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Bitters & Shrub Syrup Cocktails Reviewed, By Warren Bobrow, The Cocktail Whisperer

Whenever Warren Bobrow says he’s publishing a new cocktail book, I get excited, very, very excited. Warren speaks my health & kitchen language- apothecary, homeopathic, restorative, small-batch… Words I live by and the ingredients I create with.

garden-eats-bitters-shrub-syrup-cocktails-warren-bobrow-author garden-eats-warren-bobrow-bitters-shrub-syrup-cocktails

His latest, Bitters & Shrub Syrup Cocktails was created in the spirit of medicinally-themed drinks, and to my personal delight, features mocktails throughout- I make use of mocktails both when entertaining and prescriptively in private practice with patients. The “Theodore Allen” mocktail, Bobrow’s nod to the notorious NYC saloon owner of the 1800’s {not to be mistaken with Theodore Allen, the activist} still conjures a boozy palette sensation thanks to the combination of the sweet and acrid roots fennel, parsnip and carrot, but makes for a socially acceptable, before 11 am drink because, well, it is in fact, sans alcohol!

True to his common theme of improving on the past, Warren’s new collection reaffirms that…

“the essential components in drinks haven’t changed too much over the centuries. Bitters are still made by steeping flower essences, roots, and spices in liquor. Acerbic, botanical-rich digestifs like Underberg still improve digestion after a sumptuous meal. And shrubs are still simple, flavorful combinations of fruit, sugar and vinegar- just like they were centuries ago.”

If at the bar you request spicy, herby, bitter, citrusy or even sweet, Bobrow’s newest collection is on board with your flavor faves. If you’re new to shrubs and bitters, yes, they can literally taste bitter, but really offer far greater sensory depth- think sweet, aromatic or astringent, crisp and spicy, sometimes woody, smoky and earthy- they will never bore, they are not forgettable flavors, they make you want more, many, many more drinks!

Shrubs are especially easy to get hooked on, or at least they have always been a favorite of mine considering I love anything with a hint of vinegar. As Warren expertly explains, they’re darn easy to prepare, simply requiring a hint of patience on your part at home.

Warren’s suggestion that his libations are medicinal? They are. It isn’t just that Warren mixed healthy ingredients together then touted their medicinal virtues- he has quite the solid sensibility of what ingredients accentuate one another therapeutically and how they might quell your indigestion, lighten your mood or nourish your blood. Yes, beverages containing alcohol can ameliorate your ills and assist in improving the bioavailability of nutrient-rich ingredients. Even Warren’s gastrique recipes are healthy.

Speaking of gastriques- they can invigorate the blood, completely improve the medicinal effects of cuisine and are quite divine. Completely uncomplicated, gastriques require few ingredients, are easy to master… I tried the Lapsang Souchong Gastrique with Scotch and turmeric soaked white fish and the Sazerac Gastrique to marinate Maytag blue cheese and crushed hazelnuts. The first surprised, it was a total flavor experiment combining Lapsang Souchang with turmeric and the second was satisfying in a fulfilling-a-sweet-craving sort of way!

As a concoctor-experimenter-health-driven food lover-creator, I appreciate that there really are always new recipes and adapted methods I’ve not yet tried and come to adopt. For the bar or kitchen novice, Warren’s books, especially Bitters & Shrub Syrup Cocktails are pouring with stories and anecdotes that help build cocktail-making confidence. There is not an ounce of pretentiousness throughout Warren’s pages, only recipes that give you more reason to invite friends over, throw parties or up your behind-the-bar game.

I’ve been drinking the “Celery Nectarine Fizz” and “Shall We Talk of Business, Madam?” two tangy & spicy libations that call for shrubs. My current favorite is however “Chances In The Fog”, a simple gin-based cocktail that conjures old-world taste and of course, calls for a shrub!

Chances In The Fog

What You’ll Need

  • 2 oz London dry gin
  • 1 oz Heirloom Tomato, Pear and Sage Shrub  {grab Warren’s book for the shrub recipe}
  • 1/2 oz seltzer
  • 3 dashes aromatic bitters

Method

Fill a cocktail glass three-quarters full with ice. Add gin and shrub. Use a long cocktail spoon to stir for 30 strokes. Use a hawthorne strainer to strain the mixture into a coupe. Top with aromatic bitters and seltzer.

Want to score a copy of Warren’s new book? You’re in luck, we’re giving one away! Enter to win by following us and Warren on Instagram and leave a hashtag on my post #Warrenbobrow. We’ll randomly choose a winner in two weeks.

In NorCal this weekend? Go meet Warren, get a book signed and give him a hug from me. You can see him speaking at UC Berkeley on the 21st of June in the Botanical Garden and atOmnivore Books the day before.

Warren is published by the wonderful folks at Fair Winds of the Quarto Publishing Group.

