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Magic Julep
Giuseppe González, Suffolk Arms, New York, NY
8 to 10 fresh mint leaves
30 ml (1 oz) simple syrup
30 ml (1 oz) Fernet Branca
30 ml (1 oz) Angostura bitters
1 fresh mint sprig, as garnish
Muddle the mint leaves in the simple syrup in the bottom of a Julep cup. Add crushed ice and the remaining ingredients. Stir well, add more crushed ice to form a cone on top of the drink, and add the garnish.
gaz sez: In April, 2016, I was in Manhattan to conduct a Mindful Bartender presentation at a midtown hotel, so I figured I’d look at Giuseppe González’ new joint, Suffolk Arms, to see if it was really as fabulous as everyone had been telling me. It was. It was more than that.
I spent a delightful couple of hours in this joint, and my drink of choice was Giuseppe’s Magic Julep. It’s a delightful quaff, and Giuseppe is a delightful chap, too. Well done, Brother. You constantly take us to new heights, and amazingly, you’ve managed to open a 5-star craft cocktail bar that feels like a neighborhood hang-out.
SUBMIT your recipe for consideration HERE
Find the 101 Best New Cocktails App, and the book, right HERE
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New Fashioned
Sonny De Lido, Pizza East Shoreditch, London, England, UK
“Many ladies don’t like Old-Fashioneds so I made one for them. I replaced the sugar cube with a barspoon of maraschino and a hint of blackberries!” Sonny De Lido
40 ml (1.35 oz) Woodford Reserve bourbon
15 ml (.5 oz) crème de mûre
5 ml (.16 oz or 1 teaspoon) maraschino liqueur
2 drops Angostura bitters
1 lemon twist, as garnish
Stir over ice in an old-fashioned glass and add the garnish.
gaz sez: Sonny says that he created the New Fashioned for the ladies, and if that’s the case I’ve been using the wrong restroom all my life. This drink suits me down to the ground. Nice one, Sonny!
SUBMIT your recipe for consideration HERE
Find the 101 Best New Cocktails App, and the book, right HERE
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Now, Frank has done the un-doable. He has taken the Old Waldorf=Astoria Bar Book, and brought it completely up to date with this brand new tome that will, I predict, be hailed as a true classic in its own right, standing tall next to books such as Jim Meehan’s PDT Cocktail Book, another volume that will be used as a reference for the next 100 years and more.
Along with detailing all the old favorites that were born at the Waldorf (The Bronx being probably the most well-known), Frank brings us lots of his, and his crew’s new 21st-Century potions, too. But he doesn’t stop there.
Near as damn it every drink has been analyzed thoroughly by Caiafa in this book, and he’s painstakingly gone over ingredients, calling for specific spirits in most cases, and he has also detailed other, related drinks, along the way. David Embury, in his book, The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, did a fine job of analyzing cocktails back in the mid-20th-Century, but he would have done far better had he understood the craft as intimately as Frank Caiafa.
My favorite line in the book? “We are here to put smiles on people’s faces and help create memories.”
We are, indeed, Frank. We are, indeed.
If you are at all serious about cocktails, just buy the damned book, wudja? You need it. You’ll have to get it one day, so you might as well get it today.
CLICK HERE TO BUY THE BOOK FROM AMAZON
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT COCKTAILS IN THE COUNTRY CLICK HERE
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An Open Letter to the Bartender Community
There’s been many feathers ruffled recently, and the ugly face of sexism has raised its head, with a focus on some very good friends of mine, a special light being shone on Dushan Zaric from The 86 Company.
I’ve known Dushan for close to a decade now, and I know in my heart, that he’s no sexist. He’s the furthest thing from sexist I can think of. Please allow me to list a couple of facts:
I could go on, but I don’t see the need to. People who know Dushan have already rallied around him, simply because they know that he is one of the most caring souls in the industry. And many of these people have been women who Dushan has helped over the years.
How about me? Am I sexist? When I conduct my mindful bartending presentation I use an image of a woman with large breasts sitting in meditation pose while I’m talking about the benefits of meditation. I always say, “I’m taking advantage of showing you a picture of a woman with large breasts at this point,” I then show a picture of a hunk of a man in meditation pose “for all straight women or gay men in the room.” Is that sexist? It probably is. I’ve never had complaints, though, and usually everyone laughs. It’s a couple of throw-away lines. No more, no less.
IF, HOWEVER, someone wanted to smear my reputation, then those words and pictures would play right into their hands. And that, from what I can see, is what has happened to Dushan. His words have been taken out of context in order to fuel this witch-hunt.
