:: beyond the 50/50 ::

One of the talks that I attended on Sunday at Thirst Boston was entitled "Beyond the 50/50" by Jake Parrott of Haus Alpenz importers and Jared Sadoian of The Hawthorne bar here in Boston. The concept of the session was "weird thoughts about pairing the right aromatized wine for your gin" that was demonstrated with four gins and aromatized wine pairings. The idea was that if you found the right pairing of botanical distillate and aromatized wine, it would make for easy porch drinking requiring only approximations of measurements. Jake pointed out there were there were so many combinations, and while many of them were right, some were extraordinary. As the room was being set up and before the session even began, Jake entertained us with a porrón filled with Miro dry vermouth and tonic water. During the talk, the rule was that the porrón had to keep moving (even if you did not want to drink, you still had to pass it) which made for an entertaining sideshow as the talk progressed.
The four combinations were: Hayman's London Dry Gin paired with Miro Extra Seco Vermouth, Haymans Royal Dock (Navy Strength) Gin with Dolin Rouge Vermouth, Bully Boy Estate Gin with Cocchi Americano Rosa, and Berkshire Mountain Distillers Barrel-Aged Ethereal Gin (Batch #3) with L.N. Mattei Cap Corse Rouge Quinquina.
Instead of describing the details of each pairing, let us get at the heart of why these pairings work. Every intense botanical has a critical characteristic that stimulates a part of the tongue more than others. Every part of the tongue can only be stimulated so much in a sip. Indeed, one way to balance simple drinks is to balance the stimulation across the tongue. A mixture that maps well across the tongue has a great sense of seamlessness to it. If the drink does not map well, it will need to be either very sweet or very dilute. But if it does map well, it can handle dilution whether through soda water or vodka as a spirit base and still maintain interest. Jared pointed out that at the Hawthorne, when testing out new drinks, they split the shaken or stirred drinks into two with half going into a cocktail glass and half going on the rocks. After many minutes, they return to the drink to see whether a more dilute but cold drink is more pleasurable than a warmer one, and with this information, they select the serving style and glassware.
Here are some random interesting quotes:
• "Blanc vermouth is the great texturizer and the great entry drug [for drinking vermouth]."
• On the Vesper Martini: "Why would you drink an 8:1 drink? Ian Flemming wanted to portray James Bond as a drunk." (my thoughts on the Vesper share other confusions about the recipe)
• On the strawberry, "The bitterness of the seeds is why you eat a second strawberry. And this bitterness is why strawberries are great in cocktails."
• "Grapefruit reduces the perception of bitterness."
• On how oak tannin is effected by temperature of the drink: "Manhattans should be served at cellar temperature and close to that of red wine." And Jake explained that a good Manhattan can be made with cold vermouth, cold water, and no ice.
• "People love watching people stir drinks. It's one of the reasons people go out to [cocktail] bars."
• "In the 1850s, quinquina was the CBD of the era -- it [was believed to] fix anything."
• "Caramel is what makes sweet vermouth red but it [or the amount of it] is a lifestyle choice." For example, Dolin Rouge is light on the caramel opposed to many Italian vermouths that can be rather heavy handed with it.

tipperary

For an afternoon talk at Thirst Boston two Saturdays ago, I joined in on Brother Cleve's Walking Tour of Boston. There was certainly a lot of history packed into this hike, and a lot of insight of what it was like turning 18 -- the legal drinking age in Cleve's youth -- way back when. Cleve did reveal that his first drink in a bar came back at age 16, but places were not as strict as they once were. The tour included places of old (and some still existent) jazz clubs, gay bars, dives, punk rock venues, mob hit sites, Tiki bars (note: multiple!), cruising venues, movie theaters, and more. Such a wealth of lore about a Boston that once was. And in some cases still is. Sometimes, you could see how the front of a Chinese restaurant used to be the grand marquee of a movie theater, and other times the location was razed to put a tower in like some of the seedier strip clubs on Lagrange Street. In the photo below, Cleve was giving the history of the street but the only two baudy places still in existence there were on the side that was not leveled. The Glass Slipper was on that now defunct side before being moved across the street, and we were all amused by the sign that read, "The Glass Slipper where every gentleman is a VIP..."
Earlier, we passed by the plaque that told the history of the Cocoanut Grove Club that burned down in one of the largest nightclub fires in 1942. Up the street was the brick barn-like front to the old Napoleon's where older men sang show tunes at the piano bar and where younger men searched for their sugar daddies; Judy Garland spent her last days there in 1969 drinking her way away. Up the street is the city's oldest gay bar, Jacque's, that opened in 1938 before it turned into more of a female impersonator club in the 1940s until present day. Places that were also razed included Herbie's Ramrod Room, a leather bar that moved to the Fenway area, and the Hillbilly Ranch, a rough Honky Tonk that luckily never reopened elsewhere in the city. The lost Tiki establishments included the South Seas on Harrison Street that lasted from the 1960s until the 1980s, Bob Lee's Islander that lasted during that same era and sported a psychedelic interior, and a Trader Vic's that was in the old Hilton Hotel that became the current Park Plaza.
1 1/2 oz Writer's Tears Irish Whiskey
3/4 oz Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth (Cleve prefers Cinzano though)
3/4 oz Green Chartreuse

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with orange oil from a twist.

The final stop was at Explorateur in Boston that used to house a Masonic lodge at the edge of what was once the Combat Zone. There we partook of one of Cleve's favorite Irish whiskey drinks, the Tipperary, that honored the tour's sponsor, Writer's Tears Whiskey. The Tipperary originally appeared in Hugo Ensslin's 1916 Recipes for Mixed Drinks as an equal parts drink sans garnish that was the Irish whiskey take on the gin Bijou from Harry Johnson's 1882 New and Improved Bartender's Manual. Here, Cleve dried out the drink by bringing the whiskey forward into a 2:1:1 ratio instead of the classic's 1:1:1, and he added an orange twist. No great surprises here with the Irish whiskey forming the backbone to the sweet vermouth's richness and the Green Chartreuse's herbal notes.

:: tiki through a polynesian lens ::

The first talk that I attended at Thirst Boston was entitled "Tiki Through a Polynesian Lens" and sponsored by Patron Tequila. The seminar was delivered by West Coast bartender Sam Jimenez who has worked at Prizefighter, Interval at Long Now, and Striped Pig and is about to open Here's How in Oakland. Sam's heritage is half Samoan and half Mexican that he described as Akafasi meaning "half of one" (or half Samoan/Polynesian). He began with the premise that Tiki bars utilized symbols that he was familiar with, but they executed them differently that he was used to being brought up in the culture.

Sam ran through the history of Tiki to set up the genre. The timeline is better read elsewhere including in Beachbum Berry's books than I can do right now, so here are more of the salient aspects. Tiki began in California right after Prohibition. During this time, Hollywood blossomed and offered escapism and exoticism especially escapism from the harsh times during the Great Depression. People were willing to spend their money on escape but could only do so locally instead of through travel. Sam put up a quote from Sigmund Freud that read:

Life as we find it is too hard for us; it entails too much pain, too many disappointments, impossible tasks. We cannot do without palliative remedies. We cannot dispense with auxiliary constructions, as Theodor Fontane said. There are perhaps three of these means: powerful diversions of interest, which lead us to care little about our misery; substitutive gratification, which lessen it; and intoxicating substances, which make us insensitive to it.