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Articles Books Recipes

The Shrub; Ancient remedy to modern mixer!!

While the term “shrub” might call to mind a short, green plant in someone’s garden, it means something quite different in the mixology world.

A shrub is essentially an acidulated (read vinegar-based) beverage as old as history itself. In the days before refrigeration, it was pretty evident that without some means for food preservation, keeping items fresh was difficult at best. Food borne illnesses could be prevented or at least minimized by the use of an acid. In this case, the combination of vinegar and sugar when added to either fruit or vegetables contributed to a rudimentary food preservation system that has existed up to modern times. During the colonial era in particular, when daily labor was exhausting and folks needed something to cool off and reinvigorate themselves, shrubs were often drunk on their own. However, when a more festive mood took hold, shrubs were added to spirituous beverages, offering both a tart kick and a dose of healthy vinegar. Was the shrub the original health drink? Certainly it was used for good health, right up to the time when soda pop was invented, spelling the demise of the shrub. In recent years, however, a resurgence of old methods has taken the cocktail world by storm. In search of new and intriguing flavor profiles, bartenders have started making shrubs in house and, in doing so, creating a wealth of unique drinks. Shrubs are simply made with only three ingredients, a fruit (or a vegetable), sugar, and some type of vinegar. It does have to be aged after the mashing of fruit, sugar and vinegar, but that timing is really up to you. It can age quickly or over several weeks.

Below is a selection of shrub recipes and the drinks in which I’ve used them. You could easily customize your own beverage by adding a shrub to your favorite gin, vodka, and rum-based libations.

Colonial-Sour-Cherry-Shrub
Colonial Sour Cherry Shrub
Photo Courtesy of Glenn Scott

Colonial Sour Cherry Shrub

Ingredients:

  • 8 oz. Jar of Sour Cherry Preserves
  • 1 cup Demerara Sugar
  • 1 cup Apple Cider Vinegar

Preparation: Place the sour cherry preserves in a nonreactive bowl, and cover with the sugar. Let them steep together for at least overnight (or for a few days) at room temperature. Then strain the cherry mixture through a non-reactive sieve, crushing the tender fruits with a wooden spoon to extract as much flavor and sweet juice as possible. Combine with the vinegar; let the mixture sit for a few hours, and then strain into sterilized bottles.

Benjamin-Gunn-Mystery-Cocktail
The Benjamin Gunn Mystery Cocktail

The Benjamin Gunn Mystery Cocktail

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbsp. Colonial Sour Cherry Shrub
  • 2 oz. Dark Rum (a Molasses-Based Rum that’s Been Aged in Ex-Bourbon Oak is Ideal)
  • 1/4 oz. Dark Amber Maple Syrup
  • Splash of Seltzer Water
  • Lemon Twist
  • Dash of Cherry Bitters

Preparation: Place an ice cube in a rocks glass, and add 2 tbsp. of the sour cherry shrub. Add the dark rum and the maple syrup, and then top with a splash of fizzy seltzer water. Garnish with a lemon twist, and dot with cherry bitters.

 

Ginger-Lime-Shrub
Ginger-Lime Shrub

Ginger-Lime Shrub

Ingredients:

  • 4 Limes, Zested and Quartered
  • 1 cup Demerara Sugar
  • 6 tbsp. Freshly Grated Ginger Root
  • 1–2 cups Apple Cider Vinegar (Depending on the Height of the Ingredients when Placed in a Bowl)

Preparation: In a non-reactive bowl, combine the lime peels, lime quarters, sugar, and ginger. Stir to combine and coat all the fruit with sugar. Cover and leave at room temperature at least overnight or for 1 to 2 days. (Slow, cool fermentation gives a shrub its trademark bite.) Now prepare your shrub for aging. Set a strainer over another non-reactive bowl and pour the lime and ginger into the strainer. Use a stout wooden spoon to extract as much juice as possible from the limes and the softened ginger. Let the mixture sit for a few more hours.

Stir again, and discard the fruit chunks. Stir in the vinegar, and then use a funnel to transfer the shrub syrup to a sterilized bottle. Seal and then shake well to combine. Store the bottles in the refrigerator or at cellar temperature for 3 to 4weeks before using. Shake each bottle once or twice daily to help the sugar dissolve. When it’s mostly dissolved, your shrub is ready to use. Makes 1 1/2 cups. Keep refrigerated, and use within about 6 months.

Ginger-Lime Shrub with Rhum Agricole and Salty Lemonade

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbsp. Ginger-Lime Shrub
  • 2 oz. 100-proof Rhum Agricole Blanc
  • 3 oz. Freshly Made Lemonade, Sweetened with Raw Honey or Simple Syrup
  • 1/2 oz. Seltzer Water
  • 1 pinch Fleur De Sel
  • 2–3 drops Lime Bitters

Preparation: Add the Ginger-Lime Shrub to an old fashioned glass. Then add an ice spear. Top with the Rhum Agricole Blanc, the lemonade, and a splash of seltzer water. Sprinkle a pinch of fleur de sel into the drink, and finish with a couple drops of lime bitters.

