Inspired by a visit to see Tony Conigliaro at the unnamed bar at 69 Colebrooke Row in London last fall, where Manhattans are aged in glass vessels to sublime and subtle effect, the barrel aged cocktails I’ve been serving at Clyde Common this year are a decidedly American curiosity.
The rub of aging cocktails in a glass bottle is that the whole premise is built upon subtlety, as we know that spirits aged in glass or steel do so at an unremarkable pace. Being from the United States, where – as everyone is aware – bigger equals better, I pondered the following question: what if you could prepare a large batch of a single, spirit-driven cocktail and age it in a used oak barrel?
A hundred some-odd dollars in liquor later, I was nervously pouring a gallon of pre-batched rye Manhattans into a small, used oak cask whose previous contents were a gallon Madeira wine. I plugged the barrel and sat back in anxious anticipation; if the experiment was a success I’d have a delicious cocktail to share at the bar – if it was a failure then I’d be pouring the restaurant’s money down the floor drain.
Over the next several weeks I popped open the barrel to test my little concoction until I stumbled upon the magic mark at five-to-six weeks. And there it was, lying beautifully on the the finish: a soft blend of oak, wine, caramel and char. That first batch sold out in a matter of days and I was left with a compelling need to push the process even further.
Now, three gallons of Negroni might not be practical for the home enthusiast, but the average bar or restaurant should be able to afford that sort of quantity quite easily. For those of you trying this at home, try searching the internet for one-gallon charred oak casks (stay away from the fancy lacquered kind meant for display in dens and 1980s wine bars) and be sure to let us know what you find in the comments section below.
We procured a small number of used whiskey casks from the Tuthilltown distillery and proceeded to fill them with a large batch of Negronis; and that’s when the magic of barrel aged cocktails grabbed our attention. After six weeks in the bourbon barrel, our Negroni emerged a rare beauty. The sweet vermouth so slightly oxidized, the color paler and rosier than the original, the mid-palate softly mingled with whiskey, the finish long and lingering with oak tannins. We knew we were on to something unique and immediately made plans to take the cask aging program to the next level.
Negronis are now prepared in five-gallon batches and poured into multiple bourbon barrels. Robert Hess’ ubiquitous Trident cocktail is currently resting inside single-malt barrels. The El Presidente (à laMatt Robold), Deshlers, Remember the Maines, they’re all receiving the oaked treatment in a little storage room in the basement of the restaurant that I refer to as my “office”.
Once the cocktail is aged long enough for my taste, I then drain the bottle, straining out any charred bits of wood, and bottle the contents for use by my bartenders. To order, the cocktail is then measured out and poured over ice in a mixing glass, stirred, strained into a cocktail glass, and then garnished with the appropriate garnish. It’s quick and simple, as all of the real work has already been done by the barrel.
Anyway, on to the recipes. As simple as it seems to do, I figured not everyone is going to want to do the math to get started on some of these recipes, so here are a few I’ve figured out:
Negroni
Makes Three Gallons
128 oz (approximately five 750ml bottles) dry gin
128 oz sweet vermouth
128 oz Campari
Stir ingredients together (without ice) and pour into a three-gallon oak barrel. Let rest for five to seven weeks and pour into glass bottles until ready to serve.
Manhattan
Makes Three Gallons
256 oz (approximately ten 750ml bottles) rye whiskey
128 oz (approximately five 750ml bottles) sweet vermouth
7 oz Angostura bitters
Stir ingredients together (without ice) and pour into a three-gallon oak barrel (I prefer a barrel that has previously stored sherry, Madeira, or port wine). Let rest for five to seven weeks and pour into glass bottles until ready to serve.
Trident
Makes Three Gallons
128 oz (approximately five 750ml bottles) aquavit
128 oz dry sherry
128 oz Cynar
7 oz peach bitters
Stir ingredients together (without ice) and pour into a three-gallon oak barrel (I prefer a used single malt barrel). Let rest for five to seven weeks and pour into glass bottles until ready to serve.
Feel free to leave any questions in the comments section below.
My problem with homemade tonic water has always been a flavor profile that was too esoteric for the general audience. This recipe takes some of the positive qualities people have come to understand from commercial tonic water and updated them with fresh ingredients.
One question I'm often asked is "Do you have any drink-related book recommendations?" Well, funny you should ask, I've compiled a list of the ten books every professional bartender or home mixologist should own. I keep every one of these close at hand and have read most of them several times. I suggest you do the same.
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You'll get a lot of snarky advice on this site about how to make a proper drink, but if you ever need to know what not to do, this is the video for you.
