"Classic" Cocktails in the District

[jparrott]

That stuff ain't cheap, either.

[dirtymartini]

Blimey, Tom. First Jake gets you to add Chartreuse to an Aviation...delicious. And now this Chartreuse sparkler. I sense a trend in the making. Hello again, trip to the liquor store!

Ahh, the flying monk..that one was on the chateruse web site for a bit. It had a different name, the last word or, something like it. Try the angry dragon for knocking the last remanents of the day from your head. 1 oz charteruse, 1 oz tequila. Serve VERY chilled. I think that one spured the conversation that became that sparkling drink.

[Xochitl10]

Blimey, Tom. First Jake gets you to add Chartreuse to an Aviation...delicious. <snip>

That sounds fantastic. Which Chartreuse did you use?

[jparrott]

These were all "green" scenarios.

[derekmbrown]

I had no idea what it was so I looked it up and found this:

* 1 ounces gin

* 1/4 ounce lemon juice

* 1/8 ounce simple syrup

* 5 ounces chilled champagne

Correct?

Bonus points for the following:

French 68

French 76

French 95

French 125

[Jacques Gastreaux]

Bonus points for the following:

French 68

French 76

French 95

French 125

A French 76 is a French 75 made with vodka instead of gin.

French 68:

1/4 oz brandy

3/4 oz Calvados

1 dash grenadine syrup

1 dash sugar syrup

1/4 oz lemon juice

4 oz Champagne

French 95:

3/4 oz bourbon whiskey

3/4 oz simple syrup

1/2 oz fresh lemon juice

1 oz fresh orange juice

Champagne

French 125

2 oz sweet and sour mix

1 oz brandy

chilled Champagne

1 slice lemon

Now, where did the name "French 75" come from?

[derekmbrown]

Now, where did the name "French 75" come from?

From Wikipedia:

It was first made, in spite of its name, by American army officers during World War I. They named it after the French-made 75mm cannon. Legend has it that the name came about because the effect of the cocktail was similar to being bombarded with a French 75 cannon.

Also, sub lemon juice for sour mix and ditch the OJ. IMHO.

[mdt]

A French 76 is a French 75 made with vodka instead of gin.

French 68:

1/4 oz brandy

3/4 oz Calvados

1 dash grenadine syrup

1 dash sugar syrup

1/4 oz lemon juice

4 oz Champagne

French 95:

3/4 oz bourbon whiskey

3/4 oz simple syrup

1/2 oz fresh lemon juice

1 oz fresh orange juice

Champagne

French 125

2 oz sweet and sour mix

1 oz brandy

chilled Champagne

1 slice lemon

Now, where did the name "French 75" come from?

From the top of your head?!

[Jacques Gastreaux]

From the top of your head?!

75mm field artillery used by the French in WW I

[meatwad]

The Silver Spring DLC store on Colesville Rd. has many Marie Brizard cordials & Anisette in stock.

[porcupine]

A small round of applause, please, for Adam's work (both classic and creative) at PS7's.

[jparrott]

Would that be a small, round, bottle of orange bitters? I like 'em as much as the next guy, but as either the secret ingredient in a Martini or as a citric topnote to another kind of bitters. They're plastered all over the PS7 drink list, though the wonderful staff of Adam, Jaren, and Laura will all make more classical versions--and Mara is a real, live, Sazerac-making Yat!

[porcupine]

Would that be a small, round, bottle of orange bitters?

Well, yeah, okay, the bitters did kinda overwhelm the One Drop, but I liked the Sazerac.

[Sthitch]

In case anyone is interested, I believe I've perfected a recipe for a Manhattan. Well, at least to my taste...

"Almost Perfect" Manhattan

Get some good quality tart dried cherries, put 'em in a small bottle, and cover with Vya extra dry vermouth. Let soak for at least a week. Keeps for many weeks in the fridge.

2 1/2 oz of your favorite rye (eg, Sazerac)

3/4 oz Carpano Antica Formula vermouth [at the risk of sounding like JoeH - no other! ]

~ 1/2 t cherry liquid

2 dashes Angostura bitters

1 dash Fee Bros. orange bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with a few of the cherries.

As Graham Chapman once said, "buttocks up!"

That sounds fantastic, I had to reread it to make sure that you meant the cherry soaking liquid. I have not tried that, but now I will. Otherwise, it is almost identical to my recipe, but I use 1/2 oz of both dry (which you would get from the cherry liquid) and sweet vermouth (Vya for both - but I will try it with Antica).