 

Strawberry-Rhubard-Shrub
Squire’s Strawberry-Rhubarb Shrub

Squire’s Strawberry-Rhubarb Shrub

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups Roasted Strawberries and Rhubarb, Equal Parts
  • 1 cup Demerara Sugar
  • 1 cup Light Balsamic Vinegar

Preparation: Add the roasted strawberries and rhubarb to a non-reactive bowl. Cover with the sugar, stir to combine, and cover it with plastic wrap. Leave at cool room temperature for 24 hours. Stir frequently during this time to combine as the berries and rhubarb give off their liquid.

Place a non-reactive strainer above a second non-reactive bowl, pour the fruit-sugar mixture into the strainer, and use a wooden spoon to mash the mixture in order to release as much liquid as possible. (Reserve the mashed fruit to use in cooking or baking, if you like.) Add the balsamic vinegar to the liquid, stir, and let the mixture sit for a few hours. Funnel into sterilized bottles or jars, and age for 3–4 weeks in the refrigerator. This shrub will last nearly indefinitely, but if it begins to quiver, dance, or speak in foreign languages, throw it out.

Squires-Shrub-Cocktail
Squire’s Shrub Cocktail

Squire’s Shrub Cocktail

  • 1 Brown Sugar Cube
  • Several Dashes of Lemon Bitters
  • 1/2 oz. Botanical Gin
  • 2 oz. Squire’s Strawberry-Rhubarb Shrub
  • 1 1/2 oz. Champagne, or Dry Sparkling Wine
  • 1 Long Lemon Twist

Preparation: Add the sugar cube to a Champagne flute (see below), and moisten with the lemon bitters. Then add the gin and the Squire’s Strawberry-Rhubarb Shrub, and top with Champagne. Garnish with a long lemon twist.

Note: To prepare this flute, combine very finely chopped lemon zest and sugar, wet the rim of the glass with lemon, and dip the glass into yellow-colored sugar.

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Events

I’ll be at [words] bookstore in Maplewood NJ!

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Apothecary Cocktails with the author Warren Bobrow  Tuesday, December 1 — 7:30 pm

At the turn of the century, pharmacies in Europe and America prepared homemade tinctures, bitters, and herbal remedies mixed with alcohol for curative benefit for everything from poor digestion to the common cold. Today, trendy urban bars such as Apothke in New York, Apo Bar & Lounge in Philadelphia, and 1022 South in Tacoma, as well as “vintage” and “homegrown” cocktail aficionados, find inspiration in apothecary cocktails of old.

Buy the book!

http://wordsbookstore.com/category/events/

179 Maplewood Ave, Maplewood, NJ 07040

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Articles Events

Travels and Essays- From DrinkupNY

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Cocktail: Travels and Essays

By Warren Bobrow, Cocktail Whisperer

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

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Articles Recipes

The Last Pirate Ship (Rhuby from Art in the Age)

I created this original recipe for Art in the Age out of Philadelphia.  My friend Steven Grasse is the lead protagonist of this Public Relations, Marketing, Advertising and Brand Re-invigoration firm.  It’s hard to put a finger on what they do best.  I just like what they do!

 

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Philadelphia – August 30, 2011

Bid Farewell to Summer with The Last Pirate Ship

Make a Cocktail with Art in the Age’s Rhuby

the last pirate ship cocktail recipe!

Art in the Age’s Root and Snap liqueurs created quite the buzz. Now, the collective is causing another stir with its much-anticipated spirit Rhuby, made of rhubarb, pink peppercorn, petitgrain, and other organic ingredients, based on a Revolutionary era recipe.

According to legend, Benjamin Franklin and botanist John Bartram tinkered with brewing rhubarb tea back in 1771. The boozy variation is now on shelves, just in time for a late-summer libation created by modern-day mixologist Warren Bobrow.

The Last Pirate Ship
Serves one

Ingredients
2 oz. Rhuby
1 oz. fresh lime juice
4-5 strawberries
Fleur de sel
1 sprig of thyme

1. Combine ice, Rhuby, and lime juice in a cocktail shaker.

2. Toast strawberries in a cast iron pan.

3. Muddle strawberries and add to cocktail shaker.

4. Shake and strain into a rocks glass, sprinkle with fleur de sel, and garnish with a thyme sprig.

Available at most Fine Wine & Good Spirits shops; online at finewineandgoodspirits.com. For more information on Rhuby, go to artintheage.com.

Photo: Courtesy of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction