Locals 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.

However, we're not just serving great booze here in Pittsburgh ... we're also making it. In addition to some folks who make award-winning vodka, we've got a brand-spankin' new whiskey distiller. Located right outside downtown in the Strip District, Wigle Whiskey is currently turning out great un-aged rye and wheat whiskey, both of which are stocked by several of Pittsburgh's best eating & drinking joints.

Cocktail scholars and booze geeks alike know that Southwest Pennsylvania was ground zero for the Whiskey Rebellion, and Wigle takes its name from one notable participant (for the full story, visit the distillery and take the tour ... it's well worth it). In fact, whiskey production was once so widespread in Southwest PA that rye was frequently referred to as "Monongahela Rye" for the number of distilleries in the region surrounding one of Pittsburgh's three rivers. Thanks to Wigle, whiskey is once again being produced in our area.

As part of their plan to reintroduce Pittsburghers to their native spirit, the kind people at Wigle host monthly cocktail-making classes, and they recently asked me to swing by and pass along a few tips on how to make decent drinks. They also asked me to come up with an original cocktail using one of their whiskies, so my contribution for the evening was ...


Veranda

2 oz. Wigle wheat whiskey
1 oz. Basil & black pepper syrup
.75 oz. Fresh lemon juice

Shake everything with ice and strain into chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a basil leaf.


Basil & black pepper syrup:

1.5 cups demerara sugar
1 cup water
12-14 basil leaves, torn
2 tsps. freshly-ground black pepper

Combine everything in a saucepan over low/medium heat and stir until sugar is dissolved (do not boil). Cover and let sit for 1 hour. Strain out the solids and refrigerate.


I waved this drink under the noses of the powers-that-be at Verde and they liked it enough to put it on the menu (If I haven't mentioned it already, the fine folks at Verde allow me behind the bar a few times a week to make drinks for people and otherwise molest their liquor supply. They're brave souls.)

So if you're somewhere in the general Pittsburgh area, swing by and grab an adult beverage.* And if you prefer the sudsy stuff, Verde also features locally-made beer from East End Brewing, Pennsylvania Brewing, and cider from Arsenal Cider House & Wine Cellar.




*Get some food too. It's really good.

What I've Learned: Year Five

It 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 vodka on some red carpet somewhere...but it's nice of all those liquor brand reps to email me about it anyway.

~ If you see a bottle of Chartreuse in a bar, rest assured that at least a third of it will be consumed by the staff.

~ Stuff like Twitter and Facebook are a fun way to keep in touch, but hanging out with your booze nerd buddies in person beats it hands down. (I actually learned this several years ago, but it bears repeating)

~ I drink Red Stag the way Cookie Monster eats cookies.

~ You can make a shot luge out of tofu.

~ If you set up a makeshift office in the Hotel Monteleone lobby, passersby will give you free samples of liquor. (Note: this may only apply during Tales of the Cocktail)

~ There is a real old-school thrill to buying locally-brewed beer in returnable bottles.

~ When people discover you write about cocktails, they will do things like describe in only the vaguest terms a drink they once had in 1994 at a dive bar in rural Ohio and expect you to immediately tell them its name and complete ingredient list.

~ People sitting three feet away from of a row of taps will ask, "What do you have on draft?"

~ Martin Cate recently commented that he doesn't drink out of pineapples at home ... but I'm not sure I believe him.

~ There is no shame in being on a first-name basis with the staff at your local liquor store.

~ Likewise, there is no shame in your 4-year-old son being on a first-name basis with the staff at your local liquor store.

~ How many bitters do I need? ALL OF THEM.

~ Rumors of the PLCB's imminent demise emerge every few years like clockwork. I'm not holding my breath.

~ Pittsburgh's cocktail scene continues to thrive and expand. If you claim there is nowhere to get a good drink in the 'Burgh, you simply aren't looking.

~ Still no consensus on how "orgeat" is pronounced.

~ I told a person from Australia where the good bars in Seattle and Portland are. I've never met the Australian person, and I've never been to Portland or Seattle. The only conclusion I can draw from this is that the internet was designed to help people drink more efficiently.

~ It appears not nearly as many people hate gin as they did five years ago.

~ Amari are the booze nerd equivalent of Pokémon.

