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Cocktail Cartography

Jason Stratton’s Signature Drink: The Pink Hook

A drink made with real maraschino, which originated in Croatia and has nothing to do with those dubious, red-goo cherries.

Posted by: Andrew Bohrer on Apr 17, 2012 at 02:00PM Speech Bubble 1 Comments

Chef Jason Stratton is perhaps best known for the pastas and rustic Piedmont fare at Spinasse, but over at Artusi, the man’s a talented bartender as well. Photo: Lucas Anderson

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Welcome to local writer-spirits guy Andrew Bohrer’s ongoing series charting the signature concoctions of esteemed local bartenders.

The Drink: The Pink Hook
Made By: Jason Stratton

One man’s interest in esoteric liqueurs is the next’s, “slutty love of maraschino.” That next man, to be clear, is Jason Stratton of Artusi and Spinasse. And just to get us all on the right track, maraschino, is a clear liqueur made from cherries and cherry pits. It originated in Croatia and has nothing to do with the red goo that besets otherwise chemical-free cherries. Geography and chemistry lesson aside, today we gather to talk about the Pink Hook, one of the signature drinks no longer on the menu but always available at Artusi.

The title is surely a play on the Red Hook, a drink created by Vincenzo Errico of New York City cocktail bar Milk and Honey in 2004—a drink considered to be one of the few modern classic cocktails. The Red Hook was an instant hit, but it is a drink that can easily fall out of balance. Stratton was actually inspired by another classic maraschino cocktail called the Aviation, switching the gin for rye. That started him down a path that lead him to the Red Hook cocktail organically. Adding grapefruit balances the sweet, funky spice in the maraschino. But the Pink Hook’s name, according to Jason, “is inspired by wanting to queer out an ‘established’ cocktail, turn it pink.”

The result is a drink inspired by the most serious of modern cocktails that, because of its newfound balance of grapefruit acidity, can now appeal to the mustachioed, sleeve-tattooed bar folk of Brooklyn to their cosmopolitan-quaffing, high-heeled counterparts uptown. Jason can best explain that in one sentence without mixing a metaphor: “It was gratifying to create a drink that did deliver some more mature flavors in a pleasing way to folks who would normally be averse to trying an Italian vermouth or rye whiskey.”

The Pink Hook
1¾ ounces rye
¾ ounce freshly squeezed ruby red grapefruit juice
½ ounce Punt e Mes
¼ ounce maraschino

Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a flamed grapefruit peel.

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Tags: Jason Stratton, Cocktail Cartography, Andrew Bohrer, Artusi

Cocktail Cartography

James MacWilliams’s Signature Drink: The French 75

This epic version of a pedestrian classic costs $100; you should try it at least once in your life.

Posted by: Andrew Bohrer on Mar 22, 2012 at 11:35AM Speech Bubble 3 Comments

Canlis bar manager James MacWilliams elevates the humble (and often mediocre) French 75. Photo: Lucas Anderson

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Welcome to local writer-spirits guy Andrew Bohrer’s ongoing series charting the signature concoctions of esteemed local bartenders.

The Drink: The French 75
Made By: James MacWilliams

I often like to point out that Canlis, Seattle’s icon hanging off the cliff of Queen Anne is actually much more accessible than people treat it. There is no dress code in much of the restaurant (but think cufflinks, not cargo shorts), and it isn’t that expensive. But I don’t come here today to tell you about one of Seattle’s best bars with the kindest customer service. No, today I would like to tell you of a special cocktail that is served at Canlis—a version of the French 75 that can only be prepared by the skilled James MacWilliams for those who are looking to have a magical evening.

Let me begin by saying I hate the pedestrian French 75; it’s a cocktail that I have never been happy with. No combination of science and skill has ever been able to render my take on this cocktail anything better than okay. The standard French 75 is beset on all sides by plagues of inadequacy, when what it needs is a refined touch. The French 75 at Canlis is not only defined by legendary service, but also by epic ingredients, hence the $100 cost.

Prosecco and cava may be the backbone of baby showers and mimosas but they have no place in the French 75. You need Champagne Champagne. In this case you’ll get to keep the bottle of toasty Charles Heidsieck used to top off your drink. Fresh-squeezed lemon goes without saying, but for a sweetener, James’s version graduates from regular simple syrup to Grand Marnier 150, a silly version of Grand Marnier that is made out of cognac no less than 25 years old.