Tonight's classic cocktails were the Pogo Stick and the Pink Palace. The Pogo Stick is a Trader Vic's drink of gin, lime, pineapple, and grapefruit juices blended with ice (oh and a little simple syrup). Quite fun, and when crafted with fresh juice is on a whole other plain than the normal frozen drinks. The Pink Palace was the old stand by for the Polo Club at the Beverly Hill Hotel, and while it has a fru fru name, it is far from that. It is 2 shots of gin, 1/2 shot of Grand Marnier, 1/2 shot fresh lemon juice, and 1/4 shot of grenadine (please use Sonoma Syrup Pomegranate syrup, and you will never buy that cough syrup crap again)

[porcupine]

I had to reread it to make sure that you meant the cherry soaking liquid.

yep, that's it. It makes the difference. Well, that and the high end booze.

[jparrott]

This week, Buffalo Trace is releasing an eight-year-old, barrel-proof rye as part of the Antique collection, called "Thomas H. Handy." That wouldn't suck in this particular drink (I find Sazerac 18-yr-old to be too woody and not rye-y enough for cocktails like this).

[jparrott]

I just broke out my brand-new cocktail muddler (which began life as something else--the wrapper is in Japanese, but if it looks like a muddler, walks like a muddler, etc.). My life is changed for the better.

[edenman]

Cool old Post article about the Jack Rose, a classic cocktail made with Applejack. Anybody seen this stuff around?

[jm chen]

Haven't seen applejack in stores, but I know they were making the Jack Rose in the early days at Agraria.

[Sthitch]

I believe that I picked-up my bottle of Laird's Applejack at a Virginia ABC store.

[clayrae]

I wouldn't know a cocktail from a glass of apple juice and a good friend is coming to town this weekend and has asked about "martinis in dc."

We are having dinner at Dino on Sat night, I know Chris does interesting drinks there which I am sure we will partake of, but does anyone have a lounge-y location for afterward where we could fulfill his martini request? Close to Dino would be nice, but we have no problem wandering around town either.

[deangold]

I wouldn't know a cocktail from a glass of apple juice and a good friend is coming to town this weekend and has asked about "martinis in dc."

We are having dinner at Dino on Sat night, I know Chris does interesting drinks there which I am sure we will partake of, but does anyone have a lounge-y location for afterward where we could fulfill his martini request? Close to Dino would be nice, but we have no problem wandering around town either.

Aroma is quite nice.

[Anna Blume]

Dean is being modest?

A friend who is seriously into martinis--and considers herself a bit of an expert--nursed one at Dino while waiting for me to arrive. She said it was the best one ever she's ever ordered in a bar or restaurant and she's been drinking them around the world for around three decades.

[shogun]

Cool old Post article about the Jack Rose, a classic cocktail made with Applejack. Anybody seen this stuff around?

The liquor store by the Mariott on M Street (And...what...20th? Has it been that long? E-ball Mariott) had it the last time I was in there. They had at least two grades of the stuff: Cheap or expensive, IIRC, but not the one in the middle.

[Hannah]

Schneider's has Laird's Applejack; VA ABCs carry the "Captain Applejack" label, which is the equivalent of Laird's Bonded (apparently under a different label for the state stores in Virginia and North Carolina).

[Roger Troutman]

I enjoyed a Sazerac at Bourbon during their Kentucky Derby shindig a few weeks ago, and it was by far the finest cocktail that I have ever tasted. Such a shame that so very few people know how to make one.

[porcupine]

I feel a reference book binge coming on. Which of the many cocktail making/history books available would you recommend? Is there any store in the area that has a good selection? (Not Amazon.com, because I can't flip through the books that way. I love the internets, but... sometimes, you just need to heft a book and page through it, y'know?)

[Hannah]

I feel a reference book binge coming on. Which of the many cocktail making/history books available would you recommend? Is there any store in the area that has a good selection? (Not Amazon.com, because I can't flip through the books that way. I love the internets, but... sometimes, you just need to heft a book and page through it, y'know?)

There's a particularly nice history of one of the mid-19th century bartending gods, "Professor" Jerry Thomas, that just came out a couple of weeks ago, called "Imbibe!," by David Wondrich. The New York Times did a big review of it that did include a full chapter excerpt, but they seem to have removed that. Not only was the chapter they excerpted interesting, the layout and design was gorgeous. In any case, various Borders around the area, including the big one at White Flint, have it in stock (gotta love their online inventory search.)