Not to be confused with the Spanish wine-and-fruit-based alcoholic beverage sangria, sangrita (meaning "little blood") is a traditional accompaniment to a tequila served completo; a non-alcoholic sipper that cleanses the palate between fiery doses of agave.
The world of booze can be mystifying to people that don't work in bars or around alcohol all the time. I hear a lot of assumptions about the industry I'm in that are - much like 90% of what you hear in bars - completely false. Here are a few you've probably heard yourself.
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I get so many visitors looking for tips on how to write a bartending resume that I thought I should finally post a tutorial on how to write your own. Click the headline to read more.
I always love showing up to a party with a gallon jug of pre-mixed margaritas, so I've decided to share my recipe. This margarita recipe is the perfect blend of strong, sweet, and sour. But be warned: this recipe packs a serious punch.
There isn't much I can say about this video that hasn't been said already. If you've read anything I've written about cocktails, you'll understand why this video symbolizes everything wrong with the state of bartending in America today. Watch and learn, but be warned: this one isn't for the feint of heart.
About Me
My name is Jeff Morgenthaler and I'm the head bartender at Clyde Common in Portland, Oregon.
I've been tending bar since 1996 and writing about it since 2004. Mixing drinks has become something of a passion for me in recent years, and I strive to elevate the experience of having a drink from something mundane to something more culinary.
The writing I do here is intended as a work in progress. My recipes are like my opinions: they are constantly being revised and refined as I work them through my mind and my fingers. Comments and participation are encouraged, so please don't feel the need to tread lightly here.
As a novice bartender I find that martini etiquette can be quite confusing, perhaps because the traditional martini and the present-day fad are different. I understand not shaking clear martinis, and I also do not add vermouth to vodka. I suppose I would like to hear your take on what to shake, and how to interpret customers. Also, do you shake Manhattans or stir them? From your article I was not sure of your take on them…
Thanks,
Hillary
Hey Hillary
The rule is that clear drinks should never be shaken – the thinking here is that since a clear drink is made from such delicate ingredients (traditionally aromatic liquors such as gins, fortified wines such as vermouths, aromatic bitters, etc.), the additional water that comes from shaking a drink would be an unwelcome component. And that definitely goes for the Manhattan as well.
I’m sure you know that using a chilled glass is going to keep the drink colder for longer (there’s nothing quite like pouring a cold drink in a warm glass), but the choice of container you use to mix the drink is just as important. Make sure to use a metal cocktail shaker rather than a glass, as metal is a better conductor of heat than glass is, and therefore draws heats from its surface and chills your drink better. Silver will get a drink colder than stainless steel will, and glass just acts as an insulator. The bummer is that silver shakers are difficult to come by these days.
All this said, I usually break this rule when it comes to the Negroni. Our glassware at the bar is huge, and personally I think the flavors are strong enough to take a little watering down. So I shake the Negroni, and any drink containing fruit juice.
As an aside, please note that it’s not possible to “bruise” gin. This is just a bullshit myth perpetuated by Martini “connoisseurs” who want to impress you with their “knowledge” and “sophistication”. It’s a meaningless term, trust me. However, they’re right about not shaking a martini – they just don’t get why.
As far as proportions are concerned, I personally love the flavor of vermouth. I know that’s not really a popular sentiment these days, but I’ve found that most martini drinkers have confused a hatred of vermouth for sophistication. Vermouth is a wonderful thing (sweet vermouth: oh-my-god), especially when we’re talking about high-quality vermouths. I tend to make my Martinis with less vermouth than I do my Manhattans: 4-to-1 gin to vermouth for a Martini, and 3-to-1 vermouth to bourbon/rye for a Manhattan.
It is impossible to guess a customer’s preference for gin versus vodka, vermouth versus none, bitters versus none, etc., so I recommend asking what your customer wants in their cocktail to ensure you give them the exact drink they’re looking for.
Even if it is a shaken vodka “martini” with no vermouth.
Comments
14 Responses to “Ask Your Bartender: Martini Advice”
06 Dec 2006 at 2:41 pm 1. Mad Jack
Nice site.
The term ‘bruise the gin’ came about as a sort of joke. Amatuer bartenders will shake the living daylights out of everything in sight, and rather than launch into a long explanation involving liquor, water, ice and ice fragments, the client would simply state that ‘you’ll bruise the gin’.
This worked pretty well until Hollywood came along with James Bond and specified ’shaken, not stirred’. I object with the old standard about bruises and gin.
