The SF Chronicle has announced the 2011 Bar Stars, bartenders who deserve special recognition. The introduction by Wine Editor Jon Bonne is here. The Bar Stars are: Morgan Young (I did this write-up) Carlo Splendorini Jason "Buffalo" LoGrasso Alex Smith Kevin Diedrich Click the links for the write-ups on each... Read more →
(Photo courtesy of That's My Jamm) David Ruiz of Mr. Smith's makes jams and preserves just for cocktails. I wrote about it with a quick note about jam in cocktails historically, and in which bar you can find a mezcal drink with strawberry-raspberry-jabanero jam. Yumz. Read about That's My Jamm... Read more →
In today's blog post for Fine Cooking, I talk about good tonic water. Chances are if you read Alcademics you don't need to be told about it. But here is something you may not know: If you subsribe to Amazon Prime, the service for which you pay for a year's... Read more →
This is a sponsored post by Communispace. Bartenders Wanted for Online Advisory Community The Breakthrough Innovation Group at one of the world's largest food/beverage manufacturers has assembled a small, exclusive online advisory community to directly influence the next generation of food/beverage products and services. This community consists of leading chefs,... Read more →
Though dessert and pastry-flavored liqueurs are all the rage these days, I am amazed at the amount of alcoholic whipped cream products coming out. There are now at least two brands of whipped cream flavored vodka (Burnett's Whipped Cream flavored vodka and Pinnacle Whipped Vodka) and two brands of alcoholic... Read more →
Last week I went to Tuscany with Bombay Sapphire to see a demonstration of juniper berry harvesting. I'll try to post more information in a little bit, but for now here's how they do it: Using a flat, round basket and a short hard stick, they whack the juniper bush... Read more →
Oooh busted! I'd heard that it was common practice in nightclubs to pay for placement on the top shelves but I don't think I knew that it was illegal. Nearly all the top liquor companies got busted and fined for violating the "slotting fee" prohibition at Harrah's (through a third... Read more →
The cocktail that helped bartender Marc Bonneton win the Bacardi Global Legacy Cocktail Competition is a rather simple spin-off of the Ramos Gin Fizz. (Image courtesy of Bacardi.) Marco's Bacardi Fizz substitutes rum for gin and Chartreuse for orange flower water. In my latest post for FineCooking.com, I list both... Read more →