Sam continued that escapism is not inherently bad. These Polynesian restaurants became places of status especially with the amount of money sunk into decorating them. Many people could not afford to travel across the ocean during the Depression; moreover, people had a lot of interest in the area due to the media's influence whether through music or through Hollywood that set many movies in the late 1920s and early 1930s in the South Pacific. World War II added to the interest for soldiers coming back from the Pacific front wanted to return to innocence by experiencing familiar aspects without the cloud of combat lurking overhead.
With this exoticism came a focus on colorful and unusual traits considered characteristic of these foreign lands. When these traits were exaggerated, it became racist. Sam brought up the idea of "othering" which engenders marginality and persistent inequality based on group identity; here, self is anything that you identifiy as similar to yourself and everything else is other. Othering does not have to lead to racism just as exoticism does not have to lead to negativity, but these do occur through exaggeration and inaccuracy. Finally, Sam brought up that you cannot unlearn things such as when something is wrong. In terms of Tiki, most people doing the style have little experience in Polynesian culture, so the ideas do not trigger things internal to their development and culture.

Sam described that Oceania is a series of islands united by the sea that could be broken down into three regions: Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia. Polynesia is the most familiar for it has the most United States military outposts and has a lot of lighter skinned people. These great seafaring people migrated from Taiwan throughout the South Pacific, and there is evidence that they made contact with South America and procured the sweet potato from there. In worshipping gods of the sea and nature, they carved statues of these gods out of wood; these sculptures would later become known as "Tiki." The American Tiki culture born in California in the 1930s was built more on Polynesian culture with some borrowing from Micronesian and Melanesian ones as well.

The history of Oceania cannot be discussed without mentioning the effects of colonialism. This falls under three aspects: economic exploitation, exploitation of defense, and colonization of education. For the first, agriculture such as sugar production in Hawaii was a major draw for continental countries to seek out the islands as a means of profit. For the second, many countries including France and the United States wanted to use the Pacific for military presence. For some, it was a first line of defense as well as an area to test out nuclear bombs to the detriment of those displaced or too close. For the third, when islanders learn American or European culture instead of their own, they lose sense of themselves and begin to view the island culture as "other." Children there are not taught about their own history or things that make them valuable.
A lot of the imagery of Tiki culture can be seen in Trader Vic and other restaurants' menus with the oversexualization of women, infantilism, savage behavior, and servitude to white people. This view can be traced back to the early 1700s when Captain James Cook's voyage brought them to the islands. They wrote about Hula as rather sexually liberating and promiscuous despite it not being so to the islanders. With Tiki mugs, there is othering of Hawaiian gods and people as well as the Chinese such as with the Fu Manchu mug. For some reason, we do not expect workers in Tiki bars to know what words and symbols mean; by contrast, Sam pointed out that we would expect a worker in a Spanish restaurant to understand the menu and be able to explain it.

Tiki is built on the back of Polynesian imagery, but the food and drink is from elsewhere. The food is a bastardization of American Chinese food, and the drink is rather Caribbean. In fact, Polynesia does not have a drinking culture, so creating a bar based on that would be a significant misrepresentation. For flavors, there is some overlap with coconut and banana, but those two elements are throughout the area. Furthermore, Tiki was created in a time when this behavior was accepted, but now we should ask if we can do better. Some bars do it well like Lost Lake that approach it as tropical instead of Tiki. They do not use mugs with exaggerated features, and there is no word or symbol appropriation. Sam continued that Tiki is more than escapism as it is build on false representation of real cultures. It can indeed be done without the cultural aspects; otherwise, Tiki comes across as a lazy means to a quick buck. Finally, creativity and design factors can lead to escapism without treading on others' cultures.

holy mole!

1 1/2 oz Glenfiddich Scotch
3/4 oz Giffard Banane du Bresil
1/2 oz Ginger Syrup
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1 dash Bittermens Mole Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe glass.
Later that Monday night, I found myself at the Hawthorne for the final event to wrap up Boston Thirst 2016, the William & Grant party. For a libation, I asked bar manager Jared Sadoian for the Holy Molé! which reminded me on paper of a banana for honey Penicillin Cocktail. Once built, the Holy Molé! presented a banana aroma accented by smoky Scotch notes. Next, the lemon sip gave way to Scotch, ginger, and banana on the swallow.

pumpernickel

1 1/2 oz Jim Beam Bourbon
3/4 oz Punt e Mes
3/4 oz Amaro Ramazzotti
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a rocks glass.
One of the Blender Bender after-parties on Sunday night was the Amor y Amargo pop-up event at Silvertone. Sother Teague and associates showed up with a menu of six drinks to represent their Manhattan establishment. While Fernet Branca was the sponsor, not all the drinks were menthol-bombs for the company also distributes Carpano Antica, Punt e Mes, Templeton Rye, and other products. For a drink, I requested the Pumpernickel which appeared like a Boulevardier riff; I did not get a chance to ask why it was called that, but it seemed true to many of their drinks on the regular menu. Once prepared, it offered a Bourbon and grape bouquet. Next, a caramel and grape sip led into a whiskey swallow with dark orange and Punt e Mes' bitter notes and a spice finish.

:: the three phases of hospitality ::

One of the most valuable talks at this year's Thirst Boston for me as someone in the service industry was "The Three Phases of Hospitality." Moderator Andy Seymour led the three pronged attack with Jon Santer of Bourbon & Branch and Prize Fighter fame discussing everything that can be done before a guest walks into the establishment, Joaquin Simo of Death & Co. and Pouring Ribbons fame focusing on what can be done once the guest is inside, and Sean Kenyon of William & Graham expounding on crafting a culture and community to foster hospitality.

Seymour began by defining hospitality as the linchpin of any establishment. In this new Golden Age of the Cocktail, we are trying to raise everything to a higher level -- not just the drinks, but the experience as a whole. Bartending is a job that comes from the soul -- some part of you needs to take care of other people. How do you make a guest feel at home in your space? Nothing happens by accident. A bartender is a facilitator of good times by making a community and giving comfort and a sense of welcome. And with that lead-in, Seymour handed the reins over to Santer.

Santer began by comparing and contrasting coffee shops and bars. At coffee shops, there is a counter, a transaction, a making of a drink, and a hand off just like in bars; however, in coffee shops, people are very happy to wait in line for their drink. Whereas coffee shops are orderly in the wait, bars are chaos. So how do we control the chaos and make things more manageable? Consider the layout of the space. First, strive for a symmetry -- something that we are hardwired to appreciate. While asymmetry is interesting to the eye, symmetry is in the end calming. Small things like having all the bottles on the backbar clustered logically by spirit type, all bottles facing the same way, and no pour spouts on these display bottles. Recognizable brands, whether on the shelf or on the menu, provide comfort; too many obscure brands can be discomforting to the guest. Lighting is also very key since sight is a dominant aspect of the bar and restaurant experience; we often worry more about the taste of drinks than how things look or sound. For example, Santer's bar has multiple dimmer switches to regulate the feel of the space.
For bars that have multiple work stations, having identical mise en place is crucial as bartenders then do not have to think as much as they go from well to well. In addition, everything needed for list drinks should be in arm's reach. When it comes to drink selection, the cocktail menu should be an exercise in empathy, not creativity. Chunking information such as in rules of three per page (like cocktails, beer tap/bottle, wine). Put the vodka drink first. Santer favors menus with all nouns and no adjectives that list key flavors. Brands are less important, and they generally are not about the guests.

