In case you have been under a rock, or perhaps a large single ice sphere made from virgin glacial water further purified through reverse osmosis, double frozen, and  hand-carved with a vintage ice pick once used by Jerry Thomas himself, you might not know it but COCKTAIL CONTESTS are everywhere.

Although certainly not new (the International Bartender Association is holding its 37th annual World Cocktail Championship in November) this year so far, there have been no fewer than a dozen national cocktail competitions. Add to this the list of international, regional, local, and individual bars’ contests, and it seems as though one could easily spend more time behind other bars  than tending to his or her own. Many spirit brands are involved (Don Q rums, Bacardi, Sandeman Founder’s Reserve Port, Cointreau, VeeV Acai Spirit, Russian Standard Vodka, Tuaca, Bulleit, Bombay Sapphire, Absolut, Barenjager, 10 Cane), as well as notable non-alcohol mixers (Monin, Finest Call, Perfect Puree) and their media partners (Imbibe, Saveur, GQ and in the Mix, to name just a few). And this impressive list is just the tip of the purified glacial water ice cube.

Some prize packages include nothing more than the title of World’s Best Bar something or other. Others trade the winning recipe for travel to locales as far-flung as Portugal, Poland, and Puerto Rico. And still others offered regional winners a slot at the Manhattan Cocktail Classic or Tales of the Cocktail. Those successful challengers got the chance to further compete against the bar-brethren’s best talents from cities across the country in heated throwdowns for the most coveted title of all, Best Mixbarologistender.  I kid.

But this raises valid questions – What do these competitions really measure? How are they won? And, most importantly, who are the real winners? Is it the brands themselves? Or is it the competing bartenders? Are we making overly-complicated, highly-nuanced, and wittily-named drinks just for other geeked-out barfolk to “ooh and ahh” over? Or does the average consumer eventually end up with, in their tab-paying opinion, a tastier beverage? Is there a direct link between cocktail contests today and tastier drinks made by better bartenders tomorrow?

If contests only focus on what’s in the glass proffered by someone who had days or weeks to perfect that singular recipe, and they don’t factor in the technical skills, professionalism, ability to think on one’s feet, and general product knowledge of the competitors, then isn’t it just a tasty beauty contest, not a true test of a bartender’s overall skills? Does that even matter? It should, shouldn’t it? Are we assuming that if you can make a kick-ass cocktail, you also know your stuff? Should we?

Conversely, when the judging criteria moves beyond the actual taste, do consumers really care? Do they question whether or not the base spirit is well-represented, if the drink tastes and looks fantastic? Does their enjoyment at all hinge on whether it’s easy to make, has a name that gives a clever nod to the classic from which it is derived, has at least two spirits but not more than four, with everything expressed in ounces, drips, drops, or drams? Do they take one sip and exclaim, “Delicious! But wait, can I get this in Pittsburgh and Dallas?”

“In 1869, I was challenged by five of the most popular and scientific bartenders of the day to engage in a tourney of skill, at New Orleans, with the sequence that to me was awarded the championship of the United States.” Reads the unsubstantiated but credible boast made by Harry Johnson, author of Harry Johnson’s 1882 New and Improved Bartenders’ Manual.  How encompassing this “tourney of skill” was, we are left to wonder.

If written today would Mr. Johnson’s seminal work stand a chance against one titled 10,000 Recipes for Ridiculous Cocktails You’ll Never, Ever Make. Perhaps it is time we returned focus to the gestalt of bartending skills and not just the crafting of tasty cocktails? Does one inextricably inform the other?

Okay, forget the Venn diagram; this is becoming more like solving a scrambled Rubik’s Cube. So follow me as I put these questions to representatives from all sides of the puzzle, in hopes that we will all agree on exactly who wins the next time we hear someone exclaim, “And the winner is . . .!”

Jacob Briars (JB) – Leblon Brand Ambassador, and serial creator and organizer of cocktail competitions, including the 42 Below Cocktail World Cup in New Zealand.

Charlotte Voisey (CV) – Wm Grant & Sons Portfolio Manager and winner in 2010 of Tales of the Cocktail’s Spirited Award for Best American Brand Ambassador.

Michael Searles (MS) – Barman, Holeman & Finch, Atlanta, and regional finalist in numerous cocktail contests.

Debbi Peek (DP) – USBG Chicago President, and three-time U.S. competitor in the IBA World Cocktail Competition.

Bobby “G” Gleason (BG) – Master Mixologist, Beam Global Spirits & Wine, and USBG Ambassador.

W. Blake Gray (WBG) – Author of The Gray Report, a wine, food, spirits, and sake blog, and previous wine writer/editor for the San Francisco Chronicle.

Camper English (CE) – Award-winning cocktails and spirits writer, consultant, and judge, amongst other talents. Check out Camper’s blog at Alcademics.com.

Gaz Regan (GR) – Gaz’s latest book, Gaz Regan’s Annual Manual for Bartenders 2011, is now available. Gaz is also the host of Ardentspirits.com and world-traveling cocktail contest judge and speaker.

BC: It seems today that the best way for a brand to engage with bartenders and consumers is to run a contest. What is the main goal – to get the spirit in the hands of bartenders, or to raise brand awareness with the drinking public?

WBG: The cocktail scene is thrilling right now, and the combination of collaboration and competition for bartenders is one of the key reasons. Bartenders like to show off to each other, and that’s a good thing. It’s worth it for regular patrons like us to know the keywords necessary to get a bartender to make a drink as impressive as he would for his peers.

CV: One of the great things we hope for is increased exposure to our brand for that region’s best/most motivated bartenders. They play around with our brand while developing a competition entry and by default, get to know the liquid better.

BC: This year there have been so many it has been difficult to decide which to enter. Are there criteria to use when choosing to submit a recipe, or do you enter everything you can?

