BartendersTour.blogspot.com

  The world is full of thousands of cocktails, likely even into the tens of thousands. I’m not talking about the nuances, such as vodka martinis with olives versus a lemon twist, I’m talking about basic solid standalone drinks with their own personalities and flavors. From Long Island Iced Teas to Screwdrivers, Black Russians, Daiquiris and more. Some are as individual as the bartender who created them, or as common as margaritas in Mexican restaurants. But as much as there are as many cocktails as there are bar menus, there are a few which are universal and classic. These are the drinks which, even if they’re not on a menu the bartender can make them. They’re the first things we learn and likely the most popular we serve. For purposes of sticking to cocktails, straight spirits sippers, neat or on the rocks, are omitted from consideration. These are all mixed drinks. Here are the top, imperial classic cocktails which stand atop mixology. In their own way they define their categori...

Much is made of the lists generated by online and in print spirits reviewers. Oftentimes the very top echelon of reviewers - everyone from professional writers such as Jim Murray, Stephen Beal and Fred Minnick, to publications like Wine Enthusiast and Whiskey Advocate - love to publish their very own list of standout bottles from around the world. "Bob Smith's Top Ten Tequilas for 2020!" And that's great. Everyone should have a list of what is considered to be the standard bearers of the industry. Special bottles of bourbon, or scotch, or rums, gins and tequilas, etc. All fine and good. But what I have seen and heard for myself is that too many consumers will jump on bandwagons simply because someone else says "this is the best." They'll immediately run out and try to find a bottle of the stuff, regardless of what anybody else might say on the subject. Many of the unicorns - particularly in bourbons - have become to simply because someone say...

As you might know or will soon discover, I have a passion for martinis. Some days I'd like a gin martini, and others I'd like it vodka. Still others I might like a flavored drink, but..well, that's not really a martini. But more about that later. Purists, of course, will note that true martinis are a gin drink. The Northern California saloon in in which the martini was invented - whichever one it was - doubtless had three things for sale: whiskey, gin and beer. And maybe not a lot of that latter. Shoes life was important and until the advent of refrigeration, serving alcohol was restricted to the higher grade stuff. Gin was, of course, the choice of several navies around the world, particularly the British fleet. (More about that later.) As I've mentioned before, the origin of the martini is under continual debate, with no resolution likely in our lifetimes. But gin, not vodka, was the original constituent. Vodka arrived on the scene much later, and really ...