Simo was next up with his take on how to prepare your environment for service to communicate that you have the guest's best interest at heart. No interaction at the bar is more important than the interaction with the bartender. The bartender is the linchpin and helps to shape how guests will view your establishment. Guests will return if they (1) have something delicious and/or (2) have great service. Mastery of the environment is crucial, for the bar is a tough work space. Starting as a host, busser, barback, or doorman will help; support roles help to form your sensibility. Copping an attitude makes things harder for the staff, as such negativity creates an us-versus-them mentality and tone.

Simo listed important skills for looking out for your guests. Preparation. Anticipation -- don't wait to be asked. Order and familiarity -- if you don't know where things live, you look foolish, and guests are reading you to gain faith. It is perhaps easier to go from the blindingly fast world of club bartending to craft cocktail bartending than it is to start as a craft cocktail bartender and learn speed (such as without jiggers). The club environment teaches both speed and efficiency of movement. Working in a variety of bar environments is helpful for other reasons. For example, learning to cut people off and be thanked later instead of offending the guest or even starting a brawl is an important skill. Moreover, one learns gentler ways to cut someone off when the average guest in question is a large, tough, burly one. Preparation also includes guest banter, and Simo devotes two hours each day to reading with at least half of that devoted to booze for this purpose. The rest can be newspapers, websites, and books (loosely related to booze). He does not read to be an expert but to figure out how to ask intelligent questions to a guest. The bartender can be the expert or can give their guests a moment to shine. Knowing about restaurants, television shows, neighborhoods, and home team sports schedules is important. Even if working service, a bartender needs to look past the drink rail, for the job is to serve guests; the ability to multi-task will help both guests and co-workers alike.
Kenyon began his section by describing his hiring process. In an interview, he wants to differentiate between actors and genuine hospitality people. Kenyon often takes perspectives out and sees how they relate to service people. Are they genuine? This includes eye contact, saying hello, and treating people well. You can teach skills and mechanics behind the bar, but you cannot train some to have a personality. Actors can't fake it; when things get tough, they first take it out on the people working with them and then on the guests. An actor can do service for it has steps; hospitality has soul though, and it comes from the heart.
Bartenders need to be able to come into work with a good attitude about their lives for their shift, and they need to be able to absorb any negativity from the guests or the fellow staff. Radiating positive energy is crucial. Asking "what do you want?" or "what do you need?" is not as hospitable as "what would you like?" or "what can I get for you?" While the term customer implies a cash transaction, the term guest does not. Tips are not the reason for the work but a fringe benefit. Seymour added that these actors burn out for the role was not who they were. He commanded us to respect the people we work with. Hospitality extends in every direction from not only the bartender to the guest but the bartender treating the barbacks and other supporting staff well.

vieux from the flor

1 1/2 oz Tequila Ocho Reposado
1/2 oz Cardamaro
3/4 oz St. George NOLA Coffee Liqueur
1/2 oz Lustau Palo Cortado Sherry

Stir with ice and strain into a glass and garnish with an orange twist.
The third drink that I had at the State Lines: A Portland & Providence Pop-up event at Thirst Boston came straight from the Cook & Brown cocktail list in Providence. The Vieux from the Flor, a stirred and complex drink and not the one above being shaken by bar manager Gillian White above, combined tequila, sherry, and coffee flavors with some added complexity from Cardamaro, so it definitely called out to me from their short list. Once in the glass, it presented a bright orange oil aroma over that of coffee with hints of tequila poking through. A dark grape sip was likewise followed up by a coffee, tequila, and herbal swallow.

:: the re-emergence of rum ::

One of the next talks I attended at Thirst Boston was "The Re-Emergence of Rum" moderated by Misty Kalkofen and sponsored by Privateer Rum. The panel consisted of writers and rum historians David Wondrich and Wayne Curtis, distiller Maggie Campbell, and bartenders Charles Joly and Joaquin Simo, and the topics spanned the changes in rum production styles through the years, how rum perception by the public has varied, and how to improve rum for the future. Overall, there was definitely a New England angle for the talk. For a good primer on rum styles, please see a talk from last year's Thirst Boston entitled "Rum: The World's Most Versatile Spirit."

As Curtis explained, the history of rum in the New World got its start with Christopher Columbus bringing sugar cane to Hispanola in 1493, and luckily, this honeyed grass grows like crazy in the Caribbean. Sugar became king there and soon few other crops were planted; food and lumber often had to be brought in to the islands all at the expense of sugar. A key moment was when the molasses, the industrial waste product in sugar production, was no longer solely dumped into the ocean as people realized that it could be used to feed yeast in a ferment and then distilled. A second key moment was due to England colonizing Caribbean islands. While sugar was sent back to England and Europe, much of the molasses was shipped to New England in trade for food and other supplies. Over 160 rum distilleries sprang up in New England in addition to the ones further north in places like Newfoundland. England's hand in this trade caused rum to collapse after the Revolution.

A third key moment in rum was in the late 19th century when the Bacardi family came along and took the generally nasty, oily spirit and figured out how to refine it via filtration, better distillation, and other techniques. The 1950s unfortunately brought about the fourth key moment when rum became closer to vodka. America lost its taste for full flavored and funk in the age of processed foods and spirits that would leave you "breathless." Luckily, the fifth key moment was in the last 20 years with the rediscovery of what rum can be. In 1991, the Old New Orleans Rum Company started up and produced some intriguing spirits, and a few years later Phil Pritchard started in Tennessee.

Most New England rum was not considered as good as Caribbean rum (with a few exceptions). Wondrich surmised that the secret lay in Leonard Wray's (of Wray & Nephew Rum) Practical Sugar Planter book from 1848 with the quote, "Rum is the spirit which is made on sugar estates from the molasses and skimmings resulting from the manufacture of sugar." The secret here is the skimmings -- the foam on top of the boil that is removed; while not needed in the further production of sugar, it has a lot of the flavors of fresh sugar cane juice and can contribute a grassy note to rums. On the islands, rum was made from molasses, skimmings, and dunder (the remainder from the last still run), whereas in New England, they lacked the sugar cane and thus the skimmings and could only make "molasses brandy." Sadly, the Caribbean is making this same molasses brandy now since most of its raw materials are coming from Brazil. Therefore, the good news is that New England can be at parity with Caribbean rums, but the bad news is that there is no more terroir in much of Caribbean rums (at least the molasses-based ones where they are buying the raw materials at market). Campbell continued on the theme by describing how the Caribbean imports a lot of the raw materials for they produced too much rum volume to keep up on the agriculture end. Rum has often been quick, fast, and cheap, and its popularity post-World War II also saw the decline of flavor. "With the speed of molasses," there is a slow return to rum having more flavor, and this is getting craft bartenders excited.
Simo explained that the desire to drink Rum & Cokes does not yield many branded calls for rum. However, there is much variety out there. Donn the Beachcomber used to say, "What one rum can't do, three rums can!" Wondrich explained that rum can be very varied and it can mimic the qualities of much of the spirit world out there (see quote above). Campbell expounded that while distillers are on an even playing field in terms of bringing in molasses, the real question is what rum are distillers going to try to make? Campbell explained that she could make a different style of rum each year (as a one-off) for the rest of her life and still not repeat a style.

