Cruising to the British Virgin Islands in My Mind

     Thinking about out next destination off of the rock here in Key West and We've been thinking about going back to the Virgin Islands.  Gorda Sound at the end of the Sir Francis Drake Channel is always a beautiful place and spawns memories that put smiles on my face.  The British Virgin Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands have so many wonderful spots to hang out.

The Beautiful Gorda Sound in the British Virgin Islands

Where is Your Beach?

     With summer fast approaching, I got thinking about beaches and where I should be heading to find a great one to spend some time on.  Key West is not known for its beaches, so it is to the south that my mind thinks about when I think about a beach.

 

 

     The first place that comes to mind is the out islands of the Abacos in the Bahamas.   Places like Treasure Cay and Great Guana Cay come to mind.  These are the eastern most cays of the Bahama chain of islands and are right up against the Atlantic Ocean.  The deep blue colors of the waters on the eastern side of the cays and the “crystal bay” waters between them make for an absolutely beautiful beach environment.

 

     The Virgin Islands also have some really wonderful beaches to share with you as well, places like Honeymoon Beach, White Bay, Cane Garden Bay and so many more.  One of my favorites is to find a hammock on White Bay and relax in front of the Soggy Dollar with a “Painkiller” and enjoy.

 

    Grenada’s Grand Anse is another of the long beautiful beaches that are really great to walk along, especially in the afternoon.  This is a beach that seems to go on for miles and miles as you roam from beach bar to beach bar and enjoy yourself.

     There are so many fabulous beaches throughout the Caribbean and Southern Atlantic that come to mind and these are only a few of them.  There are terrific beaches in Barbados, Cayman Islands, Haiti, Puerto Rico, Antigua, St. Lucia just to name a few.  So this summer just get out there and find your beach and enjoy the sun and surf, but be safe when you do, the sun can be very dangerous especially in the lower lattitudes.

    

"The Paul Castronovo Show" Comes to Hemingway Rum Company Distillery Today Live

     Presents

Paul Castronovo

     Popular South Florida radio wise guy Paul Castronovo and his team of guests will be broadcasting live from the Hemingway Rum Company Distillery this morning from 6 am when the doors open to let the fun begin until the end of the show at 10 am.    “The Paul Castronovo Show” debuted on January 2, 2018 after 26 years, when he and straight man Ron Brewer parted ways.  The Big 105.9's manic master of morning-drive radio will be bringing his own special kind of madness to Key West this morning at the Margaritaville Resort, Papa’s Pilar Rum and iHeart MEDIA sponsored event.

    

     Come by and join us, talk to the crew of Hemingway Rum Company Distillery while you enjoy the morning listening to Paul Castronovo and all his guests on the air.  Of Course, there will be rum tasting and the “Trading Post” will be open for your enjoyment.

A Cure for the Morning After, Ha Ha Ha!!!!!

     This is a revival of an old 1920's Prohibition cocktail called the Corps Reviver.    Of course being me, I never seem to be content with anything the way that it comes out of a book.  I'm not much of a gin or cognac person, so immediately I had to make the base of this cocktail rum.

     There are a number of versions of this famous cocktail including a Kentucky Bourbon version, but this one will be called Bahama Bob's Caribbean Corpse Reviver, what else.  My idea takes an "ocean" aged rum Seven Fathoms Rum or another of your favorite aged rums and blend it into the flavors that yield a strong "hair of the dog" type of "Sunday Morning Coming Down" cocktail.


Bahama Bob's Caribbean Corpse Reviver

• 2 oz. Seven Fathoms Rum
• 1 oz. Dolan Vermouth
• ½ oz/ Fresh Lime Juice
• 1 oz. Pierre Ferrand Orange Curacao
• Dash of Angostura Bitters

Place all ingredients except the bitters, in a shaker filled with ice and shake until chilled.  Strain into a coupe glass and drop in a dash of bitters.  Garnish to suit your likes and watch the previous night go away.

