The Evolution of American Whiskey

With construction work on Anvil moving ahead at a feverish pace, I have found it next to impossible to sit down and string together a post for months. The blog updating which Robert and I hoped would continue with one or two posts a week has been traded for refining countless details at Anvil. Thankfully Robert has been able to keep writing a little, while I on the other hand have stopped writing, shaving, and maintaining any professional appearance whatsoever. Read more

Jim Beam New (ri)1 Rye Review

After spending most of the last decade of my life surrounded by shelves of liquor, I have come to the definitive conclusion that different spirits have distinctive personalities. And, up until today, I was pretty sure who rye was. Now, I’m not so sure. There was a day when I knew everyone in the bar, and I then this whole new Jim Beam (ri) thing happened. Now I’m wondering what the heck is going on and re-evaluating everyone trying to figure out who is who. Read more

Air Infusions: Smoked Rye

I’ve got two obsessive hobbies: cocktails and large South American tropical fish. The .0005% of the world’s people who appreciate the cocktails don’t understand the fish, and the .0005% of the world’s people who appreciate the fish don’t understand the cocktails. I might be the only link between these two strange groups of hobbyists. Generally, my two hobbies have nothing to do with one another - the fish don’t like to drink I guess - but, I finally found a way to use my fish and cocktail knowledge together. The result was a delicious bottle of house-smoked Sazerac rye whisky.

This idea was hatched a few months ago when I was exploring the concept of smoked cocktails. While I have refined the idea of incorporating smoke into cocktails quite well since those writings, I still wanted to try my original idea of smoking a bottle of liquor itself. The problem with most other methods for incorporating smoke into a cocktail is that the smoke must piggy-back on some other medium, like a syrup, fruit, herb, etc. This introduces an additional flavor to a drink, that while tasty at times, limits the element of smoke to cocktails that use these types of ingredients. Unleashing the full potential of smoke in cocktails requires the introduction of smoke into a spirit without altering the spirit in any other way.

Enter the fish tank aerator. This device is usually used to force air into a fish tank in order to provide fish with air. The aerator simply collects the surrounding air and forces it into an airline which is connected to an airstone or airbar placed inside of a fish tank. This aerator is generally surrounded by clean, oxygen friendly air, which makes happy, healthy fish. A deadly error made by fish keepers, however, is spraying Lysol or other aerosols around fish tanks or aerators. The Lysol is taken in by the aerator forced into the tank, and the owner’s precious fish die, because Lysol kills germs…and fish. They should put this whole sequence on a commercial and point out that if the fish don’t have a chance, neither do the germs.

Now take these same principles and place that aerator on a smoke stack. And, instead of running the airline into a fish tank, place the end of the line in a bottle of Sazerac rye. The aerator takes in the smoke and forces it into the rye. The smoke, which is alcohol and water soluble, takes hold of the spirit and slowly changes it over time into a tasty beverage even Samuel L. Jackson would be proud of. The only thing to watch for here is the potential for the aerator to overheat. Make sure that your stack is not too hot and use a smoker that has a large distance between the fire and chimney opening. Taste your rye or whatever you desire every 30 minutes or so and pull the line out when you’ve reached your desired smokiness.

Some have suggested using liquid smoke instead of smoking a spirit as a method for accomplishing the same result. However, liquid smoke is far more intense and difficult to control. Air infusing a spirit takes time and allows for one to stop the introduction of smoke at any point, creating more control over the final result, and eventual cocktails. Moreover, smoking a spirit yourself allows for you to use any type of wood to obtain a more specific smoke profile. Our rye was smoked with the smoker at the bar for example, and we used the same wood we smoke all of our meats with, maple and red oak. Any wood would work so, the potential for using all sorts of different wood, like mesquite or some other crazy foreign wood I haven’t heard of, could create some extremely complex spirits with as much subtlety or boldness as one would desire.

I love smoke elements in cocktails, and I think that smoke properties are an overlooked trait in mixology. Between the air infusion presented here and my other posts on smoked cocktails, I think the methodology for adding smoke to cocktails has been presented somewhat extensively. I would love to hear what others are doing with smoke and find out if anyone has heard of any new smokey cocktails since my last posts on the subject. Also, please try this out and tell me how your air infusion works. I’m pretty sure this idea is a first, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there where other fish/cocktails fans out there.

 

How To Make Your Own Bitters

I want to be like Antoine Peychaud. After finally confronting the realization that I will never live up to the old “Be like Mike commercials”, I lived in a world without a role model and guidance for several years. This void in my life, filled by a perilous journey towards a purposeless end (Masters degree), eventually had to end. So, as of today, I want to be like Antoine. And, no, nothing rhymes with Antoine or Peychaud, so this doesn’t have the same catchy Jordan slogan characteristic – get over it. Man, I sound like some sort of bitter old man; I guess that’s the point. This is a post about bitters after all.

I have long thought of bitters as the salt and pepper of cocktails. While a proportionally small additive to any cocktail, bitters serve the vital role of balancing drink elements and heightening the complexity of cocktails. Ten years ago finding any bitters aside from the traditional Angostura brand was virtually impossible. Today, the bitters market has exploded with everything from Regan’s Orange Bitters to the soon to be released Bittermens Xocolatl Mole Bitters. These are all great options for the cocktail enthusiast, but if you really want to go crazy, you have to start making your own bitters.

