Drinks! (2004–2007)

[bostonapothecary]

well i have the day off so we are sitting around a drinking.... no surprise....

i ended up with a sample of old raj in a flask..... don't ask how....

so we had old raj and tonics.... it was awsome. i have never really bothered to drink a gin and tonic before. never really had the time.

we moved on to the "garden of eden"

cocktaildb said half half apricot brandy and half creme de violette.

the proportions didn't seem very good so we went

2 oz. bonny doon. nectarine eau de vie.

1 oz. alpenz creme de violette.

the drink seemed cool in theory but was boring. we added peychaud's bitters which made it actually drinkable but not anything too amazing.....

i think it really needed dry vermouth.

the creme de violette is kinda cool but needs to accent complex drinks. if it is too much of the center peice it brings a creepy flavor associated with artificial things....

though it was thoroughly awsome in an aviation a couple nights ago.

2 oz. beafeater

1 oz. lemonjuice

1/2 oz. creme de violette

1/2 oz. simple syrup

[TBoner]

bostonapothecary,

Maybe you covered this somewhere else, but if you don't mind saying, where did you pick up the creme de violette? I haven't managed to find any down my way, and didn't know there was really any available stateside right now.

[bostonapothecary]

bostonapothecary,

Maybe you covered this somewhere else, but if you don't mind saying, where did you pick up the creme de violette? I haven't managed to find any down my way, and didn't know there was really any available stateside right now.

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somebody on egullet private messaged me and told me it was available at brix through ideal wines and spirits.... it wasn't but she called right away and tried to get half a case.... all that they sent was three bottles that she sold me.... its now back ordered.... but they will get more as soon as possible.... 23$ a 750ml.

i highly recommend brix on washington ave for their general awsomeness....

you can get amer picon, black maple hill, rare rums.... all sorts of goodness.

[limewine]

The Rothman & Winter creme de violette debuted in New York in July; last I heard, it was supposed to be available in California beginning this month.

Details on distributors & other products available from Haus Alpenz.

[KatieLoeb]

Tonight I'm drinking a watermelon caipirinha, made with the '06 batch of Mae de Ouro.  Most refreshing.

Last night at work I played with a strawberry-basil cocktail I'd been mulling in my head for a while.  Muddled chiffonade of basil in about a half ounce each of simple syrup and fresh lemon juice.  Added about an ounce of strawberry puree, twice as much Bluecoat gin and lots of ice.  Shaken vigorously and strained into a Pernod rinsed glass, garnished with a lemon twist.  It was really good.  The chef was fond of it, as was my coworker who swore he hated gin.  "I shouldn't have doubted you", he said.  One of my prouder moments. 

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i've had something like that but we used aged balsamic instead of pernod....

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That sounds interesting. Did you actually do the rinse on the glass with it, or just put a couple of drops into the drink?? Aged balsamic could potentially be quite overwhelming with improper application.

Tonight I'm messing with some rhubarb compote I made earlier tonight for cocktail experimentation. Cachaca was a bit too sweet. I'm thinking maybe a reposado tequila, some lime and a sweetening agent other than triple sec. Not sure what yet. Might try some Creole Shrubb and see how that works.

[bostonapothecary]

we just added a couple drops of the aged balsamic....to make it like a subliminal flavor....

last summer i made alot of rubarb juice.... it was trendy so you could find it around the city easily.... this year i have seen very little rubarb.... i think its pretty timeless stuff and makes a pretty cool acid for a drink.

now i'm thirsty again....

i remember a couple years ago a boston chef was making the juice and adding it to coffee liqueur (dirty french chef i think it was called).... i never tried it but he may know something i don't.... rubarb juice, dry vermouth, coffee liqueur perhaps?

sparkling wine that isn't too dry like a prosecco because you are gonna add acid... rubarb juice and then a spoonful of tia maria....

now i'm thirsty again....

[KatieLoeb]

Now I'm thirsty again too...

