Cocktail Whisperer
I’ll be signing copies of my books at the Hotel Monteleone at 10:00 am tomorrow, Saturday with the esteemed author by my side Dave Wondrich. Klaus will be there too. Come for a photo!!!
Hotel Monteleone 214 Royal Street, New Orleans, LA 70130
http://www.qbookshop.com/authors/17884/Warren-Bobrow.html
With the release last week on Amazon of my third book, Bitters and Shrub Syrup Cocktails, I must pause for a moment to reflect upon the past few years… Ok, now that I’ve finished reflection- it’s time to get back to work.
One of the things that I don’t often do is “blog”… Years ago, I took a course in food blogging at the former French Culinary Institute and it didn’t go well- primarily because I don’t consider myself a blogger! I think columnist fits the bill better- yet I digress, blogging is big business for spirits companies!
How do you monetize it though?
Why you should go to the Jockey Hollow Restaurant.
I haven’t been to eat, but I do know that their cocktail program is world-class with Christopher James at the helm. Chris is my mentor and friend- full disclosure, I bar-backed for him at the Ryland Inn (scary) and learned that being a bartender is not always a glamorous job! It’s darned hard work!
Chris is fond of many advanced techniques within the confines of the bar. In many ways, what he has achieved is part of a brilliant career. Hat’s off to him! And the Jockey Hollow Restaurant? As I said, I haven’t dined there yet- maybe someday…
Here is a short list of places that get it with respect to cocktails in Morristown, NJ.
David Todd’s.. from the moment you hear the familiar music and New York Cool- without the NYC attitude- and dig deeply into their Wine Spectator Award of Excellence cellar or what I came for- the well-crafted cocktails- made with the best possible ingredients- well… you know you have arrived. There is no pretension here- even though that gal or guy sitting next to you has their own private jet, fueled and ready at Morristown Airport. So try to dress to impress, because you never know!
The hand-crafted drinks, some deceptively strong will make that first impression correct. This is one of the most beguiling of all the Morristown places that gets it with great drinks. And the food? It plays in conjunction with the cocktails and most certainly the well-chosen wine list.
Just go! Have a Negroni, sit outside and watch the world go by.
The Negroni was invented back in 1919 in Florence, Italy – purposively built to heal what ails you. Orson Wells famously said in 1947 that, “The bitters are excellent for your liver, the gin is bad for you. They balance each other.” I don’t know about you, but I think gin is good for you. Perhaps Mr. Wells had it altogether incorrect. The entire drink is good for you. Gin, after all, was used during the Middle Ages as a curative for the Black Plague. And Vermouth has long been held as a curative for many internal battles surrounding the digestive glands.
The history of the Negroni involves a base spirit, like gin, plus bitters and vermouth. I enjoy my Negroni Cocktail with the powerfully intoxicating Caorunn Gin from Scotland. Distilled with a healthy smack of the juniper berry and woven into a backdrop of citrus with a hefty punch of alcohol, the Caorunn Gin just tempts me to have another. Combined with the syrupy and complex Carpano Antica Vermouth and the historically correct Campari Bitters from Italy, the Negroni speaks very clearly of getting buzzed with the minimum of effort. I just sipped my Negroni down and absolutely feel no pain. And why would I, with the application of my finger to stir this magnificent cocktail?
My friend Gary Regan stirs his with his finger so why shouldn’t I?
Well the reasons are numerous why you should not stir your cocktail with your finger. Cleanliness has something to do with this. But I suppose if you dipped your finger in your tri-sink filled with disinfectants and cleansers, you’d really have nothing to worry about as long as you were in your own home. I always use a cocktail spoon when working behind the bar so not to upset my customers! The drink shown was mixed with my own finger… far away from any paying customers!
The best Negroni is also the simplest one to make. I do only a couple of things differently:
1. Wash glass out inside and out with cool water.
2. Dry carefully with a soft towel.
3. Pack with ice and water.
4. Carefully measure out your ingredients, pour out the bar ice and water.
I also use a couple large hand-cut cubes of ice from a silicone tray in the freezer so I can control the quality of my ice.