New Rum Brand JAH45 Launches in United Kingdom

     United Kingdom spirits distributor Mangrove Global is bringing a new Jamaican rum brand designed to “disrupt” the category, called JAH45.  Taking inspiration from the Jamaican music scene – particularly the 1950s and 1960s.  Nick Gillett, managing director of Mangrove Global, said: “With the unique ‘funk’ flavor, JAH45 are rums that go back to their Jamaican roots and offer an exciting addition to standard rum selections.  JAH45 will launch with a range of five expressions: JAH45 18ct Gold (40% abv), JAH45 Silver (40% abv), JAH45 Dark (40% abv), JAH45 Spiced (40% abv) and JAH Overproof (63% abv).  The expressions are made from a blend of aged pot and column still rums sourced from numerous Jamaican distilleries.

     JAH45 Dark and JAH45 18ct Gold are a blend of three-year-old pot still rum and unaged column still rums, and each have an RRP of £19.99 per 700ml.  JAH45 Spiced is a three-year-old rum that has been macerated for 48 hours with vanilla, cinnamon, citrus and a dash of Pimento. It has an RRP of £21.99 per 700ml.  JAH45 Silver is an unaged pot and column still “medium-bodied” white rum, available for £19.99 per 700ml.  Meanwhile JAH45 White Overproof is a blend of unaged pot and column still “medium-bodied” white rums, cut at 63% bottling strength. It is priced at RRP £26.99..

     “With the global distribution rights, we look forward to working with JAH45 to launch and continue to grow into the UK and other markets.”  The Funky Jamaican rum tradition is being reinvented again by the folks at JAH45 Rum Company,and I'm looking forward to seeing it arrive on the American shores.

Serving Alcohol in Flight: Is it a Problem?

     Frequent fliers often witness disruption in the cabin caused by excessive drinking. On a recent flight from Pittsburgh to Miami, the passenger next to me in first class started drinking soon after departure at 7:30 a.m.  He consumed at least four small bottles before the flight attendant refused to serve him more. I had to tolerate his loud complaints for the rest of the flight.  This is not an uncommon occurrence. in today's airline industry.  

     For decades, airlines allowed smoking, despite complaints from nonsmoking passengers about the smoke wafting into their section. Airlines incurred a number of costs from these smokers.  Passengers brought their own cigarettes, while airlines had to clean the cabin and the air.  When the U.S. banned smoking on most domestic flights in 1990, it was all financial upside for the airlines.  By contrast, security restrictions mean passengers can't bring alcohol into the cabin. Airlines thus have a monopoly on drink sales, which is a revenue center. But is it worth the cost of dealing with disruptive passengers?   

    Drunken passengers might still occasionally appear at the gate-alcohol would still be available at airport restaurants and lounges. Then again, a ban would benefit those restaurants, which have been hurt since "911", only ticked passengers passengers were allowed in secured areas of the airports.  Smokers have adjusted to nonsmoking flights and I believe that drinkers could also adjust. 

Richard Seale: Pots and Pot Stills or When a Pot Is not a Pot Still

Richard Seale

     Our discussion on wooden vat stills helps illustrate a key concept. Take away the lyne arm, retorts, plates and the condenser and you are left with a vessel not a pot still.  I think that is strikingly obvious in the case of the vat still.   It is the reflux surfaces that define the distillation fundamentals of a pot still. Their shape, position and material effects reflux and thus how the congeners will arrive. Change the shape and the spirit changes. Their shape, position and material determine their catalytic effect when made of copper.

     Harrison et all (2011) found that even when including the shoulder, the effect of copper in the pot section was marginal. This part though above the liquid level will have little reflux because it will be too hot.  Little reflux means little catalytic action. The wooden vat stills did use copper shoulders which would ensure they lacked absolutely no important copper with respect to an all copper still.       Let me reiterate, the point of the previous pot, the wooden vat still lacked for nothing in comparison to an all copper still. That was the genius of the design.

Without the Copper, They are Just Pots

     Harrison et al (2011) found the copper in all areas other than the pot section to have a significant effect on the spirit with the copper in the wash still condenser to be the most important location for copper.  And to the possible positive effect of the wood in the pot section of that sacred cow, I dared to answer, only maybe.  Yes, maybe. Because we do not know the mechanism. It won’t be because of reflux, mainly because none happens here. It won’t be because of a catalytic effect mainly because wood is inert. It could be from another mechanism, it would likely be overwhelmed by the potential variables in the lyne arm, retorts, condenser etc, but we are not ruling the possibility out.

