Mark Twain on Whiskey

February 18, 2011

Andrew Nicholls Uncategorized , , Leave a comment

Mark Twain

It was on this day in 1885 that Mark twain published Huckleberry Finn.

The book documents all sorts of struggles with alcoholism and could even leave you believing Mr Twain was against the heavenly nectar.

Quite to the contrary!

Here is an exert from Life on the Mississippi, where Twain gives his feelings on our dependance on the magic stuff:

“How solemn and beautiful is the thought that the earliest pioneer of civilization, the van-leader of civilization, is never the steamboat, never the railroad, never the newspaper, never the Sabbath-school, never the missionary — but always whiskey! Such is the case. Look history over; you will see. The missionary comes after the whiskey — I mean he arrives after the whiskey has arrived; next comes the poor immigrant, with ax and hoe and rifle; next, the trader; next, the miscellaneous rush; next, the gambler, the desperado, the highwayman, and all their kindred in sin of both sexes; and next, the smart chap who has bought up an old grant that covers all the land; this brings the lawyer tribe; the vigilance committee brings the undertaker. All these interests bring the newspaper; the newspaper starts up politics and a railroad; all hands turn to and build a church and a jail — and behold! civilization is established forever in the land. But whiskey, you see, was the van-leader in this beneficent work. It always is. It was like a foreigner — and excusable in a foreigner — to be ignorant of this great truth, and wander off into astronomy to borrow a symbol. But if he had been conversant with the facts, he would have said: Westward the Jug of Empire takes its way.”

I’m off to work on the bar now and you can bet your bottom dollar I’ll be raising a glass of good Kentucky Whisky to Mark Twain at the end of my shift!

 

 

Dark n’ Stormy (as it should be)

February 17, 2011

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Cabin on the beach in St Barts

I was flown over to St Barts for a bartending gig with Misja Vorstermans (Global Bartending) and Dennis Tamse. Misja and Dennis are good friends and fatastic bartenders to say the least.

Anyone who has flown to the tiny French owned Caribbean Island will know that getting there is quite an adventure. You fly from St Maarten in a plane no bigger than a pack of gum, and land on what is reported to be one of the top three most dangerous landing strips on the planet. Pilots are good so thats not too much of a problem, unlike the lack of luggage room on the aircraft.

Tiny luggage compartments mean that 9 times out of 10, your luggage will not be on the same flight as you, especially when your fellow passengers are high maintenance, middle aged folk with six Louis Vuitton bags per person. All this meant we arrived on the Island and spend four days with no luggage.

When we saw where we were staying and how close we were to the beach (pretty much on the beach, as the picture shows) we decided that our luggage wasn’t that important. We were simply happy to be where we were.

Cutting the Outer Shell of the Lime

Well, that was until we realized all our bar gear was in our luggage and when in the Caribbean, one must drink rum! To be specific, Rum with Fresh Lime and Ginger Beer. Thats right…the Dark n’ Stormy!

The Dark n’ Stormy is actually the national drink of Bermuda and should be made using Goslings Black Seal but hey, sometimes you just have to improvise…

You would be amazed at the language when a bartender realizes he has nothing to cut open his limes for juicing. Being in the French part of the Caribbean , we found plenty of rhum, purchased a bottle of Trois Rivieres, a few cans of Jamaican Ginger Beer and found a few plastic cups. We had NO ice.

Ice was the last of our worries!

It was time to get back to those limes. I went for a walk on the beach to see what I could find and presto!

Mini Conch Shell being used to juice Limes

A broken shell with a sharp point proved to be quite the knife and another resembling a mini conch shell made an awesome citrus hand juicer.

We sat on the porch in the picture above, proud and content with our hunter/gatherer skills for the day. it was the warmest, most simple Dark n’ Stormy I have ever imbibed, but without a doubt, the most enjoyable.

The recipe for a more authentic Dark n’ Stormy is as follows:

50 ml Goslings Black Seal Rum

Juice of half a lime

Serve in a long glass with lots of ice and top with Ginger Beer.

Garnish with a wedge of Lime.

The recipe to our St Barts Dark n’ Stormy is as follows:

1 Caribbean Beach

As many friends as you like

Whatever you can use to drink from

No Ice

Whatever Rum/Rhum/Ron you can find

A shell for cutting limes

A shell for juicing limes

Ginger Beer

Juice of half a lime and drop the spent shell of the lime in the drink.

