Bravado Living

I love the Rusty Nail, it;s basically scotch on ice but with a  little extra kick. It’s made with scotch whiskey and half as much Drambuie, which is basically a honey- and herb-flavored golden scotch whiskey made from aged malt whiskey heather honey and a secret blend of herbs and spices. So you’re basically pouring two different types of whiskey on ice, one just happens to be flavored. The flavor of the Drambuie suggests saffron, honey, anise, and nutmeg. This has to probably be one of the easier cocktails you will ever make. You also have to love the name, rusty nail is something people are going to remember. A great way to get  cocktail to stand out and catch attention is to give it a catchy-sounding name. A good name will get people to be a little more enthusiastic about their cocktail and this in turn leads them to remember which hip and sophisticated gentleman whipped it up for them. Making drinks like this is a great way to get a solid reputation among your friends as a master bartender.

The Booze:

4 parts scotch(2 0z.)

2 parts Drambuie(1 oz.)

The Gear:

Chilled old-fashioned glass

Ice cubes

Instructions:

You pour the respective spirits over the ice and stir. Done.

Keep this one in mind next time you want to impress without putting in any effort.

For regular bottles of wine, storage really isn’t an issue. Why bother going to all the trouble of getting a wine rack, let alone a wine refrigerator, for the purpose of storing those bargain priced bottles of wine that you will probably slurp up that same night? The answer is simple: Don’t Bother. The fridge and any old shelf will do when storing those boiler plate bottles of red and white. Now, if you fancy yourself a wine connoisseur and regularly purchase quality wine, those choices are not even viable options, you’re going to have to get a decent wine refrigerator. I mean, why go the extra distance and get a gourmet wine if you are just going to ruin the flavor with bad storage?  A small wine refrigerator should do the trick, especially one like this.

I really like the VT-12 because it’s compact and blends in seamlessly with a variety of different decors. It has a stainless steel trim and dual-paned glass door, which block out more UV and are easier to clean. It can carry approximately 12 bottles and sturdy shelf racking for individual bottle storage. It also has thermoelectric temperature control and a digital temperature display which are controlled by easy push button controls, making it easier for you to control how cool the wine gets. Now if you are worried about this being a loud, humming energy leech, put those fears aside. The VT-12 is ultra-quiet and very energy efficient. As a matter of fact, the VT-12 is not only energy efficient, it is ecologically sound, emitting no CFC or HCFC emissions. That is bound to please your more ecologically minded guests and make you seem conscientious and shrewd. This is a smart choice for any serious wine connoisseur.

BUY IT Vinotemp VT-12 $179.00

I’ve decided to start posting how to make a different cocktail every week. Knowing how to mix a proper drink is essential to any gentleman’s repertoire of talents and skills. It’s an easy way to impress your friends without having to put yourself in physical harm or learn a new language, or become an ambassador to a foreign nation.

Mixing drinks seems to intimidate people when the instructions start to go beyond mixing rum with soda, but in reality most drinks are easier to make than a proper omelet. While having the appropriate bar gear isn’t exactly a hundred percent necessary, it really does make things much easier on you. Improvising with whatever objects on hand can work, but this can also easily backfire on you.  This week’s cocktail is a classic: The Dry Martini.

This is the original Gentleman’s cocktail. This is an American classic, with stories of its origins dating back to the gold rush. With it’s telltale cocktail olives, it’s as iconic as Frank Sinatra’s voice or Marilyn Monroe’s beauty mark. It’s a crisp drink, with no overriding sweetness to detract from the simple pleasure of enjoying it.

All you need: Gin, Dry vermouth, cocktail olive, mixing glass, chilled cocktail glass, ice cubes.

For one cocktail it breaks down into 6 parts gin(30z.) and about a 1/4 teaspoon of the vermouth. You combine the gin and vermouth into the mixing glass with the ice cubes and you stir well. Then you pour into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a cocktail olive. Purists insist on the liquors and the mixing glass being at room temperature. Now all you need to do is find a beautiful lady to share with.

Hosting is an art

There are tons of way to impress guests when entertaining in one’s home. You can show off the old big screen, flat or otherwise. You can always cash in cool points on having a good collection of pretty much anything that doesn’t make you seem like a pre-teen trapped in an adult’s body. So knives, books, art, and furniture are a yes; baseball cards, and action figures, and we’ll assume the 40 Year Old Virgin was based on a true story.