     But most importantly however, we can’t be sure the effect is preferred. Let me give an analog - it is well understood that shell/tube condensers work "better" in that the catalytic effect of the copper is better in a s/t condenser than in a worm tube condenser.  But try to tell those who prefer the "meaty" taste of the worm tub produced whiskies that it is better.  So maybe is my answer.

Top of Form

Finally Blue Skies in the Keys

     I am so happy to see the sunshine and blue sky.  For the past month or so grey skies, high winds and even a Tropical storm passing to the west of us has left many of us in the doldrums.  They say we have no rain in sight for the next 9 days and the winds have finally blown themselves out.  Yeah for the spring that has arrived just in time for summer.  Time for celebrating.

Trouble Between SPI Group and Bayou Rum Producer Has Appeared on the Horizon

Bayou Select

    LSBR Holding Company, which holds a minority share in Bayou Rum and Louisiana Spirits, has filed a lawsuit against SPI Group and Stoli Group USA, alleging breach of contract. In 2015, SPI purchased a minority stake in Louisiana Spirits, with Stoli Group USA gaining exclusive U.S. distribution rights. The following year, according to a copy of the lawsuit obtained by SND, SPI agreed to take majority control of the company.

     Filed with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas in December, the suit accuses SPI and Stoli of failing to live up to their contracts with LSBR Holding Company throughout their partnership. The rum maker asserts that SPI “committed conduct that has destroyed the economic value” of Louisiana Spirits and Bayou Rum. Specific complaints include SPI’s initial disclosure of its minority ownership in Bayou in violation of a confidentiality agreement—which LSBR Holding Company argues was detrimental to the brand’s craft image—as well as unilateral packaging and label changes and inadequate leadership and sales support, among other issues.     

There is a lot more to his story that you can read at http://www.shankennewsdaily.com/index.php/2018/05/25/20852/spi-and-stoli-group-sued-by-lsbr-holding/

Havana Club Announces Redesigned Añejo Especial Label

New Havana Club Anejo Especial Label

     Pernod Ricard co-owner of Havana Club has redesigned the label for its Añejo Especial expression to reflect the brand’s Cuban roots and “authentic” production process.   The new design for Havana Club Añejo Especial is inspired by Cuban street culture.  Havana Club Añejo Especial is a blend of young and old Cuban rum bases, which have been aged again in white oak barrels.

     The new look is presented on premium crafted paper and is inspired by Cuban street culture, featuring blue and red edges.  The design also features tree rings, two oak barrels and a sand timer to communicate the brand’s double-aged maturation method.  The new label is available in several markets, including the UK, France, Germany, Switzerland and Belgium.

Previous Label

Earlier Label

      Nick Blacknell, marketing director at Havana Club International, said: “At Havana Club, we are proud of our Cuban culture, authentic rum production methods and revolutionary spirit, all of which are now reflected in the new Havana Club Especial label. The classic Cuba Libre serve will inspire a whole new generation with the refreshing taste of rum and cola.

     “We have seen what has happened in the gin category over the past five years and we expect the rum category to experience the same resurgence.”

Moonshining is on the Rebound “It's Something to Do”

This Still Can be Ordered New on Line

     What is interesting is that you can own a still as long as you don't use it to make liquor.  You can distill water, a water maker if you will to desalinize sea water, or making alcohol for fuel, or reductions for cooking.  The catch is you can not make alcohol for consumption. There is a lot of lobbying going on to give hobby distillers the same right to make liquor for personal use like beer and wine makers can do legally.

