Thanksgiving is coming up fast, which means lots of family, eating, football, and for some, lots of all day drinking. If you are going down that road this week, chances are you will stumble across the most famous of breakfast cocktails, the Bloody Mary.
Like all of our drinks of the week, this one has various claims to its origin. The drink came about in either ‘Harry’s New York Bar’ of Paris or the ’21 club’ in New York City. The drink recently celebrated the 80th anniversary of its creation according to the St. Regis Hotel, who also has claimed to be a point of origin of the drink. They’ve even gone as far as to create a special 80th anniversary edition drink book.
Its name may have come from Queen Mary I of England, who started a bloody crusade to bring back the Catholic church in England, or another story is that it was named after a waitress named Mary who worked at a Chicago bar called the Bucket of Blood. Either way, we can safely say that the drink is red in color, so at least that part is pretty self explanatory.
Much like our previous Drink of the Week, The Manhattan, the origins of the Negroni are unknown. There are two main stories floating around, however. The first, according to the New York Times is that back in 1919, a man named Count Negroni came up with the drink at a cafe in Florence, Italy. The other is that a General Pascal Negroni had the idea in Paris at a military officers’ club. This theory is recounted in two sources, so we could assume this is more likely, but who knows. The bottom line is that when a customer orders a Negroni, you can tell them that they are drinking the ‘perfectly balanced drink’, according to BuzzFeed. Although fall is here and winter is fast behind it, this story about drinking Negronis from The Awl, makes the case for a Negroni season anytime. There is also this epic tale of a Negroni Crawl throughout NYC from Slate writer, Troy Patterson.
Bartenders may have variations but the standard recipe is this:
Put ingredients into a mixing glass full of ice shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
1 oz Sweet Vermouth
¾ oz Gin
¾ oz Campari
Garnish with lemon twist
This is a classic cocktail that has a unique taste , if you have a sense of adventure ask you bartender at a reputable place to shake you one up.
Although, if you’d like to try a different version, Imbibe shakes it up a little differently with equal parts:
1 oz. gin
1 oz. Campari
1 oz. sweet vermouth
Ice cubes
Tools: mixing glass, barspoon, strainer
Glass: cocktail or double rocks
Garnish: orange twist
Stir ingredients in a mixing glass, strain into a chilled cocktail glass (or ice-filled double rocks glass) and garnish.
Esquire gives it a little more kick with extra gin:
We’ve scoured the internet for this list and put together the top 25 ways to make a Manhattan. Please drink responsibly. There are definitely other ways to create the famous cocktail, but these are the ones we think are best.
1½ oz. Jim Beam rye whiskey
½ oz. Carpano Antica sweet vermouth
½ oz. Cardamaro
dash Angostura bitters
1 Amarena cherry, for garnish
Combine rye, vermouth, Cardamaro, and bitters in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled martini glass; garnish with cherry.
1½ oz. Burnside bourbon
½ oz. Cocchi sweet vermouth di Torino
½ oz. Cynar
2 dashes Fee Brothers old fashioned bitters
1 Amarena cherry, for garnish
Combine bourbon, Cynar, vermouth, and bitters in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled martini glass; garnish with cherry.
1½ oz. Temperance Trader bourbon
½ oz. Pelinkovac
½ oz. Punt e Mes
dash Angostura bitters
2 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
Place the bourbon, Pelinkovac, vermouth, and bitters into a shaker over ice and shake well. Pour the mixture into a barrel and age it for about a month before serving.
FOR THE MASSAMAN SYRUP
1 tsp. ground mace
5 sticks cinnamon
2 tbsp. coriander
6 whole cardamom pods
15 whole cloves
2 pieces of nutmeg
2 cups dark brown sugar
2 oz Old Overholt rye
¾ oz. sweet vermouth
Angostura Bitters
Wide strip of orange zest
1. Make the massaman syrup: combine all spices in a pot over low heat. Toast lightly for a few minutes, add sugar and 2 cups water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat off and allow the mixture to steep for at least two hours. Strain out the solids. Syrup will keep for up to two weeks, covered and refrigerated. (Yield is approximately 1 quart.)