One guaranteed crowd-pleaser is a stocked home bar. Something about having a home bar, and by that I mean something that is more than a cabinet with a couple bottles of liquor and wine, really gets people’s juices flowing. You don’t even need to build a gigantic fully stocked home bar, just something with the “bar essentials” that can be placed in the corner or a back of a room or salon. Once that’s done, a simple cocktail recipe book and a little common sense is all you need. Here are the basics for a small bar at home.

THE BOOZE:
Beer, Lager(refrigerate)
Blended whiskey or Rye
Bourbon
Brandy
Gin
Pernod
Red wine, Cabernet Sauvignon and/or dry French
Rum, light
Scotch
Sherry, dry
Tequila, white
Triple Sec
Vermouth, dry and sweet
Vodka(keep in freezer)
White wine, dry French or California chardonnay(refrigerate)

Good start

MIXERS:
Cola
Cranberry juice
Diet soda
Ginger ale
Grapefruit juice
Lemon juice
Lemon-lime soda
Lime juice
Orange juice
Sparkling water
Tomato juice
Tonic water

GARNISHES AND CONDIMENTS:
Angostura bitters
Bar sugar
Black pepper
Cocktail Olives
Grenadine
Lemons
Limes
Maraschino cherries
Oranges
Tabasco sauce
Worcestershire sauce

GLASSWARE:
Brandy sniffer
Champagne flute
Cocktail glass
Highball glass
Old-Fashioned glass
Pilsner glass
Wine goblet

TOOLS OF THE TRADE:
Bar spoon
Blender
Bottle opener
Citrus reamer
Corkscrew
Jigger
Measuring cup
Measuring spoons
Mixing glass
Paring Knife
Standard shaker
Strainer.

Don’t let sheer magnitude of the list scare you. Build your bar slowly by starting with the basics:

1.) A great sipping whisky (Macallan’s 18, Highland Park 21, Blue Label)

2.) A great mixing whiskey (Dewer’s 12, Crown Royal, Maker’s Mark, Black Label)

3.) A premium bottle of vodka (Belvedere or Grey Goose, and Ketel One)

4.) A great Reposado or Blanco Tequila (4 Copas, Gran Patron Silver, 1921)

5.) A great selection of beers (Lagers, Dunkels, and your college favorite for impromptu parties)

6.) Champagne (Either for a celebration, or for girls that don’t like the taste of alcohol)

7.) Amaretto (For making amaretto sours- only for girls that don’t like the taste of alcohol)

8.) Respectable selection of wines (Red, Whites, Chardonnay, Sovereign Blanc, Zinfandel, etc)

9.) Extra’s: Ice! , Quality glasses, Large Heavy Duty Shaker (don’t put anything carbonated in it- rookie mistake), Towels

10.) Mixers: Soda’s, Sour mix, Juices, etc.

11.) Something impressive to put it all in (Go dark wood, with darker leather)

Impromptu Party

Good luck and happy hosting.

Hat Tip

Highland Park Single Malt Whisky

Highland Park 21 Year Old Single Malt Whisky. 2009′s Best Whisky in the World (whisky for Scottish, Japanese, and Canadian- Whiskey for Irish and American). At least according to the World Whiskies Awards. Described with a fruitful nose, mouth-cooling palate, crystalline sugar taste, waxy mouthfeel, and underlying elements of mint, leather and vanilla- our mouth is watering just thinking about it. But don’t take our word for it- here are the experts:

An irresistible mix of dark grungey smoke and light sweet fruit. If you could barbecue a tin of Del Monte exotic fruits this is what it would taste like. Stunning
Dominic Roskrow

Cedar, forest floor. French toast accompanied by very tannic black tea. Reminds me of amber resin
Liza Weisstuch

The mouth bathes in a rich, chocolaty sweetness, then puckers up with the very drying tannic oak. A drop of water turns it into something delightful – juicy and nicely tingling with a long finish
Robin Laing

Big, fruity nose, dried fruits, dried herbs; waxy mouthfeel, sweet taste, crystalline sugar; mouth-cooling. A cracker!
Charles MacLean

Most whisky snobs would tell you to sip this from a brandy snifter at slightly above room temperature, but we’re big fans of refreshment. Pour it from your decanter, use a tumbler if you’d like, and I know it’s a crime, but throw in some ice and sip it slightly chilled. You’ll drink the next glass properly (right?).

It’s a little pricey at $256, but you can get it duty free for around $100. Just pull a favor from Your Travel Insider- he might give you one of his liquor exemptions next time he’s in the Caribbean.

And we wouldn’t mind a bottle thrown our way as well

BUY IT Highland Park 1984 Vintage Single Malt Whisky $256