How did you make the rhubarb juice?? Did you cook it down first? What I made basically is boiled diced rhubarb (aobut 2.5 cups), barely covered with water and cooked at a low simmer for about 25 minutes, then I added about 1/3 volume of sugar (about .75 cups) to the pot and stirred to break up the fibrousness of the rhubarb and melt the sugar. It's still has some tang, but isn't overly sour. And definitely tastes like rhubarb, which I like very much. Lost a lot of color though. It's pretty light pink, not a deep ruby red like the stalks were before cooking. Maybe a tiny splash of Pom juice for color would work.

I came across that recipe for the Dirty French Chef snooping about for rhubarb cocktail ideas. I love the description of the drink being "...sweet and savory with just a hint of bitterness, much like a real-life dirty French chef."

Edited August 7, 2007 by KatieLoeb (log)

[bostonapothecary]

i diced up the rubarb and put it in a blender with a little pit of water to get it going... i think i peeled the tougher outer fibers off too to make it easier on the blender.... it surprisingly broak down pretty well. then i just ran it across a coarse sieve. what i ended up with was a big lump of pink lint and alot of tart juice....

i think the chef at petit robert did the same but then he put the juice into a mold and froze it to further clarify it.... impurities floated to the top or sank to the bottom as it froze.... he just then cut the bad parts off his frozen rubarb.

the freezing might be over kill. just going from the coarse sieve to a finer one did a really good job and the whole process sounds like a pain in the ass but didn't take very long at all. delicious stuff.

[TBoner]

Thanks for the info. on the creme de violette. Based on other cocktail ingredients, it will be about 5 years before this stuff gets to Dallas, and even then, finding it will be an all-day chore. Sometimes, I hate living in TX.

BTW, the rhubarb juice intrigues me. I grew up in the Midwest, and I desperately miss rhubarb season. Last year, I found some rhubarb in a grocery store. They got two shipments, and I think I and an older woman from Wisconsin whom I worked with were the only two customers who bought any. Maybe some will show up sometime this summer. An application besides dessert and stewed side dishes is a welcome thing. Thanks for the idea.

[KatieLoeb]

Speaking of rhubarb cocktail ideas....

I took my rhubarb compote into work tonight and screwed around with it in a few different directions. Strawberry-Rhubarb Mojitos proved quite popular with our guests this evening. I also tried it mixed with Absolut Pear vodka, fresh lemon and Stirrings Basil Martini syrup. Interesting but a bit too sweet. Better when more lemon was added. Last experiment was a margarita riff with rhubarb compote, 1800 anejo tequila, fresh lime juice and Clement Creole Shrubb. Too tart this time so a big splash of simple syrup and a couple of dashes of Fee Brothers Grapefruit bitters fixed it up. But the tequila overwhelmed the rhubarb, so next time I'd try it with a tequila blanco so the rhubarb shines through.

I think the next batch of rhubarb compote will be spiced up in a subtle manner with some fresh ginger and a dash of Chinese Five Spice powder. Ought to make for an interesting whisper of background flavors with almost anything.

[notahumanissue]

...a couple of dashes of Fee Brothers Grapefruit bitters fixed...

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Err, Fee Brothers Grapefruit? Huh?

[KatieLoeb]

Fee Brothers Grapefruit bitters are brand spanking new. You can probably order them direct from Fee Brothers - not sure if they're in distribution yet. They're delicious and ought to be in every bitters lover's collection.

My bottle was a gift from Joe Fee himself, whom I was lucky enough to meet and party with at Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans.

[notahumanissue]

ohboyohboyohboy! The website doesn't have them yet, but I'm gonna walk down the street and hassle the fine folks at LeNells to get me some.

Are they more potable like the peach or do they have some spicey gusto?

[KatieLoeb]

I am certain that Ms. LeNell made Joe Fee's acquaintance as well, so I'm certain she oughta be able to get them by dropping an e-mail or making a call.