MS: Provided I have the spare budget and available man-hours, I’ll run at every one of them. I don’t need an idea to instantaneously burst into my mind; I trust my talent to ferret one out after I approach the spirit or concept.

BG: As a competitor, I want to compete with brands I believe in. Scheduling is going to play a big part, as well as if there are any traveling issues involved.

DP: Some things I consider are, is this a drink I would drink again, would I order it, and would I pay for it?

JB: What makes a winning cocktail? Motivation, inspiration, creation, preparation, and execution. And, as a final caveat – applying Coco Chanel’s advice – taking one thing off (of the drink) before leaving the house.

BC: In a perfect world, a cocktail contest should benefit the brand, the competitor, the venue, and, in my opinion, ultimately result in universal improvements in the quality of all drinks. Is this like saying a beauty contest makes everyone prettier?

WBG: There is a navel-gazing aspect to bartender competitions in that most of the drinks entered will never be served to the general public. I guess it’s similar to the relationship between auto racing and passenger car engineering; in theory, the best developments will eventually trickle down into better drinks for all of us.

BG: Well said! Obviously I didn’t get prettier or even a bit cuter, but I did get inspired and I think that is the key. Once you enter a competition and see what others are doing, you get a sense of pride in what you do; it will drive you to be better at what you do and that is good for everyone.

BC: Is there a direct link between cocktail contests today and tastier drinks made by better bartenders tomorrow?

CV: I like the idea that cocktail competitions seem to push the ceiling of creativity for better drinks/experiences and not just for gimmick’s sake.

GR: Yes and no. Smoking spirits tableside can be fabulous, and that sort of thing pushes the envelope, but you don’t want to be doing that when you’re six-deep on a Saturday night. Bartenders tend to learn from one another, so if one bartender displays some new methodology in a competition, you can be sure it will be picked up by others. I judge competitions all over the world, America included, and the best bartenders here in the USA most certainly stand up to the best bartenders in other countries. (Though I must say that our brother and sister bartenders from Asia are giving everyone a run for their money these days!)

JB: I’ve never known a competition wherein the bartenders competing don’t become better because of it. They build their speed, confidence, and the ability to communicate their ideas not just to the judges, but also to their guests.

CE: Different contests are looking for bartending skills, mixology skills, salability of the winning cocktail, ability to juggle bottles, or other factors. What I see helping to make better cocktails tomorrow is not necessarily the person who wins a particular contest, but the exchange of information that takes place because of cocktail contests. Bartenders learn from each other at contests, picking up new flavor combinations and techniques that they can bring home afterward

BC: Winning is certainly confidence-building and never a bad thing. What are some other positives, outside of the thrill of competition and the joy of collaboration?

CV: I used to love the discipline of preparing for a cocktail competition. It keeps you on your toes as a bartender and reminds you that all aspects of a cocktail are important – name, appearance, garnish, aroma, taste, glassware, finish, and presentation/technique. Every guest at a bar deserves to be a VIP, just like your competition judge.

BG: My career today is based upon having been in competition. The USBG competitions offer you the opportunity to meet people from all over the world. I have made friends at competitions that will last for the rest of my life and it would not have happened if I didn’t compete. You don’t have to come in first to be a winner! So, while it may sound like a cliché, everyone wins but not everyone takes home the first-place prize.

BC: I’ve not won contests in which I thought I had the better drink. Is this a universal reaction, or just my own overblown confidence in my cocktails?

BG: I wouldn’t enter a competition if I didn’t think I could win. You must have that confidence every time you make a cocktail, whether for a competition or for your customers at your bar. Sure, you get disappointed when you don’t win, but it is not because your cocktail wasn’t good. There is much to learn at a competition and it can really open your eyes to new things.

MS: Jim Meehan judged a contest I was in and, upon my not moving forward at the finals, he pulled me aside and gave me great advice: “Sometimes these things are a carnival and it’s only about the show. Sometimes these things are about a brand finding the next Cosmo. If you’re a barman, the only thing you can do is put out a great drink.”

BC: There has been some recent blog and social network chatter opining that contests are sometimes rigged. Is this just a case of sour grapes?

CV: I can only speak from personal experience, but I believe everything that we do bows to credibility and honest celebration of the trade, including judging competitions. Score sheets should be used and the judges should deliberate until a winner is agreed upon.

GR: I’ve worked with many different companies on lots of competitions, and I’ve never once been told to be anything less than completely objective when judging.

BG: Bartenders need to realize that what they think is a great cocktail may not be what the judges think. For example, I judged a Red Stag competition where the winning cocktail was a Manhattan-style cocktail that
was delicious. Another competitor told me I was an idiot if I thought that cocktail would sell, and that his Red Stag & Red Bull was the best drink ever! Well, here is a word of advice; to me, anything with Red Bull in it will never win any serious competition. It might win at a frat party but then again, I wouldn’t be a judge there, would I?

BC: In your opinion what is the best judging system to employ?

CV: I believe you should have a qualified, working bartender on the panel; a local judge is always ideal in the mix; and, fair, attentive professionals make good judges. Personally I am not a fan of blind judging; I believe that bartender presence is an important part of service and can positively enhance the experience and even the impression/taste of the drink – and that is reality.

GR: There is no “best system,” per se. Each competition is angled differently and each employs its own method of choosing a winner. It’s up to competitors to scrutinize how their work will be judged, and to act accordingly.

DP: I would like score sheets to be made available afterwards. I have never received one and would like to know what I am doing, wrong or right.

