VIP Stylings & Lucid Streets: Tales Of The Cocktail 2010 - Feature - Part I
The permeation of the cocktail culture continues to proliferate with astounding accuracy but the question becomes one of moderation versus the all consuming style. While certain structures of presentation are expected and reveled in places such as New York, Miami and Boston, the integration to the mid range arenas as well as a burgeoning industry overseas points to meditative approach in the coming years to the idea of the cocktail.Tales Of The Cocktail, the annual mixology and brand mecca that continues to grow in its awareness in the United States within the resolute destination known as New Orleans, seeks to broaden its horizons in presenting both elements of industry and pop culture but the middle ground unlike needs to be closed a little.Unlike years before, the attendance, which is a good sign, was overwhelming but because of lack of separation between actual industry players from bartenders to owners to distillers to the drink enthusiasts, the specifics of the event at times got off track simply because the questions were not applicable and, at times, amateurish within the structured pack. This was undeniably apparent within the tastings where the art of distilling sometimes was lost because people just wanted to the idea of a free sample, which is antithetical to the idealized nature of these proceedings.Granted there has to be a ying and a yang to the possibilities simply because all publicity affords the progression of the brands which, in greater degree, are making their presence known. In a specific structure, many of the events switched from the French Quarter to the Warehouse District offering a different feeling even as the lightning of a tropical depression approached.In resolute idealization, the separation must be maintained between the VIP events that industry frequents versus the melee of the tasting rooms which did offer some interesting new tastes, specifically in the highlighting of harder liquors, specifically whiskies in comparison to the absinthe craze of last year.
The kickoff reception, consistent with last year's fete, commenced by a time-starved essence of a ride aboard the Beefeater Double Decker from London, arrived through the music-fueled daze to the Contemporary Arts Center where an Alice In Wonderland theme bathed in dark red hues and concentric lines led guests through a series of oak stained rooms.
As ladels of watermelon juice bathed in a sweet mix of gin, the standard of drink progression requited with the idea of heavy simple syrups helped alter the tastes. The Lapsang Martinez mixing Beefeater 64 and Lillet Rouge offered a dense taste which, while sour in tone, tended to fade in its follow through.
After an integration of penne with tasso sauce and chicken and sausage jambalaya which offered a beginning tangy tip, the Perfect Lady mixing the brand with a peach liquer and egg whites gave too much of a spritz taste without a creamy antecedent.
As the Beefeater master distiller, highlighted in his Hawaiian shirt-style, made the rounds mixing his ideals in pace, the Jasmine which mixed orange liqueur shaken with lemon juice and "a whisker of Campari" succeeded because its citrus notes balanced the idea of gin & juice bitterness providing for a smooth and effervescent cocktail.The Elms Mansion soiree directly following brought the essence of New Orleans down home into clearer focus as the sprawling old school lines of the estate spread from the smoldering night outside into the cool realm of the intimate sprawl of the labryinth house.
The library of sorts played host to the fitting Glenfiddich tome as the comfortable smoky taste of the Balvenie 21, rich and dark in its consistency, dominated the progression of the evening. As the balance of men and women enjoyed its countenance, the surprising insistency was the older ideology and simple taste that seemed to resonate more than the other complex cocktails in the house.
Stoli gave the inference a run for its money one room over in the sitting parlor with a fruity concotion part mojito in its identity called Raspberry Port Mash which resurrected the idea of a smooth cocktail optimizing only a brief number of ingredients.
In the study, Sailor Jerry Rum, understanding the beauty of girls in dress and high heels, provided the mood center of the evening despite a cocktail named Stormin' Norman which, while accepting its motivation as a spiced rum of note, overaccented its intent with an imbalance of tonic.
Outside in the vision of the night, Lillet understood the aspect of lightness with the definition of "bitter" in its Le Bessonville Cocktail but, like many of the concoctions of the foretold days, the influence of many ingredients including Stoli Peach, Bols Lychee & Agave Liquer and two whole strawberries spoke to the organic bent of the proceedings. Served chilled in a martini glass, the cocktail, in its countenance and lithe presentation, offered a welcome respite.
Roots held the vantage position above the fray as a jazz band played in the foyer below mirroring as the lights swirled. The Coal Cracker's Buck offered a frothy iced tea progression in paradox to the otherwise still beauty of the property. Hudson American Whiskey, sampled in the back structure of Clemente tasting the year prior, offered a Little New York sour bathed in campari that spiked the nostrils with a bit of flair.
