Last week I was invited to a cocktail session for beginners down in Woll in the Scottish Borders.  Mixxit were hosting it, and were presenting to a group of bartenders who had no experience whatsoever, who were in an area of the country so remote that they were given very little support by the trade.  Their biggest cocktail sold up until now was Sourz Apple and Irn Bru. (if of course we don’t count Gin and Tonic.)

What Patsy wanted to do was show them the very basics of getting behind a bar and keeping people coming back for quality drinks.  When I heard the word beginners, I was thinking basic shaken drinks (French Martini, Cosmopolitan and the like), what I was shown were the basics of a great highball.

This made me realise that the highball is the most popular category of cocktail in the world, yet most of us neglect how to make it properly.  I can’t remember the number of times I’ve been presented with a sorry looking G&T and have decided to spread Patsy’s wisdom and share the secret.

Here’s what I learnt:


1. Fill your glass all the way to the top with ice.  You can never have enough ice.  Fill your glass all the way to the top.  The more ice in there, the cooler the drink will stay for longer and the less it will dilute.  (Gotta love a bit of physics before a cocktail.)


2. Squeeze over the appropriate wedge of citrus. Cut your citrus into wedges that you can squeeze, YOU HAVE TO SQUEEZE IT!  6 or 8 per fruit.  If it doesn’t affect the flavour what’s the point.  Optional: rim the glass with the fruit for an added bite.


3. Add a measure of your spirit.


4. Top up with mixer.

5. Garnish with a straw, give a quick stir, serve and enjoy.


Here are a few of the more famous highballs:

Screwdriver: Vodka and Orange Juice with a squeeze of Orange
Cuba Libre: Cuban Rum and Coke with a squeeze of Lime
Cape Cod: Vodka and Cranberry Juice with a squeeze of Lime
Black and Black: Black Grouse and Coke with a squeeze of Orange
Ginger Grouse: The Famous Grouse and Ginger Beer with a squeeze of Lime

Let me know if I’ve missed out any of your favourites or if there are any concoctions you think I should try.

This weekend when you’re put and about, have a look and see which bars have this down.  I think the results might surprise you!

Cheers,
Craig

In my glass: The Botanist and Fever Tree tonic with a glassful of ice and a big wedge of lime. (squeezed)

In part two of my exclusive interview with Lark’s Chris Thomson (You can catch up with part 1 here.), I ask him more about his work and experiences.  The modern whisky maker needs to know every part of his process inside out and exactly how his work in one field will effect the process later on.  Chris is no different.  What makes his work unique, is the fact that every single spirit cut he takes is judged by aroma and flavour.  The hydrometers and thermometers are there mainly for show…


  
Cheers,
Craig


In my glass: Lark 100% Rye White Spirit.  Clean and peppery. 


Anyone looking for info on stockists in the UK, or looking to stock Lark themselves can contact Doug Clement for more information.

As the winter sets in, and I lie here with Manflu, I have decided to share my favourite recipe to help get over the cold, or at least make you forget you have one.  (I occasionally use it as a preventative.

The Toddy I have used for the past few years was learned from a very good friend of mine, Laura Hay.  Here is Laura’s recipe passed down through generations.

Ingredients:

50ml The Naked Grouse Scotch Whisky
1 Lemon Wedge
1 tbs of Honey
4 Cloves
1 Cinnamon Stick (my own optional extra)
Hot Water

Method:

1. Rinse a mug with boiling water
2. Squeeze the lemon wedge into a mug
3. Drizzle in the honey
4. Add the Whisky
5. Stud the lemon wedge with the cloves and drop into the Whisky
6. Top up with boiling water
7. Stir it all together with the Cinnamon stick

Enjoy.  You’ll feel better in no time.

Cheers,
Craig

In my glass: Doesn’t matter, I can’t smell a thing with my blocked nose…

Starters:












With a bigger selection than both Edinburgh venues, and food from the famous Bleeding Heart tavern below, SMWS London is a hidden gem in the hustle and bustle that is the City.


I decided to have Mortlach from a first fill sherry butt. (Not available in either SMWS in Edinburgh, that’s the beauty of these places, every backbar has its own hidden gems surrounded by the latest list of beauties)


This was a perfect rich and spicy dram to ensure lunch had settled. So good it was that I bought two bottles to use at the St Andrews Quaich Society tasting on Thursday.


After a dram, I bumped into Jonathon who had suitably recovered from our adventure the day before. He had heard of a new bar up the road, and wanted to check it out.

Behold The Craft Beer Company…


With countless beers and bottles on tap, this new kid on the block delivered up a feast for the eyes as well as a palate straining selection of craft beers from all over the world.

We sampled the following…







I ended the night with a Scandinavian Daiquiri to toast a Norwegian friend’s birthday and also exploit the fact that this must be the only bar in the UK with Aquavite in the speed rail. My mission complete I exited ECC and made my way happily back to the hotel.



A short walk from Goodge St is a place called the Riding House Cafe. Words can’t do it justice.
Find it, Go there, Eat.

Cheers,
Craig

In my glass: Water

Hi all,

It’s Monday October 17th and I find myself in London.

I LOVE London.  A city that boasts Victorian superiority, built on an Empire surviving on cosmopolitan values and an extremely fast pace of life.  It also has some of the best bars in the world and a cocktail culture that is years ahead of everyone else.