Simo brought up a Camper English post on the Alcademics blog about how much sugar is added to rums -- a shocking amount! Eastern Standard bartender turned Privateer Rum rep Kevin Martin declared, "It's a bartender's job to add the sugar (to cocktails)." For example, Smuggler's Cove in San Francisco was mentioned for its immense sugar program where they carefully choose which sweeteners to mix with their spirits. So how does one know quality when there are few labeling laws as to additives? Campbell looks first for flaws; heads come across as nail polish burn and tails as pencil shavings, while level of sweetness suggests how much the producer is trying to hide these flaws. She also looks for quality: concentration and complexity of flavor, amount of heat, and whether it is still- or wood-derived for the variety of flavors.

While bartenders and rum aficionados look for such complexity, bar guests often look for sweetness. Unsweetened rum is often too harsh for tasting straight. Simo's reply was that, "'Ooh, that's smooth' is the worst tasting note ever" for it favors the bland and inoffensive. More flavor, for example, can be generated with longer, slower ferments, fermenting with dunder from prior batches, and fermenting to lower ABVs. The higher the alcohol content in the ferment, the more heads that get carried over; lower alcohol content is cleaner since the yeast are "less drunk" and produce fewer off flavors since they are less stressed. Rum is a lawless and rogue world; rum is made in too many places with too few laws and restrictions. As a counter example, Curtis mentioned Ed Hamilton's rums where the codes on the labels takes transparency to an extreme for it provides photos and details for each rum's production.

Wondrich brought up a point about a New England A.O.C. for rum that spanned the historic zone of Providence up to Portland. At the Boston Cocktail Summit in 2012, Wondrich and Curtis in the "Medford Gold" talk concluded that the new style of New England rum has the consensus flavor of molasses notes and a dry tang at the end, and that it should try to join the ranks of Bourbon in designation.
During the talk, we were given four unlabeled wine glasses of white rum. Smelling and tasting them all, I could easily tell that #3 was Privateer -- part because they were one of the sponsors and part because my bar at Russell House Tavern chooses to feature that spirit as our well white rum. Two definitely reminded me of Bacardi with its clean style and woody note, and I was not wrong. I was correct on the first glass by thinking Brugal; I was not confident in my guess, but I figured that it had to be one of the better known rums out there and it did remind me of Brugal. The fourth was El Dorado (not sure whether the three year or the lower tier white rum); while I do own El Dorado 3 Year at home, nothing triggered my mind that this was a Demerara rum. Finally, Joly spoke to the bartenders and commanded that we need to do the homework and make wise choices at the backbar to educate our customers better.

velvet washington

1 1/2 oz Gosling's Family Reserve Rum
3/4 oz Laird's Bonded Apple Brandy
1/2 oz Velvet Falernum
1/2 oz Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth
1 dash Bittermens Tiki Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail or single Old Fashioned glass. Garnish with a lemon or orange twist.
Another of the drinks I had at the State Lines: A Portland & Providence Pop-up event at Thirst Boston was from Aurora in Providence called the Velvet Washington. An image search on the web could not confirm the existence of a velvet painting of George Washington, so I assume that the velvet aspect is the falernum, and perhaps the Washington part is for the apple component. Once mixed, it offered a dark aroma with a hint of bright citrus oil. On the palate, a dark grape sip gave way to dark rum swallow with clove notes and lingering caramel, char, and apple flavors on the finish.

:: the aperitif hour ::

One of the first talks I attended at Thirst Boston was The Aperitif Hour hosted by Naren Young and Nick Korn and sponsored by Campari. The event guide's description declared, "Where once 'stirred, brown, and strong' was the inspiration for many bartenders, now it is low alcohol aperitifs that are again providing inspiration for new creations while resurrecting old classic drinks that deserve our respect." Naren began by stressing the importance of aperitifs especially in restaurants; the word aperitif comes from the French aperire meaning "to open" such as the palate. Perhaps bartenders should begin the conversation with guests with the question "Where are you in your evening?" to figure out what drinks to make or suggest for people. Before or after meals, needing lighter libations when out with colleagues, etc. are all perfect moments for aperitif style cocktails.

Naren split the talk into two aspects. The first was the more expected -- suggesting aperitif recipes, while the second was how to heighten the experience by making it memorable. For example, why put a Dry (Vermouth) Martini on the menu? If you can do it well or unique, call it out. At Saxon & Parole, Naren's 5:1 Martini was listed as "Dry Martini Service" with gin, vermouth, and "accoutrements." An old school sized glass, a sidecar carafe with the rest of the drink stored in crushed ice, and a trio of garnish possibilities of an olive, onion, and a knotted lemon twist all aesthetically displayed. Instead of relying on store bought pickled olives and garnishes, why not make them in house with matching botanicals?
Even the classic Gin & Tonic can be a playground of variations. In addition to making your own house tonic water, Collins ice molds produced by Cocktail Kingdom can be utilized to add seasonal touches like cucumber water, chili water, or ginger water ice. At Bacchanal, Naren honed in on the Spanish interest in the G&T where some places have as many as 150 gins and menus with 25 or more G&T combinations with different garnishes listed. Even elevating the drink with a frozen glass, a metal straw, and fresh citrus garnish can assist in making the drink alluring to the senses.

While Fernet Branca may be the bartenders' shot, the Negroni has become the bartenders' cocktail over the last 5-6 years. It is a safe drink and good even when made poorly. Naren's preference is a little extra gin heavy at 1:3/4:3/4 to help to dry out the sugar-laden amaro and vermouth components; moreover, stirring on ice and straining over fresh ice, especially a single large ice cube, is his go-to technique. Also take a step backward from Negroni and consider the Americano a/k/a Torino Milano for an aperitif. At Bacchanal, Naren served a variety of seasonal Negronis on tap such as the Chocolate Negroni:

Chocolate Negroni
• 1 oz Gin
• 3/4 oz Campari
• 3/4 oz Sweet Vermouth
• 1 dash Creme de Cacao (or other white chocolate liqueur)
• 2 dash Chocolate Bitters (to dry out the drink)
Serve with a dehydrated orange wheel garnish (quicker to garnish with attractively during service) and fresh orange oil (so that the fresh twist does not need to look perfect).

