Posts Tagged ‘cocktail’
Posted by Eunice / Wednesday, April 25th, 2012
Q&A with mixologist Todd thrasher
By Stefanie Gans
Courtesy of Meshelle Armstrong
Todd Thrasher, the spirits lover who brought Prohibition-style drinking to Alexandria’s PX over five years ago, and who will soon open a globally inspired cocktail list for TNT (a bar in the coming Columbia Pike space for the second location of Eammon’s), now offers his cocktails to-go.
In the latest move behind the Restaurant Eve team’s domination of Northern Virginia, Thrasher’s drink mixers—Cosmopolitan, Dirty Martini, Tonic—are now available at food emporium Society Fair in Old Town.
Here’s a bit from Thrasher on his love of rum, his first drinking experience (rum included) and his stance on drink mixes.
Ever drink Cosmopolitans?
“No, I don’t like vodka so much. Vodka is a great vessel to hide the alcohol into different flavors. I have a tendency to drink rum.”
What kind of rum do you drink?
“Personally, I like Barbancort 15-year-old. That’s kind of my go-to rum. If I’m going to have something mixed, I drink Westerhall rum, which is a much lighter rum.”
Is rum becoming trendy now?
“I think so. But, I don’t want to say trendy because rum is really the first spirit of the Americas. Rum’s been around for a long time. It’s definitely having a renascence right now.”
Are you putting it in cocktails?
“I use tons of rum in cocktails. It’s my favorite alcohol to use because it’s so versatile. You can have rum that will be like vodka and doesn’t have a lot of flavor, or rum that tastes like cognac. It’s the alcohol we have the most of behind the bar [at Restaurant Eve].”
Is this because of your passion?
“It all started because of my passion, and then all of the wait staff and sommeliers at Eve have kind of gotten behind it. There are rums that will fool you into thinking you’re drinking scotch, so the wait staff and sommeliers have really gotten behind it and have said, ‘Well if you like this, then why don’t you try this and give yourself something new.’ We’ve really seen the rum sales go up and the cognac sales go down a bit.”
Have you always been into rum?
“No … I always … The first time I ever drank in my life I was 20-years-old, and I had Captain Morgan and RC Cola. Ohmygod. Most of the time when you have an experience with your first alcohol and spend the next two days in bed sick you don’t want to go back to it. But I’ve always gone back to it.”
Did you mix it yourself?
“Oh, I definitely mixed it myself.”
Did you get caught?
“No, just catching myself being sick for the next two days.”
Did you puke?
“Oh, yeah.”
When drinking at Home now, what do yoU put together?
“I’ll drink either wine, most of the time, or a Rum Manhattan.”
Do you use mixes yourself?
“Only my own.”
GRAB A DRINK: Society Fair, 277 S. Washington St., Alexandria; 703-683-3247; www.societyfair.net
(April 2012)
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Thursday, April 23rd, 2009
By Natalie Bovis-Nelsen (AKA: TheLiquidMuse.com)
Photography by Moshe Zusman
The artists of yore were known for their drinking habits and hard-living ways. In today’s bars, we can find many a drinker waxing poetic past the midnight hour. Therefore, this creation by D.C.-area mixologist Derek Brown is the perfect tipple for the Bohemian cocktailing crowd, especially because absinthe is once again legal. Brown credits “the absinthe cocktails of two artistic giants—Hemingway’s Death in the Afternoon (champagne and absinthe) and Toulouse Lautrec’s Tremblement du Terre (absinthe and cognac)”—with inspiring his take. “It is surprisingly refreshing and definitely inspires artistic vision.”
Etouffer un Perroquet
1/2 ounce brandy
1/2 ounce absinthe
Approximately 2 ounces champagne
1 lemon twist
Shake brandy and absinthe, with ice. Strain into a champagne flute and top with champagne. Garnish with the lemon twist.
