tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-443701716338875202024-03-18T02:42:48.542-07:00Dr. BambooDr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.comBlogger111125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-10850179898857884122016-03-10T08:14:00.000-08:002016-03-10T08:21:12.998-08:00What I've Learned (Bartending Edition Pts. 3 & 4)
Here we go again with some
random knowledge I’ve accumulated over the last couple years of throwing booze
at people. Please enjoy responsibly.
What I’ve Learned in My Third and Fourth
Year of Bartending
~ A customer wearing too much
perfume/cologne is a circle of Hell that Dante forgot to mention.
~ In a pinch, a wire coat
hanger makes a great sink snake.
~ It’s funDr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-20073901672251751512014-02-28T08:06:00.000-08:002014-02-28T08:09:42.165-08:00What I've Learned (Bartending Edition Pt. 2)
It's time again for my annual laundry list of stuff I've learned over the past year. Hopefully I'm a little wiser than I was 12 months ago, but you never can tell...all that alcohol probably impaired something.
What I've Learned In Two Years Of Bartending
~ In most cases, people want a drink, not a dissertation.
~ If you wear a Hawaiian shirt, people will comment on it (Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-32478561199204689022013-02-26T18:49:00.000-08:002013-02-28T07:59:11.631-08:00What I've Learned (Bartending Edition)
This is normally the time of year when I rip off pay tribute to my favorite Esquire feature and check in with my list of things I learned while blogging about booze the previous year. Unfortunately, these past 12 months I've done very little blogging, but I have spent a bit of time behind the bar (a story for another time), and I picked up a few things.
One of the first things I realized is Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-14391095617925510642012-10-10T15:16:00.001-07:002012-10-10T15:25:51.433-07:00Pack & Pour: A Guide to Nomadic Bartending
If you enjoy making cocktails (and if you're one of the five people who read this blog, then it's a safe bet you do), sooner or later someone will ask you to bartend at a party, cookout, tailgate, or other similar gathering. Providing adult refreshment at these kinds of events can be a lot of fun, especially if you're asked to make cocktails from scratch. We're not talking about just needing Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-62497472915834347942012-09-21T07:02:00.000-07:002012-09-21T07:20:32.612-07:00Oregon Daiquiri
Oregon Daiquiri
2 oz. White rum
3/4 oz. Lime juice
1/2 oz. Hazelnut syrup
2 dashes Bittermen's Xocolatl Mole bitters
Shake everything with ice and strain into chilled cocktail glass.
The Oregon Daiquiri is a drink I came up with a while back. I wish I had some grandiose story of how I drew inspiration from a variety of sources, labored for days on the concept, and tweaked the recipe Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-88902566176056471712012-06-08T18:15:00.002-07:002012-06-08T18:15:12.336-07:00Every Day Is Earth DayDr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-14558963610791350752012-06-07T18:44:00.001-07:002012-06-07T18:44:07.326-07:00If You Have To Ask...Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-48106088865631618342012-05-23T13:36:00.001-07:002012-05-23T13:57:44.794-07:00Locals Only
As I mentioned earlier, anyone who says you can't get a good drink in Pittsburgh simply isn't looking. In the last 2 -3 years there have been a number of great restaurants and bars in the 'Burgh that have put serious cocktail programs in place. So if it's been a while since your last tour of Pittsburgh's eateries and watering holes, it's time to take another peek and see what's out there.
Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-70121445884357953812012-03-07T12:55:00.008-08:002012-03-07T13:47:00.601-08:00What I've Learned: Year FiveIt looks like another year has slipped by while I was busy killing brain cells and writing about it here. However, the cells that remain managed to hold onto a few things, which I present below in convenient list format... What I've Learned in my Fifth Year of Boozeblogging~ Bartending is really peopletending.~ I don't particularly care which celebrity was spotted drinking a particular brand of Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-4910035927560625152011-10-17T17:28:00.000-07:002011-10-17T18:20:33.551-07:00Cowboy CocktailsMorricone2 oz. Bourbon1/2 oz. Punt e Mes1/2 oz. Berentzen Apfelkorn1/4 oz. Simple syrup (optional)1 dash Angostura bittersBuild in a rocks glass and stir well. Add a single large hunk of ice and garnish with a wide strip of tangerine peel.I like whiskey. It goes well with so many things, including cowboy movies. However, I should point out that Westerns weren't always my thing. When I was a youngDr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-18171150850554153902011-10-07T16:47:00.000-07:002011-10-10T17:08:16.731-07:00A Bibulous Bibliography: Playboy's Host & Bar Book/Bar GuideA while ago I found myself the recipient of two books published by Playboy, the venerable purveyor of adult-oriented diversions (as I've mentioned before, when people find out you're into cocktails, they tend to give you stuff like this). Most people of a certain age are familiar with the Playboy brand, and as tempting as it is to do a historical walk-through of this iconic entertainment empire, Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-16873589330487558382011-09-12T10:49:00.000-07:002011-09-16T07:18:55.229-07:00One (or two) For The RoadIt's been a fun couple of weeks for Dr. Bamboo's Mystical Traveling Bar and Road Show. For two consecutive Fridays I've loaded the Bamboo Wagon full of spirits, mixers, barware, ice and other drink-making paraphernalia in order to bring cocktails to the masses. It's a great way to evangelize good drinking and also field test which booze-hauling methods work best (initially documented here.First Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-67887606733838687712011-09-09T10:35:00.000-07:002011-09-09T12:30:46.944-07:00Moonlighting: Sept.'11Once again I feel compelled to direct you to a couple other places where you can aim your eyeballs at more of my words and pictures concerning booze and related topics. Proceed with all due haste! (or take your time...they'll probably still be there).First up, everyone's favorite retro renaissance man Java brings forth another issue of Bachelor Pad Magazine stuffed to the gills with top-notch Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-84476801853694926422011-08-22T18:25:00.000-07:002011-08-22T18:50:06.942-07:00The Greatest Drink Book Ever Published (Pt. 2)
Once again I'm paging through Cocktails for Two in my mission to share the splendor that is the Greatest Drink Book Ever Published. For this installment I've selected the Shamrock, an apparent tribute to Ireland, based on both its name and green color.
Speaking of green, this drink does an admirable job of being just that. Chartreuse and green crème de menthe are key ingredients and certainlyDr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-2054089191647449522011-08-19T07:27:00.000-07:002011-09-26T12:58:30.981-07:00Cocktailing: The Early YearsIf you hang around booze geeks long enough, eventually you find yourself discussing a topic that's become a perennial favorite: what kinds of stuff you used to drink before you got turned onto a wider spectrum of adult beverages. (Despite what they'd have you believe, in their youth, cocktail nerds weren't sneaking off into the woods to make Negronis or lounging around the frat house basement Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-77551165700735306162011-08-12T18:24:00.000-07:002011-08-12T19:51:21.709-07:00Tales of the Cocktail: Random Observations
So here it is a few weeks after Tales of the Cocktail. Much as I did two years ago, I find myself sifting through notes and compiling a loose collection of info from the event. It's difficult to do justice to a five-day booze extravaganza with just a few words, but hopefully what I've listed below can help illustrate a small fraction of what takes place. Just like last time, I call this handful Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-34220216001613278312011-07-23T16:04:00.000-07:002011-07-23T16:06:29.027-07:00Tales of the Cocktail: Barrel-Aged Cocktails...Patience, Grasshopper!Why dump a perfectly good cocktail like a Negroni or Manhattan into a wood barrel for a couple of months?1) It’s fun in an old-world mad-scientist kinda way.2) It may make your cocktail luxuriously