Two nearly identical drinks, born decades apart, both worth visiting (or revisiting) for their simple deliciousness. I’ll make this quick. First, the classic: the Brown Derby. Vendome Club, Hollywood, 1930s; Douglas Fairbanks at the bar. We don’t even know what class is anymore. Brown Derby 2 ounces bourbon 1 ounce fresh grapefruit juice 1/2 ounce… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Drinks
60/30, #19-20: breaking out the Batavia arrack
If there was a predominant recurring theme in this blog, and in my drinking life, back when it first started in 2005, it was the search for, or re-creation of, vintage cocktail ingredients that were no longer obtainable. I don’t do that much anymore, for good reason: primarily because, thanks to folks like Eric Seed… Continue Reading
60/30, #17-18: Two not-too-scary drinks from Jim Romdall
Before I even asked Jim Romdall from Vessel if he’d let me rip off a couple of his recipes for this month-long blog frenzy, I knew whatever drinks he prepared would have some ingredient guaranteed to freak out about 90 percent of the drinking public. I mean, look at the facts: the man’s Twitter handle… Continue Reading
60/30, #12-16: Four drinks with Chartreuse and chocolate
I’d like to be able to claim that I’m writing up several Chartreuse drinks based solely on my enthusiasm for the liqueur. A claim like that would probably be about 80 percent right. I mean, sure, I like the stuff, though I had an adaptation phase for Chartreuse that was almost as long as the… Continue Reading
60/30, #9, 10 & 11 – Mezcal makes the rounds
A little over five years ago, when I first started this blog, mezcal hadn’t even risen high enough in the cocktail world to be considered an afterthought. Sure, Ron Cooper had begun importing his Del Maguey single-village mezcals back in the ‘90s, but these things take time, and while tequila was in full bloom following… Continue Reading