~ You can never go wrong packaging alcohol in a skull-shaped container.

~ When I make them for myself, I violate almost every rule regarding the proper construction of a Martini.

~ If you own an ice crusher, it's a pretty good bet we can be pals.

~ It's not a bad deal having both a vodka and a whiskey distillery a short drive from your home.

~ For the fifth year running, I have to say that my fellow boozebloggers are some of the most friendly, generous, and all-around fun people I know. There's a hell of a lot more of them now than there were 5 years ago, and I hope they'll all still be around next year.

Cowboy Cocktails

Morricone

2 oz. Bourbon
1/2 oz. Punt e Mes
1/2 oz. Berentzen Apfelkorn
1/4 oz. Simple syrup (optional)
1 dash Angostura bitters

Build 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 young kid, I'd usually lean toward films featuring either robots or guys with swords.* Westerns struck me as dull, plodding, and one-dimensional, so I pretty much avoided them.

But somewhere in my high school years I discovered a few of Clint Eastwood's flicks from the 70's and 80's and it sparked a mild interest in the genre. Running across movies like High Plains Drifter and Pale Rider led me to explore his earlier stuff, mainly the iconic Sergio Leone films like A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good The Bad and the Ugly. Eastwood was probably a gateway figure for a lot of people unacquainted with Westerns...he certainly was for me.

These "Spaghetti Westerns" seemed like the antidote to my indifference toward traditional cowboy movies. To me, they corrected everything that was wrong with all the other Westerns: The characters weren't clip-art versions of good guys and villains. The camera work was nontraditional. And the music was both jarring and beautiful. These European reimaginings of American folklore were what made me a fan of the Western (or at least some of them), and I've been trying to find good ones ever since..

Back to whiskey (this is a boozeblog after all, not a film appreciation site). I'm always on the lookout for ways to drink whiskey. Simply dumping some in a glass (one of my favorite approaches) is efficient, but not terribly inspired. Finding other stuff to mix with whiskey is challenging as well as rewarding, and most cocktail enthusiasts enjoy the task.

Speaking of cocktail enthusiasts and their tasks...

A while ago, a bunch of them (including yours truly) gathered for the weekly virtual boozefest known as Thursday Drink Night. As is usually the case, lots of recipes got thrown around, and the one above was my contribution that particular night. Whiskey was the starting point, and since whiskey often makes me think of Westerns, I wanted to give a nod to the guy who came up with the signature sounds everyone knows from the Leone/Eastwood films. A splash of Punt e Mes as a hat-tip to Italy paired up fine with a good belt of Bourbon, so the foundation was laid. A dose of one of my favorite underused cocktail ingredients, Berentzen Apfelkorn, gave it a little dimension and the trusty ango/simple combo fleshed it all out.

Oh, and as a final note, whiskey goes great with TV shows about cowboys too. I find it's a great accompaniment for episodes of Deadwood (Provided some sheepf***ing c***sucker doesn't drink it all without my knowledge).


*which are still probably my favorite types of movies.

A Bibulous Bibliography: Playboy's Host & Bar Book/Bar Guide

A 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, I'll save you the sociological analysis of its place in the cultural landscape...we all pretty much know the deal.

So what about the books? To start, Playboy's Bar Guide and Playboy's Host & Bar Book are essentially the same book, save for a few key differences. They're both written by Thomas Mario, who, as Ted Haigh notes in his column from the September/October 2009 issue of Imbibe was a man who had considerable experience with eating and drinking:

"...Mario, whose real name was Sidney Aptekar, was the food and drink editor of Playboy for three decades or so, starting with its first issue in 1953. In 1971 he authored the wildly popular Playboy's Host & Bar Book...In fact, Aptekar (who died in 2003) was quite a guy. In 1944, he wrote the Kitchen Confidential of its day, The Faces in the Aspic. The United Nations pegged him to supervise all post-World War II refugee feeding operations in Europe. Later, he authored a nationally syndicated newspaper column 'What's Cooking?' which is when he first used his nom de plume, Thomas Mario."

The larger of the two, Playboy's Host & Bar Book contains numerous drink recipes as well as sections on spirits, wines, beer, bar tools, hors d'ouvres and party tips. In many ways it's similar to The Esquire Handbook for Hosts which predates it by a little over 20 years. (It's fun to compare both books side-to-side, as each one offers a snapshot of entertaining guidelines of the era. Some things remain constant, while others change pretty drastically...1971 was definitely a different year than 1949.)