Method: Mix together in your own proportions and simply enjoy…

Ps. A few grains of sand add a bit of character.

Remember the Maine

February 15, 2011

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USS Maine in Havana (Picture from www.twc-transcribing.com)

It was on this day (15 Feb.) in 1898 that a massive exposion of unknown origin sunk the ship known as the USS Maine. 260 of the 400 crew members on board were killed.

The USS Maine was stationed to protect Americans living in Havana shortly after a rebellion against Spanish rule broke out on the Island. The Rebellion took place in January and that March, a US Naval Court Inquiry declaired the ship had been sunk by a mine. The U.S. public took little time deciding the it must have been a Spanish mine and before you could say Rye Whisky, the the U.S. and Spain were at war.

What does this have to do with a drink you might ask?

Well, for the answer to that we’ll fast forward to the Cuban mutiny of 1933 where one Charles H Baker Jr. recalled:

“A hazy memory of a night in Havana during the unpleasantness of 1933, when each swallow was punctuated with bombs going off on the Prado, or the sound of 3″ shells being fired at the Hotel Nacional, then Haven for certain Anti-Revolutionary Officers.”

That Ladies and Gentlemen is why Charles Baker Jr. is a real Man. Bombs on the Prado, 3″ shells being fired from a nearby hotel and he simply describes it as a night of unpleasantness. He didn’t run for the nearest bit of shelter, but instead , combined 1 jigger Rye Whisky, 1/2 jigger of Sweet Vermouth, 1 to 2 teaspoons of Cherry Brandy and 1/2 teaspoon of Absinthe. He goes on to say one should “stir briskly in a clockwise fashion – this makes it sea-going, Presumably!”

Here is my preferred recipe for a Remember the Maine Cocktail:

50 ml van Winkle Family Reserve Rye

20 ml Carpano Antica Formula (Italian Vermouth)

2 barspoons/10 ml Cherry Heering

1/2 barspon/2.5 ml Kubler Absinthe

Stir over plenty of ice and strain into a chilled coup. Garnish with a twist of Lemon zest.

In the words of Charles Baker Jr., “Treat this one with the respect it deserves, gentlemen.”

 

Capri Lounge & The White Truffle Sazerac

February 15, 2011

Andrew Nicholls White Truffle Sazerac , , , Leave a comment

February got off to a Great start with a trip to Cologne for Sipped.tv.

We visited two fantastic bars while there, called Shepheards and Capri Lounge. I’ll share more about Shepheards in another post.

This post is all about Capri Lounge and one of the most delicious drinks I have had the pleasure of sipping for a very long time.

The bar is an Aladdin’s Cave of antique bar gear and glassware. Everywhere you look you find something new catching the eye and the bartenders are more than happy to talk you through their treasures.

Lars Holzem, Andrew Nicholls & Volker Seibert

Unlike most bars, the entire team of bartenders here totals a whopping two. Head bartender Volker Seibert and Lars Holzem are on duty five days a week without fail.

One of the drinks they served me is simply called the White Truffle Sazerac. Those of you familiar with the classic Sazerac will probabley know it originates from the beautiful city of New Orleans and was originally concocted using Cognac. The Sazerac s served in a Absinthe laced glass, with Peychaud’s Bitters, sugar and the expelled oils from a strip of lemon zest.

Well, thats the classic Sazerac at least. The Capri Lounge Sazerac however is a different story all together.

The recipe is as follows:

White Truffle Sazerac

60 ml Remy Martin XO Cognac

25 ml 20 year old Port

4 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters

15 ml Sugar Syrup

2 dashes White Truffle Oil

Stir the above with cubes of ice and strain into a Absinthe laced double rocks glass with an ice ball.

Garnish with a strip of lemon zest and a few slices of fresh white truffle.

As you can imagine, this is a tricky drink to reproduce at home. Not only is white truffle hellishly expensive, but it’s only available for a short period of time every year.

My advise would be to take a trip to Cologne next year, give this wonderful drink a try and then look forward to the next year, when you can go back and do all again…

Fun with New Vesper Drinks

January 6, 2011

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I tend the bar in a very quaint establishment called Vesper in the Jordaan area of Amsterdam and those who have visited us will know just how intimate (small) the room is.

