That Long, Long Awaited Surprise

I have been a long time waiting, as I know you have been. No, I’m not talking about the release of the 2022 Beaujolais, nor Christmas morning. Although that was pretty delightful. For the first time in two years I was with four young persons.

I’m thinking of the release of the 2021  World’s 50 Best Bars. 

https://www.worlds50bestbars.com/list/1-50

Lucky girl, that girl of mine. She has journeyed with me - by my count THREE! However, If you go back to two or three of the last “World’s  50”, she can add three more of the best bars she’s been to with me on these excursions!

So, for those of you who are lucky enough to live in Athens, London, Tokyo, Moscow, Milan or even New Delhi – you have the opportunity to visit one of these spectacular World’s 50 Best. 

So, I hope that you’ll take the time to have a sip of your Perrier, thanking them for their sponsorship of this renowned list that add so much goodness to our lives, and review the World’s 50. Who knows what might be in store for us in the next 12 months. Thinking positive - as I look forward to a potential trip to Great Britain. You may be traveling to one of the cities and find yourself walking down a narrow dimly lit, misty street to Pari’ Little Red Door. Or to Baba au Rum in Central Athens. 

However, now that I think of it - you know you can find your own little best bars in your travels. Don’t just rely on this list, but reach out to friends, a concierge, or Heaven forbid, The Google, and search for your own what’s the best bars in Belfast or Dublin Town. Or what about that visit to Quebec City ? Or New Orleans. You’ll find some pretty spectacular places that will bring you lighthearted joy.

Happy Boxing Day.

For your enjoyment -

Cocktail - https://www.diffordsguide.com/newsletters/read/1048; choose one from this extraordinary blog site

Appetizer - Pine Cone Boursin Cheese Ball with warmed rosemary boule slices

Music - “Lessons and Carols”

House of Bols - Recipe for Bitters

Tyler was speaking with me the other day, mentioned that he makes his own bitters. I was quite impressed  - given his real-time job as haberdasher, not mixologist. Shortly thereafter I was contacted by House of Bols’ Sam. Just how coincidental is that! 

    

You know me and my history with House of Bols. OK that was limited to one visit. It is still extraordinary. We never did make it to the Rijksmuseum in the great city of Amsterdam, but I am sure glad we made it to the House of Bols “museum,” bar and cocktail lounge. 

  

Getting back to the discussion that Sam and I had (ok I just made that up, but I like to think Sam would speak with me about bitters).  He divulged to me his secret recipe for making bitters. I am going to plagiarize what Sam wrote and said to me and I am going to divulge a secret so you too can carry on with making bitters. It’s not as difficult as you might think; by that I mean, the ingredients you can pretty much obtain at your local exotic grocery store. OK may be a big one not a small one. The process is interesting too.  Sam goes into some great depth explaining it. Removing some of the mystique behind bitters that caused you to have to spend all your hard-earned euros, pounds, and cents for this exceedingly small bottle of bitters that now - the secret – you will be able to do yourself. 

This link will take you to the Bols.com site for more information on bitters and the how-to when accompanied by Sam’s recipe. Which I have “plagiarized” for you below. As well sign up for the email notices. Please keep this secret as well. 

 https://bols.com/bartendingacademy/cocktail-k.nowledge/cocktail-bitters?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Infusing+your+cocktail+with+bitters&utm_campaign=ENG+Nurture+bitter+4&vgo_ee=hLQJ3zf0SWqFj0mqliu9Db35hO7C%2FF3J%2FgQB9Uu3XAY%3D 

So here it is – Sam's secret recipe from the House of Bols for making bitters. And you heard it from where?           Constantine the SpiritSnob. 

 Sam de Meijer, Lucas Bols Bar Manager

 Amazing Bitter Recipe 

Sam’s own version of Angostura aromatic bitters. Great for spicing up a wide variety of drinks. AND a wonderful way to impress your date! 

• 200ml of high proof whiskey 

• 1 teaspoon of gentian root 

• 1 teaspoon of juniper berries 

• 2 cardamom pods 

• 3 peels of lemon  

• 2 peels of grapefruit 

• 1 teaspoon of lavender flower buds 

  

Classic Bitter Bottle

  

So, sit back, relax, let the ingredients meld together. Send a note of appreciation to Sam or better yet - visit him in Amsterdam. That will be the land of the Dutch or is that the Netherlands or is it Holland? Fused about that all the time. And do not even get me started on how many languages they speak in that country. 

 

Prost! 

 Aller en Boîte! 