The Boulevardier and the Old Pal, the rye Negroni variations with sweet and dry vermouth, respectively, from 1927's Barflies and Cocktails are other classic ways of tinkering with the Negroni. Two other variations, the Negroni Sbagliato (1 oz each Campari, sweet vermouth, prosecco) from 1972 and the Negroni Bianco (1 oz gin, 3/4 oz Aperol, 3/4 oz bianco vermouth, 2 dash lemon bitters) were also noteworthy. In addition, Naren shared his thoughts on the bottled Champagne Negroni (pictured below). Bottling equipment is rather cheap and most of the work is backend time. While guests wait for tables on a busy Friday or Saturday night, it will boost the guest experience. Moreover, the staff will love making the sale with the only front end work being popping a cap.
The revival of punch is another aperitif idea. The communal experience allows the bartender to prep a single bowl instead of a hodgepodge of drink orders for a group. Other drinks mentioned were the Bamboo, Aperol Spritz, pastis drinks, Upside Down Dirty Gibsons, Classic Champagne Cocktails, Highballs, and Horse's Necks. The final drink I have in my notes is the Jasmine; besides the proportions in that link, Naren offered his ratio of 1 1/2 oz gin, 1/2 oz Campari, 3/4 oz Cointreau, 3/4 oz lemon juice, and garnished with an edible pansy.

rhinestone cowboy

1 oz Fernet Branca
1 oz Benedictine
2 dash Fee's Gin Barrel Aged Orange Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a Highball glass with ice. Top with 1 1/2 oz Maine Root Sarsaparilla and garnish with a lemon twist.
One of the drinks I had at the State Lines: A Portland & Providence Pop-up event at Thirst Boston was the Rhinestone Cowboy. This recipes was one of the three offerings at the Sonny's Restaurant of Portland table, and I was game to try it to see if sarsaparilla paired with Fernet just as well as Moxie did in the Improved Toxic Moxie. Once prepared, the Rhinestone Cowboy shared a lemon oil aroma over a light air of herbal notes. Next, a root-tinged caramel sip gave way to most of the rootbeer flavors on the swallow with a menthol finish. Indeed, both the Benedictine and the soda worked well to tame Fernet Branca and keep all the aspects in balance.

:: highlights of thirst boston 2014 ::

Earlier today, the Bartender's Breakfast marked the conclusion of the second annual Thirst Boston, but for me the event ended with the afterparties on Sunday night for I needed to work and open a bar on Monday morning after taking the whole weekend off from Friday evening on. I have only taken a few short moments to reflect on the past few days given the whirlwind adventure between my barshifts on Friday and Monday, and here are some of the highlights:
• Best Part of The Thing: The Secret Bar. For the first The Thing, there were three rooms: an entry vestibule, the main hall, and then the #DTO room. This year, there were only two; however, somewhere towards the end of the night, a small window -- something between a coat check or a cafeteria window in style -- opened up and there was Charles Joly serving "A Cocktail." I did see photographic evidence that Jon Santers was making drinks too, but I only caught Charles making an agave Corpse Reviver.
• Old Faces: A good number of Boston ex-pats came back to attend and/or volunteer for the weekend. For example, I was impressed that Lea Madda and Chad Arnholt traveled from California to be there and give their time to help out.
• Best Recurrent Concept: Pop-ups! The first cool one was on Saturday for the State Lines: A Portland (Maine) and Providence (Rhode Island) Pop-up. Several bars both cities had tables demonstrating their tone, displaying their food and drink menus, and showcasing a trio of drinks to try. Best swag from that event was an Allen's Coffee Brandy knit hat from the Portland Hunt & Alpine Club in Portland. Moreover, on Sunday night was an Amor y Amargo pop-up featuring bartender Souther Teague and the Fernet Branca portfolio (pictured below). The Boston Shaker pop-up store was a great thing for those visiting, but a good deal of us are blessed with having that store so close by and accessible.
• Best General Talk: The Re-emergence of Rum. Besides a star-studded cast of characters -- Misty Kalkofen, Charles Joly, David Wondrich, Joaquin Simo, Maggie Campbell, and Wayne Curtis -- it was a great mix of distiller, bartender, and historian that gave a great perspective on the spirit that was a good supplement to last year's Rum: The World's Most Versatile Spirit talk. I will be covering that talk in greater detail soon.
• Best Industry Talk: The Three Phases of Hospitality. With Andy Seymour as the spirited moderator, Joaquin Simo, Jon Santer, and Sean Kenyon spelled out great concepts from how your bar is laid out to menu design to help make the guest feel more comfortable. Of course, in addition to how to productively interact with guests to make them feel at home. I won't spoil too much of this talk now, so have patience for when I can do it justice with a long write-up.
• Not What I Was Expecting Talk: The Aperitif Hour with Naren Young and Nick Korn. I was expecting more about the history and importance of aperitifs, but I was pleasantly surprised by how it was more about making these drinks special for our guests. From seasonal variations to care in garnish as well as from bottling cocktails to unsung heroes of the aperitif hour like the Jasmine. Naren's point could be summed up in the quote, "Everyone can make great drinks. Remember, we're selling experiences."
• Best Snide Comment from Matt Schrage: Yes, this needs to be a category. Matt Schrage, founder of the Mocktail Virgin/Slut blog, at the "From Medicine to Libation: The Art of Preparing Vermouth" seminar commented about my early vermouth blend, "Smells like you're washing your terrier (dog) in Sprite™... Good job, Fred!"
• Great Way of Thinking About Cocktails: While Stephen Shellenberger has divided the lot as whether people like the softer taste of Snapple™ or the acid backbone of wine, Diego Loret of Barsol Pisco at "Importing Awesome - The World's Next Great Spirits" made the differentiation of "Do you love green apples or red?"
• Blast from the Past Moment: Reaching into the pocket of my smoking jacket that I wore to The Thing and finding the pamphlet guide from the LUPEC's Boston Tea Party speakeasy event from fall 2007. It was LUPEC-Boston's first event and wearing that jacket landed me on the DrinkBoston blog; several of the LUPEC-Boston broads were at The Thing and were quite touched by seeing that keepsake!
• Absurd Drink Award: Not sure whether Ran Duan handing me a Piña Colada in a green coconut cup replete with a two foot neon straw in the front room of The Thing or the 50-50 Martini laybacks in the back room of that event.
• Surreal Bar Remake: The Absolut/Pernod Ricard afterparty at the Hawthorne where they converted it to a Studio 54 tribute!
• Coolest Find: Finding photos of the old carousel Boston that was in Boston (in the hotel Thirst was held in) -- see my Tweet for the image. I knew that there were many carousels in the world and that Boston had one (although the Monteleone one might be the only one left), I didn't realize that I would be in that hotel and in that room this past weekend!
• Biggest Confusion: No, it wasn't how to get to Copley with various parts of the Red and Green Lines down for the weekend (thanks MBTA!), but it was in going to work this morning. I tried to catch my wife up on my weekend and was about to head out the door with my trusty backpack that served me quite well all weekend (as well as daily carry to work) when she pointed out that I hadn't picked out or packed a dress shirt, vest, and tie combo. Whoops! I guess that's what too little sleep will do for you...

:: rethinking vermouth - the renaissance of fortified wine ::

Another talk I went to at Thirst Boston was entitled "Rethinking Vermouth: The Renaissance of Fortified Wine." For a good refresher, see the "Demystifying Vermouth" talk write-up from Portland Cocktail Week 2012. Overlapping in speakership in both talks was Imbue Vermouth's Neil Kopplin, and this talk also had Carl Sutton of Sutton Cellars and Adam Ford of Atsby Vermouth.

