All About: The Vieux Carre

Tales of the Cocktail gets underway later this week, where cocktail ambassadors, bartenders and enthusiasts alike will gather for five days in the American birthplace of the cocktail, New Orleans.

Imbibe Magazine reminded me of one of the city's most quintessential drinks by posting a link via Twitter to the Vieux Carre recipe. The drink recipe utilizes rye whiskey and is made in a style that is unique to US cocktail history.

As such, a variation on the Vieux Carre will be among the two recipes featured during the upcoming sold-out Tales of the Cocktail seminar, The European Bartending Perspective. The seminar, to be moderated by Jonathan Pogash and feature European panelists Simon Difford, Nicolas de Soto and Dushan Zaric, is designed as an open forum for discussing impressions of the American cocktail scene and how it may - or may not! - be so different from bartending across the pond.

The Vieux Carre recipe designed for the seminar does vary slightly from the traditional 1930s recipe by removing the cognac and instead swapping in the cognac-based orange liqueuer Mandarine Napoléon. This will give the Vieux Carre a slightly sweeter taste, but still stay true to the American classic. Here's the variation:

Vieux Carre:

• 0.5 oz Mandarine Napoléon
• 1 oz Sazerac Rye Whiskey
• 1 oz Dolin Sweet Vermouth
• 1 dash Benedictine
• 1 dash Peychauds Bitters
• 1 dash Angostura Bitters

Mixing Technique: Stir and garnish with a luxardo cherry.

To see more of where seminar sponsor Mandarine Napoléon will be during the week of Tales of the Cocktail, follow the brand on Facebook or Twitter.

Cheers!

BAT Recap: Highlights from the Manhattan Cocktail Classic

Bartenders, media, and cocktail enthusiasts alike all seem to have finally recovered from the five-day event known as the Manhattan Cocktail Classic and are reliving their (albeit, blurred) memories on blogs and in traditional media.

I had the opportunity to pop into Manhattan for the Classic and for the chance to meet with our clients in Holland from Mandarine Napoleon. And for us, the Manhattan Cocktail Classic was both educational and celebratory in nature.

For the educational:
The final afternoon of the event found myself and the gentlemen of Mandarine Napoleon at The Big Orange seminar, an inside look at curaçao and cocktails hosted by BAR partners David Wondrich and Steven Olson.

Here’s the setup of goodies we got to taste:

It was really fascinating to do a side-by-side tasting of the different curaçaos, triple secs, and orange liqueurs and pick up their different characteristics. It was my first opportunity to sip on curaçao of the Curacao island itself and, I must say, it was my favorite from the afternoon. The Creole Shurb – not so much. It was too hot and I kept tasting rum when I had a sample. We got to sample a few cocktails as well (it just wouldn’t be the MCC without that component!). Mixologists stirred up a White Lady (gin, Cointreau, lemon juice, and syrup), along with a classic Tequila Daisy – better known as the Margarita.

And for the fun:
Monday evening found myself, Steve, the Mandarine execs, Simon Difford, and Simon’s lovely girlfriend Diana eating dinner and imbibing at Keen’s Chophouse. Great conversation carried itself on to Pegu Club (I had the bar’s signature cocktail – fab!), followed by an appearance at PDT (I had the Shiso Delicious, another delight with gin). But aren't stories usually told in pictures, anyways? Here's a few to our delight.

Cheers!

The Pegu Club cocktail at - where else? - Pegu Club

Kenta Goto of Pegu Club (center) with Diana and Simon

Simon (left) shows off his personal key!!! to PDT, accompanied by Rotterdam's Barrelproof bartender, Arno van Eijmeren.

I got to wield the power of the PDT key, if only for a few brief moments.

Simon and Steve sip cocktails at PDT.