285 Tips, Tricks & Recipes
LOU BUSTAMANTE
CONTENTS
BASICS & SETUP
001 Choose Your Drink
002 Shake It Till You Make It
003 Practice, Practice, Practice
004 Speak in Tongues
005 Build Your Tool Kit
006 Distill Your Beer, Wine, or Smoothie
007 Run Your Still Waters Deep (and Tall)
008 Sip the Basics of Barrel Aging
009 Get Over the Barrel
010 Keep It Under Cover
011 Buy Size Smart
012 Clean Your Bar
013 Build Your Backbar
014 Assemble Versatile Bottles
015 Sherry Up, Get the Vermouth Out
016 Stock Your Cellar
017 Imbibe Sweet Liquor
018 Watch Your Sugar Content
019 Find Your Sweet Spot
020 Boast Better Bitters
021 Get Into Mixers
022 Get Hooked on Tonics
023 Produce the Juice
024 Know Your Glasses Specs
025 Ramp It Up
SPIRIT PROFILE: WHISK(E)Y
026 Sip a Taste of Whisk(e)y
027 Say “Oak No He Didn’t”
028 Decipher the Label
029 Cook Up a Whisk(e)y
030 Get Fresh
031 Make Things Juicy
032 Juice Up Your Drinks
033 Customize Your Drinks
034 Infuse It or Lose It
035 Flavor with Tinctures
036 Shrub it the Right Way
037 Put Your Drink On Ice
038 Keep It Clear
039 Break the Ice
040 Commission an Artist to Sculpt Perfect Ice
041 Don’t Break the Mold
042 Get Jigger Happy
043 Measure Twice, Mix Once
044 Accessorize Your Bar
045 Cover Your Assets with Coasters
046 Choose Your Family
047 Keep It Simple
048 Choose Your Sweetener
049 Refine Your Sugar Syrups
SPIRIT PROFILE: AGAVE
050 Get the History
051 Meet Agave’s Relative
052 Learn the Process
053 Typecast Your Tequila
RECIPES & TECHNIQUES
054 Choose Your Light & Sparkling Drink
055 Appreciate Aperitivos
056 The Americano
057 Classic Negroni
058 Serve It Up
059 Make It Wrong
060 Make It Really Wrong
061 Embrace an Old Pal
062 Vary Your Vermouth
063 The Boulevardier
064 The Bellini
065 Crack Some Bubbly
066 Kir Royale
067 The Mighty Mimosa
068 Go On the Spritz
069 Bayside Fog
070 The Hummingbird
071 A Meadow for Eeyore
072 Anaranjadito
073 French 75
074 Sunshine Superman
075 Clermont
076 Choose Your Spirit Forward Drink
077 Get a Kick in the Glass
078 Be the Big Spoon
079 Don’t Stir Up Trouble
080 Crack Up Your Cocktail
SPIRIT PROFILE: GIN
081 Learn the History
082 Pluck a Berry
083 Take a Tonic
084 Know Your Gins
085 Mix It Old School
086 The Muddled Old Fashioned
087 The Kentucky Connection
088 The Wisconsin Old Fashioned
089 Manhattan
090 Make It Perfect
091 The Boothby
092 Work Your Canadian Whisky
093 Make It a Snow Day
094 Rob Roy
095 Make It Burns
096 Study Your Scotch Whisky
097 Get Jazzy with Sazeracs
098 Classic Sazerac
099 Pomme d’Amour
100 Taste the Martini’s Timeline
101 J.P.A. Martini
102 Julia Child (aka Inverted Martini)
103 Martinez
104 Vesper
105 Dirty Martini
106 Fifty-Fifty Split
107 Make Your Own Vermouth Base
108 Song About an Ex
109 Bone Machine
110 Bending Blades
111 Broken Compass
SPIRIT PROFILE: RUM
112 Learn the History
113 Drink in Tongues
114 Know the Process
115 Tick Off the Types
116 Get to Know the Movers and Shakers
117 Open the Floodgates
118 Don’t Strain Yourself
119 Understand the Shake
120 Shake Your Cocktail Maker
121 Choose Your Tart & Tangy Drink
122 Get the Basic Daiquiri
123 Compose a Hemingway Daiquiri
124 Make It Frozen
125 Recruit Some Fruit
126 Know Your American Whiskey
127 Classic Whiskey Sour
128 Gum Things Up
129 Get in the Limelight
130 The Classic Aviation
131 Keep It Cordial
132 Make It Blue
133 Gimlet
134 Cosmopolitan
135 Swap the Cranberry
136 Vary the Vodka
137 Lemon Drop
138 Extract Flavor from a Pro
139 Control the Spice, Control the Cocktail
140 The Spice Invader
141 Orange You Glad You Made a Tincture?
142 The Final Four
143 Willa Brown
144 The Baudin
145 Rind Your Own Business
146 Shark God of Molokai
147 Quarantine Order
148 Go Tiki
149 Mai Tai
150 Mai Tai Float
151 Jamaican Scorpion Bowl
152 Tommy’s Margarita
153 Know Your Highlands and Lowlands
154 Use a Blender Jar
155 Pisco Sour
156 Maracuyá Pisco Sour
157 Shake It High and Dry
158 Blend Your Pisco
SPIRIT PROFILE: BITTER LIQUEURS
159 Drink Your Medicine
160 Don’t Fernet the Past
161 Get to Know the Creators
162 Formulate Your Remedy
163 Drink to the Bitter End
164 Choose Your Patio & Poolside Drink
