Hail to The Chief: El Presidente cocktail

If you thought booze was any less susceptible faddism than any other thing in your life, think again. Case in point is the current affaire d'amour many bartenders are having with rum. Long forgotten and now popping up everywhere, not just on bar menus but on the front of the bar's themselves (here in PDX we have bartender extraordinaire Kevin Ludwig's new and very cool booze boite Rum Club), Rum is having its 15 minutes. Long ignored is the fact that rum has a long and storied history as a main ingredient in many a pre-prohibition cocktail.

For those who have forgotten their drink history, may I suggest you immediately run out and buy a copy of the Washington Post drinks columnist ("Drinks columnist"...I should sue my college academic adviser for negligence. I don't seem to remember "drinks columnist" ever being mentioned as a career option) Jason Wilson's excellent and inspiring booze bible appropriately titled "Boozehound". I've referenced Wilson and his intoxicating skill set many times on this blog (just search his name in the search box upper left) and almost without fail he's steered me right. His book should have a prominent seat at the bar of all drinks aficionados. At the end of his chapter "Of Politics and Rum" he offers the following recipe for the "El Presidente". He writes that it was "Popular in Havana during the 1920 and 1930s and was reportedly offered to President Calvin Coolidge by then Cuban president Gerardo Machado. Coolidge, mindful of Prohibition back home, declined the drink." I highly encourage you to find out what Coolidge was missing out on, because this is a deeply refreshing drink with a rich, fruity complexity. Wilson recommends using an aged rum in this drink, which I heartily endorse. I used Flor de Caña 7 year old off my home bar. It was perfecto!
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El Presidente
from Jason Wilson's "Boozehound"
ingredients:
1-1/2 ounces aged rum
3/4 ounce dry vermouth
3/4 ounce Cointreau
1/2 teaspoon grenadine (I found the excellent REAL grenadine made by Sonoma Syrups at New Seasons here in PDX. It's worth searching out!)
Orange peel twist for garnish

method:
Fill a mixing glass two-thirds full with ice. Add the rum, vermouth, Cointreau, and grenadine. Stir vigorously for 30 seconds, then strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with orange twist.

Bar exam: Baltimore Bang Cocktail

In the annals of great cocktail names I would rate the Baltimore Bang right behind the Corpse Reviver #2 as something that must be consumed. Certainly more interesting than the Singapore Sling, although it doesn't have that drink's tropical exoticism. He who supplies bibulous knowledge, spirits columnist Jason Wilson of the Washington Post, mentioned the BB in a recent column on the many uses and misconceptions of apricot brandy. Seems apricot brandy is another almost forgotten pre-prohibition tipple that in its day popped up in various cocktails with great regularity. The Baltimore Bang is one of the best uses of apricot brandy (here in Portland you can find the highly acceptable Marie Brizard brand with a little searching) I've found yet. Another perfectly sweet-tart drink that does nothing but compliment the bourbon base. The one problem I had with it is that this is one of those far to easy to drink cocktails. The good news is that like most smaller drinks from that heyday of cocktailing, this doesn't cause too much damage should you have another!
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BALTIMORE BANG COCKTAIL
From Jason Wilson/Washington Post

ingredients:
1-1/2 oz bourbon
3/4 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 oz apricot brandy
1/4 oz simple syrup
Orange peel twist for garnish

method:
Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker half filled with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into small tumbler filled with ice. Garnish with orange peel.

