12 Bottle Bar

Our first stop in the Year of The Doctor: 1912, the Titanic, and Punch Romaine.

Today, we toast the Giants with a cocktail appropriately named for their hometown.

We take the official beverage of football fans everywhere – beer – and French it up a bit.

By Lesley Jacobs Solmonson

2.25 oz Brandy
0.75 oz Orange Liqueur (Cointreau specified)
1 Dash Angostura Bitters

Add all ingredients to a mixing glass
Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass

Featured Glassware: New Cottage Amber by Villeroy & Boch

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Given that we have dubbed 2012 as The Year of the Doctor, it seems only fitting that we begin with a short preamble paying tribute to a scientist whose work has helped shape our concepts of Ye Olde Space-Time Continuum.  In considering the myriad of choices available to us – Einstein, Neils Bohr, Werner Heisenberg – we decided to travel a bit further back in time as it were, opting not for the scientists who “invented” time travel, but rather the man without whose theories none of these men could have created their own – the giant on whose shoulders the others stood, if you will.  The man of whom I speak is, of course, the inimitable Sir Isaac Newton.  Read More…

At the beginning of 2011, we picked a theme – The Year of the Sportsman – which we would highlight throughout the year.  Our themes are an informal thing, of course, and we use them only as a guide – something to feature here and there as the mood strikes and appropriate situations arise – and while we hardly scratched the surface on our sporting posts, we did cover American football, horse racing, gambling, baseball, motorsports, lawn tennis, and cricket.

After discussing where we wanted to go with the site in 2012, the most appropriate declaration was that this would be The Year of The Doctor.  Doctor Who?  Exactly.  We’ll be taking a cue from that time-warping Gallifreyian – but not just him alone.  We’ll also be exploring some of the alchemic aspects of the liquid arts.  Here are some of the things you can expect in the months to come: Read More…

Happy 2012!

We want to thank all of our readers and friends for making 2011 our best year yet.  Not only did we achieve our top day, week, and month during 2011, readership was up 290% over the previous year.    Needless-to-say, we’re pleased as punch.

As we did at the end of 2010, here’s a look back at what was popular during the past 12 months.  October and December continue to be our biggest months, so it’s no surprise that holiday drinks of one stripe or another dominate our top list.  What was surprising was the staying power of some of last year’s drinks.  Thanks to a legion of Harry Potter fans (or a long-lost tribe of Tudors), Buttered Beere holds the No. 1 spot for the second year in a row. Read More…

1 oz Krogstad Aquavit
0.75 oz Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
0.50 oz Simple Syrup (1:1)
0.50 tsp Brooklyn Hemispherical Sriracha Bitters
Dry Sparkling Wine

Add aquavit, juice, syrup, and bitters to a mixing glass
Shake with ice and strain into a champagne flute
Top with dry sparkling wine and garnish with a lemon twist

Featured Glassware:  Miss Desiree Flute by Villeroy & Boch

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This is our final Christmas drink for 2011, and before we do anything else, I want to thank everyone who was kind enough to provide a recipe for us.  Our goal this year was to step outside of the 12 Bottle Bar and see what some friends, both new and old, were drinking for the holidays.  As we’ve now been espousing our way of thinking for a little over two years now, we thought it would be fun to take a little break and to show you some exciting things – bitters, allspice dram, applejack – that are available outside of our stringent rule set but well worth your attention.  Even if you’re a 12BB die-hard, we hope that you picked up a few new ideas that you can work into your routine.  Read More…

By Lesley Jacobs Solmonson

1.5 oz Hennessy VSOP Privilège Cognac
1.5 oz Ruby Port
0.75 oz  Monin Gingerbread Syrup

Mix together at room temperature in a snifter

Featured Glassware:  Modern Grace Brandy by Villeroy & Boch

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When mixology becomes the official religion that it should be, Gaz Regan will surely be the patron saint of bartenders – long after his tenure as first pope, of course.  For, in his heart of hearts, Gaz is just that, a bartender who cares deeply for the trade and for other bartenders.  This perspective has led him to write a myriad of books, many of them geared directly to those behind the stick, including The Joy of Mixology and his newest bible, Gaz Regan’s Annual Manual for Bartenders 2011.  Add to that his Ardent Spirits website, which is specifically for mixmasters and includes the Worldwide Bartender Database of more than 2,000 bartenders around the globe.  Quite simply, the man is on a mission to celebrate his trade, and we are ever so pleased that he has chosen to celebrate with us. Read More…

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