Cocktail  

Singapore Sling 

60 ml Damrak Gin 

15 ml Bols Cherry Brandy 

10 ml Bols Triple Sec 

10 ml Grenadine syrup 

10 ml D.O.M Benedictine 

 

Appetizer:  Leek and Mushroom Puff Pastry 

Music:  Alex Van Halen 

Acknowledgment – special thanks to Bols Marketing and the Bar. 

You can reach out to Sam and his friends by signing up for emails and notices from Bols. On their website. Please go to the bottom of the site and you will see the login for emails. You will not be disappointed. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What I Am Reading Now! Zero.

 What am I Reading now?   Zero! No, I mean the Book “Zero”. 

“Zero: A New Approach to Non-alcoholic Drinks.” 

Upon my return from my “Sabbatical” – what seems like a year – I had another conversation with Virang. Who is Virang? He is my “go to” man for life’s significant questions on anything from what is new in the consumable electronic market, living life with your brother and his family at your home to good books to read! How about that! 

I was speaking with Virang, I always enjoy talking with him. He tells me such fantastic stories about his habits and a cool bar that they have in the Chicago area; that would be Chicago, Illinois, in the Midwest of the United States in North America.  

So, he mentions to me this bar and restaurant that he and I have spoken of before, that on the next trip to Chicago we would go for a drink, to enjoy some cocktails with my girlfriend and a BFF of his own.  

So, Virang asks me, “Have you seen the new book on liquor and cocktails? Non-alcoholic cocktails. (Why? comes to mind.) 

 I say, "No, I have not. Talk to me. let us explore this".  

He says well, he ordered one, it is expensive. As he speaks about the recipes and ingredients, it does not appear he’s going to make any of these whiskeys or liquors. Then it dawns on me, that the recipe is not for cocktails. It’s a recipe book on how to make your own imitation liquors. Such as wine, Campari, bourbon, gin, etc. 

As he speaks a little bit more about this, I am driven to order the book. The book is titled  “Zero” and it comes in a pristine white binding. And no jacket, so I tend not to let people hold it exceptionally long, and only if they have gloved hands. As background, the restaurant is in Chicago; I gather from the little research that I did it's one of those uber expensive restaurants Alinea, where you make your reservation six months ahead of time, you do not even bother asking the price. Nevertheless, it sounds quite intriguing. I'm uber impressed that they have created their own book of recipes on how to make nonalcoholic beverages. I gather they plan to put Seedlip out of biz.  

Gin.

I get the book. Excitedly, I begin to peruse it. Well, it is as Virang said. It is a recipe book for which required me to get a gram scale, needed for all sorts of drinks; for example, Campari or a bourbon or rum, all of which are non-alcoholic. Even wine!  

It is quite fascinating. For example, here is a small list of ingredients for the recipe on how to make a bitter Amaro (code for Campari) mock liquor. 

To summarize. Am I glad I got the book? Yes, I am incredibly pleased! If nothing else, when you are President and CEO of Spirit Snob Enterprises LLC, and you are entertaining at home, you need to have something on the cocktail table that's kind of “snobbish”. This book meets that criteria. Am I going to use it? Yes. I told Virang just the other day when we were talking, that I was going to start with one of the minimal recipes and figure out how to get the ingredients, all of which are quite unique. And try just one recipe to start. But my suggestion to you would be, unless you have a lot of time on your hands, which I do not, try Seedlip distilled non-alcoholic beverage from the UK. See what you think of that. 

I will have a post on that soon.  

 

 

Boite 

Cocktail: Negroni and alternatively, The Negroni Zero 

2 oz. Gin 

or Seedlip Garden 109 

2 oz.  Campari  

or Sanbitter 

2 oz. Italian Vermouth, Cinzano 

or verjus rouge, slightly sweetened 

Served on a rock of ice, hand crafted, clear large ice cube. 

    garnish - 1/2 slice of orange

Hors d'oeuvre: Roasted sugar snap peas with toasted sesame oil. 

Music: Jazz, Zanini exclusively! 

Editor's Note - Let's just hope Constantine does not receive a "Cease & Desist" for unauthorized publication of the recipe.

And Constantine has already used their recipe for simple syrup.

Editor

 

Gin. The Recipe.

Colophon- 

    “Zero” published by the Alinea Group, 2020. Printed in Shenzhen, China. Prepress by iocolor of Seattle, Washington, USA. Design & Photography by Sarah and Allen Hemberger. Small batch creative LLC. Printed using Chroma Centric HUV inks on 140 gsm Dadong free FSC paper. Typefaces used include Twentieth Century, Grad & FFM Mark. $85.00 in “Reserve Edition”. Converted price 61.55£ or Quid: and 72€.