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The Bacardi Boat of Truth

The day after the Ministry of Rum festival, there was a rum event put on for bartenders that involved a boat ride sponsored by Bacardi followed by a debate from multiple rum producers in Oakland. 

I learned a couple things about Bacardi rum on the boat before things got tense:

• Bacardi Superior (white) is a blend of two rums, one high proof and fairly neutral; the other distilled to lower proof with more flavor. In Puerto Rico rums have a minimum of one year aging before bottling. The two rums are distilled and aged separately then combined in some ratio at bottling time to make the final product. 
• Bacardi Solera is an aged blend. The "solera" isn't anything like a traditional solera system (I am beginning to think that it's not in any rum brand that puts the word on the label), but is blended rum that is "married" in another cask before bottling. I believe this product is made in Mexico. 
• Three countries in Europe accept sugar beet distillate as rum. In the US and in most countries, to be called rum it must be distilled from a sugar cane derivative. 
• Puerto Rico put into place minimum aging laws after WWII. During the war they ran out of aged rum so people started selling basically moonshine fresh off the still. Laws were put into place to protect the quality of rum after this period. From the discussion that followed it seems that the law initially required several years of aging then it was reduced down to one year.  

 

Then Things Got Interesting.

But the point of the cruise seemed to be to address the negative perception of Bacardi by top bartenders and rum connoisseurs. I am not so sure the cruise was successful at changing peoples' minds, but it was a step in the right direction. 

"This is the most transparent Bacardi has ever been," said David Cid, Bacardi Brand Master Apprentice. 

True enough, I learned that some of the rum is made in Mexico, that some used to be made on another Caribbean island,  and a few other pieces of information that might have been previously glossed over. Cid says the press kit in the most extensive in the brand's history as well. 

But the discussion went south when once again they tried to assert that the product is exactly the same as it was when it was made in pre-Castro Cuba before moving to Puerto Rico, and thus if bartenders are making classic rum cocktails they should make them with Bacardi. 

The bartenders pointed out that the still was once a four-column still and now it has five columns, that they buy molasses on the open market, and that the product is bottled with local water in different markets and at different proofs. Also, some of the bartenders have tasted vintage Cuban Bacardi and say it tastes different than it does today. 

Cid said that the product is distilled differently for bottlings of different proofs- it's not just a matter of adding more water. He also  acknowledged that because distillation technology is better they would have to filter less now than they did previously to achieve the same flavor. He did a good job at explaining how Bacardi white could be the same as it used to.  

At the end, the bartenders would not concede that the product is the same today as it once was. Cid would say that it is "scientifically possible" that the product tastes the same now as it did. 

 I think this could be mostly solved with a minor change of phrase. Perhaps Bacardi could state that it is an accurate recreation of the product as it was made in Cuba produced with today's more efficient, consistent, and environmentally-friendly technology. Then the bartenders could choose to believe it or not. 

Opening Up

In any case, this boat trip was a case of another brand dipping their toes into the new model of transparent business practices. Patron tequila seems to be doing the same thing by bringing people to the new distillery and bringing around the master distiller for interviews. 

It's a tough place to be for companies that have relied on secrecy (and many would say disinformation) in the past and have built up a lot of distrust in connoisseurs of their categories. It will be interesting to see if and how these companies can work to change their reputations and working relationships with bartenders. 

Important business relationships happen on the front lines- between the sales, PR, and brand ambassadors and the bartenders and consumers. In the newer business environment fostered by the advance of social media these relationships are becoming even more significant, and now some business decisions result from front line interactions rather than meetings in corporate boardrooms.   

So hopefully the higher-ups at Bacardi will listen to front-line conversations like this one on the boat and keep taking  steps toward increased transparency. 

The Fading Beauty Cocktail

I created a drink last night that is simple and tasty. 

 

The occasion was Thursday Drink Night (TDN), over at the Mixoloseum chat room. On Thursdays starting at 7PM EST all the folks in the chat room makes drinks according to the theme of the week. One person will suggest a recipe then everyone who has the ingredients will go make the drink and critique it. We do this for several hours until people fade out or pass out in their own homes. 