The grapefruit bitters are citrusy and subtlely spicy. Just delicious. They smell yummy right from the bottle. I haven't exactly tried drinking them straight, so I don't know if I'd call them "potable", but they are quite delicious.

[jsmeeker]

I bought a bunch of lemons yesterday and had a little bit of Cointreau left, so I made a Sidecar.

[bostonapothecary]

as i was drinking some clear creek blue plum eau de vie.... i stumbled upon eric asimov's column in the times this week....

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/15/dining/1...r=1&oref=slogin

he simply explains the state of the american eau de vie business and gives some reference to mixologists.... he didn't have the nicest things to say about mixing with eau de vie. oh well.... i'm having lots of fun with it.... i wonder if asimov is an egullet reader. many food writers i know have confessed to lurking here....

the blue plum is delicous....

[Nathan]

those weren't Asimov's comments about mixologists....

[Alchemist]

I can't get into that site, what is said about people who make drinks for a living?

[Nathan]

nothing.

the proprietor of Clear Creek (not Asimov) states that he doesn't like his product being used in cocktails...

[bostonapothecary]

nothing.

the proprietor of Clear Creek (not Asimov) states that he doesn't like his product being used in cocktails...

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you are right.... i didn't articulate that the best.... as i stated i was drinking and loving the eau de vie....

[TBoner]

Last night, I made a drink that I learned from a friend over at straightbourbon.com. He calls it The Front Street.

1 1/2 oz. rye

1/2 oz. Ramazzotti Amaro

1/2 oz. sweet vermouth (he recommends Vya; I used Cinzano)

1/4 oz. maraschino liqueur

Stir with ice; strain into chilled cocktail glass; garnish with cherry

I have made this a few times with minor variations. The most successful was using a good Scotch (Dalmore 12: anything w/o lots of peat would be great; a little smoke draws some smoke out from the Ramazzotti, but you don't want too much) instead of rye. I also tried increasing the whiskey to 2 oz. b/c I like boozy drinks, and it was quite good. Finally, I garnish with a flamed orange twist, though I tried one with a cherry and it was very good.

This is a nice use for leftover Ramazzotti Amaro from that homemade Amer Picon you're making. Of course, the Ramazzotti is also terrific on its own as an after-dinner drink over ice or even neat. Bitter orange and a whiff of smoke. Yum.

As I said, all credit goes to CrispyCritter at straightbourbon.com. He's a cocktail junkie, and his creation reflects some know-how.

Tonight, it's Famous Grouse 12, neat. Maybe some Knob Creek neat later.

Edited August 17, 2007 by TBoner (log)

[Alchemist]

nothing.

the proprietor of Clear Creek (not Asimov) states that he doesn't like his product being used in cocktails...

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HMMMM, should I pull the Poor Liza (Basicly a Champs d' Elysee made with CC Poir And Peychauds) off my list (to bad a strong seller) and send back all the Clear Creek, and then find another Poir that isn't too precious to play with others?

[bostonapothecary]

you are only on the verge or "wretched excess" .... i want one of those....

[bostonapothecary]

saterday night some bartenders from across the city were in and just wanted to be surprised....

i reached for mount gay because it looked lonely and hadn't been used in a while.... manhatan's were on my mind and rye was getting too much spotlight....

2 oz. mount gay rum

1 oz. my own sweet vermouth (its sorta like punt y mes)

the particular rum had a similar effect of apry in the park slope.... the fruit character of the drink was lightened and with the bitter component of the vermouth sexy flavors of roasted coffee came into focus to create something very unique....

[johnder]

Last night, I made a drink that I learned from a friend over at straightbourbon.com. He calls it The Front Street.

1 1/2 oz. rye

1/2 oz. Ramazzotti Amaro

1/2 oz. sweet vermouth (he recommends Vya; I used Cinzano)

1/4 oz. maraschino liqueur

Stir with ice; strain into chilled cocktail glass; garnish with cherry

This drink is very similar to the bushwick cocktail which is Rye, Picon, Maraschino and Antica. Both sound very tasty.