The are plenty of articles available online, many from other bloggers, describing how to make your own bitters, but there really isn’t a source of possible basic bitters ingredients. Sure, you can find a recipe calling for Fringe Tree Bark, but what the heck is that anyway? For the record, apparently, it is a type of tree that grows in the Eastern US that when in bloom has beautiful white flowers. Awesome! Let’s chop it down and put it in some bitters with a bunch of other stuff. (Blog loses environmentalist-minded readers.)

The liquor components

All bitters start with a spirit base. When selecting liquor for this bitters project, we wanted to use liquors that are easy to obtain, come at a low price point, and have a high proof. The high proof is the most important part of the liquor selection, as it allows for a longer shelf life and may extract more flavor during the infusion process. Due to the fact that you will never use more than a few drops of the bitters in a cocktail you shouldn’t worry about the high proof throwing of the balance of a drink. In our situation, we opted for three different high proof liquors:

Everclear: This pure grain favorite of frat boys all across the country is perfect for this bitters project. It weighs in at a sensory overloading 190 proof, it doesn’t bring any flavors with it so it will work well with the ingredients we want to stand out.

Gosling’s 151-Proof Black Seal Rum: We had a few options when it came to high proof rum, but we made the call to go with the Gosling’s because we thought that it would add a depth of flavor that you simply can’t get from other high proof rum. We’ll go for distinction any day.

Wild Turkey Rye: This might seem like an unlikely choice, with a lower proof, but we really wanted to use the spiciness of a rye in combination with some of the earthy and bitter components we had at our disposable. The choice to use the Turkey was easy; it is our go-to rye at the bar. Texas doesn’t have the greatest of rye selections, so we are left with a very small amount of options. A few months back we had a very informal, drunken rye tasting and the turkey came up on top; plus, you can’t beat the price point.

The Herbal Components

This is where the list can get a little ridiculous, and it did. We put this list together based off of recipes we found online, and things we thought would just be fun to try. One void we found with many bitters recipes is that while some give good how to advice, none really explain what it is they are using and why. We by no means think this list is all inclusive, as no list should be. But, we think you could use this post as future resource for when you decide to make your own.

Let me preface this with the following statement, “We are not botanists, we do not know about plants or herbs, but we do know how to use the internet, and our taste buds work, so if you are a botanist or a herbologist (is that a word?) and you find any of these statements to be incorrect please let us know and we will remedy the situation.” Actually, that whole chop the tree down comment probably made all of those people leave by now; no real concern there. On to the herbs:

Wormwood: With the recent return of Absinthe to American shores, it seems as if everyone has heard of this herb. Wormwood is a tall woody plant that grows well in dry sunny conditions. While not related, fully grown wormwood plants look like hemp plants. Wormwood was often planted around the edges of other fields because it does a good job of acting like a natural pesticide.

Birch Leaf: Birch leaf, just as the name suggests, is the leaf of a Birch tree. Birch leaf and Birch bark are very traditional herbal medicines that are usually used in teas or paste to treat joint discomfort, warts and lower urinary tract infections. The Birch leaf has a sweet nose and an earthy taste.

Dandelion Leaf and Bark: The Dandelion is a flowering plant that is native to Africa, Asia and Europe. They are about 30 million years old and have been used by humans as a food source for all of recorded history. The dried leaves have a spicy earthy nose; the taste is a mix of fresh soil and grass. The root is chewy and sweet with hints of earthy soil. We use both the root and the leaf because many of the recipes we found only called for dandelion and did not specify which part. If you use the root be careful to not use too much, in its dry state it will soak up a large amount of liquid. So you might lose a large portion of any liquor you mix with it.

Fringe Tree Bark: The fringe tree is a small flowering tree found in the Eastern United States from Tennessee to Pennsylvania. It flowers in the late summer and looks like a cross between a Dogwood and a Magnolia. The bark is the only part of the plant that was used if frontier medicine. It finds its use in bitters because of the lightly bitter oils the bark contains. It is historically used in conjunction with Barberry Root Bark.

Barberry Root Bark: Barberry has been called one of the best medical plants in North America. It was first used by American Indians along the Eastern side of the country. It is used to increase the body’s production of bile and thus help improve liver functions. The flavor is a light bitterness mixed with sweet and spicy notes.

Milk Thistle Seed: As you might expect, Milk Thistle Seed comes from the Milk Thistle plant. The seeds are used to help improve overall body functions because they contain high levels of antioxidants. The seeds are small and black. They have almost no taste, but when infused you can get elements of bitterness from them.

Burdock Root: Burdock is a thistle, which is native to Europe and parts of Asia. Burdock is related to the Artichoke. Cynar anyone? When we talk about Burdock root, we are referring to the taproot of a young burdock plant which can be eaten as a root vegetable. While the use of Burdock in European cuisine has fallen out of popularity, it is still very popular in Asia. When fresh, Burdock is very crisp and has a mild sweet yet pungent flavor. You can most easily find Burdock in its dry form; in this state, it loses some of its crispness but the flavor remains with the addition of a more tannin undertone. Dandelion and Burdock is a popular soft drink in the UK.

