Bartending School

This is another one of those videos that I have watched a million times, it gets funnier every time I watch it. Stick it out, watch till the end. I think I will make a drink like that tonight. Oh and just in case you were wondering, most bartending schools are pretty much a joke just like this video.

Explain Cocktails As You Would Art

Its not a secret that both food and drinks are better enjoyed when they are visually pleasing. A cocktails appearance can draw you to it, make you need to know what it tastes like just by sitting there with attractive garnishes, glassware, color, the list in endless in the way it looks alone. Visual appearance is not the only parallel that cocktails have with art.

Yes, creating a great cocktail is art. There is a delicate craft to producing a cocktail that pleases numerous senses and makes a lasting impression on whoever drinks it. Much like art there is a lot behind the actual drink, history, tradition, procedure. With a little bit of effort, the origins of many cocktails can be found and when explained to the customer can actually help influence how the person feels about the drink.

Classic cocktails are all the rage now a days and I have a strong feeling its because of this. There are a lot of bartenders now a days that are relating what they know about the cocktail to the guests while they prepare them, or to get them to order one. Its hard not to create an appreciation for a drink after knowing some of these things much like a painting or a sculpture gains credibility once you understand the artist.

Something that is commonly overlooked by bartenders is explaining their art, or their cocktail. When you describe what flavors you should be expecting, why you chose certain brands of liquors for each cocktail, a guest can be mesmerized into liking a drink even before the first drop hits their lips. As long as you, the bartender, inform them how they will be enjoying the flavors and why they work together, most of the pressure is lifted off your shoulders before your customer takes his first sip.

This also goes a long with the preparation of your drink. There are a lot of people that order drinks according to how they are perceived when they order. (Most people who order a Grey Goose and Red Bull could never tell the difference between well and Grey Goose, they just want to be seen ordering Grey Goose.) The act of muddling in certain bars will create a flurry of orders for “whatever he’s having” without any knowledge at all of what the drink is. Just the visual act of making a drink and preparing something with that much effort will make some one feel special that it was prepared for them, meaning it will taste better to them. The same goes for other visually stimulating procedures like a flamed orange zest.

This is a necessary part of making cocktails that many bartenders overlook. Spirits on their own should be judged blindly, and next to one another to find their true value and quality. In all reality a cocktail is nothing more than a way to make alcohol more palatable, even if part of that method comes visually or mentally. If you don’t agree, watch this video about making a Mint Julep and tell me that it doesn’t sound better than any cocktail you have ever had.

 

Classy Jello Shots

Lemon Drop Wedges

Molecular Mixology is an interesting form of bartending. Beyond infusions, airs, foams, I feel like I have been doing this for years. Yes, I am talking about jello shots. Now that bartenders are using gelatin sheets rather than the box of Jello, you still pretty much end up with sa VERY similar product in the end. Serving a gin and tonic cube over a baked lime chip is definitely more sophisticated than sucking it out of a small cup, but in fact we are dealing with about the same procedure and technique. That is why this presentation from Bakers Royal caught my eye.  In the simplest form they made Jello shooters and placed the Jello into hollowed out lemon halves. Sliced these bad boys look amazing.   

Empty out the citrus of your choice to create a vessel.

Juice the citrus first as it makes for easier pulp removal. Save extracted juice for later recipes.

Use either a grapefruit knife to hollow out the citrus, or the easier way,  is to turn them inside out like the picture and dig deeply in to the pith until you catch the thin membrane holding the pulp and then peel back.

Make sure to completely clean out your citrus or the pulp will show in the wedges.

Make the Jell-O according to the instructions on the box and then reduce the cold water portion by ¼ cup and replace with your chilled drink mix. Place emptied citrus into muffin pan holes. Pour mixture into emptied citrus and chill overnight.

Use a straight edge knife to cut into wedges. Do not use a serrated knife or it will leave track marks.

Make sure to use a sharp knife or you will end up with mangled wedges.

  This recipe is from Bakers Royale . Make sure to check out thier post HERE

Molecular Mai Tai 3000

Aside from the occasional batch of Jello shots for parties I have never really entered into Molecular Mixology. Hopefully this will be an aspect of mixology that I will soon conquer but for now, I will admire what others have done. Jamie Boudreau is an amazing bartender that has quite a few great molecular cocktails on his blog.

Mai Tai 3000

Mai Tai 3000

• 1 Lime Chip
• 1 Rum Square
• 1 Dollop Orgeat Foam
• 1 Pinch Fine Orange Zest

Lime Chip

• Freeze One Lime
• Slice Thinly In A Meat Slicer
• Soak In Simple Syrup
• Place In An Oven At 100˚ Until Sugar Has Carmelized
• Let Cool

Rum Square

• 3oz Water
• 2tsp Agar
• 3oz Appleton V/X Rum
• 1oz Lemonhart 151
• place water and agar in a pot for 15 minutes
  heat until all agar is dissolved
  add rums and stir well
  pour carefully into a shallow tray and refrigerate
  cut into squares when solidum

Orgeat Foam

• 4oz Orgeat
• 2oz Water
• 2 dashes Angostura Bitters
• 3 Egg whites
• Place all ingredients in an ISI charger and charge

 Check out Jamie’s post HERE and read about this cocktail in his own words.

Tales Of The Cocktail 2010

Tales of the Cocktail

Another year goes by, and I miss another Tales of the Cocktail. For those of you who don’t know what it is, Tales is a combination of seminars, press releases, conferences, party’s, and events hosted by numerous liquor brands and companies that is attended and moderated by the best chefs, mixologists, authors, bloggers, and celebrities in the cocktail industry to date. I pan to keep up with most of the goings on through blogs by people who are actually there. I suggest you take a look at it. Hopefully next year I will be personally blogging about it rather than directing you to a blog about it.

Tales Blog

Appleton Cocktail Challange

This looks like another cool cocktail challenge. Why not submit something? I will post my submission later.

Appleton Challange