Barrel Update...

So I took a quick minute to taste the l'eau de dieu from my barrels.

The gin is coming along nicely, with sweetness and a nice vanilla confectionary note. I also smell honey. I'll probably give it a few more weeks before I unleash it on the masses!

The Chocolate Fresno Chili infused rum is getting more heat, even after 4 days in oak. I'm thinking of repeating the same recipe in a glass container to compare my results for future reference.

Spicy Inspiration

So, being inspired by the upcoming Hallmark holiday...chocolate and spices, specifically chili peppers. I decided to fill my second barrel with a gold rum, a small amount of creme de cocoa, to force a chocolate confectionary note, as well as some fresno chillies, to hopefully infuse some flavour into the rum. I had though about just infusing the flavours together in a glass jar, but felt like experimenting a little... Wish me luck!

Recipe of the Week

This week I picked one of the first cocktails I added to my book. You're going to ask what's a shrub? Well, it stems from an English term for a pre made mix of fruits/fruit juices, and usually a compounded liqueur. Often sugar is added into the mixture. It is intended to hold for a period of time, for ease of making drinks later on.

Juniper Citrus Shrub

4-6 dried juniper berries
1 orange slice
1 1/2 oz Korbel brandy
1 oz Tuaca
2 oz soda

One would typically prepare the mixture of brandy, Tuaca, orange, and juniper berries in a large quantity (batched) in advanced, with plenty of time for the mixture to rest. Thus making it a true Shrub. If not, Muddle juniper and orange together. Add brandy and let sit/steep for one minute. Add ice to Collins glass or highball, Tuaca, and top off with soda. Garnish with a lemon twist. Enjoy!

Works in progress.

I had the day off work today, so I decided to pull the liquor out and start to build beverages. I came up with some nice concepts, but still need some perfecting. There's always do's and dont's that bartenders have. Like mixing certain base spirits. Like tequila and bourbon for example. I have yet to enjoy a drink with those two spirits involved.

What I wanted to talk about is tasting. Beverage quality is such a big deal, especially consistency between beverages. I have gone to many high end bars, repeatedly and ordered the same drink only to have something slightly different each time. There are many contributing factors, such as; bartenders recipe. But the main one I want to focus on is tasting. When I see a fellow bartender taste my beverage, I get excited. It lets me know that they care what is being put over the counter. Some guests have found it offensive until I explained it to them. Mind you I'm not doing anything unsanitary, but rather taking a sample from the almost finished product ( usually in the cocktail shaker). It's like QA for bartenders. Liquor doesn't really spoil, but some fresh mixers, and some liqueurs tastes can change if left unused too long.

Bottom line, don't be afraid to taste. Just don't get too crazy.

Bartending Kit

I've had a leather bartenders utility roll for all my bar tools. Well, about a month ago, in the search for something better, I came across one on Etsy from a duo (Mike & Malia) from Seattle going by McSology. I was amazed! It's way better looking than the majority of the bar kits I've seen on the market.

I plan on getting one to replace my old one soon. But I picked up one of McSology's awesome super ultra durable Lewis bag to play with in the meantime. If you're not familiar with a Lewis Bag. It is used in conjunction with a wooden mallet to crush ice... Or if you want to be rough, I'm sure you could bash it against something. I suggest the first option. Bartenders use it primarily to make mojitos and juleps. Cheers!

Barreled Goodness

So, it's been a week since I emptied water out of one of the barrels and filled it with 1.75 litres of Beefeaters and .25 litres of Martin Millers Gin. We'll let it age for a few more weeks.

What should I put in the second barrel?

Recipe of the week

So starting this week i'm going to add a drink from my cocktail book, or perhaps from someone else's recipe book that has just blown me away. This recipe was made as a challenge to layer certain ingredients. Of course, i took the challenge. The drink is meant to be somewhat sweet, but with some of the savory notes. I suggest a garnish of a vanilla bean pod to stir it. My original garnish is some chocolate shavings. So the first cocktail of the week:

The Perfect Black and White Martini

Pernod
11/2 oz. dark creme de cacao
1/8 oz. butterscotch schnapps
1/2 oz. heavy cream
1 1/2 oz. Stoli Vanil

In chilled martini glass, rinse with Pernod and a splash of soda(what we in the industry call an in & out). Pour slightly chilled(preferably refrigerated) creme de cocoa and butterscotch schnapps into martini glass. In a shaker glass, place half & half and vodka with ice. Shake until extra frosty. Strain onto bar spoon to float on top of dark layer. The shaking should've created lots of foam in the shaker tin... Strain until the majority of the foam is covering the beverage. Garnish with chocolate shavings. Enjoy!

