In the Spirit

The Key to the El Presidente

A delicious and historically important style of vermouth

By Tony Cross

Not long ago, I made time to drive to Durham to visit an old friend, Campbell Davis. I’ve known Cam for about six years; we did business together while he was representing the wine distribution company, Bordeaux Fine & Rare. At the time, I couldn’t get any quality white vermouth. BFR carried the Dolin catalog, which is represented by another distributor, Haus Alpenz. When I found out that BFR was representing Haus Alpenz, too, I was thrilled. It meant quick access to a variety of quality vermouths, liqueurs, and other mixers. In the time since Cam and I met, I got out from behind the bar and started up Reverie Cocktails and, as of this year, he opened LouElla Wine, Beer & Beverages in Durham. Within five minutes of Cam showing me around his newest venture, he handed me a bottle and said, “I bet you haven’t had this vermouth before.” Damn, Cam. He was right.

To be fair, Cam could’ve handed me any number of bottles that I hadn’t had before. Admittedly, the longer I’ve been grinding with Reverie, the more out of touch I’ve been with newer releases in the spirit and fortified wine category. It doesn’t really matter though; Cam’s quick description had me sold from the get-go. “This is Comoz Chambéry Blanc,” he said. “It’s the second Chambéry vermouth to ever hit the market. Dolin probably purchased the company just to soak up its only competition. It’s really good, but kind of different. A lot of wormwood comes through on this one.” Sold! After I returned home, I decided to read up on the Comoz Chambéry, and see what it was all about. I didn’t have to go far — Haus Alpenz’s online portfolio does an excellent job describing their products, along with its history, and cocktail recipes to boot.

Jean-Pierre Comoz established the House of Comoz in 1856 making it, according to the spreadsheet from Alpenz, “the second vermouthier of Chambéry.” Dolin Vermouth de Chambéry is the oldest, dating back to 1821; Comoz just happened to be previously employed there. Jean-Pierre and company started producing a pale vermouth when they launched. But soon after in 1881, under the leadership of Jean-Pierre’s son, Claudius, they began producing a blanc vermouth, which contained flavors from a selection of wines, plants and fruits. They were the first producers of this crystal clear, semi-sweet vermouth. Dolin followed suit years later with their version of a blanc-style vermouth, sweeter and paler in color. Comoz Chambéry Blanc’s claim to fame was when it made its way to Cuba as the key ingredient (besides rum, of course) in the El Presidente cocktail. More on that in a bit. Unfortunately for the House of Comoz, sales and production declined in the mid-to-late 20th century. In 1981, the house shut its doors. They continued production under contract, but never really seemed to get rolling. In the new millennium, they were non-existent. Enter Dolin. Today, through Dolin’s acquiring of Comoz and Haus Alpenz’s distribution, you can enjoy this Bianco-style white wine for under $20 a bottle.

On its own, the Comoz is just a tad sweet with notes of cherry and stone fruits; it has a nice body to it as well. In a cocktail, I’d recommend starting with what it’s best known for — the El Presidente. Cocktail nerd, Camper English, wrote that, “The drink is credited to German bartender Eddie Woelke, who was working in Havana, Cuba. He may or may not have invented it, but it is believed he refined it sometime between 1913 and 1921.” He also goes on to say that the drink was probably named for President General Mario García Menocal y Deop. It soon became a favorite of the following president, Gerardo Machado. The recipe calls for white rum, blanc vermouth, orange curaçao, and grenadine. I would usually do a 2:1 ratio of rum to vermouth, but with this one, equal parts really let this vermouth shine. As you’re probably well aware, our local ABC doesn’t have much variety in quality rums. Start with Bacardi or Havana Club, but when you get a chance, grab a rhum agricole or a bottle of Caña Brava for a better quality drink. For the curaçao, use Grand Marnier. I don’t think the grenadine is a deal breaker, but if you decide to use it, make your own. It’s garnished with orange oil, with or without the peel. Personally, I like dropping a Maraschino cherry in mine. I’m not a huge fan of cherries in my cocktails, but I think eating it after having that vermouth is simply delicious. Now that the weather is warmer, it’s hard to have just one of these. For me, it’s a fast sipper. Nice and light with a ton of depth. You can pick up a bottle of the Comoz at Nature’s Own, but please, the next time you’re in Durham, stop into LouElla’s and grab one of Cam’s many offerings.

El Presidente:

1 1/2 ounce white rum

1 1/2 ounce Comoz Vermouth de Chambéry

1 barspoon orange curaçao

1 barspoon grenadine

Combine all ingredients in a chilled mixing vessel. Add ice and stir until proper dilution is obtained. Strain into a chilled coupe glass. Take a swath of orange peel, expressing its oils over the drink. You may discard or drop the peel into the drink. If you’re feeling feisty, go ahead and add that cherry. PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern Pines.

In the Spirit

Mean Muggin’

Crafting the perfect party vessel

By Tony Cross

A few months back, I was asked by an online publication that caters to bar managers and owners to write a column discussing Tiki cocktails. There’s no Tiki scene here in the Sandhills, so I had to reach out to a few people who know a lot more than I do on the matter. I was able to chat with the bar manager from one of my favorite bars in Asheville, MG Road, about their Tiki drinks and cocktail classes. Of course, having a great cocktail is key to running a successful program, whatever style you want to promote. But with Tiki drinks, you definitely need the proper aesthetic to create beautiful visuals for your guests before they take their first sip. One of the angles I wanted to attack was Tiki mugs and glassware. I follow a lot of bartenders on Instagram and knew immediately who I wanted to message in hopes of getting an interview.

Before you make your first Tiki drink, you’ll need to choose a glass, Tiki mug, or as Danny Gallardo refers to it, “a vessel.” Danny is the owner of Tiki Diablo, in Los Angeles. I became familiar with Danny’s work after following his Instagram page (tikidiablo) a few years ago. If you’re looking for the guy to create and craft a special vessel for you, look no further. We chatted on the phone for a while, and he quickly informed me that all things Tiki had been revived much longer ago than I thought. “It was very rare to see any place as cocktail-centric,” he said of L.A. in the late ’90s. “There’s a local bar in L.A. — and this is when Jeff Berry* was still living here — where he and a group of us would get together on Wednesday nights. They had been going there for five or six years and trying to reverse-engineer these drinks. I came from the art side of it. I was carving wood Tikis, big 8-foot, 9-foot statues, and was just starting to make mugs. I thought it was very interesting that they were taking notes and drinking these drinks while discussing this stuff. And I’m like, ‘What the hell are they doing? This is crazy, I’ve never seen this before.’ So, there were cocktail nerds way back when. The Tiki movement had already had its first exposure in ’02 and ‘03.”

