SPIRITUOUS JOURNEY (Book II) &THE BOOK OF BOURBON

In August, I posted a brief review of SPIRITUOUS JOURNEY: BOOK I the first part of a trilogy cataloguing the history of mixed drinks from the earliest punches and toddies to the modern art of molecular mixology. It is authored by two of the world's great drinks historians, Anistatia Miller and Jared Brown.

I have been fortunate enough to hear Jared and Anistatia talk about their favourite subject on quite a few occasions, most recently at an English Gin symposium here in Los Angeles. So, it is little surprise then, that I have found the books almost as enjoyable as hearing them in person. Both installments are written with the same infectious enthusiasm as the pair display when they give their lectures (or should that be performances?) but also contain enough detail to let you know that they are based on impeccable research.

Book II is even more entertaining than Book I and begins as America is hitting its stride as the home of mixed drinks following its development through to the arrival of the disastrous experiment that was prohibition. Along the way, the authors share countless anecdotes (did you know that the first use of the word "cocktail" was in a pub on Downing Street in London in 1798?) plenty of historical recipes (Ramos Fizz and The Blue Blazer to name just two) and interesting sociological discussion (Bartending and drink mixing was one of the few areas in the US where Black workers were able to rise to the same level as their white counterparts without prejudice)

This series is a must have for anyone who is serious about their cocktails and I am eagerly awaiting Book III.

Buy it on Amazon HERE

In the same package as the book from Jared and Anistatia, arrived a another bulkier tome called The Book Of Bourbon: And Other Fine American Whiskeys by the displaced Yorkshire bar legend that is Gary Regan and his wife, Mardee Haidin Regan. The book was first published fifteen years ago and rapidly became the go to book for anyone interested in distilled spirits with that added "e"

Like Spirituous Journeys, anyone who has ever heard Gary talk (and talk and talk and talk) about cocktails will recognise the style of the book immediately for its knowledge and wit. This is a straight reprint. That inevitably means the reader is left wishing that the book could have been updated to cover the considerable developments of the last decade and a half. However, there is still a great deal to admire in a work that was, and probably still is, considered the finest book on the subject.

The Regans not only offers up a history of the spirit, but also a detailed whiskey tasting primer, a guide to the brands and distilleries and even a selection of recipes involving whiskey (like a delicious sounding Bourbon Bread Pudding) Best of all, there is Regan's own recipe for orange bitters, which any serious cocktail enthusiast will definitely want to give a go.

Now, how about an updated version, Gary?

Buy it on Amazon HERE

THE GINGER LADY MAC: LADY LUCK WHISKY & THE KING'S GINGER, GOOD FOR WHAT AILS YOU

Since a rather boozy and altogether fabulous lunch at Locanda Locatelli ten days ago, I have been on the wagon. In part preparation for the latest DH excursion to Madrid this week and in part in recognition that, at my age, the body simply needs to take a real break every now and then from the rigours of eating and drinking for a living.

Going cold turkey for so long has obviously sent my body into shock and I managed to develop a stinker of a cold which has laid me low and meant that I have not been able to leave the flat for the last four days. I have tried everything to shake it off from nuclear strength lemsip to some unmarked tablets I had in the bathroom, which I think were originally prescribed for gout. But, nothing seemed to help as I sat sniffling, wheezing and unable to get a decent night's sleep with out the help of a pill.

Finally, I turned to the only thing which has never let me down, good old fashioned booze. I had recently received sampler sized bottles of two very interesting new products and decided to use them to create a new twist on a classic winter drink.

From Berry Bros & Rudd, I had received a sample of The King's Ginger, an intriguing liqueur first formulated for King Edward VII in 1903 at the request of his physician worried about the monarch catching a cold while riding around in his new fangled horseless carriage. The Liqueur has a wonderfully fragrant hit of ginger on first nosing, which follows through to the first taste on the palate. There is also a refreshing note of citrus, which stays in the mouth long after the sip has travelled down the throat.