Ingredients:
• 1 oz. Campari
• 1 oz. Carpano Antica
• 1 oz. Caorunn Gin
• 2 dashes of The Bitter Truth Lemon Bitters
Preparation:
1. Add Campari.
2. Add Sweet Vermouth –
3. Add your choice of Gin. In this case I used Caorunn Gin from Scotland. Caorunn is liberally flecked with citrus fruit woven around the haunting elegance of the moors at night.
4. Add The Bitter Truth Lemon Bitters.
5. Add ice.
6. Stir all ingredients together…
Grand Cafe… transport yourself into this very European restaurant, owned by Desmond and Alice Lloyd. This is a boite of the highest provenance. Don’t come in jeans or shorts, make sure your shirt is pressed and tie your shoes, yes… it matters… Then, please comb your hair and while you’re at it, clean your glasses . This is not a bar, sure they have a small one for a pre-dinner slurp-made very carefully I might add… The Grand Cafe in Morristown serves, quite possibly the best Bloody Mary I’ve ever enjoyed in a bar (or restaurant for that matter…)
(It’s rolled, never shaken) and their brilliant Irish Coffee is every bit Ireland as anything in the world.
The BEST is found here at the Grand Cafe.
Jockey Hollow… again. Chris James at the helm. Need I say more? Just go and pour yourself into a seat at the bar.
SM23… For a slice of NYC with all the thumping but not the bumping, try this very sophisticated boite located within the Headquarters Plaza building. Classic cocktails, made with the best ingredients possible are the framework for SM23. Just go- and bring an appetite for some of the best Indian and Asian food around, save room for dessert!!!
End of Elm… I’ve had good cocktails here. While not a Craft Cocktail lounge, the emphasis is on their food at EOE… They do mix some fine drinks without much fluff. I like it and if you find their prices too rich for your pocket, you can always get a submarine sandwich at Long John’s next door for your lunch with some for the next day!
Dive Bars and just some really lousy bars. Morristown is full of them. They say that Morristown is the Hoboken of the western part of the state. I say the Morristown-Town Fathers got what they deserved with the quality of bars that exist by the historic Green. And don’t even get me started on the interior architecture of these places.. Isn’t Morristown a Colonial town?
With a major focus of my career for drinking fewer drinks and drinking better when you do drink… well, it is an embarrassment, at least for myself as someone who takes great pride in the cocktail movement, to even try to have a conversation about why a margarita should not have both cheap triple sec and bottled sour mix. Morristown dive bars and some of the ones that surround the Green, like many other places around the country serve no better than the worst drink you’ve ever had- made to appear to be the best drink that you’ve ever had- but as I like to say, the ice gives it all away.
Find me a place with good ice and I’ll tell everyone. If you use bar ice? Well for me at least, it’s all bad things. And if you are making your Margarita cocktails with triple sec and bottled sour mix- well, it should be a crime.
These places don’t try to make anything that even closely resembles a craft cocktail- and thus they do not get it. But they do serve the multitudes of people who flood to Morristown to get as smashed as possible. It’s a fact of life- like or not.
awful… beer and shots made with cheap ingredients. Play hopscotch outside at night, or on a weekend with what is sometimes left on the sidewalk by over-indulgence’s.
It’s a very young set here. No soft jazz or Sinatra on the stereo, so don’t ask. A good place to stay well clear of in my opinion.
Last National Rum Day I went into the Grasshopper and I asked them which cocktail they were making to celebrate this National Holiday… They replied Malibu and Coke. That’s just wrong. And it was served with a slice of lime that dated to the Truman Administration. Next…
Even the Guinness is too cold.
Shall I go on?
The Iron Bar… It’s cheap and tawdry. From the low quality, bottled sour mix they use to fill out most every mixed drink, to the base spirits made in chemical factories, if you like your flavored vodka in candy varieties like whipped cream and chocolate pudding, you’ll love it here. And their Bloody Mary is shaken. FAIL….
Definitely a younger crowd.