Danny’s mugs took off locally and statewide, and he was able to create and ship wholesale to a chain of Home Depot stores. “I took advantage of the momentum I had where we released a lineup of Tiki goods through Home Depot. That kind of helped me out with name recognition outside of the Tiki-world bubble. We were all the way to Louisiana, and over 600 stores. I used that as a launching point for pushing my method.”

Today Tiki Diablo’s mugs are international. “We’re doing a lot of work with distilleries that are not U.S.-based; ones that are appreciating what we’re doing,” he says. “Those making finely handcrafted rums are saying to us, ‘Hey, you’re a good fit. You’re making handmade, small-batch mugs, that are brand specific.’ We design and make unique mugs for every single client. No client gets the same design; everything is from scratch.”

Danny is the sole designer and sculptor in his company. He does, however, have a crew that has been making ceramics since 1980. “I’m a firm believer in surrounding myself with people that are better than I am,” he says. He makes the mugs for Berry’s world-renowned Latitude 21 bar. “A lot of stuff that I make is brand-centric. What people decide to do with the mugs is up to them, which makes a lot of my stuff hard to get. This year we’re going to put an emphasis on buying mugs directly from our website (tikidiablo.com).” Contact them, and they will customize a mug specifically for your bar or restaurant. “Three Dots and a Dash just sold a whole array (of mugs) that I made for them. Don’t quote me on the price, but they were at least $125 a piece, and sold in a matter of days.”

What Danny does see as trending in the Tiki world is collecting these one-of-a-kind mugs. “I have noticed a trend in themed bars, not necessarily a Tiki bar, but you have to have mugs as a part of your business plan now. Nowhere else are you going to clear up to $80-$100 on one item on your menu. Pure profit. Undertow, in Phoenix, those guys know what they’re doing. They order back-to-back, they sell everything out, and as they’re making their final payment, they ask me, ‘OK, what’s next?’ It’s a huge component in sales and income for bars now, getting the mugs going, and moving on to the next ones.” Danny says most businesses do this by having mug release parties. “People are lining up in the morning to make sure that they get a mug,” he says.

And what does Mr. Tiki Diablo drink in his vessels? “I’m a classic Mai-Tai guy, I love a daiquiri too. Those are my go-tos. I don’t bartend at home because all of my friends are excellent bartenders. I don’t mess with what I don’t know. Let the experts do their thing. Let me stay out of the way.”

Even if you have exquisite glassware and mugs from Danny (he was gracious enough to send the mug pictured on the previous page), you’re still going to have to make sure that what’s inside counts. Remember: Don’t skimp on the essentials. Fresh juices, homemade syrups, and quality spirits. It doesn’t have to be expensive to be considered quality. Once you have your recipe down pat, you’ll have your friends and guests loving what they’re tasting with their eyes and palates.

(* “In the Spirit” featured Jeff “Beachbum” Berry in the October 2017 issue of PineStraw.)  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern Pines.

In the Spirit

Three Top o’ the Mornin’

New additions to the Jameson family

By Tony Cross

When I think of Saint Patrick’s Day, my mind immediately goes to green beer and Jameson. Let’s talk about the latter, and how you can still have a good time without compromising your body’s well-being the morning after.

A little over one year ago, I was asked if my company would like to participate in a Bartender’s Ball in Raleigh. The event was held at a nice craft cocktail bar, Watts & Ward, who would be the host to over 350 bartenders from across the surrounding counties. It was sponsored by Jameson, who used the party as an opportunity to showcase their ever-popular Irish whiskey, as well as three whiskies new to the Jameson family: Jameson Black Barrel, Caskmates IPA Edition, and the Caskmates Stout Edition. There were different stations at different bars that night. Our job was to integrate the Black Barrel Whiskey into one of our mixes. We blew through four kegs (that’s 400 cocktails) of our Black Barrel Strawberry Mules, in just over one hour. It was so much fun for a couple of reasons: 1) the look on everyone’s faces when they took their first sip; and 2) being able to keep a long line moving at a brisk pace showcases our product and means even more when they are all bartenders. Since that night, I’ve been able to team up with Jameson for other projects and balls. In January, we took our kegs to Raleigh Beer Garden and emptied six of them containing our Jameson Grapefruit Mules in two hours. Insane. So, I guess you can say that I’ve had a little experience with the new editions of Jameson. Here’s a rundown on all three (on sale this month at our local ABC), and why enjoying them at home or in your favorite establishment can change up your normal pickleback routine. 

Jameson Black Barrel Whiskey

As they tell it on their website (and rightly so), in big, bold print: “Triple distilled, flame charred, for a rich smooth taste.” It’s no secret in the bourbon whiskey — and now even craft beer — community that re-aging in charred barrels adds much more complexity and depth in the finished product. The same holds true for this Irish whiskey. This is the first of the three on this list that I was able to taste and tinker with over a year ago. I was impressed by how complex it is. Vanilla and a toasted nuttiness stuck out to me; it’s not over the top, but just enough to sit there on your palate, empowering you to want more. That’s right: Good spirit on my tongue makes me feel empowered. To each his/her own. Anywho, enjoy Black Barrel neat, or even with ginger beer. May I suggest our draught ginger beer? I mean, after all, 300 bartenders can’t be wrong . . .

Jameson Caskmates IPA Edition

Jameson took their signature Irish whiskey and added it to an undisclosed “craft” brewery’s IPA barrel. The result is a very clean, drinkable and interesting whiskey. Whatever notes you may pick up on your palate, try again by pairing with a mid-range hoppy IPA. How do the flavors change? You might taste notes of apple, spice and citrus; the hops should shine through a bit after that beer pairing, too. Drink this neat, as an IPA back, or even with sparkling water and grapefruit bitters.

