Zydeco Fiddle - Tom Gin, Lemon, Trinity, Apricot Brandy, Celery Bitters, House Ginger Beer (Photo & Cocktail by Anvil Bartender Alex Gregg)

The Summer of the South has officially begun! Last week Anvil launched what is without a doubt the best cocktail project I’ve ever been a part of – an entire menu devoted to the South. That’s right – fourteen new, original cocktails all inspired by Southern history, cooking, flavors, ingredients, and ATTITUDE. Throw in 15 more classics that originated or are extremely popular in the South, and you’ve got one hell’uva compelling argument for revitalizing interest in Southern drinking culture. Check out the entire menu here.

We’ve even had Chris Shepherd, formerly of Catalan, revamp the food menu. Chris will soon have his hands full with Underbelly, the new restaurant we are opening with him down the street next to our beer bar, The Hay Merchant, but for the time being, he’s willing to lend us his distinguished services. Ok…enough salesmanship – straight from the menu, here’s why the menu really kicks ass in my opinion:

“Today’s modern cocktail resurgence tends to emphasize urban speakeasies and Yankee cocktails. Secession anyone? Sure, we admire our Northern colleagues, but it’s about time other drinking cultures get a little respect. Welcome to the Summer of the South: a four-month tribute to Southern inspired cocktails and food.”

The South is full of a rich cocktail history, which, with some exceptions, is largely ignored throughout the country’s cocktail community. Sure, NOLA gets a ton of attention (plenty from us as well throughout the menu), but the cocktail has played a cultural role throughout the entire region. Check out this example:

Rooster Cogburn - Bourbon, India Pale Ale, Lager & Steen's Cane Syrup, Whole Egg with an "Boilermaker" - Optional (Photo & Cocktail by Anvil Bartender Alex Gregg)

The Antebellum Julep – Demerara & Jamaican Rum, Steen’s Molasses, Sassafras, Angostura Bitters, Orka Seed, and Mint

This tasty julep was inspired by the use of okra seeds as a coffee substitute by slaves and, eventually, a greater Southern population. This mixture was often sweetened with molasses and flavored with local sassafras. I was reading about this tradition and just couldn’t resist crafting a cocktail that was a tribute to this rich history. It is an incredible story, and adds such an emotional and narrative component to the menu. When you connect with people in such a manner, it reaffirms why you fell in love with cocktails to begin with. It’s one thing to put out a list of twelve phenomenal cocktails, it’s another thing entirely when they collectively communicate a message. A GREAT COCKTAIL MENU SHOULD BE LIKE AN ADDICTIVE ALBUM – MORE THAN JUST A LIST OF CATCHY SINGLES!

Chuck Taggart, a native New Orleanian, genuine Southern gentleman, and full-fledged cocktail dork, sat at the bar with me the day before the new menu launch and played lab rat. I’m not sure I’ve ever enjoyed serving someone drinks as much as I did Chuck that night. As Chuck tried cocktails, he kept telling me stories about his relatives’ adorations for buttermilk, lit up like a Cajun swamp rabbit on a back country road when he tried the Trinity-flavored Zydeco Fiddle, and predicted the now commonplace slaughtering of the word “Marigny” in the “Marigny Buck”. Conjuring so many personal cultural sentiments simply by serving cocktails was a unique and gratifying experience.

When we opened Anvil, I had never visited another major cocktail bar in the country. I just read as much as I could, knew how to shake a decent drink, and loved making people happy. We’ve always stuck to this basic pattern and continuously try to do better than the day before. After visiting well over 100 cocktail bars since opening our doors, I think the fact that we opened a bar without any preconceptions about what a cocktail bar should be has made us what we are today. I started thinking about this menu idea over a year ago, and I wasn’t sure that it would work. Then, Imbibe Magazine put out an AMAZING issue devoted entirely to the South, and it was so inspiring that I new that I had to go forward with the idea. It was a risky idea – scrapping 90% of the menu including food and going in a very specific direction, but I’ve always been proud of how distinct we are. This menu is just another step in that direction.

Additional Note: Thanks to Alex Gregg for the amazing photographs and the two shown cocktails which are standouts on the menu. Alex – we are so lucky to have you and all of your talents. Anvil has really improved since we added you to the team!

Spring isn’t really a season in Houston – it just a brief transition. Nevertheless, we are living it up while we can. Below is our current house cocktail menu. I’m very proud of our staff, and I think this is definitely the best menu we’ve put out to date. We kept a couple we couldn’t part with from the last menu, and of course, we will never pull our house cocktail, The Brave, but everything else is new. I’ve got a tendency to only post on this blog when I have a ridiculous amount of information to discuss about a single topic. I don’t know why I don’t just casually post like this anymore. We might just have to fix that – especially if our bartender Alex insists on taking awesome photos of the whole new cocktail menu like the one above. Thanks for the help Alex – you rock! You can view our full menu, including our current featured classics list (there’s a Phil Ward drink on there) at our website here.

