A Julep A Day #4

Old cocktail.

Old Hollywood.

Mint Julep:

  

Made with:

• Old Forester Signature (100 proof)
• Locally-grown mint from Jamestown’s BioDome Project.

On The Bar — Mint Julep

A Julep A Day #3    

A Julep A Day #2

Sugar, splash water, mint, ice & bourbon:

  
Made with:

• Old Forester Signature (100 proof)
• Locally-grown mint from Jamestown’s BioDome Project.

A Julep A Day #1

Sugar, splash water, mint, ice & bourbon:  

Made with:

• Old Forester Signature (100 proof)
• Locally-grown mint from Jamestown’s BioDome Project.

Antique Shopping In Salamanca

Another weekend come-and-gone, and another Sunday out at antique shops.

Today my wife and I were at the Antiques Mall in Salamanca, N.Y.

I always find something to buy at this location, like this bitters bottle from a few years back.

And while I did score a couple of cocktail books today, this photo post is more about what I didn’t buy:

  
Pictured above is a nice-looking “traveling bartender” set I saw today in Salamanca. It’s a neat set, but I’ve got a really good one that’s a little older than this — which I’ll have to feature in a post some day.

 

This rye whiskey jug was selling for $79 at the Antiques Mall.

And lastly, a zodiac-themed ice bowl with a strainer and bar spoon:

  

New To Me: Gran Classico

This was my main purchase from yesterday’s stop at Bag & String:

  

Bitters At Bag & String

Shot this pic today while shopping for booze at Bag & String in Lakewood:

  

Throwback Thursday — BJ’s Fredonia

I posted about BJ’s back on Easter.

I love this picture:

  
That’s not me in the picture, but I took the photo.

It was a sight I saw daily back in the mid-2000s, that bar.

I believe that’s Todd’s arm. And that’s the bar from back before the fire. So much stuff on the walls.

On The Bar — Dark ‘n’ Stormy

Using the “On The Bar” app.

I downloaded it a long time ago, when it was mostly all just Boston-area bartenders who were using it. But it looks like it’s spread far and wide, so hopefully we can get a bunch of people using it in Jamestown!

  

Further Reading:
— Recipes for a Dark ‘n’ Stormy

— A link to something similar, but different.

— And I know, I know… It’s gotta be Gosling’s.

Bittermens Available At Five & 20

Need a little something extra to take your mixology game to the next level?

Well, whille I was tasting spirits and craft beer at Five & 20 in Westfield yesterday, I noticed that they’re selling several Bittermens products alongside their in-house products and other merch.

Here’s a picture I took of their selection:

  

More than just bitters, Bittermens makes Citrates and Shrubs. More on those in a minute, but first, here’s a list of the bottles I saw on display at Five & 20 yesterday:

BITTERMENS AT FIVE & 20:

• Boston Bittahs
• Burlesque Bitters
• ‘Elemakule Tiki Bitters
• Hopped Grapefruit Bitters
• Orange Cream Citrate
• Orchard Street Celery Shrub
• Xocolatl Mole Bitters

Small batch bitters have become extremely desirable in recent years as the ongoing renaissance in craft cocktails and mixology continues to boom.

Bittermens makes all its products by hand at its New Orleans facility from primarily organic ingredients. The company was founded by Avery and Janet Glasser and dates back to early 2007, when the pair were trying to make an extract of a traditional Mexican cooking sauce — which became their Xocolatl Mole Bitters.

There’s more info about the company and their products online at Bittermens.com.

CITRATES & SHRUBS:

For their Orange Cream Citrate, Bittermens uses citric acid instead of phosphoric acid to create an orange tincture that’s a riff on the classic sodajerk orange cream soda syrup.

A “Shrub” is also known as “drinking vinegar,” a beverage that dates back to colonial times and is made by combining vinegars with sugar and either fruits or vegetables. I made raspberry and blueberry shrubs last summer, as I posted here. And Bittermens produces a celery shrub, which Five & 20 is currently selling.

Where else can you get bitters in Chautauqua County?

•BAG & STRING — If you’re looking for even more craft bitters, check out Bag & String. Last time I was in the Lakewood shop, they were stocking four flavors by The Bitter Truth — as well as a sampler pack which the company offers.

•WEGMANS — Wegmans usually has both Angostura and Fee Brothers. Most all the other supermarkets in the county only have Angostura as far as I’ve seen.

•CHAUTAUQUA RESTAURANT SUPPLY — Located down by McCrea Point in Jamestown is Chautauqua Restaurant Supply — where last time I checked, they stock Fee Brothers.

•FORTE — Lastly, if you come see me at Forte in Jamestown, we currently have The Bitter Truth’s grapefruit bitters and Peychaud’s in addition to Angostura, Fee Brothers and Angostura Orange. Of course, unlike the avove mentioned locations, our bitters aren’t for sale. We just keep a variety in house for shaking up cocktails.