Jameson Caskmates Stout Edition

So, the story is:

Shane Long, owner and brewer from Franciscan Well Brewery, sat down one day for a meeting with Dave Quinn, head of whiskey science, at Jameson. Shane wanted to swap barrels, because he believed that his stout and Jameson Irish whiskey would complement each other greatly. Turns out he was right. The Stout edition is definitely a sipping whiskey. I mean, it’s still Jameson, but it doesn’t make me want to make crazy cocktails with it. It’d work, but with the notes of chocolate and coffee, I just want it neat. Or in an Old-Fashioned. Close enough, right?

What’s great about all three of these additions is that there are no sugary additives, which will hopefully help out with that morning-after hangover.

Caskmates Stout Old-Fashioned

2 ounces Jameson Caskmates Stout

1/4 ounce rich demerara syrup

5 drops Crude Big Bear Coffee and Cocoa Bitters

1 dash Regan’s Orange Bitters

Combine all ingredients in a chilled mixing vessel. Add ice and stir enough to get it chilled and properly diluted. Strain over a rocks glass with large cube. Take an orange peel, expressing the oils over the drink, and rimming the glass before placing it in.   PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern Pines.

In The Spirit

Shaken or Stirred?

A brief primer on the fundamentals of icing the perfect cocktail

By Tony Cross

Having discussed the different shapes and sizes of ice, and how it’s used as an ingredient and tool when making a cocktail, it’s time to explain how to use the ice you’ve molded at home when you’re stirring or shaking a cocktail. Everyone knows how to shake it, right? Wrong. Once on a weekend vacation in the mountains, I ordered a drink and the bartender shook my Manhattan. I didn’t have the heart to say anything — I drank it and left. It pays to know the difference.

Let me preface this by saying that I do not consider myself a professional bartender. I used to run a restaurant and bar, but I have never been “shown the ropes” from men and women at craft cocktail establishments who have been doing this for years and years. I taught myself by watching and reading. I’ll share what works for me, but keep this in mind: Everyone has their own style; you need to find yours. Cocktails have been a passion, and I’m lucky enough to get paid for what I do, but a professional? No, no, no. Please go see Gary Crunkleton at his bar in Chapel Hill. You’re welcome.

When stirring a cocktail, first you’ll need a mixing vessel. There are plenty of beautiful ones to choose from online, but if you don’t want to wait, and already have a barspoon, you can use a glass pint. You always want your vessel as cold as possible. If it’s at room temperature, your cocktail will be over-diluted when you finish stirring. The goal is to make sure your cocktail is very cold and properly diluted. Before you start stirring, you’ll need to understand why and what kind of cocktails to stir. A good rule of thumb is to stir clear drinks. By “clear” I mean cocktails that call for spirits, vermouth and bitters. If your cocktail calls for juice, an egg white and/or dairy, do not stir. You’ll want to shake those.

As the bartender mentioned previously should have known, a Manhattan is stirred. You’ll take your ice-cold vessel, and add 2-3 dashes of aromatic bitters, 1 ounce of sweet vermouth and 2 ounces of rye whiskey (for example). Then add your ice. Use smaller cubes of ice (1 inch square) or cracked ice. If you use larger pieces, your drink will be harder to stir while getting the proper temperature and dilution. Take your barspoon (typically around 12 inches long, with a very thin neck) and place the bowl of the spoon (the outside) to the inside wall at the bottom of the vessel. I am right-handed, so I hold the neck of the spoon 3/4 of the way up in-between my ring and middle finger. The remaining neck of the spoon travels on the inside of my index finger and thumb. I stir clockwise, and make sure that the back of the spoon almost always touches the inside of the mixing vessel while I stir. To do this, you’ll need to let the neck of the spoon rotate clockwise in your hand while you’re stirring. If you’re just starting out, I recommend flipping the barspoon upside down. It makes it easier to focus on getting the hand-to-barspoon placement right without having to concentrate on the bowl of the spoon fighting with the ice cubes. Another trick is to slightly bend the bottom of the neck (next to the bowl); this will make it easier to control the ice cubes.  For a quick visual, search for “Jamie Boudreau stirring” on YouTube. It’s a minute and a half tutorial, and it’s literally how I was taught. Stirring takes a little longer than shaking a cocktail because of the dilution factor. Practice makes perfect, and your stirring needs to be as smooth as possible. You shouldn’t really hear any noise while stirring. When shaking, however . . .

Be noisy as hell! I’ve seen many bartenders shake different ways. As long as you’re not over-diluting your cocktail, you’re good to go. Yes, it has to be ice-cold too. There are a couple of ways to over-dilute while shaking — shake too long; use the wrong ice (wet); or breaking up the ice cubes into little shards that dilute your drink in addition to the time you spent shaking.

When using standard mixing tins for shaking, you’ll have a large and small tin. Add ingredients and ice into the small shaker, and place the larger shaker on top, but not straight on top. You’ll want to give it a slight curve, kind of like a banana. Give the top of the vessel a firm hit from the palm of your hand to make sure it’s sealed. There will be a firm seal on about 1/8 of the tins but that’s OK. Next, flip the sealed vessel around so that the small vessel is at the top. You do this because if any liquid comes out, it will go toward you and not your guests. Because I’m right-handed, my left hand is firmly holding the large vessel (with bottom facing away from me) and my right hand is holding the small vessel, facing toward me.

I shake my drinks over my right shoulder, in a back-and-forth/pushing-and-pulling fashion. I use either 4-5 small cubes or 1 large cube and 2 small cubes. You do not want your ice to bang back and forth from one vessel end to the next. Instead, try to make sure the ice is being pulled back toward you as soon as it is rocketing away from you. When you finish shaking (around 10 seconds), place the connected tins in your left hand. Remember the small seal connecting the tins right before you started shaking? Look for that. Right where the seal starts to separate is where you’ll take the heel of your right hand and hit it. Doing so correctly will break the seal, allowing you to strain your drink.

