My FEWCumber Coolers at Food Matters

In a Shot:  A recap on the drink that caught the attention of few and ended up winning the hearts of many over four years and possibly counting.

“I think pickles are cucumbers that sold out. They sold their soul to the devil, and the devil is dill...”

- Annonymous 

 

I think whoever wrote this, clearly walked through a life of tunnel vision.  There is nothing more satisfying than the vinegary crunch of a damn fine pickle.  I agree that at some point, there simply isn't a more refreshing or practically advancing produce than the cucumber.  It is a fascinating being.  It originated in India, like a lot of our best ingredients and has the misconception of being a vegetable like the tomato.  Botanically speaking, if it grows with seeds within itself and from a flower, it is technically a fruit.  Please, reserve your arguments for the true hearted.  I consider it by fact a fruit and by practice one of my vegetables, so let's not get so hasty here.  Perhaps it was just the way I was raised!

Getting back to the point at hand though, THIS GUY WAS BIASED!!!!  The combination of fresh dill and cucumber prior to pickling is something of matchmaker game shows.  It is currently trendy, it was meant to be for this generation and those who witness it, when done right, applaud!  I came across such an inspiration from a Mixologist named Scottie in Rehoboth beach with my recently married wife, Mary, during one of several honey moons blessed to us from this amazing community, Cameron Station, Alexandria, during our courtship.  Thanks again to Carla B. and more importantly during this viral infestation, Pat S. and her family for leading us to their beach house!  The day I came home, the idea of using cucumbers and dill had to take place!  With that, eventually came a cocktail that comprised of Grey Goose vodka, fresh dill muddled into kosher salt, fresh lime juice as well as juiced cucumbers and a syrup made from raw cucumbers, I had created the summer/spring cocktail anthem without even truly knowing it!  I thank the Przystawik family for guiding me on the culinary process, sharing the true strengths of salt and acid.  Because of them, I consider that an integral part to my original balance and utilise it to make everything I consider, thus far.

"The beauty of this drink is that you not only get one of your daily vegetables, it's the fact that it helps to make your skin look better; and after two or three, it makes everybody else look better too!"

- Johnny Cocktail

Every month at Food Matters, their menu changed and with that, so did the cocktail.  None more requested nor remembered was this particular concoction though.  I had people asking me for recipes and calling me a saint or a doctor and on certain days that never included Sundays, a God.  I had no choice, but to bring it back, but I told everybody that I would change it so I could let my creative juices flow.  It became the flagship of my stable of cocktails.  In five years being at Food Matters, I created in some form, five of these fresh elixirs.  The first, now down in history with vodka and dill.  I once recreated it guest bartending for Hook restaurant in Georgetown, DC utilising Hendrick's Gin, a match far more superior in my humble opinion.

"It is the destiny of mint to be crushed."
- Waverley Lewis Root

Next year, I created a cucumber Mojito switching out the said herbs and spirit with rum and mint.  It was here, I tried making the drinks peeling the cucumber skin for both the juice and the syrup.  The outcome was far more brighter, light and cleaner.  It is now the staple when making these drinks.  This combination, strangely gave off a side effect flavor of jolly rancher sour apple hard candies!  One of my personal favorites.

 

 

"Miss Ainslie gathered a bit of rosemary, crushing it between her white fingers. 'See,' she said, 'some of us are like that, it takes a blow to find the sweetness in our souls.'"
Lavender and Old Lace
-Myrtle Reed (1874–1911)

 

For Catoctin Creek Distilleries of Loudon County I recreated the drink showcasing their Mosby's all natural and organic rye spirit with Rosemary, a drink the master distiller's described as a favorite and nicknamed themselves as the  "Cool Hand Cuke".  The major difference with this beverage is that the drink was served over rocks and should have a large sprig of rosemary next to the straw so that when one goes to sip it, it has that fresh Rosemary  wafting into your nostrils! 

“Some writers say the leaves are used for seasoning, but this statement seems odd, as all the green parts of the plant exhale a very strong odor of the wood-bug, whence the Greek name of the plant.”
— Vilmorin-Andrieux (on cilantro), from The Vegetable Garden (1885)

Let me quickly state that there simply are no descent quotes out there regarding Cilantro!  Moving on.  When the word got out that Food Matters was coming to a close, I selfishly thought about my cocktail specials and how I wouldn't be able to showcase them.  And so I figured I'd end this off where it blew up.  With cilantro fresh and in season, I created the Cucumber Cooler # 4.  A drink, yet again comprising of cucumber juice and syrup with lime.  This time the show stoppers are silver tequila, freshly muddled cilantro and a cilantro salt.  Consider it a perfect spin on the Margarita.  From this point on, now that I've covered all the basic clear spirits and my most favorite herbs (not to mention the temporary lack of a restaurant vessel) the future of #5 is mystic and challenging.  Wish me luck!

 

My 12th grade English teacher, Mrs. Pennington, once addressed the entire class reviewing papers stating "Boys and girls, one day, John Shope is going to write....SOMETHING."  Funny how it turned out to be a blog and a cocktail menu!  I want to thank every single person, whether faced or not who ever bought my Cucumber Cooler or ANY of my drinks; You made me unique and I knew I was doing something great because of the words you said and the memories you created.  I say this, I don't plan on stopping now so look out for Johnny Cocktail, I've got a feeling that this is only the beginning!

I know I say it more times than necessary but once again, thanks for all of the love and support.

Cheers to Adan Aparicio for all of the drawings he produced at Food Matters for the Cocktail Program.

 

Cheers!