The picture on the left shows the front of the bar and our head bartender Fjalar Goud crushing ice before the onslaught of cocktail thirsty locals come trickling through the door. The soft lighting, gentle music and simplicity of the place create a placid environment, encouraging guests to sit back and enjoy a well made cocktail among friends or indeed, the company of the bartender. It’s a kind of “no worries’ vibe with great service and drinks…

Anyway, up here in the Northern Hemisphere, the last few months have been cold to say the least and it doesn’t look as though it’ll be warming up any time soon. With that in mind and digging deep into my bag of bartender’s responsibilities I, like so many bartenders in the past (and present it must be said) decided the good people of Amsterdam and all those visiting her need a good glass of winter warmth. Yes it’s cold outside, with the variety of delicious seasonal ingredients available to us at this time of year, it’s difficult for a bartender not to get a little (very) excited. I’m referring to nuts, fruits such as apples and pears and all the spices which suit them so well; cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and the likes.

The problem with the bar scene in Amsterdam is very few bartenders seem to embrace the seasonal change and the treasures which come with it. It’s winter and still, strawberries are being ordered in the same quantity as they would be in the heart of summer. Please tell me you see the utter stupidity in this…

I’m not saying people should divert from their favorite drinks, but rather that they should try a seasonal variation of that drink. For example, if you are someone who would normally order a strawberry margarita, ask your bartender if he or she could please make you a pear margarita. Pears work beautifully with the tequila in a margarita (you have to trust me on this!) and because they’re in season you’re getting fresher, more flavorsome fruit. Now doesn’t that sound grand?

At Vesper, we decided to take this little matter into our own hands and come up with a few drinks really worth trying. This week we shall be in the final stages of “tweaking” the balance of each drink and by next week, you will be able to come in and order some or all of the following:

Roasted Chestnut Mint Julep

Fresh Chestnuts roasted in-house and infused into Bourbon Whisky with Mint and a touch of Sugar.

Spiced Pear Margarita

Pears poached in Spiced Port and infused into 100% Agave Tequila, shaken icy cold with Cointreau and fresh Lime Juice.

Winter Bourbon Sour

Bourbon Whisky infused with house roasted Walnuts, Cinnamon Sticks and Cloves, shaken with fresh Lemon Juice, a touch of Sugar, Fresh Egg White and a drizzle of Pedro Ximez Sherry.

Dutch Winter Wallow

Bacon Fat Washed Jonge Jenever (Young Genever), shaken with fresh Lemon Juice, Home Made Pineapple Syrup and Spiced Pear Winter Port.

Making the ingredients was great fun and incorporated a few techniques taught to me by Tony Conigliaro, owner of 69 Colebrook Row in London. The bar was recently awarded Best Cocktail Bar in the UK for 2010 and if you have not been there yet, I strongly suggest you get moving…

Infusions for the new Vesper drinks involved more than simply throwing ingredients into a bottle and leaving them to marry for a week or so.

We made use of a Sous Vide technique, common to many modern kitchens whereby the ingredients are placed under vacuum and into a Bain Marie at a specific temperature for a specific period of time. By controlling the elements, you have greater control over the balance of the infusion and the consistency with every new batch.

A pretty big problem for us was the budget we were given for equipment, but in true bartender style, we got resourceful!

A bain marie with accurate temperature settings was way out of budget, so we found a €30 deep fat fryer, filled the basin up with water, put a digital thermometer in the water and with a bit of fiddling around, managed to find the point on the dial which stuck more or less at the temperature we required. You have to adjust it slightly about once every 15 minutes but it’s pretty stable other than that.

Next challenge was creating a vacuum without a vacuum machine. All I can say is thank the Big Guy up there for Ziploc Bags. Place ingredients in the bag, squeeze as much air out as possible and suck any remaining air out with a straw. The trick is zipping the bag closed without letting more air in. Once you get the knack of it, it’s quite easy and you’ll have a pretty interesting head rush…

After it’s time in the bain marie, strain the solids from the liquid, bottle the liquid and start making drinks.