The basics of vermouth is that it is a wine aromatized (or flavored) with botanicals and fortified by a brandy; in fact, vermouth can be fortified by any fruit brandy but mostly it is a grape-based one. The concept of aromatized wine has been around for almost as long as people making wine. These flavorants were often added for medicinal purposes such as wormwood that first appeared in print in a 1500 BC Indian text on medicine. Eventually, people learned that the addition of a high proof spirit could not only stop fermentation but stabilize the product. While the Carpano family has been attributed to creating vermouth proper cerca 1786, lots of wine and spirits have had wormwood in it. For a great primer on the subject, the speakers recommended Uncorking the Past: The Quest for Wine, Beer, and Other Alcoholic Beverages by Patrick E. McGovern.

Domestically, America has a fantastic history with vermouth. Vermouth first hits our shores in the 1830s, but it is not until it makes its way to New York City in the 1860s that it truly embeds itself. What solidified its place was not in the old world aperitif but in the cocktail, and vermouth made the cocktail so much more than the basic spirits, bitters, sugar, and water. While the Europeans method of enjoying vermouth had a lot of tradition, the American way had a lot of creativity. Indeed, the Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book, for example, has over 174 vermouth recipes alone. And not all vermouth was coming from Europe, for in pre-Prohibition American, there were over 200 wineries making vermouth domestically.

Sutton Vermouth: Carl Sutton formed the company four years ago in November of 2009, and he sought to craft a vermouth that mixed well but was drinkable on its own. Carl later explained, "it has to taste good on its own... you cannot make a living a half ounce at a time." One of the company's earliest successes was to get on tap #10 at the Alembic in San Francisco, and he found it great that it was being served on tap like it often is in Barcelona. While most European vermouth is herbal and bitter, Sutton's Brown Label is fruit, floral, and herbal such as from the dried orange peel, rosemary, and chamomile in the mix.

Imbue Vermouth: Neil Kopplin spoke about the terroir being the key word to his vermouths. The Imbue Bittersweet, for example, is made from Oregon Pinot Gris wine made 60 miles away and Pinot Gris brandy distilled at nearby Clear Creek. The Bittersweet has around 50 grams sugar per liter added (in addition to natural grape sugars) putting it at the high end of dry vermouth but closer to bianco vermouth. Neil explained that no one knows what dry tastes like; people talk dry but drink sweet. Botanically speaking, the Bittersweet has orange peel, elderflower, chamomile, clove, and sage -- many of these ingredients were selected for their ability to complement the lemon and Granny Smith apple notes in the wine base. Overall, the product is rather Lillet-like in feel. The Imbue Petal & Thorn is Kopplin's other product with an aggressively sweet and bitter formulation. Gentian works well here but is quite different from traditional vermouth bittering agents. Eucalyptus, Egyptian chamomile, and cinnamon were some of the other botanicals mentioned that add a slightly feminine nature to this somewhat aggressive product.

Atsby Vermouth: Adam Ford wanted to make New York-style vermouth and named his company after a mid-19th century Manhattan center of entertainment, Assembly Theaters on Broadway. Atsby's Amber Thorn has a steel tank New York Chardonnay as a base and apple brandy as the fortifier. Nigella seed from Indian cooking and damiana from Mexican flavor this aromatized wine sweetened with raw summer honey. The 21 botanicals in the mix have a familiar flavor; Adam explained that many people declare, "it reminded me of something... positive, but I cannot identify it." To him, vermouth should stimulate the mind as well as the palate; it should trigger a memory. The other product Adam spoke about was Atsby's Armadillo Cake which has a completely different flavor profile. One of the curious botanicals is shiitake mushrooms for he grew up as a macrobiotic eating a lot of that mushroom with seaweed. Instead of honey, this vermouth is sweetened with dark Indian muscavado sugar caramel to add additional depth to the wine. As for a classification, it is neither a sweet nor a dry, so the vermouth really needs a new style name.

flintlock

2 oz Lillet Blanc
1 oz Savory & James Amontillado Sherry
3/4 oz Montelobos Mezcal (*)
1 dash Angostura Orange Bitters
1 pinch Salt

Stir to dissolve salt. Add ice, stir, and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.
(*) With a feistier mezcal like Vida, use 1/2 oz.

On Monday at Thirst during the lunch break, I stopped into the Genesis Tasting Suite. There, M.S. Walker was hosting the American Boutique Spirits Bar where a pair of bartenders were taking turns mixing up drinks every hour. Had I realized the line up, I would have tried to run up there more often between the talks. Luckily, I did get to catch the excellent Sean Frederick in action, and I requested the Flintlock, a smoky aperitif he created and served here with Montelobos Mezcal. Sean mentioned that when he developed the drink with Del Maguey Mezcal Vida, he used a half ounce, but the softer style of Montelobos allowed for a slightly larger pour to get the same degree of smokiness.
The Flintlock proffered a smoke aroma that was brightened by the twist's orange oil. The sherry and Lillet combined on the sip to conjure a lemony grape note. Finally, the swallow showcased a raisiny mezcal flavor, and the salt helped to cleanly close off the finish.

:: rum - the world's most versatile spirit ::

On Monday at Thirst Boston, my first talk was Rum: The World's Most Versatile Spirit hosted by Bacardi's Jacob Briars and Heath Davis and Drink-alum Will Thompson. The main concept of the talk was how no spirit has the same adaptability and range as rum. Given the great number of styles and price points, they sought to give some order to the chaos. Produced in over 50 countries, some of which have rather relaxed laws, rum is definitely not as structured as say tequila or Scotch. And part of the affordability of rum as compared to other spirits has to do with that chaos as well as some historical conceptions of what rum is.

As a commonality, rum comes from sugar cane which is one of the world's biggest crops by acreage. Originally, this grass grew in Papua New Guinea, and it was taken around the world rather quickly in order to satiate people's search for energy. Products from fermented sugar cane have an 8000 year history where little changed, but 400 years ago, things changed forever. One of the biggest changes occurred in the middle of the 16th century with the Reformation. Honey had been the main source of energy to keep up with the beeswax candles made at monasteries; however, the Reformation did away with that. Around that same time, the world got addicted to coffee and tea and it needed a new energy source. Previously, sugar came as loaf sugar and the grinding was rather inconvenient to free the sweetness from this resinous brick. Once technology advanced through boiling, rectifying, and crystalizing, pure sugar crystals that did not require any grinding step and the demand took off. What was left after the purification was molasses, the major waste product of the sugar cane industry. While the first sugar cane distillates were cachaças in the early 1600s in Brazil, 1648 was the first time rum was reported to have been made with molasses. To make sense of rum, the speakers divided it up into three different styles: the English, the French, and the Spanish (or modern) styles.
English: The history of the English style took off with Britain finding Barbados, an island that was off of the major chain of islands and therefore had not been discovered or claimed by France or Spain. On Barbados, the English invented factory or modern production styles. One truism to this style is that the distillation methodology is unimportant with stills ranging from wooded ones to very formal and recognizable ones. What is important is the dunder; the mash is left in the fermenter and more molasses is added in. This style produces a resinous, rich style full of esters that allows it age well, be transported, and left on docks for storage. In Jamaica, they often take this to an extreme where they keep fermenting until the molasses mash stops bubbling, take some of it off for distillation, replenish the volume, and sometimes they never clean out the fermentation tank. The age statement on English rums is the minimum age.