So come with me on a Whisky Adventure in real-time as I hopefully remember to update this post!

Yesterday evening was so much fun.  I came to realise that real time updates were not possible due to my iPhone’s terrible battery life, so I’ve decided to recall everything the morning after.  Anything I’ve forgotten probably needed forgotten, and definitely didn’t need published…

I was whisked from my hotel just across from St. Pancras at around 6pm by a couple of fellow Adventurers as we made plans to see the sights.



Patsy Christie is one of Mixxit UK’s mixologists, travelling up and down the country teaching people how to make brilliant libations (The Laphroaig Sour recipe was from Patsy’s masterful mixing mind.)  John Clay is the brand ambassador for Bols, covering their entire liqueur range as well as Bols Genever.  There was no chance of this evening being boring!

Their initial thoughts were to hit all of the upscale world class cocktail establishments, however, without any prior warning of this, coupled with the strict dress code these places enforce, there was no chance I was getting in dressed LIKE THAT! (Was how Patsy put it…)



Therefore we headed for the tube as our Adventure became more and more sporadic.  Just the way I like it!


Hopping off at Leicester Square we took a quick walk past Trafalgar Square and Nelson’s Column, (turns out Nelson Mandela was in the navy, who would have thunk it?) and down towards Embankment where I fell in love…


…with a bar.

Ever since posting my views on mixing cocktails, I have been inundated with requests for the perfect Laphroaig Sour. A recent Twitter recommendation to a friend about the cocktail brought a few single malt traditionalists out of the woodwork, shouting about the sacrilege of my suggestion (they had clearly never had a Laphroaig Sour before), but more importantly it highlighted the fact that many bartenders found the idea of adding Laphroaig to a classic recipe too crazy to comprehend, leading to some disastrous looking, and probably less than palatable libations.

Therefore I have decided to grab some ingredients and prove to you that this is a cocktail that can be shaken up at home with delicious results by an amateur bartender at best.

I should point out at this point that I was not the first person to ever try a Laphroaig Sour, but it was the first single malt cocktail that really encouraged me to trust bartenders with the spirits that have inspired me and kept me employed for the last 8 years.

I tried it for the very first time in Blue Water Cafe when I lived in Vancouver. The bartender there, the incredible Ron Oliver, had been playing about with smoky whiskies and invited me to try his latest creation. It was a twist on the Laphroaig Sour, adding two drops of Pernod to the finished cocktail. This led to a wonderful marriage of smoke and anise, both of which fought for my attention until my next sip. Since that day I have never looked back, discovering such delights as a Macallan Fine Oak Old Fashioned, a morning after pill in the wonderful Ardbeg New-Make Bloody Mary and the fresh and summery Ardmore Cooler. (These might pop up in future cocktail corners, depending on the furore this post creates, I hope it’s gigantic.)

Drinks like this take all that is best about your favourite single malt whiskies, and they throw them on stage for all to see, just with a different back drop. A friend described it as sounding delicious and blasphemous all at once. Well I for one love to explore a bit of blasphemy, so come with me as I try to mix up a storm.

So here’s how to make a Laphroaig Sour:

You will need the following for each drink:


Ingredients:

Sugar syrup = 2 parts sugar 1 part cold water

2 parts Laphroaig
1 part sugar syrup
3/4 part fresh lemon juice
Half an egg white (optional but gives the lovely froth on top)
3 dashes bitters
3 drops of absinthe
Lemon zest to garnish







Method: (this is a method I received from Patsy Christie a friend and professional mixologist with Mixxit UK)


Chill your glass with ice

Shake without ice for 10 seconds

Add as much ice to the bowl as you can

Shake with ice for 10 seconds

Empty your glass and fill up with fresh ice

Strain cocktail over fresh ice

Add Absinthe using a bar spoon to stir

Squeeze the zest (skin down) over the drink to coat with oil

Twist and garnish

Enjoy


Patsy also suggested an alternative method where you use half Laphroaig, half Makers Mark. Definitely worth trying!

Anyway, after getting the method and ingredients down, I invited my Twitter followers to join me. The turnout was massive. 400% larger than expected.

The four judges were in unanimous agreement.

The first batch of 50ml Laphroaig was too watery on account of the ice melting and me shaking it too long.

The Makers and Laphroaig mix had It’s merits and was an improvement, but lacked the massive smoky surge at the end.

My final batch, all Laphroaig again was where the drink magically came together. The anise was present, the lemon juice sharp and the smoke only hit you 4 seconds after you had taken a sip. This was heaven.

The trick was to avoid too much dilution.

So there you have it, you can make a delicious Laphroaig sour at home, but beware, you WILL make a mess!

Cheers,
Craig

In my glass: A Laphroaig Sour

I want to share a story, an experience, and a test.  As a bartender I learned very quickly that telling a customer they were wrong was an extremely bad move for earning repeat business, a rubbish way for keeping a busy bar and an extremely detrimental tactic when it comes to earning tips.  So how come so many Whisky drinkers believe it is their God given right to criticise how someone enjoys our biggest leisure export?

That’s a £15,000 bottle of deliciousness being enhanced there! (Macallan Lalique II is worth every penny.)

Hope this helps, and allows you to get past the more obvious notes in a glass of whisky.

Let me know how you get on,

Cheers,

Craig