CE: The average competition that I judge has one brand person (ambassador, distiller, etc.), one media person/writer, and one bartender. The brand person tends to vote for the drink that tastes like the sponsored spirit, the bartender votes for the most challenging or exciting flavor combination, and the writer often picks the drink that will be popular with a mass audience. When these qualities are all in the same drink, you’ve got a contest-winner. I think this system works well when you’ve got qualified people in each judging slot. I like contests where there is a popular vote in addition to the expert judging. Plus, that means the audience actually gets to try the competing cocktails and feel more a part of the competition.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I’ll add that in addition to being a passionate yet impartial consumer, I’ve been a competitor, a finalist (never winning), a judge, and an organizer a handful of times for local, regional, and national contests.
But, truth be told, even though all this osmotic inspiration is itself a win, I’d like a title, please – a crown or a tiara, a trophy, or just an oversized flask that says “Badass Bartender” would be fine by me!

The Green Swizzle

2 Shots light white rum
½ Shot fresh lime juice
¼ Shot white crème de menthe
¼ Shot simple syrup
1 Dash Angostura bitters
Pour all ingredients into a Double Old
fashioned glass. Fill with crushed
ice and swizzle.

Served at the West Indian Stand at the British Empire Exhibition in 1924, where millions of Brits tried island rums for the first time.

If you missed Tales this year, you already know that you missed some of the most well themed, organized and attended parties of the year. Whether at the roof-top pool of the Hotel Monteleone, one of the many fantastic venues the City has to offer, both in and beyond the French Quarter, in a public park (with a pig on the spit supplied by Death’s Door distiller Brian Ellison a New Orleans street jazz band and trash-can punch) or a private home (where the distiller is in a claw-foot tub in the middle of the living room drinking his soon-to-be-released gin straight out of the bottle), the parties are non-stop and are the place to be in the evening and well into the early morning.

But, by 10 o’clock each morning the seminars start and so does the serious study of spirits. Thankfully one of the TOTC angelic volunteers is posted at the front door and holding a tray of a welcoming cocktails. There is always a table of Fiji water and pens along the back wall. Every time I see that I am reminded of the movie The Jerk and the scene where Steve Martin’s character says, “that’ s all I need, this ashtray, this paddle-game and this remote control”. Well, at 10 in the morning after all the late-late-late night festivities, that’s all I need, this pen, this water and this little cocktail. I don’t need one other thing.

I had a chance to attend a just a few seminars this year, but will be sharing notes later with the Atlanta contingent. This is really a good plan as there are simply too many to attend to catch them all yourself.

So far though, here is my list of the top six subjects for which I recommend further study both for myself, for anyone managing a beverage program and for anyone who wants to make the best drinks possible.

• Sweeteners – Sugar and the many sugar alternatives: honey, sugar beets, fructose, stevia, agave are all in play, as is lowering the sugar content of cocktails.
• Vinegar - It’s finding its way into cocktails more and more via Shrubs and Gastriques and vinegar based tinctures.
• Craft and small batch – Craft spirits of course (a new distillery opens every week) also craft ice, craft soda, craft bitters.
• Wood – Different woods and the amount of time in wood drive different flavors, understanding this informs spirits selection in mixology. Barrel-aged cocktails are a hot trend as well.
• Soda – making soda and flavored waters to bring lots of flavors with less sugar to cocktails.
• Ice – the days of the single multi-purpose ice are seemingly as endangered as the polar ice cap. Ice has become a much-scrutinized element of the cocktail: It’s clarity, purity, density, shape, size, production and best application.

If anyone would like to do a notes exchange, please contact me at brittany@imiagency.com

For now I’ve got to figure out how I’m going to pack up all these seminar materials, samples and bar equipment and make it to the airport in time after a quick stop at the Napoleon House for my last drink of Tales of the Cocktail 2011. I decided that there is no better way than to go out the way I came in: with a Pimm’s cup – this one will have to be in a handy go-cup!

Off to my second drink and the next entry: a Sazerac at the Carousel Bar at the Monteleone with Michael Silvers the genius behind Uber Bar Tools.   The third entry reads:  I came, I saw, I drank and I quit. Camper, I love ya, but what the heck?  I have no idea how you managed to do this. Perhaps if I had a voice recorder and a pair of blinders? But even then I would need to hear myself over the ooohs and ahhs or, in some cases the stinging critique of the drink being freely offered by me or the other Atlanta USBG members making the tasting room rounds with me. This would also mean I would have had to limit the questions to the distiller, often the one from whom I had received the drink. Additionally I would need to b able to decipher the ongoing disruptions of “Hey! – “great to see you!”  or   ” Hey! where have you been hiding, have you tried this – you gotta” that seem to accompany every drink.  So, fair readers, I’ve decided that what I could offer, was documentation of the bookends: the first and the last cocktails of my TOTC 2011 experience.  Drink number one is below; stay tuned for the last. Who knows what number that will end up being? My rough guess is 318. Maybe it’s best not to know for sure.

Tales of the Cocktail, always a group experience,  is even more so this year. The event venues are packed, the seminars are filled, the parties are overflowing and almost every drink is offered to someone else to taste too. But this year there are two new trends: Big Drinks and a non-stop flurry of text messaging.

Two fun events that featured the “World’s Largest” format were:

• The World’s Largest Bold Genever Kopstootje Toast was held Wednesday, right after the Tales of the cocktail official opening ceremony on the front steps of the Hotel Monteleone.

The Bols Genever Kopstootje® (pronounced kop-stow-tjuh) represented the original Dutch ritual of a beer paired with a Bols Genever shot; the unique Dutch century long tradition of a “beer and a shot”.

I almost want one day of it just so everyone who is here for the first time will see what I was going on about. Almost…

Being able to enjoy being outside really paid off last night. Had it been a typical sticky night I would have not ventured outside of the William Grant & Son’s Swinging 40′s Shore Leave Ball held at the National WWII museum.

