Intelligent Bartender

Once you have a fresh sour, you will never go back to barmix!

With the diversity of liqueurs on the market today it is possible to make a drink taste like virtually anything. Distillers have made it easy for mixologists to shape the profile of a drink. With base flavours like vanilla, cacao and hazelnut, it’s no wonder drinks like the Crispy Crunch shooter are consistently popular. I often wonder how long it will take before we see a chocolate martini dessert, where the kitchen begins to mimic the flavours being produced on the bar instead of the other way around. Perhaps the service of fusion dishes in traditional bar glassware like wraps in oversized shooter glasses and dessert mousses in martini glasses is an indication that it’s already
happening.

There is definitely an attraction to sweets that makes drinks like the chocolate martini popular. Everyone has a sweet tooth, but most people can’t have more than a few sweet cocktails before they need a change of pace and flavour profile. With a myriad of sour liqueurs on the market, it’s hard to know which flavours will complement each other. Sour peach or blueberry have vibrant eye catching colours, but too often, these ingredients find their place on the back bar and never move possible because of improper bartender training or no one has taken the time to experiment. Current bar books and recipe manuals will give you an overview with some recommendations. Some manufacturers will also include token recipes on the bottle itself, but there is no better way to find out what fits with your concept or client base than being properly trained and spending some time experimenting for yourself.

Regardless of whether you’re a bartender, bar manager or concept director, (or perhaps you’re all three) a little bartender training and the willingness to experiment can go a long way towards creating some great custom cocktails. Before you spend any more money on additional ingredients like sour watermelon liqueur, look at what you can make with what you’ve currently got on your bar. There are lots of drink engines on the Web, including a good online cocktail cabinet for free at www.bartenderone.com where you can check-off the ingredients (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic) from a huge list and it’ll generate a list of all the cocktails you can make with your current ingredients.

I find that quite often the bottled sours have a bit of a laboratory look and taste to them, and if using sour liqueurs is not your speed, I encourage you to experiment with traditional sour cocktails made with raw ingredients. I guarantee that it will render better results than the bottled concoctions available, and you may just find a new favourite cocktail in the process. Whisky and Amaretto Sours are definitely the most common in Canada. South of the border, Bourbon, Midori (melon liqueur), Pisco (brandy) and Tuaca (vanilla) sours are all very popular. If your bar makes an amaretto sour with a shot of Amaretto and barmix, try taking a few extra seconds to craft one from scratch using the sour recipe that follows and then do a taste test. The results are like night and day. The sour recipe below can be modified into many different variations simply by
changing the alcohol.

This month, the Frangelico Sour is the cocktail of the month courtesy of bar chef Rob Montgomery of Toronto’s Vertical Restaurant. “The amaretto sour is so last year!” he says with a sarcastic laugh. When I first heard the name, I couldn’t help but say ‘why didn’t I think of that?’ and after trying it, I’m certain that this is one of my new favourites. It’s a well balanced drink that is light, refreshing and easy on the palate. Give it a try and you’ll never go back! A willingness to experiment and a little bit of time are two keys to some of the most fun and rewarding research and development you’ll ever do. You’ll find that you can easily broaden your knowledge base about the products you serve and great ways to serve them.

This month’s Move of the Month is a show stopper that must be practiced. It works on the same premise as throwing a candy in the air and catching it in your mouth. It’s important to start with a few cherries in your hand in case you miss the first one… you don’t want to be searching for garnish with an audience. World Champion Christian Delpech says it best… “You throw the cherry and then you pray!” Under the right circumstances you may choose to lean across the bar and feed the cherry to the guest who ordered the drink. Use discretion before garnishing a drink with something that has been in your mouth, no matter how often you brush your teeth! Until next time keep Raising the Bar!

MOVE OF THE MONTH : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-kwK9iwaZc

FRANGELICO SOUR
1 1/2 oz. Frangelico
2 teaspoons of Turbinado Sugar
2 Key limes cut in half and squeezed or muddled
1/2 oz. of pasteurized egg white Shake vigorously and strain over fresh ice in a rocks glass

Yes, you can have a cocktail and indulge in healthy antioxidants at the same time!

