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.
The problem with living in Oregon is the absence of little wooden shacks by the sea that sell cases of fresh ginger beer stacked on back porches. But with some readily-available ingredients, a recipe I've been revising for several years - and a few free minutes - I can easily transport myself to a little fishing boat on the ocean as I sip a Dark and Stormy made with fresh, house-made ginger beer.
It's always mojito season somewhere, so this advice is timely in your area about half the year. Wether you're making them or simply enjoying them, this advice will help you look like a pro in no time at all.
The flavors of the Richmond Gimlet are imbued with sunshine. Fresh mint mingling with the herbaceousness of gin and the tartness of lime have made this drink a Eugene classic for many years now.
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.
The debate rages on: Should we try to look cool and crack open the Boston shaker or be tidy professionals and use the Hawthorne strainer the way God intended? Be sure to leave your two cents in the comments section.
The traditional garnish for a Pisco Sour is a couple of drops of bitters in the foam, but I've never been particularly impressed with the way these few paltry drops of bitters sat in their little egg-white mattress and didn't play along with the rest of the drink. I envisioned a Pisco Sour with a uniformly-distributed bitters-scorched foam: slightly crisp as the fire burnt the sugars, and slightly warm as the foam insulated the rest of the frosty cocktail from the heat. A pisco creme brulée in a glass!
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.
A couple comes in to the bar last week. He’s intelligent-looking, with stylish glasses and salt-and-peppered hair, and nicely dressed. She’s a vision of adorableness: petite, with innocent eyes, a gorgeous smile, and the body of an angel. They grab a table in the bar and sit on the same side of it together, all cute-like. They hold hands and whisper in each other’s ear as they sip their cocktails.
Ordinarily these two would be any bartender’s ideal customers. They’re polite, they’re tipping, and they seem to be low-maintenance. But I know something you don’t know: These people are fucking psychotic.
They come in once a month, just rarely enough for me to remember them. And I always forget, it’s terrible. I forget, and since all I remember is their nice, friendly faces, I’m almost happy to see them. That all changes when I walk over to their table to clear their fourth round.
And it hits me: Holy shit, are these people are in the middle of the most mentally abusive breakup ever? Did I just overhear him call her the c-word? Did she just tell him that she screwed his best friend? Oh my God, is he crying? What the fuck?!
It happens every time. They break up every time they come in to my bar. Every. Single. Time. And every time, he leaves. He pays the bill and storms out, leaving her a husk, a shell, whimpering at the table. It’s the saddest thing you’ve ever seen, until you see what happens next.
She goes into the bathroom, and when she comes out, she’s happier than you’ve ever seen her before. She sits down with a group of business guys and chats them up. They buy her a drink and ask her if she’s okay. She tells her psychotic story, that he’s a jerk, that she gave back his engagement ring tonight, and so on. I don’t know who to feel sorry for, him or her. But he’s gone, and she’s sitting here, so I guess I’m feeling a little sorry for her, even though I know she’s completely insane.
I make sure to keep one eye out for her safety as I do my side work behind the bar, but she doesn’t need my help – the men slowly slide away as they come to the same realization. She then turns her attention to me, tells me the same story I’ve heard countless times before, and the next thing you know I’m putting her in a cab and slipping the driver twenty bucks to make sure she gets home safely.
They’ll be back in about six weeks and we’ll go through all of this again. Ain’t love grand?
Interesting how coasting through life and relationships on looks alone may not be a workable plan for dealing with life’s little challenges.
Of course, I’m making some wild guesses about the motivations of said couple. I’ve known plenty of folks blessed with good genetics who are mentally stable, pleasant, productive contributors to society.
But every once and a while… Damn. Being cute/good looking is not a lisense to be a self absorbed, emotional drain to those around you.
Jeffrey, your favorite couple reminds me of one of my own worst shifts: couple comes into the bar, no problems. They’re with some friends, semi-regulars, decent folks.
About an hour or so in, she starts raising her voice as he walks away from her. Before I even have time to clue myself into their argument, I watch as she hurls her beer bottle halfway across the barroom at his head.
Luckily, she was a lousy shot, because she managed to hit the wall next to the pinball machine (with nobody playing) instead of her soon-to-be-ex boyfriend.
That was a fun 86. Keep up the good work!
-JJ
06 Dec 2006 at 3:40 pm 3. Mad Jack
I used to date a girl who turned into a nasty, messy drunk. She was OK after the first drink, a little loud on the second, belligerent on the third and mean to everyone on the fourth. She’d then demand a fifth or sixth drink and try to start fights with the people around her. We broke up on drink five, third time this happened.
I returned several weeks later and appologised to the bartender, and left him a large tip that evening. The man was decent and forgiving, but who needs the hassel? The girl eventually went on the wagon and moved to California.
16 Dec 2006 at 2:24 am 4. Scooter
Is the girl in the picture Rachel Ray?
02 Mar 2007 at 8:34 pm 5. P.S.BarChick
Wow, I just loved this post, made me laugh right out loud!
I’m pretty sure this couple exists in every town or city. I work in a southern CA desert resort town, and although the players didn’t look the same and were younger than your “psychotic couple”, the game was about the same! My goodness, the drama some people create. my first time kicking someone out was “psychotic couple” and it felt kinda good.
At least they make for good stories, and thanks for sharing yours!
I absolutely hate it when someone sends me a box full of sex toys in the mail. Sure, it might sound like fun to some of you (you know who you are), but receiving a big box of free sex is much more trouble than it’s worth. Believe me. So I get a [...]
05 Dec 2006 at 4:37 pm 1. Michael Durham
Is this an actual photo of the lovely couple?
Interesting how coasting through life and relationships on looks alone may not be a workable plan for dealing with life’s little challenges.
Of course, I’m making some wild guesses about the motivations of said couple. I’ve known plenty of folks blessed with good genetics who are mentally stable, pleasant, productive contributors to society.
But every once and a while… Damn. Being cute/good looking is not a lisense to be a self absorbed, emotional drain to those around you.
I predict a tortured future – for both.
05 Dec 2006 at 8:28 pm 2. Jessie Jane
Jeffrey, your favorite couple reminds me of one of my own worst shifts: couple comes into the bar, no problems. They’re with some friends, semi-regulars, decent folks.
About an hour or so in, she starts raising her voice as he walks away from her. Before I even have time to clue myself into their argument, I watch as she hurls her beer bottle halfway across the barroom at his head.
Luckily, she was a lousy shot, because she managed to hit the wall next to the pinball machine (with nobody playing) instead of her soon-to-be-ex boyfriend.
That was a fun 86. Keep up the good work!
-JJ
06 Dec 2006 at 3:40 pm 3. Mad Jack
I used to date a girl who turned into a nasty, messy drunk. She was OK after the first drink, a little loud on the second, belligerent on the third and mean to everyone on the fourth. She’d then demand a fifth or sixth drink and try to start fights with the people around her. We broke up on drink five, third time this happened.
I returned several weeks later and appologised to the bartender, and left him a large tip that evening. The man was decent and forgiving, but who needs the hassel? The girl eventually went on the wagon and moved to California.
16 Dec 2006 at 2:24 am 4. Scooter
Is the girl in the picture Rachel Ray?
02 Mar 2007 at 8:34 pm 5. P.S.BarChick
Wow, I just loved this post, made me laugh right out loud!
I’m pretty sure this couple exists in every town or city. I work in a southern CA desert resort town, and although the players didn’t look the same and were younger than your “psychotic couple”, the game was about the same! My goodness, the drama some people create. my first time kicking someone out was “psychotic couple” and it felt kinda good.
At least they make for good stories, and thanks for sharing yours!