And, had I not I would have missed the live cow that was keeping a watchful eye on the Hendrick’s gin Shaker Boys. Even with the dozen pairs of hands shaking away, their delicious Ramos Gin Fizzes flew off the bar and a few even ended up with a float of fresh cow milk straight from the surely nonplussed heifer. Uh, different, and kind of cool, but weird. I’m hoping this does not start a new trend.

To say that this party was amazing does not do it justice. I have not been to an event where even jaded bartenders (and most of us are pretty jaded) were talking about how cool everything was. Of course the drinks were excellent, and each spirit was brilliantly showcased with a unique theme. Every area of the museum and the grounds featured a different brand in the William Grant & Son’s portfolio and all featured a 40′s theme from Soda jerk to Tiki to shore leave tattoo parlor. It was hard to know where to begin – Gabriel Erenzo’s (from Tuthilltown Spirits) delicious Hudson Whiskey Highballs? Julie Reiner’s Tiki Bar upstairs? Some Glenfiddich in the Stag Lounge? Or how about a shot of ice-cold Stoli and some freshly shucked oysters followed by a dram of Balvenie from a tea-cup served by a very handsome Naval officer standing in front of a vintage Roadster?

The place was kept hoping by an incredible performance by an Andrew Sisters-esque trio.

We walked the long walk (why not it was almost balmy) to the Monteleone to meet up with friends and head over to Cure, one of the top cocktail bars in the city. However, (just to keep my track record of trying to get there and missing it at a perfect 7-0) we ended up running into Joe Fee from Fee Brother’s bitters instead.

To know Joe is to love him. Every year he comes to Tales with the newest (top secret) bitters in their line-up in his pocket. Giddy with glee he will let you shake some out onto your hand or even straight into your mouth (we trust him) without him first revealing the flavor. It’s all part of the game. Now guess. Those who guess right might be able to take their own bottle home with them to be the envy of all until the new flavor makes its way through distribution. I’m not spilling the nuts, oops I mean the beans, but let me just say, this one might be their best one yet.

So the night ended up with another weird animal moment. Fried pickles and Estonian beer in a dive bar where a pit bull had his own seat at the bar. Only at Tales. Okay, maybe not only at Tales, but if you add in that it was with the legendary Joe Fee, then yes… ONLY at Tales.

At least I was in good company. And I wasn’t sweating.

Today is the Zu Bison Riding block party in front of the Old Absinthe House, right after the USBG’s annual midnight gathering; the Celebration of 250 years of Bombay being held at the House of Blues and the Drambuie Nail or Fail Cocktail quiz show. All of this is after the DIAGEO Happy hour held at the Presbytere, which is one of my favorite events each year. And the Berentzen tasting room, the Sandeman contest, the Angostura lunch, the Oxley Gin Breakfast. Breakfast!! Got to run.

Stay tuned…

by Brittany Chardin

Earlier than even the most enthusiastic Tales of the Cocktail attendees and a day ahead of the presenters, I arrived in New Orleans on Monday.

Throughout my five stays here I’ve been either nose to the grindstone or nose in a glass. I’ve never seen much of the city really so I decided to come early, get ready for the 18+ hours days ahead and spend a little quality time with NOLA.

Walked the French Quarter in the uncharacteristically balmy night ( 82 instead of 102 degrees) I began to form a theory: Tales of the Cocktail could never have become the success it has in any other city. It is as much about New Orleans as it is about the drinks and the drinking. Fashion week has to be in NYC, Sundance has to be in Park City, Burning Man has to be in the Desert in Nevada and Tales of the Cocktail has to be in New Orleans.

Ok, now that I had my theory, my pace quickened – I was ready to set out to drink – er, I mean carefully research the facts. Here’s what I encountered, in no particular order (mostly because I can’t really remember it):

1) There is not another city in America whose own history is so richly steeped with cocktail history – The Ramos Gin Fizz, Sazerac, Bloody Mary and the Pimm’s Cup are all must-have’s and their respective famous locales gamely crank them out decade after decade. However, these drinks are much more than the cocktail equivalence of Gumbo or Jambalaya. They are not forlorn renderings of the real thing – these are the real deal!

2) Even in the diviest of dive bars, and family/tourist restaurants the bartender likely knows a good deal more about cocktails, spirits and cocktail history than those working behind the stick at many of the top watering holes in the country. The city’s love of a good cocktail really is in the hands of the local bartenders, and they are pretty capable hands.

3) On Bourbon Street between storefronts with entire walls of rainbow-colored frozen daiquiri machines churning away and Big-Ass Beer shops, amazingly, one can also easily find Hendrick’s, Plymouth, Woodford Reserve or other premium brands.

4) A peanut butter and bacon burger at 4 a.m., a 40 plus selection of tequilas and (here’s the hard part) a bartender who knows more than a little something about tequila all under the same roof? Only at Yo Mama’s and only in New Orleans.

With this I decided I had done enough research for one day and headed back to my hotel room to write down my notes over a bottle of Antinori Guado Al Tasso, vintage 2001 that I picked up for a song on Royal Street.

So tomorrow it all begins in earnest. The seminars, the special events, the seeing old friends and making new ones, the cheering-on of the contestants, the tasting new and exciting spirits, the drinking, the networking, and the suffering through the heat & humidity.

So good-bye wine, I’ll have no more of you here and farewell balmy nights, I enjoyed you while you lasted.

See you both in a week when I get back from Tales – But for now I’m Here in Spirits and I hope you’ll join me as I send you Tales from the Other side… of the bar.

New Bottle Shape

10 Cane now comes in a stunning square bottle. Listening to our customers’ feedback, we’ve made changes that respond to their needs.

First press cane juice, small batch double distillation, French oak barrel aging, and expert rum-making craftsmanship are the key elements of 10 Cane. Through the addition of a touch of extra old rum, the blend is round, smooth and complex. 10 Cane is more versatile and exciting than ever!