Cocktail of the Month: Seasoned Strawberry Sangria

In a Shot:  Strawberries are back in season and with the weather turning so beautiful so quickly, the patio had to come backed by an outside favorite, the Sangria with a Johnny C. twist!

Is it just me or is this year cruising at abnormally high speeds?  I feel like I just cleaned out my fireplace the other day and already I'm out planting seeds in the garden with my wife and trying to figure out where to go for our next summer vacation.  The almost forever looming cold weather hovered over our heads for such a period, that when things took so long to come into season, it was almost a shock to see anything come to the table.  With a snap of a finger, strawberries started flooding the Northern Virginia area and some of the earliest, reddest and most sweet berries have been harvested!

I've tried to avoid straight forward Strawberry cocktails for a time now because I've beaten it over the head senseless over the years.  The strawberry daiquiri's, margarita's and gimlets have come and gone in my time.  I went the culinary route for the products in recent years.  Last year's Strawberry Smash was incredibly well received twisting tequila with balsamic vinegar in last year's mix up.  The first savory experiment was for a private dinner event held in Food Matters where I infused Stolichnaya vodka (chosen for it's citrus, peppery and herbaceous subtleties over other vodkas) with fresh basil and blended it with a house made strawberry juice.

This year, in an ode to that original Stoli inspired cocktail, I went with a Sangria.  Originating in Spain and Portugal, Sangria is a wine based elixir (traditionally un-oaked Spanish red wine), sweetener, fresh fruits (lemons, oranges, apples or seasonal berries and occasional tropical fruits).  This mix is traditionally combined with a little brandy, cordial and spice and served with or without ice, and an optional soda topping (traditionally club soda or lemon-lime soda).  Because I chose to use a white wine, the drink becomes a Sangria Blanca.  Strawberries and black pepper have been a favorite combination of mine for some time so I start by pureeing strawberries with a black pepper corn simple syrup and fresh cracked pepper.  With fresh lemon juice I take the mix and blend it together with Stolichnaya Vanil, (Vanilla vodka that isn't as sweet as others on the market and far creamier) and Cointreau orange liqueur.  To complete the Sangria, I allow it 24 hours soaking with sweetened black pepper corns, lemons, oranges and lots of strawberries.  Take a little bit of this nectar and it's macerated fruits, serve it over ice with a splash of lemon-lime soda and you end up with a well layered Sangria that drinks like a punch.

Without saying, this drink, of course, is hard to keep up with because people down Sangria in this part of town like ice tea or coffee.  I've seen two batches go out in a day's time, I'm prepping new batches almost everyday now and I am not seeing signs of stopping!  If you have any questions about this cocktail or any other Johnny Cocktails, please drop a line, I'm always shaking things up!  See you lounging on the piazza!

Cheers!

A Bit Mo' Honey

In a Shot:  New cocktail of the month proving beer and spirits can go together!

After coming off the popular Whiskey Ginger Fizz #2 cocktail using ginger beer, I was kind of inspired to edge people into trying out a true beer cocktail.  Last year, Christy Przystawik, owner of Food Matters approached me with a cocktail idea of using a hoppy beer and combining it with gin, honey and salt.  We collaborated on the idea and furthered it by infusing the honey with rosemary and lemon juice.  Circling the rim with honey and salt it lead to a very delicious (though a bit messy) cocktail.  If I remember correctly, the drink then got placed on the back burner because of arrival of strawberries which lead to the creation of my balsamic vinegar laced "Strawberry Smash" cocktail.

This year's cold fronts and tousled weather conditions have lead to some pretty strange outcomes for our products, leaving me with a lot of citrus and not a lot of much else for an entire month to showcase in a cocktail.  We are turning towards the beginning of patio weather and the restaurant should any week now be filled with guests sitting outside enjoying our libations.  So I always try to get people excited for that by making something that would be patio friendly.  I decided to return to this honey beer cocktail but really wanted to use something other than gin, as I recently used that spirit line for my Catoctin Concoction.  I also really wanted to use a product not everyone is familiar with.  Bärenjäger, a German produced Honey liqueur, was one of the very first cordials I tried once coming of age.  The name itself translates to "Bear Hunter" and is a drink I haven't tested with since on of the very first cocktail recipes I ever wrote in my records.  I still absolutely love it!  It's smell and color is precise to that of wild honey and even coats your mouth to the same affect, but hits you with a warming spirit filled finish.  Truly remarkable stuff!

I really wanted to add this spirit to the original recipe and found that it goes hand in hand with peppery tequila.  By now, most know that tequila goes hand in hand with salt so this match was meant to happen.  Combined with lemon juice and a lighter style of beer, A Bit Mo' Honey was born!

When made correctly, this drink has a layered blend of sweet honey, tart lemon, peppery tequila, salt and refreshing Kölsch that blends together triumphantly.  If you haven't had a chance to enjoy one of these yet, I highly recommend taking a chance on a smart cocktail that proves that not  only are spirits great mixes with wine, aperitifs and sparkling wines, but they can be great combined with beer as well.

Cheers!

March Madness

In a Shot:  Johnny Cocktail has created the Sugar Daddy, Whiskey Ginger  Fizz # 2, won an award for the Sweet Cherry Rye, survived Mardi Gras, conquered St. Patrick's Day and hosted his first Irish Whiskey tasting!  WOO!

Let's start by saying:  Better late than never!