Bar Exam: Three To One Cocktail

I decided to take another opportunity to delve into Ted "Dr. Cocktail" Haigh's ever-inspiring book "Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails" because I was, well, thirsty. Not for just anything, mind you. This particular thirst was demanding something gin-ish, as my thirst so often does. Something simple, fast, and hopefully delicious presented itself on page 268 of Haigh's book. The Three to One Cocktail was reportedly served at the old Waldorf-Astoria Hotel bar before prohibition. It is the epitome of why I love classic cocktails: very few ingredients coming together in a perfect balance. The herbal tang of gin balanced with the sweet-sour of the brandy and lime. Delicious! Plus the manageable size of this cocktail, and yet another reason to love these old drinks, promises that your drink stays cold through to the end, and is a small enough serving that should you be of the mind for another (and trust me, you will!), it is well within reason.
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Three To One Cocktail
from Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails/Ted Haigh

ingredients:
1-1/2 oz. gin (preferably 100 proof)...I used Tanqueray which was delicious- bb
3/4 oz. Marie Brizard Apry
Juice of 1/2 lime

method:
Fill cocktail shaker half full of ice, add ingredients, shake to chill., and strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime wedge.

Drink notes:
From Haigh's recipe: "I like a powerful gin in this cocktail to stand up to the rich, sweet flavor of the apricot liqueur and the acid of the lime."
On the apricot liqueur, the Marie Brizard is hard to find, at least here in Portland, but is worth searching out. Other cheaper brands can be too sweet and cloying, throwing off the balance of these simple cocktails.- bb

Bar exam: Corpse Reviver #2

How can you not want to make, and more importantly drink, a cocktail named the Corpse Reviver #2? Not that I need to be pushed too hard when it comes to trying new libations, but this was almost too easy. And at this time of year, all of our walking corpses could use a push as we stagger from party to party. A classic from the 1930's, this has several things going for it: 1- A great name, which came from the fact that it was originally intended as a morning beverage to get one's supposedly needy spirit revived (there is, of course, a Corpse Reviver #1, brandy-based, and to my taste nowhere near the drink this is); 2- its main ingredient is gin; and 3- it is an equal mix of all four ingredients (with an added tiny dash of absinthe or pastis), which allows you to taste each and every one, and like the negroni (an equal mix of three components) it is a perfectly balanced drink. Although I have to say better after the cocktail hour than before. But to each his or her own, I suppose. Whenever you decide you need some revivification, this is a perfect place to find it!
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Corpse Reviver #2

Serving size: 1
ingredients:
3/4 oz. gin
3/4 oz. Lillet blanc
3/4 oz. Cointreau
3/4 oz. lemon juice
Dash absinthe (or pastis should absinthe not be in your repertoire)

method:
Fill cocktail shaker half full with ice. Add all ingredients and shake for 20-30 seconds. Strain into cocktail glass and garnish with amarena cherry.

Bar Exam: The Derby Cocktail

With the paucity of posts going on here you might think I've been getting my drink on a bit too much. Such is not the case. Just the usual amount of drinkable...and edible...indulgences going on. Whether that is too much or not I'll leave to my doctor. Like he knows anything! Someone who does know a thing or two is the author of perhaps the most inspirational guide to better living I've read in a long time.

Why he hasn't been on Oprah I have no idea, but Ted Haigh, author of "Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails" certainly should get the call. Haigh, also known as Dr. Cocktail (his parents must be SO proud!) has written a cheeky, clever, very well researched, and all too useful guide to home improvement with his adult beverage-filled bible. The book was given to me by my compadre and kindred spirit K, who is known around here as "Mr. Manhattan" (and frankly whether his mother is proud of that or not I could care less as long as he keeps mixing them up), and is a man with a keen insight into why this subject is so important.

Considering the amount of temptation contained within the liquor stained pages of "VS & FC" the fact that I have remained relatively sober...and that is a very relative term...since receiving this book is remarkable. Especially since so many recipes, like the following for a fabulously delicious summer cocktail called The Derby, are just begging to be tried. The Derby was interesting to me because of its mixing of bourbon and lime. I usually relegate most of my bourbon and other brown liquor consumption to cooler months, but something about this one called to me after a hard slog at the wine shack on an early July evening. I mixed it up, after a run to the candy....er, liquor store...to grab some orange curaçao, the one ingredient I was missing. I poured, mixed, and strained and immediately was rewarded with one of the most enlightening drinks I've had in a long time. The lime juice provides just the right "lift" to the bourbon and a sharp counterpoint to the sweet vermouth, making this nothing less than an exceptional summer sipper. See for yourself, and maybe enjoy one or two while reading "VS & FC" and finding your own inspiration!
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The Derby

makes 1 cocktail
ingredients:
1 ounce bourbon (or rye)
1/2 ounce sweet vermouth
1/2 ounce orange curaçao
3/4 ounce fresh lime juice

method:
Add al ingredients to an iced cocktail shaker, shake vigorously for 20 or 30 seconds, strain into cocktail glass and garnish with lime...perhaps a bit smaller piece than the one pictured!