10 Cane is what rum is meant to be: light and smooth yet flavorful. Whether you enjoy it neat, on ice, or as a base in your favorite cocktail, 10 Cane will always deliver.


Watermelon Daiquiri

2 OZ. 10 CANE RUM
2 MEDIUM-SIZED CHUNKS OF FRESH WATERMELON
1 OZ. FRESH SQUEEZED LIME JUICE
½ OZ. SIMPLE SYRUP

Muddle watermelon in the bottom of a mixing glass.
Add 10 Cane, fresh squeezed lime juice, and simple syrup.
Add ice and shake vigorously.
Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
Garnish with a watermelon slice.

Getting Ahead at “Tales”

Thinking about attending this year’s Tales of the Cocktail? Preview an article written by Brittany Chardin, an Atlanta Based Beverage Writer and Consultant and frequent contributor. Follow the link to read this short, funny and informative narrative about what to expect at this year’s Tales.

Quiz: Last year Tales of the Cocktail had 18,750 attendees. They used 19,640 lbs of ice. How many Tales of the Cocktail recyclable cups do you think they used? Click her to find out along with a list of other interesting TOC facts.

a. 60,000 cups
b. 75,000 cups
c. 100,000 cups

Answer: C

Fun Fact: Last year NOCCPS sold a limited edition bar towel during Tales of the Cocktail® 2010, and raised $7,500 for oyster shuckers from P&J Osyters who were laid off due to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Click Here for a pdf of additional facts.

There is so much to do, drink and digest at Tales of the Cocktail. What has been affectionately called the Bartender Bacchanalia or the Sundance of Spirits, amongst other names, is now regarded globally as the most “spirited” event of the year. Tales of the Cocktail, without a doubt, meets the goals of its founders: “To be instrumental in advancing the craft of the cocktail through education, networking and promotion.”

With numerous, simultaneous official events (164 total last year) taking place over five sultry summer days, in and around the French Quarter of New Orleans, it is a must to map-out in advance. If this is your first visit, you are not alone–of the 18, 000 attendees in 2010, almost half were first-timers. Upon registration, attendees will receive a folding schedule and map–hang on to it! This and the thousands of bottles of Fiji water offered everywhere will be the most indispensable tools for the blur of booze that is the next few days.

This year, the festival’s ninth, the schedule is again filled to the brim with events, product debuts, and tastings, tours, competitions, seminars, spirited dinners, meet & greets, awards, and certifications, all designed to inform and inspire (and inebriate). Seminars and events run the alphabetical gamut from America’s New Distilleries to Zacapa Rum Southern Garden Party, and spotlight what’s now, next, and notable in the business.

A good plan of attack is to take in a morning and afternoon seminar, squeeze in a lunchtime tasting or two, head to one of the early evening special events or a quick dinner, then change clothes and be off to one or more late night festivities. Ending the night at local myriad, must-see watering holes both old (The Old Absinthe House on Bourbon Street) and new (Cure ) is second only to getting an invitation to some secret shindig or attending the annual funeral procession for each year’s cocktail that’s been killed-off by bartender vote.

If you are feeling like a spirits smarty-pants, the Spirits Professional and Advanced Bartender tests are being offered again this year. This highly-regarded certification, which ultimately can lead to the coveted Master Mixologist certification, is part of the Master Accreditation program of the United States Bartenders’ Guild. To sign up or for more information, go to www.USBG.org.

Be sure to leave a couple of hours to experience the cuisine and culture of this amazing city. Especially leave time for the short walk to The Museum of the American Cocktail. If you are lucky, Chris McMillian will be doing the tour.

If you need a breather, or to just cool off, hanging out in the lobby of the Monteleone is an event in itself. Stand in one place for a few moments and you will likely see a libation luminary. Go ahead–introduce yourself! One of the best things about Tales is that even those at the highest level of fame and (good) fortune are very friendly.

There is no end to the things to do, people to meet, and cocktails to try. The only things in short supply are sleep and dry clothes. Yes, it’s hot; oh, and humid…very, very humid. So plan ahead, pace yourself, and be prepared for a staggering experience. See you at Tales!

Hot Chocolate with Rum

2 oz Bacardi Black Rum

1 c of your favorite hot chocolate

Whipped cream

Chocolate shavings

Lime Tree Cove Sweet Mint Cocktail Sugar

Make hot chocolate and add rum. Choose a glass or mug that can handle hot liquid, rim it with Lime Tree Cove Sweet Mint Sugar, and pour in the hot chocolate-rum mixture. Top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

1 part Honey Sour ( equal parts honey and fresh lemon juice)

1 part hum

2 parts hot Green tea

Chopped Honey Crisp Apples

Served in a tea cup

Garnish with Apples, Sage and a Rose Petal

Cafe Royal

1 1/2 oz Patrón XO Cafe

Strong brewed coffee

Freshly whipped cream

Cocoa powder

In a heated coffee mug add Patrón XO Cafe, fill to within 1 inch with coffee, top with freshly whipped cream. Dust with cocoa powder.

¾ oz Chambord Liqueur
¾ oz crème de cacao
6 oz steamed milk
1½ oz white chocolate sauce

Fill glass coffee cup with boiling water to preheat; then pour out water. Mix white chocolate sauce and steamed milk in coffee cup. Add Chambord and crème de cacao and stir. Garnish with marshmallows. Note: Additional garnishes can include whipped cream with a raspberry and chocolate shavings.

1½ oz Bacardi Superior Rum
8 Mint leaves, plus one sprig
1 Lime, quartered
2 Strawberries, halved
1 oz Simple syrup

In a mixing glass, muddle 8 fresh mint leaves, 3 of the 4 lime quarters, and the strawberry halves, with the simple syrup. Fill glass with crushed ice. Add 1½ oz of Bacardi Superior Rum. Top with more ice and fill with club soda. Stir well, and garnish with the last lime wedge and sprig of mint.

