Cabinet of Cocktail Curiosities

Back in the day when men got around on horseback and drinks were of a strong and spirituous disposition, barmen made straight-up cocktails, then they made ‘improved’ cocktails and finally there were ‘fancy’ cocktails. Now, we have a new generation of cocktails at Saxon + Parole handily found inside your own bottle; ready to serve immediately upon arrival. Our cocktail guy Naren Young will craft an improved, fancy, barrel aged, rare or simply delicious bottled cocktail for you, marked with your name and the history of the concocted drink. Feel free to share with yourself, your friends, or someone you may chance upon at the bar.

Contact us to get your very own bottle in the Cocktail Cabinet of unique libations or for more details, and read recent press here.

COCKTAIL CABINET ARCHIVE

May 2013 – Old Pal

This somewhat forgotten classic is exactly like the name suggests. It is indeed like an old friend: comforting and perhaps a little complex. The ingredients share some of the same DNA as a couple of the other iconic drinks, yet its flavor profile is most certainly unique, especially when using this wonderful new ‘wheated’ Kentucky bourbon, from our good friends at Heaven Hill. So drink up, life’s good!

April 2013 – Bronx Cocktail

It’s not so often that we see this most venerable classic pop up in the bar rooms of today, even though it was once deemed to be the third most popular cocktail in the country (for whatever that’s worth). Shame really as this is a delightful little number, especially when spiked with this wonderful new gin, named after one of the most famous dames in New York’s history: Dorothy Parker. Made by our good friend Allen Katz at the New York Distilling Company, we’re pretty certain this is a drink that will whet anyone’s whistle.

March 2013 – The Tipperary

It seems only fitting that in the month that hosts St. Patrick’s Day we feature a cocktail that uses a spirit that is whole heartedly Irish. And so we bring you the classic Tipperary Cocktail, spiked with the new and beguiling Jameson Black Barrel, a glorious dram that shows bold notes of deep spice and exotic fruits. It will surely put a smile on your face this March 17. Or any other day for that matter.

February 2013 – Last Word

Believed to have been created sometime in the 1920s, this is one of the few cocktails that actually came out of Prohibition with its integrity intact. With a strange ratio of three very complex elixirs – gin (in this case the delightful Junipero from Anchor Distilling in San Francisco), Luxardo maraschino and green Chartreuse – it is a complex and polarizing libation to be sure. Shaken up with some freshly pressed lime juice and you have a drink that in the lexicon of classic cocktails, is a true icon.

January 2013 – Bobby Burns

Named after the famed Scottish poet and lyricist, Robert Burns is perhaps most renowned as the man who wrote that song we love to sing to ring in the new year, Auld Lang Syne. That aside, this is one of the cocktail world’s unsung heroes, one that shares the same DNA as the Rob Roy, which is essentially a Scotch Manhattan. You could use any old Scotch, but why would you when you have a bottle of wonderfully rich and honeyed Dewar’s 12 Year at arm’s reach? With Burns Night (a national holiday in the land of Scots) approaching on January 25, it seems only fitting to raise a glass to the ethereal tipple and salute this great man.

December 2012 – The Claridge Cocktail

We are unabashed gin geeks here at Saxon + Parole. We sneak it into anything whenever we can. We even put it on our ice cream. Just kidding. It does, however, work wonders in this little doozy, courtesy of Justin Noel at Oxley Gin, especially when stirred lovingly with dry vermouth, Combier triple sec and apricot liqueur. Taking its name, we assume, from the famous Claridge’s Hotel in London, we like to think this drink is elegance in a glass. Perhaps you will too.

November 2012 – The Greenpoint

The Bronx has its own cocktail. As does Queens. Brooklyn has a killer drink named in its honor, and quite obviously the Manhattan Cocktail needs no introduction. From borough to neighborhood, we now bring you the Greenpoint. This cocktail is part of a series of rye whiskey-based libations taking their inspiration from the fabled Manhattan. This one was created by Irish bartender Michael McIlroy, who plies his trade at the modern speakeasy Milk & Honey, and uses the new and delicious Dad’s Hat rye from Pennsylvania – part of a growing band of new ryes breathing life into this revered American whiskey.

