In the Cupboard

I’m not the biggest fan of steak sauce, but certain members of my family who shall go unnamed seem to take the stuff intravenously.  The beauty of steak sauce is they use raisins as the base, and I do admit there’s a certain genius to it; the one popular condiment that advertisers have successfully managed to make me FEEL is sophisticated despite the fact few self-respecting carnivores would use it on a quality steak.

But ketchup, now that’s the stuff. I honestly don’t know if I can ever get enough on a burger, on hash browns, on onion rings–and it is the raison d’être for my meatloaf.  Make that ketchup at home, inveigle a little steak sauce zestiness into it and then some, and you have a ketchup fit for slurping right out of the bottle.  Here’s a close approximation of my home recipe.  There’s no added sugar in this recipe because the raisins do the talking. I make this recipe by feel–so follow your heart and adjust according to your own instincts.

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markbitterman :: Jan.29.2012 :: Eat, Recipes :: No Comments »

Cassia, allspice, clove, sarsaparilla – the ingredients of a bitters tend to read like the shelves of an apothecary and, in some cases, the taste isn’t unlike juggling several jars of herbs and spices on your tongue at once. Bob’s Bitters, a line of cocktail mixers from the United Kingdom, are a refreshingly simple breath of fresh air in the world of drink. Not long ago I asked Bob about his Liquorice Bitters, one particularly extraordinary bitters from his full line of ten bitters, whose flavors he chose from the botanicals commonly used in the distillation of gin.

The Making of Bob’s Liquorice Bitters

Bob told me a bit about the genesis of this bitters:

“The Liquorice Bitters have become a popular ingredient for the British bartender.  Originally, a bartender I have worked with in the past asked me if there was anything on the market using liquorice and, as I was not aware of any such product, I decided to try to create my own.  It is an excellent mixer with rum, whisky, gin, and Galliano (as this contains liquorice).”

And how is this bitters made? Seemingly quite easily, from what Bob says. He essentially just steeps licorice root in neutral grain alcohol. However, a trained hand, trial and error, and strategic timing must come into play with this “bespoke” bitters:

“The main challenge was to capture the natural bittersweetness of the root.  Toward the end of the maceration period when the bitter element was introduced, the main challenge was to ensure that it did not become too bitter. This would detract from the natural liquorice flavor.”

Liquorice? Really?

I personally don’t care much for the flavor of licorice–that cloying bitterness shared with anise and fennel–but was pleasantly surprised by the subtle part the root played in this simultaneously sweet and woody mixture.  Bob explains further:

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markbitterman :: Nov.29.2011 :: Drink, Recipes :: No Comments »

The limited edition Spanish Bitters is the latest creation from the inventive mind of “Doctor” Adam Elmegirab. Here’s a little background on the newest bottled beauty from Adam, a bar consultant and historical mixologist based in Aberdeen, Scotland:

“The recipe I use is based on a number of receipts I dug out of bar guides and medicinal journals from various points of the 1800s and early 1900s.  Based predominantly on citrus and chamomile, the final product is like no other bitters I’ve tried, boasting a great deal of depth and versatility.”

What Goes into Spanish Bitters… and What Comes Out

“I initially made a small-batch of these for a Licor 43 drinks competition that I entered in the summer of 2010. They received such a great response on that day and from the few bartenders who were lucky enough to get their hands on a sample that it made sense to make a Limited Edition batch. The demand since then has been staggering and people are already asking if I’ll make another batch in the future.”

Adam describes his new bitters as being composed of “layers of complex flavor including coriander, violet, raspberry, honey, citrus, pomegranate, toasted orange and predominant chamomile, all leading to a long bittersweet finish.”  The sum of the flavors is very reminiscent of rum, which I suspect might be the base alcohol for this bitters.

The Spanish Bitters is a labor of love for Adam, who performs every step of the process himself:

“I have selected eight dried and fresh botanicals which are steeped in overproof spirit for no less than two weeks. They are then filtered, diluted to bottling strength with Scottish water, and colored with a hint of caramel. My bottlings are truly hand-crafted, with every stage of the production, bottling, and labeling process being taken care of by my own two hands.” I’d love to see what an insect version of Adam could make with a few more appendages at his disposal.

Spanish Bitters in Your Cocktail

Adam says his research for creating his Spanish Bitters has led to something novel in the world of bitters.

“I’ve not come across anything like them to be honest. The really interesting thing for me is the fact that these are essentially classic bitters, but they also have a very modern feel. As with any quality bitters they should have multiple uses so, although the dominant flavor is chamomile, the support flavorings of citrus, coriander, honey, soft spice, and violet give them great versatility in drinks calling for citrus, floral, spiced, earthy, fruity, and bitter notes.”