Bar exam: The Martinez Cocktail

In case you haven't figured it out by now I am a huge fan of the classics. Old Archie comics, early-60s American cars, the Three Stooges, hot dogs at the ballpark while watching my beloved Cubs sink into the abyss of another failed season, Schwarzenegger's early action movies. Speaking of Arnold, who among us can forget this classic exchange from "Total Recall":
Lori: "Doug, honey... you wouldn't hurt me, would you, sweetheart? Sweetheart, be reasonable. After all, we're married!" [Lori goes for her gun, Quaid shoots her in the head, killing her] Doug: "Consider that a divorce!"

You know, all the things that form America's cultural touchstones. And certainly not to leave off the historical cocktails from the early 1900s that shaped more minds than perhaps any other outside influence in the last 100 years. In my unending research to find out how we got from there to here I had read about Old Tom Gin, a slightly sweetened and lightly tawny colored form of my favorite cocktail fixin' that was very popular at pre-Prohibition bars. It had disappeared from American liquor shelves for decades (supposedly the closest thing to Old Tom that was available was Tanqueray Malacca gin before its untimely demise). I had read about its resurrection by a few artisinal producers, then a few weeks ago I was wandering the aisles of my local liquor store and saw that an Old Tom from Oregon's own Ransom Spirits (about $35) had a spot on the shelf (read about Ransom's distillation method and a bit of Old Tom history by clicking here). If for no other reason than to gain further historical perspective I had to buy my bottle. In the back of my mind I had remembered that my main influence of new and interesting ways to expand my libation library, The Washington Post's Jason Wilson, had done a piece about Old Tom that included the recipe for the Martinez Cocktail, the forerunner of so many good things in my life. Among Wilson's observations:
"Some crazy theories suggest that this was the original martini, but it was more probably a variation. In reality, all martinis are a variation on the Manhattan."
Whatever it was, whatever it inspired, the Martinez I made at home was a delicious peek into cocktails past and is absolutely worth searching out your own bottle of Old Tom. With that, here is Wilson's version of the classic Martinez....
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Martinez Cocktail

ingredients:
Ice
1 1/2 ounces Old Tom Gin
1 1/2 ounces sweet vermouth
1 teaspoon maraschino liqueur
2 dashes orange or aromatic bitters
1 twist of lemon or orange peel, for garnish

method:
Fill a mixing glass halfway full with ice. Add the gin, vermouth, maraschino liqueur and bitters. Stir vigorously for at least 30 seconds, then strain into a cocktail (martini) glass. Garnish with the lemon or orange peel twist.

Real men drink Lemon Drops!

The Lemon Drop is strictly a girly cocktail. What?? Talk about a bad rap. It's like someone calling my beloved Chicago Cubs losers. They're not losers, they're just victory challenged. The point is even though I would certainly never order one out because I keep my shame to myself, a well-made Lemon Drop is a home bar guilty pleasure at my house. It became a cocktail classic (yes, I said it, a "cocktail classic"!) not because it doesn't taste, when perfectly concocted, deliciously and perfectly sweet-tart The problem I think the L.D. has is there are so many sickly sweet versions out there at way too many TGIF's where the bartender seems to have forgotten that the first word in the name is a rather key ingredient rather than a vehicle for Schmoe A to get into Chick B's pants. Follow the recipe below, and even though you'll still never order one at any drinking venue outside of your own house, you'll be able to swill with pride and enjoyment. Heck, you'll be peaking on so much self esteem I promise your masculinity will emerge intact should you offer your friends a pop!

