Bar Wash

The art of infusing a cocktail lineup

By Tony Cross

Working in the restaurant business can be brutal, demanding and taxing on the body. However, it’s also fun, crazy and rewarding. One aspect that I always embraced is when someone new joined the kitchen staff. It was interesting to learn new methods that he or she would bring to the table. Sharing was a big part of my job, and it never got old being on the receiving end of the exchange. Five years ago, I began a working relationship, which immediately turned into a friendship, with a new chef who had moved down from Chapel Hill named Randy. This is around the time that I started to get my hands dirty with bartending. One afternoon, Randy asked me if I heard about infusing bacon into bourbon. “Um, what?” I replied. I had no clue what he was talking about.

Randy quickly broke it down for me: Just take the fat from cooked bacon, add it to a bottle of bourbon, seal up the container, and put it in the freezer. When the fat separates, strain the bourbon out, and voilà! He recommended me putting a spin on an old-fashioned cocktail with maple syrup. So, I did. I had the drink ready as a special by the weekend, and it was a hit. For my Bourbon Kush, I used Maker’s Mark bourbon, Grade B maple syrup for the sugar (that’s the first one I could get my hands on at Nature’s Own), Angostura Bitters, and an orange peel for the oils and garnish. It was delicious!

What I didn’t realize until a few months later was that I had totally ripped off the bartender who created the “Benton’s Old-Fashioned,” Don Lee, from prized New York City bar PDT (Please Don’t Tell). Looking back, I think Randy had the drink at a local restaurant in Chapel Hill and thought it was something I could run with. Another thing I didn’t grasp was the science that goes behind what is now known as washing. It’s another way to infuse flavors into your booze. You can fat-wash (bacon fat, olive oil, sesame oil and butter), milk-wash and egg-wash, to name a few styles.

I didn’t mess around with any kind of “washing” until a few years later when I received the book Liquid Intelligence from famed bartender/wizard extraordinaire Dave Arnold. In Intelligence (which reads like a science textbook, by the way) Arnold covers these different washing methods. The first style that caught my eye was milk-washing. Milk-washing is an ideal infusion when you’re trying to cut out the astringency from an infusion used in a shaken cocktail. For me, this chapter couldn’t have come at a better time — I was looking to combine an Earl Grey tea infusion with a homemade marmalade that I was working on. Arnold’s directions for milk-washing were simple enough. I took eight of the best organic Earl Grey teabags that I had available, steeping them into a bottle of vodka for an hour, letting the infusion get very dark. Next, I took 250 ml of whole milk and poured it into a large mixing container, then adding the infused vodka to the milk (very slowly) while stirring. It curdled right away, just like the directions stated. After letting the milk and tea-infused vodka sit for a couple of hours, I slowly stirred a half-ounce of fresh lemon juice into the mix. The acidity of the juice allowed the milk to break away from the vodka. The remaining steps told me to gently scoop out the large curds and let the vodka sit another few hours before fine-straining the cloudy infusion. Simple enough. The result was a silky and tasty infusion. The vodka had all the flavor of the tea, without the bitterness from the bergamot. The Jean Grey soon found its way to my spring cocktail lineup.

An easier way to wash is with olive oil. I was recently invited to a pop-up dinner where the theme would be early 1900s France. I decided I wanted to do a spin on a martini, and since I’m not full-time behind a bar these days, I love trying out new things whenever I get a chance. I took a bottle of Plymouth gin and added that to a container with 4 ounces of organic, cold extracted olive oil. Just a quick, hard shake (10 seconds will do), leaving it to sit for a couple of hours. Place upside down in the freezer, allowing the oil to harden (it won’t completely freeze) before filtering out the infused gin. You want to place the container upside down, so the oil will be almost frozen on the bottom of the container when you strain the gin out. Doing this gave my gin an oily texture without the briny flavor that is associated with olive juice. It also added depth to my cocktail. Check out the recipe below.

Though I am no pro when it comes to washing spirits, like most everything else involving bartending, use quality ingredients. Don’t wash your spirit with anything that you wouldn’t eat or cook with. If it doesn’t taste good to you, it probably won’t taste good in your final product.

Lave et Humide

1 1/2 ounces olive oil-washed Plymouth Gin

1 1/2 ounces Dolin de Chambéry Vermouth

4 dashes Crude “Sycophant” Bitters

Combine ingredients in a mixing vessel, add plenty of ice and stir until liquid is ice cold. Strain into a chilled coupe glass. Add a lemon peel to the drink after expressing its oils over the martini.  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern pines. He can also recommend a vitamin supplement for the morning after at Nature’s Own.

Vodka Rising

How my first love of spirits has won me over again

By Tony Cross

My earliest memories, or foggiest memories, of first drinking liquor trace back to vodka. Full disclosure: The very first time I drank spirits was Everclear with grape Kool-Aid — that’s all I’ll say about that. As I’ve ventured into the world of cocktailing, there have been so many new varieties of gin, tequila, rum and so forth that I’ve easily brushed vodka to the side without giving it proper attention. Vodka is number two in international sales (behind baijiu, a Chinese spirit made from fermented sorghum), so it’d be a little doltish of me to not pay respect to my first love.