I can imagine that this would be a good base for a number of cocktails, but I had the perfect companion for it as I had also been sent a sampler of the new season whisky from one of my favourite people in the spirit business, John Glaser of Compass Box Whisky.
I make no bones about my passion for the Compass Box range, so when John sent me a little taster of his new whisky, Lady Luck, I was keen to put it to the test.

It is quite something to taste on its own, a limited edition "Vatted Malt" of a 25yr and 29yr Islay Malts from Caol Ila softened with a relative whippersnapper of a 14year old Imperial Highland malt. Fruity and elegant, perfect to cut with water and sip slowly allowing the flavours to linger in the mouth.

What better way to combine these two beautifully crafted drinks than to blend them into a cocktail classic? The Whisky Mac is traditionally made with ginger wine and and any whisky of choice. Here, I played around with the recipe mixing 1/3 of The King's Ginger with 2/3rds of Lady Luck and brought in some elements from The Old Fashioned with sugar syrup and Angostura Bitters. Instead of serving over ice, I poured the shaken drink into a frozen Old Fashioned glass, adding the finishing flourish of a twist of lemon to lift the fruit flavours in both drinks.

Although a chilled drink, the end result is a smooth but warming cocktail, perfect to sip on during the cold winter nights.

INGREDIENTS
50mls Compass Box Lady Luck Whisky
25mls The King's Ginger
1tspn Sugar Syrup (equal parts sugar and water mixed until sugar disolves)
2 drops Angostura Bitters
Lemon twist
Old Fashioned Glass

METHOD
Chill the Old Fashioned Glass in the freezer for ten mins prior to making the cocktail
Mix The King's Ginger and Lady Luck Whisky in a shaker with ice
Remove the glass from the freezer and rinse with the bitters and sugar syrup, shaking out the excess.
Strain the contents of the shaker into the glass.
Twist the lemon peel to give a good spritz of citrus oil on the surface and slide the tist into the drink.
Serve

PLYMOUTH GIN LONDON COCKTAIL PILGRIMAGE 2009: IN THE COMPANY OF GOOD SPIRITS

So here’s the thing.

Imagine I am high above the earth in the basket of a hot air balloon. The sky is blue and the ground below dappled by the sunlight through what few clouds there are. To my right is a bartender, whose single task it is to provide me with a constant supply of perfectly made Martinis, to the left, is a chef whose role is to feed me rich sweetmeats until I am as inflated as the balloon.

Suddenly, we begin to lose altitude at an alarming rate. As we hurtle towards the ground, my life flashing before me in a rapid procession of gin, hookers and regret, I realise that we have to jettison some of our extra weight. I consider my two companions and I am not going to lie to you, but if it comes to a contest between a good bartender and a good chef, then the chef might as well be wearing a t-shirt reading “SANDBAG” because knife boy is going over the side.

The decision would be made not just on the basis that I prize a well made cocktail more than I do a well made meal, but also on the fact that experience tells me that people who are involved in the bar and cocktail world are usually much nicer people than those who spend all day cooped up in a kitchen with only dead animals for company. It’s not a universal, of course and I have many cheffy folk I am chuffed to call friend. But, my true affinity is for the brewers, distillers and mixers of this world.

The last couple of weeks have seen me attend two events, which provide evidence for my contentious theory. Last week, I attended the launch of Joe Warwick’s new restaurant free sheet, Galley Slaves. It promises to be fun and so indeed did the event, which was held at Mark Hix’s new joint in Soho. That is, of course, until I recalled that you can never really have a proper conversation with anyone in the restaurant trade because they are always looking over your shoulder for someone more important to talk to. In my case that’s not a very hard task and after many abruptly ended conversations, I soon found myself slinking out unnoticed and making my way to Rules, where I knew a cheery greeting and a great Martini would be waiting.

Move on to Tuesday this week and I found myself being greeted with genuine friendliness by those of the cocktail trade who had been invited to Plymouth Gin’s 2009 London Cocktail pilgrimage. I am not in the business, other than as a punter and I had only met most of them a handful of times, but their affection for anyone with a passion for their trade was palpable. Ago from The Connaught, Lucca from China Tang, Toby from Pinchito, Gabby from Rules, Charles and Nick from Hix and Sean and jack from The Merchant Hotel in Belfast. It was a great group and the list could go on and on.