You’re quite right about the vermouth. Few people know that good vermouth has a nice flavor to it. The trouble is that the MD 20-20 that passes for vermouth in most bars does nothing to compliment the rocket fuel that passes for gin. Order top shelf or nothing, I say.
25 Jan 2007 at 1:13 pm 2. RC Hardin
I’ve read in a couple of places that “bruising” the gin refers to the fact that shaking a martini introduces air bubbles into the cocktail, leaving it temporarily cloudy. While I don’t know if that’s the true origin of the term, I find it interesting that many who naysay the term take it so literally. I’ve read so many comments along the lines of “you can’t bruise gin — it’s liquid, not fruit” and so forth. It is so obviously a metaphorical expression that any attempt to take it literally carries an air of reactionary dismissiveness.
24 Mar 2007 at 6:27 pm 3. Charles P
Here here! I simply love a good martini (that would be gin) and a good martini is not complete without a portion of quality vermouth (4 to 1 is my preference also).
23 Jun 2007 at 12:49 pm 4. Chip and Andy
But when do you add the sour apple?
OK, bad joke. But many discussions with my work buddies eventually drift to the martini (I work for goverment, we drink a lot). While I prefer my martini at about 5 to 1 with a top-shelf gin, every single one of my work buddies insists that the Martini Fad has been around since the end of prohibition and that the Sour-Apple martini has been around since forever.
Maybe we can get an Act of Congress or a Presidential Decree reclaiming the Martini as a specific recipe and not as a catagory of other drinks and glasses.
Well, Chip and Andy, the Bacardi Rum company won a court case in 1936 that stipulated that only Bacardi Rum could be used in the Bacardi Cocktail, so maybe you’re on to something!
[...] A. Why would someone send me, of all people, a martini mix? B. Who needs a dirty martini mix anyway? It’s just olive juice and gin, right? [...]
06 Aug 2007 at 4:13 pm 7. Beak
For me the term “bruising the gin” has less to do with flavor and more with texture. I want a crystal clear pour into my choicest glass with little to NO shards of ice. If I wanted a slurpee then I’d go to 7-11, but for now I want a chilled dry gin martini. Yum.
I always shake martinis. I don’t believe the “bruising” myth.
What dilutes a martini is adding too little ice to the shaker…
The shaker should be filled to the brim with good quality large cubes…not crappy, watery, melty little shards…
I also prefer a gin martini.
I often confuse bartenders when asking for a “wet” martini…and it usually results in their fucking it up.
Also just as adding an onion turns a “martini” into a “gibson” I think the bartenders of the world should unite and decide that a “dry vodka martini” is just a cold glass of vodka . . . and not a martini at all.
My $0.02.
13 Jan 2008 at 9:29 am 9. Jeanne
Hi, recently while cleanning out a seldom used closet I found 2 gallon sizes bottles of Baileys Irish Cream with the dates April 95 & April 99 UNOPENED. There was also a bottle April 88 that was open–which I poured down the sink, it did smell ok. Also in that box there is a bottle of Kahlua –OPENED–I can’t find a date but it must be from the same era as the Baileys. My question is —are these bottles ok to drink? Hard to believe these went unnoticed for so long–but they were in a box with several unused comforters on top.Thank you in advance for any help you can give me. Jeanne
[...] Pegu blogger to argue with this, especially since I don’t drink Gin Martinis? I’ll let Jeffrey Morganthaler take a crack at it. When it comes to Martinis, you can choose for yourself between modern bartender [...]
21 Dec 2008 at 10:17 pm 11. Joe from Dover
My wife saw this on a cooking show and we’ve been at it for three years now: .5l bottles filled with your desired proportion — in the freezer waiting for you next to it’s glass(es). The only problem? Don’t try to enjoy a martini out again, ever. Even the best bartender can’t match what my wife calls “instant” Martinis and Manhattans. And I may be stupid here, but why does stirring leave behind less water than shaking? I always liked the settling bubbles (a la Guinness)in the shaken version. Use different colored bottles for your different gins. Whoever can name their gin gets seconds!
01 Feb 2009 at 1:27 pm 12. dshenaut
There is a noticeable difference in mouth feel when you gently stir spirits to proper chill and dilution. This seems to bind the water to the out side of the spirits and causes a rounded out almost oily texture that washes down smooth. When a drink is shaken (it seems to me) the binding molecules are split apart by the water. I don’t know a simple way to describe this to a customer so I find myself using the term” bruised.” However, I will think twice next time I say it.
I have a few irritations to add:
1)Olive brine is not juice.
