Ah how we love vintage cocktail guides, but this one in specific we love for two reasons: the art and typeface are awesome and it is has a super guide for how much booze to have on hand for a party of 4 to 20 and wow what a lot of booze it is (check out chart below). Download whole brochure by clicking on title here:  It’s Party Time: Cocktail Brochure from Old Forester 1960s (pdf). You can download the whole guide as a pdf “It’s Party Time: Cocktail Brochure from Old Forester 1960s” or go to  our flickr stream for individual pages http://tinyurl.com/yzoel4a . Happy Holiday Season!

Martinis are the chosen drink of spies for a good reason. Spy scientists, or Spyentists, have proven that incrementally increased consumption of martinis results in a proportionate enhancement in one’s spying-related faculties. Here’s how it plays out:

1.5 Martinis: Glances become 30% more suspicious.

3.2 Martinis: Proficiency with exploding dart pen becomes consistently accurate, callous.

4 Martinis: Wrinkles in tuxedo are smoothed out as body begins to secrete highly viscous liquid confidence.

4.9 Martinis: The phrase “No man could have survived that” is bandied about so frequently it loses all impact.

6 Martinis: Enemies 25% more easily seduced, 100% more easily betrayed.

From “Groupon Says … ” (Follow @Groupon_Says on Twitter.)

http://www.groupon.com/deals/the-martini-bar?utm_campaign=the-martini-bar&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter

Quand je vous parle de télésiège, vous pensez immédiatement à ceux que l’on trouve dans les stations de sport d’hiver, dans les Alpes ou encore les Pyrénées. Et puis il y a celui plus atypique situé à Paris afin d’éviter de monter les centaines de marches qui mènent vers la Basilique du Sacré Coeur.
Mais il en existe un encore plus improbable que le funiculaire de Montmatre, au coeur des Flandres, dans une zone où la distinction entre Belgique et France reste floue, j’ai nommé le Mont Noir.

Ok, tu me dis qu’il y a un télésiège, mais à quoi il sert ? Il n’y a pas de montagnes chez toi ?
Des montages non, des Monts oui. Et le téléphérique situé au Mont Noir n’est pas utilisé pour aller skier mais pour accéder à un autre Mont, là où les routes et les chemins de traverses ne peuvent emmener le visiteur.

Et le Mont Noir c’est quoi ?
Véritable repaire à touristes, il réunit chaque week-end des milliers de Français venus chercher des cigarettes moins chères qu’en France, des bouteilles d’alcool de 5 litres au prix d’1 litre (Martini, Suze, Johnny Waker, etc.), des bières belges et du cuir chez Edisac à prix discount (du moins c’est ce qu’il est affiché, mais en réalité les prix sont semblables à ceux de la France).

Il doit son nom aux bois sombres de châtaigniers qui le couvraient à l’époque. A son contre-bas se trouve la maison de famille de l’écrivaine Marguerie Yourcenar dont le terrain a été transformé en Parc Départemental et où il est agréable de se balader et d’admirer les superbes jacinthes vers le mois d’avril.

En été, il est impossible de circuler en voiture, il est impératif de se garer à plus de 2 kilomètres de cette longue rue noire de monde (le Mont Noir ah ah ah !). Durant l’automne et l’hiver, la rue est moins bondée, mais les irréductibles fumeurs viennent s’approvisionner et profiter de la vue exceptionnelle pour boire une petite chope.

Et on va où avec le télésiège ?
Déjà, il s’agit du seul et unique télésiège de la région, ça vous l’aurez bien compris. Il a été construit en 1958, année de l’exposition universelle de Bruxelles.
Il a été imaginé afin de relier le Mont Noir (131 mètres d’altitude) au Mont Rouge (143 mètres d’altitude), un autre Mont des Flandres encore plus haut en altitude.

En prenant ce super ascenseur vous pouvez admirer l’un des plus beaux point de vue de la région et vous aurez la sensation de voler vers l’infini que le ciel peut nous offrir.

Il est ouvert de 13 h 30 à 18 h 30 les samedi et dimanche entre juin et septembre et le dimanche toute l’année. En Juillet et août, c’est toutes les après-midi qu’il est possible de décoller. Le départ s’effectue côté belge au café Le Cordoba. Et ça coûte 4 euros.