There’s no doubt that the Far East has heavily influenced our health conscious way of thinking in North America. There’s something exotic about thousands of years of tradition and total body health that the Asian philosophy offers. From Tai Chi and Chai Teas (say that 5 times fast) to fresh ginger root, echinacea and other holistic and alternative remedies, we’re embracing eastern culture in both Canada and the United States like never before. Dr. Andrew Romanelli of the Sports Performance Centres says 75 per cent of his patients are looking to acupuncture as an alternative and less invasive form of treatment. What does this have to do with cocktail culture you ask? How about this for alternative medicine…

In recent months, many spirit and liqueur manufacturers have taken notice of the trend and the cocktail marketplace is now starting to see new and exciting Asian inspired creations. Although some may consider it a stretch to believe that drinking a martini could be a health conscious decision, having yourself a Green-teani will certainly offer you more healthy benefits than your average rye and coke. Consider that green tea offers tremendous amounts of antioxidants, which have both anti-aging properties and aid in the prevention of disease.

Canadian spirit manufacturer Corby’s recently raised the bar with the introduction of their new brightly coloured and exotic tasting Euphoria line of liqueurs. Asian pear, gink guava and pomegranate have become popular martini flavours. According to Daniel Lundberg, Corby’s senior brand manager, these products are opening new markets for them.

Corby’s isn’t alone. Trailblazers like Miles Karakesevic, of the Californian Micro- distillery Charbay, recently launched green tea infused vodka to add to the growing list of vodka infusions now available. Karakesevic’s Green Tea Vodka is flavoured with the extractions of four Chinese green tea varieties; all blended in a style similar to the way perfume is created.

Suntory International and Allied Domecq Spirits introduced ZEN Green Tea Liqueur to the U.S. market in 2005. It is a blend of the finest Japanese green tea leaves, premium herbs and natural flavours. Meldea Green Tea Liqueur was released by PMA, and is a good cocktail mixer which doubles as an alternative aperitif. It seems like there are no shortage of followers as spirit manufacturers align themselves to keep on top of the latest trends.

Barristas have long known the popularity of teas. After water, tea is the second most widely consumed beverage on the planet. Despite the popularity of teas elsewhere, the North American obsession with coffee has left little room in the marketplace for exclusive tea houses, however, most upscale coffee houses will offer a wide range of teas. Starbucks has found great success with their Chai Teas and Tazo® Green Iced Tea – a blend of Chinese green tea lightly sweetened and shaken with ice.

With all of these options available it’s hard to know how to create a great drink that will balance the dry taste of tea with spirit or liqueur while exciting your guests and satisfying their discerning palates. Although the basics of cocktail synergy suggest that a well-trained bartender balances sweet and sour when creating a custom cocktail, in this case, we’re balancing sweet and dry. Teas will produce a similar dry feel on your tongue to that of a red wine that’s high in tannins. While you may find it difficult to get your hands on some of these spirits and liqueurs north of the border, Mixology Canada Inc. has come up with a non-alcoholic bar friendly solution in the form of Tea Fuzions - a line of unsweetened tea concentrates including green tea, earl grey, orange pekoe, chai and matcha.

Scott Megit, president, Mixology Canada Inc., says the line of tea concentrates were custom blended to allow the tea to be mixed with alcohol. They were created in recognition of a huge resurgence in teas as a cocktail or smoothie base in restaurants, cafés and martini bars.

While I don’t recommend you rely on the anti-aging properties of the Green-teani as your personal fountain of youth, it does make for a tasty beverage, which will appeal to an increasingly curious consumer base. Keep your eyes open for new trends from the Far East… next month I’ll be writing about matcha, a new trend that the food and beverage industry will undoubtedly be eating (and drinking) up in no time!

Until the next blog, keep training your bartenders and “Raising the Bar” in your place of business because if you don’t, someone else will!