The Office- located next door tries really hard. I do love their beer list, but their cocktail list needs much refinement and balance to be included on the list of who gets it in Morristown…. the answer is- very few. Urban Table tries hard too… Without much luck.
Roots is not a place for a Craft Cocktail. A Rob Roy might work in a pinch or a decent Manhattan, but these prices?
This is not New York, so please, use better Vermouth in that well north of fifteen dollar drink. Again.. Just my opinion.
One of the great liquor and wine stores in Morristown is Cambridge Wines on Morris Street. They have one of the best selections of whiskey around. AND they have sold copies of my books! A win/win!
The Grapeful Palate, located up on South Street has a very carefully curated selection of wines, beers and spirits. I love their attention to the customer and the calming effects of the Grateful Dead on the stereo system, making this a perfect destination for all your desires in the liquor world.
Book # 1
Book #2
Book # 3
Four Roses Small Batch forms the base of a very fall flavored cocktail that is meant to propel you towards the crescendo-the Christmas weekend.
I’m very fond of holiday flavors and aromatics along with the taste of the place that says New England. The spices that come to mind when I think of this history are imprinted into my collective memory of childhood. This classic potpourri of scents is very easy to prepare because you can acquire the ingredients as easily as opening the DrinkupNY site and making a few well-timed clicks.
I love bourbon whiskey and fine bourbon whiskey can be purchased with many different producers on their labels. At this time of the year I’m naturally attracted to Four Roses Small Batch, because the combination of four different blends make this drink sing the clarion song of refreshment.
As illustrated above, I seek the flavors of the fall in my cocktail glass and Sorel from my friend Jackie Summers makes perfect sense when a “Manhattan” of sorts is whipped together. Sorel is a combination of Caribbean herbs, roots and spices along with very potent, New York State distilled alcohol. It’s passionately made to Jack’s specific recommendations and each sip brings a smile to your face. I think it mixes like a dream.
Instead of using Sweet Vermouth and Rye whiskey with Angostura Bitters in your “Manhattan” may I please suggest using the Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon Whiskey along with a nice measure of Sorel? As not to confuse the basics of my plan, may I also include a portion of the brilliant cranberry soda and cocktail syrup from my friend Allison Goldberg in the form of her Fruitations Syrup? Why yes, yes I shall.
The reasoning for flavors that speak of the fall is very simple. The mindset of the season is of freshly cut firewood and the snap of the fire in your cocktail glass. I’m pretty understanding when it comes to the effort that goes into making a craft cocktail and this one is no different. The ingredients just speak for themselves. When you use quality ingredients the best is always the ones that speak clearly of the place. The combination of cranberry, bourbon whiskey and Caribbean spices are their own representation of my past. And that brings a smile to my face. As we all know, when the person who is preparing your drinks is smiling, that energy translates through to the drink. I’m fascinated by this technique for excellence and hope that you experiment the same way.
Sorel when combined with whiskey makes for gleeful revelry. Add to this a few teaspoons of cranberry syrup and then finish it all off with a splash or two of Lapsang Souchong tea. Serve it over an ice spear in a tall glass with a large sprig of fresh mint. And add a lemon zest or an orange zest that has been dipped in bittersweet chocolate. The possibilities are endless for finishing bitters, but may I suggest the Creole Bitters from The Bitter Truth? They are spiced just right for a tropically influenced holiday slurp. With an ounce or so of seltzer water to finish, this drink is deceptively easy to put a few into you. But be careful there is kick in there, so unless you have a hollow leg, let’s just say that this drink is not at all weak!
Travels and Essays
Ingredients (for two persons who drink more than they read)
3 oz. Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon Whiskey
2 oz. Sorel
4 oz. Lapsang Souchong Tea
2 oz. Fruitations Cranberry Soda and Cocktail Syrup
4 oz. Seltzer Water
3-4 drops Bitter Truth Creole Bitters
Ice spear
Mint sprig
Preparation
To a large Boston Shaker (or in two equal batches) fill ¾ with regular bar ice
Add the Four Roses and the Sorel
Add the tea
Add the Fruitations Cranberry Syrup
Cap and shake hard for 15 seconds
Add your ice spear to a Collins Glass
Pour the mixture over the top
Finish with a splash or two of seltzer water
Add the bitters
Garnish with the mint sprig (slapped first)
Yum!