Vodka can be made from myriad ingredients: corn, grains, potatoes, maple syrup, grapes, even soybeans. Instead of being distilled in a pot, like other types of spirits, vodka is distilled in large continuous column stills. The impurities are then filtered, usually by coal, though there are other methods. Vodka isn’t aged, so once it’s filtered, it’s ready to go. I’m too lazy to find out how flavored vodkas are produced, so if you happen to know, please tell me.

The martini craze in the early 2000s spawned the flavored vodka movement, but the emphasis even on non-flavored was huge. Martini lists across the nation called anything with vodka and a syrupy concoction paired with it a (fill in the blank)-tini. No lie, one time I remember seeing a 10-drink “martini” list comprised of vodka and every kind of juice and sweetener they had behind the bar. But, hey, they sold.

It also helped vodka sales when Sex and the City brought the cosmopolitan to the front of the list for every female’s first choice of a cocktail. There are a lot of bartenders that hate making that drink. Matter of fact, there are certain cocktail bars that will not make them — one of the house rules for Bourbon & Branch, a speakeasy in San Francisco. As for myself, I’ll quote Jeffrey Morgenthaler, who says that there are no bad drinks, just bad bartenders/ingredients. It is a cocktail that should be spirit forward, with just a touch of cranberry juice. If you order a cosmo, and it looks like cranberry juice in a martini glass, you’ve been duped.

As much as I’ve given my friends grief over the years for not going out of their comfort zone, and spicing up their drink selections, I get the message. For the most part, vodka is flavorless, especially when mixing it into a cocktail with bold ingredients. One way to taste-test different vodkas is to sample them at room temperature. For cocktails, vodka is a great base because it allows the other ingredients to shine. For an example, take the “Anna Paige” cocktail I created a few years ago. I had infused a vanilla bean into a small bottle of light agave syrup and it tasted fantastic. Immediately, I knew that I wanted Campari to pair with it, but didn’t want the bitter-forward amari to be the base for the drink. In walks TOPO vodka. Using vodka allowed me to give the drink some oomph, while not compromising the integrity of the other ingredients. Check out the recipe below.

I’ve noted before that our ABC stores (in Moore County, at least) are saturated with flavored vodkas. Please keep in mind that there are many vodkas out there that are small batched, and locally made (see TOPO vodka from Chapel Hill). Unlike other recommendations I’ve made, you’ll have to order this one online: Zubrówka Bison Grass Vodka. This Polish vodka comes in at 40 percent ABV with a straw-colored hue. It’s unlike any other vodka I’ve consumed — rich and creamy on the mouth, with a touch of vanilla (almost like cream soda) on the palate, with an exquisite finish. See for yourself.

Anna Paige

1 3/4 oz TOPO vodka

1/4 ounce Campari

1/2 ounce vanilla-infused light agave*

1/2 ounce grapefruit juice

1/4 ounce lime juice

Place all ingredients in your cocktail shaker. Add ice, and shake vigorously until your gut tells you to stop. If your gut is being coy, shake hard for another 10 seconds. Double-strain into a chilled coupe glass, and garnish with the oils of a grapefruit peel.

* Take one vanilla bean, slice down the middle, scraping the pod clean on the inside. Add both pod and bean into a small bottle of light agave. I use the MadHava Light Agave (11.75 oz) from Nature’s Own.  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern pines. He can also recommend a vitamin supplement for the morning after at Nature’s Own.

How to Beat the Holiday Hangover

Sure fire drinks to upgrade your new year cocktails

By Tony Cross

Now that the holidays are over, it’s time to regroup and get it together. For most of us that means back to the gym, reintroducing new, or old, diets, New Year’s resolutions — you still do those? — and moderation. There’s nothing wrong with most of these; I usually take a cleanse of some sort to detox the ridiculous amounts of excess that I happily ate, drank and whatevered to my body. Most articles from various publications preach about what you should or shouldn’t do at the beginning of each year. So, in the tradition of cliché January columns on the subject, I bring you: how to drink better this year. I’ve mentioned in previous columns how it’s good to have a handful (maybe I used the word “arsenal”) of drinks in your mental reservoir whenever you’re at a bar or restaurant. This piece of advice still stands.

Cocktail historian David Wondrich once wrote that if you’re a vodka soda drinker, you should probably just continue to drink vodka sodas. Clever, and more than likely true. Most vodka soda fans aren’t drinking for flavor, but if you are, keep on reading. One of my favorite tricks to play on guests is giving them gin instead of vodka. Whenever a patron asked me to come up with something inventive on the fly that used vodka as the main spirit, I would more than likely use Uncle Val’s Botanical Gin. Distilled in Sonoma, California, it tastes nothing like any gin you’re used to. This gin is a huge lemon and citrus bomb. I’ve converted plenty of gin haters with this beauty. Head over to 195 Restaurant or The Bell Tree and ask for one with soda. 195 likes to add a splash of organic grapefruit juice, resulting in your new allegiance to gin.