I leave you to chew this over, folks, but I’m pleading with everyone out there who is still looking to harm Dushan to please stop and turn the conversation over to more real issues. I am sure if you talked to Dushan in person you would see he is not the person you’re making him out to be.
And if you are thinking of boycotting an entire company for the actions of one person within that company, I think you’d probably have to boycott every single spirits company out there, and then what would you sell in your bars? To threaten a small and vulnerable company and the livelihoods of the 10 people, 4 of them women, who work there surely seems preposterous. They are a company that has the best interest of bartenders, men and women, as the focus of their mission. Sure, The 86 Co is there to make money, but they do it in the most ethical way possible.
I want to go on record as standing firmly by Dushan’s side of this issue. He couldn’t discriminate if his life depended on it. Of this I’m sure.
In conclusion, then, let me say this: If, in your mind, Dushan Zaric’s name is tainted in any way, then please consider my name to be tainted, too.
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Not Too Sloe
Francesco Lombardi, The Walrus Room, London, England, UK
“I wanted to create a softer alternative a classic Negroni, and doesn’t scare the ladies off! Soften it up with Aperol instead of Campari, and add a British touch with the sloe gin (Plymouth is my choice—it’s creamy and has a very fruity aftertaste). The pink grapefruit juice adds the freshness and a slightly bitter taste to complement the Aperol. The cherry bitters give a nice aroma. Makes a great brunch aperitif or early evening drink, and an easy start for all those Negroni lovers out there like me.” Francesco Lombardi
25 ml (.8 oz) Plymouth sloe gin
25 ml (.8 oz) London dry gin
15 ml (.5 oz) Aperol
15 ml (.5 oz) Carpano Antica Formula
10 ml (.33 oz) fresh pink grapefruit juice
2 dashes cherry bitters
1 Amarena cherry, as garnish
1 orange twist, as garnish
Stir over ice and strain into a chilled coupe. Add the garnishes.
gaz sez: Sloe gin does a fabulous job in this cocktail. It’s one of those “why didn’t I think of that” ingredients. And the cherry bitters (I used Fee Brothers) add a fabulous dimension to the drink. Not Too Sloe should be consumed quickly!
SUBMIT your recipe for consideration HERE
Find the 101 Best New Cocktails App, and the book, right HERE
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Old Man & The Sea
Andrew Winters, The Blind Rabbit, Anaheim, CA, USA
“Thank you for this opportunity.” Andrew Winters
Apple wood chips
60 ml (2 oz) Bulleit bourbon
30 ml (1 oz) Zaya rum
7.5 ml (.25 oz) Fernet Branca
7.5 ml (.25 oz) Cinnamon Simple Syrup*
1 orange twist
Put wood chips on a fireproof plate. Create the smoke by lighting on fire and then smothering the fire by setting a room-temperature rocks glass over the chips. This can take a minute so do it first, and make sure the glass is nice and foggy before you make the cocktail.
Stir remaining ingredients over ice. Turn the rocks glass upright, letting the smoke loft out as you strain into the glass. Flame the twist over the drink, then discard.
*Cinnamon Simple Syrup: Break up 5 cinnamon sticks and add to a pot with 240 ml (1 cup) water. Bring to a boil. Immediately turn off the heat and let steep for 10 minutes. Strain the cinnamon water, return to the pot and bring back to a boil. Slowly add 400 g (2 cups) granulated sugar, stirring constantly dissolve. Remove from the heat once the sugar is completely dissolved. (Do not allow the syrup to boil for too long or it will be too thick once it cools.) Allow to cool completely for 30 minutes at room temperature before bottling. Shelf Life: 2 weeks
gaz sez: Rum, Bourbon, Fernet, Cinnamon Simple? Of course it works. Anyone can see that. The smoked glass, though, is what helps this baby stand head and shoulders above the rest of the Chorus Line. Nice touch, Andrew.
SUBMIT your recipe for consideration HERE
Find the 101 Best New Cocktails App, and the book, right HERE
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Ready, Steady, Fire!
Ralf Hubbers, Demain, Nijmegen, Gelderland, Netherlands
“Created for the not so honourable Dutch pirates, shooting their way through everyone and anyone, just to loot, drink and conquer the world. This drink is the aftermath, smoke rises and the ones still standing raise their glass or tankard to honour their fallen brothers.” Ralf Hubbers
2 to 3 pods black cardamom
40 ml (1.35 oz) Bols Genever
10 ml (.33 oz) Ilegal Mezcal Reposado
10 ml (.33 oz) yellow Chartreuse
30 ml (1 oz) fresh lime juice
20 ml (.66 oz) runny honey
2 to 3 mint sprigs, as garnish
1 to 2 grinds black pepper, as garnish
Crack the cardamom in the base of the shaker. Add ice and the remaining ingredients. Shake and fine-strain into an old-fashioned glass. Add ice and the garnishes.
gaz sez: This drink celebrates the Dutch pirates who fought my ancestors during the spice wars, and it’s hard to forgive their swashbuckling treachery even though a few hundred years have passed. Nevertheless, a damned good drink is a damned good drink no matter how you cut it, and Ready, Steady, Fire! is, for sure, a damned good drink. Nicely done, Ralf!