      'It's something to do' _ Illegal liquor is making a comeback. says Sidney Smith,  a 77 year old, has been making moonshine in the rural Sand Hill community of Rankin County for many years, after learning the craft from his now late uncle.  Smith was recently busted by state Alcoholic Beverage Control agents. ".    Yeah, I've been caught making this before. They know me. They got to do their jobs."  After a four-week operation led by ABC Special Agent Tony Ingram, agents destroyed the back-woods still, seized 22 gallons of moonshine and arrested Smith on a charge of possession of alcohol in a dry county.   Smith likely will also face a felony charge of possession of a still, said ABC enforcement Chief Rusty Hanna, but is likely to get probation and fines, not jail or prison time. Smith's was a relatively small operation, and courts and jails have bigger fish to fry, Hanna said.   Smith's operation in the woods near his home was gnarly and unsanitary: dirty barrels, buckets and jugs, bugs floating in the "mash" and God-knows-what in the final product. One wrong step by a moonshiner or a few degrees in temperature can produce poisonous methanol instead of high-test ethanol.   "You don't know what you're drinking," Hanna said as he and agents viewed Smith's still. "You don't know what was in these barrels before - chemicals? There's bugs in the mash. This is very primitive. It's not what you picture. TV has glamorized it, as clean, neat, pretty. This is nasty. Very unsanitary." 

Classic Prohibition and Forty's Moonshine Operation

     State Revenue Commissioner Herb Frierson and Hanna said illegal moonshining has increased in recent years, waxing with the popularity of the TV show "Moonshiners" a television series on Discovery Channel.   Although ABC agents can't focus large amounts of time or manpower to moonshine, they've been busting six to seven stills a year, and have already reached that mark this year. Hanna said stills have gotten harder to find - many of them indoors under lock and key instead of out in the woods where people can see and report them.  Frierson said many moonshiners will sell to underage drinkers and that some even market their product toward them, adding "snow-cone" flavorings to the liquor.   "They add the snow-cone syrup - pina colada, all kinds of flavors," Frierson said. "They try to make it taste good, because if moonshine isn't aged, it tastes terrible ... We're even seeing people selling fake moonshine, taking “Everclear” or vodka and diluting it or adding flavors and saying it's moonshine so kids will buy it."

State and federal taxes and fees can total nearly $20 a gallon on liquor, revenue lost with moonshine. Frierson said his office does not have a good overall estimate on money lost to moonshiners.  Smith's operation, agents said, could have produced up to 50 gallons a week at full tilt. If sold at $30 a gallon, it could have grossed $1,500 a week. ABC has busted much larger operations.   Smith's operation, where he had been busted years before for making moonshine, was primitive, But agents were impressed with one aspect of it: He had three condensers running into separate barrels to collect the final product instead of the usual one or two.  Smith, who sat calmly on a truck tailgate as agents began destroying his still, cheerfully explained the three condensers.   "It's faster," he said. "It doesn't take you so long to sit there and wait."

Here is an Interesting Twist on a Mojito

     I was looking for a fresh idea for a spring drink as I walked through the produce section of the grocery store the other day.  I saw some nice chamomile and had an idea.  Use Grapefruit instead of lime and chamomile instead of mint and lets give this one a try.


Bahama Bob's Chamomile and Grapefruit

• 2 oz. Atlantico Platino Rum
• 2 Fresh Chamomile Leaves
• 1 oz. Fresh Grapefruit Juice
• ½ oz. Simple Syrup

Muddle two chamomile leaves in an 8 oz. glass with simple syrup. Add rum and grapefruit juice to a glass with ice and squeeze in grapefruit juice. Shake until chilled.  Garnish with a slapped Chamomile leaf

Richard Seale: Talks about the Wooden Pot or Vat Still

Richard L. Seale

     Richard Seale is one of the most knowledgeable rum makers in the world.  His personal experience along with all of his research makes him one of the best sources for all things rum and the production of rum.  I have found his discussions to be very well written and very factual.

     I recently posted about those clever Jamaicans and their Cousins process for super high ester rum, today I will write about those clever Guyanese and their Wooden Pot Stills - the VAT STILL.  Today we marvel at the two remaining wooden pot stills but back in the day wooden pot stills, known as VAT stills were numerous in Demerara.  The pot/kettle part of a pot still is unimportant (save for setting the volume) to the character of the pot still.

The Pot/Kettle Part Is Not The Still, It Is Just A Vessel.