2. Combine rye, vermouth, and ¾ oz. (1½ tbsp.) massaman syrup over ice. Stir for 30 seconds, or until very well chilled. Strain into a lowball glass. Top with two or three dashes of bitters, and garnish with orange zest.
This one was created by a man named Joaquín Simó, who was Bartender of the Year. This one is more about the preparation than the ingredients. Watch the video to learn the technique that Mr. Simó recommends.
Got anymore suggestions? Email [email protected] with the subject “Manhattan Recipe!”
Welcome to one of the most established drinks in the book. The Manhattan is aptly named after the New York City borough of its origin. It is said that this drink was created in the 1870s at the Manhattan Club in New York City for Winston Churchill’s mother! Although, according to liquor.com, the Manhattan was actually created by a bartender named ‘Black’ who worked at NYC’s Hoffman House. Who knows the truth at this point, and quite frankly, we don’t need to know. What we do know is that this drink has stood up to the test of time.
Science and bartending may seem very different on the surface, but if you want hard facts backed by proven evidence, you need to look to science. Here are 5 ways to increase your tips as a bartender, using science.
Here is a list we’ve put together of the most alcoholic drinks in the world. All of these drinks are the tops on everyone’s internet lists. From regretfulmorning.com to MyLifeisBrilliant.com, these drinks are mainstays on the most notorious lists. Please enjoy at your own risk. Seriously…
12. Grappa
120 Proof
Grappa is a grape-based type of brandy that comes from Italy. It is made out of all the stuff left over from making wine (grape stems, skins, pulp) called pomace. It can be made up to 120 Proof or 60% alcohol by volume.
11. Bacardi 151
151 proof
At 75.5% alcohol by volume, this infamous rum is highly flammable. Did you know it even has a stainless steel flame arrester in the neck of the bottle to prevent it from catching fire accidentally. In fact, Bacardi has actually been sued after a customer was badly burned in a bartending stunt gone wrong.
10. John Crow Batty Rum
160 proof
Fresh out of Jamaica, this drink is named after the stomach acids of vultures that are found on the island. Apparently you can do anything after drinking this.
9. New Jersey Devil Springs Vodka
160 proof
Most (sane) people only use this vodka as a mixer because it is so dangerous to drink.
8. Balkan 176
176 proof
This is a triple-distilled vodka, native of the Balkan Peninsula. Distributed in 20 countries, this vodka is 88% alcohol by volume and one of the highest in the world. It contains 13 health warnings on the bottle!
7. Pincer Shanghai Strength
177 proof
Created in Scotland, this drink is made in part with wild elderflower and milk thistle, which support liver health based on Chinese medicine techniques! It is sold as vodka “concentrate” and contains 65 shots vs other vodka’s of similar size at 26 shots.
6. Absinthe 179
179 proof
Originally from Switzerland, this drink was banned in the early 1900s in the US because of “alleged” psychoactive effects. They eventually legalized it again when they realized the effects were no different than just plain old being black-out drunk. At 89.9%, we are inching closer to the magic number.
5. Bruichladdich X4 Quadrupled Whiskey
184 Proof
This Scottish whiskey is the most alcoholic on the planet! It is quadruple-distilled – giving the drink its incredible strength. It is also single malt! According to legend, “one sip and you live forever; two sips and you go blind; three sips and you expire on the spot”. We are at 92% abv.
4. Golden Grain
190 Proof
95% alcohol, this grain spirit is created by the same crazies, Luxco, who make Everclear. (more on that next)
3. Everclear
190 Proof
This is made of the same constitution of Golden Grain. This is a great mixer, but is basically rubbing alcohol. Oh and it’s illegal in most states.
2. Spirytus Polish Vodka
192 Proof
We’ve just about come to the end of the list. If you’ve been tasting while reading along, you’d most likely be close to death and this last Polish vodka will be sure to keep you dead. This drink was finally made legal in NY State in 2010.