Read how I created this series and a little background on the style I developed for it below the photos!

(This was the first sketch and the first Martini Art I painted.  It was also the one that defined the style of this series. )

THREE MARTINIS MAKE A PARTY – Original 8″x 10″ Acrylic on Watercolor Paper – $40

BUY NOW

(For some reason when I looked at this leaning martini glass I kept imagining an olive hanging off the rim instead of in the martini itself so I went with it and created this little cartoon illustration!)

QUIT SCREWING AROUND AND GET ON THE STICK! – Original 6″x12″ Acrylic on Watercolor Paper – $40

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(The color scheme of this painting uses the tension of opposites on the color wheel – a palette I enjoy using a lot.  In order to tie the red-violet martinis in with the yellow-green background, and also tie in the orange of the olives, I made the confetti dots these colors as well as darker olives and greens.)

OLIVE A MARTINI, PLEASE – Original 6″x 10″ Acrylic on Watercolor Paper – $40

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(The background here had a lot less of the confetti look so I went with bubbles and swirls here.  I love painting bubbles for some reason, lol. BTW, there really is such a thing as a Purple Nurple Martini at The Martini Diva!!)

PURPLE NURPLE MARTINI- Original 6″x 10″ Acrylic on Watercolor Paper – $40

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(I was going to paint the martini here with greens – the opposite colors palette – but with the little bits of blue in the background I decided to stay in the pinks and violets, using analogous (adjacent) color hues for a change.)

PRETTY IN PINK MARTINI – Original 6″x 12″ Acrylic on Watercolor Paper – $40

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CREATING THE MARTINI ART ORIGINALS:

I started this series just this last Sunday with a bit of a plan.  I wanted backgrounds done in abstract wet-in-wet watercolor style background to incorporate tonal qualities that would create a depth of field from slightly different hues from the same area of the color wheel.  Different tone and saturation of the colors would create a visual effect of close-up/far away visually.  I am very fond of complementary and split-complementary color palettes, I find them more dramatic and interesting than analogous colors, as well as more complex visually.  I’ll even get into Triadic andtetradic color schemes though they can be very tricky.  ( Here’s a great tutorial on Color Schemes you might enjoy.)

This type of background is messy work – you wet down the whole sheet and start throwing color on, adding spatters and dropping in some salt for little spots of texture.  These also added a confetti look and that is what took me to the style I ended up with.

Originally my plan was to give the glass area a transparent wash of white and then outline the glasses in white – but the white didn’t show up strongly enough against the light to mid-tone backgrounds.  At this point it was close to the end of the day and I had to stop painting – it made it a very disappointing day for me.  BUT I have learned over the years that a fresh day and a fresh look often solves painting problems and, sure enough, Monday morning I looked at the painting below and realized that I could paint a border around the glasses using the background tones only darker.  This would pop them out from the background and be a dark enough contrast to the white glass and outline.

From there the confetti look of the spatters took me to enhancing the “confetti” feel and then adding the fun swirls coming out of the martinis for movement and a whimsical touch.  I then added a few more little dabs and dots around the swirls for “effervescence” and to bring in the colors used in the cherries and olives.

Technorati Claim: GC3N9WBMYX2J

My darling best friend Emma payed our fair city of Portland Maine a visit last week and boy did we have a blast! After examining my photos I realized we had way too much fun for just one post. So this is going to be the first of probably three.

Like any seasoned twenty something year olds we decided to start early on our Thursday afternoon with Happy Hour at Brian Boru and yes I thought drinking out of the bottle was appropriate for the occasion!

Emma had a veggie burger with goat cheese and rosted peppers, we both splurged on some french fries which were rather delicious. I had a duck blt, speaking of duck I shall be making a roasting one Wednesday for our Thanksgiving rather than turkey.

Once we had finished our happy, happy hour we ventured to Shay’s on Monument Square for some ’Hot n Dirty’  martinis. Not bad, pepperchinis and stuffed olives.

Michael and Eric joined us at Shay’s for another round before we decided to move along. Emma thought it would be a brilliant idea to take shots at the house. There we decided to rouse our neighbor Patrick to come along too.

