Alcademics.com

A Peek at the New Clock Bar Menu

Clock Bar in San Francisco will be launching a new seasonal menu soon (probably Monday), with some great looking drinks on it. Here's a look at what to look forward to. (Subject to change.) I already tried the Carl and it was delicious.

I bolded my favorite parts.

BERRY SEASON / MAY-SEPTEMBER

SOFIA’S KISS ............................................................... 12
lavender-infused vodka, yellow chartreuse,
st. germain elderflower liqueur, fresh
blueberries, peychaud’s bitters, fresh lemon
served up with lavender

SHORTEST STRAW....................................................... 12
bulleit bourbon, orange shrub,
rose-geranium sugar, fresh strawberries
served short over ice

TENNESSEE SOUR SMASH......................................... 14
george dickel sour mash whiskey,
fresh blackberries, orange curacao, fresh lemon,
egg whites, peach bitters
served over crushed ice in a mason jar

CARIOCA...................................................................... 12
leblon cachaca, fresh raspberries,
house-made cacao syrup, fresh lemon, mint
served tall over crushed ice

WHEN IT WAS A WIBBLING WEEK................................ 12
raynal brandy, dolin rouge, campari
house-made rhubarb syrup
served short over ice

APIUM WAY................................................................... 13
plymouth gin, sauvignon blanc, celery soda,
edible arugula flowers
served tall over ice

BRITISH LIT.................................................................. 12
pimm’s no.1, fresh blackberries, raspberries &
blueberries, firelit coffee liqueur, gum syrup
served up

OREGON 609 .............................................................. 12
bols genever, house-made olallieberry syrup,
cynar, benedictine, fresh lemon
served up with a twist

MISSION FLIP............................................................... 13
pampero aniversario rum, house-made cane syrup,
fresh lemon, mission fig reduction, fresh egg
served tall

CARL............................................................................. 14
kuhbler absinthe, apricot reduction,
house-made root beer
served tall over ice

Changes at St. George Spirits/Hangar One Vodka

*Update* In the original post I mistakenly wrote that distribution/marketing for all St. George Spirits products was moving to Proximo Spirits. That was incorrect. This is only the case for Hangar One Vodka. I deeply regret the error and any resulting confusion.

News from St. George Spirits, the makers of Hangar One Vodka, St. George Absinthe, the forthcoming Agua Libre rum, and other products: They've changed their distribution and marketing from Craft Distillers to Proximo Spirits. The company has not been sold and Lance Winters, Jorg Rupf, and Dave Smith will still be making the booze.

I'm sure there will be much more news in the future from this new collaboration. 

 

Herbsaint Original Recipe

Herbsaint is an absinthe substitute introduced after Prohibition. It was important in the Sazerac and other cocktails until absinthe was re-legalized in the US in 2007.

Sazerac Co. reintroduces the original recipe for Herbsaint

By Todd A. Price
December 19, 2009, 3:00PM

A new bottle that looks antique will appear on liquor store shelves this week. In honor of the 75th anniversary of Herbsaint, the local Sazerac Company dug into its archives for the original recipe and recreated the absinthe substitute first sold in 1934.

The story says that the proof will be raised back to 50% ABV and that instead of using extracts in neutral alcohol, they will dip herbs into alcohol like a big tea bag.

Absinthe (good absinthe, anyway) is made by adding the flavoring herbs into the still and redistilling alcohol. Then most absinthes (verte, or the green ones) have additional herbs added after distillation, which gives them their green color. 

Some bartenders say that they still prefer Herbsaint to absinthe in a Sazerac,so we'll see what they think about the new bottle. Herbsaint does have one large advantage over absinthe- the price. It comes in at around $20/bottle as opposed to $50 or so for absinthe, but as you use only a dash or two that may not matter too much in the long run. The new Herbsaint Original is set to retail for $34.99 according to the story.

Adam Lambert and the Improperly Used Absinthe Fountain

Hey, did y'all see the new Adam Lambert video "For Your Entertainment"? I sure did. As you'd expect, he dresses in all black with sparkly studded accessories and sings while people writhe around him. He also holds a snake.

Less expected is the new symbol of rock star stature: an absinthe fountain. RISKY!  You'll notice that the pouring absinthe fountain doesn't appear to have ice in it, and that given its color it looks like they put absinthe in the fountain instead of ice water, and that the other fountain appears to be filled with sugar cubes.

No matter! What is important is that Lambert is thrusting his bloodlust for absinthe on impressionable American teenagers who comprise his primary audience.

My first question to myself was "WHAT BRAND OF ABSINTHE?" (I always speak to myself in capslock.) But alas, I could not find any evidence of product placement.

Wouldn't it have been awesome if they were drinking Marilyn Manson's product Mansinthe?

Or maybe he should come out with his own brand: LAMSINTHE.

New Booze: Germain-Robin Absinthe

Germain-Robin, a brandy maker based in Ukiah, California, has released an absinthe. This one is an absinthe blanche, meaning that it's clear because no additional herbs are infused after distillation. It's also much lower in proof than other absinthes (45% as opposed to up to 70%) and pleasingly bitter. I don't add sugar to any of the absinthes I have around the house, but maybe I would to this.