I  hate to mis-represent for folks who are heavy into sports.  One of the many clashing differences I have in this business is that people come to bars to watch the game.  I do not watch the game.  I work during it.  I will admit, my wife has got me hooked on watching the Olympics and in high school I never religiously followed but LOVED boxing matches.   Once I turned twenty one and found how much fun drinking was while playing, I became a huge sucker for bowling, darts and pool though I was never any good at them, I continue to play them still.  I did chess in elementary and as a kid played basketball with friends, though I never did any of that stuff professionally (i.e. high school) or as a team.  I have a brother in law who is a tennis instructor so I get behind the net during the summer and my father is an advocate for golf so because of him and a sous chef who brought me to Top Golf in Kingstowne, VA once upon a time, enjoy playing that one as well (though none of these am I any good at all I must state) -  so for me, writing, drinks and drinking keep this month a blaze!

To my fans, KNOW I get excited about camaraderie and therefore LOVE a big game like Super Bowls, World/Stanely Cups, Finals and Finishes as much as everybody else.  I just....don't need the build up like everyone else, but I can find a good time when the game is on, TRUST ME

I need to begin  with the cocktail of the month in FEBRUARY.  There were several attempts at making one thing than the next, of course by this point they are all just blurs in the past.  I was tossing everything to the wind from beets to spice rubs to licorice.  Chef suggested a cocktail using Amish Sweet Sorghum, a molasses like syrup made from cane.  Sugar cane made absolute since to blend it with a rum, I started with a popular spiced rum and KNEW that it needed something more savory and strong and decided to use Sailor Jerry's Navy Spiced Rum.  Mixing it with lime juice seemed a no-brainer and in collaboration with our new head bartender, Paul Costanza, I agreed to add some vanilla vodka to the mix.  This is when the caramel, the chocolate, the toffee really started to show up.  I wanted just a little something else, a thicker texture and a fruity aspect to add to what was becoming a manhattan inspired variation of a chewy candy.  A little home made grenadine added that final edge.  Paul and I agreed to call it the Varga Girl, inspired by a prohibition era poster sweet heart.  It was once we introduced it to Christy Pryztawik who leeped from her chair and exclaimed she didn't feel like she was with a Varga Girl, rather it felt like she was with a Sugar Daddy.  Thus the name was born! 
 

Now!  Coming off of the celebrated February win for the Sweet Cherry Rye cocktail (Expect to see these cocktails again once cherries return to season) - The Next Rounds on Me has been very busy whipping up Mardi Gras libations such as Hurricanes and Sazeracs to making drinks up as we go on busy nights (A brandy based Sazerac, a Sazerac inspired Manhattan, a pisco and red grape based something or other and I have done up a great sweet tart lime cocktail I think we'll see on an up coming spring cocktail list!


Whenever March hits, I always get excited about St. Patrick's Day - I do love me a Mardi Gras, we had a live band this year and I was up at the front of a conga line that formed in the middle of the restaurant!  It's a fun holiday filled with lots of great food and good libations so I always try to fit the cocktail of the month into that medium.  Last year was the incredibly delicious but hard to sell Irish Malt.  It was a true to life malted milkshake with vanilla icre cream, malt powder, espresso, Irish Whiskey and Bailey's.  It was my very first attempt at creating a dessert cocktail for the restaurant.  I'm not huge on dessert drinks myself, tasty as they are I just hardly ever buy them.  But this thing tasted like a chocolate malt ball candy and anybody who had one cried or laughed as they finished it, but the world is not steering towards these sorts of libations and I think the ice cream, malt powder and caffeine scared off the clientele I serve.

Sometimes it just has to be back to the drawing board.  The year before that I had made a Whiskey Ginger Fizz cocktail, a combination of lime juice, orange juice, club soda and Bushmill's Irish Whiskey muddled with fresh ginger slices.  It seems so long ago, but people absolutely loved it.  So after many  failed attempts to create something grand, I decided to return back to the drawing board and use what's worked in the past with a revamp.  In it's entirety this cocktail is called the Whiskey Ginger Fizz # 2.  Using Jameson to muddle with the ginger this time around, I substitute the orange juice with Grand Marnier, keep the lime juice and this time I topped it with a natural ginger beer.  This drink has been a huge hit all month and was proven a huge response during St. Patty's!

I believe I should dedicate a full blog to my Irish Whiskey tasting in Food Matters from this month, I feel it will be far too lengthy an attempt to combine with all this other hoopla so without further aDEW I move to blog # 2!

Yes, absolutely no shame what so ever



Cheers!

Cocktail of the Month: Johnny's Nog

In a shot:  Huge blog entry about Eggnog, the holidays and whatever else is on my mind!

Every Christmas season, the world slows down and speeds up simultaneously. There's been an insane fluctuation of flukes around where I live. Ranging from cars crashing directly in front of my street, power grids failing thus shutting down electricity around the entire city, a condo-association sending violations to our land lord because a gift my family gave me was too big (Sometimes the world just has too much fire wood to burn), three computers failing on me in the span of mere months, friend/family personal tragedies, a nose (a precious nose when regarding my profession and passion) that has been stopped up and a hot mess as far back as studying for my Bourbon tasting, a back that has given out to the point where I, for the first time in my life, genuinely feel gripped by the mercy of physical limitation and tips of ice burgs and so forth. The butter cream on the sweetest treat was the loss of so many luminaries; Dennis Hopper, Gary Coleman, Greg Giraldo, Micheal "Eyedea" Larsen, Dandy Don Meredith & Leslie Nielson are all gone this year, leaving their own legacies in their own merits. Yet, I am filled with love, content and excitement for the holidays! YAY!

Folks have given me so much love this year too, ranging from small bill pick ups, treats from my family, a simple gas tank refill, the occasional gift card, video games, movies, cd's, staff members bringing me cold medicine when I was down and out and folks hooking me up with back pain remedies, A COMPUTER, fire wood for the house to all the people bringing me samples of food, beer, wine, sake, whiskey, touristy spirit commodities and the like. I've had the chance to see friends and family I haven't seen in years this 2010 and there is so much to be grateful for.