Dale DeGroff's "The Craft of The Cocktail" has a fairly extensive section on history, and he's at least partially responsible for the resurgence of classic cocktails in this day and age. Plus, having 500 of his cocktail recipes on hand is no bad thing. This one also shows in-stock at various Borders around the area.

Finally, if you're looking for super-ultra-classic, it appears that there's a reprint of the Savoy Cocktail Book by Harry Craddock, originally published in the 1930s, being released this month (but not yet available). I can't speak for the quality of the reprint, but the original is utterly fantastic - gorgeous woodcut illustrations, and some wonderfully dry asides in between all the cocktail recipes. For example, after the recipe for the Corpse Reviver #2, there's a note that "four of these taken in quick succession will unrevive the corpse again."

[Xochitl10]

I feel a reference book binge coming on. Which of the many cocktail making/history books available would you recommend? Is there any store in the area that has a good selection? (Not Amazon.com, because I can't flip through the books that way. I love the internets, but... sometimes, you just need to heft a book and page through it, y'know?)

It's been out of print for a few years, but if you can find Paul Harrington's "Cocktail: The Drinks Bible for the 21st Century," get it. Informative, pretty comprehensive on the classics, and the artwork is stunning.

[The Hersch]

Finally, if you're looking for super-ultra-classic, it appears that there's a reprint of the Savoy Cocktail Book by Harry Craddock, originally published in the 1930s, being released this month (but not yet available).

Or you can choose from hundreds of copies of many different editions, including the first, here.

[Gubeen]

Or you can choose from hundreds of copies of many different editions, including the first, here.

Hmm, over $5000 for a first copy or wait for the new edition...

[derekmbrown]

Last night, Dino was one of the only bars in the city you could order a Sherry Flip from since...Oh, I don't know 1887...where my brother whipped a few up for us. An amazing drink. I'm sure he hasn't run out of the Sherry yet. Go and try it if you love the classics.

[legant]

It may not be "classic" but it was just added to my rotation:

Blood and Sand

[dirtymartini]

It may not be "classic" but it was just added to my rotation:

Blood and Sand

Named for the 1922 Rudolf Valentino movie of the same name, listed in Ted Haigh's excellent book 'Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails'

[sandynva]

My friend ordered mint juleps at Hudson this weekend and they were great.

I had rather nontraditional drinks--a cucumber collins and something with pomegranate, and those were excellent too.

[porcupine]

I love a good Manhattan, and there are many good ones around (including the maison Miller "Almost Perfect"). But earlier tonight I had one of the best ever, thanks to Chris Cunningham at Dino, who mixed a Willet rye with Carpano Antica Formula, Peychaud bitters, and a light touch of cinnamon syrup.

Wow.

<hic>

[deangold]

I love a good Manhattan, and there are many good ones around (including the maison Miller "Almost Perfect"). But earlier tonight I had one of the best ever, thanks to Chris Cunningham at Dino, who mixed a Willet rye with Carpano Antica Formula, Peychaud bitters, and a light touch of cinnamon syrup.

Wow.

<hic>

Damm you Mrs P as I never liked Rye before! She forced me to taste it! Forced me I say!

[jparrott]

That's a strooonnnnng drink .

[Joe Riley]

That schounds schpicy.

[porcupine]

Damm you Mrs P as I never liked Rye before! She forced me to taste it! Forced me I say!

Mwahahahaha! My evil plan is coming to fruition.

That schounds schpicy.

Generally I don't like spices lurking about in a cocktail, but this one was barely sweet enough and barely spicy enough to make me think "what th' heck did he put in here, anyway?"

[ol_ironstomach]

Video clip: Angus Winchester on the Daiquiri.

[Chris Cunningham]

Angus and I were in a competition last year at Harvard's Food & Wine Society. We both consult and make concoctions for Macchu Pisco. He is a great guy and fellow bartender.

[Sthitch]

His Negroni video is also enjoyable.

[alan7147]

Video clip: Angus Winchester on the Daiquiri.

Yum, just made one with Rhum JM.

[porcupine]

Not a classic, but it ought to be, is Tom Brown's Dawn over Manhattan at Cork. Read my description in post #14 in the Sazerac thread. This is the best origianl cocktail I've had in a long, long time. Thanks, Tom!