BTW- not to brag, but didn't that Lemon Drop pic turn out fucking great?!
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Lemon Drop Cocktail

ingredients:
1-1/2 to 2 ounces vodka
1/2 ounce Cointreau....you could use, in a dire emergency, Triple Sec or Grand Marnier, but you really do want this to be as good as it can be, don't you? I thought so!
1 teaspoon simple syrup...to make simple syrup mix 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. When cool you are good to go.
1 ounce freshly-squeezed lemon juice
Ice cubes
Superfine (or regular) sugar for dipping the rim
Lemon peel twist for garnish
method:
Mix the vodka, orange liqueur, sugar, and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker half-filled with ice; shake well for 20 to 30 seconds. Pour strained liquor into sugar-rimmed martini glass and garnish with lemon twist.
**note: to get a nice sugar rim that sticks to the glass, use the leftover lemon rind from juicing to wet the rim of your martini glass before dipping it into the sugar.
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one year ago today @ E.D.T.: The importance of cupcakes!

Egg Nog- it's not just for Christmas!

Have friends coming over for a post-holiday get together? Want to give them a festive, rich, and far too delicious drink? And get them drunk? And give them heart attacks?? Assuming you answered yes to all of the above questions (or even if you answered yes to just the first) then you are absolutely reading the perfect post. I had meant to get this fabulous old school egg nog recipe up before the holidays, but you know what they say about best laid plans. I was inspired to make this drink, from those carefree days before people cared about fat intake and drunken driving, from a post on Fooddude's blog. His father used it to lubricate gatherings in the 40's. I made it for a pre-Christmas dinner tipple a couple of weeks ago and I can attest to its effectiveness. As FD perfectly summed up: "I will never make any other version. It’s really airy yet creamy, with just the right balance of booze." In his recipe he wisely added 20mg of Lipitor and a cab. To respect individual choice, I'll just put those under the "optional" heading!
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Egg Nog
from Fooddude

method:
Beat 8 egg whites until stiff peaks.
Add 1/2 cup sugar and beat until incorporated. Set aside for a moment.
Beat 8 egg yolks and 1/2 cup sugar.
Put the whites back on the mixer, and fold in the beaten yolks
At a slower speed, add 1 qt heavy cream, 1 pt whole milk, beat some more.
Add 2 cups rum and 1/2 cup bourbon.
Pour into glasses, dust with freshly ground nutmeg
optional:
Take 20 mg Lipitor
Call cab.

Bar exam: the Aviation Cocktail

Geez, has it been THAT long since my last post? It's not like I've been going hungry for the last three weeks. Call it a little blog vacation. And as you'll see here I have most assuredly NOT been going thirsty. Especially in this season of good cheer. Hence my need to share with you your new favorite cocktail!
Knowing that you are more than likely going to be entertaining others, or at the very least be entertained, this season then it might behoove you to have a new cocktail trick up your sleeves. In this case new being more "new to you", because the Aviation Cocktail is a classic dating back to the early 20th century. Confusion about this cocktail has been brought about with the appearance on bars around the country of House Spirits' (of Portland, Or.) Aviation gin. I've seen cocktails purportedly called the Aviation around town that have nothing to do with the original classic but DO contain Aviation gin. A little creative mixology from the House Spirits boys have not done any favors to the original. So what is it about the Aviation Cocktail that should have you running to your nearest liquor store for the one ingredient you don't have (that essential piece being maraschino liqueur. You DO have gin and lemon juice, don't you??) Like so many of the classics it is the Aviation's simplicity that gives it its charm, not to mention drinkability. Gin, lemon juice, and the aforementioned maraschino liqueur. That's it. If you're a gin lover I promise this will become a regular bar staple. It is so fresh and bright, with a perfect bitter edge that makes it go down far too easily. I wouldn't use Aviation gin in this one because it's intense herbal flavors would overpower the perfect balance that a gin like Tanqueray (my choice for this drink) or Plymouth give this little bit of cocktail history.
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Aviation Cocktail
makes 1 cocktail

ingredients:
ice
1 1/2 ounces dry gin
3/4 ounce maraschino liqueur
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
Twist of lemon for garnish

method:
Fill cocktail shaker halfway with ice. Add next three ingredients and shake vigorously for 20 seconds. Strain into cocktail glass, garnish with lemon, and relive cocktail history.