Emma is shown below…she is thinking how pleased she is with her powers of persuasion!

Blue does not always mean one is blue. I believe it is a rather happy color.

It wouldn’t be a proper first Portland Thursday night visit without taking her to the Oasis for .50 cent PBR, checkers, and jenga.

Silly Rabbits

Eric. Yay I have another love in my life to add some spice.

Michael is cute

Jenga!

Michael and Patrick

Emma knocked it down. Boooo!!!

Here’s Looking at You Kid!

To all the happy Thursdays that feel better than a Friday!

This past weekend, I had a fabulous Girls Night Out with some of my BFFs as I got an early start in celebrating one of those milestone birthdays (actual birthday is 12/20. Mark it). I will not discuss which one it is just in case you err in my favor with your kind estimation. Whatever you guess, subtract a decade because as we all know — [fill in the blank] is the new [fill in the blank]. It’s almost cliché at this point. OK-not almost. Let’s just say I am old enough to feel as if time is moving faster than a [fill in the blank again]. See it’s moving so fast, I don’t have time to come up with the perfect analogy. At any rate, at this point in my life, I am most interested in that gem called “experience”. And by experience, I mean the philosophical definition – “the totality of the cognitions given by perception; all that is perceived, understood, and remembered.”

I have made a conscious decision to take a more active role in orchestrating memorable experiences. Sometimes great moments just show up and catch you totally off guard but sometimes you just got to make them happen. The surefire way to create such moments is to take your deepest passions and make it a total sensory experience. In other words, make sure that every single one of your senses is involved and enlivened. That way, when your memory begins to fade and someone asks you if you remember that time so long ago, perhaps a flash of something will come to you which might then open the floodgates to all of your wonderful memories.  Only time will tell what part of the memory remains but why not help memories along by building them. You can do this by being more in tune with how you experience life and more importantly how you experience your passions in their totality.

And this brings me back to my milestone celebration. So many elements came together to make it such a memorable experience. The soiree was held at Eatonville restaurant in the U Street corridor in Washington, D.C. which is my favorite part of town. The restaurant pays tribute to Zora Neale Hurston, my favorite author who wrote my favorite book “Their Eyes Were Watching God”, which is written in my favorite down south vernacular of African-Americans in lyrical prose and during my favorite period of history-the Harlem Renaissance. So quite naturally, with all that favorite-ness going on, it made perfect sense to have my party there with some of my favorite girlfriends. In the invite, I requested that the ladies dress up in the style of the Harlem Renaissance/Roaring Twenties. I was so ecstatic that they all obliged. These frail eels, (that’s 20s Harlem slang talk meaning pretty girls), made my night one I will never forget.

If I am blessed with the length of  many years, maybe one of the flappers from the party will come visit me on my 80^th birthday and we will sit on the porch and have some iced tea. Well maybe not. My birthday is in December. Scratch that. Perhaps over eggnog, we will sit by the Christmas tree and reminisce about all the fun we had and maybe one of us will bring up this night and we will argue about whether or not we dressed up in the 20s era or the 60s era and I will insist it was the 20s era because I should know- it was  my idea and party and she will say oh yeah that’s it and I will say, don’t you remember how we were draped down and looking fabulous— feathers in our hair,  long strings of pearls, long cigarette holders, fringe dresses, gloves, and fur and how every cat in the spot wished they had put on their finest zoot suit and had a fedora to tip as we swayed our hips on by and she will laugh and get up to try and demonstrate the flapper strut, then grab her back before sitting right back down and then she will say- wasn’t the party in Eatonville, Florida and I will say nah girl it was at a restaurant called Eatonville-don’t you remember my Zora, Zora, everywhere in those huge colorful murals, laughing in some and looking mean and impressive in others and she will say no I don’t remember that but I do remember those beautiful, glamorous chandeliers on the really high ceiling because I noticed them when I reached the top of the staircase and just stood there for awhile mesmerized by their sparkle and taking in all the beautiful, happy people below enjoying a spectacular night out and I will say-no chile, I don’t remember that but Oh how I remember that delicious southern cuisine-fried green tomatoes and catfish and jalapeno cheese grits and collard greens and corn bread and oatmeal pecan pie and she will say damn–you got a good memory because I don’t remember none of that but I do remember drinking a few Tracy-tinis and I will laugh and say you mean martinis, fool and she will say oh yes—Ha! Freudian slip! and then she will say how the live jazz added to the ambience as we told stories and joked and laughed and then I will remember something and tell her that I will be right back and I will slowly climb the stairs holding tight to the rail and minutes later I will return with the black feather boa I wore that night draped around my shoulders and I will do a little dance and she will laugh out loud and say girl, I can’t believe you still have that ratted old thing and I will run my fingers through the feathers and say I remember how soft these feathers felt on my neck all night long and I will tell her how when I was getting dressed, at the last minute,  I sprayed my favorite cologne on the boa and she will say I remember asking you what perfume you were wearing that night and I will ask her if she remembers what I told her and she will say you told me that a lady never reveals her fragrance, it’s the fragrance that reveals the lady and I will say that is absolutely right and that my mama always told me that and we will both smile at our collective memory, get tipsy off the eggnog, and start making  things up (like Michelle Obama was at the party) as two generations below beg us to tell them more stories about the good old days.

