Blog « Blood & Sand

Chapeau Cocktail – Tribute to Bradley Wiggins

So today at the 99th attempt, Great Britain has all but produced her first winner of cycling’s toughest race, the Tour de France. Not only that but a British 1-2 with Chris Froome behind the man with the awesome grips, Bradley Wiggins. Chapeau. All that remains is to complete the job tomorrow in the processional final stage up the Champs Élysées. And perhaps also deliver a sixth team stage win if Mark Cavendish can win the group sprint.

So why ...

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22
JUL

Categories: Cocktail Recipes

Tags: bitters, chartreuse, cocktails, RG's, Rye

Shuijingfang cocktails1

Shuijingfang Baijiu Cocktails Part 1 – Classics

I have been living and bartending in China for 3 1/2 years now. Over the course of that time I have tried to taste a few Chinese baijius from a professional perspective (as well as from a social one over dinner!) and write some tasting notes as well as some background on the production of baijiu itself.

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3
JUL

Categories: Articles, Baijiu, Cocktail Recipes

Tags: Baijiu, Cocktail, Diageo, PM's, shuijingfang, Swellfun, 中国白酒, 水井坊

Gerry’s Soho Manhattan

I spent the day in central London today doing some early casing of possible locations for a second bar (more dreaming than anything else at this stage), but while walking through Soho made a first visit to the wonderful drinks emporium which is Gerry’s on Old Compton Street. If you haven’t been then drop everything and do. Get on a plane if you have to.

So I didn’t go in for anything specific but just wandered around picking things ...

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18
MAY

Categories: Cocktail Recipes

Tags: bittermen's, chartreuse, cynar, RG's, Rye

The Yellow Emperor

A baijiu ‘enthusiast’ by the name of Derek Sandhaus recently paid me a visit with a bottle of Erguotou (二锅头) and a challenge – make him a tasty drink.

Given he’d been drinking neat baijiu with a senior representative of the brand all day, I’m not sure his palate was at its finest, but he seemed to like the results.

I’m terrible at naming drinks (I tend to use generic classifiers like ‘flip’, ‘sour’ or ...

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28
APR

Categories: Baijiu, Cocktail Recipes

Tags: Baijiu, cocktails, Erguotou, PM's, 中国白酒, 二锅头

Fernet and Cola Flip

Tried Luxardo Fernet for the first time yesterday. Bought a bottle today and have been playing around with it…

Given the recent bartender-driven popularity of Fernet & Coke, I thought I’d play around with a twist. Fernet and Cola Flip was the result.

30ml Luxardo Fernet
25ml Tanqueray Gin
25ml reduced cola syrup*
25ml lemon juice
1 egg

Double shaken (preferably with block ice to limit the dilution) and fine strain into a coupette.

I ...

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6
MAR

Categories: Cocktail Recipes

Tags: Cocktail, cola, Egg, fernet, Flip, Gin, lemon juice, PM's, Sour

Shanghai White

Shanghai White has been around for more than two years now, but unless you live in Shanghai or Hong Kong, chances are you won’t have seen or tasted it. I’ve just managed to acquire a bottle, so thought I’d give brief overview.

Part of Diageo’s portfolio, it is produced in Chengdu at the ShuiJingFang distillery, more famous as one of China’s oldest Baijiu distilleries (China’s National Cultural Relics Bureau has certified it as China’s First Baijiu Distillery, dating back to 1408).

Price-point ...

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27
FEB

Categories: Articles, Baijiu

Tags: Baijiu, China, Diageo, PM's, Shanghai, shuijingfang, World Class, 中国白酒, 水井坊

Martinez variation

So a quick variation on the Martinez, the richer, sweeter grandparent of the martini. Should you use gin, a more authentic old tom gin, or even a properly old school genever? Well I went for the last two answers in even measure. The twists came in the form of the vermouth or vermouths used and with the addition of anise. Altogether a rather wonderful and complex drink.

20ml Oude Genever
20ml Jensen old Tom gin
20ml Nardini Rabararo rhubarb amaro
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11
FEB

Categories: Cocktail Recipes

Tags: anise, Gin, Grand Marnier, orange bitters, RG's, vermouth

Beetroot bitters pt 1, 2 & 3

26th February 2012

So now to blend. First thing is that there has clearly been rather a lot of oxidation in the raw beetroot infusion which is now a distinctly rusty coloured deep red. By contrast the roasted beetroot infusion is still a clear purple red. In future I think I would just go with roasted which also has a rounder more complex flavour.

First blend

50ml raw beetroot infusion
25ml roasted beetroot infusion
15ml quinine sulphate tablet infusion
10ml cardamom, mustard ...

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5
FEB

Categories: Cocktail Recipes

Tags: bitters, RG's

Ocho Mole Alexander

This week I was lucky enough to get a ticket (in fact two) for a tequila tasting organised by Emma, Kate and Mark of the London Cocktail Society. The tasting (really an impassioned speech followed by a tasting) was given by Tomas Estes.

Tomas part-owns Ocho tequila which is made by Carlos Camarena, master-distiller at La Alteña distillery in Jalisco, Mexico. La Alteña was opened in 1937 by Don Felipe, grandfather to Carlos, and himself the scion of ...

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5
FEB

Categories: Cocktail Recipes

Tags: Ocho, RG's, Tequila

Aperol (Picon) bière

I felt like a Picon bière this evening – the French bitter orange aperitif dropped into a cold, refreshing draught lager. Unfortunately Amer Picon has yet to make it to Beijing, and I hadn’t made prior importing arrangements – so had to improvise. Keeping the bitter theme, I chose Aperol as a close cousin (rhubarb as well as the bitter orange – together with quinine and gentian at least in common), but it doesn’t quite have the same bitter bite – ...

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2
FEB

Categories: Cocktail Recipes

Tags: Aperol, beer, bitters, Picon, PM's, recipe

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