Stories about drinks – where they come from, why they work, and how to make them
I grew up spending a lot of time at an apple orchard because I raised sheep in a barn that the family who owned the orchard also owned. But, my sheep interaction was mostly in the spring and summer, so I had to come up with other excuses to hang around in the fall and … Read more
There’s not much that I’ve drunk that isn’t available in most good liquor stores, to be honest. Sure, I’ve had a few special releases at distilleries or gotten a pour of something quite rare at a good bar, but those are still possible to find if you really want to and know what you’re doing. … Read more
Starting a new job and spraining my right wrist pretty badly on pretty much the same day has not been good for the blog – sorry about that! As we head into spring, I’m going to focus on plants and herbs – some strange ingredients that are going to make for great deep dives. But, … Read more
A lot of my friends are in NOLA for Mardi Gras or Rio for Carnival, and we had paczki at work this week, so it felt right that while I’m in the sunny PNW I should make some drinks that would fit with those celebrations. Those happen to work great as flask cocktails, so one … Read more
Some cocktails take a lot of work. There can be juicing, shaking, stirring, and straining in even the most classic of recipes like the negroni or margarita. More intense drinks involve making custom syrups and infusions which take even more effort. And while I think the juice is usually worth the squeeze for these drinks, … Read more
Infusions have gotten a bit of a bad name recently, mostly because of Fireball. People think that their own will taste like antifreeze, or that it’s difficult/time consuming to make so isn’t worth it. People are wrong on both counts; in reality, infusing your own booze is easy and delicious. It will also be a … Read more
The Manhattan is one of the more riff-able cocktails, and the Brooklyn may be my favorite riff. It take the Perfect Manhattan idea, but it replaces the sweet vermouth with maraschino, a cherry liqueur. Context I’m not entirely sure where the drink comes from (a lot of cocktails can be traced to a specific bar/bartender’s … Read more
Vermouth gets a bad rap. It seems like most people, and a good number of bars, keep it around as a necessary evil. If it’s in your kitchen, it’s most likely there for cooking and it’s been open for months on the counter. This is a travesty. Vermouth is amazing and deserves some more respect. … Read more