Engst Thea - Drink Like a Bartender

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Copyright 2017 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.

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First Adams Media hardcover edition AUGUST 2017

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Interior design by Sylvia McArdle

Interior images Kosta Gregory

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Engst, Thea, author. | Vigdor, Lauren, author.

Drink like a bartender / Thea Engst and Lauren Vigdor.

Avon, Massachusetts: Adams Media, 2017.

LCCN 2017015063 | ISBN 9781507204115 (hc) | ISBN 9781507204122 (ebook)

LCSH: Cocktails. | LCGFT: Cookbooks.

LCC TX951 .E58 2017 | DDC 641.87/4--dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017015063

ISBN 978-1-5072-0411-5

ISBN 978-1-5072-0412-2 (ebook)

Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book and Simon & Schuster, Inc., was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed with initial capital letters.

These recipes were created for adults aged twenty-one and older, and are not intended to promote the excessive consumption of alcohol. Alcohol, when consumed to excess, can directly or indirectly result in permanent injury or death. The authors, Adams Media, and Simon & Schuster, Inc., do not accept liability for any injury, loss, legal consequence, or incidental or consequential damage incurred by reliance on the information provided in this book.

To our families, whether by blood or whiskey: we love you.

Bars are the center of the universe. Okay, theyre not, but sometimes they feel like theyre the center of our universe. A lot of life happens in bars. People celebrate their victories and mourn their losses. They meet their significant others. They argue over politics or plan revolutions. Bars are where people hide with their best friends and wait out the zombie apocalypse, or hitch a ride to Alderaan on the ship that made the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs.

Bars are our homes away from home. A bar is our living room and we want you to be comfortable and enjoy yourself while youre here. Sit back, kick your shoes off (please dont actually take your shoes offthats a health code violation), and have a good time. But in order to relax and really enjoy yourself, youre going to want to be able to order a drink without fear of judgment (or fear of accidentally ordering something undrinkable). Thats where this book comes into play. Were here to hold your hand and make the ordering and drinking part as easy as possible, because we all know the drinking part isnt really why youre at the bar. Youre there because the zombies attacked and you really just didnt have any other ideas.

Before we get started weve got to get something out of the way. There exists a common misconception that bartenders and servers are all lazy young people who cant find a real job. Please dont be fooled. Dont be that guy. In reality, many of us in the bar industry have one or more advanced degrees or have previously worked in a variety of careers. For the most part, we choose to do what we do for a living out of love, not necessity.

Bartending is an art, and like any other skill, it takes practice, passion, and patience. If you think bartending is as simple as just walking behind the bar and shaking some ingredients together, then we dare you to try it and see for yourself. (On second thought, wed just have to clean up after youhow about you take our word for it instead?)

Bartending is an exciting and social job, and take it from us, when your bar is busy and your service is on point, its a high akin to winning a sporting event (we dont get out in the daylight much, so were just assuming here). Theres something innately satisfying about having a physical, tangible product that shows your hard work. Combining raw ingredients into something new and exciting and then sharing that finished product with the world (or lucky patron) is incredibly gratifying. Its old-school alchemy and its a huge reason why we do what we do.

In the following pages well share some of our favorite tips, tricks, and techniques that weve learned in our years behind the bar. Theres so much evolution in the bar industry that theres always something new to share. Heres our number-one secret: Want to know how to get on your bartenders good side (beyond a well-deserved tip)? Treat your bartender with respect and theyll treat you with respect right back, and give you great service. Its really just that simple.

Before we tell you how to create your bar at home, well start with telling you how we create ours at our establishments. Our guiding principles for setting up a bar are very basic: speed and efficiency. Because, lets be honest, even though you know were crafting a drink for you with love and quality ingredients, you (and everyone else) still want that product to be made and served in a timely manner. Although every bar is different, there are a lot of elements that are pretty standard throughout the industry. And like the guys in A Clockwork Orange , we even have our own language that we use when were together.

Lets just get this right out in the open: we love booze. We love creating new drinks and trying new flavors. Mixing a cocktail is an art form these days, so much so that its hard to imagine that cocktails were first invented as a way to mask the taste of low-quality liquor. Today we have the luxury of mixing bitters, fresh juices, and well-crafted liqueurs and spirits to make balanced beauties we can be proud of. Weve come a long way from shutting our eyes and chugging moonshine for a buzzour forefathers would be proud.