NOTE: I found that straining the lemon juice after squeezing to get rid of as much pulp as possible is essential to an attractive beverage. You can see from the photo a few bits of lemon still floating in the glass.- bb

Bar Exam: Intro to Aperol cocktail- a new classic?

There's something enjoyable about writing about a new cocktail find at ten in the morning. It seems somehow wrong and right at the same time. There's that ingrained guilt over thinking about booze so early in the morning, the "should I be worried about this?", countered by the anticipatory thought of "what am I going to be sipping after work?" Oh, well, I'll leave that for others to worry about. This blog is really all about sharing ideas, and maybe giving you something new, different, and delightful to enjoy at home!

I read about this Intro to Aperol cocktail in what has become my go to inspiration for new cocktails, Washington Post writer Jason Wilson's bi-monthly spirits column. A couple of weeks ago he had a column dedicated to what are classic cocktails, and is there room for new classics? Martinis, Manhattans, margaritas, etc. are rightly considered "classics". But shouldn't some of the new cocktails that today's mixologists concoct have a chance to elevated to the same pantheon? To me, of course they should. Who are we to say that some new-millennial drink couldn't possibly be as good as some 1920's favorite. It's like closing off a sports hall of fame to new inductees. As Wilson went off about new ingredients and possibilities he focused on the Italian aperitivo Aperol, which I had zero experience with. Wildly popular in Italy, not so much here. Called by one writer "training wheels for Campari" due it's slightly sweeter, less bitter flavor. This drink, concocted by Audrey Saunders of New York's Pegu Club, while probably not a classic, is an absolutely delicious, lighter weight drink, a perfect starter cocktail for a night of indulgence!
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Intro to Aperol
From Washington Post/Jason Wilson

Wilson: "It's a rare cocktail in which Aperol (a bright orange, low-proof Italian aperitivo) takes center stage. A version of this is a mainstay on the menu at the famed Pegu Club, where the drink's garnish of orange peel is flamed before it is dropped into the drink."

1 serving
ingredients:
Ice
2 ounces Aperol
1 ounce gin
3/4 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 ounce simple syrup (see NOTE)
1 dash Angostura bitters
Twist of orange peel, for garnish

method:
Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice. Add the Aperol, gin, lemon juice, simple syrup and bitters. Shake well, then strain into a chilled cocktail (martini) glass. Twist the orange peel over the drink to release its oils, then drop it into the glass.

NOTE: To make simple syrup, combine 1/2 cup of sugar and 1/2 cup of water in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Bring to a slow rolling boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 5 minutes. Transfer to a heatproof container and let cool to room temperature. Cover tightly, and refrigerate until chilled through; store indefinitely.
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one year ago today on E.D.T.: the Keller v. Achatz carnival of excess!

Sacred things

We all hold certain things sacred. Some more fervently than others. Religion and family of course are two big ones for some. The inexplicable need to dress up in public as a character from Star Trek among other losers...errrr, members of your peer group, is another. For me the cocktail, particularly classic cocktails, are not to be trifled with. When the martini craze was in full bloom I would shudder at the sight of something called a "Chocolate Martini". The "Appletini" would cause me no end of aggravation. The point being a Martini is two things: gin and dry vermouth. Anything else is a cocktail, not a fill-in-the-blank-"tini". And usually a cocktail that is best ignored.

