Martini cocktails, martini bars and martini culture
Sometimes, when I am in a cocktail-friendly city like Madrid, I like to choose my bar not by looking at rankings and reviews, nor by asking friends and fellow barflies. I just open a (google) map, pick a bar that inspires me, and just try it. I did that with the Harvey's cocktail bar, in …
I am always suspicious when it comes to articles containing rankings like this one by Punch, mainly because there are sooo many gins and sooo many preferences that listing a few does not do justice to the field. Still, it is always good to read why great bartenders prefer one gin, and whet they use …
Continue reading "The Best Gin for Martinis, According to Bartenders"
The Raffles Hotel opened in 1887, named after Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of Singapore. Since then, it has been the place for politicians, movie stars and other interesting characters from around the world. In 1915, The Long Bar was established as the "american bar" of the hotel, and came to fame because here the …
Continue reading "Legendary bars: The Long Bar at Raffles Hotel (Singapore)"
In this article, Emma Janzen explores the story and the contemporary role of bitters within Martinis, concluding that "bitters have not secured a definitive role in the modern Martini". And the conversation goes on here. Initially, bitters were a staple in Martini recipes, but the trend diminished post-Prohibition as bartending simplified, leading to a bitters-less …
Continue reading "Article review: Where are the Bitters in my martini?"
Am existential question that every barfly should reflect on, especially after a few martinis, is: what are the essential components of a cocktail bar? Going back to the essentials is especially important in the present times of cocktail craze, where bars are often equipped with 15 kinds of glasses, 50 bitters of any taste and …
Bars, as well as life, are all about expectations, and expectations fluctuate. When I was told that the Lolita is one of the best bars in Tbilisi (actually a cocktail town, to my surprise) my expectations were high, but they went down in front of the entrance (with a security guy checking all customers, and …
Musso & Frank is the oldest restaurant in Hollywood and is famous, among other things, for having been the first US restaurant to serve the mighty fettuccine Alfredo (a dish with an Italian name totally absent from Italian cuisine) in 1927. Also, the place is famous for its Martinis: in 2008 GQ magazin elected it as the …
In Brussels, like in any major city, cocktail bars are popping up like mushrooms. Here, some are former beer places that have added the sign "cocktails" on the street, some are poshy and expensive places for eurocrats and business travellers, some are real cocktail spots with a soul. To help you out in your choice, …
"Kissa bars" originated in Japan in the 20s, as places where to go, get a drink and listen to jazz music, at the time when imported jazz records were way to expensive for ordinary people. In a very Japanese fashion, these minimalist bars prioritized the experience of listening to music in intimate and peaceful spaces, …
After a few years visiting bars, I have developed a sort of an instinct: when I enter a bar, especially if I am alone, I can tell whether that will be a memorable evening or not. It has to do with the energy in the place, the "partner in crime" smile of the bartender, the …
