Maraschino March: "Oden's Muse" from Tavern Law

The next cocktail for our month of Maraschino hails from a widely respected bar from Seattle by the name of Tavern Law. It's a winner of many honours, including being named one of the Top 25 Bars In America from GQ Magazine, and is often mentioned, even in the New York Times, in the same sentence as such infamous names as Milk & Honey in New York and Bourbon & Branch in San Francisco. The chef pairing of Brian McCracken and Dana Tough are multiple award-winners as well, even being named in the Top 5 New Chefs by Gayot. Needless to say, it's a pretty amazing establishment. 

Being somewhat easy to miss from the outside in Prohibition speakeasy fashion, but also having a secret second bar upstairs behind a black metal door called "Needle & Thread," really sets the perfect mood for imbibing, and the cocktail menu has a generally more traditional focus to match. To even get upstairs to the Needle, you need to call from the on-site telephone (similar to PDT in New York), and if one of the 25 seats are available, or more importantly, if you sound like you deserve a great drink, the bartender will buzz you up. There's no menu up there, so the incredibly skilled staff will create libations based on your mood and spirit preference. 

I feel the mission statement on their website says more than I could about this place:

"In 1832 the Pioneer Inn and Tavern Law legalized drinking in public bars and saloons. The Golden Age of cocktails thrived for nearly a century until the 1919 Volstead Act almost destroyed the craft of the American bartender by outlawing the production and pleasure of alcoholic beverages. However, in hidden rooms and dark basements, thirsty patrons still sought spirits. And so the Speakeasy was born, booming until the repeal of Prohibition in 1933. Neatly another century after Prohibitions repeal, left with only the fond memories and old bar manuals, the art of mixing drinks is alive today thanks to the efforts of dedicated bartenders, historians and drinkers alike. It's because of their diligence and passion that the pleasures of artfully crafted cocktails, fine wine, and masterfully prepared food has kept the spirits of the night dancing on our tongues and in our hearts. Welcome to the celebration of our history."

Sounds like the kind of place I'd want to get a drink. You?

It's an honour to have a contribution this month from Tavern Law, courtesy of event coordinator / bartender, Monica Buntha. To continue a sub-theme here, she uses Aquavit (like "The Hemingway Solution" from Vessel), but this time going for a stirred drink, using the fantastic (and impossible to get in Canada) Dolin dry vermouth, along with Cynar amaro and Fee Brother's Whiskey Barrel-Aged Bitters. Cynar is an amaro (Italian bitter liqueur) made with artichokes, and is one of the more bitter of its ilk, opposed to Averna or Ramazzotti. You can very rarely find it in the government liquor stores, but Legacy will have it for just under $40. The bitters are the Fee Brothers Old-Fashioned Bitters (which have a heavy cinnamon flavour) that have literally been aged in whiskey barrels for a period of time to add a subtle layer of complexity, and to smooth the flavours out. These you can pick up at Gourmet Warehouse, but not all the time, as they're aged and therefore supply is somewhat limited. 

Thank you so much to Monica and Tavern Law for contributing, and I implore all of you to head there for a drink if you're in Seattle, and hope that you're lucky enough to make it up to Needle & Thread as well. 

Cheers!

Oden's Muse

1.5 oz Linie Aquavit
0.75 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth
0.5 oz Cynar
0.25 oz Maraschino Liqueur
1 dash of Fee Brother's Whiskey Barrel Bitters

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass, add ice and stir, strain into a coupe. 

[[ see "The Hemingway Solution" from Vessel here ]]
[[ see the Maraschino March introduction here ]]
[[ see "The Division Bell" from Mayahuel here ]]

[[ see "The Shibuya Crusta" from L'Abattoir here ]]
[[ see "The Unforgiven" from Russell Davis of Rickhouse here ]]
[[ see "Cherry Bob-omb" from Veneto here ]]
[[ see "Primer Beso" from The Refinery here ]]
[[ see "The Rubicon" from Jamie Boudreau at Canon here ]]

[[ photography courtesy of Seattle Weekly (sign), and Bob Peterson (roulette/bar) ]]

Maraschino March: "The Hemingway Solution" from Vessel

To kick off Maraschino March we're heading to a city filled with cocktail culture - Seattle. One of the biggest bar names in the city's scene, and actually in North America altogether as it was named by Esquire as one of the "Best Bars in America," is Vessel. According to David Wondrich, world-reknowned cocktail writer/historian, "the cocktails are as modern as the design; a benchmark 21st century mix of tweaked, often molecularized classics and clever new creations - style never tasted so good." 5 years ago when Vessel opened, the bar was definitely raised for cocktail culture in the Pacific Northwest, and it happened at such a time when interest was really beginning to boom.
After a change in some high level personnel (including Jamie Boudreau, who was formerly the bar manager there), and a closure of its location next to the history 5th Avenue Theatre in downtown Seattle in December 2010, Vessel is finally planning to reopen in late April 2012 a few blocks away. The new location was previously a speakeasy of sorts in the 1950's called "El Gaucho," and is twice the size of the previous building. While the decor and design it was so famous for is gone, it's a guarantee to be one of the best places in the city to get a great cocktail.

One of Vessel's specialties is cocktail carbonation, which may sound a little crazy - and it is. Co-owner and bar manager Jim Romdall is one of the first bartenders to make use of the "Perlini Cocktail Carbonation System," (actually invented in Seattle as well by Evan Wallace) which you can see put to use here on the Small Screen Network. It's a CO2 injection system that will carbonate a cocktail without diluting it with club soda. Imagine drinking a Martini that tastes the same, but is bubbling. It's a little unimaginable, so I suggest you just head down to Vessel when they reopen and try it out yourself.

The recipe today is courtesy of Mr. Jim Romdall himself, and uses a spirit you don't often see in mixology - aquavit (or Akvavit). This is a Scandanavian grain or potato spirit that is infused with herbs, spices, or fruit oils, and often aged in oak casks. The main flavour is usually caraway, or dill, and adding that to thyme, mint, and Maraschino will give a complex collection of herbal flavours in the cocktail. If you want to try this at home, you can get some akvavit in the B.C. government liquor stores and bigger independents like Legacy, but I encourage you to put your name on the Vessel mailing list at www.vesselseattle.com so you can get down there as soon as they reopen and have Jim make you one himself!

The Hemingway Solution

1.5oz Krogstad aquavit
0.5oz Luxardo Maraschino
0.75oz fresh lime juice
0.25oz simple syrup
1 sprig thyme
2 mint leaves

Combine all ingredients in a shaker, add ice, then shake and fine/double strain into cocktail glass.
Garnish with a sprig of thyme.

[[ see "Oden's Muse" from Tavern Law here ]]
[[ see the Maraschino March introduction here ]]
[[ see "The Division Bell" from Mayahuel here ]]
[[ see "The Shibuya Crusta" from L'Abattoir here ]]
[[ see "The Unforgiven" from Russell Davis of Rickhouse here ]]
[[ see "Cherry Bob-omb" from Veneto here ]]
[[ see "Primer Beso" from The Refinery here ]]
[[ see "The Rubicon" from Jamie Boudreau at Canon here ]]