Requiem and Reposado

It’s 8:45am on Thursday morning and I am chasing the lingering remnants of tequila and cigar from my mouth with organic breakfast cereal.  Normally this would be evidence of another long Wednesday night followed by a tired, self-loathing rest of the week, but in this case, it was actually just an unfortunate consequence of my first venture into the world of infusing alcohols.  I’ve been informed by my co-blogger that he will be putting up a post on the intricacies of this process in the near future, but for now, I’ll focus on my first attempt at this process - cutting a three year old bone dry Cohiba in half and putting it into a mason jar with the dregs of a bottle of Cuervo. 

I had prepared this nutritional nightmare Wednesday night after a moderately boozy dinner with the firm.  At the time, I had thought I would have at least a week before I had to deal with this experiment in any way, but not uncharacteristically, I was wrong.  Apparently, tobacco is a flavour that can be intensely infused into alcohol over night.  Not knowing this, I woke up on Thursday and walked into the kitchen proud of the fact that I was reasonably rested and almost completely unhungover only to face a mason jar that practically screamed deal with me now or throw me away later when you have more energy.  The golden amber tequila had turned into a dark mahogany with two bloated and partially dissolved pieces of cigar floating limply at the surface.  While the idea of tasting this abomination struck me as about the most repulsive thing I could contemplate at that time of the day, with some minor encouragement from Schizz, I pulled out a small spoon, opened the jar, and prepared to bite the proverbial bullet for my new chosen passion.

Surprisingly, my impression upon opening the jar was actually quite positive.  The acrid smell of the tequila had slightly mellowed and had picked up pronounced tobacco notes.  Slightly more intrigued, I pulled out the two tequila logged cigar halves and scooped a few mahogany coloured drops on my spoon.  Closing my eyes and checking my gag reflex, I lifted the spoon and put it in my mouth.  To put it mildly, the flavour was intense.  I could clearly taste the distinctive earthiness of the cigar and almost immediately felt the tingling of a nicotine buzz building on my tongue.  However, but for the fact it was before 9am, it wasn’t that bad.  While it needed to be cut with another tequila to mellow the flavour, the experiment was actually a mild success and I had captured the essence of smoking a cigar after shooting tequila, or closer to my heart, the flavour of the end to a late night out with my former roommate and current failed Iranian thought leader.*

Spirit:

Cohiba infused Jose Cuervo Especial  

Impression:  Like having Che put a cigar out on your face at 4:00 am in a Tijuana nightclub.

The Cocktail:

The Ahmad Cocktail

As with a well worn piece of clothing or a favourite dish, a drink can be something more when it tells a story.  The Ahmad Cocktail tells a story that looks to the past while giving a nod to the future.  As alluded to, after a solid shift with Ahmad it was rare that you could escape a shot of tequila and a cigar before turning in at the end of the night (particularly when that night was Three Drink Thursday and you failed to stop at the prescribed limit).  It became a ritual of sorts - one last bad decision to tie a knot on the many more before it. 

While this particular combination of alcohol and tobacco is more commonly found in an impromptu ashtray than a sophisticated cocktail, it’s actually a rather fun way to introduce many of the best elements of bourbon into tequila.  The tobacco flavour works to mellow the tequila and to lend it a little of the smoky, muddy strength that defines good bourbon.  After deciding on a bourbon based cocktail to try out my new infused spirit, I saw only one way I could go: the Old Fashioned. The Old Fashioned is one of my favourite cocktails, but more importantly, it was introduced to me by my current roommate and co-blogger Schizz.  Interestingly enough, the Old Fashioned was also Schizz’s first real introduction into fine cocktails.  Now, that is the story I wanted for this blog’s first original cocktail.  Even better, it’s a story you can stir, strain and sip to take away the worries of the day. Without any further introduction, I give you the Ahmad Cocktail:

½ ounce Cohiba infused Jose Cuervo Especial  

1 ounce Baluarte Reposado Tequila

1 small sugar cube

2 slices orange rind

2 dashes Angostura bitters

2 dashes soda water

Instructions:

Pour the spirits into a mixing glass and add the bitters, the soda water, the sugar cube and one piece of rind.  Muddle the ingredients together and stir until the sugar cube is completely dissolved.  Add ice and stir vigorously.  Strain into a rocks glass and garnish with the second orange rind.

Impression: Like badly needing to brush your teeth on a Sunday morning while listening to the dulcet sounds of Busby Berkeley Dreams  (You had to be there)

* Too soon?

AA

The Corpse Reviver #2

Welcome to the inaugural post of 4003 Drinks: Alienating Friends One Cocktail at a Time.  This blog is co-written by Schizz and myself, AA, and we plan to take turns writing posts every couple of weeks or as often as work and Schizz's dislike for sleep allow.  The topic of this blog – the art of the cocktail - is in many ways a natural extension of our search to legitimize our vices by bringing them into the mainstream.  As with such classics as monkey’s in tuxedos and artistic nudes, our hope is to make the low, high brow again. In our view, the distinction between an argumentative drunk asshole and a lawyer with a taste for fine cocktails is simply the passion one puts into the craft. 

