Simonson - A proper drink: the untold story of how a band of bartenders saved the civilized drinking world

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I WOULD FIRST LIKE TO THANK Emily Timberlake and Aaron Wehner at Ten Speed Press for having the faith that the story of the cocktail revival deserved to be told and would have an audience. Thanks for David Black and everyone at the David Black Agency for all their help and guidance throughout the long process of this books creation, particularly for their assistance in getting me to Paris and Australia. Thanks for everyone I interviewed for their time, perspective, and memories. Special thanks for the creators of the cocktails found in these pages. Gratitude to every venue I used for the interviews for letting me temporarily use their bars, cafs, and restaurants as my office. Most of all, thanks to my son, Asher, for whom I do everything I do.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

ROBERT SIMONSON writes about cocktails, spirits, bars and bartenders for the New York Times, for which he has written since 2000. He is the author of The Old-Fashioned: The Story of the Worlds First Classic Cocktail and is a contributor to The Essential New York Times Book of Cocktails and Savoring Gotham. His writings have appeared in Saveur, GQ, Lucky Peach, Whisky Advocate, Imbibe, and many others. A native of Wisconsin, he has lived in Brooklyn since 1988.

SHOULD-BE CLASSICS

Brancolada

JEREMY OERTEL , 2012, Donna, Brooklyn

A highly unusual tiki drink that uses the difficult-to-mix Branca Menta to spectacular ends. A rare modern tiki classic.

1 ounce Appleton V/X rum

1 ounce Branca Menta

1 ounces pineapple juice

ounce fresh orange juice

ounce coconut cream (recipe follows)

Mint sprig and orange wedge, for garnish

Combine all the ingredients except the mint sprig and orange wedge in cocktail shaker with a few ice cubes. Shake until chilled. Strain over crushed ice in a hurricane glass. Garnish with the mint sprig and orange wedge.

To make the coconut cream, combine 3 parts Coco Lopez with 1 part coconut milk.

Siesta

KATIE STIPE , 2006, Flatiron Lounge, New York

A tequila-Campari spin on a Hemingway Daiquiri.

1 ounces tequila

ounce fresh lime juice

ounce simple syrup

ounce fresh grapefruit juice

ounce Campari

Lime wheel, for garnish

Combine all the ingredients except the lime wheel in a cocktail shaker three-quarters filled with ice. Shake until chilled. Strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with thelime wheel.

Moon Cocktail

THOMAS WAUGH , 2008, Death & Co, New York

A drink of impeccable balance and elegance. Created as Waughs idea of a Martini varation on La Perla, a popular drink by San Francisco bartender Jacques Bezuidenhaut.

Combine all the ingredients except the lemon peel in a mixing glass three-quarters filled with ice. Stir until chilled. Strain into an coupe glass. Squeeze the lemon peel over the top and discard.

2 ounces Plymouth gin

ounce Lustau Amontillado sherry

1 barspoon Massenez Crme de Pche peach liqueur

ounce acacia honey syrup (recipe follows)

Lemon peel, for garnish

To make the acacia honey syrup, combine equal parts water and acacia honey in a saucepan. Heat until the honey dissolves, then allow to cool.

Laphroaig Project

OWEN WESTMAN , 2009, Bourbon & Branch, San Francisco

The ingredients are high end in the extreme, making this an expensive drink to make, but the results are worth it. Westman is an Australian bartender who journeyed to San Francisco to learn at Bourbon & Branch. He invented the drink while in San Francisco.

1 ounce Green Chartreuse

1 ounce fresh lemon juice

ounce Laphroaig Quarter Cask Scotch

ounce maraschino liqueur

ounce Yellow Chartreuse

2 dashes Fee Brothers Peach Bitters

Lemon peel, for garnish

Combine all the ingredients except the lemon peel in a cocktail shaker three-quarters filled with ice. Shake until chilled. Strain into an ice-filled Old-Fashioned glass. Garnish with the lemon peel.

Bitter Giuseppe

STEPHEN COLE , 2006, The Violet Hour, Chicago

Created in Chicago, it gained a wider audience when included in Beta Cocktails, the second edition of the cocktail booklet put out by Cure in New Orleans. It often makes an appearance when a customer orders bartenders choice.