1. Cocoroco
Proof? too high!
This Bolivian alcohol is made from sugar cane and is so high in alcohol (96%) that is served in a metal can. Happy Drinking!
This is a repost from WCPO Cincinnati, wcpo.com, and was co-written by Joseph Bruno, Director of our school…
It’s easier than ever to go beyond serving glasses of pumpkin ale and neon orange-colored cocktails at an annual Halloween party.
Put together with help from Joseph Bruno, director of the American Bartenders School of New York, here’s a list of six alcoholic beverages that may make even the heaviest drinkers’ knees shake:
Halloween is only week away and you need a plan. Not to worry, New York City might be the best place on earth to celebrate. Whether you enjoy beer, vodka, whiskey, or Halloween-inspired spooky drinks, there are definitely choices for you in New York City. Here are the best places to drink for Halloween in NYC.
Fall is here at last. When you start seeing signs for Oktoberfest, you can finally say goodbye to summer blender drinks and making some real drinks. As a bartender in New York City, I have come to loathe the use of a blender. Throughout the country, from the beach bars that surfers frequent in California to the boardwalk dive bars along the New Jersey shore, the blender is held in high regard. And while it does its job admirably – mixing and melding flavors perfectly as it pulverizes ice and fruit – remember this, it takes a real bartender to make a drink by hand. And now that Fall is here to stay, it is time to look forward to some of these traditional cold weather drinks and get far away from those blenders. Not a season has passed where, as an instructor of mixology, we have students circle up to quickly scratch down the recipes that are relics of an era when alcohol was an elixir and the world was an easier place to live in. For those who love the shades of brown, orange and red of fall; may I present ‘warm and fuzzy’ in a footed glass mug. Here are some of our favorite Fall cocktails:
Thanks to Dennis Wilkinson for this delicious pic
HOT BUTTERED RUM 2ozs. dark rum 4ozs. boiling water 3 heaping barspoons of rum batter add a cinnamon stick To make rum batter – mix one stick of butter, two cups of brown sugar, a barspoon of cinnamon, half a barspoon of nutmeg, a pinch of ground cloves and a pinch of salt all together until creamy and smooth. RUSTY NAIL Put a single ice cube in a small rocks glass 1 ½ ozs. Scotch ½ oz. Drambuie
Thanks to Janet Ramsden for this pic
IRISH COFFEE 2 ozs. Irish whiskey 4 ozs. hot coffee 1 heaping barspoon of turbinado sugar Stir well Top with heavy cream. Sprinkle a few drops of green crème de menthe on top HOT SPIKED CIDER 2 ozs. spiced rum 4 ozs. apple juice pinch of cinnamon pinch of nutmeg Heat on low and stir well until piping hot before serving. Hot Buttered Rum Pic via FlickrIrish Coffee Pic via Flickr
While it’s true the popularity of mead has waxed and waned over the centuries, it appears to be on the increase again as people look for more unusual things to drink. At the beginning of this century, there were perhaps 20 commercial-scale meaderies in North America; by 2015 their number had risen to 250. People may be hearkening back to the early days since mead is suggested as a prime candidate for the very first alcoholic beverage.
If a tree was damaged, exposing a bees nest, rainwater and wild yeast, which was ubiquitous, could start the fermentation process. Although no one knows for certain, our early ancestors probably harvested the liquid for its intoxicating properties. Over the centuries it certainly gained a reputation for aiding sexual prowess, resulting in the birth of a male child (supposedly) which was “desirable” in the early days, as well as acting as an aphrodisiac, or medicine, or any number of other mystical properties.
Ambrosia, or Nectar of the Gods, as the ancient Greeks liked to call it, was said to bestow health and longevity as well as the powers of wit and poetry. This might have been as simple as a crowd of drunks watching another drunk be foolish and being entertained by it. On the other hand, it might have loosened the tongue of someone who was ordinarily reticent about being lyrical or poetical, allowing them to take center stage briefly with relaxed inhibitions.