And so goes the interesting whirlwind of emotional roller coaster riding that the month of December strangely brings. It creates a year's worth of reflection and review that shines as brightly as small clouds surface quietly. This balance heightens during the holiday season with everybody hurrying around to get themselves set up with all the right decorations, presents, meals and arriving on the right dates to the right places while maintaining their work and personal lives.

There's also a steady misconception going around here that the holiday classic drink, Eggnog, is horribly bad for you. Primarily due to it's obvious ingredients (Milk, Eggs, Sugar and in many cases, dark liqour). It translates to high cholesterol, empty calories, massive amounts of sugar, natural impurities and fat, fat, fat and more fat. Obviously a lot of this is very true and there is no argument that it's a little indulging. This is especially true for purchasing a store bought, pre-made product which will always call for a far less superior product. I recently came across a canned (yes....CANNED) Eggnog that stated on the front that it was made with real milk and cream......I read the back and the first dead give away that something wasn't right was it's first ingredient.....SKIM milk. So this is already starting off with a modified version of it's main "real" ingredient. It tags on corn syrup solids, mono and diglycerides (chemicals that act as emulsifiers in place of hand whisking and heat tempering ingredients), artificial flavors (whatever they are), sodium alginate, sodium hexametaphosphate (also used in detergents), carrageenan (a gelatinous by product from red seaweed also used as the acid saliva in the Alien movies and apparantly makes a great sexual lubricant) and of course, fd&c yellow dye number five and six.

Meanwhile,

I present, a simple blend of egg yolk and sugar, tempered by organic milk spiced with cinnamon, vanilla and freshly grated nutmeg (aside from locally produced or organic ingredients, THE KEY ELEMENT) - alone, equals less than a slice of cake and blended with a quality dark spirit brings warmth to a holiday season, brings a smile to many faces, brings a surprise to any heart and an uprising to every spirit that says "I know that this, that and the other happened today.....but this, that and the other just happened in my glass, thus all I can think of is the greater thus, that and the next!"

A real glass of home made Eggnog is thick, aromatic, warming, sweet and fulfilling. That's the reason you ONLY see it during the winter seasons in this country! It's designed for celebration and moderation.

In the Johnny's Nog recipe, locally farmed, free range chicken egg yolk's, sugar and a locally produced cream are the active ingedients, but the real culprit to a great Eggnog out side of using the best eggs and fantastic milk/sugar you can get your hands on, but how long you temper eggs/sugar to warm spiced cream. If you allow the eggs and sugar to heat up for too long, the eggs will scramble, if you do it for too little, then it's thin and watery.  It's a time honouring process made with love.  It's served cold and with freshly grated nutmeg (which brings the drink to the next level)

When asked what spirit to use, it's really up to the drinker.  I suggest leaving the spirit out and adding some to the brew based on particular choice.  Lots of people enjoy Eggnog without any spirits, this is a great treat for kids during the holidays.  In the old days (and the old world for that matter), before Eggnog was called Eggnog, a milk and egg punch was traditionally made with red wine or sherry during the Christmas and New Year's holidays.  When it arrived to the states, we started using what was widely available during the time period.  It was here where we started adding rum into the mix which, legend has it, is where the drink received it's final and formal name.  Back then, rum was often referred to as Grog and the drink was put in a mug called a noggin.  So it's very possible that Eggnog is a shortened bastardization of "Egg n' Grog in a Noggin"!  Eventually someone came along and added brandy to the drink and tried to call it a "Tom & Jerry" - That one didn't stick as much as Eggnog.  George Washington did a combination of whiskey, rum and sherry that was apparently very strong with an added dosage of cheer!  I personally believe that Eggnog is a dessert, it's supposed to be thick, filling, sweet and strong.  Get a high proof whiskey, apple brandy or even the black label Southern Comfort and add an ounce and a quarter to your Nog.  Whatever you choose, make sure it's a dark spirit and you won't be disappointed.  Happy holiday's everybody stop on by before Christmas runs through, you HAVE to try my Nog, it's divine!

Cheers!

Cocktail of the Month: Autumn Harvest Cider

In a Shot:  This month's homemade cranberry juice cocktail based with applejack, orange liqueurs/syrups and hard cider gives dedication to the first "Harvest Cider" from two years ago.

In less than a year of turning twenty one, the current legal age of buying and consuming alcohol in America, I created my very first cocktail the 24th of July, 2004.  It was called Pairaidies (Pronounced pair-o-deez), a play on several words such as "parody" as I've always been a fan of comedy and music reinvention.  What it really meant was "paradise".  In Russian it translates RAI.  In German/Italian it's spelled PARADIES (Par-Ah-Deece).  Beyond the pairing of words it's also a play on a PAIR of cordials from Germany and Italy.  The final cocktail was a blend of Stolichnaya Vanilla, German Barenjager, Tuaca Italiano Liqueur and Pineapple Juice.  HOW SWEET DOES THAT SOUND????

Of course, now that I've had a chance to expand my palate, I've acquired a far sharper tongue, acknowledging the fact that my very first cocktail is nothing but four very sweet things put together.  The garnish was two store jarred maraschino cherries to play off the "pair" thing (regardless of the fact that it's yet ANOTHER sweet thing that had nothing to do with the drink).

