Do Not Go Gently Into That Good Night...

It's official: only three more shifts at the venerable Hotel Congress. It's a bittersweet ending to a hellavua ride these last four years. I would like to think that drinking in Tucson has in some way benefited from our efforts here. After winning a handful of cool awards and getting downtown's incorrigably hip drunk for the last part of a decade, it's time for this show to hit the road. Where I end up is uncertain now, but know this: there will be drinking.

A Better Way To Make Ginger Syrup?

A Better Way to Make Ginger Syrup?

We're crankin' through the stuff...

I’ve scoured the internet from top to bottom in search of good recipes for ginger syrup. As you may or may not know, the trend is to steer away from ginger beer in a can and instead to make one’s own spicy concoction for cocktails. Most recipes that can be found involve simmering ginger root in a simple syrup to extract the flavor. This is fine for one-time use, but as Kaiser Penguin notes in his blog, there is always the age-old problem of degradation. Over time, the ginger flavor begins to fade (and when I say over time, I mean a matter of days) and the syrup becomes rather useless for drinks such as the Dark ‘n Stormy.

Another method is to press the ginger root, or puree it, and strain the juice into a fresh ginger concentrate. Small amounts of this will go a long way in a cocktail, but it too suffers as any fresh juice does; in a matter of days, it oxidizes. Not like citrus, but it certainly loses the zing. I came across a discussion thread on “A Mountain of Crushed Ice” that (supposedly) listed the method that The Violet Hour in Chicago uses for their ginger syrup, which is a mixture of 2 parts sugar to 1 part ginger juice. This is better, as the sugar helps as a preservative. But this can’t be ALL that they do. As Kaiser Penguin notes, there is a 122-year precedent of this problem.

After much experimentation, McGillionaire and I decided that instead of boiling the ginger, we would go with a puree. To counteract the ginger/sugar difficulties, and to make the syrup less sweet, we used lemon juice to help puree the ginger. Turns out, this messes with the pH of the mixture and helps keep the ginger from breaking down. After pureeing the ginger root, we strained the puree through a chinoise and then added the sugar. We made sure not to boil the syrup, as to not convert the sugar. We also added peppercorns and a tiny bit of clove, to help strengthen the spice. I also contemplated using a pinch of cayenne pepper, but I didn’t want to ruin a big batch of syrup.

The result is a thick, smooth syrup which can be mixed with soda water to instantly create ginger beer. Or, mixed with water and fresh lemon, could be bottled and fermented a la Jeffrey Morgenthaler’s ginger beer.

The syrup hasn’t lost its potency yet, and it’s been two weeks…

Come and get it.

East End Bitters Debut!

East End Bitters Debut!

East End Bitters will be available @ Congress & Maynards Market

Hotel Congress & Maynards Market proudly present our very own house-made bitters: East End Bitters.

Created by mixologist Aaron DeFeo, East End Bitters combines notes of lavender, grapefruit, & ginger with earthy tones and a bitter, floral backbone provided by cascade hops.

The bitters is ideal for gin, tequila, and whiskey-based cocktails.

The new Cup Cafe drink list, soft-debuting on Monday, August 2nd, features East End Bitters in two cocktails: The Pete Martinez and Dead Western Plains.

Dead Western Plains, named after the popular local band of the same name, invokes dusty, desert vegetal flavors while in balance with just the right amount of sweetness provided by Chartreuse and agave nectar. The East End Bitters helps to bring out and compliment the Chartreuse’s floral and spicy characteristics.

The Pete Martinez is a classically-inspired drink unlike any other. Featuring High West Silver whiskey from Park City, Utah, the Pete Martinez cocktail utilizes the malty character of the oat-based whiskey balanced with sweet blanc vermouth. It is truly the gem of the new signature cocktail menu.

East End Bitters will be available at Hotel Congress begining August 2nd, and at Maynards beginning August 10th.

Bad Lieutenant 3: Tales of the Cocktail New Orleans

Bad Lieutenant 3: Tales of the Cocktail, New Orleans

Congress allows its Ne’er-do-well night manager a chance to put on a full-scale theater follow-up to the Bad Lieutenant franchise, only without a theater and no affiliation with law enforcement… It’s still set in New Orleans, only this time it’s a cocktail convention. And this time, it’s personal.

I’m sure at this point anyone who drinks has heard of ”Bad Lieutenant.” And why shouldn’t they? Drinking and debauchery are the calling cards of independent film’s answer to Dirty Harry, first portrayed by Hollywood enigma Harvey Keitel and then, most recently, by Nicholas Cage (see: Con Air) in ”Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans”.