This blog aims to expand your understanding of cocktails from rum and cokes and vodka sodas to Sazeracs and Martinezs while sharing our passion with you one drink at a time.  While we still have a lot to learn about the topic, we promise to make up for lack of skill with unbridled enthusiasm.  To add some spice – or bitters in the world of cocktails – to this blog we will also discuss the comings and goings of apt 4003 and whatever else tends to pops into our heads – because who doesn’t want Manny Pacquiao training updates while learning about spherical ice cubes and infusing vodkas?

With no further ado, we start our first post with a discussion of one of our favourite cocktails: the Corpse Reviver #2.  The Corpse Reviver #2’s name stems from the fact it was traditionally served as a morning after drink – its blend of citrus and booze helping to bring a hungover person back to life.  While delicious at any time of the day, it’s a great alternative to your standard Bloody Mary or Caesar. 

Impression:  A shower and breakfast in every citrusy sip.

The basic recipe for this drink can be found in Harry Craddock’s quintessential cocktail text, The Savoy Cocktail Book.  The recipe uses an uncommon measure - a wineglass – but it can be easily converted to the more standard ounces as its four main ingredients are added in equal measures.  The recipe is as follows:

1.              ¼ Wine Glass Lemon Juice;

2.              ¼ Wine Glass Kina Lillet;

3.              ¼ Wine Glass Cointreau;

4.              ¼ Wine Glass Dry Gin; and

5.              1 dash absinthe (roughly ½ a bar spoon). 

Garnish: a lemon or orange peel spiral works nicely

The second best place we know to try a Corpse Reviver #2: The Keefer Lounge

The Ingredients

Lemon Juice: As with any cocktail, I strongly recommend that you use freshly squeezed lemon juice.  When in a pinch – or more commonly in our case, when people are over after the bar at 3:30 – you can use lemon concentrate from the bottle, but if you are doing so I suggest using ¾ or less of the amount you would use of fresh juice, the bottled stuff being too harsh at full strength. 

Dry Gin: This is self-explanatory and you can use what ever gin you prefer.  My current favourite gin is Hendricks (a small batch Scottish gin).  It is incredibly smooth and has a more mellow flavour with the traditional citrus and juniper notes balanced by more floral notes and the taste of cucumber.   For a more low cost alternative I suggest Plymouth or Beefeater, but I would stay away from Bombay Sapphire as it has a stronger more junipery flavour that doesn’t blend as well into this type of a cocktail. 

Impression:

Hendricks: Like having the help cultivate your private estate while wearing a smoking jacket.

                   

Bombay Sapphire:  A lemon tree and a pine tree doing missionary in a spice market.

Lillet: This is a fortified white wine produced in France.  It is 17% alcohol and in my mind is similar in many ways to a dry vermouth.  It is, however, quite important to use Lillet rather than dry vermouth in this cocktail as it is less syrupy and adds more of a dessert wine flavour.  Since it only has 17% alcohol, once open, I suggest that you either vacuum seal the bottle or keep it in the fridge. 

Impression: Urban Fare house brand dessert wine.

                       

Cointreau: This is an orange peel flavoured liqueur with 40% alcohol.  It is similar to triple sec – what some people might keep around for margarita’s – but is a much superior product in terms of both quality and flavour.  It adds a nice sweetness and complexity to drinks with the bitter orange peel taste.  Using Cointreau in this drink in equal parts to the gin is unusual as it is a flavour additive more than a base spirit, but generally, this is a nice liqueur to keep around as a small bottle goes a long way and is used in many cocktails. 

Impression:  Like licking sugar off the belly of a well tanned middle aged woman with 2 adult children 

Absinthe: An anise flavored herbal digestif that is best known for its hallucinatory properties –  The Green Fairy.  Absinthe was banned for many years due to the perception that it was a seedy drug like substance, but it has since seen a resurgence with most modern producers using artificial wormwood. While this modern variant does not contain the same narcotic compound, its effect may have been over-empathized as much of Absinthe’s real kick likely comes from the high alcohol content, with many brands clocking in at over 70% alcohol.  While only used in a small quantity in this drink, it is essential to the corpse reviver as it really pulls all of the flavours together.  While you need to be careful that the Absinthe doesn’t overpower the other flavours (which can easily happen in this case), getting the right amount of Absinthe can really make this drink pop. 

Impression: Like being punched in the face by an Eastern European grandmother with a fistful of herbs (and quarters).

We've been rather obsessed with this drink of late and if you’ve been over to our place in the last few weeks you may have had the pleasure of tasting one of our early attempts at the Corpse Reviver #2.  We hope this post helped you gain a better understanding and appreciation for this classic cocktail. We hope you’ll continue to follow along as we keep pouring out posts on our favourite drinks.   Remember, drinking is about the journey, not just the destination. 

Schizz and AA