I don’t know what it’s like where you live, but here in Seattle, summer is taking its time to roll around. On Friday, though, the forecast says we’ll be in the 80s, and with Memorial Day fast approaching, it looks like gin & tonic season is here. Too bad I hate them like poison. Well, maybe I should put that in past tense. Until recently, pouring a gin and tonic typically entailed cracking the lid on a plastic liter bottle, and pouring a fizzy, somewhat oily mix of carbonated water, high-fructose corn syrup and assorted flavorings over ice with a good belt of gin. To my taste, it’s too sweet and synthetically bitter at the same time, and on those...
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Photograph from Ken30684 on Flickr In case you’ve somehow missed all media coverage of drink trends in recent years, let me fill you in on something: gin is in. In today’s Los Angeles Times, staff writer Betty Hallock notes the continuing fondness for the juniper spirit among bartenders nationwide. For decades, starting in the 1950s, it looked like gin was on the ropes, its once-strong grip on the culture of mixology eclipsed by the more approachable vodka. But with the current cocktail renaissance, gin is again in vogue. A quick glance at the shelves of your liquor store could tell you this much: new brands and bottlings of premium and artisan gins are continuing to push the tired cases of...
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One of the newest and most acclaimed gins to arrive is the Philadelphia-distilled
Bluecoat. Described as an “American Dry” gin, Bluecoat uses organic juniper, citrus peels and other botanicals to create a crisp, bright spirit.
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