French: French people are French. Since France based its purified sugar economy on sugar beets, they disallowed the import of sugar cane. Therefore, the whole cane is juiced and fermented fresh. Moreover, this cane juice product is fermented like an eau de vie. While the ashy volcanic soil is often attributed to what makes rhum agricoles have a certain flavor, it was pointed out that St. George makes a similar rum in California on different soils. While an A.O.C. tightly regulates the style in Martinique, often they are producing the product on patchwork stills, Mad Max style.

Spanish: The history of Spanish rum can be traced back to Columbus bringing over sugar cane seeds over on his second voyage in 1493; while this batch of seeds did not succeed, 7 years later, sugar cane was growing in Hispaniola. The 1620s saw the first rum distilleries in Cuba as compared to the 1650s when rum production became an industry in Boston. The continuous still made for a cleaner rum style. Controlled fermentation, proprietary yeast, filtration, and purposeful aging and blending all aid in defining the style and regulating its purity today. Unlike the English style of age statements, the number is either the maximum age of the rum contained or solely having the style of that age. For example, Zacapa 23 Year is made mostly of 4-6 year rums but it tastes much older.

The breakfast of champions... Of the three styles we tasted examples of, the Smith & Cross (English style) was most like rye whiskey, the rhum agricole (French style) like pisco, and the Bacardi (Spanish style) like gin with a crisp, light, and mixable feel. Overall, Cuban-style rum needs something to make it elevated for it is not a sipper; mixology is necessary to unpack its features. Jenning Cox helped this aspect by creating (or at least naming and being documented) the Daiquiri in the late 1800s. The next big advancement was the Tiki craze which was a perfect way to elevate rum; especially with the preconceptions after the 1930s when rum is what people drank if they had nothing else.

Finally, it was pointed out that most rum these days is made with molasses not produced on that island. Most of this molasses is imported from Venezuela and Brazil. What defines the island is the style of what they do with the molasses after they import it. Clearly, the exception is French-styled rums given the A.O.C. rules on Martinique.

:: pirates, partisans, & grandmothers - the legacy and use of sherry ::

One of the other talks I went to at Thirst Boston on Sunday was Pirates, Partisans, & Grandmothers: The Legacy and Use of Sherry given by Jackson Cannon and Derek Brown. Jackson Cannon is well known here in Boston as the leader of the Kenmore bar trilogy -- Eastern Standard, Island Creek Oyster Bar, and Hawthorne -- as well as recently the second runner up in the 2012 Vinos de Jerez sherry cocktail competition. Washington D.C.'s Derek Brown opened up the Passenger and Columbia Room in 2009 and 6 months ago launched Mockingbird Hill that features 90 sherries. Derek explained that the focus for the talk was "How to unfuck sherry?", for many people believe that only old people drink sherry. He thought that it would be cool if they actually did, but it is not the case anymore. 

Sherry's history goes back to ancient times with 3000 years of history. The Phoenicians took vines throughout the ancient world, and the wines that came about were quite different but had some similarities especially with the modern sweeter styles of sherry. The Moors advanced sherry making by taking the new advancements of science, namely distillation, from North Africa into Spain. The fortification of wine proved to be advantageous especially during the Age of Exploration for regular wines would go bad on a ship's voyage while wines with additional proof would be stable for longer. Although Columbus took sherry on his voyages to the New World, it was Magellan who set the record by spending more money on sherry than on food and workers. Later, sherry solidified its place in Spanish viticulture by becoming the country's first Denominación de Origen.

Three main grape types predominate sherry production. The Palamino grape grows well on chalky soils similar to those found in Champagne and Cognac in France. The Palamino is technically three different and accounts for 97% of all plantings in Jerez. The other two are Pedro Ximénez and Muscatel which grow better on clay-based soils. PX is often raisinated, except for the dry sherry versions, from sun maturation before fermentation. Meanwhile, the Muscatel is not as sun-concentrated and displays earthy fruit notes; this grape produces wines closer to the ancient Phoenician style.

Derek broke down sherry into 3 'F' words. First, fortify. Sherry starts out as a still table wine that is fortified to around 15% ABV. Second, flor. The flor is a thick, white cap of yeast that protects the wine from being oxidized. Finally, fractionalized blending. Sherry often utilizes a solera system where a third of each barrel is taken away and replaced with newer wines. Statistically, some old sherry is still present in the solera.

There are four major styles of dry sherries. The Fino made from Palamino grapes maintains that protective layer of flor and keeps a non-oxidized flavor. The Manzanilla is more localized for it is a Fino produced in Sanlúcar. When the flor is not allowed to develop such as by killing it in the fortification step or by getting rid of it, it will oxidize and become an Oloroso. The Amontillado is another oxidized sherry that has the nose of an Oloroso and the finish of a Fino. A fifth dry sherry is the Palo Cortado that tastes like an Amontillado and an Oloroso, but it is a designation assigned by a committee as judged for the wine's flavor characteristics.

As for sweet sherries, the two major ones are Pedro Ximénez and Muscatel with both using sun-drenched raisinated processes and different fortification methods than the dry sherries. Cream is a mix of Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherries with Lustau's East India Solera being one of the more famous. Pale Cream, on the other hand, is grape syrup mixed with a Fino -- a style that erupted in the 1970s with Harveys Bristol Cream. A Medium designation was recently added, but Derek would love to see that one go away.

The popularity of sherry boomed with the Cobbler that was first mentioned by Washington Irving in 1809. While it is a simple drink, it requires crushed ice and its success rapidly followed Frederic Tudor's first ice shipments starting in 1806. Its success went hand-in-hand with the spread of ice appreciation in drinks. Back then, the Cobbler was mostly made with oxidized sherries that were slightly sweet. Derek mentioned that his favorite use of sherry was in the Adonis which is basically a Sherry Manhattan with sweet vermouth, orange and aromatic bitters.

Since sherry is exceedingly complex with over 300 volatile elements, it often pairs very well with food. Some classic combinations in Spain are Fino and ham, Manzanilla and oysters, and Amontillado and egg. Sherry has also recently worked well the bone and oyster luges phenomenon (pouring the wine over where the bone marrow or mollusk once was).

When asked if they could only have three bottles of sherry, Derek began by listing a Manzanilla from either La Gitana or La Cigarrera, an Amontillado such as Lustau's Los Arcos, and a Cream for sweetness such as Lustau East India Solera. Jackson commented that Lustau's E.I.S. has proven to be an indispensable cocktail ingredient and definitely agreed with Derek's list. He rounded out his list with an Oloroso such as from Alvear and a Palo Cortado such as Hidalgo's 30 Year Wellington.