Never bang the sealed tin against the bar or corner of a table. If you’re using a Boston shaker (large shaking tin and pint glass), the glass will break. As far as your shaking skills go, you’ll know when you’re getting it right after you strain your cocktail and see that the ice cubes look more spherical than before you used them. You’re only going to be able to achieve this while shaking fast. As the saying goes, wake the drink up, don’t put it to sleep. One last thing: Never shake a drink facing your friends or guests. If the tins slip out of your hands — which can always happen — you’ll knock them out. Turn to the side, away from them.

When starting to stir or shake for the first time, dilution is what you’re trying to perfect. It’s easier (at least it was for me) to feel how cold your drink is than to know when to stop stirring and shaking. I recommend purchasing a small digital scale to measure the ingredients, minus ice, in ounces before and after straining it into the glass. You’re aiming for a 1/2-ounce increase after you’ve shaken or stirred. Now get to work.  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern Pines.

In The Spirit

The Ice Has It

More than just frozen water

By Tony Cross

Years ago, when I was thumbing through my first bartending book, I came to a short passage about ice. It was only a page long, quick and to the point. It explained how ice is an ingredient and a tool. I came straight up off the couch. Sounds a bit dramatic, but it’s true. I had never given any thought to ice. None at all. This was before craft cocktail bars were everywhere and I had never seen any kind of “special” ice. While this may sound overly dramatic, the fact is, ice is just as an important as your spirits and mixers. 

Let’s talk about ice as an ingredient. We use it to chill cocktails by shaking and stirring but, at the same time, we’re using it for dilution. If you’d like to run a test, make two of the same cocktails. In the first one add all of the ingredients in any mixing vessel you have available and place it in the fridge to chill. Then, make the second cocktail by shaking or stirring. If you’re making a Manhattan, for example, you’ll stir the cocktail, and strain into a chilled cocktail coupe. Place both drinks side-by-side, and sample. You’ll immediately notice that the first cocktail tastes hot, or boozy. The second cocktail (if made with the appropriate specs) will taste balanced. 

Just because your second cocktail in this experiment tasted balanced doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s good. What kind of ice did you use? Was it the crescent-shaped ice from your freezer? If so, that’s no good. (Unless you have no choice, and it’s either bad ice versus no cocktail, and you’re losing your mind.) Even if your freezer filters the water before it produces ice, that same finished ice will soak up any odor coming from the rest of the compartment, e.g., leftover spaghetti that you froze last spring. Any smells from your freezer will be absorbed in your ice. The solution: Use your freezer only for ice cubes and buy ice molds online. I recommend 1-inch or 2-inch squares, and if you want to splurge, a gas-eliminating sphere ice maker from Wintersmiths. 

Here’s why these types of ice are a tool in your arsenal. The 1×1-inch (actually 1.25×1.25-inch) are the first molds I used. I didn’t have one of those Kold-Draft ice machines when I was bartending, so I always had to fill my trays (copious amounts, mind you) the night before my shift started. I used distilled water, and they would be ready the next morning. These cubes can be used to shake cocktails with, but are ideal for stirring. When stacked with orders, I’d stir my drinks as follows (for one cocktail): three 1×1 cubes, and a fourth that I cracked with the back of my bar spoon. I used a cracked cube to speed up dilution while the others chilled the drink to the proper temperature. If you’re shaking, 4 or 5 cubes will do the trick. 

The 2×2-inch cubes are ideal for shaking cocktails. I used to add the smaller size when shaking (and still do if I don’t have the larger ones handy), until I read a passage from Dave Arnold’s Liquid Intelligence book. He explains he was never on the “large cube for shaking” bandwagon until he conducted a test and found that when shaking your cocktail, not only are you diluting and cooling the temperature, but you’re aerating it. This gives your drink its velvety texture — just like that thin layer of foam that sits atop a daiquiri for under a minute after it’s first poured. Using a big cube also eliminates the chances of having tiny ice chards break off while you’re shaking and having to double-strain the drink. If you’re using a big cube to shake your cocktails, make sure you shake hard for at least 10 seconds. 

Now that you’ve stirred or shaken your cocktail, which type should you use if you’re straining it over a glass with ice? I’d opt for sphered ice, mainly because of the surface area to volume ratio it has in your glass. There is less surface area from a sphere than a large (or several small) cubes. Your drink will stay chilled without watering it down. Sure, if you use smaller cubes in that Negroni, it’ll taste great on that first sip. But the second half of your cocktail won’t taste the same. Bet that. Even using a large cube will dilute a drink quicker than using a sphere. Does this mean that you have to use spherical ice in order to have a proper drink? Of course not, but it’d be a lot cooler if you did. Worst pun ever.

A few final thoughts on ice. Clear ice looks very cool. And it is. (Second worst pun ever.) It’s clear because it doesn’t have gases trapped inside it. The gases come from impurities like minerals, bacteria and dust. When you freeze ice in molds, the cubes freeze inward, leaving the center to freeze last, trapping any impurities and gas. One way to get around this is by boiling your water, letting it cool, and freezing it, though it doesn’t completely solve the problem. Instead — and I learned this from Arnold as well — take a small cooler (4-6 gallon) that can fit into your freezer, fill it with water that you’ve already boiled and allowed to cool some. Place the cooler in the fridge with the top off. Give it 2 days to freeze, and when it’s ready, flip the cooler upside down on your countertop and let it sit until it’s wet and glistening. Using the appropriate tools (an ice pick and long bread knife) saw off the bottom layer — before you emptied the ice from the cooler, this was the top layer — with the impurities. Why go through the trouble? Because cloudy ice will melt at a much faster rate than clear ice. 

Lastly, what to do when ordering a nice Scotch or bourbon on its own? There are some of you that may disagree, but I add water to whichever spirit I’m enjoying. I used to order my whisk(e)y with one small cube of ice and I was told, “You’re ruining it!” No, I’m not. Adding even a few tiny drops of water is enough to open up the complexities that may be hidden to our palate. You can do this on the fly by asking for a small side of water, sticking a finger into the glass and flicking it over your neat spirit. Next month I’ll tackle proper ways to shake and stir a cocktail. James Bond be damned.  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern Pines. 