Ingredients:
Ice
1 ounce Tea Fuzions Green Tea concentrate
2 ounces Absolut Mandrin Vodka 1/2 ounce Grand Marnier
1/2 ounce 1883 Cane Sugar simple syrup
Orange twist
Method: Add Absolut Mandarin Vodka, Grand Marnier, Tea Fuzions Green Tea Concentrate and simple syrup to a cocktail shaker. (If you like a dryer martini, reduce the amount of simple syrup. Try starting with 1/4oz of simple syrup and sweeten to taste.) Shake vigorously 4-5 times to insure that the cocktail is properly mixed and chilled. Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with an orange twist.

Cocktails with colour draw your guests' attention, making them more likely to try something new!

From the classic long island iced tea to start off your evening, to a warm and comforting blueberry tea after a good meal, tea flavoured cocktails have been around for forever. The recent surge in popularity of green tea, coupled with the fact that teas are included on more and more cocktail menus, is a great indication that we’re all about to get a healthy dose of antioxidants. In North America, high quality tea products are now more accessible than ever. With its highly publicized health benefits, wholesale tea sales have grown more than 600 per cent in the last 15 years. Trailblazing restauranteurs are noticing the trends from the Far East and incorporating what was once considered a very ceremonial ingredient into today’s cocktail revolution. Matcha is one of the latest types of tea to hit the Canadian marketplace. Don’t feel bad if you’ve never heard of it, few people, or bartenders for that matter, have. With both Starbucks and Booster Juice recently adding matcha to their menus, it won’t be long before it’s a household name. Just know that matcha is the new chai, and it’s a buzzword that may just turn the industry on its ear.

Most will agree that few things are more refined than relaxing after a meal with a digestif or specialty coffee warmer. While Spanish coffees and monte cristos have long been staples on the after dinner coffee list, the one and only after dinner tea cocktail on the vast majority of our menus is the quintessential blueberry tea. The classic recipe calls for a curious mix of the orange flavoured Grand Marnier, and almond flavoured amaretto (the jury’s still out on where the blueberry reference comes from). Sadly, that seems to be the end of our creativity when it comes to tea cocktails.

The recent rise in popularity of green tea martinis or “greenteanis” has opened a floodgate of opportunity in Asian inspired cocktails. While Central and Eastern Canada seem to be a bit behind the times, British Columbia has had a long love affair with a myriad of green tinted Japanese culinary delights. From the almost fluorescent coloured wasabi, (try a little mixed into your next caesar) to the light green textured aloe vera juice, to the deep green nori (seaweed) to the brightly coloured edamame (soybean), it seems like it’s easier than ever to be green. The latest addition to the family of popular green ingredients is matcha. Although there are some subtle differences between matcha and green tea, (types of leaves used and the method of harvest) quite simply, matcha is powdered green tea in a concentrated form.

Restauranteurs have been using this brilliant green ingredient in culinary applications for quite some time. Matcha ice cream, matcha cream cheese, matcha chocolate and energy bars, parfaits and cheesecakes… the list goes on. Chefs like Toronto’s John Lee of OMI Sushi suggests matcha’s slightly bitter flavour balances well with sweet or chocolaty desserts, which is why it works so well in sweeter cocktails. He adds that it’s not only matcha’s unique taste, but its many health benefits that are making it an increasingly popular ingredient to work with. With as many as eight times the antioxidant properties of regular green tea, a little dose of matcha can go a long way.

Powdered Matcha is available in a few different varieties. For cocktail applications look for sweetened matcha, which often comes in the form of a matcha latté mix. The unsweetened powder is fine, but I find it too bitter to be used without the addition of simple syrup. Mixology Canada Inc. offers powdered matcha in both varieties along with an extensive line of Tea Fuzions concentrates created specifically for cocktails.

This month, I’m offering up two suggestions, one for before the meal and one for after. First, the emerald matcha martini, made with premium Vodka, lychee liqueur, aloe vera juice (another unique ingredient available in most Asian grocery stores) and matcha tea. You’ll find it best to dissolve your matcha in hot water before adding it to your beverages. Try 1 tsp. of matcha powder to 1oz. of hot water. The second is the lychee matcha latté. With both soothing and digestive qualities; it’s made just like it sounds, with lychee liqueur, a shot of matcha and steamed milk, and it’s the perfect way to end a meal.