Caviar in a drink... Who would have thought.

So, after watching an episode of Top Chef, I was inspired to dabble some more with molecular gastronomy. What my goal was to create cute little caviar like balls to put in a cocktail or for garnish.
I already knew that gelatin powder would be my friend here again, just like the foam I made earlier this week. Seeing as I didn't have any liquid nitrogen in the kitchen I had to improvise. I tried dropping droplets of blackberry infused gelatin into an ice bath with no success, the gelatin just dissipated in the water. They looked like amoebas...
After some more trial and error I concluded that my gelatin was good, my cold water wasn't what I needed. What I needed was oil. Since oil and water don't blend it's the perfect medium to drop gelatin (water-based) into. The only problem would be cleaning the oil off the caviar. Well come to find out it wasn't a bad idea, because it kept each sphere from sticking together.
Success!

UnBARRELable news!

So got some new 2L oak barrels with a #4 medium char in today! What should I age?
Any ideas...
I have a few, but first I'm gonna throw some water in these to make sure they don't leak. It's always a good idea, because the barrels may loose some moisture, loosening the seal. But as science shows, adding water to oak staves causes them to slightly expand creating a seal.

Certifications...

It never hurts to know your stuff. I have taken about 6 Alcohol Serving classes and a management class since I started bartending. In fact today, I took the ServSafe Alcohol class and exam online in less than 4 hours. It always looks good to employers that you have these classes because it shows them you're serious about your business and serious about protecting their business.

Theres also a ton of liquor and advanced bartending courses out there. Pernod-Ricard, USA sponsors the BarSmarts course alongside all the big names in bartending. They have 2 outlets, online and an advanced proctored exam. I used it a while back for a jump start, for studying for my CSS (Certified Spirits Specialist) Exam. The CSS is like a basic liquor sommelier certification program, put on by The Society of Wine Educators. The program was written by an acquaintance of mine, he's the master distiller for Brown-Foreman, Chris Morris. It really delves into spirits without getting crazy scientific, but it still maintains a very charismatic factor... I just wanted to keep reading.

I'm rambling... I'll save some more certifications for another time. Thanks for tuning in!

Welcome My New Little Friends!

Last week before I started the blog. I placed an order with The Whisky Exchange out of the UK (www.thewhiskyexchange.co.uk). It's hard to find specific liquors and the newest stuff from around the world. These guys certainly do a great job! The box was well packed and they got my order to me in just under a week!? I was amazed, but of they came highly recommended from my brother and some of his distiller friends. So I in turn will be doing more business with them and I would highly recommend them to anyone looking to find something different or hard to find stateside.

So that little review wasn't my topic, today. But rather the unique stuff I received in the mail.

•Pimm's #3 Winter Cup- a seasonal release of the Brandy based Pimm's nice and spicy, makes for an interesting toddy. I've seen this in the states, but it's rather hard to find.

•Compass Box's Monkey Shoulder- A vatted scotch (now referred to as a blended malt scotch) I discovered on a trip to Scotland. Very approachable,not peaty at all like some scotch whiskys. Smooth I get orange like notes from it personally. This is a great scotch for beginners.

•Bol's Creme de Cassis Foam - this may sound really gimmicky, but it's actually pretty interesting. At 17% ABV, it has a pump that turns the liqueur into a foam. It'll make an awesome Kir Royale. It just adds a different sensory aspect to a drink. I have yet to see it in the US, and it'll probably end up being fairly popular of it comes to our side of the pond.

•Wood's Old Navy Demerara Cane Rum- at 114 proof it's a nice and dark rum from Guyana. It has a great spiciness and sweetness about it. Can't wait to work with it.

Well, I can't wait to work with all of it. Here's a few pics.

Foaming at the mouth!

I've been thinking about how to approach creating a foam from a ginger ale syrup concentrate to put on top of my celery sour, just to give it the perfect sweetness, while still keeping it true to nature. As I don't have a whip cream canister/charger available, I opted to utilize my old school barista skills and use a French press to create foam. Well that failed miserably. Pondering on ideas, I thought about adding some gelatin powder. And voila! The perfect foam for a celery sour without using egg yolk! Cheers

Crafting new cocktails this week

Just a few of the ideas from a crafting session.

My rum & fig cocktail... More coming soon.

Celery sour with a ginger ale foam (pictured)

This is LONG overdue.

I've been compiling my own cocktail book with recipes and inspirations for some time now in Evernote.  But it's time I started sharing my knowledge and skills with the world.  This blog will serve as a refrence tool and a whats happening next as I pursue experiments and craft new cocktails.  This is a learning experience, so feel free to chime in with some advice!

Look out world...

Tyler