Posted by Emily Koh, August 4, 2008 at 10:45 AM
Francis Lam of Gourmet wants mixologists to know that they should nix the fancy title because in the end, they're really just bartenders. Lam understands that making elaborate drinks is a serious craft, but is it a revolutionary profession? Do they deserve a new word? And is "mixologist" too pompous? Besides, being called a bartender isn't so bad. There are plenty of good things a bartender does, according to Lam:
"They give that broken-hearted bastard an ear and a dram and a kind word. They keep a birthday party happy. They lube up a first date... They make a bar worth going to."
Looks like Lam should have done some fact-checking, though—commenters have already pointed out that "mixologist" is a standard 19th century reference, and isn't some new-fangled term those cocktail creators whipped up. Oops. [via Eater]
Posted by Paul Clarke, December 12, 2007 at 2:00 PM
Nothing puts your guests in the holiday spirit like a little holiday spirits. From books to bottles to shakers and bitters, there are plenty of gift ideas from the cocktail world that can add pizzazz to celebrations throughout the year.
Prices don't include shipping unless otherwise noted.
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Posted by Paul Clarke, August 8, 2007 at 5:30 PM
In last Friday’s San Francisco Chronicle, drinks writer Gary Regan offered readers a brief guide to the basics and terminology for ordering a drink.
I wish I’d had such a lesson when I was first starting to frequent bars. Throughout my twenties and well into my thirties, I was a dedicated beer drinker—partially because I really liked beer but also because I was so flummoxed when ordering an actual cocktail. There were so many options that left me mystified—what drink, what spirit, what brand, shaken or stirred, straight up or on the rocks, with a twist or no—that I simply didn’t know the answers to provide in order to get a drink I’d like. Part of the reason I started to delve into mixology was so I could decipher the language of the bar, figure out what different spirits taste like, and know how to ask for a decent drink.
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