165 Mojito
166 Get Muddle-Headed
167 Carry a Big Stick
168 Buck Like a Mule
169 The Moscow Mule (or Vodka Buck)
170 Cure What Ales You
171 Mix Up the Formula
172 Be the Yoda of Soda
173 Cherry Blossom
174 Parker House Cocktail
175 Black Friar Tea
176 Mint Julep
177 Single-Serving Sangria
178 Whip Up a White Sangria
179 Lonely Island
180 DST
181 Brandy Lift
182 Michelada
183 Bloody Mary
184 Long Island Iced Tea
185 Endlessly Vary the Formula
186 Have Sex on the Beach
187 Know Your Fetishes
188 Choose Your Hot & Sweet Drink
189 Pull Shots Like a Barista
190 Shakerato
191 Rockaway Beach
192 The Burnside
193 Understand Irish Whiskey
194 Irish Coffee
196 Lake Effect
197 You Had Me at Hot Toddy
SPIRIT PROFILE: BRANDY
198 Know the History
199 Know Your French Fried Vines
200 Learn the Process
201 Identify the Types
202 Pink Sands
203 Bittersweet Symphony
204 Coco-Alexander
205 The Golden Fleece
206 The Great Compromise
207 Devil’s Backbone
208 Fernet About Dre
209 Stage Dives & Fist Fights
210 Sacra Monti
ENTERTAINING & HOSPITALITY
211 Be the Host with the Most
212 Deal with Drunken Guests
213 Get Ready To Party
214 Plan Your Glassware and Booze
215 Build a Pro Cocktail Menu
216 Cook Up a Home Bar
217 Design a Pop-Up Bar
218 Set Up Your Bar Like a Pro
219 Go with the Flow
220 Make Eye Contact
221 Set the Mood
222 Don’t Do the Dishes
223 Batch a Plan
224 Scale Your Recipe by Ratios
225 Mix the Bucket
226 Pre-Batch Your Drinks
227 Give a Warm Welcome and a Cold Drink
228 Have Fun with Ice Molds
229 Slice and Dice Your Ice
230 Don’t Get Stuck
231 Salute Those About to Mock(tail)
232 Craft Deliciously Potable Water
233 Keep Your Drinks and Friends Dry
234 Mock Their Socks Off
235 Saint Tiki
236 Faux-loma
237 Honeybee Fizz
238 Wild Mule
239 Watermelon-Ginger Gelatin Shots
240 Have No Bones About It
241 Fear the Edible Shot
242 Grow Some Bourbon Balls
243 Play Matchmaker with Drinks and Dinner
244 Avoid Making a Meal Out of Cocktails
245 Prepare to Layer
246 Make Your Drinks as Cold as a Polar Bear’s Glass
247 Layer Your Drink with Arsenic and Lace
248 Drink Around the World
249 Party with Punch
250 Fish House Punch
251 Make Oleo Saccharum
252 Brew Some Tea Syrup
253 Festoon Your Drinks
254 Garnish Like a Pro
255 Get a Rosy Outlook
256 Do the Twist
257 Take Wing
SPIRIT PROFILE: VODKA
258 Get the History
259 Rediscover Vodka’s Uses
260 Learn the Process
261 Define Vodka
262 Set Your Drink Aflame
263 Float a Tiki Torch Garnish
264 Flame an Orange Peel
265 Use a Red-Hot Poker
266 Add Some Flair, Bartender
267 Learn the Bottle Stall
268 Pour Behind the Head
269 Pour Behind the Back
270 Say Cheers … or Sláinte! Salud! Prost!
271 Become a Neat Freak
272 Throw No Stones
273 Taste Like a Pro
274 Give a Goody Bag
275 Get Invited Back
276 Tackle the Cleanup
277 Get Out of a Sticky Situation
278 Save the Furniture
279 Get Salty
280 Finesse Your Flask
281 Devise a Cure
282 Get a Cola Clear-Out
283 Go Pro
284 Bite the Dog Back
285 Eat and Energize
Closing Statement
Index
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Credits
ABOUT THE USBG
The United States Bartenders’ Guild (USBG) is a trade organization dedicated to supporting and strengthening the professional development of bartenders throughout the country. With chapters in over 70 cities and more than 6,000 members, the USBG develops innovative opportunities for bartenders to accelerate their professional pursuits.
With the increased interest in both the craft and profession, the USBG fills a vital role in helping shape the future of the beverage and hospitality industries through collaboration with an interactive network of professional bartenders, educational events, and community service projects. In other words, they help make your drinks and experience better when you go to a bar.
The USBG is the only domestic organization represented in the International Bartenders Association (IBA). With this global partnership, the USBG connects American beverage professionals with peers around the world. Members can develop key industry contacts—from international camaraderie to local chapter connections.