Black Walnut Leaf: The Black Walnut is native to Eastern American, with a range that stretches from Ontario in the north, Florida in the south and as far west and Eastern Texas. Generally, the tree is prized for its fruit (Walnuts) or its dark heartwood, which as a history of being poached from public lands. One of the first recorded uses of Plant DNA testing was used to convict a poacher in East Texas. The leaf is much cheaper to buy and you wouldn’t find yourself in jail for picking it. The oils found in the leaves can be a dark dye that is hard to remove from cloths and hands.

Quassia Wood: This is where the bitter party really starts. Just chew on a piece and you will know what I mean. It is a tree that is native to Jamaica; it is a natural insecticide and has sometimes been used instead of hops when brewing beer. I would guess that we might see more of this as the price of hops continues to rise in the US.

Lavender: Sounds like a strange ingredient to add to bitters; well it is. We’re not sure what the lavender will do but you might find us using it as an aromatic additive. Lavender is an herb which finds itself as a member of the mint family. The plant is native to Europe, Africa, India and the Mediterranean. However, because it is a favorite among American gardeners for both is aroma and natural insecticide properties, you might find it growing wild in the US as a local garden escapee. Lavender has found uses as a part of salad dressing, marinades and garnishes. While the flower petals are purple, they turn an eerie green when combined with high proof liquor.

Fennel Seed: Fennel is a special case. It is the only plant that is an herb, a vegetable and a spice. The leaves are a common herb, the bulb is the vegetable and the seeds are the spice. What we’re not forgetting one, are we? Of course the pollen, fennel pollen is one of those few spices that is worth more than liquor, drugs or gold sometimes costing $35 an oz for the good stuff. We use the seed because it is easy to store when dry and carries a lot of flavor.

Citrus: We use 3 types of citrus; lemons, oranges and grapefruits. If we talk about the zest we are referring to the fine zest you get with the use of a micro plane. You use the zest when all you want in the flavor of the oils from the skin. When we talk about peel we are referring to the thin outer peel. Us your twist knife to get long strips that have the zest, the oils and just a little pith. We use the peel when we want to introduce the bitterness that comes from the pith.

Apples: You can use whole dried apples. But we simply micro planes the skin off so that we good we the flavor, color and bitterness without adding bulk or sugar.

Hibiscus Blossoms: Many classic bitters recipes call for the use of dried roses or some other edible flower. Kevin had Hibiscus growing in the backyard so we decided to go with what we had. Hibiscuses grow very well in warm temperate climates all over the world. The flowers are used in teas, as medicines and even as a natural antidandruff shampoo. The bark contains strong fibers that are used in wigs and grasses skirts.

Hops: I could write a book about hops, in fact people have so I will just direct you here for more information.

The Spices

The spices we used were chosen for one of two reasons. First they are tradition bitters ingredients, second we just really like them.

Cinnamon: This is pretty strait forward, or so you think. Cinnamon is the bark of a cinnamon tree after it has been coppiced (the act of cutting the tree down very close to the ground after it is a few years old, the next season many small shots will have grown on the stump). Ok, now this tree thing is getting out of hand. For the record, we are pretty green people. Cinnamon has a history that is closely tied to war and conquest. In the age before globalization, the spice of grown is only a few places and the trade routes that crossed Europe and Asia were constantly in dispute. It was in fact a disruption in the spice supply to Europe from Asia brought about by the rise of Mamluk Sultans and the Ottoman Empire in the east that forced Europe to find alternate routes to Asia. While this history is all about the cinnamon most conman spices share the same back story.

As the East India Trading Company was becoming powerful they found it easier to grown their own spice instead of importing it. They also began looking for alternatives to spices such as cinnamon. With the discovery of cassia the importation of True Cinnamon almost totally stopped. In fact in American today if you buy ground Cinnamon what you are really getting is ground cassia. Cassia is harder and strong smelling and tasting then True Cinnamon. In fact for this project we went with whole Cassia that is labeled as cinnamon because it is easier to get and more familiar to the American palate.

Coriander: Coriander seeds are those small round little things that look like smooth tan pepper corns. But they are in reality the seeds of the Coriander plant better known to Americans as Cilantro.

Anise: A member of the holy trinity of Absinthe. The Chinese believe that as long as you have a whole perfect star in your home your marriage will be a good one, god forbid the star breaking. Anise is prized as both a garnish and a flavoring, adding a deep black liquorish taste.

Black Peppercorns: We like to use just a little fresh black peppercorns in most spice combinations because they add an extra flavor dynamic.

Cloves: Cloves are a dried flower bud. The name comes from the French clou, a nail, because the bud resembles a short nail. The cloves are picked late in the season when the green flowers have turned red. Cloves are native to India, Pakistan and Madagascar.

Allspice: As children you might have thought, as we did, that allspice was a mix of several different spices. Well if you did don’t be embarrassed the reason allspice has its name is that early European explorers thought the same thing when they were first introduced to the Jamaican Peppercorn. They believed that the ground powdered version was a mix of cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg

Whole Green Cardamom: We like to use the whole pod because the bitter husk balances well with the spicy seed. Cardamom is a member of the ginger family. We did not grind them as is the common practice but simply lightly cracked them with a hammer.

Juniper Berries: We are very Gin-centric and really wanted to use a high proof gin, but because there was not one available we decided to get some juniper and make a high proof infusion and create a gin-like homemade spirit.

What do we have in the jars?

Jar #1: Milk Thistle Seed, Black Walnut Leaf, Birch Leaf and High Proof Rum (HPR). This is a modification of a recipe from Jamie Boudreau. We used equal portions of each and then filled with the HPR.

