Spirit Magazine - December 2013 - (Page 78)

Just then, right in the middle of Bourbon Street, I'm gobsmacked to discover a bar serving genuine, freshly made cocktails. Here, at the newly remodeled Bourbon O' Bar, Cheryl Charming-author of 14 books on drink-making-seeks to tell all sides of New Orleans' spirit-informed story. Her menu includes the Gator Death Roll, a nod to Bourbon Street's party drinks (except here it's made with freshly squeezed juices, imported Italian cherries, and a topping of champagne), and seasonal cocktails like Charming's mix of two of the city's most popular desserts, which she calls the Bananas Foster Snow Cone: a refreshing mound of shaved ice soaked with rum, banana and butterscotch liqueurs, cinnamon, nutmeg, and condensed milk. The menu leads off with a list of historic New Orleans cocktails. You can experience the wonders of an original hurricane (made with passion-fruit syrup and fresh juices), and it's possible to quietly sip a properly prepared Sazerac amid the crush of Bourbon Street's ceaseless saturnalia. And there, at the bottom of the menu's first page, next to a tiny portrait of a mustachioed Joseph Santini, one can find the brandy crusta. "It was interesting and challenging," Charming says, when I ask her about crafting her multifaceted menu, "but everything has its place." Innovative concoctions and goofy, lowbrow blends; bartenders and bar chefs and mixologists; juleps and hurricanes and brandy crustas: Every drink and drink maker has its place in New Orleans. ack at St. Louis No. 3, we circle around to the cemetery's front gates, where I finally find a nondescript, whitewashed mausoleum, plainly labeled: Santini Family. There, at the final resting place of Joseph Santini, my girlfriend and I take refuge from the sun in the tomb's shadow, and I set to mixing a pair of brandy crustas. After shaking the brandy, orange curaçao, and maraschino liqueur in a small tumbler, I encrust the rims of two glasses (okay, plastic cups) with sliced lemon and sugar, then strain the liquid mixture over a large paring of lemon peel. The resulting concoction is bright on the palate-syrupy, tart, and remarkably potent: the most perfectly refreshing sultry-weather cocktail. Before leaving the tomb behind, I scroll through an e-copy of the brandy crusta's original recipe on my phone, taking note of the final step in crafting the cocktail. The last line reads, simply, "Then smile." It suffices to say that I was already doing just that, so I raise my cup to Joseph Santini, drain the final sip, and smile again. Rien Fertel is a Louisiana native with a Ph.D. in history. He is currently writing a book about whole-hog barbecue pitmasters across the South. SHAKE things UP CRAFT COCKTAILS AT HOME, WITH RECIPES FROM NOLA'S TOP BARTENDERS Boss Colada NICK DETRICH, CANE & TABLE 11/2 ounces pineapple juice 1/2 1/ / 1 ounce Bittermens Bäska Snaps 1/2 1/2 ounce Angostura / 7-year-old rum 1/2 1/2 ounce orgeat syrup / 1/2 1/2 ounce lime juice / 21 drops Peychaud's bitters Combine first five ingredients in an ice-filled shaker. Shake 20 times, then fine-strain into a footed pilsner glass filled with pebbled ice. Top with bitters. Garnish with a lime wheel. 78 SPIRIT DECEMBER 2013 Brandy Crusta CHRIS HANNAH, ARNAUD'S FRENCH 75 BAR 11/2 ounces pisco 1/2 1/ / 1/2 1/2 ounce lime juice / 1/2 1/2 ounce Clément Créole / Shrubb 1/4 1/4 ounce Cherry Heering / 2 dashes orange bitters Charbonneau Way ABIGAIL GULLO, SOBOU 2 ounces Willett Family Estate rye 1/2 1/2 ounce maple syrup / 1/2 1/2 ounce lemon juice / 1/4 1/4 ounce Suze / absinthe (for misting glass) Combine ingredients in an ice-filled shaker. Shake, then strain into a sugar-rimmed cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime wheel. Combine first four ingredients in an ice-filled shaker. Hard-shake, then strain into a cocktail glass misted with absinthe. Garnish with a thyme sprig. Pimm's Cup CHRIS McMILLIAN, KINGFISH 3 ounces Pimm's No. 1 1 ounce lemon juice 1 ounce simple syrup raspberries, blueberries, and sliced strawberries sliced cucumbers 1 splash club soda 1 splash water Combine Pimm's, lemon juice, simple syrup, fruit, and cucumbers in an ice-filled balloon wine glass. Add club soda and water in equal portions. Roll once, then serve.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Spirit Magazine - December 2013

Spirit Magazine - December 2013
Contents
Gary's Greeting
Gary's Greeting en Español
Star of the Month
Freedom Story
From the Editor
Your Worlds
Your Pictures
Media Center
Spice up your drink repertoire
Eat Drink Sleep
Cook with chickpeas
Stay Overnight in Nashville
The Numbers
Make a Case for Paper Maps
Look out for Bigfoot
Plan Interplanetary Trek
Wise Guide
Co-opt Criticism
Business
Meet your New Favourite Travel Buddy
Provoke Productivity
Tales of a Tippling City
Rediscover Sin City
The Other Side of Vegas
Your Adventure In Albuquerque
Promotional Series: Spirit of Florida
Focus On: Health Resolutions
Calendar
Fun!
Spotlight
Community Outreach
Products & Services
Flight Services
Terminal Maps
Information
Rapid Rewards and A+ Rewards Partners
Route Map
The "If" List

Spirit Magazine - December 2013