Late night provided a quiet and VIP vision of Bacardi in the bowels of the Royal Sonesta on Bourbon. As the pinnacles of Cuban Jazz reverberated through the walls, the essence of a paradox in Something Dark reflected with a Cointreau/Peach/Spiced Rum concoction from Bacardi's master mixologist as the notes of piano chords echoed throughout the evening.
The Cocktail Hour, hosted by Diageo at the Cabildo, offered the overwhelming structure of cocktails progressed through the decades in a futuristic idealization provided in the back corners of the 3rd Floor of the venue. Most of the interludes envisioned the ideas of new progressions allowing for molecular mixology which presses with prevalent insistence.
With the entrance permeated in the ideals of the early 1900s, Bulleit Bourbon first hit the structure in The Booth by mixing the spirit with Camparo Antica, Moet Imperial and Angostura Bitters for a refreshing but vivid outlay while Jose's Bronx, which is a modern reinvention of the original Bronx Cocktail, mixes Jose Cuervo Reposado with both sweet and dry vermouth with a splash of orange juice in an underwhelming but accurate portrayal of said drink. Continuing within the first decade era, the Honey Fitz, created by Jackson Cannon of Boston's Eastern Standard, identifies itself as a homage to John Fitzgerald who was the paternal grandfather of the later president. The drink itself mixes sweet and bitters using Zanacapa Rum 23 with honey syrup and grapefruit juice that creates a dexterious dynamic exemplifying the drink.Moving into the second decade of cocktail progression, The Day Bell, created by Josh Habiger at The Patterson House in Nashville, uses the base of Bulleit again but triggers certain repercussions with the addition of Ramazotti Amaro, Campari, Grand Mariner, Moet and a pinch of salt to create a taste both diversifying but ultimately respondent. The Singapore Sling, a requisite standard, gets the psychic treatment via Fred Sarkis at the Sable Kitchen & Bar in Chicago. The inherent mix, permeating a continuing trend shows a variety of mixes with a swirl of brands including Benedictine and Grand Mariner in addition to Tangueray Dry Gin, Pineapple Juice and Grenadine to create a lithe but, at times, diverging drink.The most exceptional, within the decade structure, understood the simple divergence of a solitary brand to maintain focus. The Aviation No. 1, presented by Simon Difford of The Cabinet Room in London, encapsulated the use of Tangueray while adding pinches of Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur and Benoit Serres Creme de Violette giving a lithe lavender taste without avoiding the simple bitterness of the gin itself.Ascending to the mid-range of the three-floor structure, the divergent flags highlight the rays of heat seeping onto the divergent masses in a universally dissected mix of brands and cocktails.
Accepting the mid century ideals of the 1940s with a bit of humor, the Mexican Firing Squad, initially envisioned in 1941 gets an update via Thomas Klus of The Blue Hour in Portland, Oregon using a slight boost in the herbal essence of the Tiki Hibiscus Grenadine along with Don Julio and lime juice to distinctify the bullet points perhaps smoothed over in earlier incarnations.
The Queens Road, also hailing from the decade, and envisioned by Lynette Marrero of The Rye House in NYC, flitters to the more florid flavors with a distinct divergence in tone using honey syrup and candied ginger while mixing Zancapa and orange juice to a resolute finish.Continuing to the echelon within the 3rd Floor of The Cabildo, the 1980s flair shows an ideology of the ego as The Don Johnson, created by James Menite of The Porter House in NYC, twists on the idea of the Cosmopolitan by darkening the structure beyond a Ketel One Orange base mixing Solerno Blood Orange Liqueur, Pomegranate and White Cranberry juice to make a vicious showing worthy of the cartels.
However the new progression at the very pinnacle of the foray involved two different approaches to the idea of new mixology. While a shackled ice twist of the neat variety showed promise, it was the Corpse Retriever using liquid nitrogen that throttled the imagination via a bar expert from Taiwan while his Dehydrated Rum & Coke using pastry rocks and a liquid dabble engineered specifically to a taste heartily impressed with multiple gasps.
Late night at Generations Hall, Grand Marnier hosted the VIP Bar Room Brawl in a sprawling multi-level structure where a variety of hometown bars from throughout the United States competed on a set list of specified drinks using the vision of their inherent structure, not to say a few pure shots didn't make their way through as the mixers quickly disappeared.