I’ll spare you the Redbox rental: it’s an awful movie. Nicolas Cage somehow finds a way to overact a character who is so over-the-top to begin with that any move he makes seems plausible. It was only natural, then, that when the Hotel Congress graciously allowed me to join hundreds of my fellow mixologists and operators at the industry’s premier conference in New Orleans that I thought immediately of Nick Cage’s escapades. ”Oh man, that’s gonna be me at the end of July: cavorting around the Vieux Carre with a host of drunken degenerates, sampling world class spirits by day and getting ejected from fine restaurants at night.”

Of course, as I sit here 30,000 feet in the air; approximately 40 minutes from the Big Easy, typing inventory into a spreadsheet, I’m a little less gung-ho. The reality that this is a work trip is setting in much more quickly than I had anticipated. Granted, this might have something to do with me forgoing sleep in order to arrive in time for some important midday seminars. Or maybe it’s that my superiors will be expecting more than just some gin-soaked stories out of this trip. Tales of the Cocktail is the equivalent of March Madness for the cocktailing world. Expert mixologists, bartenders, and spirits gurus from all across the world converge for one magic week to swap techniques, ideas, and business cards–all while experiencing the purported magic of the American Lazarus City: a place that continues to resurrect and reinvent itself, despite the economic and Act-of-God disasters that continue to befall its citizens. New Orleans apparently holds a special place in the hearts of many of its former residents and visitors. Our Cup Cafe General Manager, Steven Dunn, is probably cursing me right now for being back in his beloved city. My only experience with New Orleans is being menaced by a woman with a kitchen knife outside the hotel who happened to be a New Orleans native. Whatever. There are bad seeds everywhere. I posted an update on Facebook saying ”T-minus 12 hours until New Orleans.”. An old college friend responded, ”Hasn’t that city suffered enough?”

My arrival time of 11:35 am means I’ll miss one of the best seminars, ”Systems of the Industry’s Best Operators Revealed.”. But I will be able to catch a seminar on intellectual property rights, followed by ”The Fine Art of Negotiating a Deal.” After that, well, I guess I’ll probably try and catch up with Skybar’s Patrick O’Brien, have a drink at the carousel bar in the Hotel Monteleone, or maybe I’ll go on a hunt for some cool antique cocktail tools. Who knows? In New Orleans, anything is possible.

First Cocktail Class Recap

First Cocktail Class Recap

Each participant got the opportunity to taste and smell all eight of the herbs alongside ideal mixing spirits

I must admit, when we first began envisioning a cocktail class series back in the fall of ‘09, I was a little apprehensive. Anyone who’s ever seen the film Annie Hall probably remembers Woody Allen’s opening monologue, where he references the teachers at his elementary school: “You know, we had a saying, uh, that those who can’t do teach, and those who can’t teach, teach gym. And, uh, those who couldn’t do anything, I think, were assigned to our school.” Well, I never wanted to besomeone who couldn’t do. Management does that to a bartender sometimes… steals a little bit of that entreprenurial spirit and replaces it with company mantra, and the distance from being behind the stick can make you doubt your abilities. But this class ended up being an affirmation to me that A) I’m not incompetent, and B) There is a method to all of this mixology madness. It also helped re-inspire myself and my fantastic associates who were kind enough to help me out. There was Lars Fasel, our energetic Somm; Harold Garland, our stalwart manager and bartender from the Cup Cafe; Ciaran Wiese, the young, cocky, and talented bartender who has honed his skills with some of the best bartenders in the country; and last but not least, Patty O’Brien from Sky Bar… our “special guest.” All of them got a chance to work one-on-one with the participants behind our club and lobby bar with a smorgasbord of ingredients.

Sky Bar's Patty O'Brien helps a lovely gal understand the nuances of her herbal concoction

The class was the first in a series of six classes per year, geared at educating the general public about the craft of bartending, mixology, and spirits. Had it failed, we may have reconsidered having a six-part class series… but we had 19 attendees out of 20 spots filled (with some cancellations, so we would have actually been overbooked!). The ultimate goal for attendees will be to complete all six classes, and at least two major tasting events, to receive a diploma from the HC. This includes events such as Agavefest. Component Wine Tasting, Tucson Cocktail Classic etc.