Cheers from DrinkUpNY!
About Warren Bobrow
Author of: Apothecary Cocktails-Restorative Drinks from Yesterday and Today- Fair Winds Press- Beverly, Massachusetts. Apothecary Cocktails was nominated for a Spirited Award, 2014 Tales of the Cocktail. His forthcoming book, Whiskey Cocktails will be released October 14. Bitters and Shrub Syrup Cocktails follow with publication in spring ’15. Warren is a master mixologist for several craft liquor companies.
Warren consults about mixology and spirits, travel, organic wine and food. He’s written for web-blogs and magazines like: Williams-Sonoma, Whole Foods: Dark Rye, Distiller, Total Food Service Magazine, Beverage Media Group, DrinkUpNY, Edible Publications, Foodista, Serious Eats, Mechanics of Style and Beekman1802. He was in the Saveur-100 in 2010.
Warren is a former, mostly self, trained cook from the pot sink on up. Johnson/Wales and the ACF apprenticeship were thrown in for good luck. Warren was the former owner/co-founder of Olde Charleston Pasta in South Carolina: *Dissolved his business after Hurricane Hugo in 1989* – to a career in private banking, (nearly 20 years; “a very grand mistake”) to this reinvention in 2009 as the Warren he’s finally become.
Warren is available to do highly personalized, interactive mixology events, local, national and international.
PS: Warren’s second book, Whiskey Cocktails is on the market now!
Contact: jockeyhollow@gmail.com
10) Warren Bobrow’s Whiskey Cocktails: Rediscovered Classics and Contemporary Craft Drinks Using the World’s Most Popular Spirit
And be still my heart, he includes a chapter on cooking with whiskey! Soaked fruits including Easy Home-Cured Cocktail Cherries, Oatmeal Raisin Whoopie Pies made with Drambuie, Hearty Barley, Lentil and Vegetable Stew, and how about a Scotsman’s Flourish of oatmeal cooked with whisky-soaked dried fruit? The Tasting Table calls Bobrow’s book “One of the best new whiskey books of 2014”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jamie-schler/best-cookbooks-gifts-for-_b_6322200.html
http://www.qbookshop.com/authors/17884/Warren-Bobrow.html
http://www.qbookshop.com/products/215107/9781592336395/Whiskey-Cocktails.html
so exciting! #whiskey
October is the month when you can peruse my second book, Whiskey Cocktails. This is really exciting for me to write a second book- much less a book at all! I’m lucky to be able to follow my dreams, because dreams really do come true.
Availability: In stock
Click on image to zoom
Join us at Tuthillhouse at the Mill Restaurant for our inaugural Booze & Books Event with Guest of Honor, Warren Bobrow. We will eat and sip our way through his book, Apothecary Cocktails, with four unique drinks paired with appetizers prepared by our new Chef, Jared Krom of the Culinary institute of America. As Author, Mixologist, and Orator, Warren with read from the book, discuss his drinks and their history, and lead a fun and delicious pairing with Chef Krom. Book signing to follow.
My hat is off to the committee who chose my 1st book, Apothecary Cocktails for a Spirited Award. It’s a HUGE HONOR…
Thank you.
http://talesofthecocktail.com/news/top-10-finalists-2014-spirited-awards-announced/
Klaus just returned from a lovely trip to Vermont. He’s very fortunate to have been invited to the Northeast Kingdom and make new friends along the way. One of these friends, Todd Hardie is a bee keeper and maker of a most marvelous group of spirit medicinals. The raw honey that goes into his marvelous vodka, gin and elderberry cordial speak clearly of his passion for healing.
Vermont is rife with family farms. It’s not easy to make a living here in this often harsh environment. Get away from the ski towns that live off the tourists and discover a place that is off the usual path. I suggest doing this by following food and drink.