After that I had a drink too creamy, next too spicy. then too 'never should belong together so what was I thinking' and all of that stuff before I started show casing some serious taste buds.  Then I began working at a restaurant that encouraged pairing food with drink in a seasonal celebration.  From their I started emulating food to the drink as far as pairing flavors.  Then I was offered an opportunity at Food Matters to make a "Cocktail for the Month".  Something that represented the flavors of the season, as I showed interest in cocktail making.  Even in this moment I was still amaturing a concept, however, it was tasty and people enjoyed it and were excited to pay the 7 dollars asked for it.  I printed a copy of the menu and gave it to my parents.

That cocktail, the Fall Harvest Cider was a combination of vodka, cranberry simple syrup, organic cider and a hard cider with candied "syruped" cranberries.  It tasted so much like juice, I could barely keep up with this flavored syrup.  It was the beginnings of a great year.  And another! 

Today, it's the second year to the date of the beginning of this program and so I give an updated homage to a revolutionary cocktail in my life and Food Matters.  In respect, it's called the Autumn Harvest Cider.  Utilizing the candied cranberries for garnish as well as the hard cider, only this time I chose to use a domestic apple brandy, Cointreau, and a homemade cranberry juice.  I also add a splash of simple syrup made with the zest of orange peels to not only echo the liqueur of choice but to cut against the REAL tartness of genuine cranberries with sugar coated orange peels for an additional topping.

So here's to the cocktail where this whole thing started, to the cocktail that began the monthly libation, to the Autumn Harvest Cider and to many more drinks to come!

Cheers!

New Cocktail of the Month: Ginger Pearsecco

In a Shot:  Celebrating The Next Rounds on Me's first year anniversary with a new pear cocktail and showcasing a few others along the way!

(Pictured are my classic lemon drop and my habenero ginger mojito)

The Mad Melly's had an interesting response, it's funny how many people are skeptics of the flavor of cantaloupe and then there are those who are skittish around peppers, hot or not.  Those who tried the cocktail though, could not deny the interesting sweet and peppery combination of those ingredients.  I was also invited to do a cocktail for a private "Chili" dinner at the Food Matters private dining room.  I came up with a habenero ginger mojito.  Simply changing out traditional simple syrup for a spicy orange/chocolate habenero and ginger syrup.  The ending result is spicy and minty and refreshing with a healthy kick at the end.  It was a huge success and I was applauded for my creation.

My Lemon Drop recipe was recently mass produced and slightly modified at a Fundraiser for Ovarian Cancer awareness called Rock, Paper, Cocktails.  During a raffle, I was able to prepare a series of these cocktails in advance, the picture does not do justice of what we served at this event!

The time has come, however, for a new cocktail to surface with our monthly installments.  This one is particularly special to me because it is officially the first year anniversary of my online blogging and documentation of my libations.  Starting with mere tips on how to remove labels and recommendations to drink more lightly to alternative drink options.  We've evolved to tastings, home made creations, interviews, tours and educational documentaries to family photo stock piles and it just keeps getting bigger and bigger, so cheers!  The Next Rounds on Me is growing up!  Now, on to the cocktail!

This is the time of year when all the hearty vegetables and crisp, tart and citrus fruits begin to surface.  Squashes and pumpkins, apples and grapes, etc, etc.  One of my favorites, is the light and versatile pear.  It's so delicate and clean, crisp and refreshing and has just a great fall aspect to it's nature.  Well, that's because in October, it is in it's peak!  So the plan here is to make another straight forward and clean cocktail.  I love the combination of ginger and pear and I simply livened it up using a little lemon juice and a fabulous domestically made organic vodka called 360.  It's such an amazing product as far as it's value and quality but it's also a spirit that has true focus.  Check out there Eco-friendly website here!. This very light and super clean vodka has a very smooth earthy taste. Undertones of caramel, lavender and citrus also brighten up and pare (forgive the obvious pun) so well in this cocktail. Making a simple syrup using fresh, spicy ginger as well as juicing some local pears and a touch of lemon juice left a straight forward cocktail that just needed a little more character. I tried water, I tried tea, I even tried using Kombucha. I discovered that a light and fruity prosecco brightens it up and leaves us with a very refreshing ode to Autumn! Enjoy the season, get near a fire, and sip a Ginger Pearsecco while enjoying the company of those around you who love you. I know that I'm going to!

Cheers!

Mad Melly

In a Shot:  Finally created a successful melon and pepper cocktail that is officially the new September addition to the restaurant menu.


It's funny how these things turn out some times.  The months of August & September are always difficult in the cocktail world where I work, as the restaurant is guaranteed a week to close sometime towards the end of the month.  Ambitions are slightly lowered going into that week and coming out of it and with that serves up personal challenges to creating an inspiring cocktail.  The battle for the melon continued this year, dedicated as I strive to be, have attempted various cocktails utilizing all sorts of melons and I've also had my share of battles with manifesting a cocktail that uses fresh peppers some how some way.  The day of triumph is upon us my fellow followers as I have come to a balance of both that is user friendly for all people (over 21 of course!)

The reasons why my first attempt at a spicy melon drink failed were one, I really had my heart set on watermelon, which I love, but is such a soft flavor that mixing it with stuff, generally makes the flavor disappear or become over powered.  The other reason was I was using Serrano chillies in the cocktail which have quite a healthy kick and also over powered the whole thing.  Next time I tried to face the melon cocktail I tried using Cachacha and sort of made a play on their Batidas (Tropical fruit juice based Cachacha drink that usually is blended and has some sort of creamy element added to it) using melons and shaking over ice where the Brazilian spirit simply over powered the juices and simply was not blending right regardless of variation in acid and salt.  When all hope was lost, we went on vacation, returned and at the last minute threw together a cocktail of the month.  Last minute being, the night of the menu changing!  In a quick-fire Top Chef regulated setting, I would've been a contender!  I stuck to my gut with this melon idea and once again brought in a pepper element, knowing where I tried once I could very possibly fail yet again.  But not this time.

Using a Gita Nagari Farm pepper known simply as the "Not so hot pepper" and a more tart than sweet cantaloupe with tequila and lime juice, what we have is a sure fire play on a margarita using local produces I've battled successfully crafting a drink with flavor, acid and a slight zippy finish from the peppers.  This drink is not hot!  It's designed to be appreciated by all spectrum's of people.  In the cocktail itself there is only a few slithers of the pepper that get muddled with a silver tequila, simply to release that subtle spice at the finish.  The rest of the pepper element is a simple syrup infused with both the peppers and lemon peels.  Shaken together with cantaloupe I have developed a tall and refreshing cocktail that has been completely receptive by everyone who has sampled it.  It's truly a great way to say good by to summer heat and welcome back cool autumn nights!

(That is a melon ball floating in the drink, yes I realize it slightly resembles an egg yolk)

We called her Mad Melly, a play on "hot melons" in which we wanted to give that nod without the innuendos.  Margarita was rumored to be a girl, we went with calling the drink a female name.  Melon:  Melly.  If she's not hot, she's....naughty?  No!  We can use that!  Angry?  Spicy?  Where's the play on words I enjoy in the titles of my cocktails so much????  We ended up with Mad Melly and that explains it all.  Virginia Melons angered by Virginia peppers.  How funny!



Cheers!

Peaches N Tea

Coming up with this months cocktail was more of an adventure than it truly was a rhyme or reason.  We tried different variations of cocktails utilizing everything from cilantro, basil, watermelon, cantaloupe, citrus fruits, Cachacha's, Pisco's, Tequila's, Gin's and the like.  What came out of left field was an inspiration of a drink we've been making with the staff during this summer, an iced Thai inspired tea using condensed milk.  One of my most popular cocktails last year was a play on peaches and cream, a very direct but insanely time consuming and messy to make drink simply called "The Peach Martini".  Since peaches are still the big hit this time of the year I went with the Thai theme, removing the condensed milk and replacing it with a peach nectar.  Common Thai and Indian teas are traditionally spiced with Cardamom (spice found in the ginger family) which adds depth, dryness and an obvious subtle spice.  So I'm pan roasting my own and blending it with a sun brewed orange and vanilla scented tea.  The spike comes from a Jamaican dark rum, rich, buttery and full of thick molasses flavors.  Adding a touch of acid, the resulting product is a rich, sweet and spicy refresher served over ice, a fantastic play on two very different drinks and when made properly, proven to be a very receptive cocktail.

Know what I mean?  Peaches N Tea!

Cheers!

John's Stone Fruit Sangria

In a Shot:  Guests have been asking when a new Sangria was going to be available at the bar so I created one using July's local stone fruits with rose, bourbon & ginger ale.

The last time I made a Sangria, was a few years ago, iconically off season creating a unique "Fall Harvest Sangria" utilizing concord grape juice, fresh grapes, lemons, local apples with French and American apple brandies.  Instead of using traditional Spanish red wine for the Sangria I chose to use a dry french rose.  It was such a hit and people often ask when I'm going to utilize my talents to produce another fantastic Sangria. 


Well, in lieu of the many different fruits coming into this month's seasonal bounty, I decided this was the time to make a comeback.  Utilizing a french rose again as well as lemon juice (being the only two components repeated), I decided to base the drink on peaches and bourbon (a widely popular combination) and other stone fruits such as fresh cherries and locally harvest apricots.  Since the peaches have yet to surface in the restaurant and the cocktail needing to be ready by the first I went with apricots as the base fruit for the cocktail. 


At first, I attempted to juice fresh apricots with lemon juice (hoping the lemon juice would slow down the oxidation process).  Juicing apricots straight up ends in a resulting brown, watery sour mess that is unappetizing and virtually flavorless.  To get the right color, texture, tartness and bright apricot flavor, I was going to need to make a nectar.  I discovered that by simply blanching the apricots first by steeping in boiling water for just a few minutes then flash cooling them in an ice water bath, I could easily remove the skins from the apricots leaving that wonderful apricot color.  The stone seed came out so easily and from there I took the produce and liquefied them in a high powered blender starting slowly and gradually moving to the highest speed.  The result is a smoothie thick apricot nectar.  All that needed to happen now was add the right amount of water, simple syrup and lemon juice till I reached the consistency and flavor I was looking for.  This stuff is INCREDIBLE!  Honestly, if anybody else does this, I recommend saving some and mixing it with brandy for fresh apricot sours or coming up with your own summer cocktails!


Sugar cuts against the acid when making a sangria blend, so be careful how much bourbon you put in your mix, as I discovered.  At first the only thing I could taste was rose, then I could only taste apricot, but once I added that simple syrup, bit by bit the bourbon started to surface, the rose started to subdue, the acidity of the apricot took the back drop and all the flavors started to come together harmoniously.  Macerating the cherries, apricots and eventually peaches in bourbon will fortify the fruits allowing them to keep longer in the mix as well as bring out other hidden flavors.


The final step was to add some effervescence.  I tried different carbonated options and found that ginger ale brings out a surprising amount of cherry flavor regardless of how little there is in the cocktail entirely (It also probably pulls that flavor from the french rose as well).  The result is a very well balanced blend of ice cold summer fruit juices, spirits and bubbles.  Here's to the summer, here's to the companionship, here's to the food and here's to the cocktails that bring everybody together.

Cheers!!!