Build your memories with your senses and neither your memories nor your senses will fail you later.

Thanks to Bola, Connie, Courtney, Cree, Jane, Lisa, Michelle, Samantha, Sasha, and Wanda for making my ?th birthday celebration  a night to remember!

www.eatonvillerestaurant.com

And that’s a wrap!

The highest ranking search term for this blog is apple martini, based on an earlier post. Not wishing to disappoint you, dear readers, here’s a deliciously refreshing Apple Martini recipe!

Apple Martini

• A teaspoon of lime juice
• A splash of Cointreau
• A splash of Midori
• Vodka
• Sour Apple Schnapps

Shake it all up. Drink and enjoy. If motivated, garnish with a thin slice of apple.

It is designed by Adam Turecek / Aaad Academy Of Art Architecture And Design Prague. This project was from Prague. I am interested in industrial design but not much. I really found itself creative and elegant. Also, the splash have a different tune in a good way.

It’s Thanksgiving week and everyone (and by everyone, I mean retailers) is rolling out the Christmas decorations. There are certain movies that are considered Christmas classics – Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (with Hermey the elf and the scary abominable snow man!), A Christmas Story (You’ll shoot your eye out!), It’s A Wonderful Life (I’ll give you the moon, Mary.), and White Christmas (Snow, snow, snow, snow, SNOOOOWWWW). However, the classics play over and over and sometimes it’s good to throw some others into the mix. Many of my favorite movies that remind me of Christmas don’t have Christmas-centric plots, and a few have absolutely nothing to do with Christmas but still put me in a Christmas mood.

The Thin Man

I’ve already mentioned my love of The Thin Man. Loy and Powell’s banter is spot on (and enviable, doesn’t it look like they’re having fun?). It’s about a reluctant retired detective and his eager wife trying to find the missing “Thin Man,” but it contains my favorite Christmas scene ever. There’s also a pretty rocking Christmas party. Plus, the only person who gets the “round up all the suspects in one room to reveal the murderer” scene better is Agatha Christie. Watch it in your fur coat with a pitcher of martinis.*

The Best Years of Our Lives

If you get sick of It’s A Wonderful Life but still want a taste of bittersweet sentimentality, try this. Also starring Myrna Loy, this explores the lives of three returning soldiers and their families after the close of World War II. Of note is the performance by Harold Russell, a paratrooper who had lost both of his arms. He won an Academy Award for his first and only role. It’s a bit sentimental but still relevant – war still affects everyone differently. Caveat – I don’t think there is a Christmas scene. Watch it with a milkshake and a handkerchief.

The Apartment

Jack Lemmon is wonderful as the clueless and naive yes-man and Shirley MacLaine is by turns charming, spunky and tragic. No, it’s not about Christmas, but the main action happens during Christmas. Plus, let’s face it, sometimes all that cheery happy peace and love goodness can get overwhelming, and this is the perfect anecdote – just the right mix of humor, drama, and heartbreak. Watch it in front of the Christmas tree with some spaghetti and meatballs and a Tom & Jerry, skip the sleeping pills.