Hangovers are the worst. The only real cure for them is time, but the best way to make crippling pain hurry up and go away is, you guessed it, a drink. Everyone does the mimosa or bloody Mary, and using fresh ingredients with both will get you a better tasting drink. There are a few ways you can switch up these weekend morning staples. First, replace your bloody Mary vodka with a London Dry Gin. A good two ounces of Beefeater’s turns your bloody Mary into a treat. Why would you do that? Why wouldn’t you? You can’t taste the vodka in a bloody Mary unless you put an insane amount in, and with the gin, the myriad of botanicals blend with all the flavors from the bloody Mary mix. Ironwood and The Sly Fox have great bloodys, and I always order them with gin. That’s a great way to switch it up at brunch. Have you had a Corpse Reviver No.2? This is a classic cocktail dating from the pre-Prohibition era. Don’t get this confused with the first type of Reviver (made with brandy, sweet vermouth and applejack); the Corpse Reviver No.2 is made with gin, Cointreau, Lillet Blanc, and fresh lemon juice (served up in an absinthe rinsed coupe glass). It’s perfect in the mornings, but if you’re having one of those days where it’s taking your funk a little longer to wear off, get to Chef Warren’s, where they make the best in town. This is an equal parts recipe, minus the absinthe. Don’t be afraid, the absinthe is primarily for the olfactory senses.

Corpse Reviver No.2

Absinthe (or Pernod)

3/4 ounce Conniption Gin (distilled in Durham)

3/4 ounce Lillet Blanc (available at Nature’s Own)

3/4 ounce Cointreau

3/4 ounce lemon juice

Take a half bar spoon of absinthe (or Pernod) and swirl (rinse) it in a chilled cocktail coupe, making sure the absinthe completely coats the inside. Discard any remaining absinthe and put the glass back in the fridge/freezer while making the cocktail. Place remaining ingredients into your cocktail shaker. Add ice, shake very well, until the drink is ice cold, and strain it into your coupe glass. Take a swath of orange peel, expressing the oils over the drink. Thank me later when you’re feeling better.

OK, Jamo and ginger guy/gal, you’re next. Probably more popular this generation than a Jack and Coke is the infamous Jameson Irish Whiskey with ginger ale. Popular at restaurants and your local pub — just ask the crew at O’Donnell’s how many bottles of Jameson they go through in a week. More than likely, any establishment with a liquor license that you frequent will be able to mix this up for you, and that’s great, but this is about loading up the arsenal, remember? Decker Platt over at 195 Restaurant carries Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt Whisky. Before you judge, know that Monkey Shoulder blends three Scotch single malts from Speyside, and it sits in used bourbon barrels for three to six months, giving it more of a mellow characteristic. One of the cocktails that Decker can make for you is called a Penicillin. Monkey Shoulder mixed with organic ginger, a local honey syrup, lemon juice and a splash of peaty Scotch whisky makes this a perfect wintertime concoction. Bringing this cocktail up to your nose, you’re tricked into thinking that the drink will taste smokier than it actually is.

Penicillin (Sam Ross, Milk & Honey, New York City, 2005)

1/4 ounce Laphroaig (or other smoky Scotch)

2 ounces Monkey Shoulder Whisky

3/4 ounces honey syrup (3:1)

3/4  ounce lemon juice

2 pieces ginger root

Put the ginger in your cocktail shaker, muddle to release the juice. Combine whiskey, honey syrup and lemon juice in your cocktail shaker, add ice, and shake until ice cold. Pour over ice in a rocks glass. Float Laphroaig on top of the cocktail (do this by pouring the 1/4 ounce over the back of a bar spoon on top of the cocktail). Garnish with a slice of fresh ginger, or candied ginger.  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern pines. He can also recommend a vitamin supplement for the morning after at Nature’s Own.

The Spirit of Giving

A little tippling under the tree

By Tony Cross

This time of year is stressful. I don’t think I need to delve into the reasons why, but one thing is for sure: Alcohol consumption increases during the holidays. Everyone has his or her reasons, and many are the same, but I’ll tell you mine. Even though I gripe about all the Christmas commercials in every advertisement from mid-October through the new year, the truth is, I like it. I enjoy gift-giving too much; I put an extreme amount of pressure on myself to get the “perfect” gift for my friends and loved ones. If you are like me, I hope these gift ideas will please the budding mixmaster on your list.

Fair Game Beverage Co. Carolina Agricole Rum
375 ml, $23

Distiller Chris Jude from Fair Game Beverage Co. has been in the distilling biz for about two years now, and keeps surprising me with his fantastic new spirits. In June, he released an amber rum made with Panela cane sugar. In September, Fair Game released a very small batch (887 bottles only) of North Carolina’s first rum agricole. Now, rhum agricole (the French term) is typically produced in the Caribbean and translates to “agriculture rum.” Fresh sugarcane is used when making this rum, and Chris gets his from Catoe Farm, in Middendorf, South Carolina. He describes this rum as “slightly sweet, grassy, and just a little bit funky.” I couldn’t agree more. This is a great sipper, and a lovely base for any rum-style cocktail or punch. Ask your local ABC to get you a bottle before they’re all gone!

