Lubricant

Convincing people to buy a book can be a challenging proposition, so I've decided to sweeten the deal. Anyone who purchases a copy of Fix the Pumps by February 28, 2010 will be entered into a draw for a bag of loot. "What kind of loot?" you say. Well, a lot of cool and interesting stuff that I've written about on Art of Drink and some new stuff from my soda fountain research.

So here's the deal: buy the ebook version of Fix the Pumps and you'll be entered into a draw, it's that simple. If you have already purchased a copy, then you are already entered.

Now, I'm obviously bias when it comes to Fix the Pumps and I think it's a great read, but here are a few quotes from some people who've enjoyed reading it:

Jeff "Beachbum" Berry: "Read it not just for those revelatory recipes, but for its provocative take on their cultural, economic, and medical impact on generations gone by.  You'll never think of soda fountains as wholesome Happy Days nostalgia again."

Wayne Curtis: " If there's enough interest, Darcy says he'll consider publishing it as a paper book. Here's hoping there is -- it would be a welcome addition to my shelves."

Craig "Dr. Bamboo" Mrusek: "These wonderful palaces of fizz are no longer with us, but reading Darcy's new book will fill your head with historical info, fun facts, and images detailing what a visit to one of these bygone watering holes would have entailed. Time travel never tasted so good."

Gaz Regan: "it's pretty fascinating stuff."

Dave Wondrich: "This looks fascinating"

Ed Hamilton: "Love the topic and the back story."

Chris Stanley: "This is incredible. Hands down incredible. I stayed up until 4am reading it and went right back to it at lunch."

Rick Dobbs (Martini Groove): "Just finished Darcy's "Fix The Pumps." Absolutely brilliant and his ability to geek out is beyond the rest of us."

Here's the list of items up for grabs:

The Promo

1. AMP Bitter Blocker (60 ml / 2 oz bottle)

Yes, the mysterious anti-bitters that do amazingly interesting things to drinks and have the power to redefine Fernet and other potent bitters. This is probably one of the most interesting ingredients I've tried. This is a fairly expensive compound but as a great way to demonstrate taste science.

2. Acid Phosphate (240 ml / 8 oz bottle)

The ingredient that made one of the most popular beverages--ever--possible. Fix the Pumps goes into a lot of detail about acid phosphate, so I won't give it all away here, but it is not simply diluted phosphoric acid. It is actually a mixture of phosphate salts with a slight excess of phosphoric acid. This combination creates a buffered solution with a pH of about 1.8, which is the same pH as fresh lime juice.

With all of the research I did on soda fountains I was able to recreate the original acid phosphate recipe. It is a unique, clean, agreeable and intensely sour flavour. A teaspoon is sufficient for most drinks.

One of the nice things about acid phosphate is that it can be used in place of lemon or lime juice in a cocktail. It will give a uniquely different taste profile, sometimes described as cleaner and less fruity than citric acid.

Plus everyone should try the Angostura Phosphate at least once.

If that isn't enough, the original advertising--which was well before advertising laws on medicinal claims--said it was good for dyspepsia, sea sickness, fatigue, anxiety, loss of appetite, headaches, heat stroke, hysteria, depression, general energizer, alcoholism, hangovers, fevers and sexual exhaustion. Wow, no wonder it became so popular!

I'm going stick with using acid phosphate just for cocktails because my medicine cabinet already has Tagamet, Dramamine, Pemoline,  Xanax, Dronabinol, Topamax, Chlorpromazine, Diazepam, Prozac, caffeine, Vivitrex, Asprin and Viagra. Yes, this is sarcasm.

I will have bottles of Acid Phosphate available shortly to purchase, if you are interested in obtaining a bottle please feel free to email me (dsoneil@gmail.com). 

3. Lactart (240 ml / 8 oz bottle)

Another of the lost soda fountain ingredients and once popular soda category. I had never heard of a lactart* before, but according to a number of soda fountain books they were quite popular in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Lactart is a dilute solution of lactic acid which most people associate with dairy products. It's also the acid that gives lambic and wheat style beers their unique flavour. During prohibition lactic acid was added to non-alcoholic beers to mask the yeasty bread aromas and make the beer taste a bit more genuine.

4. Aromatic Tincture (100 ml / 3 oz Bottle)

This ingredient was a mainstay at drugstores during the 1800s. It was originally created to disguise the nasty flavour of early liquid medicines, but soon found use as an ingredient at the soda fountain. It was often added to soda in the same way we add bitters to cocktails. However, unlike bitters, Aromatic Tinctures tried to avoid being bitter as they were used to enhance aromas and flavour. Bitters were used to treat dyspepsia.

5. Cognac Oil Tincture (60 ml / 2 oz bottle)

This is another interesting ingredient found in some early soda fountain syrups. If you distill the solid material used to make wine (grapes skins, yeast, seeds, etc.)  a fraction called cognac oil can be distilled out. This oil is what gives grape brandies their characteristic aroma.

At the soda fountain it was often added to a tart lemonade to enhance the fruitiness and give a wine-like flavour. If you get the acid / sugar balance right, getting something similar to wine might possible if you add some alcohol. Or try a few drops in vodka to create a brandy like drink.

6. Super-Taster Test Strips (100)

If you've ever wanted to know if you are a super-taster, normal taster or non-taster here's your chance. Actually, you'll be able to test all of you friends and family too, but don't blame me if both your parents are super-tasters and you are a non-taster--that's something you'll have to talk to your mother about. In the 1930's the compound used in the tasting strips was used as a paternity test. It wasn't highly effective, but in some cases it was useful.

These are the same test strips that I used at the Sensory Perception and Mixology session at Tales of the Cocktail 2008.

7. Print Copy of Fix the Pumps

Once printed, a copy will be out the door and in your mail box.

Draw Date: March 1st, 2010

Regional Limitations: North America, Europe, South America, Australia, New Zealand (I'll ship almost anywhere, just email me incase you're in a different region).

Shipping: Included. The only thing that is not covered is import taxes and customs duties of the country of delivery.

Interested? To get in on the draw simply buy a copy of Fix the Pumps ebook and you'll automatically be entered.

 

* My early research on lactarts took me to the Urban Dictionary which defines a lactart as: "A hot chick who is lactose intolerant." "Jenny always gets soy lattes." "Yeah, she is such a lactart."