2 ounces Cynar

ounce Carpano Antica

2 dashes Regans orange bitters

Lemon peel with a little meat on it, for garnish

Lemon slice, for garnish

Combine all ingredients except the lemon peel and slice in an Old-Fashioned glass filled with ice. Twist the lemon peel over the glass, spraying oils over the surface, with about 11 to 15 drops of juice going into the glass. Stir in the glass until chilled. Garnish with the lemon slice.

Division Bell

PHIL WARD , 2009, Mayahuel, New York

A mezcal-fueled twist on the Last Word.

1 ounce Del Maguey Vida

ounce Aperol

ounce maraschino liqueur

ounce fresh lime juice

Grapefruit peel, for garnish

Combine all the ingredients except the grapefruit peel in a cocktail shaker three-quarters filled with ice. Shake until chilled. Strain into a coupe glass. Twist the grapefruit peel over the glass, rub along the rim of glass, and discard.

PEOPLE AND DATES

In chronological order.

Dale DeGroff (1/21/14, Tazza, Brooklyn)

Julie Reiner (1/22/14, Clover Club, Brooklyn; 4/7/14, Clover Club)

Jonathan Downey (1/24/14, Char No. 4, Brooklyn; 4/17/15, Lukes, London)

Jeff Berry (1/26/14, Katzs Deli, NYC)

Audrey Saunders (1/27/14, Pegu Club, NYC; 9/15/14, Pegu Club, NYC)

Eben Freeman (1/29/14, Lupes, NYC; 2/27/14, The Butterfly, NYC)

Sasha Petraske (1/29/14, Milk & Honey, NYC; 6/25/14, Milk & Honey, NYC)

Del Pedro (1/31/14, Tooker Alley, Brooklyn; 2/20/14, Tooker Alley)

Martin Doudoroff (1/31/14, Tooker Alley, Brooklyn; 2/20/14, Tooker Alley)

Eben Klemm (2/4/14, Bien Cuit, Brooklyn)

William Grimes (2/5/14, New York Times building, NYC)

Gerry Holland (2/11/14, Mikes Diner, Astoria, Queens)

Toby Maloney (2/11/14, Mothers Ruin, NYC)

Gary Regan (2/12/14, Fraunces Tavern, NYC)

Jim Meehan (2/18/14, McSorleys Old Ale House, NYC)

Vincenzo Errico (2/20/14, email interview)

Albert Trummer (2/25/14, Soho Grand Hotel, NYC)

Ben Pundole (2/25/14, offices of Morgans Hotel Group, NYC)

T. J. Siegal (2/26/14, Professor Thoms, NYC)

Jerri Banks (2/28/14, McSorleys Old Ale House, NYC)

Ravi DeRossi (3/4/14, Maybelles Cafe, Brooklyn)

Greg Boehm (3/6/14, Cocktail Kingdom, NYC)

Don Lee (3/6/14, Cocktail Kingdom, NYC)

David Kaplan (3/6/14, Schillers Liquor Bar, NYC)

Cory Hill (3/10/14, Fifth Avenue Diner, Brooklyn)

Chad Solomon (3/10/14, Pegu Club, NYC)

Jay Savulich (3/11/14, Joe, Greenwich Village, NYC)

Robert Haynes (3/13/14, Analogue, Chicago)

Charles Joly (3/13/14, Longman & Eagle, Chicago)

Paul McGee (3/14/14, Three Dots & A Dash, Chicago)

Bridget Albert (3/14/14, Berghoff Cafe, Chicago)

Mike Ryan (3/15/14, Joes Seafood, Chicago)

Lynnette Marrero (3/17/14, NoMad Library Bar, NYC)

Jim Kearns (3/18/14, NoMad Library Bar, NYC)

Lynn House (3/20/14, NoMad Restaurant, NYC)

Francis Schott (3/22/14, Stage Left, New Brunswick, NJ)

Phil Ward (3/26/14, Long Island Bar, Brooklyn)

Toby Cecchini (3/28/14, Long Island Bar, Brooklyn)

Colin Appiah (3/31/14, Soho House, NYC)

Gillian Duffy (4/1/14, Cafe Duke, NYC)

Wylie Dufresne (4/1/14, WD-50, NYC)

Brian Miller (4/7/14, Bien Cuit, Brooklyn)

Martin Cate (4/10/14, Original Joes, San Francisco)

Scott Beattie (4/10/14, Comstock Saloon, San Francisco)

Brian Sheehy (4/10/14, Bourbon & Branch, San Francisco)