Ice Cube Trays, Southern Whey

Some might find large ice cube molds a bit odd, or even pretentious. Ice is ice, right? Wrong. Having the wrong type of ice in your glass can definitely ruin your drink. How’s that? Let’s first start with your freezer. If your ice is exposed to different odors from some dinner experiment that you froze back in 2015, those aromas will seep into your ice. Make sure to keep a tidy freezer, and use filtered water. It does make a difference. The style and size of your ice is a crucial element when playing bartender. Shaved ice is wet, and will quickly over-dilute your drink. What’s the point of shelling out extra money for a fine spirit when all you’re going to do is ruin it with bad ice? Easy fix: Take a stroll over to Southern Whey in downtown Southern Pines. In addition to brandied cherries, bitters and my own TONYC syrup, they carry ice molds. Large blocks of ice (think 2×2 inch) keep your fine whiskey cold, while slowly diluting your drink as time travels on.

Yarai Mixing Glass, Koriko Hawthorne Strainer,
Hoffman Barspoon, Cocktailkingdom.com, $77

For the negroni, old-fashinoned, or Manhattan lover, this is the gift for them. Let’s start with the mixing glass. The Yarai has many different styles and sizes. I’m recommending their more basic style. It holds 19 ounces, so when ice is added, you can stir a couple of cocktails at a time. The glass is thick, and dishwasher safe. I’ve had mine for almost four years. The barspoon is made from stainless steel, and is very lightweight. Paired with the mixing glass, you’ll be able to stir cocktails with ease. I’m choosing the Koriko strainer for two reasons, the first being it’s a perfect fit into the Yarai glass when you’re about to strain the liquid into the glass. Another reason to pick this strainer is that the coils are tightly wound to catch the smallest of ice granules, herbs or anything else you wouldn’t want floating on top of your shaken cocktail. Bonus use: The two holes above the coils allows you to do a split pour. Go ahead, and show off.

Barolo Chinato, Nature’s Own, $42

A few years back, I toyed around with the idea of putting a “Baller Manhattan” cocktail on my menu. The thought was to use a high-end rye whiskey, with a touch of hard-to-get absinthe, and the finest vermouth. The vermouth would have been Barolo Chinato. This really is luxury, folks: a D.O.C.G. (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita) Barolo that’s infused with rhubarb, cardamom, ginger, cinchona bark, cocoa, and spices. This fortified wine is incredible on its own, but pair it with homemade chocolate pudding, and forget about it. Now, back to that Manhattan: The complexity of this vermouth elevates the cocktail to another level. Wine distributing company Bordeaux Fine & Rare can deliver this to any bar and restaurant, but for the home imbiber, we’ve got you covered at Nature’s Own. Needless to say, I opted out of the high-end Manhattan drink, but instead used the Barolo for another drink, The Green Beret, in honor of my father, friends and other ass-kickers of the nation. I have two versions of this cocktail; one is shaken and the other is stirred. Both contain Green Chartreuse. Here’s the recipe of the stirred version that includes Barolo Chinato.

The Green Beret

Green Chartreuse

1 1/2 ounce TOPO Eight Oak Whiskey

3/4 ounce cocoa nib-infused Campari

1/2 ounce Dolin Rouge

1/4 ounce Barolo Chinato

Lemon peel

Take a double old-fashioned glass and rinse it with Green Chartreuse. Do this by pouring the Chartreuse (or misting it) into the glass, swirling it around so it touches almost every interior surface, before tossing it out. Be sure to use the minimal amount, so you do not waste any of this goodness. In a mixing glass (like the Yarai), combine all other ingredients, add ice, and stir until liquid is cold, and proper water dilution is achieved. Place a large cube of ice in your rinsed glass, and strain the liquid from the mixing vessel into the glass. Express the oils from a peel of lemon over the cocktail, dropping the peel into the drink afterward. PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern pines. He can also recommend a vitamin supplement for the morning after at Nature’s Own.

Old Fashioned Nights

And the perfect rye whiskey to take off the winter chill

By Tony Cross

Whenever Mother Nature makes up her mind, and decides that she’s going to throw colder weather our way, I always seem to forget how much I love pairing a good whiskey with the chill. There’s something about the burn going down my chest after escaping a cold and rainy night. I’m not reminiscing about the hellfire from a sour mash that I would shoot when I was barely old enough to partake. That had its time and place years ago. Nowadays, especially in good company, I opt for a good rye. One of my favorites over the past few years has been from Utah’s High West Distillery.