RUM SELECTIONS (Definitely Tiki Influenced):

Pete’s Sake – Aged Rum, Peach Brandy, Don’s Spices #2, Lime, Orange
k-38 – White Rum, Mezcal, Lemon, Agave Nectar, Tomatillo, Hopped Grapefruit Bitters
The Ladder of Death – Dark Rum, Aged Rum, Overproof Rum, Lemon, Orange, Pineapple, House Grenadine, Aromatic Bitters

WHISK(E)Y SELECTIONS (For the Diehards):

The Ugly American – Bourbon, Cardamaro, Quina, Orange Bitters
The London Guinea – Scotch, Pimm’s, Lemon, Birch, House Sarsaparilla Bitters
Black Betty – Fenugreek-Infused Rye, Bonal, Italian Bitter, Xocolatl Mole Bitters

GIN SELECTIONS (The Most Diverse Section of the Menu):

The Royal Kris – Gin, Batavia Arrack, Lime, Passion Fruit Syrup, Sriracha, Seltzer
Allenro – Old Tom Gin, Dry Vermouth, Galliano, Orange Flower Water
Maharaja Buck – Cardamom-Infused Gin, Lime, Turmeric, House Tamarin Jam, House Ginger Beer

AGAVE SELECTIONS (Tequila’s Actually in the Minority):

La Soldadera – Sotol, Yellow Chatreuse, Blanc Vermouth, Xocolatl Mole Bitters
Morelos St. – Tequila, Lemon, House Cranberry-Angelica Liqueur, Sage, Tonic
The Brave – Mezcal, Sotol, Averna, Curacao, Aromatic Bitters

OTHER SELECTIONS (By “Other”, We Apparently Mean “Amari”):

Golden Gate Swizzle – Fernet, Falernum, Orgeat, Lemon, Aromatic & Orange Bitters
Bitter Roots – Cynar, Aged Rum, Madeira, Honey, India Pale Ale, Aromatic Bitters

When making a cocktail, sometimes the simplest perspective is an ideal starting point – what do I feel like eating or drinking right freakin’ now??? Don’t force the issue – just give in to those inner cravings. I’m not exactly sure how my most recent cocktail obsession got started, but over the past six or so months, I’ve been treating my cocktails like a hefty portion of bratwurst. I’m a mustard freak, and through even those who profess to hate mustard are liking some of these odd combinations.

Cassis de Dijon

1 oz. Cruzan Blackstrap Rum
¾ oz. Crème de Cassis
½ oz. Lemon Juice
1 Barspoon of Turbinado-Based Simple Syrup
½ Barspoon Dijon Mustard

Shake and strain into a highball glass with crushed ice. Garnish with a lemon wedge and blackberry.

As the cocktail movement has grown over recent years, interest in atypical ingredients has accelerated. Fat washing, vinegars, and other uncommon cocktails ingredients have teetered carefully on the wall standing boldy between “trendy pr wet dream gimmicks” and “passionate line cook gone bartender” madness. Some have staying power; others are likely to be oddball footnotes in out of print cocktail books…er…blogs. Mustard is certainly no different, but when considering unusual cocktail ingredients, it is always important to consider what classic components an ingredient can offer to a cocktail.

La Mostarda

1 ½ oz. Mustard Seed-Infused Gin
¾ oz. Lime Juice
½ oz. House Grenadine
½ oz. Pomegranate Molasses

Shake and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime wedge.

Mustard has a spicy, acidic, vinegar quality that actually shares so much with more common cocktail ingredients like bitters, shrubs, and citrus. Apparently, I’m not the first to think of this either, as there is even a french mustard liqueur already in production. I’ve never had this, but hell, that sure is encouraging!

In all of my experimenting, I’ve found that two major approaches work: infusions and using mustard itself. Infusions that use whole mustard seed are quick and extremely flavorful and typically only take about twenty-four hours to take hold of a spirit. These infusions also play nicely with herbs and other spices, resulting in a more dynamic base for your cocktails. Fresh mustard (we’re talking a bold spicy Dijon here, not French’s) is a little more precarious.

As you might have guessed, there aren’t any ounce proportions in any of my mustard cocktails. Instead, think of the similarities mustard shares with bitters – small amounts with constant attention to balance my friends. Think of making mostarda, an Italian condiment made from candied and mustard syrup. Herbs such as sage, thyme, and basil with lime, lemon, grapefruit juice or peach and apple all work seamlessly.