In the Spirit

Beer on Whiskey

Not so risky. And sometimes surprisingly delicious

By Tony Cross

In holidays past, I would have a moment of clarity when visiting my loved ones. It would come on suddenly, and always within 12 hours of arriving. Like clockwork. “I’ve got to get out of here and get a drink.” The members of my family are not big drinkers. I would have a beverage or two around them, but I always craved my escape drink. It’s not because my folks are hard to be around — they’re amazing. It’s because this time of year stresses me out and I turn into Mr. McJerkface after a few hours of sitting around.

Mom and Pops live near me now, but for almost a decade they didn’t. There were no close bars that could whip up a decent drink, so off to the dive bars I went. One of my favorite things to order was a beer with a whiskey back. It did the trick every time. So, for this month’s column, I teamed up with Jason Dickinson, a certified Cicerone — think sommelier for beer or, as I like to call him, “beer nerd.” We had fun pairing up a few different styles of beer with spirits. And by we I mean that I texted him the three spirits I was bringing, and he used his expertise to bring a few pairing suggestions for each. You can find Jason over at Triangle Wine, if you have any questions or recommendations. Use these pairings anytime of the year, of course, but give these a shot when you’re out of town and are drawing a blank when you run away from your family.

Sour/Blanco Tequila

For our pairing, Jason brought Dogfish Head’s Sea Quench Ale Session Sour, and I provided El Jimador. Right off the bat, I sensed this would work. I spied a picture of a lime wheel on the can, and immediately saw the word “salt” in the description. That’s a margarita all day. “I chose this because of its year-round production,” Jason said. “It’s one of the few sours that we’re going to see on draft in more places pretty soon.” The first sip was all we needed. Tart and salty. Perfect with a blanco tequila — just make sure the label has “100 percent Agave” on it. If it doesn’t, I don’t think any beer will save you. If the spot you’re frequenting doesn’t have any sour-style beers, grab a Mexican lager. As I’ve mentioned before, a can of Modelo and tequila have been good pals of mine during the summer. However, I wouldn’t discriminate against them in winter.

Milk Stout/Spiced Rum

We combined a Nitro Merlin Milk Stout with Gosling’s Black Seal Rum, and it went together quite nicely. The Merlin is light, creamy and smooth. The Nitro comes from the beer having more nitrogen gas than carbon dioxide (like most traditional beer). This also gives the beer a touch of sweetness. I picked Gosling’s because there’s more likelihood of finding it behind a bar than other rums that I would drink straight (e.g., Smith & Cross, or rhum agricole). With that said, I never drink Gosling’s on its own. The distillery owns the trademark for “Dark ‘N’ Stormy,” so there’s that. But never on its own. But boy, oh boy, these two are yummy together. The sweetness of the rum and spice complement the chocolaty creaminess of the Merlin. I would pour my shot into the beer next time. Again, the chances of your finding the Merlin at a dive bar might be slim, so if you don’t see it anywhere, grab a Guinness. “A Guinness has a dry and roasty flavor profile, so adding the sweetness of the Gosling’s will bring a nice counterbalance,” Jason says. If they don’t have a Guinness, walk out.

Porter/Whiskey

“If someone asks what an American porter is, this is it to a T,” says Jason. “This is the beer a lot of people point to as the classic one in this category. There are a couple of producers that do one — Sierra Nevada makes a good porter. But Deschutes Black Butte Porter is generally thought of as THE porter for American style. They’re usually low ABV too.” That’s news to me. And if you’re as ignorant about porters as I am, keep reading. “Because bourbon and rye have been really popular over the past decade, the breweries rest their porters in bourbon and rye barrels. So, for me, this is a no-brainer.” This is one of the reasons I like Jason. Out of the park. One gulp of the Black Butte followed by a swig of Maker’s Mark (again, pretty much a trademark whiskey in myriad bars) pulls Jason’s theory together. The porter was dry on the end and having whiskey in between sips lent an oakiness to my palate. We both agreed that this was our favorite of the night. Bourbons tend to be sweeter than rye, but rye has spice. Me likey the spice. So next time, I’m having a porter with rye, that’s a what’s up, for sure.

In the pre-Jason era, when I paired beer and spirits, I’d make up my own boilermaker — by definition a shot of whiskey dropped into a glass filled halfway with beer. It was usually an IPA and a rye whiskey. Why? Because at the time, those were my favorite styles of beer and whiskey to drink on their own. As soon as I arrived at my getaway drink spot, that’s all it took to wash my Scrooge demeanor away. Now, as the saying goes, I got options.  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern Pines.

In the Spirit

Sugar Redux

Upping the dessert drink game

By Tony Cross

We’ve all been there. The server walks over to your table, dropping off dessert menus after you and your friends have finished stuffing your faces. As your eyes peruse the yummy treats, they scroll down to study the coffee and dessert drink menu. Sometimes these two are juxtaposed, and sometimes they are interlaced. How many times have you seen a Nutty Irishman made with Frangelico, Bailey’s and coffee, or an Irish Coffee with Jameson’s Irish Whiskey, whipped cream, green crème de menthe and coffee? Even worse, a Chocolatini with (probably) a vanilla-flavored vodka, and an ungodly amount of Godiva dark chocolate liqueur. Not a fan of the dark chocolate liqueur? Don’t worry, they’ve got you covered — there’s white chocolate and milk chocolate, too.

The problem is these drinks are tired. Just like the myriad ’tini menus that were everywhere at the turn of the 21st century, dessert drinks needed a face-lift. Before I got my turn behind the stick, I was a server. And I delivered a ton of these badly concocted sugar rushes to more guests than I can ever remember. Almost every delivery had the exact same result: As soon as they saw me coming with that oversized martini glass filled with 8 ounces of corn syrup, their faces would light up, and a cacophony of “ahhhs!” would fill the dining room, causing surrounding tables to smile and nod their heads as if they should order one next. One time, at the advice of a friend, I fell victim to the sugary trap. I splurged, had two chocolate drinks, and felt terrible. I found out the next day that I almost gave myself diabetes.

Let’s fast-forward 15 years. Here are a few cocktails that I feel have been part of a revival when it comes to dessert cocktails.