Jar #2: Apple peal and Pure Grain Alcohol (PGA). The micro planed peels from 3 Washington Apples and fill the pint jar with PGA.

Jar #3: Cinnamon Stick, Anise Star, Clove, Allspice, Vanilla, and PGA. Once again thanks Jamie.

Jar #4: Fringe Tree Bark, Burdock Root, Milk Thistle Seed, Dandelion Leaf/Root, Barberry Root Bark, Fennel Seed, Wormwood and HPR. Sounded like a good idea.

Jar #5: Grapefruit zest and PGA. The fine zest of 2 large Grapefruits and filled with PGA. Started to turn a pinkish yellow color.

Jar #6: Orange zest and PGA. The fine zest of 4 navel oranges and filled with PGA.

Jar #7: Juniper Berries, Dandelion Leaf/Root and Rye. We think the earthiness of the Dandelion will work well with the spice of the rye and the pine treeiness of the Juniper.

Jar #8: Wormwood and HPR. The really bitter wormwood and the smooth rich rum should play well.

Jar #9: Juniper and PGA. We will use this to try and make a high proof gin of sorts. The thought is that after the infusions is done with can add it to an 80 proof gin and get something in the ballpark of 130 proof without watering down the gin flavor.

Jar #10: Cherry Pits and Rye. This is a complete experiment we will keep you up dated.

Jar #11: Quassia and HPR. Same thought as Jar #8.

Jar #12: Star Anise, Wormwood, Fennel and Rye. Absinthe meets Rye Whisky.

Jar #13: Nugget Hops and Rye. This is the nastiest looking thing ever, it looks like dark green vomit but it smells like a spicy hoppy IPA. So we have high hopes.

Jar #14: Cardamom, Peppercorn, Burdock, Allspice, Lavender, Cinnamon and HPR. This was Robert’s home bitter combination.

Jar #15: Lemon Zest and PGA. The fine zest of 6 lemons and a fill of PGA.

Jar #16: Lavender and PGA

Jar #17: Coriander, Peppercorn, Vanilla, The peel of 2 navel Oranges, The peel of 3 lemons and Rye. The best flavors of Kevin’s favorite Belgium beers and rye, yummy.

Jar #18: Hibiscus Petal and PGA.

We’ll keep you posted on how these turn out. When completed, we plan to blend various jars together and tinker with tons of different recipes. We have been infusing the spirits for about two weeks now, so we are around halfway there. We are also trying to track down a charred barrel so that we can barrel age these bitters for even more complexity.

So, no unlike a classic Jordan baseline move, these bitters aren’t going to be quick and instantly gratifying. This process takes time and dedication, but every great cocktail does. Until then, we will just stick to the available brands, after all, we can still make a killer Manhattan and that’s certainly enough to live off of.

This post was written by Robert Heugel and Kevin Floyd. You can try these bitters at our bar.

Carpano Punt E Mes

I consider one of my purposes in life to introduce Campari to as many people as possible. I just think you should try and make a difference in the world before you go. But, helping people to appreciate Campari is kind of like teaching a child to play catch. You know you’re going to hit them in the face, but this is something they need to learn so they can enjoy future experiences. Similarly, it can be difficult to lead someone down the pathway towards Campari as bitterness is often a powerful and distinct flavor. So, I start with a softer ball of bitterness, Punt E Mes.

Punt E Mes is a type of Italian vermouth that has a bitter component similar to Campari. Punt E Mes, which literally translates to “point and a half”, was named after a stock market jump which was commemorated through the Italian aperitif. The bitter qualities of this delicious libation basically add another dimension to a traditional, bold sweet vermouth. This can, when used correctly, form a more complex structure in cocktails as well.

If you like trying different types of vermouth instead of settling for everyday staples, I would strongly recommend picking up a bottle of Punt E Mes to play with in your favorite cocktails calling for sweet vermouth. This approach helps to demonstrate the unique qualities of Punt E Mes because there is an established standard for comparison between the newly created cocktail and the standard recipe. If you want to try a cocktail that calls for Punt E Mes; check this one out (from Sammy Ross of Milk and Honey I think):

Red Hook

2 oz Rye
1/2 Punt E Mes
1/2 Maraschino Liqueur (Luxardo)

Stir and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.

The Red Hook (not to be confused with a brewery that was once making good beers before being bought by the beer leviathan, A.B.) is one of those outstanding cocktails that carefully utilizes each ingredient in a manner that is extremely well-balanced, despite its varied spectrum of flavors. The bitterness in the Punt E Mes is held in check by the sweetness in the maraschino; essentially, you get an awesome cocktail similar to the Manhattan with a wider spectrum of flavors. I like to also add 2 dashes of Regan’s Orange Bitters and 1 dash of Angostura to my Red Hooks. I find that like Campari, small amounts of orange flavors compliment the bitterness in Punt E Mes extremely well.

Punt E Mes is one of those ingredients that is overlooked far too often by cocktail enthusiasts. It adds an entirely different dimension when used in cocktails, that otherwise would lack a bitter component. My ongoing efforts to share the beauty of Campari with the world may not appear to be the most noble of pursuits, but man, it is soooo good. You’ve just got to want to share it with people if you have a humanitarian bone in you.