The organization allows less experienced members to grow, and more experienced members to mentor—and together elevate not only the quality of the cocktail, but also the profession as a whole. It is this insight and passion that we hope will make you a better bartender at home.
THE COCKTAIL HAS CHANGED
In the last decade or two, the bar world has seen an evolution—there is now more interest in the craft of mixing drinks as well as increased scrutiny of the ingredients that go into them. Local, artisanal, and unique: it isn’t just for food anymore.
Just as chefs are concerned about the ingredients they cook with, bartenders are increasingly examining the brands of spirits they stock and mix with. Marketing-driven brand preference by customers has long dominated, but destination bars are starting to do away with poorly made, mass-market liquors, favoring instead those spirits that are made skillfully and responsibly.
This doesn’t mean that all large brands are poor in quality, nor that all small ones are good. Many of the best liquors to mix with come from big companies, but stocking interesting spirits and introducing customers to unique brands can define a bar’s personality and add value to the experience.
There is also a movement to simplify. The best bartenders are not over-innovating, instead using off-the-shelf ingredients combined with select homemade items to customize their drinks.
But what’s most remarkable about the recent cocktail revolution is that it is merely one aspect of the overall bar experience. The atmosphere of today’s bars—lighting, furniture, and layout—is important, but service is paramount. Having a great drink is crucial, but having a wonderful time even more so.
The preciousness and conceit that plagued the arm-garter years has been replaced with a desire to get you what you want and get it to you quickly, in a comfortable and enjoyable way. The art of hospitality is back.
To help guide you through the modern era of bartending, and welcome you to the modern art of mixing and serving cocktails is the collective wisdom of the United States Bartenders’ Guild (USBG), a trade organization of over 70 chapters across the United States and a part of the International Bartenders Association (IBA).
From setting up your bar, building a menu, and hosting the year’s best cocktail party, this book has you covered.
Cheers,
Lou Bustamante
San Francisco Chapter
Basics & Setup
We get it, you’re thirsty. You probably want to skip ahead to the second chapter so you can start mixing drinks instead of reading about supplies and equipment, the processes by which liquor is made, and all the other things you need to know to properly set up your home bar. Well, if that’s what you want to do, go for it. We’ll be here waiting when you can’t figure out how to store your growing collection of bottles, how long all that stuff keeps, and which supplies you really need to spend your money on.
Oh, back already? Good, because there’s a lot to learn—but don’t worry, nothing about the art of barkeeping is boring. So, cozy up to your local bar with an old favorite (or grab that drink you learned to make in chapter two if you decided to read ahead) and let’s teach you some basics.
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Sure, fundamentals might not be as sexy as a perfectly made Manhattan—but they will help you make sure that it is perfect, every time.
001 CHOOSE YOUR DRINK
Don’t know what to mix first? Choose your own adventure and a cocktail to go with it!
SHAKING & POURING
002 SHAKE IT TILL YOU MAKE IT
Learning to make cocktails at home is a lot less challenging than it may seem. Invest in a few key pieces of equipment and supplies, and the rewards will be well worth the effort. After a long day or a sudden warm spell of weather, a cocktail at home is incredibly satisfying. Here’s where to get started.
LEARN AT YOUR LOCAL BAR If you have no idea what kinds of drinks you like, start your education by visiting your favorite local bar on a quiet day and consulting with your bartender. Talk about the flavors you enjoy and let him or her guide you to new drinks. You can also consult our drink flowchart (see item 001) and give it a whirl to find a match.
ACCEPT ACQUIRED TASTES We all have different preferences for levels of sweet, tart, bitter, and potency. Feel free to adjust as needed to suit your tastes, but don’t be afraid to try new things, either—you might be surprised at how your palate can evolve.
003 PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE
Like any skill, learning the art of making cocktails and mixing a proper drink takes work—and lots of practice. Here are a few things to keep in mind as you shake and stir your way through this book.
FIND A PRACTICE SPACE Before you invest in a bar or cart (and any expensive bottles), carve out a little space on a countertop where you can mix and experiment. You can also store your equipment and bottles here for easy access. Make sure the countertop is at a comfortable height for standing.
START OVER Sometimes a drink just doesn’t work out. Sometimes you might accidentally pour too much of something, or you lose track of where you were and leave something out. Whatever the reason, don’t be afraid to dump it out and start all over. The extra effort will be worth it.
MAKE ADJUSTMENTS Even within the same category, spirits can vary in flavor—and it will sometimes impact the cocktail’s balance. Varying levels of sweetness in liqueurs, oak flavor in aged spirits, and the botanicals in gin can shift a drink off balance even with the simplest of recipes. Don’t be afraid to throw the drink back in the mixing glass or shaker and add more sweetness or acidity.
BEGIN WITH THE BASICS The easiest way to get creative with your drinks is to start with a recipe you already like and go from there, rather than wildly mixing random ingredients together. Learn how to make an old favorite, first, and then try swapping out an ingredient or two, or substituting a few different elements. You’ll be surprised how different the variations can taste.
The Complete Cocktail Manual Page 1