One thing is certain, Asian inspired cocktails including tea-based creations are here to stay. With a curious consumer base thirsty for a healthy excuse to have a cocktail, and extensive bartender training, these drinks could just be the way to raise your bar!

Emerald Matcha Martini
1 oz. premium vodka
3/4 oz. lychee liqueur
1 tsp. Tea Fuzions matcha latté powder (dissolved in 1 oz. hot water)
2 oz. aloe vera juice

Lychee Matcha Latté
1 oz. lychee liqueur
1 tsp. Tea Fuzions matcha latté powder (dissolved in 1 oz. hot water)
6 oz. steamed milk

The Mojito is many bartender's first step into creating hand-crafted cocktails.

You may have heard the old cliché that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. For many restaurants and bars, service and product quality in the venue represent that weak link. Through years of systemizing our hospitality concepts, only a few operators have successfully maintained their level of bartender training and product quality. Quite often, it’s easier to practice management by abdication than management by delegation. In other words, it’s easier to fill a position with someone who has enough bartender training to get by, than to take the time and effort to train them to be great! The trouble is your front line employees deserve nothing but the best training; they are after all, the first and last impression that your guests will have of your operation.

Back in prohibition times when moonshine tasted like gasoline, juices and sugars were added to create “cocktails” which would make spirits more palatable. Today we enjoy the benefits of technology, which afford us quality spirits and liqueurs which taste great and certainly don’t need to be covered up. I have written in the past about balancing the flavours in a cocktail, making sure that a drink is not too sweet or sour, and that the strength of the base spirit isn’t wasted with too much mix. Now that we have this abundance of quality ingredients, curious bartenders are becoming mixologists and bar chefs and the level of both service and cocktail quality is going up in more than just the major urban centres. Someone once said that a bartender was a pharmacist with a limited inventory. The difference is that there are few bartenders who pursue mixology training with the same vigor as our pharmaceutical partners, largely because of how generic the bartending profession has become over the past 10- 15 years. Many establishments simplified their systems so anyone could be a bartender, and bartending became a job where you could make great money while you were finishing school or waiting for your next audition. Unfortunately, this change towards simplicity has sacrificed guest service and product quality to the point where a quality cocktail is almost unrecognizable because it’s so far from the vast majority of drinks served today.

There are, however, signs that this may be changing, with the recent popularity of more labour intensive drinks like the Caipirinha and the Mojito. Slowly but surely, the craft of mixology is inching its way back into the mainstream. More than a handful of bartenders have begun re- creating cocktails from the ground up, replacing post-mix syrups with fresh juices, re-introducing fresh garnish ingredients which may provoke your curiosity more than a wedge of lime thoughtlessly perched on the rim of a glass. Why did my bartender just grate nutmeg on top of my drink? Maybe a garnish is there for reasons other than decoration? Recently, two of the world’s best known mixologists, Tony Abou- Ganim (The Modern Mixologist) and Dale DeGroff (The King of Cocktails) began taking their message of proper cocktail preparation on the road. Dale’s book “The Craft of the Cocktail” is an essential read for anyone who is serious about raising the level of product quality and service in their establishment. They teamed up with Finlandia Vodka to create “Finnishing School” a one-day course offered around the world – training bartenders and consumers how to create the perfect cocktail with the freshest ingredients. For more information on when you can catch the seminar, contact Kim Charney, 502-774-7291 or Kim_Charney@b-f.com.

