"Death & Co: Modern Classic Cocktails"

[ChrisTaylor]

Coffee & Cigarettes. The book calls for Galliano's coffee liqueur. I have two coffee liqueurs--an ancient bottle of Kahlua (from my very first cocktail shelf--which included a bottle of vodka, which is still 70% there, and Canadian Club as a stand in for rye) and a bottle of Illy. The Illy's been there for ages, too. The last thing I want is another fucking coffee liqueur. Certainly not from that end of the market, anyway. Mr Black? Maybe. Illy it is then, right? I'd read, when looking to see if Ristresso approximated Kahlua, that Ristresso was somewhat more restrained. I wondered if half an ounce of Illy would be overdoing it. If anything, it's underdoing it. The Coal Ila kicks the shit out of it. It's still pleasant enough but next time I'd try .75oz worth of Illy. Or maybe keep it the same and whack in a dash of my overpowered homemade coffee bitters.

[Adam George]

Gallianno Ristretto is a very different creature to Kahlua et al.

[Rafa]

Ristretto has none of the cream or cocoa notes of other coffee liqueurs, nor is it as sweet. Its flavor is dark, intense espresso. A little goes a long way. 

[ChrisTaylor]

Oh. Right. Well, maybe I do need another coffee liqueur. Thanks for the pointer, Adam and Rafa.

[lesliec]

I find myself rather stunned by Cynaro de Bergerac.

 

Having finally managed to find a bottle of Cynar, which has been very scarce around here for a while, I made the 'Bergerac mix' last night (red wine, Cruzan, Cynar, Demerara syrup) and used it in the cocktail with my own Genever and gin, Benedictine, mole bitters and a dash of absinthe.  Absolutely delicious, and well worth making the effort.  I don't know where it came from, but there was a distinct muscat/raisin note.

 

I made a half quantity of the mix just in case, but tonight I'll be making a full batch.  This one's going on the favourites list (which I have decided to give up calling a Top 10 because of the ridiculous number of lovely drinks on it). 

 

I also have plans to make something like Cynar myself to help with any supply issues.  I'll keep you informed.

[ChrisTaylor]

Cooper Union. An Irish whiskey-based Saz variation. St Germain as a sweetener. Orange bitters. A Laphroaig rinse (they called for 10 but I only have Quarter Cask). It works. 

 

A Ristretto Coffee & Cigarettes is superior to an Illy one. A half ounce of liqueur is enough: the whisky stands at the front and the espresso is in the background where it belongs. Still, if you only had access to <some other coffee liqueur> and didn't feel like buying another, you could make a good--but different--drink by carefully increasing the liqueur content in the drink. Says I, anyway. Disclaimer: my System D shortcuts might get you fired from an actual bar and/or see you lose the respect of the more knowledgeable eG smoke hounds.

[lesliec]

There's a nice section towards the back of the book called Multiple Choice, in which D&C present a number of cocktails with options for the base spirit.  We've been playing for the past three nights with the Coin Toss (base spirit, sweet vermouth, Bénédictine, yellow Chartreuse, Peychaud's).  The first night I used French brandy (nothing special - not Cognac), the second night Buffalo Trace and last night Rittenhouse 100.

 

They've all been excellent, with of course differences in character.  Next on the list is one with rum - it's going to be Appleton 12; I suspect Smith & Cross might be a funk too far.

 

I highly recommend the drink, both because it tastes great (important!) and because it's a good learning experience to see what different bases do to a drink when nothing else changes.

 

And I'll share an almost-relevant confession.  Seized with enthusiasm for creating 'new' drinks recently, I decided it might be cool to come up with a gin-based Manhattan.  Then it hit me: somebody's already done that.  It's called a Martini ...

 

Sigh ...

[ChrisTaylor]

North Garden. Old-Fashioned variation based on Laird's apple brandy, Buffalo Trace (I used Eagle Rare) and Laphroaig 10 (Quarter Cask). Angostura bitters. Dem syrup. Lovely.