The Garden Variety

1 ½ oz. Coriander-Infused Tequila
¾ oz. Lime Juice
¾ oz. Honey Syrup
¼ Inch Thick Cucumber Slice
½ Barspoon Spicy Dijon Mustard

Muddle cucumber and with shake other ingredients. Fine strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a sprig of cilantro.

This post has probably left you either very curious or doubting the sanity of the staff behind the bar at Anvil. Trust me some of us are definitely insane, but none of that is mustard-related. Nevertheless, I hope you’ll give in to that first curious instinct and try one of these out. To be clear, I’m not saying this is going replace the iconic American hotdog anytime soon, but at the very least, maybe it is a good example of how thinking about ingredients at their core – acidity, spice, etc. – can lead to new cocktail experiences.

The remainder of this column can be read here at the Houston Press’ website. This is part of an ongoing series of cocktail articles written by Bobby Heugel for the Houston Press. To read prior columns and read more about this series on great cocktails, please refer to this previous post.

The remainder of this column can be read here at the Houston Press’ website. This is part of an ongoing series of cocktail articles written by Bobby Heugel for the Houston Press. To read prior columns and read more about this series on great cocktails, please refer to this previous post.

Aperol was created in 1919, when it debuted at an Italian Trade Fair. Aperol was originally a Barbero brand, but in 2003, it was bought by Grupo Campari. At 11% abv, Aperol is intended to be a flavorful aperitif as opposed to a boozy liqueur. However, despite its low alcohol content, Aperol is an extremely flavorful making it a great cocktail ingredient.

The classic Aperol cocktail is the Aperol Spritz. Simple? Yes. But, damn is this one delicious cocktail. Again, the cocktail isn’t potent by any means, but sipping these on a hot summer day or in the afternoon before a meal will make anyone an Aperol enthusiast.

APEROL SPRITZ

1.5 oz Aperol
2 oz Sparkling Wine
Splash Soda

Build all ingredients with ice in a rocks glass. Garnish with an orange slice.

Here’s a boozy cocktail from Anvil’s current menu created by Anvil bartender, Aaron Lara. The combination of aperol, gin, and tequila is magical, and the sweetness added by the blanc vermouth perfectly balances the cocktail. I’ll miss this one when it exits the menu on Monday.

THE GRINGO

1 oz Aperol
.5 oz Beefeater Gin
.5 oz Siembra Azul Blanco Tequila
.5 oz Dolin Blanc Vermouth
1 Dash Angostura Bitters

Stir all ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist. The brands are vital here; don’t treat this as a generic gin, tequila, blanc/bianco vermouth cocktail recipe.

Aperol and St. Germain are a magical combination. To showcase this relationship, I created this simple, tasty aperitif sour that is true to the nature of aperol – light and refreshing without the boozy kick. As written, the cocktail appears sweet, but it is actually very well balanced and makes for a great starter. The pressed rosemary adds a nice aromatic quality that helps tie the cocktail together.

APPARENT SOUR

1.5 oz Aperol
.75 oz St. Germain
.75 oz Lime Juice

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a pressed rosemary sprig.

Like myself, Aaron is a huge Aperol fan, and he created the next cocktail with an evangelist perspective. As opposed to the bold and boozy Gringo, Aaron’s Aperol Swizzle is tangy and semi-sweet with significant depth for such a refreshing cocktail. A cocktail for everyone, and one that will definitely help build the Aperol cult. Plus, few drink genres work as well this time of year in Houston better than swizzles.

APEROL SWIZZLE

2 oz Aperol
1 oz Orange Juice
.5 oz Gin
1 Barspoon Orgeat
1 Barpsoon Averna Amaro

Build all ingredients with ice in a small collins glass and swizzle until thoroughly mixed and frost forms on outside of the glass. Garnish with a lemon wedge.

So, I know I started this post out by talking about how Aperol shouldn’t be treated as the bastard child of Campari, but I couldn’t help myself with this last cocktail. One of Anvil’s most popular house cocktails is the Smitten, a cocktail made from gin, Campari, lemon juice, turbinado syrup, and mint. I’ve always enjoyed this cocktail and love that it is simple enough for anyone to make at home or another bar. Recently, not knowing who I was or my affiliation with the drink, a local bartender even offered to make me a Smitten when I was out to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants. It was such a great feeling; I told the guy I would take his recommendation and thoroughly enjoyed the perfectly crafted cocktail.

