bourbon and branch presented an incredibly complex drink of gin, persimmon and pear shrub, lemon, grapefruit bitters, ginger beer and cinnamon. i eventually decided i didn’t like it. but it did take me awhile, and many brain circuits got blown in the process. i think i can’t accept vinegar in a cocktail, except maybe an aged balsamic.

another drink i admired came from the cat at jardiniere: scotch, lemon, date puree, thyme, bitters, egg white. i like trying scotch cocktails; they signify a brave, or foolish, bartender. i enjoyed the drink, but i admired it more than i enjoyed it.

but my favorite of the night was simple and easy to drink. because i am a simpleton whore. winter citrus smash from sauce sf: rye, satsumas, tangerines, kumquats, syrup, j. witty chamomille.

…

range. i had a great time. the kokomo (rum, lemon, madeira, pineapple, benedictine, nutmeg) was superb. turns out, madeira is a criminally underused cocktail ingredient. i plan to acquire a bottle soon.

reading their COD blog for lo these many months, i grew increasingly sad that i don’t live closer so i could drink there every day. the COD on the night i went was ‘the downtowner’, rye, lime, pear, some other stuff i can’t remember, topped with brown ale. maybe a little overdiluted but the flavor was just right and outta sight.

[edit: got the recipe--

small chunk of pear (muddled)
1.75 oz. Old Overholt
0.5 oz. St. Germain
0.5 oz. apple cider
0.25 oz. lime juice

Top with about 2 oz. brown ale.]

i also ordered, and liked, the chili davis (tequila, punt e mes, mandarin napoleon, fresno chili, lime) though it was a more difficult drink to enjoy. not for chugging.

after that i was pretty wrecked, and so i asked for just a taste of their walnut infused bourbon, which opened the door for jeff to trot out some other house infusions and comparable products. i didn’t love the walnut bourbon; the nose was incredible but the taste was a little like raw cookie dough. jeff’s vin d’orange was excellent; it somehow produced a smell of bubblegum. jeff also gave me small pours of lillet to compare with the vin d’orange, and nocino to compare with the walnut bourbon. the nocino was pretty insane; it was more like a port than a nut liqueur like amaretto or frangelico.

a couple next to me was very friendly, struck up a conversation with me unprompted. from my fragmented eavesdropping, i surmised that their relationship was interesting and complicated. but i was too polite to ask about the complications.

i love the mission.

favorites:

green and orange (jackie patterson) – green chartreuse, lime, carrot, honey, cantaloupe, cilantro garnish. (if there was liquor other than the chartreuse she didn’t say.) [edit: recipe here] this was my favorite because not only was it delicious but it incorporated green chartreuse and carrot, two things that i think are difficult to use well in a cocktail, much less together.

tuscan smash (josh harris (?)) – fresh strawberries, roasted strawberries, balsamic vinegar, lemon, mint, sugar, galliano, rooibos bourbon tincture. whew! (here again, if there was a base spirit, it was not mentioned and i neglected to ask) the flavor was extremely complex, combining raw and cooked strawberries was genius. my main criticism is that it was too sweet and too viscous.

mountain peach (h. joseph erhmann) – square one botanical vodka, peach, lemon, lemon verbena. simple, and similar to another drink at the event, but this was perfectly balanced. [edit: recipe here]

howling mad (someone from bourbon and branch, forgot his name) – thai chili infused gin, thai basil, lemon, honey, ground coffee garnish. believe it or not, this all worked perfectly. the flavors were phenomenal. but a little too hot.

so, lots of fun, and lots to think about….

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i’m really frustrated at my inability to ’stray from the script’. tonight, for example. i was giddy about the cocktails and intent on trying everything as expediently as possible, so i could revisit my favorites (not easy to move fluidly in that throng), and grab some of the passed-apps before depletion (which always happens, usually around 645). i was so focused on this that i basically blew off a couple people who tried to chat with me (both cuesa volunteers) and failed to seize the opportunity to chat with brooke arthur. this is sub-optimal on a couple levels, (a) sometimes chatting is fun, even for me (b), brooke would be a good person to know/impress. i wasn’t disrespectful, just taciturn. but that might seem impolite. or lame.