Results tagged “theinformeddrinker”

The Informed Drinker is Austinist's cocktail column. Each week, the city's bartenders tell us what to drink when. “In the beginning” is a series focusing on spirits, and this week, a visiting scotch expert weighs in. Scotch is a serious person drink. At least, this is what The Informed Drinker had assumed for many years. You see Reader, scotch is for drinking straight. If it is mixed with anything besides a few droplets of water, you have ruined it. Scotch is for bathing in one's mouth, for enjoying very slowly, a sophisticated and high-culture sort of thing that academics and individuals wearing corduroy jackets with elbow patches might enjoy. In other words: “People don't buy single malt scotch to shoot and get drunk,” says Andrew Weir, single malt scotch expert and brand ambassador for The Balvenie Distillery Co. “All whisky provides a very personal sort of experience, and you want to enjoy what scotch whisky does specifically for you.” Well Reader, The Informed Drinker is here to tell you that scotch will get you drunk. That is because all scotch must be no less than 80 proof (40%) alcohol, as mandated by the Scotch Whisky Order of 1990 in the UK. You'll be pleased to know it cannot go above 94.8% alcohol however, so that it maintains the flavors of the oak casks it is aged in (and also so that you don't tip it over and mistakenly clean your ears with it).

Tito Beveridge of Tito's Handmade Vodka gives The Informed Drink the scoop on time-honored recipes, how he got started, and accidentally making green vodka one time.

Though it may come as a surprise to many, The Informed Drinker is something of a wino. For as long as she can remember, wine seemed to be the logical complement to any classy affair. Date with husband: wine. Dinner party: wine. Ladies' lunch with Leslie after absolutely exhausting morning shopping for hats and matching thong bikini bottoms: Waiter, your finest vintage, please. However, the longer The Informed Drinker lives in Austin, the more she realizes that things like gin and rum can be classy, too. Tequila needn't be consumed after licking salt off one's wrist. Vodka needn't be inserted into a cherry Jello. In other words, alcohol can be sipped and savored, rather than dashing it away as quickly as possible in frat party-like fashion. Since The Informed Drinker has far less familiarity with spirits than her dear, fermented grape however, she has called in a team of experts to help her study these more serious alcohols. First up: Armando Zapata, tequila expert.

A few weeks back, The Informed Drinker spoke to FINO'S Bill Norris, one of Austin's best-known bar darlings. Last June, his protégé Dave Alan—one of two gentlemen behind Austin's local cocktail catering operation, Tipsy Texan—took over the bar at Annies on Congress. Originally a quaint lunch spot/bakery and catering service, Annies has recently expanded into a bustling Euro-bistro café and happy hour destination.

As students of alcohol history know, the production and importation of absinthe was illegal here in the United States until very recently: December 2007. Thanks to the Prohibitionists (seriously, thanks guys), the stuff had been banned Stateside since 1912, due to health concerns that its high alcohol content and compositional character caused madness. But who's madder than a drunk Austinite? No one, that's who.

For the past couple of weeks, we've been speaking with local bartenders about their recommended libations. But you know what? The Informed Drinker has some drinking recommendations of her own, based on thorough field research gained from office happy hours, various dates, Alamo Drafthouse sing-alongs, “you go girl” confidence-building sessions, lunch meetings gone awry, feigning interest in spectator sports, and celebrating the fact that it's Tuesday.

The Informed Drinker is Austinist's new cocktail column. Each week, the city's bartenders tell us what to drink when. If you haven't already, check out last week's inaugural column on East Side Show Room. When it comes to Austin business establishments, FINO is kind of like the Meryl Streep of bars. What praise hasn't already been lavished? What can FINO not do? A stellar brunch. A cunning cocktail menu. Nice waiters, even. It speaks to FINO's spotless reputation that we willingly let Bill Norris, resident mixologist, use us as guinea pigs on the weekends for his divine cocktail inventions.

Open less than a month, East Side Show Room has managed to make Austin's hipsters, foodies, and interior décor enthusiasts all terribly weak at the knees. The vibe. The precious entrees. The steampunk-meets-Amelie aesthetic. Oh, and they support local farms! (Of course they support local farms). Can you help ESSR's diners from becoming near-evangelical?