Some other favorites include: Christmas in Connecticut (baby-switching and hijinks galore!), The Shop Around the Corner (Jimmy Stewart! It’s the inspiration for both You’ve Got Mail and In the Good Old Summertime), Meet me in St. Louis (Two words: Judy Garland), Little Women (pick your version – but I like the one with June Allyson as Jo), and Holiday (Hepburn and Grant are hilarious together).

What are your favorite Christmas movies?

*I’ve included links to full versions on YouTube for reference, but if you haven’t seen any of these yet, do yourself a favor and rent a copy.

**All movie poster images from Wikipedia.

OK, sometimes the cocktail journey isn’t about the cocktail.  This journey was a tailgate before the Giants Falcons game today.  It was a gorgeous day that started with a martini.  I was able to get to our spot before my friends showed and I prepared a pregame martini with Bluecoat Gin, Dolin Dry Vermouth, and Pickle Licous olives.

A key to the tailgate martini is the plastic shaker and martini glass.  Maybe not the classiest, but certainly the sturdiest.  No accidental breakage here, which would be criminal.  It might mean missing a martini.

Tailgate Martini

No recipe today, just a message that above all, cocktails are meant to be enjoyed.

I am the world famous cocktail journalist Anna Väkeväinen – a recognized sipologist but mostly focusing on gonzo reportage. I’m so famous that sometimes replying to all the invitations and fan mail keeps me from doing the actual work: drinking. But I always get back on the track.

Without looking for it, I was asked for a date. Sober, in complete daylight and face to face. Mr T is a Sipology scholar like me, already a PhD and working at the Agency of Advancing Cocktail Culture in the Nordic Region. He looks nice. A bit funny, but nice. After a Martini workshop on Wednesday, on the street outside, he turned to face me, looked straight into my eyes and said “I have been invited to a party on Saturday, would you like to be my avec?” How could he take such a risk? Doesn’t he know the rules of this game? Doesn’t he even know about the game? I said yes.

The party turned out to be the pop star Ilkka Alanko’s 40th birthday party. When arriving to greet him, I was expecting him to express he knows my fame just as I know his. But he asked Mr. T to teel him who his beautiful company was, which was a nasty insult that celebs sometimes use on each other. To make it worse, I had to sit there all night watching him and all his rock star mates perform and suck the room dry of admiration. Mr. T seemed happy, but I was suffering. I longed to the cocktail bars, to my kindom. Began texting my friends: where are you?

Mss R replied to tell me she was going out with the artist she had met. “I told him I’m not looking for a serious relationship”, she texted. She always says that to guys with whom she wants a serious relationship. When the guys are happy with just the sex too, she says they don’t care about her. “Stupid girl”, I texted her. Tried Hilkka. She asked me to come to a party at the Opera, meaning the actual opera house. My SMS: “Hilkka, I’ve had  3 fillings of sparkling while waiting for the welcoming toast, 3 of the still, and 2 Gin Tonics: Opera is not my place.”

Decided to go to A21 and said goodbye to Mr T. He walked me out. At the door, he did that staring thing again. “I find you very interesting”, he said. “Thanks”, I said, panicking. I hope nobody ever asks me to marry them, that would be too embarrasing.
“I would like to meet you again.”
I began stepping backwards. “Yeah, let’s text each other.”
“Or maybe we could decide a date now.” (What?!!!)
“I don’t know, you know, I’ll need to check my calendar, so let’s get back”, I mumbled, ready to go.
“Okay.” And then he does the thing in the movies, comes so close I can feel his breath, and I’m petrified, and he lowers his eyes to my lips and his lips come slightly apart, and he gets closer and closer, and then he kisses me softly and it takes a long time and its wonderful. I start walking away and he is watching so hard I don’t remember how to walk and behind the corner I just smile the biggest smile, and then I giggle.

At the A21, beneath the vivid talk about cocktails and bars, I was dizzy.

Maybe every real couple needs one person that doesn’t play games? Maybe I had only met players so far. Maybe they too need someone who doesn’t play. Some other, different kind of woman. Already after one date, Mr T. had made me see myself more clearly: I am a player. Autch.