Last Thursday was one of our sponsored TDNs, where we make all drinks with a product sponsor. Last night was Zaya, so I made this cocktail with the rum as the base. 

Fading Beauty
by Camper English

1.5 ounces Zaya rum
.5 ounces Small Hand Foods Raspberry Syrup
.75 ounce fresh lime juice (the drink can take an ounce of it if you want it more tart)
1 barspoon absinthe

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime wheel.  

The rusty red of the drink and the green lime wheel reminded me of an empty landscape of red soil and the full moon above. For some reason I felt it was a sad moment so I called the drink Fading Beauty for the feeling it gave me. 

Maybe I should go write a poem or something.

Ice Meets Chainsaw

Ice nerds got a real treat this Tuesday, for Andrew Bohrer from Seattle was guest bartending in San Francisco along with Amanda Womack from Cask. 

He brought chainsaw Thursday to the city in order to chop up giant blocks of clear ice from an industrial ice maker into big cubes that could be further cut into ice balls. 

Keep scrolling for videos of hand ice carving...

First they cut slices off the big blocks, then cut those into long rectangles. Then they cut those into cubes. 

Click below for the videos. 

Bar Agricole: A First (Almost Finished) Look

Bar Agricole opens in San Francisco August 16th (note: not the 15th). Last night St. George Spirits hosted a first preview of the space as a launch party for the new Agua Libre rum from fresh California sugar cane. 

 

We were treated to Agua Libre versions of Ti Punches, El Presidentes, and Cuba Libres made with a homemade cola syrup. 

We also had a chance for a first look at the space that still needs a few finishing touches before it opens next week. Let's take a tour, shall we? 

The bar is located adjacent to Slim's in SoMa and opens with the patio. The patio still looks unfinished at this point, but I believe the plans are to have tables and chairs out there as well. 

The front of the room is a long bar with some space for a standing crowd immediately in the front entrance. Some booths are in this front section too. The tubular light fixtures seem to focus daylight into the space and make it seem like daylight even when it's not. 

As usual with Thad Vogler's projects, the spirits list consists of locally-made spirits like the Agua Libre, plus independently bottled spirits and those distributed by smaller companies. I believe there are no spirits distributed by Southern Wine & Spirits or Young's Market here- a really hard thing to accomplish.    

At the end of the bar is a more casual cafe-like seating section. Here we're facing toward the front of the restaurant. On our left is the coffee station and service bar...

  ...where former Heaven's Dog bartender Craig Lane was working on this night. 

The back of the room contains a few more of the big booths. The booths somehow have concrete backs- very cool. 

At the preview we snacked on chicharrones, pickled beans and cucumbers, a ginger dessert, and other nibbles. 

They're using metal straws in the Cuba Libre and other drinks. 

So congratulations to Thad and the crew. I'll be back for another preview party this week!    

The New Burritt Room Menu

San Francisco bar Burritt Room's Kevin Deidrich has finally launched the summer cocktail menu now that it's almost time for San Francisco's summer. 

The menu contains all the drink recipes so I don't think I should post the whole thing here, but it looks really interesting and I'm looking forward to drinking through it. On this menu there are several drinks with cognac, several with sherry, a couple with Creme Yvette, and two(!) drinks with Galliano.

Here are some highlights:

BLACK ROSE

genever;  london dry gin;  crème yvette;   maraschino; lemon; blackberry syrup; topped with rose water smoked black pepper tincture.  cocktail glass.

WEISSEN SOUR 

 bourbon;  lemon;  orange marmalade; orange bitters; topped off with white beer; small piece of lemon.  hi-ball.

WHISKEY WALLBANGER

bourbon; grapefruit;  ginger syrup;  galliano; ginger candy.  coupe.

MEZCAL CUP

mezcal;  italian vermouth; rouge; orange liqueur;  ginger beer; lemon; muddled mint, cucumber, orange slices, lemon slices; mint sprig and orange slice garnish.  collins glass

RED ROCKET

gin; manzanilla; lemon; muddled arugula and cherry tomatoes; salt and pepper; topped with balsamic vinaigrette

Little Changes in Big Canada

Some Canadian whisky news: 

Phillips Distilling Company is re-launching the brand Revel Stoke in September. The brand was originally launched in partnership with Maxim magazine in 20o0. It is a "Spiced Canadian Whisky" that is 45% alcohol. 

