Hard Drinkers, Lets Drink Hard (Spirits, Liquors and Cocktails)
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The demand is definitely from Asia. At Heathrow duty-free last week, I saw Chinese customers buying Talisker like it was going out of style. Multiple that by a few million and…
Whisky prices are quite steep in Hong Kong so I've been continuing my education by picking up smaller bottles from the Classic Malts series when back in the UK: I really liked the Lagavulin and Cragganmore bottles I've had recently and Talisker 12 was good too. Obviously this is starter stuff compared to the rare bottles some of you are copping but I'm developing my palate this way and enjoying the ride.
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I didn't drink a dram for months, as I know I can't get many of that stuff again (or at reasonable Prices). The positive effect: when I drink "standard" stuff like the whiskies you mentioned - they taste wonderful. The palate can definitely be trained to taste the smaller differences - and also forgets them, if you don't. So I guess I'll stick with standard bottles the next years. And the normal Lagavulin has always been a great Whisky (even if it would benefit from a few percentages more alcohol).,
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The Manhattan is probably my favourite cocktail; I have made a metric fuck tonne (MFT) of these over the years. I thought I would share some experience about nailing the perfect (IMO) Manhattan.
There are many recipes that you can reference when making a Manhattan, in my experience almost all of them have 2 main issues:
- Not enough rye
- Too much vermouth
Even Salvatore Calabrese (who I love) is too heavy handed with the vermouth. My recommendation is (AT LEAST) 100ml of rye per person (I like to use Rittenhouse or Sazerac, Pikesville is a good, slightly lower cost, option. Obviously there are many more ryes you could use, but price may dictate your selection).
Maximum vermouth (I like to use Lillet Rouge) usage is 10ml per person, so a 10:1 ratio, this may seem low but you can always add a tiny bit more. What you need to avoid is the “winey” notes of the vermouth over-powering the heady liquor hit of the rye.
For the bitters I use Angostura, but you could make your own, this is a good book: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bitters-Spirited-Cure-All-Cocktails-Formulas/dp/1580083595. As with the vermouth, less is more – 2 shakes of the standard Angostura bottle per person is more than enough. As with all recipes – taste during build and before serving.
IMPORTANT – chill the glass, either by leaving the glasses in the freezer of using ice and water in the glass for 10 minutes before serving.
Cherries – you need cherries. The supermarket ones in syrup are acceptable and some palates like the extra sweetness imparted by the gomme, but fresh cherries (slight slashed with a knife) or cherries steeped in booze (brandy or liquor of your choice) are the best. Minimum 2 cherries per person, 3 if they look forlorn.
There are two main builds/presentation.
In a classic cocktail glass, no ice. This is more suited to mixed company when a genteel air is required. Example (Manhattan is on the right):
If there is a surfeit of oxblood leather wingback chairs and a preponderance of male consumers then a presentation with a big fucking chunk of ice is desirable (multiple ice cubes should be avoided as dilution becomes excessive – I use these: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ice-Ball-Moulds-Silicone-Sphere/dp/B007SDDASG). Example (no cherry variant):
Enjoy, experiment, get fucked up.
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thanks hectic, great post! manhattan is my favourites as well,
and you are damn right with the whisky/vermouth ratio.
one thing i like to add is, the importance of the right bitter.
if you chose angostura there is a great difference.the one made from angostura bark is to avoid.
the bitter named after the city angostura is the on, IMO.the both nearly look the same but the paperlable of the good
one reaches over the bottle shoulders and covers a part of the bottelneck as well.
cheers! -
i'm not a fan of the octave concept
but this one is a simply outstanding single single malt!
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Sounds great, would like to try…
Coming back to the discussion about the recent release politics of established, commercial distilleries:
That is exactly the reason why I switched to gin. I still buy the occasional bottle of whisky, but it's not the same...Some pictures from the weekend:
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Here's the story behind the pig war…
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pig_War -
"No human casualties" - so what??? A PIG WAS SHOT YOU MURDEROUS SWINE!..
you hard drinkers are having way waaay too much fun
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hallo weekend
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I've stopped drinking. It's clear liquors, wine, and beer only from here on out.
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I was joking
But seriously, I really have quit drinking for the moment.