Also, you’ll need a gin that can stand up to these strong flavors, and there is no gin stronger than Old Raj. At 110 proof, it’s the kind of gin that W.C. Fields or Winston Churchill would fear in a dry martini. But Old Raj is not just strength, it also is infused with a touch of saffron, and the label is printed on a $100 bill (only half of that is true).

All said and done, James will mix you tableside French 75s for two with all of the aforementioned luxury in a setting that is worthy of such a drink. When you find yourself with a reason to celebrate, or a tax rebate that is burning a hole in your pocket, I can’t stress enough: Try this French 75, if only once in your life.

The French 75

2 ounces Old Raj gin
1¼ ounces Grand Marnier 150
1½ ounces lemon
2½ ounces Charles Heidsieck bubbles
Lemon twist

Shake gin, Grand Marnier, and lemon over ice in a cocktail shaker, then strain into a martini glass. Top with Champagne and garnish with a lemon twist. Makes two.

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Tags: Canlis, Cocktail Cartography, Andrew Bohrer, James MacWilliams

Cocktail Cartography

Philip Trickey’s Signature Drink: The Midnight Water

A shot of Fernet evolves into one of the finest brown, bitter, and stirred cocktails in Seattle.

Posted by: Allecia Vermillion on Feb 23, 2012 at 11:30AM Speech Bubble 0 Comments

Find Philip Trickey at Purple Cafe and Wine Bar, and Rob Roy on Friday nights. Photo: Lucas Anderson

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Welcome to local barman-writer Andrew Bohrer’s ongoing series charting the signature concoctions of esteemed local bartenders.

The Drink: The Midnight Water
Made By: Philip Trickey

“Hey Trickey, I’ll take an oat soda and the midnight water,” that’s the kind of thing you might hear from a couple of bartenders after finishing up 12-hour shift. Big Lebowski fans know what an oat soda is, but a midnight water started out being merely a shot of Fernet Branca (a bitter spirit dark as midnight). It later evolved into one of the finest brown, bitter, and stirred cocktails in Seattle.

The Midnight Water can be ordered at Rob Roy or at Purple Café and Wine Bar where you’ll find Philip Trickey behind the stick. He says pinning down the key ingredient is like, “asking which one of my fingers is my favorite,” but the reason this cocktail works so well is because of the Averna amaro and Peychaud’s bitters. The bitter Averna adds a delicate cinnamon touch and the Peychaud’s ties the whole thing together with a bit of dryness. A flamed orange zest is a perfect crown to this drink if you’re feeling fancy.

The Midnight Water

2 ounces bourbon
½ ounce of Averna
¼ ounce rich simple syrup
2 dashes Peychaud’s bitters

Combine ingredients, stir, and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a flamed orange zest.

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Tags: Purple Cafe and Wine Bar, Purple Cafe and Wine Bar, Rob Roy, Cocktail Cartography, Andrew Bohrer, Philip Trickey

Cocktail Cartography

Anna Wallace’s Signature Drink: The Pretty Ricky

It’s not currently on the menu at Walrus and the Carpenter, but feel free to ask for one anyway.

Posted by: Andrew Bohrer on Feb 09, 2012 at 01:40PM Speech Bubble 3 Comments

Anna Wallace: Maker of a rickey so good it deserves to be named after a ’90s hip-hop quartet. Photo: Lucas Anderson

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Welcome to local barman-writer Andrew Bohrer’s occasional series, charting the signature concoctions of esteemed local bartenders.

The Drink: The Pretty Ricky
Made By: Anna Wallace

A few years back, judgmental bartenders started putting jihads out on ingredients they didn’t like. Blue curacao, creme de menthe, and peach schnapps offended sensibilities with artificial color (but Campari was okay?) and disappeared. However wiser, more diplomatic, crafty bartenders like Anna Wallace of Walrus and the Carpenter decided to improve matters, starting with lime flavoring. “The lime cordial I make is so bright and lovely that it only seemed natural,” she says of devising her own non artificial blast of concentrated lime. Think Rose’s lime juice, only without all of those scary chemicals, and whatever you use to dye beer green. Anna is building while others tear down.