The notional excuse for the day was to examine the capital’s fundamental role in the development of the cocktail and, as our host, Plymouth had flown in raconteur and lauded drinks historian, Dave Wondrich. After a fortifying bacon sandwich, we made our first stop in Borough at The George Tavern where, in 1690, a Mr Stoughton began to sell the first bitters, which he mixed with sweet wines as a tonic.

From there, the art of mixed drinks moved across to the US, leaving Britain in the clutches of rather fiendish punches, like the warm “Rum Fustian” we sampled at The Cheshire Cheese pub on Fleet Street. Later, the “American Bar” style of mixing spirits and flavourings with ice made its way back to London and over the course of our day we stopped at various places of interest to hear of their history and to sample their most famous cocktails, made and transported for us by the rather wonderful people of The World Wide Cocktail Club. Although many of the buildings no longer exist, hearing Dave describe places like John Ashley’s Punch House, while sipping on an appropriate drink brought it all back to life.

Stops at two building sites, The Savoy and The Café Royal showed how rapidly London is changing, although the drinks we sampled, A Savoy White Lady and A Toreador, both from the 1930’s would be very familiar to any fan of cocktails today. They also showed that during the dark days of prohibition in the US (up until 1933) the art of the mixed drink had its home very firmly in London.

Two more stops later, at the glorious Criterion Restaurant (most beautiful room and some of the worst food in London) and on Orange St, the site of Ciro’s, the most famous night club of the 1920’s and it was time to repair to Duke’s Hotel for supper. Not only to eat, however, but also for one last cocktail treat. This time a Martini made by the hands of the legendary Alessandro Palazzi himself. His Martini is, as he says himself, from the “old times” and made with frozen glasses (frozen while still wet, which adds extra dilution) a spritz of vermouth and frozen Plymouth gin. It remains one of the world’s truly great tastes and his skill was admired not only by a rube like me but forty of the world’s best cocktail makers including the equally famous Peter “American Bar at The Savoy” Dorelli and Salvatore “Library Bar” Calabrase.

The evening was a bit of a blur. Not just because of the drinks, which had been flowing all day, I had actually been very sensible and sipped rather than slugged. It was because I was in the company of some of my favourite people in the world talking animatedly about one of my favourite subjects in the world, the mixing of superb drinks. Even though I am not one of them, I felt very much at home. When, as we left, I was presented with my own “Dipsomaniac’s Delight” a portable cocktail making kit, it only confirmed my theory of with which group of people I most enjoy spending time. As much as possible in future, I intend to spend my time mixing with the best possible spirits.

LONDON'S BEST BARS: THE DREAM TEAM AT HIX

As you can read below, HP enjoyed the food at Mark Hix's new operation in Brewer St. I was more interested when I heard about their basement bar.

Heading up the operation is my old chum Nick Strangeway, former Tales of The Cocktail "International Bartender of The Year" and all round top Catweazle lookee-likey. The menu at Hix has been created very much in his own image with a nod towards his vast knowledge of cocktail history. Add to the team, the ebullient French cocktail maker, Charles Vexenat, himself a nominee for the same award in 2009, and I knew the bar at Hix would be a must visit for any lover of decent mixed drinks.

It's a well designed space. The bar itself was created from a former sushi counter, which they have recovered with zinc. It retains its original chilling system which is used to keep glasses and garnishes at the correct temperature ready to be used. The back bar, unsurprisingly, given who is involved is huge and stocked with some truly unusual spirits for the mixers to play around with.

Neither Charles nor Nick were there on my visit, but when I recognised Stewart Hudson, formerly of Milk & Honey's Red Room, I knew that my order would be in good hands. It certainly was and one of my test drinks of any mixer, a Plymouth Martini with a twist was produced perfectly as ordered, in a sensible 5oz measure with a suitable slick of citrus oil.