Closer to home, Canadian-born Calgary bartender Graham Warner combines a little flair bartending showmanship with his finely tuned mixology skills, creating imaginative cocktails with culinary precision at the Raw Bar in the Hotel Arts. Warner worked and trained in England where he mentions that high-end mixology bars are plentiful and he felt like he was one in a million in terms of schooled bartenders. Europeans seem to be light years ahead of us here in North America, and back at home in Calgary, Warner has taken what he learned in England to help position himself as an industry leader, where he continues to blaze a trail for bartenders in years to come. Warner cites “The Joy of Mixology” by Gary Regan as essential reading material, and his own personal drinks bible. His Toronto counterpart, Rob Montgomery, of Toronto’s Vertical Restaurant has recently begun working on molecular mixology, another concept which has made the leap from culinary applications to the bartending front. Concepts like foams and mists utilizing the different densities of spirits and liqueurs to create solid or gelatinous cocktails may seem like a completely foreign concept, but with a little bit of training, these ideas aren’t as scary as they may seem. Check out next month’s issue for more on molecular mixology.

The bottom line is that bartenders like De Groff, Abou-Ganim, Warner and Montgomery are few and far between, but these trailblazers are driving the message that the same attention that is paid in the kitchen should also be paid to the bar. There is no substitute for proper bartender training and although not every restaurant will be a high- end cocktail bar, every restaurant or bar should be putting their best foot forward in terms of the products and service they provide. The life of your business depends on it. Until next time keep ‘raising the bar’, because if you don’t, someone else will! If you’re looking for a bartending training solution, contact BartenderOne Bartending Schools.

MxMo XLVI takes place Monday, February 22. Hosting this round is Sonja at Thinking of Drinking, and Sonja has chosen Absinthe as the theme.   Certainly one of Toronto’s best MxMo’s to date, and a thoroughly enjoyable excuse to get together and have some tasty beverages.  Some of us chose absinthe as a modifier, some as a base… some chose citrus and some cream, then we finished off with some fresh espresso and macadamia syrup to cap the night…  Enjoy from the t-dot

Elan Marks presents

“Two in the Pink”

1.5 oz alize red passion
1.5 oz absinthe
1 oz ameretto
1 oz egg whites
2 oz cranberry juice,
squeeze one fresh lemon wedge …
in a tin with ice add all ingredients, shake the shit out of it, till its nice and frothy

strain and enjoy,

Scott McMaster (aka Evil) presents “The Purp”

Makes 2.

60ml Zoladkowa Gurzka Bitter Vodka
10ml Hills Absinth
2-7 inch rosemary branches (no stems). 3 barspoons of blueberry jam
Muddle vodka, jam and rosemary in boston glass. Add absinth and ice, shake, fine strain in to tall thin glass. Flute would work as well as pictured glass. Top with Absenth foam.

Rob Montgomery

Ghostface Killah Cocktail aka Pretty Toney Tipple

Inspired by San Francisco bartender Camper English’s adaption of the Absinthe Suissesse Cocktail, I added a few changes of my own. Remake of a remake so to speak. I hope you enjoy.

50ml Hills Absinthe
15ml Macadamia Nut Syrup
1 egg white
60ml heavy cream or half-and-half
dash orange blossom water
pinch of 6 spice powder(5 spice plus ginger)

Combine liquid ingredients in boston glass, Fill with ice and hard shake. Strain over crushed ice in oldfashioned glass or straight into a chilled coupe glass. Sprinkle with 6 spice powder.
Serves 1.

Wes Galloway

Not bad for a first run, but needs tinkering:
Pour la Premiere Fois

1.25oz Calvados De Boulard
.75oz Italian Vermouth
.5oz Pernod Absinthe
.25oz Pama Pomegranate Liqueur
2 dashes Peychaud Bitters
1 dash Angostura Bitters
*Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice and stir well.  Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Nishan Chandra busts out the Snowbird

15mL Hills Absinthe
30mL Domaine de Canton
Juice of 2 Fresh Limes
20mL Orgeat
3 dashes Fee Bros Lemon Bitters
Shake all ingredients over ice, strain into 3 tall shooter or coupe glasses.
Add one dash of bitters to garnish.

Gavin MacMillan presented the GF Twizzler

45mL Juniper Green Organic Gin
30mL Cointreau
30mL Hills Absinthe
60mL Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice
2 dashes Peychauds Bitters
Brulee the outside of the glasses with absinthe for aromatics, then shake and strain into bruleed glassware.

