Calling all bartenders - Bols is holding a competition for a 1920's style cocktail, including a Bols product naturally. The U.S. winner then goes to Amsterdam where he or she will compete with five other bartenders from around the world face. The winner gets to make his own Bols liqueur with one of their "developers," as well as a case of the new product each month for a year. If you're into this sort of thing, enter by Nov 30 at BolsAroundtheWorld.com.
November 2009 Archives
Today is Astor Tuesdays and the wine shop (399 Lafayette Street) features all its wines from Tuscany on sale at 15% off. Some Chianti for your turkey? The list of their 63 Tuscan wines is here.
Glenlivet is known for producing solid single malts for the upscale market - you know the ubiquitous Oban/Glenfiddich/Highland Parks that you see in every fine restaurant in town. But Glenlivet is also making some interesting higher end products like its 18 year old Nadurra Triumph (nadurra means natural in Gaelic), landing in stores this month.The Nadurra Triumph is the second incarnation made in this style - the first was aged 16 years. The new release was distilled and casked in 1991 (think George Bush the first) and only now seeing the light of day. It was made using just a single strain of grain - Triumph barley - and then non-chill filtered to retain the flavor.
Tasting notes:
Initial impression is somewhat unexpected, with little on the nose when first opened. However, the scotch starts to reveal itself fairly quickly - we tasted without water or ice but it might be a good idea to help open her up. End result is a very smooth, well balanced, easy to drink scotch. Flavors are complex with some fruit and a bit of wood. Overall, very good.
Glenlivet Nadurra Triumph has a suggest retail price of $85 but is available at Shoppers Vineyard in Clifton NJ for $69. In Manhattan, Park Avenue Liquors (292 Madison Avenue) stocks it as well.
A writer from Black Book decided he wanted to make his own bitters and sought out PDT's Jim Meehan for help. After a bit of experimenting, he came up with a winner - and a PDT cocktail featuring the bitters. Read about his quest at BlackBookMag.com.
test U2CAAPBBG8TU
Flying in under the radar this week was Pennsylvania-themed (huh?) Rye House (11 West 17th Street).The write-ups were intriguing enough - house-made rye? sausage, coleslaw and fries in a sandwich? - plus we are big fans of brown liquor so went in for an early look.
If you're used to speakeasies and other such quaint watering spots, you'll likely be disappointed in Rye House. The place is big - as in expect huge after work crowds big. While the wood-centered design is not unattractive, the front bar room is too wide with a set of high tables opposite the bar and a good amount of real estate between, while the back room has communal tables and booths for large groups. Not where you want to sit unless you are decor-insensitive.
But as always, it's about the drinks, and the cocktail list is off to a good start. Topping the proceedings is the off-the-list Creole Daiquiri. This is not your mom's daiquiri - it's made with Old New Orleans Rum, chorizo-infused mezcal and pomegranate molasses. Nicely balanced and quite delicious. Almost as good is the Moonshine Mountain Punch, made with Catdaddy moonshine, something we've had in other states but had not seen in NYC before. With the additions of spiced rum, grapefruit, lime, bitters and chai, this goes down oh so easily. Also intriguing was The Mansfield made with your choice of Blue Coat gin or Tito's handmade vodka, vermouth, yellow chartreuse and grapefruit bitters. Skip the vodka and go for the gin for pretty floral and herbal flavors with a kick of citrus. Unfortunately there is no house-made rye as we were led to believe - a slap on the wrist to UrbanDaddy for misleading us. Cocktails are $12 and a dozen American craft beers are also available on draft for $7.
The menu is full of offbeat takes on pub grub. Yes, the Pittsburgh sandwich is good. The spicy andouille sausage pieces are tasty if a bit unwieldy, but any sandwich with fries inside can't be bad, can it? (Actually, the fries get soggy quickly so hope your sandwich gets to you from the kitchen fast.) The star of the sandwich might well be the excellent coleslaw. Mama's fried mac & cheese came as an odd quartet of fried balls, overpriced, slightly underseasoned and not cheesy enough. The duck and foie gras quesadillas soak up the booze but lack a certain finesse like a fresh accent to cut through the richness and make them less one-note.
Since the cocktail program is interesting enough of a draw, we'll be back - as long as there is room at the bar.
If you're used to speakeasies and other such quaint watering spots, you'll likely be disappointed in Rye House. The place is big - as in expect huge after work crowds big. While the wood-centered design is not unattractive, the front bar room is too wide with a set of high tables opposite the bar and a good amount of real estate between, while the back room has communal tables and booths for large groups. Not where you want to sit unless you are decor-insensitive.