A few years back, I was invited to a pop-up dinner. An extremely talented chef asked if I would like to do cocktail pairings with her four-course menu. We were going to serve around 30 local business owners. Everyone invited knew each other well, or were at least acquaintances. About two weeks before the event, the chef dropped over to my place to give me her menu. Everything looked fantastic. Immediately, I had ideas for the first three courses, but was at a loss for what to pair with her dessert. She was going to make a chocolate pot de crème, with homemade vanilla ice cream. Off the top of my head, I can’t remember the cream sauce that she garnished it with; all I know is that it was light, and the ingredients were sourced locally. Easy enough, right? I spent a couple of days going over in my head what to do. I had just about settled on a complicated chocolate-infused mezcal, with yogurt and strawberries. And then it hit me — keep it simple, stupid. I remembered watching a video clip on YouTube of one of my heroes, Jeffrey Morganthaler, explaining his Gin Alexander cocktail. Equal parts London Dry Gin, crème de cacao and heavy cream. I once featured it in a drink special and received accolades from our guests. One quick side note: This drink is a spin on the Brandy Alexander. If you’ve ever received a poorly made one, you’ll never forget it, i.e., huge martini glass with store-bought vanilla ice cream, cheap brandy, and very bad crème de cacao. Gross. Anyway, I riffed on Morganthaler’s recipe and came up with the Garam Alexander. Staying true to the original recipe, the only major change was substituting equal parts of Flor de Cana 7 Year rum and a delicious local gin out of Winson-Salem, Sutler’s Spirit Co. (a less juniper-forward gin with a heavier emphasis on citrus, cardamom and other botanicals). The cocktail was served up in a small, chilled coupe and garnished with a dusting of 100 percent organic cacao powder and garam masala. I remember watching an episode of Chopped, and the guy who played Christopher on the The Sopranos won the event because of his dessert dish — he dusted curry over his vanilla ice cream. Who knew?

Garam Alexander

1/2 ounce Sutler’s Spirit Co. gin

1/2 ounce Flor de Cana 7 Year

1 ounce Tempus Fugit Spirits Crème de Cacao

1 ounce organic heavy cream

Combine all ingredients in a shaking vessel, add ice, and shake hard for 10 seconds. Strain into a chilled coupe glass. Garnish with a pinch of masala mix evenly across the cocktail. (Masala mix: equal parts cacao and garam masala.)

Not too long ago, I was visiting a couple that’s very dear to me. (Not because every time I’m invited over I get to try rare rums and mezcal, but it never hurts.) While I was at Bo and Suze’s downstairs “Bo Zone” bar, Bo decided to cap the night off with a quick and easy recipe he found online. He whipped up three cocktails, strained them in vintage glass coupes, and smacked a handful of mint that he placed on top for a garnish. I was talking to Suze while Bo was creating and didn’t get a chance to see the ingredients. One sip, and I was hooked. “This is the Noisy Cricket,” Bo informed me. The cocktail came from bartender Jim Romdall, who worked at Vessel, a bar in Seattle. The order Romdall received was for a Fernet Grasshopper, but he substituted Fernet Branca Menta, a less bitter, more minty little brother, for the regular Fernet. The result is superb: The balance between sweet and bitter is right on the mark. You’ll notice that the Noisy Cricket and the Garam Alexander cocktails both use Tempus Fugit Spirits’ Crème de Cacao à la Vanille — this is the real deal when it comes to a quality cacao liqueur. It’s made with Venezuelan cacao and Mexican vanilla beans; there is nothing artificial inside this bottle.

The Noisy Cricket (Jim Romdall, Vessel, Seattle)

1 1/2 ounces Fernet Branca Menta

3/4 ounce Tempus Fugit Crème de Cacao

3/4 ounce cream

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake like hell until properly diluted. Strain into a chilled glass, and garnish with fresh mint. PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern Pines.

In The Spirit

Syrup, Salt and Jigger

Keeping it simple and delicious

By Tony Cross

Last month I touched on a few drinks that can be made with only three ingredients. I’m carrying the theme over into October with three tips that can help improve your cocktail game. A lot of people have a fantastic collection of spirits and are super creative with their drinks. Others love trying new drinks, but when it comes to making them, would rather keep the ingredient list short and simple. Here’s something for both groups.

Your Simple Syrup

I don’t know how many times I’ve harped on this and I’m too lazy to check. Let’s just say this definitely isn’t my first rodeo when it comes to explaining why I think a 2-to-1 ratio with simple syrups is the way to go. When I first got into making everything from scratch behind the bar, simple syrup was first in line. Equal parts sugar and water. Easy enough. I’d take a measuring cup of baker’s sugar and then use the same cup to add water, throw them both in a pot over medium heat and stir the combo until the sugar disappeared. But then one night I saw a video clip of bartender Jaime Boudreau explaining how he makes a rich syrup for his cocktails. Rich syrup consists of two parts sugar and one part water. Boudreau explained that a richer syrup gives a cocktail more body. I’ll explain. If you’re using a 1:1 ratio, you have to use more of that syrup in each cocktail. Because the syrup is equal parts, and you’re using more, that means you’re adding more water to the drink as well. You’re over-diluting the cocktail. More so if you don’t weigh your sugar. If you use a measuring cup, it’s not going to be exactly one cup — it’s going to be under. In reality, your syrup ratio is 1-to-.80. I can’t stress the importance of weighing out the sugar (and water too).  It’s going to make a huge difference in your next sour cocktail. Finally, please don’t think that having a richer syrup is going to mean your end product will be sweeter. If measured correctly (see below), you’ll have a more velvety feel on your palate from your perfectly balanced drink. Try this:

Whiskey Sour

2 ounces Rittenhouse Rye

3/4 ounce lemon juice

1/2 ounce rich simple syrup

Add ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake hard until proper dilution has occurred. Strain into a rocks glass over ice. Garnish with oils from a lemon peel. Taste the difference.

Salt + Citrus = Damn!