All that said, a Smitten made with Aperol instead of Campari is even better! It’s so good that despite its similarity to the original Smitten, it is also going on our new menu which debuts next Monday.

TWICE SMITTEN

1 oz Gin
1 oz Aperol
1 oz Lemon Juice
.5 oz Turbinado Syrup
8-10 Mint Leaves

Combine all ingredients with ice and shake. Fine strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with a pressed mint sprig floated on top. If you don’t have turbinado syrup or sugar, a basic simple syrup will suit just fine. To make the original Smitten, follow the exact recipe, but use an ounce of Campari instead of an ounce of Aperol.

Well there you have it – no more excuses for not tinkering that growing Italian import. Aperol is a wonderful aperitif that is finding itself in more cocktail-minded bars every day. God bless those crazy Italians; they sure do bitterly wonderful things!

The Tom Collins is among the most famous of historical cocktails. Yet despite this widespread notoriety, one glaringly obvious question remains unanswered: Who the hell was Tom Collins anyway? Two competing stories may offer some insight. It seems that the often overlooked Mr. Collins was either a fictitious multi-state libelous scoundrel or a freaking bar cat! Regardless of which perspective is correct, one certainty prevails: the Tom Collins has the most fascinating back-story of any classic cocktail.

The remainder of this column can be read here at the Houston Press’ website. This is part of an ongoing series of cocktail articles written by Bobby Heugel for the Houston Press. To read prior columns and read more about this series on great cocktails, please refer to this previous post.

For weeks, this friendly cocktail column has resisted the urge to write about the Corn N’ Oil. It was tempting, but using the Gulf spill as vehicle for discussing this cocktail seemed far too easy. After all, maintaining this column as a refuge from the daily stream of petroleum press seemed increasingly important as the gulf became saturated with a downpour of incompetence that rivaled the oil seeping from the tanker. Unfortunately, the barrage of Kevin Costner clips, BP CEO “Seriously did he just say that?” moments, and general government apathy from both sides has become too overwhelming. Corn N’ Oil you win. It now seems that retiring to the bedroom in a drunken stupor with a bottle of Cruzan Blackstrap in one hand and a crumbled newspaper clipping of an oil-covered pelican in the other is quite unavoidable.

The remainder of this column can be read here at the Houston Press’ website. This is part of an ongoing series of cocktail articles written by Bobby Heugel for the Houston Press. To read prior columns and read more about this series on great cocktails, please refer to this previous post.

The Pisco Sour

PLEASE KEEP IN MIND, the goal of these posts is to educate a broad audience about cocktails, so I am trying to be as informative and entertaining as possible while still covering the basics. So, if you’re a super cocktail dork (let’s face it, why else would you be reading this blog), you might find these posts elementary. That’s the point. Also, the Houston Press is definitely a Houston-centric publication, so the writing definitely reflects my passionate love for my home city.

Interested, or not, I figured letting everyone know about this would, at the very least, help repair my reputation as a cocktail blogger and writer. I’m not a lazy as I seem! Additionally, now that Drink Dogma has been redesigned, be prepared to see more posts on here that do unleash the inner cocktail geek. The Anvil staff is going to be writing more, Anvil events, such as classes, menus, and other special events will be covered and recapped, and hopefully we can get some cocktail videos working soon. In the meantime, feel free to check out the Houston Press Cocktail Columns I’ve written so far:

2-23-10 – The Vieux  Carre

3-2-10 – The French 75

3-9-10 – The Blood and Sand

3-16-10 – The Old-Fashioned

3-24-10 – El Diablo

4-1-10 – The Last Word

4-8-10 – The Kangaroo Cocktail

4-15-10 – The Hemingway Daiquiri

4-22-10 – The Mint Julep Part 1: Bourbon Basics

4-29-10 – The Mint Julep Part 2: The Julep

5-6-10 – The Margarita

5-13-10 – The Pisco Sour

5-20-10 – The Champagne Cocktail

5-27-10 – The Corpse Reviver #2

6-4-10 – The Negroni

6-14-10 – The Corn N’ Oil

6-21-10 – The Tom Collins

6-30-10 Swizzles

7-12-10 The Gin & Tonic

7-20-10 The Bees Knees

7-27-10 The Maple Leaf

Thanks for not giving up on Drink Dogma!

Twitter Information
Facebook Information

UPDATE: We’ve since received our wonderful selection of Buffalo Trace, and it is phenomenal. As of today, February 17, 2011, we still have some left in the bar, so get in there quick and give it a try!

