:: fred's top 10 cocktail moments of 2010 ::

I was recently asked what my favorite drink of 2010 was, and in pondering it, I began to think about the year in general. I might have a problem narrowing down my choices for a best drink overall, but I can definitely narrow it down to best drink out and best drink at home for each month. I will save that list for tomorrow, as I figured that I should start with a re-cap of my year. These are numbered but not in any particular order, and I am sure that I missed plenty as I reflected over the last few days.

1. The Chee Hoo Fizz Story
Randy Wong, beside creating Tiki recipes, travels around the country as the bassist and band leader for the Waitiki 7 exotica band. When he was in Atlanta, he got to talking to a bartender about Tiki drinks. Soon the bartender wanted to make him a drink, namely the Chee Hoo Fizz, which surprised and amused Randy greatly. Turns out that the bartender reads this blog and unknowingly made the drink for its creator. It is stories like these that make me realize that the blog is more than a drink diary but a disseminator of recipes and a way for Boston bartenders and their creativity to be acknowledged (without having to win a contest or other).

2. Bottling Day at the Bittermens
I got the chance to help out the Glassers for one of the Bittermens Bitters production runs. While my bitters batches are usually a quaint handful of bottles each, it was rather intriguing to see how things are done on a much larger scale done as well as properly in a commercial kitchen. Best wishes to their business (and new product releases) in 2011!

3. Interviewing Brian Rea
This year I was formally a writer for the Tales of the Cocktail blog. One of the duties was to pick a seminar and hype it through an interview or other writeup. I was really curious about hearing the life story of Brian Rea who had bartended through some of the bleakest decades of American mixology; however, I had never interviewed anyone before. Luckily, Brian made it easy and entertained me with his stories, so it was not stressful in the least after the first few seconds.

4. TDN: Bumwines!
During Mixoloseum's Thursday Drink Nights, I kept joking that the theme one week should be "Bumwines" to see what glorious cocktails could be made with wretched ingredients (akin to what Prohibition-era bartenders might have done). Finally, one week they took me seriously and asked if I would host it. Instead of people avoiding it, they embraced it with an enthusiasm; I was quite impressed that someone even mulled Wild Irish Rose and used it in a cocktail! While I produced a few with interesting names (like the Last Word variation, the Right to Remain Silent, using Berry-flavored Cisco), the most tasty resorted to a Prohibition trick -- using honey. My bright red Bee's Knees variation as a tribute to the Red Dye #40-colored bees in Brooklyn tasted pretty decent as the honey syrup smoothed over the horrid aftertaste of Berry Cisco.

5. Rum Tasting at Steve Remsberg
Right after Tales of the Cocktail was over, we had the privilege of attending a rum tasting at Steve Remsberg's house. It was Andrea's inquiries about Old New England Rum during the week that scored us the invitation, and she relays the story better than I. I think the pre-Castro Cuban Rum aged in sherry casks was the most memorable spirit to have hit my lips this year.

6. Bartender on Acid
One of the drinks I came up with at a Thursday Drink Night was a "revamped classic" of the Surfer on Acid, but switching the coconut rum and Jägermeister to Smith & Cross and Fernet-Branca, respectively. I come to find out that Drink in Fort Point heard about the recipe and made up a pitcher of it one night which completely sold out (apparently, it has gotten made other times as well). Perhaps that could make it my most influential drink of 2010, with the Stamos Gin Fizz being the winner of 2009 (download a PDF of drink cards that contain this recipe and others).

7. Hanging out at the Boston Shaker
When Adam Lantheaume re-opened up the Boston Shaker store in Davis Square, Andrea became his first employee. Her job had just ended and this opportunity provided her a good sabbatical. Over the months that Andrea worked there, I got the chance to hang out there and watch the business grow and succeed. Best wishes to Adam and the Boston Shaker in 2011!

8. Birthday Bar Crawl
Well, since Andrea was working at the Boston Shaker store on my birthday, I decided to celebrate on my lonesome by visiting Eastern Standard. Followed by Clio. And then meeting up with Andrea at Trina's Starlite Lounge. Many thanks to Hugh Fiore, Todd Maul, and Emma Hollander for making my birthday this year quite amazing.

