son of dad

1 oz Old Overholt Rye
3/4 oz St. Germain
1/4 oz Campari
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
1 dash Angostura Orange Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass containing ice cubes. Top with 2 oz Notch Session Ale, add straws, and gently stir.

Two Wednesdays ago after work, I headed over to Brick & Mortar. There, Kenny Belanger suggested a drink that he had created for a Backlash Brewery-hosted Spin the Bottle night there a few weeks before. The drink was originally called Delayed Apocalypse and utilized one of Backlash's saisons, but for the regular menu, they opted for the Notch beer on tap. While the first name was taken from a list of possible drink names submitted by the brewers, bartender Cory Buono offered the name Son of Dad as a Seinfeld reference, namely Kramer's suggestion for a serial killer's nickname. Besides being a beer cocktail, the pairing of St. Germain and Campari appealed to me for it worked well in Ben Sandrof's Cell #34 and Colin Shearn's Sideways in Reverse.
The Son of Dad proffered a floral and herbal aroma with citrus notes. A carbonated malt and lemon sip led into a pearlike note on the swallow from the combination of the rye, St. Germain, orange bitters, and Campari. The small amount of Campari did a good job of modulating the drink without overpowering it and making it into a bitter Campari-driven one.

:: summerfest - a celebration of farmhouse ale ::

Last night, I went to session 1 of Drink[Craft]Beer's Summerfest, a celebration of farmhouse ale. The festival featured 25 New England-based breweries who were presenting farmhouse ales, saisons, and summer beers, and some of the breweries brought an additional beer or two that fell out of that general range. One great aspect was the size of the event; with 25 breweries, I was able to hit them all throughout the night and there was little rush. Another was the proper ticket sales for the venue such that it was not hard to navigate and lines were rather short. Therefore, I spent more time talking to brewers and the staff, and less time waiting or being in a rush to see more booths. Finally, many of the brewers crafted a beer especially for the event; in fact, I had to create 7 new entries to the Untappd database last night from what I tasted. To see the complete list of what I drank, check out the Untappd mobile and web app (username: CocktailVirgin).
One of the things I was excited about was the fact that 3 of the booths were cideries, and while they had some more traditional offerings, they each brought something unique. Here were my favorites:
• Bantam Cider (MA) @BantamCider - Smokey Saison. While I did try their delightful Wunderkind, it was their smoked cider that grabbed me. Great farmhouse cider notes crossed with a Scotch whisky-like wood smoke; it reminded me of how well apple brandy pairs with Scotch in cocktails except at a lower proof of 6% ABV.
• Downeast Cider House (ME) @DowneastCider - Antoine Dod-saison. I love their Original Blend that we carry at work (and we sell a lot of it), but their cider saison was what I was looking forward to all week. A dry cider with a bit of funk and spice from the fermentation that was indeed worth the wait!
• Urban Farm Fermentory (ME) @Fermentory - Sour Cidah. I regret not trying Urban Farm's kombucha that they had in a few flavors, but I am glad that I tried their spontaneously fermented cider. My notes read, "Crisp sour, apple cider vinegar notes, probably amazing with food."
For beers, here is a motley collection of interesting ones that I tried:
• Trillium Brewing Co. (MA) @TrilliumBrewing - Wakerobin. I spoke about Trillium in my post on the American Craft Beer Fest in June, and they only repeated their flagship farmhouse ale. The Little Rooster American pale ale made with rye and wheat was rather good, but the Wakerobin, a hopped up red rye farmhouse ale, was the winner with its pine, earthiness, and rye spice.
• Foolproof Brewing Co. (RI) @FoolproofBrew - La Ferme Urbaine Farmhouse Ale. Most of Foolproof's beers are straight forward, such as their Backyahd IPA that I tried, but the farmhouse that they made had gorgeous peppery, light funk, and drying hop notes at the end.
• Cambridge Brewing Co. (MA) @CambridgeBrewer - Jack Straw. I did enjoy their Belgian-style saison, Bachelor's Buttons, though it was the all Brettanomyces blond ale, Jack Straw, that caught my attention. My tasting notes read, "Tart lemon, tropical fruit, green apple."
• Battle Road Brewing Co. (MA) @BattleRoadBeer - Barrett's Farmhouse Ale. Their Belgian-style saison was delightful with lemon, grain-straw, and earthy-pine notes.
• Notch Brewing (MA) @NotchBrewing - Notch Brett Saison. I didn't try their Session Pils since I pour it heavily 5 days a week for guests where I work and know it quite well. I did try the Notch Saison and returned at 8pm for the tapping of their Brett Saison. My tasting notes for the brett read, "Crisp, sour, vinegar, refreshing. Lemon and grain. Like their Pils without hygiene [in a good way]."
• Night Shift Brewing (MA) @NightShiftBeer - Arnie. I have mentioned these guys in my writeups about the 2012 and 2013 ACBF events, and this time they brought some new brews. Their Arnie is accurately described on their webpage as, "Pretty much a funky beer version of the Arnold Palmer, Arnie's a saison with meyer lemon zest and juice, aged in white wine barrels, blended with Kombucha from Portland's Urban Farm Fermentory. It's tangy, tart, refreshing and delicious, and we hope to share it with you at the fest!" So I guess I did get to try Urban Farm's kombucha after all...
• Allagash Brewing Co. (ME) @AllagashBrewing - Saison Rye. Allagash White is one that I pour all day long at work and I had tried their Curieux before, so I honed in on the rye. I described it as, "More sour and funky than the White. Similar soft touch."
• Portico Brewing Co. (MA) @porticobrewing - Saison Charette. I quite enjoyed the Fuzzy Logic weiss-kolsch, but their Belgian-style saison aged on chamomile caught my attention. Floral aroma, anise-licorice notes on the swallow, and a chamomile finish.
• Rising Tide Brewing Co. (ME) @RisingTideBeer - Lyra. We have their Ursa Major in large format and the Ishmael on draft at work, and I increased my breadth by trying the SuSpense rye saison and the Lyra, a saison aged in Cabernet Sauvignon barrels. Lyra's earthy and pine notes went well with the wine undertones here.
• RiverWalk Brewing Co. (MA) @RiverwalkBeer - Charon. What caught me more than their Gnomad American farmhouse ale was the Charon, a dark saison with star anise that came across almost like a cocktail with delightful dark roast and anise notes.
• Wormtown Brewery (MA) @WormtownBrewery - ALS Farmhouse Fundraiser. The corriander spice notes were so tasty in this that I inquired how the beer was made. The brewer commented that no spices were used, for it was their yeast giving this beer all that character.

bitter baby julep

1 1/2 oz Cynar
1/2 oz Campari
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth (Cocchi)
3/4 oz Simple Syrup
1/2 Lemon (in wedges)
Fresh Mint Sprigs (2)

Muddle the lemon wedges, add the mint sprigs, and muddle lightly. Add rest of the ingredients, shake with ice, and strain over a Julep cup (or Double Old Fashioned) filled with crushed ice. Garnish with a dash of Angostura Bitters and a fresh mint sprig.

To end the evening that Tuesday, I decided to make a drink that I had spotted on a Cynar julep article on the Cocktail Enthusiast blog. Since the Cynar Julep from Rogue Beta Cocktails was so delicious, I was definitely game on trying one of them. From the trio of recipes, I selected the Bitter Baby Julep crafted by Tonia Duffy from Dram in Brooklyn. With the muddled lemon in the mix, perhaps a Bitter Baby Smash might be a more appropriate name; either way, this recipe was perfect for the warm summer evening.
The Julep welcomed me with a vegetal, mint, and allspice aroma. Lemon, caramel, and grape on the sip transitioned into Cynar and mint on the swallow and Campari on the finish.

irresistible

1/2 jigger Rum (1 oz Coruba)
1/4 jigger Sweet Vermouth (1/2 oz Cocchi)
1 spoon Benedictine (1/4 oz)
1 spoon Lemon Juice (1/4 oz)

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

After the Grand Slam, I opened up Boothby's 1934 World Drinks And How To Mix Them and spotted the Irresistible. The drink called out to me because it reminded me of the Fig Leaf with Benedictine and different citrus, but in retrospect, it is closer to the Supreme with different proportions. The Irresistible No. 2 in that book is the same basic recipe but with apricot liqueur instead of the Benedictine (plus a lemon twist), and that shares similarity to the Superior. For a spirit in the Irresistible No. 1, Andrea requested Coruba dark Jamaican rum.
Once mixed, the Irresistible greeted the nose with a lemon, caramel, and funky aroma. A lemon and grape sip gave way to a Jamaican rum swallow that showed off the herbalness of the Benedictine and finished with a crisp lemon note.

grand slam

1/2 Swedish Punsch (1 1/2 oz Kronan)
1/4 Sweet Vermouth (3/4 oz Cocchi)
1/4 Dry Vermouth (3/4 oz Dolin)
(1/4 oz Lemon Juice)

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. I added a lemon twist here.
Two Tuesdays ago, we began the cocktail hour with the Grand Slam from the Café Royal Cocktail Book. For brightness, I added a small amount of lemon juice; moreover, Kronan Swedish Punsch seems to benefit from citrus notes since it is not as citrussy as other Swedish Punsches, and the lemon juice would help cut some of the sweetness here. Once mixed, the twist offered a bright lemon aroma. An almost honey-like grape sip transitioned into a swallow full of rum, tea notes, and herbalness. Overall, the Grand Slam was sweet, light, fruity, and complex.

me & my grandfather

3/4 oz Pisco
3/4 oz Cognac
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
3/4 oz Simple Syrup

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Two Mondays ago, Andrea and I traveled over to Brookline to have dinner at Pomodoro. For a first drink, bartender Steven Shellenberger suggested a simple split spirits Sour he called Me & My Grandfather. The name reflects the use of aged and unaged spirits, namely Cognac and pisco; moreover, he commented that the structure also works well with heavily aged and unaged rums.
The Me & My Grandfather began with a bright lemon and pisco nose. A sweet lemon sip gave way to a swallow that contrasted funky pisco and rounded, aged brandy flavors.

ciudad vieja

1 oz Laird's Bonded Apple Brandy
3/4 oz Dry Curaçao (Pierre Ferrand)
1/2 oz Zacapa 23 Year Rum
1/4 oz Benedictine
2 dash Creole Bitters (Peychaud's)

Build in a Double Old Fashioned glass. Stir with ice until well chilled and garnish with a lemon twist.

After returning home from No. 9 Park, I was in the mood for a nightcap. The drink that came to mind was the Ciudad Vieja that Gaz Regan had just written about as part of the teaser series for his 101 Best New Cocktails: 2013 book. The Ciudad Vieja was created by Alex Negranza of Seattle's Liberty Bar, and he based it off of a Vieux Carré. He crafted it for a customer who loves Sazeracs but wanted something more aggressive. With the inclusion of dark, aged rum, it seemed like the perfect end of the evening libation.
The lemon oil from the twist joined the dark notes from the rum and perhaps some from the Benedictine. On the tongue, an apple and caramel sip gave way to a rum and orange swallow that shared pleasant herbal and spice notes.

[devil's curve]

1 1/2 oz Beefeater Gin
1 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth
1/2 oz Velvet Falernum
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1 dash Peychaud's Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Two Sundays ago, Andrea and I made our way over to No. 9 Park. There, bartender Tyler Wang mentioned that he had a few new cocktails to showcase. The one that grabbed me was an unnamed one that contained gin, falernum, and dry vermouth. Tyler did mention that he based the idea off of the Supreme, a rum, Bénédictine, sweet vermouth, and lemon drink. Later, it dawned on me that it shared some similarities with the Figure Eight that appears on their menu. Therefore, I dubbed it the Devil's Curve after a mathematical equation that generates a figure 8 in the middle when graphed. The devil aspect of the equation relates to how the figure 8 looks like the juggling toy called the diablo, and not to Satan himself; I will leave all other interpretations up in the air though.
The cocktail began with a lemon and juniper aroma. The lemon continued on into the sip with wine and other citrus notes. Next, the gin led off the swallow that ended with a tart and lingering clove finish.

backyard bitter

1 1/2 oz Pierre Ferrand 1840 Cognac
1/2 oz Aperol
1/2 oz Gran Classico Bitter
1/2 oz Lustau Dry Oloroso Sherry
2 dash Jerry Thomas Decanter Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a rocks glass. Twist a grapefruit peel over the top.
Two Wednesdays ago, we had dinner at Tasty Burger in Fenway and then headed across the street to the Citizen Public House. There, Andrea asked for the Backyard Bitter from bartender Sean Frederick. Once mixed, the cocktail offered grapefruit and nutty sherry aromas. The sherry continued into the sip as a grape flavor, and the swallow began with the Cognac followed by the sherry's nuttiness and the Gran Classico's herbalness. Finally, the drink finished on a chocolatey note along with the Decanter Bitters' spice.