Demerara's Double Wooden Pot Still

     In a pot still it is the size and shape of the reflux surface - the surface where the rising vapor has an opportunity to condense - that decides the fundamental nature of a pot still. Reflux (the condensed liquid on the side that falls back) affects the timing of the arrival of the congeners in the final condenser and directly then the ability of the distiller to “select” the spirit he/she wants from the wine being distilled. Generally, large surface area, more atmospheric cooling, more condensation i.e. more reflux.   The material of the refluxing surface is also vital because of the catalytic effect of copper. Copper catalysis reactions which render unpleasant volatile sulfur compounds into non-volatile sulfides which then do not distill over into our rum.

     So the pot/ kettle part plays no role in either critical part of distillation. It does get exposed to the boiling acidic liquid and will eventually wear out and disintegrate making for an expensive replacement. The clever Guyanese figured out that replacing the kettle with readily abundant wood saved money and had no negative affect on the produced rum.

Vat Stills Became The Norm

Today our friends in Guyana promote a positive effect from the wood. Maybe. One thing is for certain, it has no negative effect.  Demerara was also famous for adding the rectifier to their pot stills - that was the subject of an earlier post.

Alberto Has Passed us by, Just a Bunch of Rain

     Feeling very fortunate today, Alberto is gone and all we got here in Key West is wet.  After Irma most of us on the island are a lot more nervous about tropical events these day that before.  It had been nearly 12 years since a major hurricane had come through here and we were feeling a bit bullet proof.  Today we are a bit more pensive about the arrival of even a tropical storm.


     Sunday morning's sun shine was a real great thing to behold when I walked outside to greet the day.  I hope that the storms track is just as soft for the rest of the people that it is about to impact.

Alberto's Approach is a Reminder of Last September's Approach of Irma

     We haven't even gotten to Hurricane Season and we have out first named storm of the year.  It reminds me of how we waited for the arrival of Irma and standing on the pier at Higg's Beach and photographing the waves as they came in on the soft side of the storm.

Here We Go Again with Alberto Heading into the Gulf of Mexico

     We aren't even into Hurricane Season yet, and we have a tropical storm headed toward us.
  Hurricane Irma hit us the first week of September last year and this past week, we finally got all of the damage repaired on "Sanity Too" and the rest of our "fleet" and now we have another storm headed this way already.

     This storm is not expected to develop into much more that a tropical storm, but there will be a lot of rain and that can cause a lot of flooding problems and keep me close to home for a couple of days.  It is suppose to pass closest to us on Saturday around noon, but winds here are not suppose to be over 31 mph and start diminishing by noon on Sunday to below 25 mph here in Key West.

      This is more of an inconvenience rather than a serious threat to the keys.  I'm going to miss my Saturday afternoon in town listening to good music and nice rum.  I'll probably still get to sip the rum, but I doubt that I'll fight the winds on my bicycle to get downtown.

   

Richard Seale on High Ester Flavored Rums

A WORD about HIGH ESTER (Flavored) Rums - the Cousins Process

Richard Seale

      Richard Seale is one of the foremost rum producers in the world and I found this post on the effect oa high esters to be very enlightening and well worth making available to all of you that are interested in this type of rum.

    During my impromptu meeting with Carsten E. Vlierboom of E&A Scheer recently in Miami, I expressed dismay at the recent independent bottling of the 1,600 ester DOK marque. Matt Pietrek who has been researching Jamaica Rum extensively of recent has also in his quiet manner explained that these marques are not for drinking.

     In the 19th century, Jamaica Rum was exported in great quantities to the UK and the European continent, Germany in particular. In 1889 Germany dramatically increased the import duty on Jamaican Rum and severely reduced this trade. The clever Jamaicans responded by creating a class of “Flavored Rum” (meaning for flavoring) which could create a blended rum to compete against the local spirits (subject only to nominal excise taxes).

     McFarlane (1947) classified Jamaica Rum into four categories - common clean, plummer, wedderburn and flavored. The first three were up to 300 esters (g/hl AA). The flavored category was 700 to 1,600. Now by esters, we mean ethyl acetate, the simplest of all esters. The others are not included in the count.