(April 2009)
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Thursday, March 19th, 2009
By Natalie Bovis-Nelsen (AKA: TheLiquidMuse.com)
Photography by Moshe Zusman
Just when you thought dining in downtown D.C. couldn’t get any more fun, SEI opened its doors. Creative sushi rolls and modern Japanese cuisine are washed down with cool drinks ranging from a Japanese whiskey sour to a variety of sake cocktails. Sommelier Andrew Stover, who also oversees the sake list, says that this drink is a playful tribute to that cute little Asian feline who has delighted fans for decades.
Hello Kitty
1 1/2 ounces citrus vodka
1 1/2 ounces Strawberry Calpico (a Japanese dry milk-based drink)
1/2 ounce regular flavor Calpico concentrate
1/2 ounce strawberry liqueur
1/2 ounce lime juice
Splash strawberry soda
Shake all ingredients, except strawberry soda, with ice. Strain into ice-filled glass. Top with soda and garnish with a flower.
(March 2009)
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Thursday, February 19th, 2009
By Natalie Bovis-Nelsen (AKA: TheLiquidMuse.com)
Photography by Moshe Zusman
Raise a glass to our newly elected leader at fyve, the dazzling lounge nestled in a cozy corner of Arlington’s swanky Ritz-Carlton. A stone’s throw from the Pentagon, fyve’s cocktail menu pays tribute to the men and women protecting our country with a smattering of military-themed cocktails. The top of the heap, of course, is the Commander in Chief, an intoxicating tribute to the latest resident of the Oval Office.
Commander in Chief
1/2 ounce raspberry vodka
1/2 ounce blueberry vodka
1/2 ounce cranberry vodka
1/2 ounce strawberry vodka
1/2 ounce kurant vodka
1/4 ounce simple syrup
1/4 ounce raspberry puree
Shake all ingredients with ice. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with mixed berries on a cocktail spear.
(February 2009)
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Friday, January 9th, 2009
By Warren Rojas
“Preggatinis: Mixology for the Mom-to-Be.” Natalie Bovis-Nelsen. Globe Pequot Press, 150 pgs., $16.95
Worried that a baby bump means kicking Cosmo night to the curb?
Our own Natalie Bovis-Nelsen aims to sate your cocktail cravings with “Preggatinis,” a compendium of preggers-friendly drinks designed to make your nine-month trek a walk on the wild side.
The maternally minded book is peppered with tongue-in-cheek quotes from today’s cocktail intelligentsia (“Drinking just to get drunk is like having sex just to get pregnant”), historical tidbits about tippling (imbibing beer was once believed to aide breastfeeding) and pro-pregnancy pointers (immortalize your pregnant belly with a glamorous photo shoot; book a massage therapist for any baby shower/preggatini party).
Bovis-Nelsen puts forward over six dozen drink recipes (broken up by trimester) including low-calorie beverages and nearly a dozen holiday libations (including the Sparkling Citrus Easter pleaser). There are also a few party food suggestions, including a zesty tomato dip and gruyere-chip pairing provided by celebrity chef Michel Richard.
Curious concoctions include: Clean Liver (a purgative brew of milk thistle and mint), Pants on Fire (chili-passion fruit mixer), Apricot Gingerini (a ginger-clove punch designed to short circuit morning sickness), Salty Puppy (curbed cocktail of just grapefruit and tonic), MILFshake (basically a peach-apricot-ice cream smoothie) and the odd craving-quenching Funky Monkey (peanut butter-chocolate job garnished with pickles).
Bovis-Nelsen also weaves in “de-virginizing” tips for spinning any preggatini into an adult beverage: “An ounce or two of vodka will not change the taste of the drink too much and is a safe bet when you want to add a spirited kick; substitute champagne for club soda.”
(January 2009)
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Friday, January 9th, 2009
By Natalie Bovis-Nelsen (AKA: TheLiquidMuse.com)
Photography by Claire Barrett
Whether you are recovering from a wild NYE or entering 2009 with great “expectations” (i.e., a bun in the oven), this nonalcoholic cooler will allow you to celebrate in style without the hard stuff.
This recipe is plucked directly from my new book “Preggatinis: Mixology for the Mom-To-Be” (for further coverage, click here), which features dozens of liquor-less libations for all sorts of cocktail lovers. Because we know this year is going to be a great one—and even preggers girls want to have fun!