Coastal Living has to be my favorite magazine subscription.  I love the recipes, the featured beach homes, and of course flipping through the pages day-dreaming of my beachfront property!  The December issue comes full of amazing recipes.   Here is one below for a Candy Cane Martini.  I’m definitely sending this to my girlfriend who is re-opening her bar after a move from southside to brookeside! 

Candy Cane Martini

Combine 1 1/4 ounces vanilla vodka, 1 1/4 ounces white creme de cacao, and 3/4 ounce peppermint schnapps in an ice-filled cocktail shaker.  Shake vigorously, and strain into a cocktail glass.  Garnish with peppermint candy.  Makes 1 cocktail.

Coastal Living, December 2009

Ladies nights are God’s way of making up for periods, childbirth, and mood swings.  I think shortly after God cast Adam and Eve out of the garden of Eden he checked in on a Sunday afternoon and saw:

Adam: chillin in front of the TV watching football, inhaling chicken wings, and throwing back some Bud heavy

Eve: bloating, crampy, irritable, and devouring chocolate like a starving refugee

In this moment God’s heart softened and he said to himself, “That snake WAS pretty tricksey…I’ll make a deal with you, Eve.  Child birth is still gonna hurt like a bitch, but on Thursdays and the occasional Friday you will be able to eat and drink for free (or very cheap) at a variety of restaurants and bars.”…and it was good.

Hence forth Eve would ditch football addicted Adam, and head out with her girlfriends for $5 filet mignon and the most fabulous martinis on the planet.

You’re asking where these martini’s are?

why of course Match on Mass Ave!

All entrees are $5 every Thursday night for ladies, and although martini’s are still full price ($12), your evening’s bill still rings up to a steal.  The service is mediocre, and the wait is rarely less than 45 minutes between 7 and 10 (they don’t take reservations on Thursdays), but the atmosphere is so fantastic the wait floats by as long as you have a martini in hand.  I cannot say enough about the martinis.  You may think you’re not a martini girl, but you are wrong.  My two favorites? Cloud 9, a sweet butterscotch martini topped with whipped cream, and the Pop Rocks martini which comes bright pink with pop rocks lining the rim.  With a steak for only $5 you have absolutely no excuse but to get the drink you really want

http://www.matchbackbay.com/

]]> http://misabor.wordpress.com/2009/11/20/martini/ Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:19:29 +0000 christian85 http://misabor.wordpress.com/2009/11/20/martini/

un caluroso mediodía de 1853 en San Francisco un anónimo forastero sediento llegó al Salón de un tal Jerry Thomas, de gran reputación como experto mezclador de bebidas.

Thomas se sintió inspirado: tomó una botella de gin, una de vermouth, combinó con bitter, agregó Marraschino y hielo. Probó su propio invento y le encontró interesantes posibilidades. Quiso bautizarlo con el nombre del cliente, pero de él solo se sabía su destino: Martínez, un destartalado pueblito minero. Así le puso. La pizarra del salón de Thomas anunciaba esa misma noche la primer versión del Martínez, que se transformaría en martini, el trago más famoso del mundo.

Aunque los italianos fabricantes de vermouth Martini y Rossi intentaron apropiarse de la creación, disputándole la etimología del martíni, no pudieron contradecirlo. En 1862 Thomas publicó un libro How to mix drinks, donde la receta 105 se llama Martínez. Una fórmula empalagosa. La historia del martini, es la búsqueda de la sequedad perfecta y aristocrática.

Este es un excelente martíni: sabe como si no estuviera allí en absoluto. Sólo una nube fría.
Herman Wowk

La diferencia entre este martini prehistórico y el actual es muy profunda, depende de esencias y calidades, no sólo de proporciones. El vermouth que se utilizaba no era el seco, tipo francés sino el colorado italiano, el mismo que se usa en el Manhattan.

En esos tiempos se lo hacía con gin Old Tom, dulce, ya desaparecido. Como si esta dulzura no fuera suficiente, se le añadía marraschino. Y una exageración propuesta por Thomas: agregado opcional de jarabe de goma. Un trago apto para tías viejas y golosas.

