29. October 2010 by Dan.

You will probably need this information to answer a trivia question soon, and your possession of it will no doubt impress that hottie across the table from you.  I hope this reaches you in time.

Whiskey is a spirit distilled from grain.  Water, yeast, and malted barley are used in it too, but the grain is what makes it whiskey.  If whiskey is distilled at no more than 160 proof in the U.S. using at least 51% corn as its grain then it’s on its way to qualifying as bourbon.   If it is then stored for at least two years in new, charred oak barrels and bottled at not less than 80 proof, then it’s met the tests and it is bourbon.

Although bourbon doesn’t have to be made in that state, it does get its name from Bourbon County, Kentucky, which was once a river shipping hub for spirits on their way to New Orleans.

See you soon.

Your favorite bartender,

-Dan

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22. October 2010 by Dan.

As a supper club we don’t get a lot of requests for shots, but we are glad to oblige when we do.  Our customers usually know the ingredients in the shots they ask for, so we get to learn how to make the ones we’re not familiar with.  (Yes, I know the proper form is “…the ones with which we are not familiar”, but this is a post about shots and that sounds snooty.)

Last weekend, my colleague Dom was making two I hadn’t heard of for the ladies in the photo above.  The ingredients involved don’t seem like they would produce a taste equal to their name, but they do.  Here are the formulas…

• German Chocolate Cake:  Shake equal parts of citron vodka and Frangelico over ice, and strain into a shot glass whose rim has been sugared.  Our friends were biting a lemon wedge before drinking the shot.  I’m not sure if that step really balances the flavor or if it’s just theatrics.  Either way, it does dress up the experience.

• Washington Apple:  Shake equal parts of apple pucker, cranberry juice, and Canadian whiskey over ice (we used Crown Royal).  Strain into a shot glass and add a splash of lemon-lime soda.  It really does taste like a bite of fresh apple.  With a little experimentation, I think  you could alter this recipe to make a passable martini.

Social and historical footnote:  The origin of the shot glass is unknown, although it is very hard to find one made before the 1940s.  In the United States a shot is about one and one-half ounces.  In the rest of the world the volume varies, but you can get one in Russia as large as ten ounces! If you downed one of those you might be able speak Russian.

Your favorite bartender,

-Dan

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18. October 2010 by Dan.

Please allow me to introduce the newest member of the Bear Trap family, Noah Leonel Ramirez.  Noah arrived yesterday, the second child of popular server Jennifer and top-notch chef Leo.  Leo and Jen are the kind of good-hearted, hard working people that you are proud to have as colleagues and friends.  Noah was lucky to be born into their family, and I hope he grows up to be just like them.

Your favorite uncle bartender,

-Dan

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14. October 2010 by Dan.

Famous Northwoods hostess Stacey thought we should make an entry on Champagne, and suggested we remind everyone that while it is the universal wine of celebration and special occasion, it shouldn’t be reserved solely for that purpose.  I have some recommendations in that regard, but first a bit of science and social history.

Wine becomes sparkling wine by undergoing a second fermentation, which requires additional sugar to fuel the process.  Sparkling wine legally becomes Champagne in France and Europe only if it is made with grapes grown in the Champagne region, which is the areas around Reims and Epernay.  Sparkling wine legally becomes Champagne in the United States if the manufacturer says it is.  This is because we’re capitalists, and because we don’t care about French law.

The credit for inventing sparkling wine is ascribed to various individuals.  The most likely candidates seem to be French monk Dom Perignon  in 1668, the monks of St. Hilaire in France in 1531,  and Englishman Sir George Etheredge around 1676.  As we have seen with other libations, it seems like all you have to do is take credit for a discovery to earn a mention by later historians.  I should use this opportunity to document for the benefit of future researchers that I myself invented beta-blockers, the internal combustion engine, and pliers.

Now for the tasty part.  Here are three easy ways to enjoy sparkling wine as an element of your beverage rather than by itself:

• Make a traditional Champagne Cocktail by putting a half-teaspoon of sugar in a Champagne flute, saturate it with bitters, then fill the glass with sparkling wine.  You can vary the taste by your choice of bitters…try Agnostura for a cinnamon character, or Fee Brothers for a root beer-like flavor.

• Enjoy a Mimosa by filling your glass with equal parts of Champagne and orange juice, and garnish with whatever fresh fruit you have on hand.  This is a traditional breakfast drink, but there is no rule against having one during Sports Center. 

• Create your own Champagne Cocktail by mixing about six parts of sparkling wine with one part of your favorite liquor.  Try Blue Curacao, Chambord, Amaretto, Frangelico, or Cointreau.

Cheers!

Your favorite bartender,

-Dan

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7. October 2010 by Dan.

As with most libations of any standing, the true origin of the Bloody Mary is not known.  The most widely held theory seems to credit American bartender Fernand “Pete”  Petiot with creating the drink during his stint at Harry’s New York Bar in Paris in the 1920s.  His original recipe was simply half vodka and half tomato juice, served over ice.  Petiot later became the head barman at the King Cole Bar at the St. Regis in New York.  His customers there found his concoction too bland, so he added Tabasco,  pepper, lemon, and Worcestershire to make the drink that’s still popular today.  Now it’s universally available, although the formula varies widely from bar to bar.

This is an easy drink to make at home, and you probably have.  Here’s some advice for when you do:  1.  Don’t waste your time with a commercial Bloody Mary mix.  A few are good, most are not, and basic fresh ingredients are always better.  It’s been said that you can no more keep a Martini in the refrigerator than you can keep a kiss in the refrigerator, and the same rule applies here.  2.  Don’t get too fancy.  Use the basics in Pete’s King Cole recipe, and spend your time enjoying instead of dumping failed experiments in the sink.

Historical commentary:  Ernest Hemmingway was a great fan of the Bloody Mary, and published his formula as half vodka, half tomato juice, and freshly ground black pepper.  He spent a good part of the roaring 20s in Paris and was a known patron of Harry’s New York Bar, so it could well be he’s the one who taught Pete how to make one instead of the other way around.  I can’t remember if vodka or tomatoes came first in our evolutionary history, but the combination is such an obvious pairing for an all purpose cocktail and a treatment for last night’s overindulgence that I suspect it was being consumed long before Grandfather Petiot started selling it.

Hope to see you soon.

Your favorite bartender,

-Dan

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1. October 2010 by Dan.

I’m sorry I have not been able to come up with a clever post this week, but I have that respiratory virus that’s going around, and I’ve been very sick.  In an effort to palliate my cough, I  bought a bottle of Nyquil.  The label said “Soothing original flavor” and “Tastes better than ever.”  I asked the clerk at the drugstore “If this is the original flavor, shouldn’t it taste the same as ever?”  His thoughtful answer was “Have a nice day, sir.”

In my febrile delirium I wondered if you could make a cocktail with Nyquil, and I figured out there is a way.  Here’s how:

You’ll need a premium vodka for this.  I like Stolichnaya Gold, but you can use the brand you like.  You’ll also need a small rocks glass and one of those shot glasses that has a white fill line on it.  Put as much ice in your rocks glass as it will hold, then fill your shot glass with Nyquil to the little white line.  Pour your vodka over the ice in your rocks glass until it is full, then garnish it with an olive.  Now dump the Nyquil in the sink, and drink the vodka.

Soothing original flavor.  Tastes better than ever.

Your favorite bartender,

-Dan

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