1½ Parts vodka (preferably Prairie Organic Vodka)
4 Whole fresh strawberries, hulled
1 Part white balsamic syrup*
Soda water

Muddle strawberries and balsamic syrup in bottom of
a pint glass. Add ice, vodka, and soda water to fill. Stir
to blend; garnish with a basil leaf and a fresh strawberry.

*Balsamic Syrup
1½ Cups WHITE balsamic vinegar
6 Tablespoons sugar

Bring the vinegar and sugar to a boil; reduce by half. Cool;
store in a glass or plastic container in refrigerator.

2 Shots light white rum
½ Shot fresh lime juice
¼ Shot white crème de menthe
¼ Shot simple syrup
1 Dash Angostura bitters
Pour all ingredients into a Double Old
fashioned glass. Fill with crushed
ice and swizzle.

Served at the West Indian Stand at the British Empire Exhibition in 1924, where millions of Brits tried island rums for the first time.

Combine the rum and crème de banana in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a champagne flute. Add gold flakes. Top off with sparkling wine and serve.

Place the orange wheel in a champagne flute; press the wheel against the glass wall (cut in half if oversized). In a cocktail shaker, combine the fresh sour and triple sec with ice. Add the handful of fresh fruit if desired. Shake vigorously and strain into the garnished champagne flute. Top off with the Riunite D’Oro.

Combine the sorbet with the vodka in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously. Add the champagne and stir. Strain into a chilled champagne flute and garnish with floating raspberries.

Dom Perignon poetically exclaimed in 1693, upon his first sip of what we now know as champagne. I know he was a monk but there is just something romantic about that, isn’t there? More than three hundred years later our romance with bubbles continues. Who doesn’t love a glass of champagne?

Bubbles have presided over many of the great moments in history. Whenever we celebrate a major change in our lives, we often reach for the bubbly. The unmistakable “pop” of the cork, the millions of streaming bubbles in each bottle, the frothing over the rim of the glass when poured – it’s a lively drink perfect for festive occasions.

Champagne is one of the most versatile beverages in the world; shouldn’t it be one of the most versatile bases for a complex cocktail too? If almost everyone loves champagne, why isn’t it in more actual drinks? The cocktail geek in me was intrigued by the thought of adding the extra touch of drama to the classic cocktails and by creating new ones using some of the fantastic liqueurs recently introduced in the market. Well,

a little research quickly revealed that Kim Haasarud, the Liquid Chef, offers compelling proof in the pages of her beautiful book, 101 Champagne Cocktails, that champagne is indeed very versatile and can be used in all manner of drinks from aperitif to frozen. The recipes and advice she has shared with us here should help you on your way to offering cocktails that sparkle on your menus.

Don’t wait for festive occasions to offer these. Make any occasion festive by offering these lively drinks anytime!

BUBBLE BAR BASICS

BC - Champagne is eminently food-friendly; it pairs well with just about anything. Does that translate well when incorporating flavors into champagne cocktails?

KH - Champagne is very versatile. It can be mixed with a wide variety of fruits, herbs, spices, and other spirits fairly easily. The trick is finding the right way to incorporate them. Take for example, berries. Unlike in a cocktail, where you can easily shake them up, muddle, or use a puree in the drink simply by shaking, you can’t do that with champagne. More likely, you’ll need to use a raspberry puree and roll the contents gently with champagne.

BC – I have not-so-fond memories that involved a bite of chocolate wedding cake with butter cream frosting followed by a sip of Brut champagne – a disastrous clash. Are there any other flavors or ingredients to avoid when pairing?

KH -The key is the sugar and acid/fat balance. Brut champagne has no added sugar and lots of acidity, so when you are drinking that next to a decadent wedding cake with lots of sugar and fat – that’s pretty tough to swallow, literally. However, if you had had a demi-sec (semi-sweet champagne), it would have worked better.

BC -What are some basic tips for making drinks with bubbles?

KH - Mixing. When using a puree with champagne (i.e. Classic Bellini), make sure you roll the puree and champagne contents in a cocktail shaker, then strain into the flute. Too many times I’ve gotten a Bellini where the puree is sitting on the bottom and the champagne is on top. It needs to be mixed, but gently. When topping off a drink with a splash of bubbly, be sure to stir it to really make the whole drink sparkle. Otherwise, you just have a layer of champagne on top that really doesn’t do anything for the drink. Always use COLD sparkling wine . . . please! Even in iced cocktails, adding a splash of warm champagne dilutes the drink rapidly.

BC – Batching ability is always a plus for Banquets and Catering Departments. Any tips or pitfalls to avoid?

KH – Most cocktails can be batched ahead of time. Always chill the champagne beforehand and always have extra on hand, because many people will just want a glass of bubbly. And always make champagne the last ingredient you add to the drink.

BC – Do you find that people gravitate more towards simple enhancements to champagne or to cocktails that are more complex?

KH – I find that people who really love champagne, like it as-is. They may like a simple enhancement or a very simple champagne cocktail (one ingredient added, at the most). They may venture out and have a champagne cocktail occasionally but for the most part, they like their champagne right out of the bottle. The people who most gravitate towards champagne cocktails are the people who like the idea of a glass of champagne but don’t want a whole glass of it, nor do they want to pay the $16+ glass price tag. A champagne cocktail is a way for them to experience champagne – have that little bit of luxurious effervescence – and have a cocktail at the same time.