2)Bar towels are not “rags”.
3) Saying “I don’t know” is better than BS-ing your way through a shift. Don’t make up a fact like Black Maple Hill is aged in maple barrels or Mezcal gets it smokey profile from some super-charring technique used only in “mexican oak” barrels. If you don’t know find out-please don’t lie.
4) Sell vermouth and try a dash of bitters- guide your customer’s taste to sophistication.
18 Apr 2010 at 7:03 am 13. Kakunka
Hmmm…..
As to the lady with the aged cordials. . . Bottled alcohols will have an indefinite shelf life. Certainly, the Kahlua will be fine.
Baileys can suffer from “curdling” or settling of the cream, which may affect the taste. Try shaking it to restore the cream to an emulsion. None of it can harm you.
As to shaking a Martini. If you want to, well, knock yourself out.
Processes which can affect flavor with shaking include: Induction of more dissolved gasses (from the air) into the mix. Emulsion of the oils in the water. Out gassing of volatile oil flavoring components.
All of these can change the mouth “feel”, and the perceived flavor.
As to whether bar “towels” are bar “rags”. . . I think that is best left to observation, and opinion of the observer.
K.
01 Aug 2010 at 7:29 am 14. Sebastian
Jeffrey, I really like this site – so much so, that from time to time I start reading it all over again from the beginning. And every time I’m confused by what you say about metal shakers chilling a drink better than glass. That contradicts everything I ever learned about physics. Once you put ice in the shaker, the inside of the shaker will be colder than the outside. Heat cannot be transferred from a cold place to a warm place (at least not in such a simple setup), so there is no way the metal could conduct heat away from the cold cocktail inside the shaker to the warmer surroundings. It will always be the other way around. So in order to really chill a drink as much as possible, shouldn’t one use a shaker which is as little heat-conductive as possible, in order to minimize the amount of energy that will be transferred into the drink?
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06 Dec 2006 at 2:41 pm 1. Mad Jack
Nice site.
The term ‘bruise the gin’ came about as a sort of joke. Amatuer bartenders will shake the living daylights out of everything in sight, and rather than launch into a long explanation involving liquor, water, ice and ice fragments, the client would simply state that ‘you’ll bruise the gin’.
This worked pretty well until Hollywood came along with James Bond and specified ’shaken, not stirred’. I object with the old standard about bruises and gin.
You’re quite right about the vermouth. Few people know that good vermouth has a nice flavor to it. The trouble is that the MD 20-20 that passes for vermouth in most bars does nothing to compliment the rocket fuel that passes for gin. Order top shelf or nothing, I say.
25 Jan 2007 at 1:13 pm 2. RC Hardin
I’ve read in a couple of places that “bruising” the gin refers to the fact that shaking a martini introduces air bubbles into the cocktail, leaving it temporarily cloudy. While I don’t know if that’s the true origin of the term, I find it interesting that many who naysay the term take it so literally. I’ve read so many comments along the lines of “you can’t bruise gin — it’s liquid, not fruit” and so forth. It is so obviously a metaphorical expression that any attempt to take it literally carries an air of reactionary dismissiveness.
24 Mar 2007 at 6:27 pm 3. Charles P
Here here! I simply love a good martini (that would be gin) and a good martini is not complete without a portion of quality vermouth (4 to 1 is my preference also).
23 Jun 2007 at 12:49 pm 4. Chip and Andy
But when do you add the sour apple?
OK, bad joke. But many discussions with my work buddies eventually drift to the martini (I work for goverment, we drink a lot). While I prefer my martini at about 5 to 1 with a top-shelf gin, every single one of my work buddies insists that the Martini Fad has been around since the end of prohibition and that the Sour-Apple martini has been around since forever.
Maybe we can get an Act of Congress or a Presidential Decree reclaiming the Martini as a specific recipe and not as a catagory of other drinks and glasses.
23 Jun 2007 at 12:58 pm 5. Jeffrey
Well, Chip and Andy, the Bacardi Rum company won a court case in 1936 that stipulated that only Bacardi Rum could be used in the Bacardi Cocktail, so maybe you’re on to something!
13 Jul 2007 at 4:15 pm 6. Jeffrey Morgenthaler » Dirty, Dirty Sue
[...] A. Why would someone send me, of all people, a martini mix? B. Who needs a dirty martini mix anyway? It’s just olive juice and gin, right? [...]
06 Aug 2007 at 4:13 pm 7. Beak
For me the term “bruising the gin” has less to do with flavor and more with texture. I want a crystal clear pour into my choicest glass with little to NO shards of ice. If I wanted a slurpee then I’d go to 7-11, but for now I want a chilled dry gin martini. Yum.