La primera mejora consistió en sustituir el gin dulce por el London Dry, la segunda, reemplazar el vermouth dulce italiano por uno más seco, del tipo que desde 1812 elaboraba Noilly Prat.

Cuando ambas bebidas se incorporaron al martíni, a fines del siglo pasado cambió su esencia. Fue el barman del Knickerbbocker Hotel en la 42 y Broadway, en New York el responsable de la mutación, aunque todavía se lo mezclaba por partes iguales.

El trago llevado Europa durante la Primer Guerra

La Ley Seca contribuyó a la transformación del trago. Era más fácil hacer un gin pasable que un whisky peligroso en el patio de atrás. De todas formas, a esos alcoholes truchos, de destilación dudosa les venían bien aligerarlos con algo, ese algo era el vermouth.

Cuando la represión al escabio terminó, el mundial tenia dos partes de gin por una de vermouth. Los soldados repartieron este trago hasta ahora solo conocido en el Waldorf Astoria o en el Palace, en todo el mundo. martini salió a la luz con su formula actual y se desparramó definitivamente por las barras del mundo. A su difusión contribuyeron los soldados americanos después de la segunda guerra

MARTINI CLÁSICO (Rinde para 2 cócteles)

Ingredientes:

1 cda. de vermouth seco
16 cdas. (8 oz) de vodka
1 ½ cdita. de Cointreau o similar
Aceitunas verdes para la decoración

Preparación:

Verter el vermouth en una copa de martini y darle vueltas alrededor de ésta. Verterlo en otra copa y hacer lo mismo. Eliminar el sobrante.

Colocar las 2 copas en el congelador de 15 a 20 minutos mínimo. Llenar una coctelera con 3 tazas de hielo. Agregar el vodka y agitar vigorosamente la coctelera hasta que el vodka esté helado. Retirar las copas del congelador y colar el vodka en las copas. Decorar con una aceituna verde.

Looking for a signature drink to serve at your Thanksgiving get-togethers next week? My friends… come with me. I have something I want to show you. It’s called a Smashing Pumpkin Martini and it’s like pumpkin pie in a glass. Really.

Infusing your own vodka is really very easy — we do sweet tea vodka in the summer, so decided to give pumpkin vodka a go for the fall season. You’ll need to plan ahead because this needs to hang out in the fridge for at least a week before serving — but, once you’ve roasted the pumpkin and thrown it all together, it just steeps and develops on its own — no further work needed until it’s time to put the martinis together. How much easier does it get?

Make this vodka. Then make these martinis. You’ll absolutely wow your guests. For that matter, you may wow yourself! Fair warning though… they are boozy and may not be for the faint of heart. But they are OH. SO. GOOD. Now get out there and get to it! Good luck with all of your holiday preparations and enjoy!!!

Smashing Pumpkin Martini
(adapted from Epicurious)
2 ounces spiced pumpkin vodka (recipe follows)
2 ounces Amaretto

In a shaker filled with ice, shake spiced pumpkin vodka and Amaretto. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

***

Spiced Pumpkin Vodka
(adapted from Epicurious)
2 cups pumpkin meat, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 cup vanilla vodka
2 cups vodka
6 cinnamon sticks
2 whole vanilla beans
1/2 teaspoon whole cloves

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Arrange pumpkin pieces on a non-stick cookie sheet. Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with nutmeg and cinnamon. Roast for 45 minutes or until tender. Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature.

Combine vodkas in a bottle or other glass or plastic container. Add cooled pumpkin meat, vanilla beans and cloves and let sit for 1-2 weeks in the refrigerator. Strain before using in a cocktail.

Recibí muchos comentarios después de la nota que hice de La i Latina. Reclamos, aclaraciones, quejas y demás…  todos sus opiniones son bien recibidas pero un comentario en particular, me llevó de regreso casi de inmediato al lugar. Mi esposa sugirió que la llevara a ella (y donde manda capitán…. ) así que “decidí” regresar.

Por otro lado, había sido duro en mi crítica y probablemente un lugar tan popular merecía una segunda oportunidad. Aproveche la motivación de mi esposa y fuimos a cenar.