Buffalo Trace Distillery

It’s no secret that Buffalo Trace is my favorite go to bourbon. In my opinion, you can’t find a regularly available bourbon under $40 that comes anywhere close to how wonderful this one is. However, the namesake bourbon isn’t the primary reason why I’m one of Buffalo Trace’s biggest fans; instead, it is the distillery’s ongoing efforts to push the dusty bourbon industry forward. Simply put, these folks are making the best and most exciting products available in the American whiskey category, and there’s no sign that anyone is going to challenge them any time soon.

Each year’s release of the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection release consisting of the William Larue Weller, George T. Stagg, Eagle Rare 17 Year, Thomas Handy Rye, and Sazerac 18 Year Rye yields arguably the best bourbons and ryes annually. In addition to these limited products, the distillery also makes the younger version of the Sazerac Rye, Weller Bourbons, Blanton’s, the Pappy Van Winkle line, and other important non-bourbon products, such as the recently release original formula Herbsaint, Regan’s Orange Bitters, and even Peychaud’s Bitters. The lineup, which includes others as well, is really quite incredible. There are distilleries everywhere that would love to claim just one of these products as their own. There is no other distillery in the country I would rather tour, and to be given unrestricted access on our own private tour was an unforgettable opportunity.

Buffalo Trace Fermentation Tank

One of the definite highlights of the trip was our visit to the lab, where Buffalo Trace samples and blends their bourbons. In a blessed coincidence of divine bourbon intervention, we happen to be there on the day that this year’s Antique Collection was being selected. Kevin and I were actually the second and third individuals to taste what will be  the upcoming lineup, Maybe it was jut the setting, but I think the upcoming release is going to be the best yet. The Thomas Handy and William Larue Weller were two of the best whiskies I’ve ever had, and I can’t wait to pour them at the bar.

While we were definitely there for bourbon, the cocktail fan in me just couldn’t resist the opportunity to find out more about one of Buffalo Trace’s lesser-known brands. I persistently prodded every Buffalo Trace employee available to tell me more about the composition and process used to make Peychaud’s, but I was shot down time and time again. The only information the staff gave me about the secretive Peychaud’s process was that it was becoming a real pain in the ass to keep up with the continually escalating demands caused by people like me who force feed everyone sazeracs. I bet they really won’t like it when our new menu launches soon and our bartender Matt Tanner’s Peychaud’s Spritz starts using an ounce and a half of Peychaud’s per drink – sorry guys.

Buffalo Trace Lab

Yet, despite the extensive private tour, tasting lab access, and bitters exploration, we were here for one reason – to select our own barrel of Buffalo Trace for Anvil. Buffalo Trace pulled five preferred barrels out of the warehouse and let Kevin and I dive right in. Buffalo Trace is regularly blended from 25-30 barrels to acquire the signature flavor of the bourbon, but when selecting an individual barrel, the flavors can vary greatly. Kevin and I narrowed the five barrels down to tour two favorites. One was lighter and full of a unique delicate vanilla flavor that was drastically different than any bourbon I had tasted before. The other was bold and full of aggressive charred flavors; it was outstanding and reminded me of a complex rye that asks you to explore all of the spice, char, and other qualities that endlessly sing on the palate. I would have loved to have taken both, but we could only choose one.

Anvil Buffalo Trace Barrel Selection

As is typical of Kevin and I, we argued back and forth about which barrel to select. I won’t tell you who won, but we eventually decided to select the bolder barrel for Anvil as our guests typically enjoy more aggressive whiskey such as rye and assertive bourbons. With our patrons in mind, we know we chose the ideal house selection for Anvil. Our barrel is slowly working its way through the distribution channels and will be at the bar very soon. We are even considering allowing a local retailer to make a few of these bottles available for sale. Personally, I can’t wait until the barrel gets here so that we can taste the bourbon side-by-side with the Buffalo Trace White Dog and standard bottles of Buffalo Trace. We just started offering cocktail classes at Anvil on the last Saturday of each month (our gin class is this weekend), and I am really looking forward to offering this comparison when we do bourbon in a few months. By the way, if you want to get a jump start on learning about bourbon you should check out the first article I wrote as one of my weekly cocktail columns for the Houston Press in a two part series on the Mint Julep – it’s Bourbon 101.

I’ll re-post when our private Buffalo Trace selection comes in. Next time, I will tell you about our the barrel-aged beer collaboration we are working on with the barrel we selected. That’s right house Buffalo Trace Bourbon, house barrel-aged beers – watch out; there’s that jealousy again! Fortunately, the best part of my job is getting to these experiences with everyone that comes into Anvil. Kevin and I will try and remember the sharing aspect of our job and not drink all the bourbon when it comes in. We’ve been craving it for months!