Jack Daniel’s was the first whiskey I ever tasted. I hated it. I’m still not fond of the spirit, and I’ll probably get a lot of flak for being honest, but I’d be fine with never ordering it again. On the other hand, I probably wouldn’t turn down a Jack & Coke if one was sent my way. It wasn’t until bourbon began making its presence on the market felt that I began experimenting, and understanding our native hooch. And then I tried rye, and it was all over. The element of spice in a rye whiskey had my taste buds intrigued from day one. Not only that, but I began to notice that rye added much more depth in the whiskey cocktails that I was playing around with. Any chance I got to purchase a new rye (as in new to our local ABC store), I would scoop it up immediately.

High West was recommended to me by a patron one night. He had just returned from a work conference in Park City, Utah, where he encountered the world’s only ski-in gastro-distillery and couldn’t contain his excitement when explaining the myriad food and drink choices on the menu. In addition to serving cocktails with their signature whiskies, High West has an extensive spirits list with everything from Green Chartreuse to, well, Jack Daniel’s. The way he explained the different nuances with High West’s whiskies sounded like an adolescent with every sense aroused. All I knew was that I sure as hell had to get my hands on some.

From my first bottle of their Double Rye! (a blend of two-year and 16-year rye whiskies) to one of their limited releases, Yippee Ki-Yay, a blend of two ryes that are aged in Vya sweet vermouth and Qupé Syrah oak barrels (I yelled it out like Bruce Willis after my first sip. Yeah, that good), proprietor and distiller, David Perkins has yet to disappoint. The mainstay on my shelf is the Rendezvous Rye, a complex rye blend that marries a spicy 6-year-old rye with a more mature 16-year rye that adds a touch of vanilla and caramel. It’s the whiskey you pour with those who will appreciate it. Perfect with a cube of ice, but fantastic in an old-fashioned (recipe below).

In the past few years that I’ve gotten acclimated with rye, more and more distilleries are becoming readily available throughout our state. The increase in sales of whiskey has gone through the roof over the past decade. Just last year alone, whiskey sales grew 7.8 percent. Americans aren’t the only ones with a thirst for our national spirit: Export sales have grown from $743 million in 2005 to $1.56 billion last year. That’s crazy. Even crazier, according to Fortune magazine, with all of the growth of beer distilleries in the U.S., “distilled spirit suppliers and marketers marked the sixth straight year of increasing their market share relative to beer.”

So, it was no surprise to me when I read that High West Distillery has just been purchased by Constellation Brands Inc., owners of Corona beer, Svedka Vodka, and Casa Noble tequila, who also recently purchased Prisoner Wine Co. and Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits. “Uh-oh,” I thought. However, the Wall Street Journal online explained that the 200 employees at the distillery will continue working there, including Mr. Perkins. “The same people will be making and selling it,” the article assured me.

Not log ago, I discovered a bottle of the Double Rye! on the shelf of our local ABC outlet. It’s good to see that our town is adding more premium spirits to their inventory. I have a lot of friends who are bourbon fans, some connoisseurs. If that’s you, I’ll say this: purchase a bottle of rye, take it home, and try it with an ice cube or two; it’ll open up the whiskey like a decanter does for wine. If you’re still not swayed, make an old-fashioned. You’ll blush and cuss.

Old-Fashioned

1 cube demerara sugar

Pinch of brown sugar

3 dashes Angostura bitters

2 dashes orange bitters

2 ounces High West Rendezvous Rye

Lemon and/or orange peel

This cocktail can be built in the glass you (or your guest) will be drinking from, or you can mix it in a cocktail shaker, and strain it into the glass. Either way, make sure the glass is a thick-bottomed 8-10 ounce old-fashioned glass. Also, spend a few extra bucks, and buy small and large ice cube molds. Last time I checked, Southern Whey on Broadstreet had those available. There’s no point in making a cocktail with a $60 whiskey, if it’s going to get watered down immediately with your crappy ice. Place both sugars at the bottom of your mixing vessel. Dash both bitters over the sugar, and muddle it into a paste. Add the whiskey, stir with a mixing spoon for a few seconds, and then add four small ice cubes, and stir for 50 revolutions. If you’re building this cocktail in your glass, carefully add the larger cube, and stir. If you’re using the smaller cubes, strain over the large cube in the rocks glass. I love using a lemon and orange peel for this classic. Express the oils of both peels over the drink before adding them in. Santé!  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern pines. He can also recommend a vitamin supplement for the morning after at Nature’s Own.

The Real Thing

Skip the mix and please your guests

By Tony Cross

About a year or so ago, Carter, my very good friend, and I were at a restaurant bar scoping out their cocktail list. Now, my friend doesn’t geek out as much as I’ve been known to when we frequent restaurant bars; however, he does appreciate a good drink, and has picked up a knack for calling out poorly made ones. We decided to order a few apps and cocktails to start. I ordered a Manhattan, and Carter chose their house margarita. Our bartender posed a question to Carter that perplexed the two of us: Would he like fresh juice in his drink? We both sat there puzzled, our minds blown. “Yes?…” Carter replied after a moment of sitting, and staring at the bartender in a (sober) stupor. We soon realized after studying the menu that having fresh-pressed juice was a $2 upcharge. You know, because limes are expensive. The only thing that made me laugh more was the fact that Carter had just spent $14 (that’s right) on one of the worst margaritas of his life. I tried it, and it was pretty bad. Point being — it’s the 21st century; why isn’t everyone using fresh citrus?