SUBMIT your recipe for consideration HERE
Find the 101 Best New Cocktails App, and the book, right HERE
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Chasing Daisies
Joann Spiegel, Mace, New York, NY
“Whoever said there is nothing in vodka cocktails was out of their mind. This is tasty and I think I will have another!” Joann Spiegel
1.5 oz (45 ml) Chase Marmalade Vodka
.5 oz (15 ml) Amaro Lazzaroni
.25 oz (7.5 ml) Suze
.25 oz (7.5 ml) Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao
1 dash Lucid Absinthe Supérieure
Pinch salt
1 lemon twist, as garnish
Stir over ice, and strain into a chilled rocks glass. Add the garnish.
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My Two Mums, Vi and her Mother, Nan
My Mum, Vi Regan, died in 2001, and I was privileged to spend her last six weeks with her in the UK. She lived at home for three of those weeks, and in a hospice for her last three weeks. She had a sense of humor throughout, which made it easier on me, and everyone else around. A typical demand from Vi while she was still at home went something like this:
“Gary, make me a cup of tea, please. In that little cup that Nan liked. And I’ll have some biscuits, too, please. Just two biscuits. And while you’re boiling the kettle you could make me a nice hot water bottle, too, for my feet. Not too hot, though. That last hot water bottle nearly burned my toes off. And hurry up, would you? I’m dying, you know . . .”
“I know you’re a demanding old woman,” I’d tell her, and we’d smile together.
Vi died peacefully in the hospice on November 16, 2001.
A week or so later I opened her will. She had no money, but she owned her house, and as the only child, she left that to me. No surprises in the will. Except for an old photograph that she’d put in there. It was a signed picture of Vera Lynn.
Vera Lynn was a famed British singer who, during WWII, toured the world giving concerts for British forces overseas, and becoming known as “The Forces’ Sweetheart.” She was known for patriotic songs such as The White Cliffs of Dover, We’ll Meet Again, and There’ll Always be an England, and her popularity continued after the war when she devoted time to raising money for charity.
I’d seen this picture before, though I can’t remember how Vi had gotten it in the first place. Still, though, seeing it made me smile. It was typical of Vi to put this into her will, knowing that it would take some of my sadness away after she’d gone.
About three years later, on a hot summer’s day, I was hanging out on the deck listening to The Wall, Pink Floyd’s masterpiece about a rock singer, born during WWII, going through a breakdown. There’s a track on the album called “Vera,” and it centers on Vera Lynn’s signature song, “We’ll Meet Again.”
“Does anybody here remember Vera Lynn?
Remember how she said that
We would meet again
Some sunny day?”
When that track played I suddenly understood why Vi had put the picture of Vera Lynn into her will. It stopped me dead in my tracks.
“We’ll Meet Again,” Vi was telling me.
It was a message from her.
A message from Heaven
We will indeed meet again, Vi. We will, indeed.
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It’s with a Heavy Heart, and a Smile on my face, that I’m announcing the end of the 101 Best New Cocktails project.
I’ve just put the fifth and last book of this series to bed, and we’re hoping to have the book on the shelves before too very long. I’ll keep you posted.
Thanks to all the bartenders who have sent recipes to me over the years, thus making this series possible.
I like to think that, between us, we’ve provided future generations of barkeeps with a snapshot of the variety of cocktails that you guys have created over the past five years.
Onward and upward, then, to projects new and shiny. No time to let the moss grow!
To get the 101BNC App and books, with links to all manner of grand reading material, please click HERE
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Mrs. Charles
Meagan Schmoll, The Rose / Pink Garter Theatre, Jackson WY
“It is simple and lovely but has the heat of love in it with the Ancho Reyes and flamed twist.” Meagan Schmoll
1.5 oz (45 ml) Ketel One Vodka
1 oz (30 ml) La Quintinye Vermouth Royal Dry Vermouth
.25 oz (7.5 ml) Del Maguey Vida Single Village Mezcal
.25 oz (7.5 ml) Ancho Reyes Ancho Chile Liqueur
1 dash Regan’s Orange Bitters No. 6
1 flamed orange twist, as garnish
Stir over ice, and strain into a chilled Nick & Nora glass. Add the garnish.
