Behind the bar, you need a lot of bar tools and equipment, often more than you think, especially if you want to be perceived as a professional. Most bars will have the essential equipment, such as shakers and bottle openers, but depending on where you work, they may not provide all the things that make your job easier. Aside from […]
Month: October 2010
Crown Royal
A series of Canadian whisky reviews should start with the royalty of Canadian whisky, Crown Royal, and one of the standards by which all other Canadian whiskies should be judged, only because it has been around for 80 years and is still immensely popular. Almost everyone who drinks whisky has heard, tasted or observed Crown Royal sitting on the back […]
Old Unopened Bottles of Whiskey
Ever wonder what the value of that old bottle of whisky you have in the basement is worth? Probably not as much as you hoped, but sometimes they are worth more than you imagined.
Bartenders Root Beer Recipe
When you work behind a bar, you’ll get the occasional odd request. Sometimes it for some bizarre drink, other times it for an odd ingredient and then there is the request for items that usually are not stocked in a typical bar, like root beer. Most bars have a limited supply of non-alcoholic carbonated beverages, and those are typically Coke, […]
Whisky Tasting
After the last two posts (Malt vs. Blend and Whisky vs Cognac) I think it would be good to tie up some loose ends and discuss some of the good comments that were posted. The one thing that these two simple research papers show is that tasting spirits, at least whisky and brandy are more difficult than we generally think. […]
Distinguishing Between Malt and Blended Whisky
Part I Many people assume that they can tell the difference between two, seemingly different, spirits. But the question is whether they are being a “posers” or a skilled drinker. People who are involved in the scotch world often refer to someone who will only drink single malt whiskies, as “malt snobs”. Some people chose to be a malt snob […]
Ability to Distinguish Whisky from Brandy
This is the second part of a write up on a persons ability to distinguish one spirit from another. Part one was Malt vs Blended whisky and this part is brandy vs whiskey. In the first research paper, it was concluded that an inexperienced whisky drinker could not distinguish between a single malt or blended scotch. Also, experienced whisky drinkers […]
Moscow Mule
If you want to blame one particular drink for the rapid growth of vodka, in North America, look no further than the Moscow Mule. It’s true that the Vodka Martini became the most popular vodka drink initially and spurred the premium vodka category, but it was the Moscow Mule that began the introduction of North Americans to vodka. Whether vodka […]
Vodka Tasting
For the past few days I’ve been working on a vodka study that I’m looking to publish in the next month or so. This vodka study is similar to the study involving malt and blended scotch identification, with a few modifications and additional analysis. First, the tasting involved 13 people, tasting six different vodkas, three times. There were a number […]
The Science of Vodka
The idea of the purest, cleanest vodka is one of the biggest marketing ploy’s going. Every company is advertising triple distilled, quadruple distilled, and so on, to give you the impression that the vodka is the best distillate possible. Some companies even make the gimmick go to six or seven times distilled! So what makes one vodka special and another […]
Killer Koolaid
Here’s a drink that is popular, but doesn’t get much recognition. Of course, there are a number of versions of this cocktail, some being nothing more than 151 proof rum and tropical fruit crystals, which will probably kill you. Aside from that “killer” version, the one I’m talking about is sometimes referred to as a Canadian Killer Koolaid, and is […]
Sex on the Beach
What is a simple, pleasing, fruity cocktail? The Sex on the Beach fits that description. This is a simple, but effective, cocktail that seems to please the masses. This drink has many variations, but for the most part, the variations are related and use similar ingredients in the recipe. When properly made, the Sex on the Beach is a decent […]