Perhaps my most revered cocktail is the Negroni, which like the martini is simplicity itself. Three ingredients instead of two: Campari, gin, and sweet vermouth in equal proportions. Even given its seemingly simple preparation, I've had some egregious examples. Any messing with the proportions throws the whole thing out of balance. Don't even start with changing ingredients. This all came to mind last Saturday when we went to Alba Osteria for dinner. On their cocktail list was something called a Negroni Sbagliato, which substituted prosecco for the gin. It was explained by our waiter as a negroni that is "lightened up". Once I got over my initial skepticism and considered it, it sounded quite good, even with the name "negroni" attached. So last night, in the interest of open-mindedness, and because a good cocktail seemed the perfect antidote to the day, I grabbed a bottle of prosecco off the shelf at VINO and made one. One sip and I was smitten! This really is a nice, rather than unfortunate, riff on a classic cocktail. So good that even adding negroni to the name seems to be not worth worrying about. Besides, if I do start to stress, what better way to calm myself than with another Negroni Sbagliato!
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Negroni Sbagliato
from Alba Osteria

ingredients:
1-1/2 ounces each Campari, sweet vermouth, and prosecco.
Twist of lemon for garnish

method:
Fill cocktail shaker partway with ice, the amount depending on how many cocktails you are preparing. For my one drink, I used five cubes. Add Campari and sweet vermouth. Shake for 30 seconds, then strain into champagne flute. Add prosecco and stir gently to combine. Add garnish. Enjoy!

They're called "classics" for a reason!

As I type this I am happily enjoying what one writer called "basically, a perfect martini with an ounce of OJ." He would be correct. As I am always looking for new ways to satisfy my (un)healthy fascination of all things gin-ish, I have been meaning to try this most simple of classic cocktails, the Bronx Cocktail, forever. Why I never got around to it I have no idea. Must be that flood of gimlets, negronis, side cars, and Last Words...not to mention martinis....that have been enlarging my liver lately. And don't even get me started on the advent of G&T season. Christ, it's like I'm in the middle of an ADD-driven, alcohol fueled funhouse! Also you long time drinkers....er, readers, know of my respect for tradition on the planet Cocktailania, and this pre-prohibition tipple harkens back to a time of crashing stock markets, lost fortunes, and loose morals. Which I guess makes it the perfect drink for today. Gee, everything old IS new again!
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Bronx Cocktail
from various sources

ingredients:
ice
2 ounces gin
1 ounce freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 ounce sweet vermouth
1/4 ounce dry vermouth
dash or two of orange bitters
twist of orange peel for garnish

method:
Fill a cocktail shaker two-thirds full with ice. Add the gin, orange juice, sweet and dry vermouths and the bitters. Shake well, then strain into a cocktail (martini) glass. Garnish with the twist of orange peel.

Bar Exam: Gin Fizz Cocktail, my new (old school) summer favorite!

Two unavoidable things are happening right now, as they do each year: gin/ice/tonic usage is rising in lockstep with warmer temperatures. I don't even try to fight it, even to the point of embracing it. If icy cold, gin soaked cocktails are inevitable, then I say sit back and enjoy them! If you've been reading this blog for any amount of time, you are well aware of my healthy respect for cocktail culture and my need, want, and desire to explore this intoxicating subject. Also you may have noticed the repeated mention of Washington Post spirits columnist Jason Wilson, whose ramblings have inspired numerous moments of fuzzy-headedness at my home bar.

His latest column from a couple of weeks ago sent me once again scurrying to my home liquor cabinet, cocktail shaker in hand, to make one of the truly old school classics, the Gin Fizz. His column was focused on one of his (many) pet peeves, the proliferation of commercial sour mix, which is essential to two summer classics, the Tom Collins and the Gin Fizz. His anti-commercial sour mix rant includes one of my favorite Wilson-isms to date: "This mix usually sneaks up on you, like a mullet seen from the front." That visual alone should be enough to have you, as it did me, spend the extra five minutes doing you own sour shuffle. So it was a couple of nights ago that I made my own gin fizz, and I have to say I may have discovered my Cocktail of Summer '09. This was delicious! Light, refreshing, strong-but-not-too so as to invite you back for a second. It had the perfect sweet-sour composition that is the key to so much imbibing enjoyment, with a foamy, fizzy feel on the palate. Read his column, try it at home, and feel sorry for those who bow to convenience.
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Gin Fizz
Inspired by Jason Wilson/Washington Post

Spirits columnist Jason Wilson recommends adding egg white, which adds a light froth to the proceedings, and using a sparkling mineral water instead of club soda or seltzer. If you have a sweet tooth and absolutely must, you may add a half-teaspoon of sugar.