The Welch created a spiced-mead named Metheglin (from their word “medcyglin”, from which we derive the word medicine). Pollio Romulus attributed his 100 years of life to regular consumption of the beverage, in a time when life expectancy was typically well under four decades. This claim was made in a communique to Julius Caesar.
Mead, however, has been around a lot longer than that. In the Norse history, there is a long tradition of mead drinking. Because grapevines couldn’t survive in the northern climate, the Nordic people remained ignorant of grapes until the north-south trade routes were established. As mentioned earlier, mead was thought to have magic powers and so after a wedding, the groom was fed mead until he couldn’t stand and then tossed in bed with his new wife because that was the most likely way to create a “warrior” (son).
Although honey has over 180 discrete components, so far nothing magical has been discovered. Although it is interesting to note that honey is the only naturally occurring substance that doesn’t spoil. Ancient combs have been taken out of centuries-old tombs, in completely edible condition.
Every batch of mead is unique
While all meads contain Honey, except for the most basic, traditional sort, they also contain additives, adjuncts, or gruit. You cannot control the additives, no matter how carefully you measure them. If you put in 1 pound 4 ¾ ounces of raspberries this year, there’s no guarantee that next year’s raspberries or even another batch from this year picked elsewhere, will impart the same flavor. They might have received less sunlight; they might have a higher sugar content; the flavone and flavonoid balance might be completely different.
And all that is completely aside from the fact that every single honey is unique. Light, delicate honeys, such as those derived from orange blossoms, will possess subtle flavors. Dark and rich honeys, such as buckwheat or even clover, will have much stronger, more dominant flavors. So it becomes obvious that even the base material can strongly affect the outcome.
Here’s a shortlist of some types of mead, but there are many more.
• Traditional Mead sometimes called Antipodal: A fermented honey beverage made from approximately two and one-half pounds of honey diluted with one gallon of water.
• Melomel or Mulsum: made with fruit juices
• Braggot: made with malt or other grains
• Miodomel: made with Hops
• Hydromel: Weak, or watered mead
• Myritis: made with Bilberries
• Acerglyn: made with maple syrup
• Pyment: made specifically with grape juice
• Morat or Alicant Wine: mulberry juice
• Cyser: made specifically with apple juice or cider
• Metheglin: made with herbs & or spices
• Sack Metheglin: made with herbs & or spices, but significantly sweetened
• Hippocras or Hyppocras is Pyment (mead with grape juice) made with herbs and/or spices
• Rhodomel: Rose petals
• Sack (or Sac) Mead: Sweetened with extra honey (20-25%)
Making Mead
Want to brew some mead at home? It’s fun, and legal most everywhere. If you read our article on how to make beer at home, then you know most of the steps for making mead as well. You can even use the same equipment: the 6 gallon carboy, the air lock, the no-rinse sanitizing liquid, the auto-siphon and its hoses, the 5 gallon mixing buckets, and some 12 ounce beer bottles. Glass carboys are $25, so get several and make different varieties, and some beer, too!
Mead can end up with 14 to 16% alcohol, so bigger bottles are not advised. Unless of course you’re making mead for Holiday gifts; this turns out to be surprisingly inexpensive, and highly memorable. Investment in the gear to make it would cost about $70.00. Even if store-bought honey was $5.00 a pound it should cost you $60.00, or $130 all-in, for the first batch of 5 gallons. That would make an awful lot of Christmas present bottles. After the initial purchase you just need to buy the honey and the yeast. And of course buying from a local apiary should save you a significant amount of money.
You can make “still” (uncarbonated) meads in a month, carbonated in four months (or years, depending on how dedicated you are); they can be as dry as the driest wine; they can be as bitter as ale or lager; they can be semi-dry, or downright sweet; they can be spicy or fruity; they can be subtle or brash. There are plenty of recipes available online. Go find one. It’s time to have some fun! If you’re scared, go buy several different types to see what kind you would like to make. Have fun!