If you can find it for a reasonable price, the Host & Bar Book is worth picking up. The edition I have is hardcover, printed on quality paper and has a handful of color photos. The drink recipes (which comprise the bulk of the book) range from established classics to "Who the hell would drink that??", but that's par for the course for a lot of bar guides....the same can be said about the Savoy Cocktail Book. (I heard one well-regarded bartender once remark about the Savoy Cocktail Book: "A lot of the drinks in there are crap. Just because a drink is old, doesn't mean it's good.")

For me, half the fun with books like these is foraging for the good stuff and sometimes discovering a hidden gem. The Host & Bar Book is a decent place to start hunting.

Playboy's Bar Guide, published the same year as the Host & Bar Book is basically a smaller, paperback version of the drink recipes section of its larger counterpart. It's clearly intended to be a pocket-sized Mr. Boston's-type handbook, and it definitely would fit under the bar without much trouble. As mentioned above, it lacks some of the info contained in the Host & Bar Book, but does give a nod to its namesake publication by including many illustrations of LeRoy Neiman's playful "femlins" that could be found in the pages of Playboy for many years. Little touches like this make you realize it wasn't that long ago when liberally sprinkling images of nude cartoon women throughout a book wouldn't have been considered an editorial misstep.

If you find it for a buck or two, grab it. It's a handy little guide on its own, and makes a nice companion piece to the Host & Bar Book. Used copies of both can be found at Amazon, Powell's, Alibris, etc.

Oh, here's a drink (which appears in both books) I took for test spin:

Devil's Tail

1 1/2 oz. Golden rum
1 oz. Vodka
1/2 oz. Lime juice
1/4 oz. Grenadine
1/4 oz. Apricot liqueur
1/3 cup crushed ice
Lime peel

Put rum, vodka, lime juice grenadine, apricot liqueur and ice into blender. Blend at low speed 10-15 seconds. Pour into prechilled deep-saucer champagne glass. Twist lime peel above drink and drop into glass. Powerful but pleasant rather than pugnacious.


This drink is actually a heck of a lot tastier than it might appear at first. It follows the Daiquiri blueprint, and provided you use decent quality ingredients it ends up being bright, tart, and excellent for warm-weather drinking. The only change I'd suggest is leaving the blender out of the equation. I liked it better shaken and then poured over crushed ice.

One (or two) For The Road

It'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 up, I had the pleasure of spending a few hours making drinks for the thirsty crowd at Gallerie Chiz. The Pittsburgh Society of Illustrators celebrated the opening night of their cocktail-themed show "Drawing Under the Influence", and the group decided to supplement the usual beverage offerings with freshly-made cocktails. I was helped immeasurably by the efforts of Nathan Lutchansky, Pittsburgh-based spirits expert and proprietor of the PLCB User's Group site, which documents the ever-changing and seemingly logic-free universe of alcohol sales in Pennsylvania. Nathan graciously donated his Friday night to help keep the gallery goers well-lubricated by wielding both his considerable bartending knowledge and his Shaker of Ultimate Power, which is one of the largest pieces of drink-making equipment I've ever laid eyes on. I'd love to get one just like it, but I would have to call it something else, since two Shakers of Ultimate Power existing at the same time just doesn't sound right.

The event was a success, and I'd be remiss if I didn't acknowledge the generous product donations from Hiram Walker and award-winning locally-made vodka Boyd & Blair that made our cocktail menu possible. Speaking of the cocktail menu, here's one of the drinks we served up, created by Pittsburgh Society of Illustrators member Gina Antognoli Scanlon:


Gina's Grapefruitini (as served at the DUI opening)

3 parts Freshly-squeezed grapefruit juice
2 parts Boyd & Blair Vodka
1 part Rosemary simple syrup

Shake well with ice and strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with a small rosemary sprig

Rosemary syrup: Combine one cup water and one cup sugar with two sprigs of rosemary. Heat on stove on low heat until sugar is completely dissolved. Remove rosemary and store in refrigerator until cool.