I had already placed an order for my second test, a Daiquiri when, the bar phone rang and Stewart began a long conversation with someone. It turned out to be Mr Strangeway who asked Stewart to cancel my order and replace it with a new creation he had been working on, a Martinez made with Beefeater Gin "aged" for two days with oak staves. It's an odd notion, but Nick's research shows that originally gin was transported to the US in wooden barrels rather than glass bottles, so the cocktails of the day would have varied from the ones we know now.

I don't know about the research, but the spirit tasted on its own, is very strongly flavoured with oak after only two days and unless mixed expertly would be too much for me, at least. In Stewart's hands, however it was a success and a good insight into what a fine and creative addition to the London Cocktail scene the bar at Hix is going to be.

Add to that the fact that the fourth member of the mixing crew is Wladislaw (sp?) brought in from the impressive Merchant House Hotel bar in Belfast and I can only recommend you head to Hix immediately because cocktail dream teams like this don't come along very often

SPIRITUOUS JOURNEY: WELL WORTH STIRRING FOR

Two of the most extraordinary people I have met in the food and drink world are Anistatia Miller and Jared Brown, the uber-couple of the cocktail making world and creators of the excellent website SHAKEN NOT STIRRED: A CELEBRATION OF THE MARTINI

Every time I have bumped into them at a party or an event in the last couple of years they have been insisting that they are working on a book, which will be "out soon"
I heard the tale so often that, when I saw them at this year's rather lousy Bar Show, and Anistatia told me "it's done, I am going to send you a copy" I just smiled, nodded politely and went off to find some free stuff to drink.

Well, what do you know? A few days ago, a copy of SPIRITUOUS JOURNEY plopped through my letterbox. It is the first part of a two book series and charts the history of booze from the birth of spirits to the birth of the cocktail.

For anyone who is slightly obsessed with cocktails like me, it is a must. Anistatia and Jared's writing style is immediate and engaging and not only is the book a testament to great research it is also filled with the sort of facts that make it possible to bore at an international level.

Did you know, for example, that the term "proof" came from testing the alcohol levels of spirits by pouring them over gunpowder and igniting them? If they went up in flames, there was sufficient alcohol in the spirit and it was deemed 100% proof.

With a smattering of historical cocktail recipes too, I am pretty sure reading this book will take up a good part of my Bank Holiday.

Well worth getting hold of.

69 COLEBROOKE ROW: HITTING IT OUT OF THE PARK

Tony Conigliaro shares his name with a famous American baseball star, which probably explains why, with his new bar, 69 Colebrooke Row he has hit another home run

I first encountered Tony's cocktail skills at Isola, the wretchedly overpriced Oliver Peyton joint on that site in Knightsbridge which has, over the years, mutated from high end Italian restaurant to wine bar before finally giving way to a short lived Brazilian restaurant and now a re-incarnation of The Chicago Rib Shack.

For many, Tony was always the best thing about any visit to Isola and, after that when he went to set up the Shochu Lounge in the basement of equally overpriced Roka, it was again sampling from his list of cocktails that proved the main attraction for many.

During his career, Tony has managed to create some of the most interesting drinks in London and along the way has collected awards by the armful including, I am pleased to report, the title of “International Bartender of the Year” at the recent Tales of The Cocktail gathering in New Orleans. It is a prestigious accolade, won last year by Hawksmoor’s Nick Strangeway and it says a huge amount about Tony’s skills and the strength of the UK bar scene right now that he managed to persuade some of the greatest names in the cocktail business that the honour should remain in London.

Now, after a period working as a drinks consultant, I am delighted to say that Tony is doing what he does best, running a bar. 69 Colebrooke Row is a small space in an unassuming building situated just South of the Essex Road in Islington and one glimpse at the drinks list tells you that even if you were foolish enough to ask for a Mojito here, it would be unlike any Mojito you have ever tried.

69 Colebrooke Row showcases the influence upon Tony’s drink creations of the world of Molecular Gastronomy as he and his “dream team” of Kim Ireland and Walter Aceti, offer up a short range of crafted cocktails using infusions of flowers and fruits. On our quick visit before heading up to Little Sardegna, my own drink, a beautifully made Beefeater Dry Martini came with a “Dry Essence” a separate distillation of phenols that added an extra depth to the cocktail, while HP’s Americanino was a more simple combination of grapefruit infused Campari with Martini Rosso, lengthened with soda water.

