MJ Approved: Food & Drink^[1]

Millionaire #718.

This cocktail was created by Sam Anderson, the bar manager at The Breslin Bar & Dining Room^[3]. All spirits within were distilled in Brooklyn, New York. The brilliance is in the spicy sorel liqueur.

Ingredients

• 3/4 oz fresh lime juice
• 1/2 oz Almond Blossom Syrup
• 3/4 oz Sorel Liqueur^[4] (a Caribbean hibiscus liqueur, made in Red Hook)
• 1 1/2 oz Due North Rum^[5] (also made in Red Hook)
Garnish: mint sprigs and lime wheels
Glass: Martini 7 oz
Ice: Cubes

Preparation

Shake all ingredients and strain over fresh ice. Garnish with mint bouquet.

References

1. ^{^} MJ Approved: Food & Drink (www.mensjournal.com)
2. ^{^} Close (www.mensjournal.com)
3. ^{^} The Breslin Bar & Dining Room (www.thebreslin.com)
4. ^{^} Sorel Liqueur (jackfrombrooklyn.com)
5. ^{^} Due North Rum (vanbruntstillhouse.com)

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MJ Approved: Food & Drink^[1]

The New Frontier.

This recipe, from Warren Bobrow's forthcoming book, 'Apothecary Cocktails^[3],' is built for summer – at a barbecue or simply for a hot day spent on the porch.

Ingredients
• 1 oz Half Moon Orchard Gin^[4]
• 2 oz Barrow's Intense Ginger Liqueur
• 2 oz Poland Spring Lemon Seltzer
Garnish: mint sprigs and lime wheels
Glass: Martini 7 oz
Ice: Cubes

Preparation

Combine Barrows and Half Moon in a punch bowl. Add lime wheels. Pour over ice in a martini glass. Add Poland Spring Lemon Seltzer. Garnish with mint sprig.

References

1. ^{^} MJ Approved: Food & Drink (www.mensjournal.com)
2. ^{^} Close (www.mensjournal.com)
3. ^{^} Apothecary Cocktails (www.amazon.com)
4. ^{^} Half Moon Orchard Gin (www.astorwines.com)

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Pierde Almas +9 Mezcal-Gin

In the millennium since it was first produced as a medical elixir, gin has been subjected to a number of experiments involving cucumber (Hendrick's^[1]) and tea leaves (Beefeater 24^[2]), but no one bothered to question the use of a neutral spirit as the juniper-flavored liquor's base until now. Enter Jonathan Barbieri, an American-born painter who – after a year of experimentation distilling traditional gin botanicals with his Espadín mezcal – has invented a mezcal-gin of almost psychedelic complexity.

Barbieri is no distillation dilettante. For the last 30 years, he has lived in Oaxaca, where he produces hyper-artisanal, small-batch mezcals under the brand name Pierde Almas^[3]. His new mezcal-gin, dubbed Pierde Almas +9 (the U.S. Alcohol Bureau doesn't like double designations, though by U.S. legal standards, it is both mezcal and gin), starts with double-distilled mezcal made from long-roasted agave hearts. That rich base is distilled a third time with gin botanicals, including juniper, coriander, star anise, fennel, orange peel, cassia bark, angelica root, orris root, and nutmeg.

"Mezcal is the product of one of the most massive intersections of human movement in history," says Barbieri, referencing the 16th-century introduction of distillation to agave juice-drinking Mexicans post-conquest. "It seemed natural to segue into another centuries-old distilling practice, gin – a true merging of flavors and history."

PA +9 hits the nose with the familiar juniper, but adds warm Asian spices rather than just the lone cool pine of a classic London gin. The mezcal brings its own complexity to the party – ripe fruit, tropical flowers, gentle smoke – and its almost creamy mouthfeel carries flavor like a French butter sauce.

This is the rare gin you'll first want to sip neat to appreciate. But this summer, we'll just be generously splashing it into Tomr's Tonic, a rare mix of citrus, cane sugar, and quinine from organic cinchona bark, to create a new, breezy classic. [mezcalpierdealmas.com^[5]]^[4]

References

1. ^{^} Hendrick's (www.hendricksgin.com)
2. ^{^} Beefeater 24 (www.beefeater24.com)
3. ^{^} Pierde Almas (www.mezcalpierdealmas.com)
4. ^{^} Tomr's Tonic (www.tomrstonic.com)
5. ^{^} mezcalpierdealmas.com (www.mezcalpierdealmas.com)

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The Chimes (Covington, LA)

There's a ceramic dog that keeps watch over the laid-back Louisiana bar and restaurant known as the Chimes. Nicknamed Nipper, he's been stolen and recovered twice.

Hard rocker Phil Anselmo, best known as the lead singer of Pantera^[1], is an animal lover who has cared for a wide range of pets over the years, including a beloved Rottweiler named Dracula. Nipper is just one of the reasons the metalhead, who was born in New Orleans and lives on a sprawling property in rural Louisiana, loves to unwind at the Chimes.

Built on the site of an old block of commercial storefront, including a drugstore, clothing shop, and movie theater, the watering hole features brick walls, salvaged old doors, and century-old stained glass from Scotland. "It's a huge place, so there's usually a quiet place to sit, especially on the outdoor deck built on the edge of the Bogue Falaya River," Anselmo tells 'Men's Journal.' His father used to own a restaurant just outside New Orleans called Anselmo's, so the singer knows his way around a menu. "We normally just load up on the appetizers – stuff like marinated blackened alligator, shrimp and grits, 'lagniappe' cakes and raw or char-grilled oysters^[2]. And they have tons of beers from all around the globe, too – good stuff!"

These days the intense performer has been wildly busy with two bands, Down and Philip H. Anselmo and the Illegals, as well as his work with his label, Housecore Records. "After any studio session, and there's been a lot of them these days, my lady Kate and I like to take our bands to the Chimes," he says. Debuting his new music, Anselmo recently told 'Rolling Stone' that he's tired of self-congratulatory metal: "The celebration is worn out, in my view," he said. At the Chimes, though, he'll gladly raise a glass or two. [thechimes.com^[5]]^[3][4]

References

1. ^{^} Pantera (www.pantera.com)
2. ^{^} blackened alligator, shrimp and grits, 'lagniappe' cakes and raw or char-grilled oysters (www.thechimes.com)
3. ^{^} Down (www.down-nola.com)
4. ^{^} Anselmo recently told 'Rolling Stone' (www.rollingstone.com)
5. ^{^} thechimes.com (www.thechimes.com)

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