     At the 1908 Royal Commission on Potable Spirits, J C Nolan, special commissioner of the Jamaican Government to the UK, made it quite clear the purpose of the flavored rums.  “It is a flavoring essence. It is not a self rum”.   “No, you could not drink it as a self rum”

     In theory you can make these high ester rums in the normal way by extending the fermentation long enough. The longer the fermentation the more acids by bacteria are produced. The acids react with the alcohol to produce the esters. More acids, more esters. However, this starts to get very impractical and this will leave a very poor yield of alcohol in the ‘wash’ to distill.

To solve this problem, the brilliant Jamaican chemist HH Cousins developed a process to boost the ester count in rums in a more economical way. 

     The ‘lees’ in the retort at the end of distillation retains a considerable amount of the acids from the fermentation. Volatile enough to make it to (and concentrate in) the retort, not volatile enough to make it to the rum. The acids are recovered by adding lime (calcium oxide) to the lees to produce the calcium salts of the acids. This concentrated acid mixture after precipitation of calcium sulphate (by adding sulphuric acid) is added to high strength rum (i.e. lots of alcohol) and placed in the high wines retort where the esterification process (alcohol + acid) takes place. The resulting distillate is now supercharged with esters - up to 7,000 - and this distillate is used to ‘top up’ the rums produced in the normal way to reach the levels such as DOK at 1,600.

     Gentlemen bottlers please, the Jamaicans are laughing at you, Mr. Nolan and the Hon. HH Cousins are spinning in their grave. DOK and similar marques are flavoring essences, not for drinking. They are produced by a process adjunct to distillation.  Pungency is not quality.

     I know it has become fashionable in certain circles to marvel at flavor, any flavor. The burnt tires and excess fusel oil of the likes of Caroni for example (bad fermentation and bad distillation produces this).  It would well be advised to listen to the advice of HH Cousins:  “An increase in the ethyl acetate content of a rum…, if not supported by an increase in the other esters in suitable proportion will not add to its intrinsic value.”  “…there are certain “marks of rum (and among then some of stout body and attractive quality) which are as low as 100 esters”

The measure of ethyl acetate was as important to the regulation and control of Jamaican Rum as was a measure of alcoholic strength. It was not a mark of quality.  And it is well worth noting that esters are formed during ageing. And these esters are the more complex esters with very attractive aromas. For most aged spirits, these are the most important contributors to the flavor.

Jamaican Rums are certainly very remarkable for their ester content. A tradition we can still enjoy today. It is wise though to understand the differences.

Put a Little Ting in Your Cocktail

     The Jamaican soft drink Ting, a very unique soda, offers many uses in cocktail making.   There are any number of places that I have used it with great success,  "The Tingray", a simple mixture of Wray & Nephew Overproof and Ting makes for a wonderful cocktail for the afternoon party.

     During my week in Grand Cayman, I came up with another idea out of a need or a cocktail for the rainy afternoon that I didn't want to venture out into the falling rain.

Any "Ting" in a Storm

• 2 Oz. White Rum
• 1 Oz. Fresh Lime Juice
• 1/2 oz. Simple Syrup
• Top up with Ting.

Place all ingredients in an tumbler filled with ice, stir and top up with Ting.  Garnish is optional, but a lime wedge would work well.

One Year Anniversary at Hemingway Rum Company

The Plant

     One year ago this week, I started a new career as a rum maker at the Hemingway Rum Company. fermentations and the effects of the barrels finishing the rum.  It is hard to believe that a year has gone by already.  It has been a real education for me learning some of the intricacies of rum making, running a still setting

Setting First Fermentation

The Original Rum Crew

     We were given a very unique pot still to work with and learning how to make it work efficiently and still getting a quality clean product from it has been a lot of fun.   We have had a lot of help from Ron Call a 30 year veterans of spirit making.   Carlton Grooms, Shawn Martin and myself  were the original rum crew, but with the departure of Carlton Grooms, Mark Straiton has become the third member of the crew.   Together we have learned what it takes to properly ferment molasses, the proper user of yeasts and additives to the wash in order to get a solid

Our Unique Pot Still

flavorful wash.

     Learning how to strip the wash  to remove the solids and other components before refining the output into rum.  How to separate the Heads and foreshots from the hearts and tails to end up with a full flavored medium viscosity white rum.

