by Will on February 27, 2011
The aptly named cocktail of times past, recently re-popularized by television’s Don Draper:
1 1/2 oz. Bourbon or rye whiskey
1 sugar cube
5 or 6 vigorous dashes of Angostura bitters
Muddle the sugar and bitters at the bottom of an old-fashioned glass, put ice and whiskey on top, serve with a cherry, orange slice, and anything else you might feel like adding.
As previously noted, there was a time when “cocktail” referred specifically to this basic recipe: spirit + sugar + bitters. In America, whiskey cocktails would be the preferred mix, though in Wisconsin the state drink is the Brandy Old-Fashioned, which uses the same recipe but with brandy as the spirit. Two-hundred years ago that drink would have been called a “brandy cocktail.”
The first printed definition of the word “cocktail” gives evidence of this fact, and is otherwise fairly awesome. It is from a paper named The Balance, from 1803:
Cocktail is a stimulating liquor composed of spirits of any kind, sugar, water, and bitters—it is vulgarly called a bittered sling and is supposed to be an excellent electioneering potion, inasmuch as it renders the heart stout and bold, at the same time that it fuddles the head. It is said, also to be of great use to a Democratic candidate: because a person, having swallowed a glass of it, is ready to swallow anything else.
Sante!
by Will on October 13, 2010
I did a bartending gig this evening. It was enjoyable and interesting. The degree to which people’s behavior towards me is different depending on the role I occupy has always intrigued me. The most popular order today, after the Margarita, was the mojito. It’s a pretty good drink.
1 oz. white rum
1 oz. fresh lime juice
1 oz. sugar
fresh mint, several sprigs
Put the mint at the bottom of an old-fashioned or highball class, pour the sugar on top of it, and pour the lime on top of the sugar. Muddle these ingredients until the sugar is well dissolved, and mint well crushed. Now add the rum and some ice. Garnish with lime.
Whatever you do, do not buy the “mojito mix” that is sold at the store. That stuff is crap. Using real lime juice and real sugar makes a much better drink.
This drink seems to be a traditional beverage out of Cuba. It seems that for a very long time, it has been what field workers there drink during their breaks, to fight off the heat. And indeed, it’s good as a coolant. Today was a hot day, and I think that’s one reason so many people wanted this drink specifically. It’s interesting that what works for a thirsty Cuban field hand in 1893 also works for a thirsty middle-class party-goer in San Leandro in 2010.
Just to be tiresome, I want to note that this drink is interesting in that it is both a sour and a bittered drink. It follows the “sour” recipe (a spirit, with equal parts sweetener and citric acid) and also the “bitter” recipe (a spirit, with both a sweetener and a bitter). The mint here is playing the role of a bitter. It is interesting to taste something that interacts at once with both the sour and bitter receptors on the tongue.
by Will on September 15, 2010
When I was young, I recall that Tom Collins mix was something frequently in the fridge, competing for space with the orange juice and whipped cream and the like. So it was inevitable that I would try a Tom Collins at some point. I like them, and moreover they’re one of several good ways to wean people off of vodka (boring!) and on to gin (it actually has a flavor and scent — imagine that!).
In the day, by which I mean, late 2009, there was Schweppes Tom Collins mix at most stores. You just mixed it with gin and there was your Tom Collins. But then, for reasons unknown, Schweppes discontinued it’s mix. But that’s OK, because fresh ingredients make a better drink anyway.
1 1/2 oz. gin
1 oz. fresh-squeezed lemon juice
1 oz. simple syrup
Mix ingredients, serve in Tom Collins glass on ice, topped off with club soda
The name Tom Collins comes from a weird joke that was popular in New York in 1860 or so. You’d run into someone and tell them that Tom Collins had been talking a lot of smack about them. Then you’d tell them that Tom Collins was hanging out at the bar around the corner. So your victim would go looking for a non-existent person. What is supposed to be funny about that, I’m not sure. There was not a lot to do back then.