Una de las cosas que inmediatamente me pueden poner de mal humor, es tener que esperar demasiado tiempo una mesa (digamos >10min). Me interesaba tener una buena experiencia así que fuimos un Viernes temprano (8:30pm) … entramos directo a pesar de no tener reservación ! Wow … igual y el lugar no era tan malo.

Ya les platiqué un poco en el post pasado del lugar, y me gustaría repetir que su decoración me encanta. La iluminación, cuadros y mobiliario, es todo muy original y realmente han sabido darle valor a esos detalles. Por un lado están los adornos (como el pez vela de la foto), y los puerquitos detrás de la barra. Todo eso genera un excelente y muy original mood.

Nos sentamos y ordenamos… un Martini de Pepino ($75) (que mi esposa reportó como delicioso) y un vodka tonic ($65).  De entrada, repetí los callos de hacha ($130) y Taco Tropical ($78)(en realidad los callos los recomiendo ampliamente, los tacos son sólo una curiosidad por tener la tortilla de jicama) , y en esta ocasión, pedí un plato de pasta “Papardelle fra Diablo”($105), dado que el Dorado había sido una decepción la vez pasada. Mi esposa, pidió un plato de Raviones de Serrano y Portobello($120).

La espera de la comida fue agradable, la música estaba a buen nivel y los tragos y entradas no tardaron mucho en llegar, quiero resaltar el pan calientito que es muy rico.

Finalmente llegaron los platos y hasta ahí llegó mi encanto. Mantengo mi postura original. El lugar esta genial, algunos platos (como en este caso los Callos de Hacha) están muy ricos, pero los platillos fuertes, a pesar de tener buen concepto, no están tan bien ejecutados como se pregona.  No voy a entrar en detalles, pero mi pasta no estaba en su punto, y lo único que los Ravioles tenían de Serrano era el nombre. Ahora, créanme que el lugar vale la pena. Es rico y muy agradable para una noche social. Para ir con los amigos, ver gente o llevar visitantes. Sin embargo, no es mi lugar favorito y no creo regresar por gusto en un buen rato.

En fin, les dejo pues esta segunda nota de la i Latina (y espero la última en un buen rato). Espero les sirva de algo y háganme saber que opinan de este tipo de lugares ! Sobretodo me gustaría saber si conocen algún lugar que tenga el mismo tipo de ambiente y que pueda compararse con la i Latina para ir a probarlo y darle una oportunidad !

saludos y provecho !

La i Latina
http://www.ilatinarest.com/
Av. Inglaterra #3128 – Entre Autlán y Tapalpa
tel – 3647-7774

As I sit at work suffering from a case of the Mondays… my mind wanders forward to what I might do this weekend. I’m no soothsayer, but I’m guessing part of my plan will include seeing New Moon and another part will include sipping on some sort of fruity alcoholic concoction. So here’s to Monday with a list of some of my favorite mixed drinks around town!

1. Figlio Martini- Obviously you’ll find this drink at Figlio (www.figliopizza.com). It’s by far my favorite pomegranate martini in town. It’s not too sweet and not too strong. Squeeze a lime in it and it’s perfect!

2. Pop Rocks Martini- You’ll find this concoction at Bar23 (www.bar23.net). I’m not sure exactly what flavor it’s supposed to be and what goes into the mix. What I do know though is that the glass is rimmed with pop rocks. So everytime you take a sip you get a little explosion on your tongue!

3. Margarita on the rocks with Salt- I love margaritas and my favorite standard margarita can be found at La Fogata Grill in the Short North (www.lafogatagrill.com- this site goes highlights only the Pickerington location for some reason…). I think the sour mix is delicious and lets just enough of the tequila taste shine through without being too overpowering. Some of my friends argue it’s a little too sweet… but I think it’s delicious!

4. Headbanger- You’ll find this drink at Bodega in the Short North (couldn’t find a dedicated website for this hot spot). The Headbanger is a blend of orange juice and vanilla vodka. I think it might also have sprite or club soda in it because it’s got a little fizz to it. The drink is so refreshing and smooth it can be easy to drink too many… which can be a good or bad thing depending on how you’re feeling!

Hope this helps you get geared up for the weekend… because I’m excited now! And stay tuned for my review on New Moon… cant wait!!