Category Archives: Booze

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Bartenders: Stop Making (up) Cocktails

Creativity is not always what it's cracked up to be

by Derek Brown

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Among the worst instincts known to man is that of creation. Though creativity as utility or inspiration may well be a virtue, it is the incessant need of man to create infinite variations that steers away from the better practice of purposeful or thoughtful endeavor and heads straight over a jagged little cliff scattered with the wreckage of shallow, knee-jerk reactions coupled with unfulfilling, poor simulacra. And very, very bad cocktails.

But this should come as a surprise to no one, that the world is filled with bad art. Most of it we can tolerate or ignore but the problem is really not one of kind but one of volume, how steady a stream and how persistent an urge it becomes once something reaches the level of genuine fashion or trend. With cocktails in 2012, it became a waterfall. MORE

Tagged cocktails, drinks, issues, recipes, spirits
23 Comments | January 11, 2013
,4:11 pm
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Pop Fizz

Five cocktails worthy of your bubbly

by Jason Wilson

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Though I absolutely love champagne and prosecco and cava, the idea of sparkling-wine cocktails always has vexed me. I mean, if we’re really being honest, how many champagne-based cocktails truly are better than a lovely glass of champagne all by itself?

Just look at the classic namesake, the Champagne Cocktail, found in most bartenders’ guides: Into a champagne flute goes a sugar cube. Douse it with a few drops of Angostura bitters, then fill the glass with champagne. Maybe toss in a lemon peel. MORE

Tagged champagne, cocktails, drinks, holidays, recipes, spirits, wine
Comment | December 19, 2012
,12:14 am
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Cold Comfort

Aquavit cocktails to toast the season

by Jason Wilson

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I acquired my taste for aquavit over numerous visits to Copenhagen, sipping it ice cold in small frozen shot glasses, accompanied by smorrebrod, the traditional open-faced, rye-bread sandwiches piled high with smoked salmon, pickled herring or smoked eel. When I returned home, I wanted to share my enthusiasm for aquavit with others. But I’ve been met with a response that frankly irritates me: “Isn’t that stuff rocket fuel?” people ask.

What is it about strong foreign spirits, served in tiny glasses, that scares so many Americans? It feels a little xenophobic to me, and I get impatient with those who dismiss the world’s great aqua vitae (“water of life”) with the rocket-fuel label. Aquavit is a lovely, complex spirit, and I have made it my mission as a spirits writer to spread its gospel. MORE

Tagged aquavit, cocktails, drinks, nordic, recipes, spirits
6 Comments | December 4, 2012
,3:30 am
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Pucker Up Your Cocktail

Celebrate grapefruit season with drinks beyond the Salty Dog

by Jason Wilson

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I simply love grapefruit. For me, the complexity of its bitter-sweet-tart flavors puts it head and shoulders above any of its citrus cousins. Oranges, lemons, and limes: Admit it, you all wish you were grapefruit. Clementines and blood oranges? You have your moments, but they are fleeting. I know star mixologists have fallen in love with the Meyer lemon, the kumquat, the yuzu. But those are just novelty acts.

When it comes to booze, it’s hard to beat the grapefruit for sheer mixability. Gin and aquavit, brandy and bourbon, amari and herbal liqueurs: You name the spirit and there’s a fabulous drink calling for grapefruit juice.

What stands up to smoky mezcal? Grapefruit. In Jalisco, Mexico, where tequila is produced, the favorite local cocktail isn’t a margarita with lime juice. It’s a Paloma, which can be made with grapefruit juice or, via the quickie method, with grapefruit soda.

What was in Ernest Hemingway’s signature drink, the daiquiri variation called the Papa Doble? Well, that would be rhum agricole, maraschino liqueur, lime juice and then a little something else to bring it all together: Grapefruit juice. MORE

Tagged cocktails, drinks, fruit, grapefruit, recipes, spirits
3 Comments | November 13, 2012
,4:46 pm
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Bobbing for Apple Brandy

Six drinks that make the case for an underrated cocktail ingredient

by Jason Wilson

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Do you ever feel like no one’s listening?

For years, I have been apple brandy’s biggest advocate. Every fall, it seems, I write another piece extolling the virtues of Calvados or our own domestic versions. When people ask me what my favorite spirit is, I almost always say: “Apple brandy.” When they inevitably give me a raised eyebrow, I say, “Apple brandy is amazing! You must try apple brandy!” I am always serving Calvados to guests and I am always ordering apple brandy cocktails when out among friends.

Yet after all my apple brandy evangelism, I sadly don’t think I’m having much of an effect. People still seem totally perplexed by apple brandy. MORE

Tagged apple brandy, calvados, cocktails, drinks, recipes, spirits
2 Comments | October 16, 2012
,5:12 pm
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The Root of It

Who's up for a Pennsylvania Dutch Manhattan?

by Jason Wilson

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“You’re not going to pour me one of those bitter Italian things again, are you?”

If I had a dime for every time I’ve heard that. You see, for years I’ve been an amaro advocate, talking up those strange, bitter, herbal liqueurs to anyone willing to listen.

I’m a big fan of cocktail lists that call for an amaro in some form of Manhattan or Negroni variation. At home, I’m forever pouring some newbie a little Fernet Branca or Averna or Montenegro or Cynar or whatever other new digestivo I have in my cabinet. “Even though amaro means ‘bitter,’ there’s always a sweet element, too!” I explain. MORE