On the other hand, maybe not. The aftertaste is ridiculously long and chalky and floral and rosy like the most delicious Milk of Magnesia in the world. They only sent me a tiny sample to taste, but I am loving every sip.

So far it's only available in Northern California but if you're an absinthe lover I'd say it's worth seeking out. I bet it would be amazing mixed with other dry white spirits- maybe pisco.

Glossy Booze: Late June Edition

Glossy Booze is regular Alcademics feature; a round-up of spirits stories in magazines.

Details (June/July) has a story on punch and places to get it around the country, plus a small feature on Hauz Alpenz products. 

ReadyMade (June/July) has another story by Alex Day, this one on ice. Looks like some good advice on how to freeze and split a pan of ice.

Town and Country  (July) has a feature on new food and drink cookbooks for summer.

GQ (July) has three fizz recipes: the Ramos Gin Fizz, the Rum Fizz, and the Gin Fizz.

Mutineer (June/July) has a story on the movie Beer Wars, a feature on craft distillers of the Pacific Northwest, a big story on absinthe, a tour of Maker's Mark, and an interview with Max Riedel of Riedel glass.

Bon Appetit (July) has some recommended blanco tequilas, lists a recipe for the Strawberry Muddle (recipe: muddle strawberries. add prosecco),and a story on IPA beers. 

In Esquire (July), David Wondrich takes a break from writing about cocktails to tell us we don't drink enough champagne.

In Food and Wine (July), we have a recipe for Peach Sangria, a story on creating a wine list, a story on texture as a wine pairing guide, one on Argentinian wines, some recommended restaurants in which to drink wine, and the best beers for wine lovers.

Men's Journal (August) has a ton of booze coverage: recommendations for High West whiskey, Sam Adams Imperial White, and Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka, plus a story on four summer classic cocktails with a twist with recipes by Sean Muldoon of Belfast's Merchant Hotel, Chris Hannah or Arnaud's, Jamie Boudreau of Tini Bigs, and Jeffrey Mortenthaler of Clyde Common. There is also a recipe for an Heirloom Bloody Mary, and Jimmy Buffet recommends a drink that's just rum, coconut water, and a slice of lime.

The New Monteleone Cocktail?

I decided to post an entrant into the competition to create a new Hotel Monteleone Cocktail. What I came up with is likely too simple to win the contest, but certainly not too simple to drink.

When I think of New Orleans drinks, I think of rye and absinthe in drinks like the Sazerac and Vieux Carre. But given the 1949 opening date of the Carousel Bar, there probably wasn't much rye being made post-Prohibition. I lead with New Orlean's own absinthe substitute Herbsaint, which I always enjoy with robust fruit and berry flavors. I tried some Poir Williams drinks that just weren't hitting it. Then I tried experimenting with grenadine, absinthe, and gin. That combination was pretty good, but I couldn't get it all the way there. I added an egg white to the mix to froth it up like a Ramos Gin Fizz, and it was yucky.

Then I ran out of grenadine. I did have some POM pomegranate juice though, so I started playing with that. At first I thought I'd make something like an absinthe pomegranate Pimm's Cup, but that was gross. I couldn't make the gin work, and my fizzy mixers- soda water and ginger ale- made the thick juice taste watered down.

In the end, I went with the simplest flavor combination I'd tried all day.

Monteleone Cocktail (Cooler Edition)

4 ounces POM pomegranate juice
1 1/2 ounces Herbsaint

Pour ingredients over ice in a double old-fashioned or rocks glass. Lemon peel garnish optional.

Absinthe in New York (Pulications)

Both the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times took on absinthe this week.

In Eric Felten's piece in the Wall Street Journal, he tried just a few absinthes and admitted to not liking it generally. No surprise then that he picked Mata Hari absinthe as his favorite, as it has very little anise, the primary flavoring component in most absinthes on the market. After sampling it several times I came around to it myself, but still have a hard time calling it absinthe.

Good/Very Good

Mata Hari $52.99
A distinctive and appealing alternative for those of us not quite so ambitious in the absinthe department. Light on the licorice with a muted and subtle herbal complexity. Can be drunk, with ice water and a little sugar, with something resembling pleasure.

Good

Lucid $64.99
Potent, viscous, and herby in the extreme. A favorite of hard-core absintheurs.

Pernod $75.99
Classic anise-forward absinthe. Flavorful without being strident. Could do without the yellow dye that brightens the green liquid.

Kübler $55.99
Approachable Alpine meadow flavors balanced against the licorice. This Swiss product is a "white" not a "green" absinthe—a colorless liquid that, when mixed with water, looks like Milk of Magnesia.

Yuck

Le Tourment Vert $49.99
Redolent of Vicks VapoRub. Dreadful chemical color. Who knew there was a distillery at Love Canal?

In the New York Times, a small panel of testers sampled 20 absinthes and chose a top group.

1. Kübler **Best Value**
2. Grande
3. Pernod
4. Émile Pernot (Vieux Pontarlier)
5. St. George
6. Jade Nouvelle-Orléans
7. Obsello
8. La Clandestine
9. Lucid
10. Mansinthe

The rest of their tasting notes are here.