Unfortunately, my approach of using Punt E Mes as a gateway aperitif is a bit unfair to the vermouth. Punt E Mes shouldn’t just be a Campari sidekick. Actually, they are very distinct, and, aside from their bitter elements, don’t really have all that much in common. Punt E Mes is independently a wonderful ingredient that needs to be used for its precise makeup. Perhaps, it is ignored because of people like me opting for Campari too often. This is a grave mistake that is destroying the possibility for countless great cocktails with less focus on bitterness. Ok, new mission, share the Punt E Mes with the world.

The Margarita Alternative: El Diablo Cocktail

The measure of a good bartender for the majority of eager patrons in Texas is the margarita. This standard is generally unfair as the criteria for the most classic of tequila cocktails is constantly under attack from inferior orange liqueurs like Patron Citronge, this month’s “best margarita mix”, and the notorious frozen varietal. With such a wide spectrum of margarita preferences, it is anyone’s guess what the guest staring at me from across the bar is requesting. I’m hoping that they are going to appreciate the bold, yet refreshing, balance of tequila, Cointreau, and fresh lime juice in a true margarita. But, this being Texas and all, home of the machined margarita, the future is very uncertain. So, I’ve started avoiding the margarita altogether; instead, I opt for another wonderful tequila cocktail with similar characteristics: El Diablo.

Spring’s grasp on Houston is in full affect at this point, so revisiting the lighter seasonal drinks of a year ago has become a priority. Fortunately, this week’s Mixology Monday topic of fruit liqueurs is a perfect opportunity. The Diablo is, to my knowledge, first documented in Trader Vic’s Book of Food and Drink (1946) as the Mexican El Diablo, and it uses crème de cassis brilliantly:

“Mexican El Diablo

1/2 lime
1 ounce tequila
1/2 crème de cassis
Ginger Ale

Squeeze lime juice into a 10-ounce glass; drop in spent shell. Add ice cubes, tequila, and crème de cassis. Fill glass with ginger ale.”

Some of my older books are at the bar right now, and I don’t have them in front of me. So if anyone has an earlier source, please let me know. I actually only have Trader Vic’s Bartender’s Guide, Revised (1947), but other sources say that Trader Vic first listed this recipe in the 1946 publication. Either way, the daunting name of El Diablo, which means “The Devil”, certainly doesn’t live up to its name. The crème de cassis and ginger beer make this tequila option extremely refreshing, certain to please any margarita lover. What I enjoy most about this cocktail is the diversity of flavors. The traditional characteristics of tequila work so well with the fruity currant element of the crème de cassis, the spiced dimensions of the ginger beer, and the acidic component provided by the lime.

To help this cocktail reach its full potential, however, the original recipe should be updated slightly. Instead of squeezing half a lime, use half an ounce. More tequila is always a plus; up the portion here to one and half ounces. Additionally, I don’t rely on filling the glass to determine how much ginger ale goes into the drink; measure the ginger ale and use one ounce only. Choosing tequila brands here is pretty basic, as a solid blanco tequila will do, but being picky with the crème de cassis is a wise choice here. There isn’t a better option than Marie Brizard Crème de Cassis Bourdeaux in my opinion. Finally, don’t use a generic ginger ale; make your own ginger beer or pick out a quality bottled brand. Now, that’s better; try this one out:

El Diablo

1 1/2 oz Tequila (Don Julio Blanco)
1/2 oz Crème de Cassis (Marie Brizard)
1/2 oz Lime Juice
1 oz Ginger Beer

Shake the tequila, crème de cassis, and lime juice with ice and strain into an ice-filled rocks glass. Top with the ginger beer and garnish with a lime. Consider this option whenever ordering a margarita in the future.

I am glad that this week’s Mixology Monday topic coincided with the oncoming spring season so well. This part of the year, more than any other, is such a creative time because of the availability of fresh, seasonal fruits and the persistent desire for refreshing cocktails. The Diablo is one of my favorite refreshing cocktails because it maintains a respectable level of complexity while offering an alternative to far too common drinks, like the margarita. If you’re searching for more drinks with fruit liqueurs, be sure to check out this week’s Mixology Monday host, Morsels and Musings for a list of everyone’s posts.

The State of Rum

The world of cocktails and spirits is caught in a persistent rotation of new hits. Actually, none of these spirits are “new”; instead, they are classic, but forgotten, spirits that have been resurrected for today’s renewed fascination with the antique cocktails. It started with the appearance of small-batch bourbons; then a few bottles of rye squeezed their way on to the shelves. The English no longer monopolize gin, and even absinthe has found its way to the party. These are exciting times for anybody who loves fine spirits. I am not sure what will be the next; all I know is the constant: rum.

Almost a year ago in an article littered with comments from rum aficionado Ed Hamilton, Time declared “rum is the new cognac.” While the article pointed out that sales of high-end rums have jumped dramatically, their use in cocktails seems to have not increased with the same tenacity that spirits such as rye have. Despite its crucial role as a classic spirits ingredient, social impressions of rum as a cocktail component still tend to be dominated predominantly by drinks like the Mojito. Sure, a correctly made Mojito is a fine thing indeed, but it is a poor representative for rum cocktails as a whole. One need only examine the Tiki era to find a slew of recipes that utilize far more complex rums in conjunction with various atypical juices, spices, bitters, and just about anything else that tastes right. Furthermore, many of these drinks utilize different types of rum to form complex, but balanced, combinations that blend everything from Gosling’s Black Seal to Flor de Cana Extra Dry. Where are the cocktails that blend different types of gin?

Not that blending gins together is a bad idea (sounds like an excuse for experimenting), but rum really is the spirit that has been used in cocktails more than any other. It was rum that first captured the hearts of the colonists. Following Prohibition, it was rum, not gin, not rye or bourbon, which renewed American interest in cocktails during the Tiki era. With such a diverse and extensive timeline of use, I would think that the most dedicated purists would give rum more attention. Unfortunately, I rarely see rum getting the respect it deserves on cocktail menus and store shelves. I am just as guilty as the next bartender, but the situation is somewhat baffling to me for a couple of reasons.

Initially, rum is cheap. In comparison to every other group of spirits, rum is definitely sitting under the blue light. In a market dominated by overpriced “ultra-premium” vodkas, it is clear that to some degree spirit consumers associate price levels with quality. Unfortunately, this mistake is far more likely to cause someone to miss out on a great brand than it is to help them find something they will enjoy. Many of these missed opportunities included great brands like Lemon Hart, Matusalem, and Lemon Hart, all of which provide spectacular bottles below the twenty dollar mark.

Classic and Tiki rum cocktails also generally require more effort and ingredients than other types of cocktails. Most bars like to keep produce inventory and cost down as much as possible and this means that often times, rum doesn’t make the cut. Sure, Tiki bars have been appearing throughout the country lately, but rarely do we see the bar that does both classics and Tiki drinks with equal advocacy. Sadly, many bars do stock significant rums selections, but they are under-utilized time and time again in preference for whiskey or gin.

Even if mixing up one of these drinks isn’t worth the time, in a cage match between the best rum you can get for fifty bucks and any other bottle in the world for the same price, rum is always going to win. I challenge you to find any bottle that gives you more bang for the buck than Ron Zacapa Centenario 23 year. I recently bought a bottle on sale for $36 – that’s like a $1.50 a year! That’s unheard of in any other spirits category. Not only that but, pricing aside, this rum can hold its own with any bottle, regardless of price. Hell, the rums little brother, the 15 year, can boast the same claim.

Above all, the rums that are available in today’s markets have been made by the same companies on the same islands or Latin American countries forever. Unlike the newer brands of classic spirits that have made by new micro-distilleries or worked into larger distilleries’ production lineups, most rums available today are produced with more experience than newer brands of other spirits.

That being said, some micro-distilled rums are beginning to appear on the market. In Texas alone, two rums have appeared over the last year, Treaty Oak and Railean. It will be interesting to see if these types of brands can find a place in a market where cheap, outstanding rums are already available and more widespread. Treaty Oak just hit Houston, and it has a lot to offer. Being one of the only micro-distilleries in the U.S. to actually start with the fermentation process, Treaty Oak truly is a small-batch local rum. I will be getting my hands on some very soon as well as meeting Treaty Oak’s owner, and I will be sure to report back.

A year ago, it seemed that rum might indeed have been the next new hit spirit, but looking back, the hype of countless new premium brands like Pyrat XO seems to have already fizzled somewhat. This development is unsettling because classic brands seemed to have never been given their due attention because of their lower prices and cocktails involving rum almost always went the light and fruity route. So do yourself a favor; mix with rum or buy the bottle of Lemon Hart with that unattractive label on it. If there is any time of the year for working with rum, this is it, but any season would be ideal for a good rum.

Smoked Cocktails: Part 3

Man, life has been pretty crazy lately. I haven’t had a day off in a couple of weeks, and as you might have noticed, this hasn’t left a lot of time for blogging. One of my regulars even called me out tonight and told me I needed to write more on the blog. Anyway, the bar has blown up. I go home and my arms hurt from shaking for like 8 hours straight. Egg cocktails on the bar menu = wicked case of tennis elbow, but as my Treatise on Egg Cocktails might have suggested, I kind of like them. Drunken chickens aside, in the midst of all this shaking, I have found time to continue the smoked cocktails experiments.

Using the smoked fruit discussed last time has endless possibilities, but it does limit what types of cocktails can have a smoke element added. Cocktails made strictly from spirits obviously don’t use any fruit, so another route must be found. The spirits must be changed; let the infusions (and taste-testing) begin. We could throw a piece of charcoal in a bottle of vodka, but I think Absolut already made an announcement that this will be its next commemorative tragedy flavored monstrosity: Absolut California - an infusion of charcoal and other fruit flavors that should not be combined. If you’ve actually tried Absolut New Orleans, you’ll get this joke. Otherwise, I’m just an insensitive asshole.

Instead of the charcoal, I opted for a smoked ingredient that has already been used by one spirits producer. Qi Black Tea Liqueur is a brandy-based spirit that combines Lapsang Souchong with fruit and spices. I had some Qi just before I left Illinois last year, but I never got around to mixing with it or tracking it down once I got to Texas. Had it not been for the Savoy Cocktail journeyman who sent me an e-mail after my last post, I might have forgotten completely about the stuff. Nevertheless, the concept of using Lapsang Souchong had already found its way into a few infusion jars at the bar, I guess I was going to have to sacrifice originality for a great drink.