Sparkling Citrus
2 ounces freshly squeezed pink grapefruit juice (organic encouraged)
1 ounce tangerine juice (organic encouraged)
Blood orange soda
Stirrings Tangerini® rimming sugar
2-3 drops Fee’s grapefruit bitters (optional)
Rim champagne flute with specialty sugar. Pour in juices and bitters; top with blood orange soda. Toast to a wonderful (hangover-free) new year!
*De-virginize for Dad: Replace the blood orange soda with sparkling wine, and top the drink with a splash of orange liqueur.
(January 2009)
Putting Prohibition Out to Pasture
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Monday, November 24th, 2008
By Natalie Bovis-Nelsen (AKA: TheLiquidMuse.com)
Photography by Moshe Zusman
Prohibition went into effect in January 1919, and was strictly enforced once the Volstead Act became legislation on Jan. 16, 1920. After 13 long, dry years (and countless deaths from homemade hooch), our government came to its senses and lifted the ban on booze on Dec. 5, 1933, otherwise known as Repeal Day.
On Dec. 5, the D.C. Chapter of the United States Bartenders’ Guild hosts mixologists from around the country to demo classic cocktails at a festive fundraiser benefiting the Museum of the American Cocktail, the City Tavern Club’s Preservation Fund and the D.C. Craft Bartenders Guild. The party is open to the public and kicks off at City Tavern Club (3206 M St. N.W.) at 8 p.m. Reserve tickets ($75) via email: repealday2008@gmail.com, or visit www.dccraftbartendersguild.org for more info.
The Martinez
2 ounces Old Tom Gin
1 ounce Carpano Antica (sweet vermouth)
1/4 ounce Luxardo Maraschino liqueur
2 dashes orange bitters
Stir ingredients over ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.
(December 2008)
Winter Chill, Hot Buttered Thrill
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Monday, November 24th, 2008
By Natalie Bovis-Nelsen (AKA: TheLiquidMuse.com)
Photography by Moshe Zusman
Master mixologist and sommelier Todd Thrasher brings yet another creative twist to a yuletide favorite. HIs recipe is a little labor-intensive, but worth the extra effort—it’s the holiday season, after all! As an alternative, though, you could always bring your loved ones right to the source; Thrasher whips up Cold Buttered Rum at both PX and Restaurant Eve, in Old Town Alexandria.
STEP ONE:
Butter Rum mixture
Melt 1/2 pound salted Kerrygold butter. Add one liter of Captain Morgan rum. Bring the mixture to room temperature, then whisk for 10 minutes, and place in freezer. Allow the fat from the butter to rise to the top and solidify. Skim off, and strain the mixture.
STEP TWO:
Spiced Syrup
2 quarts water
1/2 cup light-brown sugar
10 cloves
1 star-anise pod
1 stick cinnamon
4 all spice, crushed
1 rind of half an orange
Dash of ground nutmeg
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over low heat, and reduce water to 1 1/2 quarts. Strain.
STEP THREE:
Cold Buttered Rum Cocktail
2 ounces butter rum mixture
1 ounce spiced syrup
Pour over ice into a rocks glass. Garnish with orange twist.
(November 2008)
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Friday, November 21st, 2008
By Natalie Bovis-Nelsen (aka: TheLiquidMuse.com)
Photography by Moshe B Zusman
“Tea For Two” has a whole new meaning on the cocktail scene. From English Earl Grey to Herbal Rose Hips to Asian Green and White teas, the world comes together over Tea-tinis! And, while tea and cream cakes a Mother’s Day celebration, today’s modern mom may enjoy an updated twist…
Always on the cutting edge of cocktail trends, Topaz features this sampling flight of Tea-nis:
Zambezi Tea-ni
Tanqueray Rangpur and Tazo matcha syrup
Tazo Tea-ni
Captain Morgan rum, Navan, and Tazo vanilla syrup
Chai Tea-ni
A smooth blend of Woodford Reserve and Tazo chai syrup
(May 2007)