The first part of the course was a brief overview of cocktail history (probably too brief, but that’s an extended subject for another time) and an explanation of five basic categories of cocktails. The history was mostly gleaned from various Dave Wondrich tomes (if you haven’t had an opportunity to read Imbibe! or Killer Cocktailsthen you absolutely must RUN not walk to either Borders or Amazon.com.) Then, after a tour of basic bar tools and bar techniques, we got to tasting, smelling, and experiencing the eight herbs we had to work with, along with two spirits that happen to go very well with them: gin and tequila.

Then we got behind the stick. Most of the participants were pleasantly surprised that they would actually be able to make cocktails in the class, and not just learn about them. Aren’t we the best?

Groups one and two take to the bar under the tutelage of Lars, Harold & Patrick

Two of the best liquors for herbal cocktails are tequila and gin, so naturally we encouraged everyone to use those as the base for their cocktails. There were still some vodka hold-outs, but… we can’t expect everyone to be a burgeoning Pegu Club prodigy. I do think that everyone that tried gin or tequila in their cocktails (some for the first time) were at least for the time being converted.

Guests had a blast getting their own chance "behind the stick"

We used four principle liquors: Gin (Plymouth), Tequila (Hornitos Plata), Bourbon (Beam), and Vodka (42 Below). Plymouth is great because of its toned-down juniper and stronger earthy notes. Hornitos Plata is a very neutral tequila, with all of the great agave characteristics but without the strong deliniation of place. Beam serves fine for experimental bourbon cocktails. And 42 Below is one of the most underrated vodkas on the market. Produced in New Zealand on the 42nd Latitude, 42 Below has sweet and sharp notes without being aggressive, and holds up well to potent mixers such as herbs and ginger. It also has the added benefit of being 84 proof, so the extra alcohol helps release herbal flavors (it is AMAZING with infusions).

In addition to the eight herbs (thyme, rosemary, mint, basil, thai basil, tarragon, sage, and dill) we also had a bunch of fresh fruit, because nothing goes well with herbs like nature’s sweetness.

Fresh fruit compliments herbs perfectly, but blueberries are a b*$#&h to muddle!

We divided the group into two skill sets: those who had a cocktail background and felt relatively comfortable with liquor, and those who had little to no experience, but a LOT of enthusiasm. I assigned Lars, Harold, and Patrick to the larger, more inexperienced group to make sure they got as much one-on-one instruction and hands-on bar time. The other, smaller group went with Ciaran to the lobby. Ciaran did a quick review of some basic bartending techniques and jumped right into it, guiding his peeps through classically-inspired herb cocktails.

Ciaran Wiese explains the textural nuances of each individual herb

In the end, most of the cocktails produced were fantastic. Though originally we didn’t encourage the use of other liqueurs and specialty syrups, we let everyone have a certain degree of flexibility and some people even started using more esoteric and obscure liqueurs such as Chartreuse, maraschino, and Solerno.

A delightful concoction with whiskey, sage & demerara syrup

Celebrity Mixologist Sighting: Brad Farran

Mr. Brad Farran

For those that don’t know him, Brad Farran is one of New York City’s finest mixologists. Known for being a meticulous perfectionist, Brad makes his home at the venerable Clover Club in NYC. The Clover Club was recently crowned as one of America’s Top Bars by Esquire Magazine (hmmm… sounds familiar ) and is known for being one of the best cocktail bars in the world. Most recently, I met Brad as he sipped on a Miller High Life here at our own Club Congress on a Saturday night. We’re lucky to have talent like him stopping by, and it’s a great chance for us to make an impression on those from the East Coast.

In honor of Mr. Farran, here’s one of his original creations, “Davy Jones’ Locker”.

2 oz. aged rum (Farran uses Appleton Reserve)
1 oz. fresh grapefruit juice
1/2 oz. cinnamon bark syrup (see below)
1/4 oz. Fernet Branca
1/4 oz. fresh lime juice
Ice cubes
Tools: shaker, strainer
Glass: sour
Garnish: lime wheel

Combine all ingredients and shake vigorously. Strain into a frozen sour glass and garnish.

Cinnamon Bark Syrup
In a glass jar, combine 1/3 tsp. of freshly ground cinnamon with 2 cups of simple syrup (1:1). Keep refrigerated and shake well before each use.

Brad Farran, Clover Club, Brooklyn, New York

Apparently when I saw him, Brad had been “sampling” drinks since 10 a.m…. a Man of my own heart. He wasn’t any worse for the wear. A nice chap, to boot. Brad will be doing seminars at the Manhattan Cocktail Classic in late May, and I look forward to getting very inebriated with him at Tales of the Cocktail in July.

Meattails

If you follow some of the more technical and in-depth cocktail blogs around the country, such as spiritsandcocktails.com (Jamie Bordeaux’s blog), Jeffrey Morgenthaler’s site (www.jeffreymorgenthaler.com), and various other tremendous homages to the art of drink, you will undoubtedly have stumbled across descriptions of the technique of “fat-washing”; a process of infusing melted fat into liquor and then freezing the mixture to solidify the fat for easy straining. Not to be outdone here in the Hotel Congress lab, my colleague Mike “McGillionaire” and I set out to duplicate—and perhaps surpass—the efforts of some of the foremost bar chefs and mixologists in the country.

Our first attempt was with vodka, and we decided to use bacon, since rendered bacon fat is fairly free of debris and doesn’t require laborious “hot straining”, which is essentially running the liquid hot fat through some sort of chinoise device. Here’s what we used:

(1) 1-Liter bottle of vodka (we used Kamchatka, just because if we screwed it up we didn’t want to lose a bottle of premium stuff. I strongly suggest using something at least of Smirnoff level… Stoli would work well. Stay away from Absolut.)

2 oz. Filtered Bacon fat, liquid (to do this, take a dollop of bacon fat and microwave it in a coffee cup). As long as there are no bacon bits left in the fat, filtering isn’t necessary.

(1) airtight glass or plastic container larger than 1 liter (I prefer glass)

(2) coffee filters… these are essential to the finished product

(1) Serving container

(1) Freezer

After warming the fat into a clear liquid, pour it into the airtight container with the vodka. Shake this mixture quickly and let sit at room temperature for 1-3 hours… two hours should be more than sufficient. Then place the mixture in the freezer. I recommend leaving it freezing overnight, just to be sure. When the mixture comes out of the freezer, you will notice that A) all or most of the fat has “pancaked” in the container, and B) the mixture has little to no discernable odor. Never fear, the odor will return once the liquid returns closer to room temperature, and with a vengeance. Before the liquid begins to warm up, use a pair of tongs to remove the chunks of fat. Then strain the liquid through a coffee filter into your serving container. You may have to change filters halfway through. The result is like this:

Mmmm... well vodka. With Bacon.

And once we had our bacon vodka, I had to find a medium of delivery. I settled finally on a traditional bloody mary… and the result is fantastic. But wait… for those looking for a savory martini, this is a good recipe:

2 oz. Bacon-infused vodka

½ oz Dry Vermouth

barspoon Maple syrup

Pinch of salt

Squeeze of lemon peel

Stir ingredients over cracked ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with bacon, blue cheese, and red pepper-stuffed olives.

Now that we had perfected the bacon vodka, we wanted to follow in the footsteps of Don Lee from New York’s PDT and try our hand at bourbon. He invented the Benton Old Fashioned, which is essentially an old fashioned with maple syrup and Benton bacon-infused bourbon. Delicious. But we wanted to go even further. The Cup Café has this marvelous smoker which operates at all hours of the day, imparting delicious mesquite flavor to many of our fine meat dishes, like the BBQ Brisket.

Our chef, Travis Peters, was gracious enough to save me a pan of his brisket fat run-off, which smells heavenly but frankly looks dreadful.

It's so foul but so good!

Using the same process as the vodka, we fat-washed Maker’s Mark bourbon with the brisket fat. One problem we found was that the brisket fat contained a preponderance of herbs, spices, and charred bits of brisket which we should have strained first before the infusion. You live and you learn, I guess.

The result? A bourbon with the characteristic sweetness of Maker’s Mark (high wheat content) along with a strong herbal component and a brutal smokiness, almost akin to an Islay scotch. McGillionaire was so excited about the result that he immediately mixed a traditional sour:

Like meat heaven once it hits your lips.

The McGillionaire

2 oz. BBQ Brisket-infused Maker’s Mark

1 oz. Fresh lemon juice

1 oz. demerara syrup

1 egg white

Peychaud’s bitters

Dry shake egg whites and lemon juice. Add bourbon, demerara and ice. Shake vigorously. Strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with a dash of peychaud’s bitters on the resulting foam.

Money. Bartender Ciaran Wiese has been making some old fashioned cocktails with the stuff over at Maynards Market & Kitchen… come in and prepare to have your mind blown.