Great topic this month, Money Drinks!

Present at this months drink tank… Nishan Chandra of Blowfish, Renata Clingen ex. Teatro, Gavin MacMillan of B1, Rob Montgomery of the Miller Tavern, Scott McMaster, consultant. Cheerleader…Caitlin Mason

Click here to see this months host - http://beersintheshower.blogspot.com/

First to the bar for Money Drinks…
Rob Montgomery - KFC Sazerac
Kentucky bourbon, Fig jam and Caramel liquer

Rollo double straining his KFC Sazerac

I had seen a version of this cocktail on the menu @ Lab in London, England circa 2000. Having never tried it I continued to experiment with variations over the years. This is now my go to recipe when people say they don’t like whiskey or whiskey cocktails. 60% of the time it works all the time. Scratch that. It always works. The fig jam and Caramel liquer take the place of the sugar in a traditional Sazerec, while adding complexity and depth with their respective flavours.

The KFC Sazerac in all its glory... delish!

Splash of water
1 Barspoon of fig jam
50ml Bulleit Bourbon
15ml Caramel liquer
1 drop Peychaud bitters
10ml Absinthe
orange twist (to garnish)

Take 2 double old fashioned glasses and fill 1 with ice. In the other combine the fig jam with the water and stir well to combine. To the jam slurry add the bourbon, caramel liqueur and Peychaud’s bitters. Add 2-3 lumps of ice and stir well. Jettison the ice from the second glass and add the Absinthe. Coat the inside of the glass and throw the rest out. Fine strain first mixture into the prepared glass and garnish with an orange twist.

Serves 1

Up next was Gavin MacMillan - Million Dollar Manhattan

Gavin's Million Dollar Manhattan

Frankie from Bar Chef does a version of this one with a cold smoker, I like it just as is…

75mL Crown Royal XR
25mL Sweet Vermouth
3 dashes JT Decanter Bitters
3 Amarena Cherries for Garnish

Stir over cold fresh ice, strain and enjoy

Renata Clingen - Winter Mojito

Renata preparing the Winter Mojito

45mL Angostura 1919
15mL Maple Syrup
6 Cranberries Muddled (plus 2 for Garnish)
12 mint leaves
120mL Ginger Beer
30mL Soda Water

The Winter Mojito - Festive and Delicious

Scott McMaster - Rising Star

Scott McMaster shakes up the Sake Cocktail converter - Rising Star

60mL Soju or Nigori Sake
30mL Umeshu “Choya 23″
2 spoons Kiwi Mango Preserve
1 dash Grapefruit bitters

The Rising Star dispells a lot of pre-conceptions about Sake

Nishan Chandra - Flying Grouse

Nishan Chandra of Blowfish with the Flying Grouse

60mL Famous Grouse Blended Scotch Whiskey
3 dashes Lemon Bitters
30mL Roses Lime
60mL Lime Juice
30mL Agave Nectar
Top with Sparkling water

As our first attempt at joining in with Mixology Mondays globally we had a good time, and look forward to hosting one in the future!  Thanks to all who participated!  Until next month…

MxMo (short for Mixology Mondays) is a global online meeting among bartenders who work towards making great cocktails around a specific theme (Hard Drinks, Punches, Vermouth Based Cocktails etc.)

Rob Montgomery and I have been keeping an eye on MxMo for the past 18 months, and have had many conversations about starting up one of our own to boost cocktail culture in Toronto.  We finally thought that it was time we stopped paying lipservice to making better cocktails and actually did something about it.

On Movember 30th, (yes Movember, check it here www.movember.com) a small group of bartenders from around our city gathered to work on some interpretations of “Holiday Cocktails.”  The timing seems relevant as we move into the busy holiday event season, who wouldnt want an excuse to have a great holiday cocktail?

First up was a welcome cocktail called the Honey Julep, a recipe of mine featured in the recent Drambuie re-launch recipe book.  The sweet and sour pink grapefruit juice complements the Drambuie really well and allows the freshness of the elderflower and mint to shine through.  This drink is perfect for summer, or a winter holiday getaway to a place that reminds you of summer.

