Cocktail week has come and gone here in San Francisco, and while I enjoyed a class on house-made bar ingredients, the star of the celebration was the cocktail — or, I should say, cocktails! San Francisco's bartending scene is incredibly unique, not just because there is an emphasis on fresh, in-season products, homemade ingredients, and wild creativity, but because of the camaraderie. The bartenders don't keep their recipes and ideas a secret, they share them with each other, making for an atmosphere that is educational, thriving, and fabulous. Here is a look at some of the concoctions that were made for the event.
Learn How to Make Your Own Bar Ingredients
Last week it was Cocktail Week here in San Francisco and I was lucky enough to attend a bunch of the events. The highlight was Thursday's bar school — a day of education. Since I'm an avid home mixologist, I checked out the House-Made Ingredients How-To taught by Jeff Hollinger, general manager at Absinthe, and Neyah White, bartender extraordinaire at Nopa.
In the drinks industry, both Jeff and Neyah are pioneers when it comes to creating bitters, cordials, tinctures, syrups, etc. The duo has made it its mission to bring back the craft of cocktail making one bottle of bitters at a time. To check out their tips for making bar ingredients at home and see a gallery of images from the class, read more
Can You Identify These Classic Cocktails?
It's Cocktail Week here in San Francisco and after attending several of the events, I can't stop thinking about mojitos, mixology, and Manhattans. Since many of you don't live in the city by the bay, I thought it would be cool for you get in on the fun by taking this classic cocktail quiz. I'll list the ingredients and you select the name of the drink. Disclaimer: you may find yourself craving a potent libation!
Noteworthy Nibbles — May 5-12, 2009
Many of you are gearing up for Mother's Day, but if you've got some time to spare, there are plenty of enjoyable events worth checking out. There are two national events to note: You can celebrate American Craft Beer Week (find out what is happening in your neck of the woods) and on Saturday, help fight hunger at the Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive.
Here at Yum, we're all over the specials going on during Sexy Dishes Week and the new cocktails being showcased at SF Cocktail Week. Where will you be?
- Humboldt, TN: West Tennessee Strawberry Festival — May 3-9
- Bay Area, CA: Sexy Dishes Week — May 4-8
- Atlanta, GA: Taste of the Nation Atlanta — May 6
- Manchester, NH: Taste of the Nation Manchester — May 6
- Hartford, CT: Taste of the Nation Hartford — May 7
- Las Vegas, NV: Vegas Uncork'd — May 7-10
- New Orleans, LA: World Cocktail Week in the Big Easy — May 8
To see the rest, read more
Happy Hour: Negroni
It's cocktail week here in San Francisco and a whole bunch of the city by the bay's best bartenders are participating in celebrating the dynamic beverage community. This is the first year this event has been hosted and many popular bars, lounges, and restaurants are contributing by featuring two limited edition specialty cocktails: one classic recipe and one innovative concoction. As I browsed through the list of cocktails, I noticed two places were offering a negroni as their classic cocktail. Invented in Florence, Italy in the 1900s, a negroni is often consumed as an aperitif to stimulate the appetite. For the recipe (if you are an aspiring mixologist you better learn how to make this!) read more