Solera Barrel Rack

     Finally proofing the rum down to put into the barrels to rest before it is later added to the blend and bottled for sale in our showroom.   It has been a great year and I am proud to have been a part of the operation for the past year.  Good luck to the entire operation as it heads into its second year.

Making Healthier Cocktails

Cucumbers Pine Needles and Thyme

          “Healthyish cocktails appeal to everyone,” says Danny Kuehner, bar manager at Madison On

Park restaurant in San Diego. Stashed behind the bar are such wellness ingredients as alkaline water, turmeric, matcha, beets, carrots, aloe vera, nopales, seaweed, cannabidiol oil and activated charcoal. “People want to feel good, not only about what they are eating, but what they are drinking.”  Cocktails as healthful? Sounds like a contradiction. But consider history: Apothecaries originally compounded alcohol into healthful tinctures, elixirs and tonics.  And compared to drinks in the 1980s that used artificially flavored mixers with way too much sweetener, today’s fresh-ingredient cocktails are natural and refreshing. Plus, the current proliferation of low-ABV creations offers more wholesome quaffs.

     Bartenders often look to the kitchen for inspiration, which is where the health-food angle fits. When writing menus, chefs today focus on organic and sustainable ingredients, preferably locally sourced. And of course, drink lists that call out the latest superfood or unusual, arcane ingredients attract the attention of curious consumers thirsting for the new and novel.  “Bartenders love stealing ideas and ingredients from kitchens, and if the kitchen trends or what people are asking for gears itself towards health foods, then that’s how we’re going to lean into it,” says Jenn Harvey, bar manager at Temple Bar in Cambridge, MA. Items borrowed from health food for cocktails include carrot juice, chia seeds, cacao nibs and turmeric.

     Mixologists are ranging far and wide to unearth therapeutic ingredients. “If you think about the historical aspect of spirits as curatives, used in the apothecary style, I don’t think cocktails borrowing inspiration from health foods is a trend, but rather a modernized form of expressing creativity,” says Jenn Grossbard, bar manager and resident forager for The Drawing Board in Petaluma, CA., where you can a virtual pharmacy of holistic ingredients, including activated charcoal, bee pollen, ginger/turmeric honey, rosehip and hawthorn tonic, alkaline water and adaptogenic herbs such as eleuthero, fo-ti, astragalus and tulsi.  The aptly named Prescription cocktail features healthful bee pollen and ginger/turmeric-infused honey, along with Dewar’s Scotch, lemon juice and locally produced Amaro Bilaro and Fresno chilies.

     Using healthful, plant-based ingredients in cocktails can boost both flavors and sales, says Ryan Nolen, bar manager at Pitchfork Pretty Restaurant & Bar in Austin, TX. “Health-centric food and beverage consumption is mainstream: It has permeated pop culture. I believe it is here to stay and has appeal to some degree across all demographics.”  The restaurant features Texas Hill Country cuisine and the bar follows suit. Local carrots, butternut squash, tomatillos, avocado seed, avocado leaf, avocado flower honey, poppy seeds and fermented peach pits all appear in cocktails, which are priced from $10 to $12.   Examples include the A Drink Has No Name, featuring theobromine-rich yaupon tea, smoked ginger honey, clove, mint, lemon, bourbon and rum, with a Sasquash pictured atop.

Creating drinks with exotic components can be expensive, however. “Sometimes, these super-healthy ingredients can cost a lot of money,” says Harvey. And if the cocktails don’t sell, spoilage can be a problem.

     At The Drawing Board, they will “personally forage for many of the herbs or grow them in someone’s garden.” She also works with local purveyors for specialized ingredients, such as bee pollen or organic dried herbs.  Pitchfork Pretty sources from local farms that practice sustainable farming techniques and grow plants in ideal soil compositions, says Nolen. “We try to do this as far as it is cost-effective.”   “Using veggies and herbs gives the cocktail a fresh and herbaceous aspect that can’t be found in a bottle,” but “the challenge is sourcing the freshest possible ingredients. Your cocktail is only as strong as its weakest ingredient.” 

     This is only the tip of the iceberg, read more at http://beveragedynamics.com/2018/05/02/how-to-make-healthier-cocktails/