Lets Talk Tools

And not the ones that order a Mojito in December in a crowded bar.  This was supposed to be finished by Christmas but got delayed due to work and family stuff.  The majority of these items can be found on Cocktail Kingdom.

The Basics
- A nice barspoon I like either the Teardrop 30cm or Hoffman 33.5cm - $18-23
- The Koriko small and large tin make a fantastic shaker - $17
-Any of the Hawthrone strainers from Cocktail Kingdom work well - $12-35
-The 1.25" ice cube trays work great for mixing or drinks on the rocks - $7
- I'm a big fan of the clear OXO jiggers, not on Cocktail Kingdom but Amazon, Target and nicer groceries have them
- A Mexican juicer is much easier than hand juicing - $17
- This is a nice starter package for someone just getting into Cocktails 

Next Step
-The Yarai or Paddle Mixing glass are my favorites - $39-53
-A Lewis Bag for crushing ice for mint juleps - $4
-A Julep strainer to go with that nice mixing glass - $11-25

Lots of other great tools out there but this is more than enough to get started with.  Most people probably don't need an ice pick let alone an ice chainsaw.

Old Fashioned

I saw my first Old Fashioned when I was about 8.  My Grandparents used to drink them regularly but they were always a mess of muddled orange, cherry, sugar, and club soda.  Unfortunately many bars still make their Old Fashioned this way.  I am here to help you make a decent Old Fashion.

So here's what you'll need: Bourbon or Rye whiskey (I'm using Buffalo Trace), rich simple syrup (2:1), angostura bitters, ice, mixing glass, jigger, hawthrowne/julep strainer, rocks glass and a bar spoon.  Optional items include: club soda and orange/lemon (and vegetable peeler) for garnish.

Old Fashioned

-2oz Rye or Bourbon

-0.25oz Simple Syrup

-3 dashes Angostura

-Stir over ice in mixing glass, and strain into chilled rocks glass

Optional

- Up to 0.5oz club soda (I don't care for it)

-Feel free to garnish with the peel of a lemon or orange

- If using ice opt for an ice ball or big cube

Now doesn't that look better. I went with an ice ball and an orange peel for this one.  Cheers! 

A quick rant...

Please for the love of god do NOT order a mojito from me in December.  What the hell is wrong with you people.  From now on you can only order a mojito in months that don't have an R in them aka the summer.  Please it is cold outside it is time for Scotch.  It is the duty of drinkers everywhere to try and drink all of the Scotch in Scotland during the winter, so please do your part.

P.S. sorry for being a lazy blogger but I promise to do better in the future.

Mixology Monday!

The theme for this month's MxMo is equal part cocktails (luckily a dash or two of bitters is allowed). From classics like the Negroni and the Last Word to new creations like Herbal Lovely Thing and Naked and Famous, these easy to make cocktails exemplify balance allowing even the most intense ingredients play in harmony with each other. I was enjoying a Jackson's Night Cap when inspiration hit me for my submission.

  Tres Psychos

  1oz Sombra Mezcal

      1oz Green Chartreuse

1oz Averna Amaro

         2 dashes Fernet Branca

     Stir w/ ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass or coupe

So I took the basic idea of Chartreuse, an Amaro, base spirit, and bitters and ran with it.  I replaced the rye with mezcal, swapped the Yellow Chartreuse for Green, and Fernet Branca with Averna.  My friend Jon suggested a dash or two of Fernet which finished the drink perfectly. The chartreuse came through most heavily on the nose with a hint of smoke from the mezcal. The rich chocolate, caramel, and vanilla notes of Averna are the first things I noticed when tasting. These were followed by the lovely herbal complexity of Green Chartreuse and the final note was smoke from the mezcal which lingered for a while.  This was my first Mixology Monday and I thoroughly enjoyed it!  Hope everyone enjoyed the drink.  Thank you to Frederic at Cocktail VirginSlut for hosting.

Hey welcome to the blog

Hi there. I'm a cocktail enthusiast behind the bar in Baltimore. I figured it was time to start writing about a subject I enjoy greatly. I hope to provide some basic knowledge on cocktails as well as to dive into somethings on the more obscure end of the drinking spectrum.  Look for my post for Mixology Monday (http://mixologymonday.com) soon. Anyway thanks for checking out the blog!