatinized"? It sounds a bit more like "precipitated" to me. Or are you saying that the entire volume of prune syrup reacted with the alcohol, clumped up and refused to mix?

Anyway, I have seen some things precipitate when added to alcohol. Once I wanted to make an Old Fashioned with Red Hook rye (at around 136 proof) and gomme syrup instead of regular simple syrup. As soon as I added the booze to the glass, the gomme (which usually mixed in completely transparently) threw off a cloud of white particulates that never re-dissolved into the drink, even after the proof had been diluted significantly by the melting ice. This is similar to the louching that happens when water is added to absinthe, except that it's the water-soluble substances that precipitate when the proof is raised rather than the alcohol-soluble ones when the proof is lowered.

So... since prune juice is very high in soluble fiber, and considering that this generally means "water soluble" -- it's possible that the addition of high proof kirschwasser caused the soluble fiber to precipitate out of solution.

Edited December 16, 2007 by slkinsey (log)