New festival idea: G&T in the park (Taken with Instagram at Koningin Astridpark)
The Red-eyed Dutchman
My beautiful girlfriend bought me a bag of blood oranges and ordered me to make a cocktail with gin and the aforementioned oranges. Being the good boyfriend I try to be I did, but being my disobedient self I made it with genever. Yes, the great granddaddy of gin.
Going on a trip to Amsterdam to visit friends I couldn’t resist visiting the House of Bols, a museum/training center of the single largest genever producer in The Netherlands. After a tour that I can highly recommend and a few cocktails, I was able to go absolutely bananas in the gift shop: shakers, barspoons, books and booze, all a bartender could wish for. I left with 4 books, 5 bottles, 2 glasses and a beautiful barspoon (of which I’ll post a pic later on).
We’re a few months later now and I have completly fallen for the wonderful spirit that Bols Amsterdam Genever is. It has all the qualities a good Genever has, but none of the harshness that most tend to have. It leans closer to gin than any other I’ve ever tasted, which makes it very suitable for variations on classic such as Martinis, Old Fashioneds and Sazeracs.
The inspiration came from that viewpoint, keeping in mind such classics as the Aviation and the Princeton. But enough talk, let’s drink!
2oz Bols Amsterdam Genever
1/2oz Maraska
1/2oz Tawny Port
1oz Freshly squeezed blood orange juice
1/2oz Freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2oz simple syrup
3 dashes of Angostura bitters
Shake and strain into a chilled champagne coupe
Float a star anise as garnish
Enjoy
[Flash 10 is required to watch video]
ATTENTION INTERNET: THIS IS A PENGUIN BEING TICKLED.
GODDAMMIT FUCK THIS IS THE GREATEST THING I’VE EVER HEARD.
INTERNET GOLD.
(Source: itsxplacebo, via pleatedjeans)
Tonight I came home and after a short walk with the dogs, I decided to work a little on my resume. After about 10 minutes I was in need of a drink, but I decided to wait it out.
As I was nosing through my fridge and liquor cabinet I came across a bottle of Noilly Prat Rouge, a sweet red vermout made in Marseille, France. I bought it in Barcelona as it is nearly impossible to find in Belgium, nor in the north of France, and I was extremely surprised by it’s fruity character and full body. As it was the last of the bottle, I decided it ought to have an ending it deserved.
Looking further the Saffron Gin presented itself. This Saffron-flavoured gin (what’s in a name) is also produced and bottled in France but relatively unknown. It has a much more herbal and dry character than most gins but is not as subtle as for instance Hendrick’s Gin. That makes it a bit of a difficult mixer since it tends to be a bit dominant, however in the right amount and with the right companion(s) it really is a bombshell.
In comes the Martinez. This Godfather Of Martinis is a drink from which the dry Martini is derived. As opposed to a Dry Martini this drink is Vermout-based and strengthened by gin rather than the other way around. With the addition of Cointreau and Maraska this drink becomes very delicately complex. Normally the Martinez is finished with a dash or two of Orange Bitters but in this case I opted for The Bitter Truth Grapefruit Bitters.
I’ll tell you this: it was one hell of drink. With all the french ingredients included it deserves it’s own name: Le Martin.
Original Martinez:
4cl of Sweet vermout
2cl of Old Tom gin
1cl of Maraska (Marasquino liquor)
2 barspoons of Cointreau
2 dashes of orange bitters
Le Martin:
4cl Noilly Prat Rouge
2cl Saffron Gin
1cl of Maraska
2 barspoons of Cointreau
2 dashes of Bitter Truth Grapefruit bitters
Stir over ice and strain in to a chilled cocktail glass
Garnish with a quarter slice of lemon
Enjoy
#cocktail #Martinez #Le Martin #gin #vermout #bitter truth
1890
This is the first known photograph ever taken of a surfer. Surfing was banned in Hawaii by missionaries in the 1700s for its “ungodliness,” but fortunately the natives didn’t pay much heed to that decree.