As you can see in the picture on the left, our infusions are in old Maker’s Mark bottles and a Ketel Een Jonge Jenever bottle. Creating your own ingredients even gives you a reason to do a bit of in-house recycling of bottles…

Drop by for a taste and maybe even get your own local bartenders to start thinking seasonal.

Cheers!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Seasonal Ingredients: January

January 3, 2011

Andrew Nicholls Seasonal Ingredients: January , , , , , , Leave a comment

Here’s a list of some of the many seasonal ingredients available to bartenders in the Northern Hemisphere during the month of January.

I’ve also included a few dates from different parts of the world which might make for an interesting themed evening or two.

 

 

 

Seasonal Ingredients: December

December 8, 2010

Andrew Nicholls Seasonal Ingredients: December, Uncategorized , , , , Leave a comment

I’m a big fan of using seasonal produce on the bar and to be quite honest, I am pretty disappointed by the number of bartenders who don’t seem to understand the benefits of using the best a season has to offer. I recently asked a few bartenders why they don’t go the seasonal route and their answer was pretty straight forward in that they simply did not know what was in season at this particular point in time.

Taking matters into my own hands, I have put together a basic seasonal ingredients page for the month of December (relevant to the Northern Hemisphere) and hope it will be of some use to anyone reading this.

I the little section of this months food for thought, you can see a few upcoming dates with if nothing else could make a sound excuse for a party or two…

Tales of the Cocktail 2010

August 6, 2010

Andrew Nicholls Tales of the Cocktail 2010 , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

For me, this year’s journey to the beautiful city of New Orleans was filled with excitement. I had been accepted to present three seminars over the course of the five days and couldn’t wait to get started.

I have been told the over the course of the five days, roughly 7000 drink enthusiasts descended on the Big Easy. Everything from breakfast to dinner and beyond involved some sort of tipple and being bartenders, we somehow managed to convince one another of the nutritional value behind many of the ingredients used. Clearly, none of us are looking to enter the medical profession any time soon, though some would argue a bartender is finest sort of doctor there is…

I’ll drink to that!

For those of you not familiar with Tales of the Cocktail, it’s an event that takes place every year in New Orleans, which showcases the best of the international drinks industry and is very often the place where next years trends are uncovered. Of course, being bartenders and the likes of, we all get to discuss the lessons learnt while slowly spinning round the Carousel Bar at the Monteleone Hotel. Truly an experience everyone should go through at least once in a lifetime.

The list of personalities presenting seminars this year along with their chosen topics was truly impressive and it was an honour to be presenting next to many of the people I look up to in the industry. My first seminar was with Darcy O’Neil (www.artofdrink.com) and our chosen topic was the History, Science and Creativity of Essential Oils and Extracts. Darcy is somewhat of a Guru on the topic and has recently released a book entitled Fix the Pumps, which covers pretty much everything the average mortal needs to know on the topic. If you are a bartender and have not yet read the book, do it!

Click here if you would like to see the presentation slides from the seminar.

Second on the agenda was one I did on my own and was entitled Subconscious Drinks. In this seminar I take a look at what effect aspects such as the bartender’s body language, colour and light, aroma and sound have on the overall experience of venturing out for a drink. I am of the impression that body language in particular is crucial to the modern bar and yet, is arguably one of the most neglected aspects of the work environment. It was fascinating researching this seminar and mark my word, you will hear plenty more from me on this topic in the not too distant future.

Click here if you would like to see the presentation slides from the seminar.

My third and final seminar was with a fellow Amsterdam based bartender named Timo Janse (head bartender at Door 74) and the creator of Geranium Gin, Henrik Hammer. Our topic of choice was the much feared egg and the seminar was entitled, The Eggpire Strikes Back. Here we took a look at many of the myths behind the egg and why there really is no substitute for fresh eggs on a bar. I think this is a classic case of taking the time to understand an ingredient and how to use it correctly. If this is the case, you’ll never look back.

Hopefully the presentation slides for this seminar will be available for viewing shortly.