17 Nov 2007 at 5:38 pm 8. Kevin Erskine
I always shake martinis. I don’t believe the “bruising” myth.
What dilutes a martini is adding too little ice to the shaker…
The shaker should be filled to the brim with good quality large cubes…not crappy, watery, melty little shards…
I also prefer a gin martini.
I often confuse bartenders when asking for a “wet” martini…and it usually results in their fucking it up.
Also just as adding an onion turns a “martini” into a “gibson” I think the bartenders of the world should unite and decide that a “dry vodka martini” is just a cold glass of vodka . . . and not a martini at all.
My $0.02.
13 Jan 2008 at 9:29 am 9. Jeanne
Hi, recently while cleanning out a seldom used closet I found 2 gallon sizes bottles of Baileys Irish Cream with the dates April 95 & April 99 UNOPENED. There was also a bottle April 88 that was open–which I poured down the sink, it did smell ok. Also in that box there is a bottle of Kahlua –OPENED–I can’t find a date but it must be from the same era as the Baileys. My question is —are these bottles ok to drink? Hard to believe these went unnoticed for so long–but they were in a box with several unused comforters on top.Thank you in advance for any help you can give me. Jeanne
16 Feb 2008 at 9:07 am 10. The Pegu Blog
[...] Pegu blogger to argue with this, especially since I don’t drink Gin Martinis? I’ll let Jeffrey Morganthaler take a crack at it. When it comes to Martinis, you can choose for yourself between modern bartender [...]
21 Dec 2008 at 10:17 pm 11. Joe from Dover
My wife saw this on a cooking show and we’ve been at it for three years now: .5l bottles filled with your desired proportion — in the freezer waiting for you next to it’s glass(es). The only problem? Don’t try to enjoy a martini out again, ever. Even the best bartender can’t match what my wife calls “instant” Martinis and Manhattans. And I may be stupid here, but why does stirring leave behind less water than shaking? I always liked the settling bubbles (a la Guinness)in the shaken version. Use different colored bottles for your different gins. Whoever can name their gin gets seconds!
01 Feb 2009 at 1:27 pm 12. dshenaut
There is a noticeable difference in mouth feel when you gently stir spirits to proper chill and dilution. This seems to bind the water to the out side of the spirits and causes a rounded out almost oily texture that washes down smooth. When a drink is shaken (it seems to me) the binding molecules are split apart by the water. I don’t know a simple way to describe this to a customer so I find myself using the term” bruised.” However, I will think twice next time I say it.
I have a few irritations to add:
1)Olive brine is not juice.
2)Bar towels are not “rags”.
3) Saying “I don’t know” is better than BS-ing your way through a shift. Don’t make up a fact like Black Maple Hill is aged in maple barrels or Mezcal gets it smokey profile from some super-charring technique used only in “mexican oak” barrels. If you don’t know find out-please don’t lie.
4) Sell vermouth and try a dash of bitters- guide your customer’s taste to sophistication.
18 Apr 2010 at 7:03 am 13. Kakunka
Hmmm…..
As to the lady with the aged cordials. . . Bottled alcohols will have an indefinite shelf life. Certainly, the Kahlua will be fine.
Baileys can suffer from “curdling” or settling of the cream, which may affect the taste. Try shaking it to restore the cream to an emulsion. None of it can harm you.
As to shaking a Martini. If you want to, well, knock yourself out.
Processes which can affect flavor with shaking include: Induction of more dissolved gasses (from the air) into the mix. Emulsion of the oils in the water. Out gassing of volatile oil flavoring components.
All of these can change the mouth “feel”, and the perceived flavor.
As to whether bar “towels” are bar “rags”. . . I think that is best left to observation, and opinion of the observer.
K.
01 Aug 2010 at 7:29 am 14. Sebastian
Jeffrey, I really like this site – so much so, that from time to time I start reading it all over again from the beginning. And every time I’m confused by what you say about metal shakers chilling a drink better than glass. That contradicts everything I ever learned about physics. Once you put ice in the shaker, the inside of the shaker will be colder than the outside. Heat cannot be transferred from a cold place to a warm place (at least not in such a simple setup), so there is no way the metal could conduct heat away from the cold cocktail inside the shaker to the warmer surroundings. It will always be the other way around. So in order to really chill a drink as much as possible, shouldn’t one use a shaker which is as little heat-conductive as possible, in order to minimize the amount of energy that will be transferred into the drink?