From the press release:

Since 80% of the rum market includes spiced rums, Phillips Distilling Company thought that the same could be applied to whiskey.  Revel Stoke is a spiced whiskey at 90 proof.  This is a higher proof than competitors Jack Daniels or Crown Royal, but is more palatable and easier to drink. 

In late August a new brand extension hits the market- Canadian Mist Black Diamond.

From this release:

Canadian Mist Black Diamond is blended at 86 proof and has a higher sherry and rye content to give it a more enhanced flavor and deliver the smooth profile for which Canadian Mist is known.

 

Rum Judgement

Last week I helped judge the Ministry of Rum competition in San Francisco. 

We only had to judge 50 or so rums over the course of two days, so it wasn't nearly as grueling as other judging competitions, but it was still pretty interesting. 

 

Ed Hamilton, who runs Ministry of Rum and the competition, said a major challenge is deciding on categories of rums to judge. When I write about rum (which is all I seem to be doing this year) I typically divide them into regional and historical categories based on where the rums are produced. 

But at the competition we looked at them in terms of what was in the bottle. Some of the categories we considered were

• Sugar cane-based spirits (agricole, cachaca, and other rums made from sugar cane instead of molasses)
• White rums
• Dark rums (rums without an age statement)
• Aged rums (rums with an age statement)
• Premium rums (some of the higher-end aged rums)
• Flavored rums and spiced rums
• Overproof rums

Then we could further look at cross-over categories such as aged sugar cane spirits, flavored overproof rums, etc. If we looked at every rum on the market we could come up with a ton of categories. Luckily we weren't judging every rum on the market- only the ones that entered the competition. 

Judging spirits can be difficult if you have too many- it's hard to be a good judge when you experience palate fatigue. But more importantly it's always a pleasure to challenge what you think a spirit tastes like by doing blind tastings.

In this competition I was surprised to find that I gave low scores to some brands I thought I loved and high scores to brands I had previously ignored. That always happens and it's a good, if embarrassing, thing. 

I also noticed I am oblivious to certain flavors that can seem artificial (including vanilla and chocolate) and I have a high sensitivity to certain other flavors including rose and jalapeno.  I also have a low sensitivity for spirits and cocktails that are too sweet until about the third sip whereas other people react right away. Every blind tasting helps further tune your palate. 

When Hamilton talked about the spirits we'd just judged (after we'd judged them, of course), he'd constantly note how the different brands were changing over time: most of them for the better, I'm happy to report. 

Hamilton often says, "If you haven't tasted every bottle behind your bar in the past six months, you don't know what they taste like." We think of spirits as a constant, but they do change. 

Anyway, after the competition we went out drinking. First we started at Heinhold's First and Last Chance Saloon where Jack London used to hang. 

 

Then we took a bus to Smuggler's Cove for some flaming tiki drinks. 

Delicious. 

The Bar Agricole Bar Staff

This coming week is the pre-opening of Bar Agricole, the big big big restaurant/bar project from Thad Vogler about which I am very excited. Bar Agricole opens on August 16th (15th according to the SF Chronicle). 

I asked Vogler about his bar staff- and got a surprise. All the bartenders will work full-time at Bar Agricole. I know three of the crew pretty well already, and have a feeling I'll get to know the two others soon enough. 

The Bar Agricole Bar Staff:

• Ben Krupp (Camino, Slanted Door)
• Rosa Lynley (Farallon, Slanted Door)
• Eric Johnson (Eastside West, Bourbon & Branch, Delarosa, Beretta, Heaven's Dog)
• Craig Lane (Farallon, Heaven's Dog, Slanted Door)
• Thad Vogler (Slanted Door, Bourbon & Branch, Beretta, Camino, Farallon, Jardiniere, Bardessano, Heaven's Dog)