9. Absinthe Bar Crawl
Speaking of bar crawls, we got invited on the Pernod Ricard Absinthe Bar Crawl. Beside the great food and drink at Stoddard's, Russell House Tavern, and Drink, the transportation in gangster era limousines capped off the night. That and a late night round of Rittenhouse 100 shots with the bartenders of Drink. Yeah, maybe I did not need that last shot, but it was well worth it later.

10. Wait, I need a number 10?
I will probably think of something crafty after I hit submit (sort of like the naming of this drink), but what can I say -- it has been a great year and this post is #400 for 2010. Between Tales of the Cocktail, local events like Bartenders on the Rise, attending a Cognac blending seminar, hosting Mixology Monday: Tea, and other zaniness, I guess having I am a little indecisive on how to wrap it up. One memory worth that comes to mind was a minor sense of accomplishment I experienced during Tales of the Cocktail. On Sunday night, we returned from a last visit to Cure (post rum tasting). We bumped into Paul Clarke in front of the Monteleone, and we all decided to get a nightcap at the Carousel Bar. After a Vieux Carré and much slurring conversation, the carousel just stopped. Wow, we closed the Carousel Bar! While it was a pleasure to have the disorienting spinning cease, it was a symbolic moment that our adventure was over (save for us getting up a few hours later to catch an 8am flight out). So I guess there is a number 10 after all.

penicillin flip

2 oz White Horse Blended Scotch
1/2 oz Honey-Ginger Syrup
1 Egg
1 dash Angostura Orange Bitters
1 dash Mole Bitters
1 wide piece Lemon Peel

Add ingredients to mixing glass. Twist lemon peel over contents and drop in. Shake once without ice and once with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass. Grate nutmeg over the top and float a barspoon of Laphroaig 10 Year Single Malt Scotch on the surface.

On Thursday, I visited Rendezvous for dinner and sat at the bar in front of bartender Scott Holliday. For one of my drinks, Scott wanted to make me a flip that he had made Andrea, namely one based off of Sam Ross' Penicillin Cocktail. Since egg can hide a bit of sugar, Scott removed the lemon juice and substituted a lemon peel in the mix like in La Florida Cocktail Book's Josephine Baker recipe.
One of the major differences between the flip and the cocktail forms was that the flip was less spicy and more subdued. The flip started with a peat aroma from the single malt float coupled with spice notes from the nutmeg garnish. The smooth, creamy sip contained a surprising amount of bright lemon notes from the peel; moreover, the swallow had the smoke, honey, and ginger elements that round off the regular Penicillin Cocktail.

frank-o

2 oz Frapin VS Cognac
1/2 oz Plantation Barbados 5 Year Rum
1/2 oz Luxardo Triple Sec
1/2 oz Lillet Blanc
1/2 oz Lemon Juice

Stir with ice and strain into a snifter glass with a citrus-flavored sugared (*) rim and a smoked ice cube (**).
(*) Dehydrated sugar, Cointreau, orange zest, and Middle Eastern black lime. See link below for more information.
(**) Watch Todd make smoked ice using falernum-soaked wood chips and a blowtorch here.

For my second drink at Clio last week, bartender Todd Maul wanted to make me the Frank-O. Todd's initial idea was to deconstruct a warm winter drink and make it cold. The drink ended up a variation of the Frank Sullivan cocktail which is also known as the Hoop La, Hey Hey, and Odd McIntyre (sometimes with the recipe listed multiple times under different names in the same book). Instead of equal parts brandy, triple sec, Lillet, and lemon juice, Todd increased the brandy; moreover, he added rum to push it closer to a hybrid with a Between the Sheets cocktail -- a Frank Sullivan with the Lillet switched out for rum. Two other tricks were thrown in with the first being a citrus-flavored sugar rim and the second being a smoked ice cube.
The Frank-O ended up a bit stronger and drier than a Frank Sullivan. A citrussy sip was followed by Cognac's heat, the rum's funk, and a hint of smoke from the ice cube. The sugared rim functioned to return some of the sweetness to the balance but did not make the drink overly sweet as it can for me in many Sidecar recipes.

dr. cocktail

2 oz El Dorado 5 Year Rum
1 oz Housemade Swedish Punsch
1 oz Lime Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe glass.

On Wednesday, I decided to pay bartender Todd Maul a visit at Clio. For a starting point, Todd recommended the Dr. Cocktail off of the menu for he wanted to show me his recently reformulated Swedish Punsch recipe. He and Randy Wong (of Helen the Pacific and Chee Hoo Fizz fame) improved on the house recipe to the point that one of Todd's Swedish patrons gave the thumbs up. For the drink, Todd's choice of recipe differed from the Doctor Cocktail in Harry McElhone's 1927 Barflies and Cocktails which is equal parts Swedish Punsch, orange juice, and lemon juice. In between Harry's recipe and Todd's was Frank Meier's 1936 one from The Artistry of Mixing Drinks which is equal parts Swedish Punsch and Bacardi Rum with a teaspoon each of lemon and orange juice; Ted Haigh commented that the addition of rum to the recipe raised the drink to a higher level. The one Todd chose took some elements from Trader Vic who suggested a darker rum than Meier and offered the option of swapping the lemon and orange for lime juice (albeit with different proportions). With Todd's recipe and his housemade Swedish Punsch, this recipe came out with a rather delightful balance.
The Dr. Cocktail first presented itself with the spice and funkiness of the Swedish Punsch on the nose. Next, a lightly-sweet lime sip was chased by the aged rum, the lime's crispness, and the punch's dryness from its Batavia Arrack and tea tannins.

morning glory fizz variation

2 oz Glenrothes Single Malt Scotch
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
3/4 oz Simple Syrup
1 barspoon Absinthe
1 Egg White

Shake once without ice and once with ice and double strain into a highball glass. Top with ~3 oz of St. Bernardus Tripel beer and add a straw.

For my second drink at No. 9 Park, I asked bartender Ted Kilpatrick for an egg drink since his flip- and fizz-fu is strong. The drink he suggested to me was his variation of the Morning Glory Fizz. The original is believed to be a creation of Harry Johnson from the late 1800s, and David Wondrich described the drink as one of the early and successful attempts at mixing with Scotch. I had the one from Harry Johnson's New and Improved Bartender's Manual a little over a year ago as I was working my way through the Anvil Bar's 100 Drinks list. Ted's variation, besides changing the citrus and sugar content, swapped the soda water for a Belgian beer. Moreover, for a Scotch choice, he picked Glenrothes which has some pleasant honey and citrus notes while not being all that smokey.
The fizz possessed a glorious foam from the shaken egg white interacting with the lively beer. Unlike the one we made with the peaty Caol Ila, this fizz's aroma was mainly from the absinthe. The Scotch did come through in the flavor though with the sip containing its malt notes along with a sweet lemon flavor. The swallow had the Scotch's smoke along with hints of absinthe and the beer's hops. Furthermore, the Belgian beer functioned well to complement both the Scotch and the citrus in the drink.

avenue

1 1/2 oz Laird's Applejack
1 1/2 oz Old Fitzgerald Bourbon
1/2 oz Passion Fruit Syrup
1 short barspoon Grenadine
1 drop Orange Blossom Water

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

On Tuesday night, I ventured over to No. 9 Park to pay bartender Ted Kilpatrick a visit. One of the drinks off of the menu that Ted recommended was his take on the Avenue that first appeared in the 1937 Café Royal Cocktail Book. The original created by W.G. Crompton was as follows:

Avenue
• 1/3 Bourbon
• 1/3 Calvados
• 1/3 Passion Fruit Juice
• 1 dash Grenadine
• 1 dash Orange Blossom Water
Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Ted mentioned that he found passion fruit syrup instead of the juice to work better; moreover, he changed the proportions around and swapped out shaking for stirring the drink.
Ted's Avenue had an usual fruit aroma with hints of Bourbon. The fruit notes continued on the sip and combined with the whiskey rather well. Moreover, the syrup donated a thick mouth feel that was cleansed by the alcohol heat on the swallow. The end result was tropical, dry, and funky. Indeed, the drink was a lot drier than I expected it to be, and with no citrus in the mix, I have to imagine that Old Fitzgerald did most of the work to beat down the sweetness of the passion fruit syrup and grenadine.

gin anthem

2 oz Plymouth Gin
1 oz Lillet Blanc
2 drop Orange Flower Water
1 dash Orange Bitters

Stir with ice and garnish with an orange twist (this drink was shaken, but the original recipe recommends stirring).
On Monday after attending the LUPEC Boston holiday party at Trina's Starlite Lounge to raise money and winter clothing for the On the Rise charity, I walked up Beacon Street to get a nightcap at Dalí. After perusing the cocktail menu, I asked bartender Greg Rossi for the Gin Anthem. The drink was created by Tara McLaughlin of the Rob Roy in Seattle; while I did not ask Greg where he acquired the recipe, the drink does appear in Left Coast Libations. The Gin Anthem was essentially a citrussy Martini, and the orange blossom water in the ingredients list reminded me of another drink Greg served me a few months ago, namely the Dama de La Noche from Charles H. Baker, Jr.'s South American Companion. The Gin Anthem had an orange aroma, and with all five of the ingredients including the gin having some aspect of orange botanicals in it, it was hard to pick out which one was the strongest. The citrus continued on in the sip with perhaps the Lillet contributing the most, and the swallow was orange as well with a slightly bitter zing from the bitters and gin.

the old man, the monk, and the sea

1 1/2 oz Old Fitzgerald Bourbon
3/4 oz Benedictine
3/4 oz Lustau Dry Oloroso Sherry
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a rocks glass. Twist an orange peel over the top and discard.

For my second cocktail at Drink, bartender Joe Staropoli mentioned a drink he had at the Drawing Room in Chicago. There, bartender Cristiana DeLucca made him the Old Man, the Monk, and the Sea, and she named the drink after the ingredients: Old Weller 107 Bourbon, Benedictine, and sherry, respectively. While Drink did not have Old Weller on hand, the substitution of 100 proof Old Fitzgerald was within the right ball park.
The drink started with a nose filled with orange oil and whiskey aromas. A malty and alcohol-hot whiskey sip was quenched by Benedictine and sherry on the swallow. While the sherry component was a little light for my tastes, it did become more forward as the drink warmed up. While drinking the Old Man, the Monk, and the Sea, I asked Joe if Ernest Hemingway himself would enjoy this cocktail since the name riffs on one of his books. Joe replied he was not sure if Hemingway would approve of the drink's sugar content but he could see Ernest drinking one of these on a cold African night. Somehow my notes have the phrase "a religious Hemingway experience" which you can parse any way you please.

mr. bali hai

1 1/2 oz Pineapple Juice
1 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Simple Syrup
3/4 oz Galliano Ristretto Coffee Liqueur
1 oz Plantation 5 Year Barbados Rum
1/2 oz Smith & Cross Rum
1 oz Matusalem Platino Rum

Shake with ice and strain into a Mr. Bali Hai tiki mug filled with crushed ice. Add straws.

Last weekend, Andrea and I visited Drink for their Tiki Sunday nights. To start, bartender Joe Staropoli suggested that I try the classic Mr. Bali Hai. While Joe was busy making Andrea's drink, it was bartender Scott Marshall who appeared with my drink order replete with the coinciding tiki mug! Scott said that he strayed a bit from the recipe in Beach Bum Berry's book. Beside increasing the volumes a bit, he swapped out the call for sour mix for fresh lemon juice and simple syrup, Myers rum for a combination of Plantation Barbados and Smith & Cross, and coffee-flavored brandy for Galliano Ristretto. The original recipe was created at the Bali Hai restaurant in San Diego, and the mug was created to honor the statue in front of the restaurant which was modeled after headhunters of the South Pacific.
Since the mug came with a top, the aroma was not all that evident while enjoying the drink. The sip sung out with pineapple flavors while the swallow was lemon crispness and rum funk from the Barbados and Smith & Cross rums. However, the most noteworthy aspect of the swallow was the coffee liqueur! The Ristretto was pretty stunning with its dark roast coffee flavor that blended well with the darker rums.