Cocktails of the month

April rained, May came and June is almost over.  July is bringing in an abundant supply of many different produces, too many to make just one cocktail!  May is sort of a down time month here in Virginia so I supported the fresh supply of mint that came in and made a rendition of my very popular Cucumber Cooler cocktail from last year named, the Newcumber Cooler.  The original called for lime juice, vodka, cucumber juice, dill muddled kosher salt, a little water and sweetened with a cucumber simple syrup.  I decided to do a little ode to the Mojito this year and substituted the vodka with rum, opted out the kosher dill salt and instead muddle fresh mint into the concoction where the juice and syrups were both made with the cucumbers being skinned this time.  Peeling the cucumbers causes the drink to be lighter and sweeter which compliments the mint and rum for this version.

Strawberries were the big seasonally fruit this month, I started looking into pairings with Strawberries that sounded interesting and not as common.  My wife was making a raspberry vinaigrette for a house party and asked me to look up what pairs well with her dressing.  I discovered that in the culinary world, the absolutely epic pairing of strawberries with an aged balsamic vinaigrette have enhanced salads and main course dishes consistently.  With a little experimentation I came up with the Strawberry Smash.  A wonderfully light, zippy fruit drink that defies other strawberry based cocktails.  Muddled fresh strawberries with your choice of clear spirit (Here I chose vodka to showcase the flavors, but interesting with gin, sweeter with rum and awesome with tequila!) flavored with strawberry infused white balsamic vinegar, homemade grenadine (none of that black light glow in the dark neon red stuff from the stores!) Click here for Todd Thrasher's Homemade Grenadine Recipe with an aged balsamic vinegar float.

The plans for next month's cocktail is to utilize the stone fruits getting ready to come into the area.  Many are already being harvested.  Peaches, Apricots and cherries are all here as well as all the berries ranging from blueberries to raspberries are starting to surface.  Sadly, the only consistency this month will be the stone fruits, so the focus is going to be on them.  Stone Fruit Sangria anyone?  I'll let you know how everything goes shortly.  Till then, enjoy the summer, utilize nature's bounty and do not be hesitant to make up your own syrups, infusions or aged perfections.

And once again, a moment of thanks to those who continue to support my cocktails, thanks for the love and support (And not to mention your exceptional palates and good standards!)

Cheers!

April Rain

In a Shot:  Cocktail of the month is called April Rain, a perfumey, citrusy upgrade to the traditional Gin & Tonic.

The fun part about making these cocktails of the month is coming up with countless ideas to use.  Last year in May I devised a new and improved gin and tonic simply called John's Gin & Tonic or the Gin & Johnic.  Inspired by the blooming dogwood trees in front of my house, it's just a Henderick's G&T that's been hopped up with cucumbers, bitters, rose water and lime juice.  A very tasty alternative to the original (though there is absolutely nothing wrong with a classic Gin and Tonic as I am a purist at heart).

I wanted to take it a few steps further this year and came to a final product properly named, April Rain.

Tanqueray Gin spiked with St. Germain elderflower & Cointreau orange liqueurs perfumed with Angostura Orange Bitters, Orange Blossom and Rose Waters all crisped by freshly squeezed lime juice.  Oh!  And of course, tonic water!  Here I've garnished it with an orange twist, but you could use other fruits or top with edible flowers to spoof things up as desired.  If you decide to venture out and create these drinks on your own, it's the fresh lime juice and quality of gin as well as the quality of the tonics that are going to make this one stand out.

When making any gin and tonic I recommend using the Tanqueray products, Hendrick's, Bombay Sapphire, Plymouth or Bluecoat gins as your base.

If you are not up for the time and energy to make your own tonic water, there are several companies trying to upgrade the original one and one classic cocktails.  For excellent tonic waters I highly recommend sniffing out United Kingdom based Fentimans fermented tonic water which has bags of flavor and will add an additional 0.5% ABV to your cocktail!  Another I would suggest would be the New York based Q-Tonic that is naturally sweetened with agave nectar and lemon using Cinchona bark and Peruvian quinine as it's flavor enhancers makes for a slightly medicinal and quite citrusy concoction.  The last I would pursue would have to be the British based Fever-Tree presented in a recycled bottle and is sweetened using cane sugar packs a limey citric acid background in a nice and light combination.  I suppose I need to also add that if you are going to end up going for any of the big brand name tonic waters available on the market or if their is just no other choice, please ladies and gentlemen, buy Schwepps, it's the best of the high fructose corn syrup offerings by large margins!

All of these tonics and gins have their own websites and I highly recommend looking into all of them and finding the combination that suites you the most.  The gins are all so different and the tonics are all so different that it could take all summer finding your favorite and personalized G&T.  So I suggest getting outside and enjoying one of them, tell your spouse it's an experiment!

Recipe:

Glass:  Rocks Glass
Garnish:  Thin orange peel
Method:  In a cocktail shaker with ice, vigorously shake ingredients and pour contents into a rocks glass and top up with tonic water.  Rub the skin of orange peel around the rim of glass then twist over top of cocktail and float on top as garnish.

1 1/2 oz Perfumed/Aromatic Gin
1 dash St. Germaine Elderflower Liqueur
1 dash Cointreau Orange Liqueur
Generous Dash of Orange Bitters (Fee Brothers or Angostura)
2 Drops of Orange Blossom Water
Top up with high quality Tonic Water

Cheers!

My o' my how me Time Flies!

In a Shot:  I'm back and thank you for drinking all those Irish Malts last month but get ready for April Rain and a Gin and Tonic patio makeover!