October 2012 – The Alchemist

There was a time, almost a millennia ago, when monks and other religious orders were making a slew of strange, exotic and unique potions and elixirs. These early alchemists were responsible for bringing these ‘waters of life’ to the world. These primitive potions were taken to prolong life and supposedly make you feel better. While we can’t guarantee immortality with a sip of this fine libation – created by Spring 44′s very own alchemist Tim Cooper – we are pretty sure this cocktail will at the very least brighten your day.

September 2012 – Point Blank

Scotch whisky in September? Huh? Believe it people. Whiskies needn’t be stereotyped as something you can only enjoy in the depths of winter – especially not one as regal as, um, Chivas Regal with its subtle notes of spice and bright orange. With the mercury still sky high, this elegant libation – a collaboration between our cocktail guy Naren Young and Chivas man Max Warner – is about as smooth a combination that you might ever put to your lips. Some might say it’s dead on. Others might just say it’s ‘Point Blank delicious’.

August 2012 – Opera Cocktail

Back in the 1920s, this libation was served at Harry’s New York Bar in Paris – the birthplace of the Bloody Mary, French 75 and Side Car. The cocktail is a concert of gin, Maraschino, orange bitters and Dubonnet of the rouge variety for a more full-bodied flavor. With its aristocratic ties – Queen Elizabeth II likes a little gin and Dubonnet with her lunch – and a name that pays homage to one of the most classic arts, feel regal and cultured as you enjoy this tasty gem.

July 2012 – Negroni Bianco

Has there, amongst the myriad of beautiful classic cocktails that have graced us with their presence over the centuries, been a more harmonious and perfect marriage of ingredients than when gin, Aperol and vermouth get together? Um, no there isn’t. Many of the world’s great, iconic libations are indeed simple affairs, consisting of only a handful of ingredients. The Negroni – the classic Italian aperitivo –is testament to this. Here, Brooklyn gin (a new kid on the block) forms the foundation of this wonderful Summer variation. Stopping at one is futile.

June 2012- La Perla Cocktail

For anyone who thinks that sherry is something sweet that your grandmother drank (maybe she still does, bless her heart) and tequila should either be downed with abandon (or thrown into the nearest Margarita) perhaps needs to get out more. When stirred elegantly, with precision and love, like this little doozy, a whole new world of tequila appreciation will unfold before you. This killer aperitif comes courtesy of our friend and tequila aficionado Jacques Bezuidenhout (try saying that after a few shots of Partida!).

May 2012- El Presidente Cocktail

Putting all politics aside for a moment, the one thing we haven’t been able to put an embargo on from Cuba – thankfully – are the many wonderful cocktails that first appeared on this Caribbean island. Sure, we all know the Mojito, the Daiquiri and perhaps the Cuba Libre.  But few of you have probably heard of this hidden gem, which did have its own time in the sun at Club El Chico in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village – the place where the rumba was introduced to America in 1925.

April 2012 – Seelbach Cocktail

Sometimes the most unlikely bedfellows end up getting along famously when mixed by the right hands and in the right proportions. Bourbon & Champagne? And bitters? Who woulda thunk it? Created in 1917 at the legendary Seelbach Bar, tucked away inside the Hilton Hotel in the bourbon heartland of Louisville, Kentucky, this elegant libation proves to us that sometimes opposites really do attract.

MARCH 2012 – Vesper Martini

James Bond has a lot to answer for with all this ‘shaking vs stirring’ business. Or maybe his creator, Ian Fleming does. While writing his first book, Casino Royale, the fabled author would spend many an hour in London’s opulent Duke’s Hotel, sipping this bracing aperitif created by bartender Gilberto Preti. The Italian barkeep would shake this particular libation when any good barkeep knows that a perfect Martini should always be stirred. Whatever. Does it still taste good?  Hells yes.

February 2012 – Improved & Fancy Tequila Cocktail

Back in the day when men got around on horseback, bartenders wore arm garters, and mixed drinks were of a strong and spirituous disposition, there were cocktails and then there were ‘improved’ cocktails and there were ‘fancy’ cocktails. The former simply meant the addition of a little absinthe while the latter was adorned with a lemon twist. Here we bring you both, using a wonderful spicy blanco tequila from the highlands of Jalisco.