Secret Menu...!?

Once in a while, I'll take a fun ingredient to work at Elixir and opt to make a secret menu. Often checking in on Foursquare, Twitter, and Facebook. With the small note of a secret menu for the day.

I usually get a few people come in asking for it, albeit friends. But the feedback is great. My point about this concept is, you can develop a different more adventurous customer base from it. It can also lead to some feedback on prospective menu items. Furthermore, it makes a guest feel like they are special, or trendsetters if you will.

Cocktail of the Week #15

On August 8th, I will be a participating mixologist in Taste of the Nation, a huge charity fundraiser for the No Kid Hungry Campaign. Well after a few weeks of deliberation, we were all assigned a base spirit to work with;of which I received Bulleit Rye. I was pretty excited, in fact, I keep a bottle in my bar at home. Oh, And we keep a bottle at work too...Cake. Well the catch is we have exactly 1 week to come up with an original recipe, tweak it to perfection using a limited amount of secondary spirits and fresh seasonal ingredients and calculate the beverage in order to serve 400+ guests a 1.5 oz. serving.

Easier said than done when you're indecisive like me. Like a kid at a candy store with too many options and favourites. After careful deliberation, and the idea I wanted to go a somewhat masculine direction with my cocktail. I developed "Lost in the Woods". But to keep you in suspense, I will be adding the recipe at the beginning of next week.

***update***

Here's the Recipe

Lost in the Woods
1 1/2 oz. Bulleit Rye
1/2 oz. cold infused rosemary syrup
1/2 oz. lemon juice
1/2 oz. Cynar
2 dashes Fee Bros. Black Walnut Bitters
fresh sage leaf garnish

Build in shaker glass, shake and strain into coupette. Garnish with disciplined sage leaf for aromatics and texture.

Market Share Advice.

I stopped at Green City Market today to pick up some local ingredients to play with. I snagged some fresh peaches, white currants and both tart and sweet cherries to work with.

I am planning a personal experiment to find out which type of cherry and what type of base spirit/mixture will produce the best brandied or bourbon cherries.

Any thoughts?

Cocktail of the week #14

This is one of my recent recipes from the pop-up bar I did with my pal Adam Seger. Savour the sumptuousness.

South American Sour

2 oz. Machu Pisco
1/2 oz. Perfect Purée Chipotle Sour
1/4 oz. Lemon Juice
1/2-3/4 oz. Ginger Syrup
Egg white
5 drops of tobacco bitters

Build everything except for bitters in cocktail shaker, before adding ice. Shake the egg into the mixture to begin the emulsification process. Add ice and shake well. Strain into a cocktail glass through a tea strainer to create a nice microform, and eliminate any splinters of ice. Let sit and garnish with tobacco bitters (aztec chocolate bitters are an acceptable substitution) and a twist (optional). Sip leisurely until fully consumed. Repeat.

As it sounds odd.

There's nothing I enjoy, more at the same time abhor more than the statement "would you like to go behind the bar and make it?"

As a mixologist is pisses me off to know that there's bartenders who could care less about crafting a proper cocktail. Mind you, if you know me...I'm very passionate. But, If you don't like the industry, do us all a favour and get out. I don't want want bartender to mix me a drink that I didn't request (that's what happened at Ombara on Andersonville). I just feel there's plenty of people who would like to get into a craft cocktail job and make a place for themselves. Why take up the space. And yes, I called them out on the drink that was made.

Ok, I'm stepping off my soapbox now...

Cocktail of the Week Update

Yeah, so I've skipped the Cocktail of the Week for about 2 months now with everything going on. But I've decided to make a change to this. Now that I'm up in such an awesome city amongst many mixologists I admire. I am going to start and honour some of the best cocktails I consume by making their recipes available, mixologist/creator permitting, of course. And yes, I will still be putting my own recipes on for your viewing pleasure.

Aging Project #3

Now that I'm situated and up to speed at my cocktail bartending job at Elixir in Chicago. It has given me some time to be creative and actually take on some extra roles both in and out of work.

After learning that Elixir will be having their 1 year anniversary next month. I opted to start my way on a fantastic new cocktail. But first I want to age a spirit, in this case... I'm doing pisco. Pisco is a clear, grape based brandy from Peru and Chille. So in a sense I'm making a Peruvian Cognac... But not aging it nearly as long. We'll see how it turns out.