1 serving

ingredients:
ice
1 1/2 ounces gin, preferably Plymouth brand
1 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 ounce simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water brought to a boil until the sugar dissolves. For this drink a 1/4 cup of each will net you enough for several cocktails- bb)
1 tablespoon egg white
Sparkling mineral water

method:
Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice. Add the gin, lemon juice, simple syrup, and egg white; shake vigorously for at least 1 minute. The egg white should get frothy.

Strain into an ice-filled high ball glass; top with the mineral water.

The Last Word in going green!

I have to say I am intoxicated by the whole "going green" thing that is apparently the thing to do right now. I thought I would actually have to change my life and my way of interacting with the outside world. Turns out the only interacting I had to do was with the guy behind the counter at my local liquor store, and he's a pretty nice guy who was only too eager to help me be a better human. And the biggest change in my world is a more well stocked home bar. Sustainability has never felt better.

Turns out the Last Word cocktail is a pre-prohibition drink that was reborn (according to this article in The Seattle Times) just up I-5 from Portland by Murray Stenson at the Seattle bar Zig Zag Café. Stenson discovered it an obscure 1951 cocktail book called "Bottom's Up" by Ted Saucier. Since Stenson put it on his menu it has washed across bars all over the country. It is definitely one of my new favorite ways to get my glow on. It's intense, with the sweetness that many old school cocktails have, yet the lime juice component is the perfect counterbalance to keep everything in check. A beautiful light green color also makes this, for me, the ultimate spring sipper. A little too heavy for hot weather imbibing, this is a perfect transition cocktail between the Manhattans of winter and the G&T's and margaritas of summer.
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The Last Word Cocktail

serves 1
ingredients:
1 ounce gin
1 ounce lime juice
1 ounce green Chartreuse
1 ounce maraschino liqueur

method:
Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.
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one year ago today @ E.D.T.: cocktail capers at PDX's Teardrop Lounge!

Richly satisfying: the Millionaire Cocktail

Feeling rich right now? Like a million bucks? Yeah, me neither. Stock market-shmock market...talk about not worrying about things out of my control. What little discretionary income I have left I have decided to dedicate to the further expansion of my culinary and bibulous boundaries. Like all my money isn't spent there right now, but since I'm setting my goals conservatively these days it seems like a prudent (not to mention satisfying) course through these turbulent times. With that in mind, if I can't live like a millionaire, then at least I can drink like one with the Millionaire Cocktail, as presented in Jason Wilson's ever intoxicating spirits column in The Washington Post. A recent essay he wrote was about replacing expensive bottles of hooch with less expensive alternatives. Great advice contained there. The Millionaire is an old school concoction, and his recipe varies slightly from the original. On first sip I wasn't sure about it....kind of strange with its bourbon-absinthe combo and a slight sweetness from the grenadine. But I have to say it really grew on me, and with the second...and third..and further sips I was really digging it. Absolutely worthy of sharing. You might say richly satisfying!
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Millionaire Cocktail
from Jason WilsonThe Washington Post

Wilson: "This is a variation of a drink that was a standard in early 20th-century cocktail books. The original called for rye whiskey, orange curacao, grenadine and egg white; sometimes a dash or two of pastis or absinthe was included as well. Here, bourbon is used instead of rye, Cointreau instead of orange curacao, and Pernod is a more economical alternative for rinsing the inside of the glass than absinthe would be. Use a pasteurized egg if you are concerned about the risk in eating uncooked eggs. By the way, you might be a millionaire if you can afford to rinse a glass with real absinthe. A new status symbol?"