[ChrisTaylor]

Purchasing a little atomizer and loading it up with Herbsaint put me in the mood for Sazeracs. I made D&C's take on the classic Sazerac, using a 1.5 to 5 combo of rye and cognac, and now I'm onto an Alembic. I used Bols Oude in place of the Anchor. Both are nice drinks. And, on a side note, the atomizer is a much better way of rinsing a glass than the standard setup of pouring a small quantity of booze directly into the glass. I find the viscosity of Herbsaint means that it's very easy for too much of the stuff to adhere to my preferred Sazerac glass. Dig me learning something everyone else in the booze-mixing world learned a hundred years ago.

[FrogPrincesse]

Spray bottles are a must in a bar - I have one with absinthe of course, and also Laphroaig, rose water, orange water, etc (the ones from the Container Store are good and cheap).

 

Like Chris, I made a Sazerac variation last night, the one named after the aged French rocker... Other than the unappetizing name (does he have fans at Death & Co???), it's actually quite good. Interesting use of dry vermouth in a Sazerac, but it completely makes sense as it blends the various elements together. The taste is an herbal cognac with little touches of flavor from the orange liqueur and the pear eau de vie (which I upped slightly to a generous barspoon - the original recipe calls for only 1 teaspoon!).

 

Hallyday (Thomas Waugh) with Hine H cognac (Pierre Ferrand 1840), Dolin French vermouth, Royal Combier liqueur (Grand Marnier), Clear Creek pear brandy (Morand Williamine), Angostura bitters, Vieux Pontarlier absinthe (St. George), lemon twist (orange because I was out; discarded).

 

 

 

Edited November 14, 2014 by FrogPrincesse (log)

[ChrisTaylor]

I have mixed opinions on their Manhattan formula. I like it but I can see why my partner finds it too boozy. When batching some for company I wouldn't consider to be particularly polite I returned to the 2:1 ratio I previously used. Altho' I did retain the Punt e Mes/Dolin blend. I mean, a D&C Manhattan ... it tastes like two would be enough to knock a horse on its arse. Which works for me but doesn't necessarily work for friends that aren't regular partakers in brown liquids. Still, I guess it's one of those G&T/Martini/Negroni ratio things--within certain bounds, it's 'right' if it works for you.

 

EDIT

 

On a side note, one of the flip and fizz recipes sees Greek yoghurt replace the egg. Is that something that'd work more ... widely? Has anyone tried it?

[pto]

Spray bottles are a must in a bar - I have one with absinthe of course, and also Laphroaig, rose water, orange water, etc (the ones from the Container Store are good and cheap).

 

I was thinking about this the other day: Is it possible that alcohol(especially higher proof) could cause chemicals to leach out of the plastic?

Edited November 16, 2014 by pto (log)

[FrogPrincesse]

I was thinking about this the other day: Is it possible that alcohol(especially higher proof) could cause chemicals to leach out of the plastic?

I suppose so. I like to live dangerously.

[ChrisTaylor]

Pearls Before Swine. I don't make or drink eggy drinks so I guess this is the only fizz/flip in my near future. The book calls for Martin Miller's Westbourne-Strength. The only gins I have on hand, bar genever, are Tanq and Col. Hawthorne's very malty and Very Good^TM gin. Tanq it is then. Everything else as prescribed. It's not my kind of drink--it's probably not something I'd make again any time soon--but it's pleasant enough. Like some long lost ice cream flavour reimagined as a cocktail.

[Adam George]

Late to the party, but my book finally arrived.

 

First impressions amongst the staff at work was hilarity.  The foreword reads like a descriptor of the very opposite we run our cocktail program (small menu, pre batch the hell out of everything)

 

Oh and that first photograph with the lime wedge is awful.  I can't believe they chose to lead with that.  Otherwise the photography is pretty good, if very soft because of the constant low depth of field shots.

