In addressing the challenge of producing a Kentucky bourbon whiskey in Brooklyn’s Red Hook neighborhood, Cacao Prieto distillery looked to the Widow Jane Mine in Rosendale, NY. Heavy in minerals and naturally filtered through limestone, the water makes an uncanny pair with the aged spirit. The mine also provided…
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Designed as a special collaboration between NYC’s influential menswear maker Freemans Sporting Club and Dewar’s whisky, the limited-edition Travel Roll is what the brand is calling a “modern take on the vintage utility roll used by Tommy Dewar to carry his father’s whisky around the world.” Made in NYC,…
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Spirit and cocktails enthusiasts gathered downtown at LA’s GreenBar Collective recently to sample their latest offering, Slow Hand White Whiskey. Made from three organic grains (oats, malt and spelt), this new variety is meant to drink immediately rather than being barreled and aged. Slow Hand is one of many…
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With the launch of their canvas and leather backpack for carrying cocktail supplies on-the-go, David Kaplan and Alex Day of Proprietors LLC, along with creative director Alexander Kwong, introduce the world to their new lifestyle brand, Gin & Luck. Kaplan and Day have worked on cocktail bars from Death…
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Expert Ian Buxton catalogs the globe’s most essential drams
Building on his already immense knowledge, whiskey expert Ian Buxton continues the enviable job of tippling his way across the globe. In his follow-up spirits directory, “101 World Whiskies to Try Before You Die,” Buxton shares his favorite bottles from Tasmania to Honshu and Bangalore to Cork, offering insight…
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Exceptionally rare forty-two-year-old whisky in an ultra-luxe case
Berry Bros. & Rudd has unveiled 179 bottles of the aptly titled Glenrothes Extraordinary Cask, with 50 bottles imported to the US by Anchor Distilling Company. Bottled in a hand-blown lead crystal decanter created at Atlantis Crystal in Portugal, mounted on a Scottish Oak plinth and housed in a…
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Triple sec redeemed in a 19th-century recipe
That electric blue liqueur that vacation-goers slurp from umbrella-topped hurricane glasses may be called curaçao, but the real stuff—the curaçao of the 19th century—is much more cigar parlor than poolside bar. Originally made from Laraha, a citrus derived from Valencia oranges that were brought to the island of Curaçao by the Spanish, the liqueur was a bar staple in the early days of the cocktail. Noted for its dry taste and bitter finish, the curaçao of yesteryear is a far cry from our modern incarnation.
The decline of the drink into a saccharine spirit has not gone unnoticed by bartenders. Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao marks an attempt to restore the drink to its spicy and slightly bitter roots—in the process delighting cocktail enthusiasts who have lamented curaçao’s unfortunate past. In making their Dry Curaçao, Pierre Ferrand proprietor Alexandre Gabriel consulted spirit historian David Wondrich with the hope of reintroducing this essential ingredient to the cocktail world.
The taste experience of Pierre Ferrand’s version is more brandy than triple sec—no surprise, since the bitter orange essence is blended with the distiller’s own cognac. After a few avant-garde bars picked up on the spirit as a wonderfully complex cocktail addition, the elixir is now available for purchase. The fact that Pierre Ferrand’s initial run sold out almost immediately speaks to the quality behind the intrigue. As if the story and taste weren’t enough, the curaçao looks stunning on the shelf, with a floral label emblazoned with banners and cherubim, elegantly set on the bottle’s squared edge.
Pick up a bottle in the US at Detroit-based Binny’s, Grand Wine Cellar or contact Pierre Ferrand for a local distributor.
Images by James Thorne
Brooklyn bartender Sam Anderson whips up summer in a glass with Tanqueray
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In the spirit of winding up or down with Tanqueray this summer, we enlisted Brooklyn-based bartender Sam Anderson to concoct the ideal drink to kick off the night.
