Drink of the Week for 7-31-10 Featuring Lewis Spindlove the UK Bartender!!

Yeah, I'm moving around and meeting many people in the cocktail world. This weeks Drink of the Week segment is special because I'm featuring not only a great bartender but one from across the Water, Lewis Spindlove.

 He is a great friend of mine via the twitter network(follow him @BartenderUK ) and a wealth of cocktail knowledge.  So i spoke with him earlier and here's what Lewis told me about his cocktail background....

I'm Lewis J. Spindlove, 26, company director of The Bartender Hire Company Ltd. We hire out professional cocktail bartenders to private events, parties, corporate days and more.

 My bartending life began in 2002 when I moved to Bristol for university. I started working some bars and got into cocktails and flair. Worked several bars in Bristol including consulting several more and training numbers of bartenders. Competitions came and went with results including 1st place Angostura/ Haymans mixology comp 2007, Prepare To Flair @ Roadhouse 'Most Entertaining' 2008 and a sponsorship deal with Bacardi Brown Forman and Bottlegreen. Nowadays I organize the events and recruit the bartenders, scouring the country for competitions and shows selecting only the finest young talent to join our team.

Very Interesting way to move ahead in the cocktail world!! So i asked Lewis for a few of his cocktail recipes, and these are what he sent me... They all sound delicious!!!

Garden of Eden:


50ml Gin
10ml bottlegreen Elderflower Cordial
5ml Lime Juice
3 torn mint leaves
60ml Cloudy Apple Juice

Shake hard, strain into long glass with ice. Garnish with mint sprig. Drink on a hot day. Invented for the Haymans comp using Haymans Old Tom gin.

Here's the Garden of Eden... Doesn't it look GREAT!!!!

Away in a Manger:

35ml Calvados
15ml Krupnik
10ml Apple Juice
5ml Lime Juice
Pinch of Cinnamon

 Shake hard, strain into long glass over ice. Top with Ginger Beer. Drink at Christmas instead of eggnog. Invented for a British magazine

Hope you guys liked the background on my bartender brother Lewis and  when i make it across the pond, this will be the first person I look up. Check Lewis out on these websites and social media sites..

www.thebartender.co.uk
http://www.twitter.com/thebartenderuk

http://www.facebook.com/thebartenderuk

Also as a side note, I would like all my Bartender,cocktailers, and cocktail enthusiasts to check out my sister website The Bartender Lounge. This is a place where all our professional opinions can be heard and we also can get compensation from it. If you will please follow this link and sign up and enjoy...

http://bartenderlounge.com/join.html?sID=46


Until Next Time
Mr.Mixologist

The Drink Of The Week for 7-17 featuring Mixologist Michael Carter

This weeks drink of the week is a little different. I normally feature a bartender that's currently on the bar scene. This week features my man Michael Carter from the ATL by way of my hometown Chicago. So I asked Michael since your not a full time bartender, what made you become interested in the cocktail world?? Here's his answer and some background on this Mixologist..

"The reason I got into mixology was because I thought it would be a cool hobby and something good to learn. Living in Atlanta, also drinks were becoming very expensive and poorly made. Steven Kowalczuk who is a Master Mixologist brought the concept of Mixology Classes to Atlanta in which a different spirit would be sponsored and we would learn how to make 4 drinks using the spirit and learn about the history behind it. I have completed over 30 mixology classes to date.

Mixology really took off for me due to the opportunity to create our own signature cocktails and compete against each other. I have competed in 3 competitions and submitted a video for the Bacardi Star of the Bar competition. Mixology is a great way to entertain, learn and have fun with mixology. Though I am not a working bartender, I have completed the 100, 200, and 300 series of mixology courses designed by Steven and I am always ready to compete.

 My favorite spirit to work with is Gin because it is versatile and can be substituted in most drinks in place of vodka."

Here are a few of Mike's signature cocktails. The first one is called the "This is It" But like any true Mixologist he was mum on the ingredients.. But some fine looking cocktails!!!

I also was given a video from the Summer Razz that Mike was in. Def check out this video!!!

This is definitely someone who I'm glad I've connected with and trust any competitions I'm in from here on out, ill def be looking over my shoulder to see if Michael is in it as well. I'm glad that Michael is showing us that this is an industry to take notice of, and one you can find fulfillment and enjoyment in, even if you don't do it full-time!!!

You can follow Michael on twitter( @Mdot7) and if you are ever in Atlanta, look him up and grab one of his tasty cocktails. I tip my hat to you sir!!!

Until next time

Mr.Mixologist

Product Review--- Inocente Tequila

First off, for a long time i wouldn't touch Tequila! When i first began drinking, i never heard anything good about tequila. As Ive gotten older and been in the cocktail industry, the Tequila trend has taken leaps and bounds and I have developed a taste for it. To me Tequila has become the new Vodka....

When people come to my bar, I sell just as much Patron, 1800 and Jose Cuervo as i do Grey Goose, Ciroc, and Ketel One. I have had a particular fondness of 1800 lately myself. But as i was tweeting and talking drink with some of you guys on twitter(follow me @MrMixologist.. Shameless plug once again) the good people over at Inocente Tequila reached out and sent me a bottle of their product to try out for myself.