1 serving

ingredients:
Absinthe or Pernod for rinsing the glass, plus 1/4 ounce absinthe for the cocktail
Ice
2 ounces bourbon
1/2 ounce Cointreau
1/4 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 to 3 dashes grenadine
1 tablespoon egg white (see headnote)

method:
Use just enough absinthe or Pernod to rinse or coat the inside of a cocktail (martini) glass. Pour out any excess.

Fill a cocktail shaker two-thirds full with ice.

Add the bourbon, Cointreau, lemon juice, grenadine, egg white and the remaining 1/4 ounce of absinthe. Shake vigorously for 60 seconds, then strain into the martini glass.
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One year ago today @ E.D.T.: The taco truck glory that is Taqueria Uruapan!

Drinking history: The Clover Club Cocktail

Pity the poor Clover Club cocktail. Going from a mainstay of any self respecting early 20th century drinking man's repertoire to becoming the Cosmo of it's day. This was a traditional tipple of turn-of-the-(last) century cocktail culture, mentioned in cocktail books going back to 1911, and ordered by a person described thusly 55 years ago in Jack Townsend's The Bartender's Book (thanks to Cocktail Chronicles): "The Clover Club drinker is traditionally a gentleman of the pre-Prohibition school. He may not necessarily be one of the legal, literary, or business figures who were members of the club of that name. He may never have been in the bar of the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia where the Clover Club members foregathered and the drink originated. But he belongs with that set." From that to the favored drink of post-WWII Carrie Bradshaw's?! How could such a thing happen?

That's what I set out to find, when in a fit of election news induced thirst (probably after listening to Ms. Civics Lesson, Sarah Palin try to describe what the vice-president does, and failing miserably...again). And being secure enough in my masculinity not to be threatened about being a Gilded Age sissy, I grabbed the requisite tools of cocktail investigation, the most important being a bottle of gin and a cocktail shaker, and delved into the mystery. Some gin was spilled, eggs were cracked, citrus was squeezed, and there was a certain amount of straining done to come to the conclusion that the forgotten, formerly respected then spurned Clover Club Cocktail is one kick ass concoction! The Cosmo of its day? Maybe, but it is a great cocktail for our day! I can't wait to make this for friends. Rich with body from the egg white, with a nice balanced sweet-tart flavor, I dare you not to like this one!
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Clover Club Cocktail
adapted from Jason Wilson/The Washington Post

There are innumerable recipes for the Clover Club available. I liked the sound of this one from Jason Wilson, the Post's spirits columnist. I also read others where raspberry syrup (like Torani or Monin) can be subbed for the grenadine. I also would play around with the citrus ratio. But all in all, this was a pretty damn tasty drink as is! -bb

1 serving

ingredients:
Ice
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce grenadine (4 dashes)
Juice of 1/2 medium lemon (2 tablespoons)
1 large raw egg white

method:
Fill a tall mixing glass two-thirds with ice. Add the gin, grenadine, lemon juice and raw egg white. Shake vigorously for 30 to 60 seconds to form a good froth. Strain into a martini glass and serve immediately.

Casino Cockatil: the reward system!

My end of the week reward after another grueling few days spent at the wine shack fulfilling others alcohol needs? A trip to the old school, via the intoxicating delight that is the Casino Cocktail. Originally published in 1930 in one of the first bibles of cocktail craft, The Savoy Cocktail Book, this is a potent blend of gin with small but important bits of maraschino liqueur, lemon juice, and orange bitters. Nicely balanced, and sending me a little off balance, it is a drink definitely worth a stir or two!
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Casino Cocktail
ingredients:
2 oz. gin
2/3 teaspoon Luxardo maraschino liqueur
2/3 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 dashes orange bitters
maraschino cherry for garnish

method:
Fill cocktail shaker half full with ice. Add ingredients. Stir until thoroughly chilled. Strain into martini glass, garnish with maraschino cherry.

makes one drink