Honey Julep

50ml Drambuie

15ml St Germaine Elderflower Liqueur

15ml Lemon Juice

30ml Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice

2 dashes of Angostura Orange Bitters

8-10 Mint leaves

Directions: Muddle mint leaves and bitters in a Boston Glass, add remaining ingredients and shake over cold fresh ice.  Double strain over crushed ice in a highball glass, and garnish with a mint sprig.

Next up was Ryan Powell with another Scotch based drink, his Maple Movember Manhattan.

Cocktail #2: Maple Movember Manhattan
2 oz Chivas Regal 12 Year Old
¼ oz ice wine maple syrup
¼ oz egg white
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Dry shake ingredients vigorously to properly froth the egg white then add ice and shake again.  Double strain into a rocks glass filled with crushed ice and sprinkle nutmeg on top to garnish.
Optional: Brule a misted Aberlour 12 Year Old on top.

This cocktail was inspired from a Manhattan.  For me, winter holidays and scotch go hand in hand.  I replaced the sweet vermouth with the ice wine maple syrup because that’s I wanted something a little sweeter and the maple syrup pairs well with the apple notes in the Chivas.  The egg white was added to bring a creamy texture to the cocktail, which again is popular amongst holiday cocktails.  The Angostura bitters adds a fantastic holiday spice to the cocktail as well as the nutmeg sprinkle on top.  For a little more showmanship and to add a little more strength to the cocktail, you can mist Aberlour over the cocktail and gently brule it.  The sherry notes from the Aberlour adds a nice touch to the nutmeg, maple, apple and spice.

Next up was Alejandro Giraldo with a Spanish inspired Cazadores Saludable.

50ml Cazadores Tequila
20ml Pama Pomegranate liquor
60ml Pink grapefruit juice
20ml Lemon juice
15ml Agave nectar

Shake ingredients vigorously with ice then double strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with a fresh mint leaf.

Rob Montgomery stepped up with his “Ho Ho Ho…. It’s Brown Butta YO!”

30ml fresh lemon fresh lemon juice
15ml Gomme Syrup
50ml Brown Butter “washed” Jack Daniels
Lemon twist(to garnish)
Combine liquid ingredients in Boston glass and fill with ice.
Stir well for 60 seconds.
Strain into chilled coupe glass. Spritz twist over the top, wipe around the rim and float skin side up.

Scott McMaster (aka Dr. Evil) took to the bar with Cocktail #4 An Evil Christmas

30ml Skinos
15ml jager
5ml lime juice
30ml White cran

Combine in boston over ice and shake
Garnish with frozen cranberry

The boys from Skinos were kind enough to drop off a couple of bottles of their product back in the summer, and Evil thought it would be a good opportunity to try using the pine flavour of the Mastica in a holiday cocktail.  It is the best cocktail we’ve had with Skinos which has an admittedly unusual flavour profile.  If anyone else has had success with Skinos, we’d sure like to hear about it, as I’m sure the boys from Skinos would as they make their foray into the cocktail world.

Finally. in the spirit of getting away for the holidays, we thought it would be nice to end with an Aviation Cocktail.  I really like the flavour of Creme de Violette, and Maraschino Liqueur is hard to hate at the best of times.  Although they can sometimes be hard to find, I’m sure if enough people ask for it, they’ll become more readily available… they’re certainly worth the effort.

Present at the innaugural Toronto MxMo were: Alejandro Giraldo, Ryan Powell, Rob Montgomery, Caitlin Mason, Gavin MacMillan, Jessica Klug, Scott McMaster.

Absent: Elan Marks, Nick Nemeth, Renata Clingen, Nishan Chandra

For more tips on setting up a great holiday bar Click here

and if you’re really serious about getting into bartending and want to train with some of the best bartenders in the business, click here to see the next training dates with BartenderOne

The next global Mixology Monday will be taking place on December 14th… same bat time, same bat channel.

Click here to see the next event on Facebook