Contemplating Cocktails with Keith

In this episode we hear the story of how Soup Spoon Cafe began. Owner Nick Gavrilides shares HIS-story.

Did you know that Johnny Appleseed was a drunk?

The Cocktail of the episode is the Jack Rose. 2 1/2 oz of Laird's applejack, 3/4 oz of fresh squeezed lemon juice, 1/2 ounce of grenadine 

Keith considers this mezcal's other half to be tequila. With mezcal and tequila we discuss the circle of life.

Chihuahua Mountains are where blue agave grows. The name threw off Melik and trying to do math shows. The first recorded distillation of tequila happened in 1666.

Weird story from Melik talking a little bit about his dance history. Strippers were involved kind of. Then there is a reference to the old Way Side Bar also known as Sparty's that had a wonderful drink special for Blue Motorcycles.

Then Keith talks about when tequila began to be imported to the western expansion of the United States of America.

an important economic product of Jalisco, Mexico, due to its role as the base ingredient of tequila, a popular distilled beverage.

What is amaro?

But of course there's a Melik sidebar that happens first. He talks about date night that had an enjoyable meal.

The recipe for this is simple - Fernet Branca and Coca-Cola, as the Argentinians do. There's also Branca Menta which goes well with a little bit Sprite. The Coca-Cola Company are not paid advertisers.

Cocktail Recipe: The Toronto - 2 oz of Canadian Whiskey, 1/4 oz of Fernet Branca, 1/4 teaspoon of sugar, and a dash of Angostora bitters. Shake, pour on the rocks, and orange peel as the final ingredient.

Melik does throw out a few curse words in this episode.

In this happy meandering episode:

Warning: Melik curses a few times in this episode.

Clear, flavorless spirit distilled from cereal grains and an often misunderstood spirit. Ideally vodka has no flavor. Vodka is the diminutive of voda is "water" in several Slavic languages, similarly to uisquibah which is Gaelic for water of life. There's a lot of misconceptions about the distillation process in general that are discussed in this episode. Basically vodka is gluten free.

Martini has become redefined, which also can cause confusion with customers and traditional bartenders.

Keith has a favorite, which surprised Melik.

Vodka is a distilled beverage composed primarily of water and ethanol, sometimes with traces of impurities and flavorings. Vodka is made by the distillation of fermented substances such as grains, potatoes, or sometimes fruits or sugar. Traditionally prepared vodkas had an alcoholic content of 40% by volume.

A spirit that's origin that dates back to the 14th century is absinthe. It has as storied and colorful history that is connected to people like Hemingway, Voltaire, Rimbaud, Picasso, Van Gogh, and Poe. There are as many misconceptions about absinthe as there are stories. And yes we do have a cocktail for you in this episode.

Keith explains the 'absinthe process'. We talk about the "Moods of Spoon".

Absinthe Ordinaire

Thanks for making it through the gin episode. Here's one about Aqua Vitae which is very similar but different.

Keith talks a discovery from his grandmother that completely changes his paradigm.

And remember, "if it grows together, it goes together". ~Keith

[there are some curse words in this episode]

The British were instrumental in introduce the world to gin.

William III of England, aka William of Orange, was sovereign Prince of Orange from birth, Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders and Overijssel in the Dutch Republic from the 1670s and King of England, Ireland and Scotland from 1689 until his death.

There's a story sharing exchange one about suffering through biking, another of how myth is made.

Melik speaks about his recipe "Magdalene" that uses Magellan Gin.

It's a new spirit of the Western World. A Chinese sorghum spirit, baijiu. There's a little bit of storytelling wrapped around this Chinese spirit. Keith spent some time living in China and shares what he learned about the culture of being a host and a guest. Baijiu is a versatile spirit that can replace another spirit in your favorite cocktail. Baijiu is celebrated on World Baijiu Day, check out www.worldbaijiuday.com