I can’t remember when I first heard about adding salt to sour-style cocktails. I believe there was a cocktail competition out West, and the guy who won added saline to all of his drinks. It was definitely a duh! moment. Here’s the thing, though — you don’t have to just add them to shaken drinks. A small pinch of salt can go a long way in stirred drinks as well. Mess around with it to get the right balance. I’ve done a pinch of salt in drinks before. I’ve also made a saline solution. My preference? Saline. I like knowing that I’m going to get the same result when measuring out the drops. In the past when I’m busy, I know I’ve pinched a bit too much salt at times. So, what I’ll normally do now is make a solution of 3 parts salt to 1 part water. I’ve always used Himalayan pink salt, so I’d recommend starting there. I will say, I don’t think it’s necessary to use salt for every citrus cocktail, but it definitely helps, especially when your fresh pressed juice has been sitting for half a day. Lemon and lime juice start losing their pop in around five hours, so a dash of salt could bring it back to life. Another way it helps is with consistency. The juice from one case of lemons may differ in taste from the next. The same goes for limes and grapefruit.

Daiquiri

2 ounces Flor de Caña dry rum

3/4 ounce lime juice

1/2 ounce rich simple syrup

3 drops saline (3:1)

Combine all ingredients into a shaker with ice. Shake hard until your vessel is frosty cold. Double strain into a chilled cocktail coupe. No garnish.

Measure, Measure, Measure

This is another one that I’m sure I’ve beaten to death, but it’s so important — more so than the first two tips above. When I first got into bartending, I was obsessed with a bar in New York City that was one of the first bars in the new millennium’s surging cocktail trend. These guys made (and sold to other bars) their own syrups, bitters and cordials. Their drinks looked amazing, their uniforms were cool, and the bar itself was gorgeous. They did not measure. They eyed all of their cocktails. The risk factor in throwing a drink off balance made it even cooler in my eyes. So, that’s what I started doing. I would eye all of my drinks. I got decent at it, but do you know how hard it is to eye 1/8 an ounce for a cocktail when you’re slammed? It can be done . . . if you’re a bartending guru, which I was not and am not. I’m not sure why I got back into measuring. It was probably some David Wondrich article I read that stressed the importance of it. If so, he was right. Understatement. Consistency is key. I do remember that the month I got back on the jigger train, more compliments were directed at our waitstaff about the drinks. It means a lot when your guests return for another cocktail because they know it’s going to be just like it was the last 30-something times they imbibed there.

Put your pride aside and pick up a jigger. That is, unless you’re a guru. And if you are, please show me your ways.   PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern Pines.

Three’s Company

Three drinks, three ingredients

By Tony Cross

I asked a close friend the other day what I should write about in my next column. She replied, “Like, how to make a drink.” She’s obviously not one of my 12 readers; 10 if you don’t count my parents.  Instead of just walking away, I asked her to enlighten me. Her response, “Something good. But, like, easy to make.” That I can do. So, for those of you who want a few go-to cocktails that only involve a few steps, here are three suggestions. And, even if you don’t mind making a mess out of your kitchen, I think you’ll enjoy these.

The first time I tried a Negroni cocktail, I was in disbelief about how terrible it was (forget the fact that I made it). My palate was as sophisticated as a 4-year-old; obviously, my taste buds had some growing up to do. Months later, Campari and I became well-acquainted, and soon best pals. So, the first time I tried the Boulevardier cocktail, I was smitten. Spicy rye whiskey paired with bitter Campari and rounded out with sweet vermouth was love at first sip. In fact, I loved this drink so much that I made one (maybe it was more?) for myself every single evening last summer when I returned home. For the whiskey, my standards are either Wild Turkey Rye or Rittenhouse. Both pack a punch and are moderately priced. The sweet vermouth, however, has changed during the course of the 100 that I’ve prepared. I used to use Carpano Antica, which is a lovely sweet vermouth that has beautiful notes of vanilla and orange, but now I like a more bitter-forward style. Cocchi Dopo Teatro is a ridiculously good vermouth that infuses quassia wood, rhubarb and cinchona. The base wine is blended with Barolo Chinato. The result: a vermouth that’s perfect for sipping on its own but I love it in a Boulevardier. You be the judge.

Boulevardier

1 1/4 ounces rye whiskey

3/4 ounce Campari

3/4 ounce sweet vermouth

Combine all ingredients in mixing vessel (or build it in your rocks glass). Add ice, stir for 50 revolutions, and strain into a rocks glass over ice. Garnish with orange slice or orange peel.

It’s still warm enough to have one more month of summer drinking, even if fall is a few weeks away. One of my absolute favorite poolside cocktails is the Caipirinha. Made with cachaça, a rum distilled from sugar cane indigenous to Brazil, this cocktail is so good, it’s hard to just have one. If you have cachaça, a lime and sugar, you’re good to go. Please note that Bacardi, or any other clear rum, is not a substitute. Cachaça’s grassy flavor comes from its lower sugar content that’s produced when it’s juiced. A lot of rum is made with juice that comes from molasses.  If your lime is small, use the whole thing; if it’s rather large, 3/4 of it will do. Start by cutting the lime in half lengthwise (think of the top and bottom of the lime as the north and south poles). Take each half and cut the ends off each pole. Then, take each half and cut down the center from the poles. You’ll have four pieces of lime now. Cut off and discard any slithers of white pith that remain. The pith will add a bitterness that’s not needed for this drink. Once that’s done, cut each of the four pieces down the middle widthwise. You should have eight little pieces of lime. Place those into a sturdy rocks glass. I say sturdy because you will be building and muddling into this glass. If it’s a brittle glass, it might break and you could cut yourself. Blood would be a fourth, and totally unnecessary, ingredient. Add two teaspoons of white sugar, and muddle. When muddling, try not to annihilate the limes; you’ll want to gently muddle while twisting the muddler to extract not only the lime’s juice, but the oils as well. Add 2 ounces of cachaça, and crushed ice (yes, the type of ice makes a difference — crushed ice for the win.)  Now, with a bar spoon (or regular spoon, if you don’t have one), gently stir everything in the rocks glass for about 10 seconds. Top off with more crushed ice.  This will be just a touch spirit-forward, especially if your sugar sinks to the bottom of the glass. Another option would be using 1/2 ounce of simple syrup (two parts sugar, one part water). If this gets good to you, try adding a couple slices of pineapple or strawberries when muddling.