Klaus thinks that if you want to win the heart of a beautiful woman you must ply her with his newest loves, Vermont maple syrup and Vermont cheeses. Of course Klaus tells me that there has to be some liquor in there too. That’s where Todd Hardie comes in. Klaus is smitten by the flavors exemplified in each sip of Barr Hill Gin and Barr Hill Vodka. You see, Klaus discovered that these spirits are actually made from something that comes from bees! In Germany and Caledonia bees were raised for their honey. This honey, when fermented and distilled is powerful medicine used by apothecaries for hundreds of years. Now in the modern age, this distillation of honey goes into Barr Hill products. It’s remarkable and delicious.
Vermont Maple Syrup is richly scented and deeply aromatic. It’s memorable from the minute it touches your tongue and the finish goes on and on.
I was fortunate to visit Jasper Hill and received a private tour of the cheese caves. Jasper Hill, if you are not familiar makes highly expressive cheeses that speak clearly of Vermont.
Klaus had to stay inside because of the FDA regulations about cleanliness. He would have had to receive a total sterilization. He wasn’t happy about that, so he took a nap instead.
Klaus just told me that with Valentine’s Day coming up, he thought a considerate gift of raw honey would be in order. Raw honey does many things, Klaus tells me. But I think what Klaus is really trying to say is that for Valentine’s day to be truly special there must be a drink to make basic conversation a bit easier. Why is that Klaus? He’s not talking right now. He’s napping. The trip up to Vermont was hard on the little guy. All those new faces to remember and all those kisses he received. Klaus if you are just discovering him is quite famous.
In keeping with the theme of Valentine’s Day and Klaus having only a ceramic heart, love doesn’t come easily to him. Oh sure, all the ladies love Klaus but I’m not sure that he can love them back. He certainly has enough admirers. Right Klaus?
As long as he has a drink nearby all is well.
Valentine’s Day is the perfect day to have more than one, within reason of course. Why is that? Because my (Klaus’s) drinks are quite intoxicating! He’s interested in flavor and aromatics from always-fresh herbs, even in the winter!
Klaus brought some gorgeous fresh sage the other day at the Asian market. He explained to me that this sage, when carefully lit on fire makes the most beguiling smoke. He went on to explain that if you have burning sage and you hold your Boston Shaker over the top, you can capture this smoke within the shaker! Klaus went on to explain that Barr Hill Vodka, (distilled from raw honey, of course) when mixed with freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, and smoked sage “smoke” makes for a colorful and potent cocktail. One nearly guaranteed to make “conversation” easier later in the evening.
The smoked sage and grapefruit juice act as a foil to the more potent, honey-tinged notes of this exceptional vodka. Those who have be following my writing know that I normally don’t write about vodka, so it has to be pretty darned exceptional for me to even take note. Barr Hill is that product. Klaus explains to me that happy bees make passionate spirits. I agree.
Klaus says that the happy bees make honey that has a memory. I said to Klaus that his Valentine’s Day cocktail is just brilliant. Perhaps he should have two or three at the least?
It’s up to him to fall in love somehow!!!
Captain Bickford Cocktail (Named for a hopeless romantic in the work of Robert Louis Stevenson)
Ingredients for two strong drinks
3 oz. Barr Hill Vodka
5 oz. Freshly Squeezed Grapefruit juice
2 oz. Perrier Sparkling Natural Mineral Water in Lemon Essence
5 drops Wild Branch Foods Elderberry Syrup
Fresh Sage leafs
Hand cut ice
Preparation:
In a fireproof dish, light the sage on fire so it smolders
Capture the sage smoke in an inverted Boston Shaker
Add ice to the sage smoke
Add the Vodka and the grapefruit juice with the Elderberry syrup to the smoke and ice filled shaker
Cap and shake hard for 20 seconds
Pour into an old fashioned glass with one cube of hand cut ice
Pour Perrier Sparkling Natural Mineral Water over the mixture into two glasses
Garnish with a sage leaf a few drops of the Urban Moonshine Maple Bitters to finish.
Klaus hopes to get lucky this Valentine’s Day…. With a few of these in his flask, he’s sure to do very well at something…. Klaus????? Oh, he’s wandered off again. Trying to find his true love.