:: beer back - beer's integration in cocktails ::

On Sunday, one of the talks I attended was Beer Back: Beer's Integration in Cocktails hosted by Kevin Mabry of J.M. Curley and Kevin Martin of Eastern Standard. They began by addressing why beer? Beer is a three dimensional product that is sellable on its own but it  can add so much to drinks; in a way, it is no different than sparkling wine but with a few additional features. These include:
• Effervescence/carbonation. This will help flavors and aromas to keep throughout the drink.
• Dryness or sweetness
• Bitter complexity from the hops
• Other flavor components like malt, roast, vanilla

Methodology was much focused on how to incorporate beer into cocktails. They recommended working backwards by picking a beer first and then adding the rest of the ingredients instead of using a beer float or other addition as a later thought. Develop the drink completely, and afterwards, try it with different beers to see if you can improve it. The beer should be colder than normally drinkable if possible to keep carbonation and to allow for drink layering. As for uses of beer in cocktails:
• Shaken with the drink. Utilize the dry shake akin to what is used with egg cocktails. While the proteins and other frothing agents in beer will likewise be emulsified, it is more important to degas the beer so the shaker does not pop open mid-shake.
• Rolling down a spoon. Pour the beer down a spoon (especially one with a twisted handle) while stirring to integrate.
• Topping drink. Likewise, adding to the glass first and straining over it.
• Beer syrups which last a lot longer than beer -- often up to 30 days. They can be used to create a frothy foam head and texture from the left over proteins in the beer and material in the hop extract. This emulsifier can be a lot cheaper than eggs and can be made vegan or less allergenic.
• Layering. Clearly, sorting out the density of the beer and the rest of the drink is important. Next, figure out what the end goal is and how the drinker should perceive the drink. Is the beer to be taken in first or last? Should the drinker sip from the top or drink via a straw from the bottom? The risk with the straw is that the person you serve it to will just stir it up. Is the beer the focus, the primer, or the cleanser? Think the neo-classic straw-driven Mind Eraser where the Kahlua on the bottom is taken first via straw and its sweetness then kills the heat of the middle vodka layer. Finally, the carbonated water at the top cleanses the palate.

Beer flavor wheels, such as this one, will help to get you thinking about how to pair beer with the other cocktail ingredients.

The talk was sponsored by Lambise, a pair of beers that were developed specifically for use in cocktails; both are combinations of Belgian and lambic beers and one of the two has a ginger component to it. Besides having good body and effervescence, the lambic's sourness and acidity might allow drinks to be citrus-free; while Mabry found that it was a good substitute, Martin often prefers to add citrus in to bolster the crispness of the drink.

:: highlights of thirst boston 2013 ::

Yesterday marked the conclusion of Thirst Boston, the successor to the Boston Cocktail Summit. While most of the events happened on Sunday and Monday, there was The Thing gala on Saturday night that I attended and a St. Germain detox event today that I sadly missed since I had a work shift. The scope of the event was not just cocktails and spirits, for beer, cider, and coffee were included in the mix. Unlike other cocktail events, I did not have cocktail fatigue at any point since there were so many options throughout the day via tasting booths and seminars. Without further ado, here are some of the random highlights of the weekend:
• Best room opening: The D.T.O. room at The Thing. The Thing took place at the Harvard Club with the first bit held in a lobby looking area with a few drink stations including an amazing Bulleit Old Fashioned bar. Later, the doors entered to the voluminous main hall where music blared, drinks of all sorts were being mixed with props to the Remy Martin Cognac Sazerac. Finally, a third room was opened, the D.T.O. room. The Daiquiri Time Out is a phenomenon started in Boston by Andrew Deitz that pays tribute to political intrigue on Chappaquiddick and a host of Boston celebrities were belting out these rummy libations.
• Great way to start the morning: Irish Coffee. My first was served to me on Sunday by Jackson Cannon at the Boston Cocktails: Past, Present, and Future talk and the next was by Tony Iamunno on Monday at the Kilbeggan booth. When I woke up this morning, I was saddened that there wasn't one on the docket for the day.
• Laybacks? Yeah, that just happened: When I wanted to find out where one of the talks' rooms was, I was coerced to do a Galliano layback first by Stephanie Melchert, the local Lucas Bols brand rep. A second one was at the Blender Bender where I risked brain freeze at the hands of contestant Sam Gabrielli. And the third was the most humorous with the surprisingly delicious Bols Yoghurt Liqueur except the pourer was a little uncoordinated and the end result was a bit like a bukkake scene.
• Swagfest galore. I think the final count was 7 shirts, 3 hats, a pair of Glencairn whisky glasses, and a random assortment of keychains, stickers, pins, pens, bottle openers, and other fine stuff. Best shirts nods go to Amaro Sibilla (thanks Aphonik!), Newburyport Beer, and Appleton Estate Bartender's Brunch. Best hats go to the Kilbeggan Irish cap and the Drambuie Fedora.
• One of the most touching moments: When I was waiting in the media line to get into the sold-out sherry talk, speaker Derek Brown came out and insisted that I be let in. And I am glad that I got to hear him and Jackson Cannon speak about this amazing wine.
• Best costume: Charlotte Voisey as a robot. Not even sure what talk or event she was doing it for, but she was walking around for a while like that. I even saw photos of her jamming with the Appleton event's reggae band dressed like that... Runner up was John D. Gertsen, time traveler, dressed up like a colonial fop serving punch. The times that I have asked him if there isn't a costume he wouldn't wear, the answer is always no. The first time I spoke to John was back in 2007 or so at LUPEC Chartreuse event at Green Street and John broke the Silent Order rules for he was dressed as a Carthusian Monk that night.
• Best D.T.O.: Will Thompson pounding it from a pitcher at the Rum: The World's Most Versatile Spirit talk. Also the award for the most aggressive tasting that began with a hefty pours of Smith & Cross, Bacardi, and rhum agricole and continued on with cocktails made with each of those spirits. The breakfast of champions drink was the El Dorado 12 Year and Smith & Cross two rum Old Fashioned.
• Best product name: Atsby's Armadillo Cake. No, not a flavored vodka but an intriguing vermouth we tasted at the Rethinking Vermouth: The Renaissance of Fortified Wine talk.
• Worst drink of Thirst Boston: Sean Frederick's bathtub gin mixed with orange juice at the How Prohibition Changed Spirits & Mixology Around the World. Phil Duff followed it up with the quote, "Can anyone remember the first time you had an Orange Blossom (the drink in question albeit usually with better gin)? It's a disappointing drink, and I've been married twice." The other Prohibition-themed quote was from Imbue's Neil Kopplin at the vermouth talk; he declared, "Prohibition did more damage to drinking in America than Phylloxera."
• Random thing I wrote on Twitter stemming from a conversation about what people order in the bars we each work at, "Vodka (on the rocks or with club soda) is a vehicle for sad men and angry women." Not sure how it came about in terms of the talks or if it is what eventually led to Maureen Hautaniemi coming over to shush us. Oops, sorry about that Maureen (and the others at the talk)! See the rum talk description above for an explanation...
• Blogger stigmatization: Jacob Briars asked the audience if there were any writers in the house. When I raised my hand, Maggie of Privateer Rum yelled out that I was an author. Jacob commented, "Oh, a published author... at least you're not a blogger."
• Nothing says excess like a Fernet Branca afterparty following a day of drinking and the blender event.
• Great Gertsenian truism: "If you know where everything lives and know how to smile, you'll be a great bartender."
• Worst realization: While getting dressed for the Thing, I discovered how difficult it is to tie a bowtie. I have years to go before I achieve anything resembling the level of that rapscallion, Tyler Wang. I ended up punting and going with a regular necktie.