smooth and even add a bit of wood character.For over an hour, Jeffrey Morgenthaler, Gable Erenzo and Naren Young hit the highlights of this relatively new approach (with roots in older practices) to Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-14222253509441928542011-07-22T20:12:00.000-07:002011-07-22T20:15:24.802-07:00Tales of the Cocktail: Classic Hotel BarsBeing that I’m staying in a hotel and doing a fair amount of drinking in a nearby hotel containing a well-known bar (that’d be the Carousel bar at the Monteleone) I felt I’d be remiss if I didn’t attend the “Classic Hotel Bars” seminar.The focus was mainly on the hotel bars of London, with occasional detours to other cities. Anecdotes abounded, histories were revealed, and as expected, cocktailsDr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-74740718601738289602011-07-21T20:45:00.000-07:002011-07-21T20:47:22.678-07:00Tales of the Cocktail: The Carousel after 5The Carousel Bar at the Monteleone is a hub (figuratively and literally) of activity during Tales of the Cocktail. During the day it’s both a convenient meeting place and a handy spot for a quick drink to fortify yourself before venturing out to other watering holes. This makes it a very busy place during the day, and finding a spot to sit or even stand takes a little effort and patience.But Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-53472618712862573212011-07-21T10:15:00.000-07:002011-07-21T10:22:50.724-07:00Tales of the Cocktail: the First 24The first 24 hours surrounding Tales of the Cocktail. is a hectic and joyous period. No matter when you arrive and begin your activities, that first day or so is always an intense, gleeful mixture of anticipation, participation, and disorganization. Here’s a few thoughts and observations from my initial 24:~ I know it doesn’t rank very high on the list of existential dilemmas, but I always Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-44391355344998892472011-07-18T18:02:00.000-07:002011-07-18T18:15:48.533-07:00Tales of the Cocktail: Preemptive Strike (Part 6)With Tales of the Cocktail officially kicking off in less than two days, I have time to sneak in just one more preemptive strike before the madness gets in gear. This time I had the opportunity to chat briefly with Jonathan Pogash. In addition to being a top-notch bartender, Jonathan also consults on cocktail matters with bars and restaurants worldwide as well as several spirits brands. As if Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-63904282751432603272011-06-27T11:09:00.000-07:002011-06-27T11:11:29.148-07:00Tales of the Cocktail: Preemptive Strike (Part 5)Rolling along with the pre-Tales "Cavalcade of Booze Knowledge" (tm) I got the chance to grill Christine Sismondo on her presentation "The Bad Boys of Saloons.'' If you don't know Christine, she's the author of America Walks into a Bar: A Spirited History of Taverns and Saloons, Speakeasies and Grog Shops, as well as Mondo Cocktail: A Shaken and Stirred History. She also contributes drink Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-15192116865154473722011-06-10T11:31:00.001-07:002011-06-10T11:52:18.417-07:00Tales of the Cocktail: Preemptive Strike (Part 4)Continuing with the pre-Tales festivities, we check in with Ed Hamilton. Ed is a noted authority on rum, and has written about various sugar cane spirits for a number of magazines and newspapers. He has also written two books on the subject, and is probably most familiar to rum enthusiasts for his work at the Ministry of Rum website.In a little over a month from now, Ed will be escorting us Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-48351888240149656642011-06-06T11:00:00.000-07:002011-06-10T11:50:54.832-07:00Tales of the Cocktail: Preemptive Strike (Part 3)Next up in this series of pre-Tales dispatches is a brief Q &A with Wayne Curtis. Wayne is a freelance journalist who has written for many fine periodicals including The New York Times, Saveur, The Atlantic and Travel+Leisure. However, booze geeks likely know him best as the author of And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the World in Ten Cocktails.This year Wayne will be heading up the Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44370171633887520.post-51475101388540133862011-06-01T19:46:00.000-07:002011-06-01T20:06:02.142-07:00Days of Wine and...More Wine.No cause for alarm. This isn't turning into a wine blog.I just thought I'd take a small, one-post detour into wine territory since I found myself attending the Pittsburgh Wine Festival recently. Now normally when I go to a gathering where adult beverages are served, I'm usually looking for a cold beer or a colder Martini. But I'm amenable to the occasional glass of wine, so when the opportunity Dr. Bamboohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13535181473727482666noreply@blogger.com6