But as always, it's about the drinks, and the cocktail list is off to a good start. Topping the proceedings is the off-the-list Creole Daiquiri. This is not your mom's daiquiri - it's made with Old New Orleans Rum, chorizo-infused mezcal and pomegranate molasses. Nicely balanced and quite delicious. Almost as good is the Moonshine Mountain Punch, made with Catdaddy moonshine, something we've had in other states but had not seen in NYC before. With the additions of spiced rum, grapefruit, lime, bitters and chai, this goes down oh so easily. Also intriguing was The Mansfield made with your choice of Blue Coat gin or Tito's handmade vodka, vermouth, yellow chartreuse and grapefruit bitters. Skip the vodka and go for the gin for pretty floral and herbal flavors with a kick of citrus. Unfortunately there is no house-made rye as we were led to believe - a slap on the wrist to UrbanDaddy for misleading us. Cocktails are $12 and a dozen American craft beers are also available on draft for $7.
The menu is full of offbeat takes on pub grub. Yes, the Pittsburgh sandwich is good. The spicy andouille sausage pieces are tasty if a bit unwieldy, but any sandwich with fries inside can't be bad, can it? (Actually, the fries get soggy quickly so hope your sandwich gets to you from the kitchen fast.) The star of the sandwich might well be the excellent coleslaw. Mama's fried mac & cheese came as an odd quartet of fried balls, overpriced, slightly underseasoned and not cheesy enough. The duck and foie gras quesadillas soak up the booze but lack a certain finesse like a fresh accent to cut through the richness and make them less one-note.
Since the cocktail program is interesting enough of a draw, we'll be back - as long as there is room at the bar.
Cava may be Spain's national sparkler but finding a good one in the U.S. is really tough to do. Thankfully Tinto Fino, the excellent wine shop devoted exclusively to Spanish wine, has a good one - Avinyo Brut Reserva from Cataluna. This cava ($21) is fresh and crisp with a nice minerality. It's made from the first press of organic macabeo, parellada and xarel-lo grapes and is dry with just a hint of sweetness.If you haven't been to Tinto Fino (85 First Ave, web), it's worth a stop when you're in the East Village. Their selection of wines is impressive.
It's just been announced that Chef Ryan Skeen is out at Allen & Delancey. Though this happened yesterday, news only leaked out today that he was fired by email. Classy.
Given the number of chefs who have gone through that place, not to mention Skeen's peripatetic nature, who knows who is to blame for this... At this point, Boozy NYC is ready to write A& D off.
Given the number of chefs who have gone through that place, not to mention Skeen's peripatetic nature, who knows who is to blame for this... At this point, Boozy NYC is ready to write A& D off.
For Astor Tuesdays, Astor Wines (399 Lafayette Street) has all their wines from Germany on-sale at 15% off. For the list of 61 wines, visit their website.
Much has been written about the rough patch Allen & Delancey (115 Allen Street) has hit - the bankruptcy, revolving chefs, bizarre tweets from the current exec chef, etc - but the question these days is the place even relevant? Recently we dropped by on a Tuesday night for "Happy Night" - which apparently has been discontinued - to find a busy bar and a mostly empty dining room.
Truth be told, we weren't in a rush to get back to A&D but when we heard cocktails were half-off, we gave it a go. When we arrived, the bartender so far in the weeds he was muttering "I suck tonight." Once we got seats at the bar, we had to wait more than ten minutes to be acknowledged by him, which did not make us happy.
We perused the cocktail list by Alex Day, which is more convoluted than it needs to be with two options under each title, supposedly linked by a theme. Hey folks, we just want a good drink! So we went with Tinker's Stand #2 (rye, amaro, sherry, elderflower, benedictine, aromatic bitters) and L'Heure Verte #2 (reposado tequila, islay whiskey, agave nectar, absinthe, peychaud's and angostura bitters, lemon twist). Both drinks were good - actually L'Heure Verte #2 was quite good, but you need to tell the bartender to go easy on the agave nectar or it gets too sweet...and hope you don't get sprayed by the shaker's contents while the bartender is vigorously shaking (normally a bonus point but not with egg white landing on our faces). It just wasn't his night, was it? He did try to make it up to us with a free drink. But were the drinks enough to make up for the wait and grumpy, out-of-sorts bartender? Let's just say we didn't feel the need to hang around all night.
I won't comment on the food menu, which was small and not very appealing to us, except to note that Chef Skeen refuses to make pork toast for regular guests any more. Although he sent one to a friend sitting at the bar, this lauded dish (we've been fans since Skeen's Resto days), is no longer on the menu and the chef won't make one no matter how much you beg.
Perhaps this commenter on Yelp best sums up the experience at the bar: "The bartender seemed fairly dour, and it took a while for him to take my order. He actually ended up serving the guy next to me first, even though that guy came in five minutes after me." Chef Skeen recently tweeted that he couldn't find love in his food at Allen & Delancey and it seems there isn't much love at the bar either.
Truth be told, we weren't in a rush to get back to A&D but when we heard cocktails were half-off, we gave it a go. When we arrived, the bartender so far in the weeds he was muttering "I suck tonight." Once we got seats at the bar, we had to wait more than ten minutes to be acknowledged by him, which did not make us happy.
