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.

Finally I've moved.

So, for those who haven't heard. I'm officially in Chicago. After numerous opportunities have presented themselves, I've elected to help some friends at a craft cocktail bar in Lakeview until I finish arrangements for a beverage program elsewhere in Chicago. I'll keep you all posted!

Pop-Up Bar: Omakase

This past weekend my good friend Adam Seger asked me to guest bartend for a 2-day Pop-up Bar at Lush Wine & Spirits location down in UIC.

We took cue from Sushi Chefs and decided to name it Omakase, Japanese for entrust, and a concept for the chefs choice. We as mixologists took the opportunity to discover what our guests enjoy both libations and nourishment-wise to craft a one-of-a-kind cocktail for every individual that walked in the door. With a full-range of seasonally market fresh ingredients and some of the bar essentials we served well over 100 guests on Friday alone.

Hopefully if this social experiment was a success, we may continue to do more Pop-Ups in the future. All in part to our mascot: Drunken Raddish Bunny.

Cocktail of the week # 11

I missed a week somewhere along the line. But I have a cocktail to add to the mix. This cocktail I've actually seen before, but I chose to recreate with my own personal spin on it. In fact, I mentioned this beverage a few months back...The celery sour. Well I'm dishing out my recipe for you to savour.

Celery Sour

1 1/2 oz. Tanquerray Gin
1 dash Angostura Bitters or celery bitters (I prefer the lesser)
Celery (approx. 1/3 a trimmed stalk)
3/4 oz. Lemon Juice
1/2 oz. Simple Syrup
Smoked Sea Salt Rim

In shaker glass, build Tanquerray, celery and bitters; Muddle. Add in ice, lemon juice and simple syrup. Start with 1/4 oz. of simple syrup; adjust as necessary.

Shake well, and double strain into old fashioned glass with a smoked sea salt rim with 1 large cube. Garnish with a celery stick.

This cocktail I also enjoy with some ginger ale foam on top, too. If you want a different dynamic apart from the smoked sea salt.

Cinnamon, Cardamom & Cloves... Oh My!

So it's been a while. I've been traveling to Chicago a lot lately. And have been neglecting my poor blog. No matter I'm here now to feed you with a nice new update on bitters!

So my first batch I built was a mix-match of most of the individual flavours I had. But wanted it to focus on 2 primary ingredients, cardamom and star anise. It turned out okay, I had to dilute the final product down to a manageable proof. I created a tequila focused drink with it. That I might use as the cocktail of the week soon.

The second batch was inspired by some reading I've been doing for the Diageo World Class US. they were talking about Indian spices and Masala came up. I didn't want to make a curry bitter, but instead focus on those other spices often used in a masala. So I used some Ceylon Cinnamon, Green Cardamom, Cloves and Ginger and added it to my bitter base (gentian, licorice root, rhubarb root and wormwood). I'm very suprised how this one turned out, and I'm getting the knack of this. I built the bitters in a large snifter so I could progressively smell the product until I was happy with it, then I diluted it down. It produced about 3/4 of a cup of liquid. Which is more than enough! I'm bringing a couple small bottles to Chicago to get some feedback.

Finished infusions.

Today, my great friend Sue Ellen came over and made some cocktails, we tasted some stuff I'd been infusing and maturing. After this we decided it was time to pop the caps on a few infusions. Specifically my cardamom infused white vermouth and my chocolate habanero aged rum.

The vermouth has been infusing for about a month, and still retains a slight sweetness. The cardamom is perfectly present and was exactly what I hoped to achieve. Next I'm going to try a cardamom infused french dry vermouth.

The chocolate habanero aged rum, has been sitting in a new charred oak barrel for over 3 months now. It was pretty tasty before. It tastes smooth with a sweet chocolate start, smokey middle and a spicy/heated finish. It'll make a nice after dinner drink.