Another highlight of Tales is the Awards Ceremony. This year, the following people, drinking establishments and products were rewarded:

World’s Best Drink Selection

Bar Lebensstern in Cafe Einstein, Berlin

Best American Cocktail Bar

Death & Co., New York City

World’s Best Cocktail Bar

Death & Co., New York City

World’s Best New Cocktail Bar

Mayahuel, New York City

World’s Best Hotel Bar

The Connaught Bar, The Connaught Hotel, London

American Bartender of the Year

Murray Stenson

International Bartender of the Year

Agostino Perrone

Best New Cocktail/Bartending Book

Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails by Ted Haigh

Best Cocktail Writing

CLASS magazine

Best New Product

Celery Bitters, The Bitter Truth

World’s Best Cocktail Menu

Death & Co, New York City

Best Bar Mentor

Dale DeGroff

Best American Brand Ambassador

Charlotte Voisey, William Grant & Sons Portfolio

Best International Brand Ambassador

John Gakuru, Sagatiba

Helen David Lifetime Achievement Award

Brian Rea

Big Congratulations to all!

New Orleans really is a remarkable city, with amazing jazz bars tucked away in every corner, food that will leave you begging for more, a drinks culture rich in history, but above all, that fine southern hospitality. The streets are roasting hot during the summer months, but you won’t mind one little bit as you stroll the through the quaint streets of the French Quarter on your way to the banks of the Mississippi River and a large glass of iced chicory.

If you’re hungry when you get there and cant make up you mind what to try first, give the Jambalaya a shot. As my friend Jake Parrott said, “it’s Risotto with a purpose!”

As for what to drink, my top three are (all were created in New Orleans):

Sazerac

Vieux Carre

Ramos Gin Fizz

Thank you Tales and see you next year…

Tequila Drinks of the Cafe Royal Cocktail Book

November 27, 2009

Andrew Nicholls Tequila Drinks of the Cafe Royal Cocktail Book, Uncategorized Leave a comment

By the 1890′s, the Café Royal was reputed to be one of the finest Restaurants in all of London. It took quite some work to get there though…

The Café Royal was founded as the Café Restaurant Nicols  in the late 1860′s, by French fugitive Daniel Nicols Thevenon.  The immediate years that followed were drenched in the clichéd blood, sweat and tears, the result of which allowed Nicols to pay off all creditiors. By the 1890′s, Nicols changed the name of the Café, following a sugestion from his son in law to the infamous Café Royal.

By the time Nicols died in 1897, his “little Café” was synonymous with quality food, an unparalleled selection of fine wines and was without doubt the place to be and be seen.

The Café Royal Cocktail Book was published in 1937 and is certainly a magical collection of mixed drinks. Something that took me by surprise was the number of tequila drinks mentioned in the book. Bear in mind, this book was published in 1937, when tequila was by no means a booming category. The fact that the bartenders of this great former establishment used tequila so frequently is a testimony to their daring creativity and their ability to embrace what to many was new and even unknown.

Paging through the book, I counted no less than 15 tequila based drinks including some very interesting surprises, all of which are mentioned below:

(please click on the drink to view its recipe.  Everything mentioned in italics is as it appears in the book, everything else is my commentary)

Bullfighter

Jalisco

Matador

Metexa

Mexican Eagle

Mexico

Picador

Pinequila

Rio Grande

Senorita

Sombrero

Tequardo

Tequila

Tia Juano

Toreador

Take a good look at the Picador and I think you’ll find it looks very much like a Margarita.

This of course begs the question as to which came first, the Margarita or the Picador?

Is it possible that the Margarita was actually created in London?

A great variation on the Picador is the Toreador, which substitutes Apricot Brandy for Cointreau.

I trust you’ll enjoy…

Toreador

November 26, 2009

Andrew Nicholls Toreador , , , , Comments Off

The Toreador is one of the 15 Tequila based drinks in the Café Royal Cocktail Book, published in 1937. I have written the recipe as it appears in the book, which happens to be in parts, rather than ounces or ml.

1/2 Tequila

1/4 Apricot Brandy

1/4 Fresh Lime Juice

Shake

I am a massive fan of this drink!

As you can see, it’s very similar to the Picador and therefore the Margarita in terms of ingredients. The crucial difference is of course the use of Apricot Brandy in place of Cointreau, which in my opinion add a much richer fruity note without detracting anything from the Tequila or Fresh Lime Juice for that matter.

I sincerely hope to see more bars serving a Toreador near me…and you for that matter…

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