The Manhattan Cocktail classic is an annual treat for all drinkers, bartenders and purveyors of fine spirits. This 2 day convention is one of the most coveted events of the year. The price of a ticket gets you access to seminars, exclusive booths and a growing supply of recipes to tantalize your taste buds. We visited this fab event nearly 2 weeks ago and enjoyed ourselves immensely; now that we have just about recovered itโs a great time to share some of our favorite finds from the event.
The
- Clase Azul TequilaโNot only is this most decorative bottle ever it is also some of the smoothest tequila we have ever tasted. This rich tasting beverage is sweet enough to be sipped straight out of the bottle not lime or salt required. This Tequila is also offered combined with refreshing pomegranate in a liqueur called La Pinta, the mixture is served on the rocks or mixed with other ingredients for a cocktail.
- Intense Ginger LiqueurโIntense is pure ginger flavor. Just one sip and its like youโve bitten off a piece of fresh ginger. Though this can be enjoyed itโs is best combined with other liquors and fresh fruit juice, alone It is tasty but as the name suggests its truly intense.
Intense Ginger Fizz
Ingredients
Barrow’s Intense Ginger Liqueur Lime Perrier
Garnish: Lime pinwheel
Glass: Highball
Ice: Cubes
Instructions
Top with fresh grated nutmeg. Garnish with lime pinwheel.
- DisaronnoโYou have not had a real Amaretto sour until you have had a Disaronno sour. This simple drink is often hard to produce without the right combination of ingredients and the smooth flavor of Disaronno. We also sampled a few other cocktails at the Disarrono booth including the Operetta Disaronno a deliciously mix of Persecco, Citrus and Disaronno.
Operretta Disaronno
Ingredients
1 oz Disaronno
0.5 oz campari
0.5 oz lemon juice
1 oz orange juice
1 oz Martini prosecco
Garnish: orange wheel
Glass: rocks
Ice: cubes
Instructions
Add ingredients to mixing glass. Shake with ice. Strain into rocks glass with ice. Garnish with orange wheel.
- Pisco Puro BrandyโPisco Is the official Brandy of Peru. The light fresh flavor is perfect for the tropical climate. This spirit is used in one of our favorite drinks of the day the chilcana a refreshing mix of lemon ginger ale and bitters.
We took a break from drinking just long enough to enjoy a lecture by Ian Burrell entitled โThe Rum Expereinceโ This lecture taught us the history of Rum and who better to teach it than the official Global Rum Ambassador.
Ian Burrell has toured the world offering his insights and knowledge of the history of rum as well as the fine details in the manufacturing process. We learned that in order to be called โRumโ the spirit must be made from a sugarcane product. We also learned that the name rum derived from an old word โRumbullionโ which loosely translated means to cause a ruckus. Before settling on this name the beverage was also known as โKill Devylโ, which honestly has much less of a ring to it. Burrell is a fun teacher who clearly immerses himself in the topic drawing you in with colorful jokes and random trivia. The best part of the class was of course the taste test. Set before us were 6 shots of different rums, each with distinctive notes. Some held sweet familiar notes like chocolate and others offered a woodsier flavor of peppers and tobacco. The class ended with an oral pop quiz, pupils with correct answers were rewarded with full bottles of the rums we sampled! Howโs that for motivation? I may have gotten doctorate if all classes ended this way.
As with all great things the convention came to an end last two weeks ago but the lessons we learned and brands we discovered will be remembered for years to come. For more info on the cocktail classic and how to get your tickets next year please visit
www.manhattancocktailclassic.com