Cocktail Hour @ The Intentional Table

Greetings! It’s Cocktail Hour at the Intentional Table!

Are we excited? Oh yes.

Why particularly are you excited, Jonathan?

Well, today, I am going to introduce you to a concept. Just like in cuisine,, each plate that you create or each cocktail that you may blend together has several various components, which can be considered quite easily.

The concept I'm speaking about is that of the star of the show. By the star of the show, I mean the leading spirit with which you are likely to begin creating the beverage of your choice. It's often the ingredient with the most volume in the glass, and the others are supporters.

The last time we met here, at the Intentional Table, we spoke of spirits. Not the kind that blesses and hangs around your altars and acts all weird in ceremony. The kind that may lead you to think you may have seen them if you overdo it. That makes me think this is a good time to mention the ‘S’ word. Sobriety. It’s indeed the reason I drink. WAIT a minute. What I mean is this: everything in moderation, including moderation.

A well-timed, perfectly made, and impeccably served libation is an honor to make, serve, and sip. This is not about abstinence, obviously, but about sobriety. That does not need to include not imbibing; it just means to do so with awareness, intent, and respect for yourself and others. It is not always an easy task when they are going down easy, you are suffering and looking for a release, or the 49ers are losing. (u know…) So, as any professional bar person will tell you, drinking is like flying. (wait for it…) As your bartender, I am here to get you drunk, but not too much, and slowly is best. When you are in the air, you must land, which infers ‘falling’ out of the sky. But not too steep and not too fast; slowly is best. (sketchy, but you get it, right?) So, take a moment with your libation. Savor, sip, consider. Some of these ingredients may have come from faraway lands just to give you that little warm tingle in your nose. Slowly and with Intention is how the classics are read, and we lift our glasses.

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Let’s dive in:

Here is a recap of the basic spirits.

Vodka, Gin, Rum, Tequila (Mescal)
Whiskey, Whisky, Brandy (Cognac)

Modifiers

Modifiers are additions to your base spirit that alter the taste and perhaps many other facets of your beverage. These can be bitter, sweet, bone dry, sticky, or thin. The most simple drinks are often the best ones, and also, many of the most ordered drinks have two ingredients. Examples include many of the classics:

• Rum and Coke

• Vodka and citrus juice (OJ, Grapefruit, Cranberry… you name it.)

• Tequila and OJ

Think of the modifiers as the supporting actor to the star. In many cases, the modifier is about 1/2 of the main spirit. There can be many more than 1 or 2 modifiers, and it can really get out of control. This was the 80’s and 7-layer drinks with tons of garish fruit hanging out of it. (look up pousse cafe’)

Looks SO good. Headache in a glass for you and the bartender.

I am more of a ‘practical’ drinker. All the millions of derivative imaginings of recipe creation are just fine. There are some wildly brilliant and imaginative drinks out there. I am a sucker for innovative techniques. I swoon when a chef takes out the container of liquid nitrogen or isomalt or speaks about Acetylated Carbohydrate Polymers. (yes, those are real things. But when I want to get into a cocktail, I don’t really require physics texts to understand it.

Here is the list of potential modifiers:

• Aperol

  • Italian Liqueur with a bitter citrus tang.

• Campari

  • Italian Liqueur made from grapefruit rinds.

• Chartreuse

  • It can be green or yellow (there are many), but this herbal blend is made by monks. Why is it that monks always invent the best booze…?)

• Cointreau

  • Orange liqueur from France. It is often confused with Grand Marinier, which is actually a very sweet cognac. Made with oranges from Haiti.

• Creme’ de Cacao

  • It can be white (clear) or dark. Crème de cacao is a chocolate-flavored liqueur. It’s possibly one of the first alcoholic beverages, made in the 1600s by monks after cocoa beans were brought back to Europe from America. (There is the Monk thing again. Those fellas can knock ‘em back…)

    Does creme de cacao have dairy? Despite what you might think, there’s no dairy at all. The French word “crème” means that it’s a crème liqueur, a liqueur with a high sugar content. It’s available in two varieties: white (or blanc), which is clear, and dark, which is a rich brown color. Each has a distinct flavor.