Sour mix is everywhere: in all of the chain restaurants and dive bars. It’s also in many independent restaurants, private clubs and country clubs. It’s available from wine distributors and food distribution companies. Part of me doesn’t understand how an establishment that prides itself on using fresh ingredients won’t carry the same thought process behind the bar. It’s safe to say that no chef would ever use a lemon juice substitute when creating a sauce. So why are bartenders ordering container after container of this gooey, high-fructose corn syrupy mess, and putting them in their cocktails? The answer’s pretty simple. You’re paying for them. One after another.

Using fresh citrus is crucial when concocting a drink for your guests. Here’s the thing with lemons and limes, though: Their juice loses its “pop” within four to six hours. It’s even shorter for orange juice. I’ve been to places that will juice enough citrus for the week, and call it a day. You’ve got to juice for the moment, be that the afternoon, or for your shift. Yes, juice the next day is better than corn syrupy imitation juice, but that’s not the point. Try making the same cocktail with fresh juice, and juice from the day before, and you’ll notice immediately what is wrong with the latter. Some professional bartenders want juice that has just been pressed, while others like using juice that’s had a few hours to breathe. I like having my juice sitting for about two hours; I feel like it opens up a bit, and doesn’t bite as much. I know that makes no sense to you, so you’re going to have to trust me.

Here are a few cocktails that you can put to the test. Invite a friend over, give them the drink with the sour mix, give yourself the one with fresh citrus. Then, give ’em a taste.

Margarita

Now, this is the most asexual drink there is on the planet. Every grocery store has some type of margarita mix, and we’ve all probably purchased them at one time or another. Remember, give your friend the ’Rita with the bad mix. After they taste yours with the fresh juice, they’ll want to switch, and that’s OK. Just be sure to charge ’em two bucks.

2 ounces blanco tequila (I like Milagro Silver)

1/2 ounce Cointreau

3/4 ounce lime juice

1/2 ounce simple syrup (2:1)

Salt (optional)

Lime wedge

Combine all ingredients in a Boston shaker with ice, and shake like hell for 10 seconds. Strain into a rocks glass over ice. If you’d like salt, just rim half of your rocks glass with a lime wedge, and then carefully roll it over salt. I like using half of the glass; that way if you want to switch, you can rotate the glass to the non-salty side. Add a wedge of lime.

Whiskey Sour

Like most first encounters I’ve had over the years with cocktails, the whiskey sour definitely was not love at first gulp. And that’s because it was made with some crap whiskey, and (you guessed it) sour mix. When made correctly, a true whiskey sour is made with rye whiskey, fresh lemon and sugar. It’s that simple. I love it with an egg white, too. Don’t make that face; it gives the cocktail a velvety mouth-feel, and brings a whole new dimension to the drink.

2 ounces rye whiskey (I like Rittenhouse)

3/4 ounce lemon juice

1/2 ounce simple syrup (2:1)

(With an egg white, add it to the shaker first, and then the above ingredients. If you add it last, you run the risk of getting the yolk into the mix, thus ruining it. I’d still drink it.)

Combine all ingredients in a Boston shaker with ice, and shake for 10 seconds. Strain into a rocks glass over ice. Take a lemon or orange peel, expressing the oils over the cocktail, and then dropping it into the drink. If you want to try something different, take 1/2 ounce of a dry red wine (I like using malbec or syrah), floating it on top of the cocktail. Now you have a New York Sour.

Shadowplay

I was having a hard time deciding if I wanted a beer or cocktail one afternoon. This spawned a combo that I am quite happy with. I named it after the only song it seems that anyone knows from the 1970s band “Joy Division.” Not that you care, but when I’m making drinks, I usually have a song stuck in my head, which ultimately becomes the name of that drink. In this case, it was the infamous “Joy Division” tune.

1 1/2 ounces Don Julio Blanco

1/4 ounce Aperol

1/2 ounce grapefruit juice

1/4 ounce lime juice

1/4 ounce light agave syrup

2 dashes Scrappy’s Lime Bitters (optional)

1 ounce Southern Pines Brewery Man of Law IPA

Repeat the adding and shaking from above, pouring this over ice. Top off with Man of Law. Garnish with a grapefruit peel, expressing the oils over the drink before violently throwing it in your cocktail. Good stuff.  PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern pines. He can also recommend a vitamin supplement for the morning after at Nature’s Own.

Subtle Notes

And the myriad of flavors from Winston-Salem’s Sutler’s Gin

By Tony Cross

“When are you coming up to Winston-Salem? How does your schedule look for the next two weeks? Any chance you are coming to the Triad area? Either way I need to get Sutler’s Gin into your market very soon.” All are questions from Scot Sanborn, owner and distiller of Sutler’s Gin. Sanborn and I were introduced via email from a mutual friend back in March. We’d been playing tag up until July, when the two of us finally sat down at his distillery and had a chance to talk. When we went our separate ways, I left Sanborn a bottle of my Tonyc and took with me his sleek and sexy bottle of Sutler’s that I purchased. I definitely got the better deal in the exchange.

Although he was born in Boston, Sanborn considers himself a “Southern soul with Yankee blood.” As he relocated to the South as an infant, Charleston, South Carolina, served as his stomping ground as a youth. After graduating high school, Sanborn went on to attend The Citadel, where he received his undergraduate degree, and later, his MBA.

When scanning over his unique bottle of gin, you can definitely see the patriotic influence. Twenty-some years of the commercial photography business followed, but it wasn’t until eight years ago, when Sanborn began experimenting with home distilling, that his passion developed. After making what he calls “horrible tasting spirits,” Sanborn began taking distilling courses, traveling the country, and acting as an apprentice to deepen his knowledge and perfect his craft. Soon after, he left his domestic cocoon of garage distilling and took it to the next level.

Gin is the spirit that has intrigued him the most over the years for a few different reasons. “It’s versatile and classy, and it doesn’t require aging, which means that I knew that I could get it on the market much quicker than other spirits starting out.” He’s also been perplexed as to why gin sales in the South aren’t much higher than they are: “I feel that gin is a spirit that people have forgotten about, but are slowly returning to.” And he’s right: Most folks that I’ve talked to that pass on gin do so because they’re used to London Dry gins, whose characteristics are juniper-forward, or “piney,” as most would put it (think Beefeater’s or Tanqueray). It wasn’t until Hendrick’s went global that people began to rethink their position on the ever-changing botanical spirit.

Delving into a glass of Sutler’s, on the nose I immediately notice the presence of juniper. However, on the palate, the juniper is present, but nothing like a London Dry or as Sanborn calls it “a lack of a ‘punch in the mouth’ Christmas tree flavor.” In fact, I find that the juniper is balanced quite nicely with citrus, and coriander. On the finish, a trace of lavender and Earl Grey tea. I’ve never prided myself on having the best palate so I’m afraid that I’ve had to keep sipping just to make sure that I get this right.

Actually, this is something that Sanborn and I have in common: good, but not great palates. To help him with distinguishing the subtler notes of his labors, Sanborn recruited distiller Tim Nolan. The two met in Winston-Salem a few years ago when Sanborn was building his distillery. Sanborn would cool off next door at a bar/brewery and would chat with Nolan, who managed and was behind the bar. Nolan’s background spans over 10 years in the food and beverage industry, which includes working in New York and studying abroad in Italy. They would always chat, and “during one of these conversations, I realized he was very knowledgeable about gin and I asked if he would like to help me.” After a short apprenticeship, Nolan became a “mad scientist, (and) after almost 11 months of hard work, and making all types of gin, Nolan and I were finally confidant that we had something that was special. I am very lucky to have found someone who is so passionate about gin and other unique spirits. Nolan is a great asset to Sutler’s Spirit Co.”

Even though Sanborn and Nolan can drink the fruits of their labor, they still have other obstacles to overcome. One of them? Moore County. I guarantee that as I am writing this, 99 percent of locals have not purchased a bottle of Sutler’s Gin, and that’s because it hasn’t been available in our local ABC stores.

“Moore County has been quite the conundrum,” Sanborn says. “I would have expected with the demographics of this area that gin would be consumed much more than it currently is. I would like to think that for some reason they have forgotten gin, but will soon remember it.”

After a meeting with the local board in July, it will now. Even though they’re only selling in North Carolina at the moment, Sanborn stresses the importance of getting his gin in every ABC store. “If your local ABC board does not carry it, please request it, and most likely they will be happy to order it for you,” he says.

It’s only a matter of time before Sutler’s Gin makes its way across the Southeast and other parts of our nation. The gin has plenty of depth, with unique packaging to boot. In time, Sanborn and Nolan plan to release a rum that they’ve had barrel-aging for a few years. They’re hoping for a winter release, but nothing’s set in stone yet. In addition to the gin and rum, they’re experimenting with other spirits at the moment. Their gin is delicious, so I’m eagerly anticipating their rum, my favorite spirit. With the work ethic that these two employ, I’m sure it’s going to be nothing short of fantastic. PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern pines. He can also recommend a vitamin supplement for the morning after at Nature’s Own.

Summer Well

Must reading for your craft cocktail enjoyment

By Tony Cross

The craft cocktail movement has been in full effect for well over a decade now, yet a Moscow Mule is still foreign to a majority of locals in the Sandhills. I’ll admit that we’re slow to catch up on what’s happening in bigger cities; I had no clue about such cocktails until three years ago. When I started to delve into the world of balancing drinks, there was already so much information out there to give me a head start: I would watch videos on YouTube, check out menus from bars and restaurants across the globe, and, of course, study books from respected and famous bartenders. There are so many great reads, but I’ve picked three that have inspired me when I’ve prepared menus and drinks for events, and friends.