“Structurally, the Vanishing Point is in line with a classic gin gimlet—really refreshing—with elements of the Ramos gin fizz,” says Anderson of the off-menu tipple he serves to his discerning regulars. Incorporating a sophisticated mix of special ingredients like sea salt (“it enhances the refreshing quality of a drink, and tends to be totally overlooked in the cocktail palette”) and cinnamon (“it’s one of the less forward botanicals in gin”) with the acidity of the citrus, Anderson’s drink conjures up summer in a glass. “Something strange happens to the texture,” he says, likening it to ice cream, but infinitely lighter. Living up to its name, the ultra-fresh beverage had us ready to let go for the night at first sip.
1/4 oz lemon juice
1/4 oz lime juice
1/2 oz cinnamon-vanilla bean syrup
1 1/4 oz Tanqueray® London Dry Gin
A dash of orange blossom water
A pinch of sea salt
Shake all ingredients and serve on the rocks with a twist of lemon and grated cinnamon. For cinnamon-vanilla bean syrup, peel vanilla bean from inside the stalk. Crush 3 cinnamon sticks with mortar & pestle. Bring 2 cups water and 2 cups sugar to boil and add cinnamon and vanilla. Simmer for 5 minutes and store for 24 hours. Strain and bottle (Can be kept refrigerated for 2 weeks).
PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY.
TANQUERAY London Dry Gin. 100% Grain Neutral Spirits. 47.3% Alc/Vol. ©2012 Imported by Charles Tanqueray & Co., Norwalk, CT.
Fix a flat and open a beer at the same time with Budnitz Bicycles’ new titanium tool
Combining a trifecta of our own personal passions—minimalist design, bicycles and beer—is the newly released Beer Wrench from Budnitz Bicycles. The pocket-sized tool features a 15mm wrench to remove axle bolts on one end, and a bottle opener on the other, and secures to most bicycles’ water bottle cage mount with two easily removable thumb-screws. Made by the company that put super simple, titanium bicycles on the map, each wrench is machined from aerospace-grade titanium to cut weight down to an ultra-light 35 grams.
While designed specifically to fit any standard axle bolt, the 15mm wrench is also compatible with Shimano’s Afline internal hub bolts and Pitlock spindle keys. Plus, the simple engraving on the bottle opener—”The road is the destination”—may just help to ease the inevitable frustration of fixing a flat. Find the Beer Wrench directly from Budnitz Bicycles online for $38.
Imbibe in the power of Icelandic birch with these two smooth spirits
Created by the co-owners of Reykjavik’s renowned Dill restaurant, Björk liqueur and Birkir snaps boast a uniquely smooth, earthy flavor thanks to the Icelandic duo’s clever use of indigenous flora. During spring, sommelier Ólafur Örn Ólafsson and chef Gunnar Karl Gíslason gather felled birch limbs from the half-century-old forest at the foot of the Haukafell Mountain, and infuse the branches’ natural aroma into the spirits at their Foss Distillery. Known for its rejuvenating qualities, birch—even in its potable form—is also believed to benefit skin and hair, and stimulate your libido.
The honey coloring, sweet taste and subtle nose provide a novel alternative for casual sipping and mixed drinks. Traditionally enjoyed as a shot during meals, the refreshing Birkir snaps is defined by robust floral flavor reminiscent of pine trees. On the other hand, the slightly lighter Björk liqueur
trades in a bit of its birch flavor for more sugar. This rich liqueur is best served in cocktail form to compliment the rich sweetness. Ólafsson explains on their website, “I wanted to capture the sensation of the bright Icelandic summer night at the moment when the rainshower clears and the morning dew sets on the birch clad hill.”
The tall, slender bottles fit into the arboreal theme with a rustic, leaf-adorned label and a birch branch floating in the caramel-colored liquor within. Due to strict alcohol distribution regulations in Iceland all Foss Distillery spirits are only available domestically through local bars or at the Keflavik Airport Duty Free.
Images by Karen Day and Graham Hiemstra
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