 

 

 

I'm about half way through and just starting recipes (I skimmed a lot of the how to make and shake cocktails section)

[ChrisTaylor]

Cinder. Mostly equal parts, this one. Jalapeno-infused silver tequila, reposado tequila, lime and simple. A smaller quantity of mezcal. A couple dashes of Angostura. The glass is rimmed with smoked salt. I normally dislike salty drinks/salt rims/etc but, seeing as I'm the bartender, I went easy on the salt. This is pretty good. 

[haresfur]

Cinder. Mostly equal parts, this one. Jalapeno-infused silver tequila, reposado tequila, lime and simple. A smaller quantity of mezcal. A couple dashes of Angostura. The glass is rimmed with smoked salt. I normally dislike salty drinks/salt rims/etc but, seeing as I'm the bartender, I went easy on the salt. This is pretty good. 

 

If you don't like salt rims, then you still may want to put a small grind on top of the drink when serving to round out the drink and still get a touch of that initial salt hit.

 

That's what I tend to do with margaritas these days but mostly out of laziness.  You can also just salt half the rim so you can control your dosage.

[ChrisTaylor]

El Companero. Made in a somewhat half-arsed way when I realised, just as I started mixing, I'd run out of both fresh coriander and Tabasco's chipotle variant. Enter the regular stuff plus smoked salt to stand in for it. Not the same, not at all, but it'll do. A really nice drink. 

[FrogPrincesse]

Eat Your Books has indexed the book. Very handy to look for a recipe based on specific ingredients.

Edited December 11, 2014 by FrogPrincesse (log)

[FrogPrincesse]

Orkney Chapel (Jason Littrell) with Highland Park 12-year single malt scotch, Dolin dry vermouth, sherry (Lustau fino substituted for amontillado), Grand Marnier, sugar cane syrup, orange twist.

 

Very nice use of sherry.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[FrogPrincesse]

Light and Day by Alex Day. It has some of the DNA of a Last Word with the gin, Chartreuse & maraschino combination, although it's much lighter mainly due to the ratios. It's stirred even though it's technically a sour with a small amount of orange juice.

 

Light and Day: Plymouth gin, yellow Chartreuse, maraschino liqueur (Luxardo substituted for Maraska), orange juice, Peychaud's bitters (substituted for Death & Co's house Peychaud's bitters).

 

Very pleasing, with a beautiful color.

 

 

 

[FrogPrincesse]

So I revisited the Naked & Famous with the prescribed yellow Chartreuse. It's a very different drink. Still not a big fan but I like it a lot more than the previous version. Needs more crushed insects ... >_> 

 

For the record, I like the Naked and Famous a lot, even though I tend to dislike Aperol in most applications because it's not bitter enough.

 

(from the Mezcal thread).

 

It's amazing the number of views you get when you post something called Naked and Famous on flickr. I guess I should not be surprised. Anyway, this creation by Joaquín Simó is a delicious drink. Equal parts mezcal, aperol, yellow chartreuse, and lime juice. Sour/aromatic/bitter/smoky. Everything meshes together. Great combo and a very attractive color.

 

 

[FrogPrincesse]

North Garden. Old-Fashioned variation based on Laird's apple brandy, Buffalo Trace (I used Eagle Rare) and Laphroaig 10 (Quarter Cask). Angostura bitters. Dem syrup. Lovely.

 

I liked this one too. It's another successful combination of apple brandy with Laphroaig, like the Shruff's End. More rounded with the bourbon. I went with Daron XO calvados for the apple brandy instead of Laird's.

 

[FrogPrincesse]

Yeomen Warder (Phil Ward) with Beefeater gin, Dolin dry vermouth, Cynar, maraschino liqueur. I love Cynar, so for me this is a great Martini variation.

 

 

 

[lesliec]

Yeoman Warder and Orkney Chapel sound like me - I've added them to my 'to try' list.

 

As a side note, I think it's worth using the D&C 'house' Peychaud's (two parts Peychaud's to one part Bitter Truth Creole Bitters, or at least an approximation).  I may be imagining it, but it seems to add a certain je ne sais quoi (pardon my French) over straight Peychaud's.