Unlike the Qi, my infusions used a gin base. I really like how the herbal elements of the gin dance with the tea and smoked flavors. I tried adding some additional ingredients into the infusion, but it just seemed like keeping it simple and adding other flavors in cocktail worked much better. Gin selection was also an important issue. Using a lightly flavored gin like Hendricks does not work well at all. If you’re unfamiliar with Lapsang Souchong, tracking some down is an endeavor worth pursuing. Lapsang Souchong is Chinese black tea that is cedar smoked. I get mine from a local coffee roaster, Katz Coffee. Owner, Avi Katz, told me that the tea resulted from traders who would allow their camels to lay next to the fires on colder night. The tea bags, strapped to the camels’ backs, were smoked, and a new tea was born: Lapsang Souchong. It has a bold and very prominent smoked flavor, so a gin with some backbone is needed.

I settled on Plymouth, it had enough juniper to make a statement, but it still yielded to the tea’s flavor without becoming jumbled as some of the strong London Dry styles did. Mixing it was easy. Smoked negronis, smoked martinis, the possibilities were endless. Try this one:

Smoked Pegu Club

2 oz Lapsang Souchong-Infused Plymouth Gin
3/4 oz Orange Curacao
3/4 oz Lime Juice
Dash Fee Brothers Orange Bitters

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

With all the popularity surrounding tea cocktails in recent years, Lapsang Souchong needs to get some more attention. If the idea of a smoked cocktail sounds like a stretch, try starting with the tea, and I might just have you convinced. Soon, you might be asking for more information about smoked drink elements, in which case, you will find your way back here, waiting for the next smoked cocktail post: air infusions. This is a really cool idea (I think), and I am going to do a write-up on how to infuse smoke in a spirit in order to create a smoked bitters. Until then, don’t burn your house down. and let me know what you think of this infusion.

Smoked Cocktails: Part 2

Well, the smoked cocktails experiments continue. As I described in my last post, I have been struggling to refine the introduction of smoke into cocktails, and I am now here to post my results. Three major ways of introducing smoke into cocktails without the use of liquid smoke have been discovered and tested. This post will discuss smoked fruit, but please check back to read up on the uses of smoked tea next time. The best will be saved for the end however; I’ll show you how to do an air infusion (for lack of a better term) using an aerator and other common aquarium supplies. I know what you’re thinking. Are you sure the only smoke referred to here involved cocktails? And yes, I assure you that these concepts were tested free of any drug-related activity. There was of course, a lot of tasting involved. Now, I am sure that there are other methods for introducing smoke flavors into cocktails, so I’m not claiming these categories to be exhaustive. But, I think that the methods described herein are pretty well documented and the air infusion is especially creative if I do say so myself. First, however, let’s talk fruit.

If you remember my previous post, you will recall that the strawberries that were used were far too smoky and overwhelmed anything that they touched, including my fingers. There were a few problems with these strawberries that needed to be corrected:

1. Shorter smoking time
2. Different type of wood
3. Wrong Fruit

Initially, the strawberries were smoked for an hour. This was far too long. Even at thirty minutes, the strawberries were still too cigar-like. Fifteen minutes was about the right time for the strawberries in our smoker, which uses red oak and maple wood. Yet, even fifteen minutes, while lowering the smoke flavor to a reasonable level, still left a domineering smoked element in drinks. The wood was just too strong and didn’t allow for any balance in the cocktails. It left a lingering finish on every drink I made, with nothing to respond from the drink after the smoked finish, the previously noted description of “drinking a cigarette” was still far too accurate. I was going to try some different wood, but then it occurred to me that trying to force strawberries to work might have just been a bad idea. I was certainly going to try other fruits already, but I just wanted to use the strawberry because I had before and could note changes with different methods more easily. I should have let the fruit go long ago, as the strawberry was far too similar to Roger Clemens: you can inject flavor into it easily, but any trace of the integrity of the strawberry will be lost forever.

Here are some better candidates for smoking:

1. Pineapple
2. Melons
3. Lemons
4. Oranges
5. Grapefruit
6. Cucumber
7. Tomatoes
8. Watermelon

Avoid these items when smoking for cocktails:

1. Mangoes
2. Limes
3. STRAWBERRIES!

As you can see, smoking fruit and such has a lot of possibilities. Mainly, try and use fruit that has a soft center but a thicker skin. My conclusion is that the denser or less permeable skin protects the fruit from losing flavor. The smoke will get through; the aim is to create a flavored fruit that still maintains it original elements. Mangoes an strawberries just let too much through and become smoke bombs. I thought the limes would work like any of the other citrus, but for whatever reason the limes’ flavor changed drastically. Perhaps, the lime batch received too much heat. Cooking citrus can really alter its taste after all. Oh well, more tasting to be had later; for now, limes are on the avoid list.

My favorite was by far lemons. Maybe it was just easier to see the connection to widespread cocktails using lemon juice, but I thought the lemons were amazing. They were smoked for about two hours and demonstrated a present, but yielding, smoke flavor. I wanted to make virtually every cocktail using lemon juice with them initially, but ultimately, I found the lemons to work especially well with gin. The herbal flavors of gin paired really well with the smoke. I found this interesting because charred flavors, such as those found in bourbon, are never really used in combination with the juniper in gin. The two however, work very well together. Smoke some lemons and try them in your favorite gin/lemon recipe, but start off with a basic Tom Collins so you can see how they work:

Smoked Tom Collins

2 oz Junipero Gin
1 oz Smoked Lemon Juice
3/4 oz Simple Syrup

Shake and strain into a collins glass filled with ice. Top with soda water and garnish with a smoked lemon wheel.

