Five Trends - Cocktails for 2009!
1.) Bar Chefs
Anyone can mix together ingredients, pour these into a glass and say, 'there's your drink.' A 'bar chef', however, utilizes all that is around him or her, bringing these components into a perfectly balanced concoction.
And citrus rinds are no longer just for garnishes. Bar Chefs lace them with powdered egg whites or sugar, freeze, and then use these delicacies as the pièce de résistance atop elegant, freshly created cocktails!
2.) Nature in a Glass
The trend in 2009 will be to return to nature utilizing what planet Earth has given since the beginning of time...fresh fruit and vegetables that can be 'muddled' for the perfect drink, organic teas, rose water, natural and sparkling waters from pure sources around the globe, and even bamboo skewers, which recycle themselves.
3.) Old-School Drinks with a New Twist
Old-School drinks are making a come back, and bar staffs are hitting their little black books for the recipes! Knowing what is in a 'Sidecar,' for example, is just as important as knowing what other ingredients may be substituted to bring this classic drink to a new level for customers in 2009 and beyond.
4.) Globally Infused Spirits
Remember the days when bars displayed large obtrusive glass containers that had unsightly fruit or other secret ingredients "infusing" into the spirits? Today there are select distilleries at home and abroad that have mastered the techniques of infusing or 'complementing' their branded spirits, and these infusions are being warmly embraced globally.
5.) Secrets of the Forgotten Liqueurs & Cordials
What are those 'other' liqueurs hiding behind the front wall of spirits at the bar? These forgotten liqueurs or cordials are some of the best ingredients to enhance a specialty cocktail: Drambuie, Benedictine, Galliano, Pernod, Sambuca, Absinthe, Licor 43, Chartreuse, Grand Marnier and Amaretto -- just to name a few.
Did you know??
3-Day advance purchase tickets for the first Woodstock (1969), were $18.00. The price at the gate, $24.
Jim Morrison (of the 60's rock group The Doors) was the first rock star to be arrested on stage.
REVIEW
Cool River, Homer Glen
Recently I stopped in this Blues establishment with clients after a work function for a drink and a little music. The crowd was casual, with everything from jeans and work boots to dress pants and a tie. There was a band singing the blues and a few people dancing along to the beat. We sat at the bar, a large area with plenty of seating for all too see the band, yet quite enough to have a conversation. A couple next to us had been out to dinner at a nearby establishment and stopped for a quite nightcap to complete their evening. A group of ladies were celebrating a friend’s birthday and having a good old time. I will definitely stop in here again with the girls.