(if you want a more pronounced rosemary flavor, leave the sprigs to steep in the syrup for at least a half-hour before removing).


The second event was the "Quickie Cocktail Class", which takes place each month at the Pittsburgh Public Market. Chef and local-food enthusiast Elizabeth Schandelmeier Gilgunn invited me to help create and serve an array of cocktails showcasing local ingredients, and as luck would have it, the PPM was celebrating its 1st Birthday, so everyone was feeling festive (which is code for "in a drinkin' mood").

Despite temperatures in the 90's, we soldiered on and delivered cool, rejuvenating cocktails to the attendees. This one was a crowd favorite, and turned out to be an ideal choice for a wickedly hot and humid late Summer afternoon:


Watermelon SMASH

3 oz. Watermelon/lemon balm puree
2 oz. Boyd & Blair Vodka
.5 oz. Mint simple syrup

Shake well with ice and strain into a double old-fashioned glass filed with crushed ice. If you're feeling adventurous, take half a lime, scoop out the pulp, and place round-side down on top of the ice. Fill with a small amount of overproof liquor and light on fire.


Elizabeth offers up the following recipes to make this drink complete:


Watermelon puree:

One lovely baby watermelon, sweet and in season
A bunch of lemon balm or lemon verbena, leaves only

Peel and cut your watermelon into chunks (remove seeds, if you’ve got ‘em. Put watermelon and herbs into a food processor, pulse a few moments and then run on full speed until smooth.


Mint syrup:

1 cup sugar (I use raw)
1 cup water
Big bunch of mint (I used a variety called Kentucky Mint)

Add sugar and water to a big-enough pot and bring to a boil, stir until sugar dissolves. Lower heat to a slow simmer and reduce until desired consistency is achieved (this will depend on what you are doing with the syrup; thinner is better for things like candied fruit rinds, thicker is better for things like sweet cocktails). A thin syrup is ready after 10 minutes or so, a nice thick syrup is achieved after reducing approximately 45 minutes. (Oh yeah, don’t let this stuff burn! Remember, we are not making candy and burnt sugar STICKS!) When your syrup is ready, turn off heat and add your mint. Cool to room temperature. Store in a glass jar in the refrigerator. The longer the herbs sit in the syrup, the stronger the flavor. Strain syrup before using.


For additional drink recipes and info and photos, check out this post over at Elizabeth's site Let's Blog About Food.


Where will the mobile hooch stand turn up next? Only Dr. Bamboo knows for certain.

Moonlighting: Sept.'11

Once 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 midcentury fiction, cartoons, movie reviews, lifestyle tips and the usual boatload of talented temptresses. Oh, and there's also a few thoughts on cocktails courtesy of yours truly...

This was the class I dreamed of in college.

I also check in over at BarNoneDrinks.com for my monthly musings on the adult beverage scene. This time around I ponder a few key differences between casual drinkers and booze nerds (Hint: If you've ever brought your own bitters to a bar, you're probably a booze nerd).

Wearing these would make us all so much easier to spot.

Remember kids- Don't drink and draw!

The 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 certainly do their part color-wise. But I found myself perversely wishing they had also thrown in some Midori to blow the green right off the chart.

Here's the recipe as written:

SHAMROCK Stir one part Irish whiskey with one part dry vermouth, three dashes of green Chartreuse and three dashes of green crème de menthe.

(according to the photos and the little symbol next to the recipe, this drink is served in a cocktail glass)

So how does it taste? It's lousy. Don't make it.

Sure, the drink is unfortunate. But as we've learned in the previous GDBEP post, the recipe is only half the fun. There's also the photo to consider.

Fun Fact: she's also Annette o'Toole's stunt double!

Let's see what we've got: Green-eyed redhead holding a drink (the most enduring symbol of Ireland, as we all know). Tam o' Shanter-style hat and matching scarf (in case of inclement weather inside the pub), and a nice splash of tartan to drive the point home. As with many of the ladies pictured in this book, blazing red nail polish is the order of the day, and in case we still weren't quite clear on the Irish connection, our lovely model is standing in front of a green backdrop. The expression of fright/surprise is a nice touch, as are the very visible fillings in her teeth. If it weren't for the relatively restrained use of makeup, I'd say the shot comes off as a fine portrait of prescription medication abuse.