Scott Beattie At Cyrus

[eje]

Headline article of this week's Wine section of the San Francisco Chronicle is a profile of Scott Beattie of Cyrus in Healdsburg.

Raising the bar

There are remarkable bartenders/mixologists/bar chefs in San Francisco -- David "Mr. Mojito" Nepove at Enrico's, Jacques Bezuidenhout at Tres Agaves and Harry Denton's Starlight Room, and Duggan McDonnell at Frisson, to name a few. Beattie, 31, demonstrates the same originality, resourcefulness and passion in his potions as his city colleagues, yet with the challenge of being in Wine Country, where the wine list is usually the star of the bar.

Includes recipes for "Pelo del Perro (Hair of the Dog)", "PomIranian", and "Bleeding Orange" all of which (sadly?) involve vodka.

[Carolyn Tillie]

The March or April Food & Wine is going to include a big spread on Healdsburg in general, but highlighting Cyrus. I'd say they are going to be in the spotlight shortly and Healdsburg is going to be the new Napa.

[fanelli]

The March or April Food & Wine is going to include a big spread on Healdsburg in general, but highlighting Cyrus. I'd say they are going to be in the spotlight shortly and Healdsburg is going to be the new Napa.

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ditto!

[eje]

Had a chance to attend a Scott Beattie's session, "Farm Fresh Cocktails" at the "Mixology Weekend" portion of this summer's "Inside the Kitchen" at the Ritz-Carlton in Half Moon Bay.

Mr. Beattie expounded at length about his philosophy of using local and organic ingredients in his cocktails. Herbs fresh from the same farms that supply the Cyrus kitchens, vegetables and fruits from local growers, spirits from nearby distillers.

He managed to cram 7 cocktails for us to taste into the two hour session, including his Beau Regard, Thai Boxer, Sunny and Dry, and the Upstairs Neighbor mentioned in the Chronicle article above.

The Upstairs Neighbor, which he described as "Caprese salad in a glass" was particularly pungent, as it is currently using Hangar One's Chipotle Vodka.

My other favorite, Sunny and Dry, featured Sarticious Gin, Lemon Juice, Lemon Verbena leaves, Sunflower petals, and cucumber. It was very tasty and an amazing treat for the eyes.

At some point during the session, though, I started to wonder if these particularly culinary concoctions were even cocktails. They were refreshing, pungent, beverages which included some portion of alcohol.

Maybe I am too steeped in drink culture up to the 1930s; but, after all of these "salads in a glass", I have to admit I found myself longing to get back to the simplicity of a good Manhattan, Martini, or Old-Fashioned.

edit:

Drinks Menu At Cyrus

Edited August 5, 2007 by eje (log)

[bostonapothecary]

i was never into those cocktails.... lemon verbena always tasted like artificial flavor to me no matter how fresh and local it was.... i like simple imputs and complex outputs.... just like in wine.... though i have to say i really liked playing with the "huck yu" cocktail. i got rid of the nasty lemoncello and played with the proportions for quite a while.... that yuzu conentrate is really expensive yet very tastey.... such an amusing drink if you really want to get twisted....

in art there is kitsch and the avante garde.... i find both fun but personally end up persuing the avante garde whether there is a market for it or not....

[slkinsey]

The Upstairs Neighbor, which he described as "Caprese salad in a glass" was particularly pungent, as it is currently using Hangar One's Chipotle Vodka.

That seems like an odd way to describe a drink. Do you know what the ingredients are? An insalata caprese consists of only four ingredients, in decreasing order of importance and prominence: fresh mozzarella (traditionally this would be mozzarella di bufala), "salad" tomatoes, fresh basil and extra virgin olive oil. To me, the idea of this dish in more-or-less cocktail form sounds revolting. But considering that he's using chipotle vodka, I have to assume that the "caprese salad in a glass" just a misunderstanding.

[weinoo]

We had a few of Scott's drinks at the bar at Cyrus last November when we were in Sonoma - but they were definitely takes on more traditional cocktails (e.g. a Manhattan-type tweaked cocktail); they were quite good.

[eje]

That seems like an odd way to describe a drink.  Do you know what the ingredients are?  An insalata caprese consists of only four ingredients, in decreasing order of importance and prominence:  fresh mozzarella (traditionally this would be mozzarella di bufala), "salad" tomatoes, fresh basil and extra virgin olive oil.  To me, the idea of this dish in more-or-less cocktail form sounds revolting.  But considering that he's using chipotle vodka, I have to assume that the "caprese salad in a glass" just a misunderstanding.

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I have my notes at home and will get back to you with exact ingredients. What I remember were: Tomato water, chipotle vodka, a couple basils, cherry tomatoes, and a very nice balsamic vinegar.

[eje]

OK, he made us promise not to post his recipes on the internet, so here are the ingredients, sans amounts, for The Upstairs Neighbor: Chipotle Vodka, Vodka, Tomato Water, Lemon Juice, Aged Balsamic Vinegar, Purple Opal Basil leaves, Sweet Basil leaves, Cherry Tomatoes, Black Pepper, and a red Hawaiian Sea Salt rim on the glass.

I dunno, a skewer with those really small mozzarella di bufala balls alternating with cherry tomatoes, wouldn't have been a bad garnish. Take the Caprese thing all the way to its logical conclusion.

[bostonapothecary]

OK, he made us promise not to post his recipes on the internet, so here are the ingredients, sans amounts, for The Upstairs Neighbor: Chipotle Vodka, Vodka, Tomato Water, Lemon Juice, Aged Balsamic Vinegar, Purple Opal Basil leaves, Sweet Basil leaves, Cherry Tomatoes, Black Pepper, and a red Hawaiian Sea Salt rim on the glass.

I dunno, a skewer with those really small mozzarella di bufala balls alternating with cherry tomatoes, wouldn't have been a bad garnish.  Take the Caprese thing all the way to its logical conclusion.

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someone needs to give that kid some raw eggs. he might churn out something cool....