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The Fifth Element
Nicole White, Oregano Ristorante, Newburyport, MA
“I named this in tribute to my favorite Milla Jovovich movie. I wanted it to match Leeloo’s hair—ginger two ways and lemon two ways. The peach and ginger complement the honey and citrus notes in the scotch, the egg white adds to the creaminess with just enough sweetness.” Nicole White
1.5 oz (45 ml) Highland Park 12-year-old Single Malt Scotch Whisky
.25 oz (7.5 ml) The American Juice Company’s Ginger Gershwin
.25 oz (7.5 ml) The American Juice Company’s Harriet Peacher Stowe
.25 oz (7.5 ml) fresh lemon juice
1 egg white
Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur, as rinse
1 lemon twist, as garnish
Dry shake, then add ice and shake vigorously. Chill a cocktail glass and rinse with liqueur. Strain the cocktail and add the garnish.
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Spicy Sunrise
Olivia Hu, Sunrise/Sunset, Brooklyn, NY
“When I think tequila, I go spicy. I thought spicy peach for the juice component. PAMA seemed syrupy and would sink to the bottom nicely.” Olivia Hu
1.5 oz (45 ml) Don Julio Blanco Tequila
1 oz (30 ml) The American Juice Company’s Harriet Peacher Stowe
.5 oz (15 ml) fresh lemon juice
.5 oz (15 ml) Ancho Reyes Ancho Chile Liqueur
.5 oz (15 ml) PAMA, as float
1 lemon twist, as garnish
Shake over ice, and fine-strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Add the float and the garnish.
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Italian Job
Christofer Moustakas, Juliette, Williamsburg, NY
1.5 oz (45 ml) Amaro Lucano
.75 oz (22.5 ml) Del Maguey Vida Single Village Mezcal
.5 oz (15 ml) Punt e Mes
1 oz (30 ml) pineapple juice
2 dashes Bittermens ‘Elemakule Tiki® Bitters
1 lemon twist, as garnish
1 maraschino cherry, as garnish
Dry shake to froth the pineapple, and double-strain into a chilled coupe. Add the garnishes.
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Get Lucky!
Abby Ehmann, Lucky, 168 Avenue B, New York, NY
“Blood oranges are surprising to look at and all the ingredients love that lemon! Don’t drink too many.” Abby Ehmann
1.5 oz (45 ml) Charbay Meyer Lemon Flavored Vodka
1 oz (30 ml) Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao
.5 oz (15 ml) Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur
.25 oz (7.5 ml) Ancho Reyes Ancho Chile Liqueur
Several dashes Peychaud’s Bitters
1 blood orange wheel, as garnish
Stir over ice, and strain into a rocks glass. Add the garnish.
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Woman with the Tattooed Hands
Erick Castro, Polite Provisions, San Diego, CA
“Western tiki interpretation. Great way to introduce them to amaro.” Erick Castro
1.5 oz (45 ml) Bulleit Bourbon
.75 oz (22.5 ml) Amaro Lazzaroni
1.5 oz (45 ml) pineapple juice
.5 oz (15 ml) Eli Mason Gomme Syrup
.5 oz (15 ml) fresh lime juice
1 mint sprig, as garnish
1 lime wheel, as garnish
Shake over ice, and strain over fresh ice into a collins glass. Add the garnishes and two straws.
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The Sleepy Smoker
Amelia Castro, Polite Provisions, San Diego, CA
“This drink reminds me of a clam bake, and good food in your belly always leads to sleepiness.” Amelia Castro
1.5 oz (45 ml) Don Zoilo Manzanilla Sherry
1 oz (30 ml) Chase English Oak Smoked Vodka
.5 oz (15 ml) Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao
1 orange twist, as garnish
Stir over ice, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Squeeze the twist over the drink and add as garnish.
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Irish Brunch
Jefferson Oatts, Fork Restaurant, Philadelphia, PA
“The double-charred whiskey plays very well with the coffee and black walnut bitters. The amaro makes everything pop! Eggnog variation.” Jefferson Oatts
1.5 oz (45 ml) Jameson Black Barrel Irish Whiskey
.33 oz (10 ml) Amaro Lucano
.5 oz (15 ml) Eli Mason Demerarra Syrup
.25 oz (7.5 ml) half-and-half
1 oz (30 ml) cold-brewed coffee
2 dashes Fee Brother’s Black Walnut Bitters
1 whole egg
Dry-shake, then add ice and shake again. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
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