The Tom Collins is a good one to start with because right off the bat, you get to taste smoke flavors in conjunction with carbonation. This was a mouth-shocking experience to me at first and very cool.

Smoked lemon juice is good stuff. You need to be working with this. People have been claiming things like vinegar to be the ingredient of the new year. I did vinegar cocktails in 2007; this year it is smoke! Just kidding Camper; I think you’re probably right.

Well, there you have it: smoke installment number one. Next time, I am going to discuss the use of Lapsang Souchong, a Chinese smoked black tea, which also appears St. George Spirit’s Qi Tea Liqueur. Tea has also been a recent popular trend in cocktails, but I personally haven’t seen much use of Lapsang Souchong outside of the St. George product. It makes a great addition of flavor to cocktails. Be sure to check back later in the week for information on this smoked chapter of the series. Until then, what are your thoughts on smoked fruit, particularly lemons? Any questions or suggestions?

Smoked Cocktails?

I generally try and write about cocktails in a somewhat informative manner. In other words, I tinker with bottles and ingredients behind the bar and post the results of my efforts here for people to read if they desire. Sometimes, however, I am boggled by my own ambitions. This week’s project at the bar has been trying to incorporate smoke into a cocktail. Unfortunately, the undertaking has been hazy at best.

The concept of using smoke in a cocktail had been introduced to me by a friend who was considering using liquid smoke in a cocktail in small amounts, like bitters. I thought the idea had potential, but I never really got around to tracking down some liquid smoke and dropping it into my Manhattan. As any good bartender searching for new ideas would do, I shelved the idea, promising to come back to it someday.

Then one day I had a new job at a new restaurant and had to come up with a new cocktail menu.  A great house drink is all about utilizing the unique opportunities of the house of course, and well, our house loves to smoke stuff. This one could be a challenge; integrating a smoked flavor into a cocktail is difficult. We could opt for the liquid smoke as mentioned before, but I wanted to use the supplies at the restaurant to make a specialty you couldn’t find anywhere else. But, how do you smoke a drink? I didn’t really know where to begin so I asked our chef to smoke some fruit for me. The next day I had the gnarliest strawberry I have ever tasted in my life before me. Seriously, the strawberry had lung cancer.

He could have smoked me something easy like tomatoes for a Bloody Mary, but I guess that would have been too easy. Plus, as I said before, a Bloody Mary should be vibrant, not taste like a steak. I tried the strawberries in several drinks only to to get those “I’m only drinking this and telling you it’s good so you don’t feel bad” reactions. Man, I hadn’t got those in a while; it hurt my mixology ego a little bit. This strawberry had me stumped. Finally, I tried muddling the strawberry with a small amount of simple syrup and pouring a Blood and Sand on top.

Blood and Sand

.75 oz Scotch
.75 oz Orange Juice
.5 oz Cherry Herring
.5 oz Sweet Vermouth

Shake and strain into an ice-filled glass.

Sure, this drink usually calls for a blended scotch, avoiding the overly peaty flavors of the Islays, but what the heck I thought. I was running out of ideas. The smoked strawberry Blood and Sand was the best attempt I had tried yet. It definitely had the flavor I was looking for. The only question I hadn’t answered was: Is this a good cocktail? I couldn’t decide. As one person described it, it was like drinking a cigarette. Not everyone agreed with this view, but man it was definitely like drinking smoke. It was a cool experience, yet it wasn’t something I could see enjoying after the novelty diminished.

For starters, the drink was obviously not balanced. The strawberries were oversaturated with smoke causing them to dominate anything they touched, including my hands. You should smell my keyboard (yes, I wash my hands). But, mostly, I just couldn’t decide how to use the smoked flavor correctly. What balances smoke? Should the smoked ingredient be treated like the charred flavors in some mescals or the Islays?

This would suggest that generally a lighter spirit should be used to allow the smoked strawberry’s flavor to speak in place of the mescals or Islays in conjunction with citrus of some sort. But, pending a more lightly smoked strawberry or another type of fruit, I still wonder if this will work conceptually. Maybe, I should just accept the cocktail for what it is, an expression of a smoked flavor, Like many extreme cocktails, found in some circles of molecular mixology, using flavors traditionally reserved for food can be an intriguing experience in which we confront a familiar flavor in a way we have never experienced before. The Smoked Blood and Sand certainly fits this description.

I have done some searching on smoked cocktails and a few results have appeared. Eben Freeman smokes coke syrup to make a smoked rum and coke. Kristin Woodward is using smoked pears, and a few have used liquid smoke. The most similar idea to my own seems to be a bar in India at the Smokehouse Grill that is doing a mojito with muddled smoked melon and a, dare I say it, a Smoked Apple Martini. You think you’ve gotten as far from the apple martini as possible with your smoked cocktail idea, and bam, it appears like another final Kiss tour. Either way, at least a few people are thinking like me. So obviously, the smoked cocktail has some degree of potential. Just where the road leads remains to be seen. I am going to see if different fruits work, and the thought of smoked citrus sounds cool because of the possibilities for a smoked zest. Other than that, I am still somewhat stumped. Any suggestions???

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