But, champagne in and of itself just says “celebration” and “happiness.” Hearing the cork pop, seeing the bubbles in the glass – it’s hard NOT to like that. It definitely sets a fun and celebratory tone for the evening. Even if you’re not celebrating something in particular, everyone can find something to toast to with champagne.

BC – What is your favorite spectrum to work within — sweet, spicy, bitter, sour?

KH – When working with champagne, I like all of them, with spicy probably being my least favorite and bitter being my most favorite. I LOVE working with the Italian aperitifs such as Aperol. It’s sooo good – just that and champagne, as well as mixed with juices and other fruits.

Also, as far as the types of champagne I like working with in cocktails – extra dry and demi-sec. They already have sugar in them, so I don’t need to add as much.

BC – I think most consumers are primarily familiar with a champagne cocktail as an aperitif. How do you bridge the mental gap into other meal parts?

KH – I would definitely recommend a glass of champagne (or champagne cocktail) at the END of the meal as well, especially with a demi-sec. It’s a great ending to a great meal and really settles the stomach. Or, in some cases, carries the evening on. . .

Many thanks and good cheer to Kim Haasarud, who is my friend and a James Beard-honored mixologist and author. She has written a best-selling cocktail series with Wiley & Sons: 101 Margaritas, 101 Martinis, 101 Sangrias & Pitcher drinks, 101 Champagne Cocktails, 101 Blender Drinks, and 101 Mojitos and other Muddled Drinks.

Coming out in the app store this month, Kim also has an app called “Holiday Cocktail Bar” App by Liquid Architecture: A user-friendly App featuring some great market-fresh holiday cocktails.

Kim Haasarud
kim@liquid-architecture.com
tel 310.780.6502 / www.liquid-architecture.com

We have been boozing it up for over 10,000 years. After taking our last gulps of primordial soup, we roamed around, hunting and gathering for centuries. Thirsty work to be sure. Thankfully, things have improved since early nomadic man’s daily search for food and potable water sources. Once we figured out farming – which created surplus, which begat free time, which gave the thinkers time to think and inventors time to invent (things like the pot still) – the histories of civilization and distillation have been fascinatingly entwined.

“Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink”, the famous quote from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, perfectly illustrates life before the invention of modern-day water treatment technologies … or vodka.

Through time, numerous sophisticated societies have fallen as the disastrous result of disease, war, over-population, or the depletion of natural resources. And there is no natural resource more precious than water. Because water is vital to all living things, we are at its mercy. Since the beginning of time this simple substance has directed civilization, and it will continue to do so.

Early settlements centered around water sources. Both Mayan and Roman cultures built aqueducts as early as 312 B.C., to provide their citizens with constantly flowing water through centrally-located public fountains. This was certainly an advancement. However, as one might expect, the water quality standards were basic at best. Sometimes the only way to tell if the water was fit for human consumption was . . . well, when it turned out not to be.

According to the 19th century philosophical writer, Samuel Butler, “When the water of a place is bad it is safest to drink none that has not been filtered through either the berry of a grape, or else a tub of malt. These are the most reliable filters yet invented.” Of course he was referring to wine and beer, which were, depending on your view of things, either gifts from God or a happy accident of nature.

Either way, naturally-occurring fermentation was the result of the spontaneous combination of wild yeasts and the fermentable sugar sources lying about. Although primitive, this crude beer (and its close cousin, bread) has been credited with sustaining early civilizations. Ancient Egyptians, who taught the Greeks, who taught the Romans and so on, soon elevated brewing to an art form. Many countries have brewing traditions documented in their earliest historical records. In fact, almost every ancient society produced alcohol from whatever fermentable sugars were indigenous to their particular geographical location, be it a fruit, rice, grain, or some other plant.

Nevertheless, due to the rampant impurity of water, the search was not over for ways to purify it. Filtration through sand, charcoal, even cloth, served to remove impurities and eventually, as technology slowly advanced, distillation techniques were employed. The first clear evidence of distillation comes from ancient Persian, Egyptian, and Greek alchemists. They applied distillation techniques to water as early as the second century, but their main goals were the discovery of the “Philosopher’s Stone” – a legendary substance believed to be an essential ingredient for the transmutation of lead into gold -, and the discovery of the “elixir of life” – a remedy that would cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely. Intoxicating stuff.

However, it was the Moors in the 8th century who first used a fermented beverage and the newly-invented alembic still in their attempt to extract pure medicinal compounds from wine. They named the resulting liquid aqua vitae, or the “water of life.” Finally it was the Celtic monks, experimenting with applying distillation to fermented grains, who created a spirit or whisky they called uisge beatha, which is the Gaelic translation of “water of life.”  Emblematic of its significant impact on good health, the same term has been often used since, though locally translated. Akavit, eau de vie, okowita, and acquavite are examples from Scandinavia, France, Poland and Italy, respectively.

The pot still is a descendant of the alembic still, and is a relatively uncomplicated apparatus invented in the 1600s that remains in use today. It consists of a single heated chamber and a vessel to collect purified alcohol, allowing for only a small batch of distillation, with each batch being unique. The pot still is a discontinuous process, meaning it has to be filled and emptied for each batch. The single condensation allows particular flavors to be retained; these same flavors are mostly stripped away in the purer distillate produced in the Coffey or continuous still. This explains why many imbibers of straight spirits especially, prefer spirits made in pot stills. Spirits aged in wood, such as whiskey, single malt Scotch, Cognac, some rum and tequilas, are considered “corrected” in the barrel because the wood acts as a natural filter, removing some of the unwanted fusel oils while retaining some of the characteristics of the base ingredients.

Aeneas Coffey patented his new, more efficient column still in the early 19th century in Ireland. By working continuously, this still offered speed, immense capacity, and a lower cost per unit of output. However, the large outlay of capital needed transformed the distilling process to factory production, with its associated time and financial commitments. Column stills behave like a series of single pot stills, formed in a long vertical tube or column. As the alcohol continuously boils, condenses, and re-boils through the column, the effective number of distillations greatly increases and the purity or alcohol content along with it. Neutral grain spirits, reaching up to 96 proof, are distilled by this method.