Speakeasy, by Jason Kosmas and Dushan Zaric

Written by the guys that started up Employees Only, one of the first craft cocktail joints that started the movement at the beginning of the millennium, Speakeasy was the first book I read when I became serious about making drinks. I first discovered Employees Only in a small New York Times article about a bar that sold their homemade grenadine and other syrups to guests and surrounding bars. Needless to say, that article piqued my interest and got the ball rolling on my curiosity for cocktails and the fancy establishments that perfected them. Ice is discussed in one of the first chapters; this may seem pretentious at first, but ice is a crucial ingredient to any good cocktail. Classics are covered, as well as many signature drinks that found their way onto the EO menu over the years.

Billionaire Cocktail

2 oz Baker’s 7 Year Old Bourbon

1 oz lemon juice

½ 1/2 oz simple syrup

½ 1/2 oz grenadine

¼ 1/4 oz absinthe bitters (or substitute Pernod)

1 lemon wheel

Combine bourbon, lemon juice, syrup, grenadine and bitters into a mixing glass. Add ice and shake like hell for 10 seconds. Double strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with lemon wheel.

Bitterman’s Field Guide to Bitters and Amari, by Mark Bitterman

This one isn’t even a year old yet, but has been a staple at my home. Mark Bitterman has two shops (New York City, and Portland, Oregon) called The Meadow, which sells salts, chocolates and bitters. I was lucky enough to step into The Meadow a few years ago, and I was quickly overwhelmed by the large selection of tonics and bitters. Having this book on hand would’ve been a godsend. It’s only fitting that Bitterman’s passion is also part of his last name; his attention to detail goes above and beyond when describing amari and bitters. When breaking down the various brands of bitters, Bitterman uses a rating system from 1 (least) to 5 (most) on aromatics, bitterness and sweetness levels. There are also tasting notes to describe each product, along with the types of drinks that each one pairs with well. The same rating system and descriptions are used in his “Amari” section. In addition to describing practically every bitters on the planet, there are also recipes for making your own bitters (with a sitting time of less than a week!), cooking with bitters, and, of course, making cocktails with bitters. Bitterman gives plenty of examples of how switching up your bitters arsenal puts a great twist on the classics.

This recipe comes from Kirk Estopinal, bartender at Cure in New Orleans, and his now nowhere to be found Rogue Cocktails book (I borrowed it from a friend last year). Bitterman published this in his Field Guide, and it’s absolutely delicious.

Angostura Sour

3/4 oz lemon juice

1 egg white*

1 1/2 oz Angostura bitters

1 oz simple syrup (1:1)

Dry-shake the lemon juice and the egg white. (Put both ingredients into a shaker, and shake without ice. We do this to break up the protein bonds in the egg white; the result is a frothy, velvety texture in your cocktail.) Add the bitters, syrup, and ice and shake hard for 30 seconds. Strain into a chilled cocktail coupe.

*Largely misunderstood, using egg whites in cocktails has been common practice since cocktails were created way back when. Many people are concerned about the risk of salmonella, but as long as you’re using organic/cage-free eggs (with the combination of high-proof alcohol), you’ll be good to go.

Death & Co. Modern Classic Cocktails, by David Kaplan, Nick Fauchald, Alex Day

The hype behind this book before it came out was all over the internet. I ordered it as soon as it became available, and was blown away on my first read. This is definitely, IMO, the best cocktail book out there. Death & Company opened in 2006 in New York City, making its mark in the craft cocktail movement. They’ve won awards at the annual Tales of the Cocktail convention in NOLA (Best Cocktail Menu, and Best American Bar), and with 500 cocktails to look over, it’s easy to see what a creative force this bar has been with bartenders from past and present. Death & Co. has a section on every spirit, including brand recommendations; sections on juicing, ice and tools; how to taste-evaluate cocktails, and even pages here and there devoted to their regulars telling fond stories about their first or favorite times at the bar with their favorite cocktail and its recipe on the side page. Too much to say about this work of art.

Shattered Glasser by phil Ward, 2008

“I love it when one of our regulars asks us to create a cocktail on the spot based on crazy criteria — and it’s even better when we can pull off a decent drink on the first try. One night Avery Glasser, the man behind Bittermens bitters (no relation to Mark Bitterman) and one of the bar’s original regulars, asked me to make him a drink that contained all of his favorite ingredients. The problem was that he likes a lot of weird shit. But, I gave it a shot, splitting both the base spirit and its modifiers, and it resulted in a surprisingly balanced drink.” — PW

1 oz El Tesoro Reposado Tequila

½1/2 oz Los Amantes Mezcal Joven

3/4 oz Carpano Antica Formula Vermouth

1/2 oz Van Oosten Batavia Arrack

1/4 oz St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram

1/4 oz Benedictine

2 dashes Bittermens Xocolatl Mole Bitters

Stir all ingredients over ice, then strain into a coupe. No garnish. PS

Tony Cross is a bartender who runs cocktail catering company Reverie Cocktails in Southern pines. He can also recommend a vitamin supplement for the morning after at Nature’s Own.