It is absolutely insane just how quickly this year is flying by.  Perhaps it's due to all the crazy personal life things that are happening to me right now.  Who knows?  But one thing I do know, is I have not been very good to you and I really want to take more time out to keep you guys updated with what's all been happening.  First off,

The Irish Malt was very well received with owners, staff members and guests alike all describing the drink as "very dangerous".  As two shots of anything that goes down that easy is hard to escape.  The combination of Irish Whiskey, Irish Cream Liqueur, vanilla bean ice cream, heavy cream, half & half perked with espresso and malted milk powder may sound like over excessive behavior, but hey, tis the season o' the Irish.  And drink hard we did!

We now need to slow down though and watch the changes come with the season.  April, in Virginia, means serious changes are coming.  People are starting to put the heavy and hot down and pick up the cool and light in every aspect from wardrobe, to food and of course, to drink.  There is nothing wrong with going simple during a time when the scenery and the changes all around us are worth stopping and slowing down to witness.  The patio is coming!  With the patio comes more white wines, rose's, champagnes and that tried and true patio cocktail, gin and tonics!

What I will be doing is simple, evoking the perfumes and crispness in the air and combining it with the herbal and medicinal flavors of juniper and quinine.  Nothing fancy, just a small interpretation of a wonderful classic.  The spring and summer drink of my personal choice, I ask that the next time you are sitting outside and a waiter stops by and requests your drink order, I encourage that you look up at that person with a smile on your face and say, "Spring is here my friend, would you please pass me a refreshing G&T!"













See you outside!

Cheers!

Kiss Me! I'm Irish! (For Today)

In a Shot:  Working on next month's cocktail, I looked into all things Irish while searching for inspiration to create an Irish Whiskey based drink and found out a lot of stuff.


As we reach the horizon of massive changes in seasonal fruits, herbs and vegitables, the month of March brings very little to the local bar top for inventive cocktail creation.  We have Grapefruit, which I just did in January with The Resolution.  Oranges are in season and last year's Whiskey Ginger Fizz was a big hit with it's ginger and orange base (So check oranges).  Rhubarb is starting to come into play but not serious as of just yet.  Quite a few vegitables are starting to walk out of the garden but I am not ready to start investing in an artichoke, chicory or chive based cocktail (Though I am not opposed to creating a twist on the classic Gibson).

So what else is in March?  I created the Secret Ad-Meyer-er to make a nod to Valentine's Day and the big one in March is obviously St. Patrick's Day.  A religious holiday which celebrate's the most recognized patron Saint Patrick (circa AD 385-461) who converted the island to Christianity.  It is a day of feasts, parades and celebration.  The Irish flag is divided up into three colors, green representing Catholic Ireland, Orange representing Protestant Ireland and White representing the unity and peace between the two, supposedly.  The green, in a traditionalist fashion, represents many organizations and essentially all things Irish also known as the "Emerald Isle".  Parades outside of speaking out Irish rights and recognition was designed to sort of praise Irish culture, focusing the market on food, drink, music, clothes and lore. 

In America, the celebration of St. Patrick's gives us a chance to all be Irish for a day and celebrate into the wee hours with tipple after tipple of stout and whiskey.  Turning everything green (Which originated from the 3 leaf clover which represented the religious trinity and support for the relgious movement) and pinching people for failing to wear green are strictly American traditions.  The green is now a days, purely association.  Rumor is that if you wear green however, it makes you invisible to Leprechauns and if they see you they may harshley pinch you so in good faith a person my affectionately pinch you to warn you of the Leprechauns.  The four leaf clover is huge in Ireland and the three leaf is believed to bring you luck o' the Irish.  A lot of Irish brides will have a bouqet of clovers to bring luck to the marriage.  Usually the husband brings stout, sausage and mashed potatoes (just kidding!)

Food Matters is a restaurant that focuses on local and seasonal products.  They also go above and beyond to avoid any and all things artificial or unnatural.  So there will be no green beer there, but traditional Irish fair will be available without doubt.  So the first thing I want to base my cocktail on is Irish Whiskey (the only other country besides America to add the extra 'E' to the name, to differenciate it's spirit as a better quality product)  However, Irish whiskey in America has received the bad representation as being harsh and fiery whiskies.  This is a misconception Americans label the whiskey with claiming the spirit is good for nothing but drinking with coffee and not neat or in cocktails.  There are many ranges of Irish Whiskies, however, out side of single grain and blended whiskies.  Irish whiskey distillers also produce vintaged/aged single malts and exclusive to Irish Whiskies, Pure Pot Still whiskies which one distillery will produce a fine single malt through a pure pot still (See Redbreast, Jameson 15 year old and Green Spot).

So the plan to re-introduce Irish whiskey to our clientele is the first step, proving great drink can come from this mythologically harsh dram.

A nod to the malted barely and classic irish coffee was my next inspiring direction.  At Food Matters, I have yet to create a solid chocolate based drink and I do have a recipe for what I consider an adult milkshake, my loved by the ladies Chocolate Smoovie.  Vanilla Vodka blended with Starbucks Coffee Liqour and Godiva Chocolate Liqour sinfully fluffed with heavy whipping cream, half and half served in a martini glass that's been swirled by a chocolate syrup and garnished further with a always changing chocolate candy, it is as good as it sounds.

Now the plan here is to make it Irish whiskey based and use products that are available from Food Matters, mainly my eyes are on this local small family made cream Chef gets.  I also thought about taking the milkshake plan and malted barley concept to creating a malted milkshake.  Malted powder is something I can easily obtain at any grocery store or order online.  The only other hint I'm offering is Chef has suggested and offered the use of one of his Great Falls products to be used in the cocktail, something I very willingly am interested in experimenting with.  Just wait and see, the Chocolate Smoovie may make a resurgance with an Irish twist here really soon.

Top o' the mornin' to ya!

Of!  And of course,



Cheers!!!