We perused the cocktail list by Alex Day, which is more convoluted than it needs to be with two options under each title, supposedly linked by a theme. Hey folks, we just want a good drink! So we went with Tinker's Stand #2 (rye, amaro, sherry, elderflower, benedictine, aromatic bitters) and L'Heure Verte #2 (reposado tequila, islay whiskey, agave nectar, absinthe, peychaud's and angostura bitters, lemon twist). Both drinks were good - actually L'Heure Verte #2 was quite good, but you need to tell the bartender to go easy on the agave nectar or it gets too sweet...and hope you don't get sprayed by the shaker's contents while the bartender is vigorously shaking (normally a bonus point but not with egg white landing on our faces). It just wasn't his night, was it? He did try to make it up to us with a free drink. But were the drinks enough to make up for the wait and grumpy, out-of-sorts bartender? Let's just say we didn't feel the need to hang around all night.
I won't comment on the food menu, which was small and not very appealing to us, except to note that Chef Skeen refuses to make pork toast for regular guests any more. Although he sent one to a friend sitting at the bar, this lauded dish (we've been fans since Skeen's Resto days), is no longer on the menu and the chef won't make one no matter how much you beg.
Perhaps this commenter on Yelp best sums up the experience at the bar: "The bartender seemed fairly dour, and it took a while for him to take my order. He actually ended up serving the guy next to me first, even though that guy came in five minutes after me." Chef Skeen recently tweeted that he couldn't find love in his food at Allen & Delancey and it seems there isn't much love at the bar either.
Some nights are just epic. Recently, a trip to Fort Greene turned into an epic crawl that wound up in Prospect Heights roughly six hours later. We hit five places serving food & booze - The Smoke Joint, No 7, Franny's, the Vanderbilt and Weathered Up.
First up was some disappointing bbq at The Smoke Joint (87 South Elliott Place). The ribs were just average but the black angus dog was excellent. Forget the sides or even the food - just hit the lengthy bourbon section. After starting off with yet another Manhattan knock-off called the Manhattan Bridge featuring rye and campari that was slightly heavy on the campari and much too warm, we dove into their copious bourbon selection with a dose of Hudson Baby Bourbon, which hit the spot nicely and made up for the spotty culinary selections.
Next up, No 7 and the rest...
First up was some disappointing bbq at The Smoke Joint (87 South Elliott Place). The ribs were just average but the black angus dog was excellent. Forget the sides or even the food - just hit the lengthy bourbon section. After starting off with yet another Manhattan knock-off called the Manhattan Bridge featuring rye and campari that was slightly heavy on the campari and much too warm, we dove into their copious bourbon selection with a dose of Hudson Baby Bourbon, which hit the spot nicely and made up for the spotty culinary selections.
Next up, No 7 and the rest...
Continue reading The Brooklyn Crawl.
Veranda (130 7th Ave), the new - and likely doomed - occupant of the former Sheridan Square and Tasca space, has decided to make a blatant play for the boozy masses this Friday night. For the restaurant/hookah bar's opening, Urban Daddy is reporting they will have an open bar from 9pm - 11pm on... Friday the 13th.
Someone should have told them this isn't the best day to open in a doomed space. Perhaps they'll break the curse, but then again, probably not.
Someone should have told them this isn't the best day to open in a doomed space. Perhaps they'll break the curse, but then again, probably not.
Take it away Paul...
One of New York's best kept secrets is tiny Sorella (95 Allen Street) on the Lower East Side. We've dropped by a few times since it first opened almost a year ago and this cozy spot has gotten better - our first visit was a bit rocky but the issues we had seem to have been worked out. While there is a full fledged dining room in the back, we prefer to sit at the bar and nibble some of the small plates and drink lots of interesting wines, which are predominantly from Northern Italy.Recently we dropped by and enjoyed the delicious veal sweetbreads, tajarin pasta with lamb ragu and agnolotti. But the wine list is what always gets us excited - it's clearly put together with care and is full of unusual, often excellent choices by the glass (over two dozen in all). The list is well priced - most wines by the glass are $10 - $13 and these days the pours are healthy. In the mood for sparkling, we tried the Lambrusco di Sorbara from Emilia Romagna ($10) and the sparkling Kerner from Veneto ($12). Both were very good and worked perfectly with the food.
If you're in the neighborhood, pop into the bar and try them out. If you're looking for interesting, well crafted food and adventurous wine choices, you won't be disappointed.
Tomorrow from 4pm to 7pm, Chambers Street Wines (160 Chambers Street) showcases affordable wines from Bordeaux. Sample 12 wines, mostly organic or biodynamic, all priced from $12.99 to $34.99.
Scotch is one of our big things and tonight you can taste four different single malts at Astor Wines & Spirits (399 Lafayette) including one of our faves Lagavullin 16 (which is cheaper at nearby Warehouse Wines on Broadway). In addition to the four scotches, they will be tasting a couple of wines from Austria and California.
Scotch tasting tonight 5pm - 8pm, wine tasting 6pm - 8pm
Free
Scotch tasting tonight 5pm - 8pm, wine tasting 6pm - 8pm
Free