Adam is bringing openness into what is traditionally the hyper-secretive craft of bitters making.  On his blog he offers up information on recommended drinks and breaks his mixtures down into ingredients with notes on their flavors and medicinal uses. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a bitters maker who is as open with his industry secrets as this guy.
I find that the Spanish Bitters tends toward the sweeter side, so I agree with Adam that it pairs nicely with rum and other dark spirits, though its more floral notes suggest that it’d do just as well with gin drinks. Adam provided me with a drink recipe that he created just for this bitters:

The Union Flip

1 barspoon Caraway Seeds
4 crunches black peppercorn
1 whole egg
1 ounce Appleton 8 Year Old rum
1 ounce Licor 43
4 dashes Dr. Adam Elmegirab’s Spanish Bitters
1 teaspoon simple syrup

Muddle caraway seeds in base of mixing glass, add remaining ingredients, and dry shake for five seconds. Fill with cubed ice and shake hard for a further ten seconds. Fine strain into a small frozen wine glass and garnish with grated nutmeg.

I’d recommend trying the Spanish Bitters in some familiar cocktails as well. A sidecar, for instance, could go right off the deep end with the added sweet and spicy rumminess, while a margarita would gain a little more tropical flare.

Too early in the day for a cocktail? Adam says to put a dash or two of Spanish Bitters in a nice citrus tea or warm apple cider! And don’t be afraid to experiment with some dressings and sauces, either.

To read some more about Adam’s forays into historical mixology, see his blog where he recreates drinks from the very first cocktail book published in the United States and reports on news in the cocktail world.

You can buy several of Dr. Adam Elmegirab’s bitters from The Meadow, retail and wholesale, as well as a plethora of other lines of bitters.

markbitterman :: Apr.26.2011 :: Drink, Recipes :: No Comments »

Avery and Janet Glasser, prodigal makers of Bittermens Bitters, have relocated their facilities to the ever-more boozy borough of Brooklyn—or re-relocated, as Bittermens started out in Brooklyn before spending a few years transplanted in Boston. Burlesque Bitters is the first new concoction since the Glassers’ return to the fold.

Goings on about the Bitters

The new concoction was released just ahead of Valentine’s Day with what I take to be an appeal to blushing lovers to undertake mixological experiments on one another. Avery says the “burlesque” preceded the bitters:

“This is one of those flavors that just came about based on a friend mentioning the word burlesque during our first big bottling session after we restarted Bittermens. As soon as we started talking about Burlesque, it evoked a color and texture—red velvet, like a curtain at a stage show. Once the color and texture were decided upon, we started thinking about flavors that would evoke that feeling, and eventually developed this formula.”

Avery describes the flavor as floral and tart, though to me there’s a bit more to it than that. The bitter element is very strong, with a long, pitchy-peppery flavor that comes through clearly in the aroma, and more subtly in the taste.

The simplicity of the production process belies the complexity of the product: “steep herbs, roots, peels and spices in high proof neutral grain spirits, filter and dilute.” Hibiscus flowers and açaí berries comprise the main ingredients of these bitters, though they are bolstered by over a dozen other flavor components. The Burlesque Bitters are a unique concoction and a new endeavor for Bittermens:

“This is the first time where we attempted to play with bitter and tart flavors together, so coming up with a working balance that made tart a supporting flavor, not the dominant component, was necessary. However, once we figured out how to layer the flavors, it was just a matter of tweaking some of the components.”

Cocktail Recipe with Burlesque Bitters

But what to do with this tarty new addition to the cocktail world? The Glassers recommend gin, genever, rum, vermouth, and Italian amaros.

But Lord God above, putting bitters in amaro evokes for me some turducken-like contraption made by stuffing dynamite into a firecracker. Avery insists “these all play extremely well with these bitters. Certain scotches and tequilas also work extremely well.” Tequila has not worked out so well for us, with several attempts at cocktails coming off discordant and odd. Avery insists that he finds that the smokier mescals or richer reposados make for a good tryst with the Burlesque. I’ll grant that Burlesqued tequila evokes a border town saloon with high-kicking ruffles and smoke and player pianos—and that conjures a thirst.

Generally speaking, Bittermens Burlesque Bitters is a distinctive–or maybe seductively weird is the word–and absolutely necessary addition to the bitters world; elements of razzle-dazzle ricocheting off a sophisticated reserve… what I might venture to call the hallmark of the Glassers’ expertly crafted products.

Thomas Waugh of Death + Company in New York offers this recipe inspired by Bittermens Burlesque Bitters:

The Gold Baron

1½ oz bourbon (Eagle Rare 10)
½ oz Laird’s 100 Proof Applejack
½ tsp grenadine
½ tsp sugar cane syrup
1 barspoon* Burlesque Bitters

Stir and serve on the rocks (or on one large rock if possible) without any garnish.

These bitters would also be an excellent complement for a Negroni, for those of us with more modest home bars. Equal parts gin, sweet vermouth, and Campari topped off with a dash or two of Burlesque Bitters and garnished with a slice of orange – voilà!

You can buy the entire line of Bittermens bitters from The Meadow, retail and wholesale.

*A barspoon is a long handled spoon designed to reach the bottom of a tall glass. The measurement is equivalent to a teaspoon.

markbitterman :: Mar.02.2011 :: Drink, Recipes :: No Comments »