From the second story structure, the main competitors gave pace with the band onstage providing the tempo as the rhythm induced revelers encouraged the frenetic ideology. One enthusiastic partygoer even stripped down to his UK bikini briefs before quickly being escorted out of the venue by security to sustained applause as tumbler shots of Mariner continued.
From The Florida Room at Hotel Delano in South Beach Miami, the visceral care conceived within the Cascade Cobbler with its dark Spanish style uniforms revolving in the flickering candlelight, the envision of cool lying in congruence with the highly regarded style mecca using the mix of Lustau Los Arcos Sherry, George Dickel 12, Grand Mariner, figs and strawberries to full effect.
Across the structure of the main floor in more down-home possibility, Drink, out of Boston, which took home the best US Bar accolade for the competition that night, throttled with the Alicante, served chilled in a martini glass with delicious repercussions using Van Ousten Batavia Arrack, Noilly Prat Drt Vermouth & Angostura Orange & Bettermens Mole Bitters to pop the taste with a deluge of flavor.
As the band pushed into the night with a irrepressible bitter-mixed Mariner bullet blend, the entire hall raised the shooters in style raging the lateness to come.The Beam Cocktail Excursion down Convention Center Blvd. at the old Sugar Mill further developed the idea of the base lithe drink ruminating in the back of the mind of many a distiller using the personication of different worldly structures to identify the progression of lost tastes.
Holland began the vision bathed in white with the inset of Effen Vodka made to sweetly ingratiate the mind with thoughts of mile-high indulgence. The Fresh Start cocktail mixing Campari, Funk White Peach and the Black Cherry label of the brand allowed for a light melt of sweet without overcoming the tartness of the vodka.
Kentucky, using the essentials of the Beam brand, bloomed with taste using a more undue approach with one of its labels within the structure of Red Stag as held-back lounge chairs and a banjo player placed revelers in the mindset of the back hills as Master Distiller Fred Noe spoke of intonations of note and the incumbent barbecue that rocks Bourbonfest every year.The resolute intonation within Stag's Black Cherry Manhattan offered with simple Angostura Bitters, the label and Marischino was perfectly encapsulated and one of the more surprising intonations of the function.
The Password Protected VIP Lounge swirled with the piano stylings of old Prohibition further inclining the returning cool of the Roaring Twenties inherent in the young minds of the attendees as lithe gangster sheik tendencies swirl around the floor. The straight throttle of Grand Classic Bitters & George 12 shots highlighted by the high functionality of the Firehouse & Embry Pittsburgh Crew showed inherent community incumbent in the national pizza and cocktail pursuit.
Pursuant to the Tales' conclusion swathed in the Bartender's Breakfast at The Chicory, the death of a maligned cocktail by an authentic funeral progression to its place of rest marked the occasion as lightning thundered overhead. Rain showered as a dance of mourning clad-in-black sisters of love layed down the funk as flashing sirens led the reverend intensified parade of death signifying the loss of "Sex On The Beach" culminating in the puddle soaked drench of the venue's hold.
The Bartender's Breakfast, again hosted by Plymouth Gin, at The Chicory surged on multiple floors as the procession drew the crowd in spaghetti-sized waves while hospitality maven Simon Ford of Beefeater soothed the masses. Entering the ascending marble staircase, the surroundings of the main room bathed in blue gave way to the music that boomed beneath. Upon persuading with the local talent, the intent made true pointed to the back corner of the adjoining suite where the tiki persuasion made its presence known.
Using cut pinneaples and tiki goblets finessing the air of the Fizz and Dacquiri persuasions with the swirling masses, the lines continued unabated as the blenders swirled creating the cream enhanced cocktails that added a tinge of sweet and foam to the otherwise bitter flavors that belied last year's fun but overtly structured gin idealization.In creating the basis on the VIP Events highlighting the dexterity of the internal swath of the mixology industry, the battle of complex cocktails versus the interestingly accelerated base liquors such as whiskey shows two elements. The changing ideals of the brands and the expanding allure of this annual event which explores both the private and public personas to extending degrees requires a further refinement of the event process. Tales Of The Cocktail is an exceptional event and, in evolving, will need to assess its strengths and weaknesses to truly blossom into not just a local but global industry destination.