cocktail
The mystical, magical, cocktail emporium
August 18, 2011 - 8:03pm | by Daniel Priseman
Some months ago I was told that the mad scientists behind Purl were going to open up a new bar, and that got me pretty excited. Sure enough they launched the Worship Street Whistling Shop and as I wrote recently it’s a great bar serving innovative cocktails. Now just before they opened they told me they had plans for a special cocktail experience in a room they were calling the ‘Cocktail Emporium’ but until yesterday this was just something whispered about in dark corners. A myth. A legend.
Well as of last night the myth has become real, and I was lucky enough to be invited down to sit through a cocktail experience that I was assured would tickle all of my senses. With no more information than that, I made my way into the basement bar that is The Worship Street Whistling Shop, where I was immediately greeted by my host for the evening, Tristan Stephenson, who then quickly ushered me through the bar to a small door hidden in a dark corner.
Not all liqueurs are created equal!
June 2, 2011 - 1:53pm | by Daniel Priseman
I’ve written before about the fact that I believe that cocktail recipes are just a guideline that helps you create a tasty drink, but that depending on the exact products you are using, they will most likely need to be adjusted to find the right balance. When it comes to this premise, liqueurs stand out as being one of the most variable of all cocktail ingredients. This is partly down to the rules governing how liqueurs are made but is also strongly influenced by the production methods used to make them.
As a cocktail ingredient, liqueurs add three things to a drink: sweetness, alcohol and flavour and as such need to be given special consideration. Getting the balance right is an art form so to simply say that a drink calls for 15ml of crème de peche or poire is sometimes too basic. Some are sweeter than others; one may have a greater intensity of ripe fruit flavour, whereas another may be sharper with an almost citrus edge. To use liqueurs well you have to have tasted them and have an understanding of their unique attributes.
Teaching an old dog new tricks
March 28, 2011 - 3:18pm | by Daniel Priseman
I’ve expressed my opinion here before about making cocktails at home; in times gone by the home ‘cocktail party’ was a regular occurrence, and any home worth it’s salt had a well stocked drinks cabinet, if not a full bar. I’m an advocate of making drinks at home and believe that it’s well past time for this tradition to be revived, so when Bombay Sapphire sent me an invitation to a ‘cocktail master class’ I thought there might be a chance to try something a little different. The guest list for this event was made up of food and drinks writers and bloggers, but maybe just maybe Bombay would let me send in a consumer to infiltrate the evening.maybe it's about the winning AND the taking part
February 26, 2011 - 9:03pm | by Daniel Priseman
I’ve written about Copenhagen before and talked about the amazing cocktail scene that is developing there, so when the Copenhagen Cocktail Club said they were hosting a big competition and would I like to help judge it, I jumped at the chance. ‘The Battle of Scandinavia’ would see teams from Sweden and Denmark fight it out to be crowned the best bartenders in all of Scandinavia. My first impression was that this would be a pretty special event and I wasn’t disappointed!Hidden Gems
February 15, 2011 - 9:15pm | by Daniel Priseman
Last week I wrote about good service and how I hope it will become the next trend in the UK drinks industry. In my rant I mentioned other trends including molecular drinks and speakeasy style venues. I may have been a little flippant in my comments and when I bumped into Tristan from Purl he quite rightly pointed out that there is more to it than a bit of dry ice and a basement bar. It reminded me that recently I have heard a few people mutter ‘not another bloody speakeasy’ when hearing about new bars opening and that there seems to be a bit of a backlash happening. Well I for one embrace these hidden gems and think they add something important to our cocktail scene.Classic winter warmers
January 6, 2011 - 7:16pm | by Daniel Priseman
Well Christmas and New Year have come and gone, but judging by the temperature and weather outside, we’re still in the throws of winter! It seems that in every bar I walk into at these days someone is sipping either a mulled drink or some incarnation of a Hot Toddy. On a cold winters’ day there are few things more rewarding than a well-made, hot alcoholic drink.We wish you a cocktail christmas!
December 22, 2010 - 2:06pm | by Daniel Priseman
Well the silly season is in full swing and this is likely to be the last update from b&t for 2010. It has been a hell of a year to be honest and 2011 is already looking like a corker too, what with trips to Copenhagen and New York in the pipeline, testing beginning on our full website and a list of topics to blog about as long as my arm (and at 6’6” I have pretty long arms!). So now we are nearing the end of 2010 I guess it’s time to shake a cocktail or two and reflect on the year past and look forward to the year ahead.It’s a guideline not a recipe!
November 26, 2010 - 6:08pm | by Daniel Priseman
In my day job I spend a lot of time educating bartenders about bourbon, and this week during a tasting session I was asked to discuss how to adapt some classic recipes to suit different bourbons. All too often we are presented with ‘the recipe’ for making a certain drink, but just saying 20ml of vermouth or 50 ml of gin doesn’t always lead to creating a well balanced drink. The moment you change one ingredient the balance of the drink changes.Dust off your smoking jacket, we're bringing cocktails back home!
August 23, 2010 - 3:09pm | by Daniel Priseman
In my last blog update I talked about the ‘drinking experience’ and how, when all the right elements come together, sipping a cocktail at the bar can be more than simply ‘having a drink’. That led me to think about drinking at home and the small details that can make that experience richer too. For me there is a great joy to be found in making myself, or my friends and family a cocktail, which is enhanced by using the right tools and the right glassware.Why drink cocktails?
August 9, 2010 - 6:41pm | by Daniel Priseman
I’ve been lucky recently to have had some nights that were better than average. You know the sort of evening where everything comes together just right. A good bar, with a talented bartender making drinks, great company and good tunes, the sort of evening where you have a ‘drinking experience’. It got me thinking about the little things that elevate the experience of sipping a cocktail.
I’ve always been startled by people who say that cocktails are too expensive but who don’t mind paying over the odds for a bottle of beer or a glass of wine. I admit that it galls me to pay £7.50 for an overly sweetened daiquiri made using the cheapest ingredients by someone who would rather be anywhere other than behind the bar. But when you go to a good bar and your drinks are made by a bartender who does their job because they love it (well they don’t do it for the money that’s for sure!) and you sip a perfectly balanced drink, well that’s worth paying for!