Instead of lime flavoring no. 47 from a factory indiscernible from a pharmaceutical plant, Anna’s lime cordial uses lime juice and peel, from lime trees. It also swaps sugar for high fructose corn syrup. The perfect drink to showcase Anna’s lime cordial is her version of a gin rickey. Rickey is a simple term meaning soda and lime with a spirit. But this drink was so much better than the average rickey that one of the restaurant’s oyster shuckers suggested that it be called the Pretty Ricky after the rap group from the ’90s.

This cocktail is not currently on the menu at the Walrus and the Carpenter but bar staff is always happy to make one, says Anna. It pairs perfectly with oysters and its fresh flavor will transport your brain to a sunny day of drinking on the patio and forgetting our cold seaside winter weather.

Anna’s Lime Cordial Recipe
1½ cups water
¾ cups sugar
¾ tsp citric acid
⅜ tsp tartaric acid
Juice of 4 limes, pulp strained
Rind of 2 limes

Combine and whisk sugar, citric and tartaric acids. Bring water to boil, add sugar mixture, juice, and rinds. Heat on high 1½ minutes. Cover and cool at room temperature and refrigerate in sealed container overnight. Strain and continue to refrigerate for a total of 48 hours.

The Pretty Ricky

2 ounces Bombay dry gin
1 ounce homemade lime cordial-recipe (see above)
½ ounce lime juice
Soda water

Shake and strain gin, cordial, and lime juice over ice. Top with soda and a pretty edible flower. Witness this whole process in the slideshow above.

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Tags: Walrus and the Carpenter, Walrus and the Carpenter, Cocktail Cartography, Andrew Bohrer, Andrew Bohrer, Anna Wallace

Cocktail Cartography

Jay Kuehner’s Signature Drink: The Caracas

It’s more ritual than drink, says Sambar’s longtime bartender.

Posted by: Andrew Bohrer on Jan 25, 2012 at 12:30PM Speech Bubble 2 Comments

Sambar’s Jay Kuehner, in his native habitat.

Photo: Lucas Anderson

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Welcome to local barman/writer Andrew Bohrer’s occasional series, explaining the signature concoctions of esteemed local bartenders.

There is a King Cocktail, and there is a Cocktail Historian, and Seattle used to have a Cocktail Whisperer though he no longer calls himself that.

I require more organizational skills for the following moniker, but what I aim to be for you is a Cocktail Cartographer. Seattle is a fine city to get a great cocktail but where can you best get your whistle wetted, and by whom?

The most enjoyable drinks aren’t necessarily on the menu; ask a bartender and he or she likely has a signature concoction. I plan to map out where to find these hidden gems and cult cocktail classics. The result: a most useful compendium of where find our city’s finest drinks. First up, the Caracas…

The Drink: The Caracas
Made By: Jay Kuehner

One of Seattle’s greatest drinking experiences is walking into Sambar and having the extremely talented (and often unbuttoned) Jay Kuehner give you a shot. Jay has been the longtime bartender at the worth-the-hype drinking hole attached to Le Gourmand in Ballard. Though most of Jay’s cocktails are gentle like downy feathers and composed like sonnets, the Caracas stands out as its own ritual.

How do you order the Caracas? “We will decide if you are in need of it,” says Kuehner. It isn’t a cocktail that you order; it is a cocktail that happens when the time is right. The Caracas is a very simple drink, just a shot of rum with a little bit of a snack. The snack is a wafer-thin lime wheel, with one half dipped in super fine coffee and and the other in super fine sugar. This black-and-white citrus wheel is for you, the brave consumer, to eat whole.

At some point during chewing, you’ll be handed a shot of Pampero Aniversario Venezuelan rum. Just throw it back. The result is a bitter, sweet, tannic, dry, citric roller coaster of flavors that one single cocktail can’t match.

The Caracas

1 wafer-thin lime wheel for each shot
Finely ground coffee
Finely ground sugar
1.5 ounces Pampero Aniversario rum

Instructions: Dip one half of the wheel in finely ground coffee and the other half in finely ground sugar. Eat the lime wheel. Shoot the rum. Consult the slideshow if you need more guidance.

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Tags: Sambar, Cocktail Cartography, Jay Kuehner, Andrew Bohrer