Netherlands – Credit the Italians with the earliest use of juniper to flavor a spirit, albeit for rather unpleasant reasons: it is an excellent flea repellent. Because of the horrendous death toll from the Black Death, juniper was widely and wisely used in incense, elixirs, medicines, and tonics. Soon juniper became a preferred flavor in food as well. By the mid-16th century, eau-de-vie de genievre made its appearance. On its way across the close Flemish border, this spirit arrived in the Netherlands with its name transposed to jenever. Fortunately, Lucas Bol’s family had made a similar trek to Amsterdam and set up shop, making the “Dutch Courage” later favored by the British troops who came to help the Dutch fend off the Spanish. Thirty years later, they took home their tastes and recipes for “gin.”

Scotland – Legend has it that St. Patrick learned the art of distilling while in Spain and he introduced it to the Irish. The knowledge traveled to the Scots who named the distillate uisge beata, which later became usky and finally whisky. Until the 17th century, the stills used for the distillation of uisge beata were small, not exceeding 50 gallons and were for home use only. Industrial distilleries appeared at the end of the 17th century and were given a huge boost in the late 1800s by the phylloxera beetle’s devastation of France’s brandy and wine production. Grain whisky produced in the Coffey still, blended with the heretofore singularly-produced pot stills’ malt whisky, extended the appeal of the newer, lighter blended Scotch whisky to the world market.

Russia – When the Italian merchants brought distilled spirits to Russia, these spirits were referred to as zhiznennoy vody or “water of life.” The Russians spent the next 600 years perfecting vodka, whose name comes from the Russian word voda, meaning “water.” Vodka production soon became integral to Russian society and it still supports entire regions today. Vodka-making innovations, such as charcoal filtration at government-funded test distilleries, furthered the industry. In fact, by the 18th century, vodka production was the most technologically-advanced industry in Russia. After much experimentation with base ingredients, water sources, and filtration methods, the best Russian vodka is purported to use Moscow River water, be distilled from grain, and then diluted to a concentration of 80 proof.

Peru –Pisco was born from tenant farmers’ experiments with the poor quality grapes discarded as inferior for wine making. The bourgeoning wine industry’s grapes took a few years to be suitable for wine making, but fortunately, before reaching their peak, they were well-suited for turning into a local grape eau-de-vie preferred by the Spanish settlers. Around the world at that time, there was a similar economic segregation with regard to alcohol. Indigenous people, servants, and peasants drank cheap and quickly-made fermented alcohol such as beer, while the beverage of choice for the nobility and upper classes was a grape or grain-based distilled spirit.

Barbados – The Dutch brought Brazilian sugar cane and alembic stills to Barbados during the first part of the 17th century. Distilling molasses into a spirit as a way to extend the sugar crop revived the flagging economy of this British island colony. Many island settlements became rich from sugar cane or “white gold” production, but this came at a high cost to native forests and the health of the indigenous people, who were introduced to European diseases and forced into backbreaking labor. The Royal Navy became one of the largest consumers of rum, in part because the rum required less storage capacity to house sailors’ rations than did the often foul British beer they had been prescribed. The sailors also favored the increased quality of the purer finished product. In fact, a daily rum ration was a practice that only ended in the 1970s.

Brazil – While trying to find the western route to Asia, the Portuguese discovered Brazil and colonized it in the 1500s. Sugar plantations were soon established all along the coast. The conquistadors had to bring everything they thought might be useful for survival in the barbaric New World, and stills were brought in to produce medicine and potable water. They were soon used to turn fresh sugar cane wine into aguardente de cana or cachaça. By 1692, there were 349 cachaça distilleries in Brazil. Cachaça remains one of the most-produced spirits in the world, with over a billion liters distilled (in pot stills) annually.

Mexico – Mezcal, the first distilled spirit of the New World and the mother of tequila, was derived from the native fermented beverage named pulque. Pulque was made from maguey, a sacred plant used in religious rituals. When the Spanish settlers ran out of the stores of brandy they had brought with them, they built crude mud and wood-based stills. The resulting experimental distillate was first known as Mexicali. Seventy-five years later, commercial production of the agave into a distilled spirit began.

America – The colonists distilled rum before whiskey. Molasses from the Caribbean was cheaper to import than brandy, whisky, or gin. Rum distilling first began in Boston but later spread throughout New England, and rum production soon became the largest industry in the colonies. The French, Dutch, and British colonies in the Caribbean ramped up sugar production to meet the demand, contributing to the proliferation of the cheap, low-quality distillate. It was so cheap in fact, that workers were given rum as a job incentive and even paid a part of their wages in liquor. Bourbon, America’s native spirit, was developed using the knowledge of making grain-based whiskey that was brought in by Scottish and Irish immigrants; this know-how was applied to the native corn the settlers were growing in abundance.

That spirits have managed to turn even the smallest corner bar into one of the most multi-cultural places on earth is a testament to the unique interpretations each country has made. Whether that spirit came to be through the consequences of historical factors such as colonization, political or religious interference – both for good and ill -, geography, economics or any other reason, the “water of life” holds no grudges.

If a rising tide lifts all ships, then the “water of life” has lifted all of humanity. Next time you step behind the bar, take notice: the “striding man” is happy to hang with the “captain.” Check out the Polish, Russian, French, Swedish, and American vodkas all rubbing shoulders without a problem. Where else in the world can you find this level of peaceful, global coexistence? Even Mark Twain understood the powers of both, when he said, “Whiskey’s for drinking, water’s for fighting about.”

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