Needless to say i was thoroughly pleased! First the bottle that its in the absolutely Sexy! The bottle does a half curve and its very eye-catching. So if I'm walking thru the liquor store this bottle def stands out!! So i did a taste test and was surprised. Inocente is VERY SMOOTH. No after taste and didn't burn on the way down. This is a tequila that a professional drinker and even a newbie to the tequila world can both feel comfortable drinking without adverse consequences.

Here's a little background straight from my contact at Inocente...

"The distinctive blue bottles are each a unique work of art that are hand blown from 100 percent recycled glass and shaped into their signature “twist” by Mexican artisans. Beautiful to look at on a bar shelf, the bottle was designed to be recycled as a decorative piece after the tequila has been drunk. Whether used as a flower vase, a vessel for your favorite olive oil or as a piece of glass sculpture on your shelf, the bottle is as visually sophisticated as the contents are elegantly tasty.

Inocente gets its unique taste by using the finest agave, grown in the rich volcanic hills outside the town of Tequila, and only all natural ingredients in a process that marries age old techniques and modern distillation methods. While most premium tequilas are double distilled, this platinum tequila uses a triple distillation process to create that ultra smooth taste and palate feel that defines Inocente Platinum Tequila and to remove the organic compounds that contribute to next morning headache. A micro-oxygenation process that injects tiny bubbles of air into the juice is performed post-distillation to remove any additional harshness and enhance the clean notes."

So drinking a triple -distilled tequila will give you the smoothest and finest tequila you probably have ever tasted. The Spirit by itself was good enough for me to switch over from 1800 and drink this alone, but once i tried the signature cocktail, the "Inocente Italiano" I was blown away!!!

Inocente Italiano

1 1/2 oz Inocente
1/2 Campari
1.2 Lemon Juice
1/2 Simple Syrup

Shake and serve in a rocks glass over ice, with a Lemon Twist.

Absolutely Delicious!!!!

So if you are in the New York, New Jersey area please go and grab a bottle of Inocente. I cant wait to order another bottle for my personal bar at home. You can find Inocente on these Web Pages.

Website---- http://www.inocentetequila.com/main
Facebook--- http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/InocenteTequila?ref=ts
Twitter--- http://twitter.com/InocenteTequila


Until Next time
Mr.Mixologist

Drink of the Week for 7-10-10 Featuring Bartender Fuzzy

This weeks Drink of the Week is a very tasty one, and is brought to you by my girl, and GREAT friend Andrea "Fuzzy" Dixon. You can find Fuzzy at the South Loop Hotel and at various events all over Chicago Land. I am one who has worked with Fuzzy and she has booked myself and the rest of  Drinks On Me(Shameless Plug lol) for events at the Hotel and Private events as well.

Here's a little background on this wonderful Bartender....

At an early age the green-eyed, now 5’10 model/actress has always been conspicuous amongst her peers growing up in the Roseland Community, infamously known as the“Wild 100's”. Having graduated from the Chicago Public School system, Fuzzy continued her education at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. After the untimely passing of her father, to whom she was very close and gives much credit for her trendsetting personality, Fuzzy returned to Chicago in search of establishing herself in the entertainment nightlife industry as a professional bartender.

After quickly gaining recognition for her unique look and energetic personality, Fuzzy has been in the business for 10 fantastic years! Announcing her retirement from working the bar/club scene in 2010, Fuzzy continues to book private engagements and celebrity galas to bartend/entertain on a more personal level.

Currently, Fuzzy is Chicago’s most sought after talent and continues to book shows and auditions to expand her repertoire, with her ultimate goal of crossing over into mainstream television and movies. Having the ability to quickly adapt, Fuzzy’s talent shines bright and will not be easily dimmed. She has captured the attention of audiences and gained the respect of her peers, and will definitely be one of the next breakout stars to grace the big screen in the near future. Look out, here she comes!!!!!!

So now that you've heard from me how great Fuzzy is, and you've heard some background info on her, here is her specialty cocktail and the DRINK OF THE WEEK!!!! 

The FUZZ BUZZ

½ oz. Champagne


¾ oz. Chambord

½ oz. Vodka

1 oz. pomegranate juice

Shake all ingredients but champagne with ice and strain into flute glass. Top with champagne. Garnish with a lemon twist.
 
 
So when you are in Chicago, Find FUZZY!! Come to the South Loop Hotel or follow her on twitter(@OhSoFuzzy) to find out where she will be doing what she does best!! Trust me, this is one beautiful, talented, Charismatic,Outgoing, confident, Beautiful(oh wait I already said that lol) Bartender and an all around amazing person!!!
 
Side note-- Fuzzy is also one of the organizers for 'Fuzzy Mondays at the South Loop Hotel bar, where every Monday she features an up and coming entrepreneur's. This week i have the pleasure of being her guest on the show!!! So come out support her and support me as well!!!!
 
 

 
Until next time
Mr. Mixologist