With the house cocktails well priced at £7 a pop, it would have been easy to work our way through the menu, but supper called and, after our one drink, we headed off up to Highbury with firm intentions of returning soon and returning often.

It is still in its nascent stages, but based on our initial visit 69 Colebrooke Row promises to become one of the most interesting bars in London within a very short space of time.

With Tony Conigliaro at the helm, it was hardly likely to be anything else.

HERMANO SEGUNDO BACK IN LA: SEVEN GRAND AND SUSAN'S TAGINE

In general terms, I despair about the quality of cocktail mixing in the US. They seem to be all about the portion size rather than the quality. The glasses barely chilled with a few lonely lumps of ice, the pre-made twists and the hefty glugs of alcohol, which may lead to a pleasing rapid oblivion, but have little sense of balance or subtlety.

So, when on my last visit to Los Angeles, I was introduced to Seven Grand, a relatively new bar downtown on the corner, as the name suggests, of 7th St and Grand, I was pleasantly surprised at what was presented in a bar with serious intentions.

With Sybil still hard at work, I deposited her car in the basement of her office and walked the few short blocks to pay Seven Grand another visit. The tartan carpet cladding the stairs tells you that this is a Whisky/Whiskey bar and the lengthy list of spirits from around the world added to the impressive back bar tell you that considerable thought has gone into their stock.

Normally, I would test the chops of any mixer by ordering a Martini. This being a Whisky bar, however, I fell back on my second choice of a Manhattan, which was well if not perfectly made. Leaving the chilled glass to stand while the mixer went in search of the cherry garnishes was a rookie mistake, but the end result was not bad at all.

Better was a Sazerac, the classic cocktail of New Orleans, made here in the later style with Rye whiskey rather than cognac, but still showing perfect balance of Peychaud bitters and whiskey in the chilled absinthe washed glass.

It was enough to tide me over until Sybil came to drag me out by the earlobes and take me to supper at my new friend, Susan’s house. She lived across in The Valley and, by the time we arrived, her adorable children were about ready for bed, which left the grown ups (and yes that includes me) to sit over plates of delicious Algerian Chicken tagine with triple steamed cous couse. That would have helped soak up the booze had we not sipped our way through two bottles of wine as we enjoyed a thoroughly splendid evening.

I only have two more days left before I leave LA and head back to the UK for my next adventure. I suspect for a whole load of reasons, it wont be long before I am planning my next visit

CALLOOH CALLAY: ONE FOR THE SKINNY JEANED SLITHY TOADS OF SHOREDITCH

The bars of Shoreditch and Hoxton, it would appear, are growing up. You still get the grim new openings, places like Road Trip where over chilled, over priced lager is handed to people who neither know, nor care what they are drinking by people who neither know nor care what they are serving and places like the Hoxton Pony and Hoxton Hotel where semi decent mixing is lost in a barrage of shrieking music and appalling service.

However, with Hawksmoor still in its pomp and Lounge Bohemia providing understated excellence, there is a sign that both outlets and punters in London's hippest nabe are after something a little more challenging than just somewhere to stand around in skinny jeans.

Now, there is Callooh Callay, taking its rather silly name from Jabberwocky and its design style direct from the Lower East Side. The music is still too loud for someone in their fifth decade, but there are signs from the menu and the mixing, overseen by bar manager, Sean Wear that this is a bar with serious intentions when it comes to drinks.

A perfect Manhattan was spot on with the house bourbon, Woodford Reserve supported by the right amounts of sweet and dry vermouth and a daiquiri had the correct balance of rum and lime. My companion for the evening, Chelsea had just joined the long line of people who have been made redundant recently and needed cheering up. Something girly, boozy and pink seemed to work better than my suggestion that she “consider hooking or allowing people to eat off you”

There is still work to be done. The back bar looked interesting but small and the staff are still finding their feet. But Callooh Callay looks like it could be an interesting addition to a neighbourhood whose expectations seem to be getting higher all the time.