• Creme’ de Menthe

  • Same idea as above, only with mint.

• Curaçao

  • Dry. This is also an orange-based spirit but without the sticky sweetness.

• Vermouth

  • Vermouth is a wine flavored with herbs and spices (like gin). It can be bone-dry or sweet. Dry vermouth is usually clear and sweet, very dark. In France, if you order a ‘martini’ blindly, you will likely get a glass full of vermouth. Why, I could not tell you…

• Wine or Champagne

These can all be added to a base spirit to enhance your experience of it. NEVER add any supplement to a beverage to make it taste ‘like it has no alcohol.’ You are missing the intention here. Balance and finesse are what you seek, not trying to make it something it just is not.

I will mention again that all these items above (most) can be purchased often in ‘airline’ bottles or 2 oz. Portions. Perfect for a modifier. Notice that I keep saying ‘modifier’ vs mixer. Mixers are non-alcoholic, like coke. A modifier is a dance partner. Often from exotic foreign lands, it speaks just enough of your own language to persuade you, and like a long-lost lover, you can still taste long after the beverage is complete. ahhhhhhh…..

My favorite 2 ingredient drink:

THE MANHATTAN. (it looks so much more dramatic in all caps, huh?

2 oz Rye Whiskey

1 oz Sweet Vermouth

2 dashes of Angostura Bitters (…wait, you said two ingredients. This is #3. Nope. It’s an adjustment, but not a supporting actor). Bitters are magical. We will have a whole thing on them when I remember to. :)

A decent cherry. This means a Luxardo Cherry, brandied cherry, or like. NOT the neon pink Maraschino cancer nuggets you fed your kids in their Sprite. Really. That is NOT food. It may have once been. Now, ummm, not sure what that actually is.

Chill the glass. Combine the ingredients with ice and stir with a barspoon for 15 seconds. Strain into a proper glass. The cherry goes across the rim on a pick, not at the bottom.

Notes: We have not gotten to equipment yet, but a barspoon is a long-handled job that can reach the bottom of the glass well.

Also, fear not, intrepid drinker. If your technique is off, you can try again and enjoy them both.

Extra Credit:

After the martini, the Manhattan is likely the best-recognized of the pre-prohibition cocktails. Drink lore says that the first blending of whiskey, sweet vermouth, and bitters happened sometime around 1880. Attributed to various New York hangouts for bon vivant and high society types. It went by various names, too, including the Turf Club and the Jockey Club. The bartenders eventually settled on the Manhattan, which, according to David Wunderlich, went on to survive "good times, and bad wars, recessions, prohibition, depression, cultural upheavals, and comforting us through any number of truly terrible presidential administrations."

Today, the Manhattan is one of the most called-for cocktails in America, as smooth support and timeless as a cashmere trenchcoat. Anyone who drinks or mixes drinks for others should know how to assemble one. A quick shortcut for remembering the recipe: 2–1–2. These are the Manhattan's measurements: 2 ounces whiskey, 1 ounce vermouth, and two dashes of bitters, as well as New York City's main area code 212. It should always be stirred, which creates a silky texture and prevents over-dilution, a side effect of shaking. And some cocktails tuition is desirable, the Manhattan is not one of those cocktails. We will speak about this in our technique episode. Suffice it to say, this is not a watered-down drink of minor merit or proportion. This is what my friend Anthony Bourdain (RIP) would call a ‘two-fisted bar fight in a glass.’ He may be correct.

Changing the types of whiskey, vermouth, and bitters will create different Manhattan profiles, but the best expression leans into the drink’s robust nature, American or Canadian Rye, Carpino Antica Formula (The best vermouth in the world, says me.), voluptuous with vanilla and spices and Angostura Bitters, the workhorse of the bitters family. With the bitters, be judicious. Adding too much to a cocktail is like adding too much hot sauce to your eggs. It will be all you taste.

Cheers!

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