Caipirinha

2 ounces cachaça

2 teaspoons sugar

3/4 to 1 whole lime

This last drink takes some time — three weeks, to be exact, but don’t let that deter you from having this amazing cocktail. I totally stole the base of this recipe from bartender Jeffrey Morganthaler’s Bar Book that came out four summers ago. In it, Morganthaler gives us the specs for a recipe he found in a book printed in 1939 from Charles H. Baker using his strawberry-infused tequila. All you’ll need is one quart of strawberries and 16 ounces of a good reposado tequila. Dice the strawberries, add them to a Mason jar, and fill with tequila. Seal the jar, and leave in a cool, dark place for three weeks. Shake the jar for about 15 seconds a few times each week. When the time is up, voila! Strain through cheesecloth, and you’ve got yourself a winner. It’s delicious by itself, but when I decided to put this on my drink menu, I didn’t want to sell this neat or over ice. I was afraid that it would be gone just like that. So I decided to make a cocktail with it. I made a syrup from lavender buds and added lime juice — essentially a riff on a margarita. It was delicious, but it still sold out quickly and, in turn, I learned that when making three-week liquor infusions, it’s best to make more than less. 

Bit by a Squirrel

2 ounces strawberry-infused reposado

1/2 ounce lime juice

1/4 ounce lavender syrup

Put all ingredients in cocktail shaker and add ice. Shake it like it’s hot, and then strain into a chilled cocktail coupe. Garnish with a few lavender buds.

Lavender Syrup: take 1/4 cup of water and 1/2 cup of baker’s sugar, and place in a small pot over medium heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Add 1/4 ounce of dried lavender buds (available in bulk at Nature’s Own). Once the syrup has cooled, strain out lavender.  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern Pines.

Spa Water with a Kick

A flavored gem from Durham Distillery

By Tony Cross

In the past, I’ve complained about North Carolina ABC stores rolling out the red carpet for copious bottles of flavored vodkas. Though I still find this to be the case, there are exceptions. Full disclosure: I’ve tried a friend or date’s cocktail — you’re sharing a sip if we’re hanging out together — that tasted quite delicious, only to find out that the base spirit was a flavored vodka. It didn’t happen often, but it happened. However, the only time I was completely wowed by a flavored vodka straight was the first time I kicked back a sample of Durham Distillery’s Cucumber Vodka.

On an early spring day last year, my father accompanied me to a meeting in Durham. “Just please don’t say anything,” I pleaded. I inherited the gift of gab from him, so I know that when he gets going, it’s hard to stop. Pops riding along ended up being a good idea. He’s in shape, has a silver handlebar mustache, wears dark shades, black clothing, and looks like a badass. Actually, he is a badass; he served 20 years in Special Forces. So, with my dad standing 6 feet behind me while I made my pitch, it looked like I had a bodyguard. Ka-ching. As soon as the meeting was over, we stepped outside, high-fived, and made our way down the street to Durham Distillery.

We were greeted by co-owner Melissa Katrincic. Her husband, Lee, the head distiller and co-owner, joined us. They gave us the grand tour, explaining how their Conniption gin is distilled. The Katrincics are both scientists, and that’s how they approach their distilling. My dad doesn’t drink gin, but he’ll try anything once, and if he likes it, he’ll have it again. Melissa is chatting away with Pops, while Lee is answering my questions. Before I know it, samples of their American Dry and Navy Strength gins are being offered, and oblige them we did. The gin seemed to immediately “get good” to Pops, and all I could do was smile and revel in how quickly he can go from 0-to-60 in storytelling mode. In the midst of his explaining one of his past adventures, I noticed Melissa starting to pour a different liquid into a taster glass.

My dad’s story stopped dead in its tracks and he asked, “All right! What’s next?” Lee and Melissa explained that this was their cucumber vodka. They had used it in the past as a component in some of their gins but had decided they were going to bottle it on its own in North Carolina. One sip, and we were both blown away. On our way back to Southern Pines, the conversation kept circling back around to, “My God, I can’t wait until they release that vodka.”

Later I reached out to Lee, asking him to explain how he’s able to capture the pure essence of the cucumbers in each batch of vodka. Unlike other flavored vodkas, which are basically just a distilled vodka with an extract added, Durham Distillery’s tastes like fresh cucumber slices have completely filled up the bottle. It’s no wonder Lee and Melissa say it’s like “spa water with a kick.”

“The cucumber vodka is the only cucumber vodka on the market distilled under vacuum (no heat applied) with no artificial flavors or added sugar. Most others you see will be extract-based. With ours, only alcohol and fresh sliced cucumbers are used to make it,” Lee says. They handpick their cucumbers, which are peeled and sliced, then put in a pot on their vacuum still. “Our corn-base ethanol is added to the pot and the still is sealed. The vacuum still only has a 5-gallon capacity, so it’s made in very small batches. A vacuum pump removes all the air from the still. Under the reduced pressure, the ethanol boils around room temperature. So, all that great cucumber flavor is being extracted and subsequently distilled without any heat. The cucumber distillate we get off the vacuum still is around 185-proof, so we add our deionized water to cut it down to 80-proof for bottling.” Did you get all of that? In short: hand-picked, small-batch, science, alcohol, delicious.

Last year I wrote an article praising Durham Distillery’s Conniption gins, and pleading for them to get a spot on our ABC shelves. Over a year later, there isn’t a single Durham Distillery product in our Moore County stores. (In addition to their gins and vodka, they also make excellent chocolate, coffee and mocha liqueurs.) It’s not like other N.C. distilleries aren’t represented. We’ve got rum from the coast and mountains, and a vodka from Durham. We even have a very good local spiced honey liqueur on the shelf.

While they may not be in Moore County, Durham Distillery’s gin is sold in London. London. Melissa and Lee were inducted into the United Kingdom Gin Guild. Lee says that the guild is 300 years old, and he and his wife are only the fourth and fifth U.S. distillers ever inducted and the only ones from the South. We’re lucky to have such an amazing distillery an hour away, producing top-notch spirits. Once you get your hands on their cucumber vodka, try this easy spin on a Moscow Mule I whipped up:

Cuke Mule

2 ounces Durham Distillery Cucumber Vodka

4-5 ounces Reverie Ginger Beer

4 dashes Angostura

Candied ginger and cucumber slices (garnish)

Pour vodka into a rocks glass, add ice and ginger beer. Top with bitters. Garnish with candied ginger and cucumber slices.  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern Pines.