Monday, December 14, 2009

Honey and White Grape Bellini

This gem of a cocktail has been a hot commodity since we put it back on the menu a few weeks ago. Some may remember this from the Walnut Room cocktail menu way back in the day. We have updated this version with a touch of star anise in the honey water. Here's a version of the recipe you can try at home.
  • Muddle 3 fresh white grapes in a mixing glass.
  • Add 1 oz of honey water. (To make honey water boil some water on the stove and carefully add a generous amount of your favorite honey. There are so many crazy honeys on the market these days it might be fun to try a couple different ones. Let the mixture cool and you're ready to go.)
  • Muddle a little more, and strain the mixture into a champagne flute (if you want just throw it all in, it will taste fine.)
  • Top with your favorite sparkling wine. We use a Brut from the Loire Valley, and I would suggest a dry sparkler.
  • Now here's the delicate part. Float a very, very tiny amount of absinthe on the top of the drink. I can't stress enough...TINY. Unless you are a big absinthe fan, too much will cause problems.

We have to confess. We swiped this drink from an old issue of Class Magazine. It's just about the best industry mag around, but it's an UK publication and good freakin luck getting it.

Hope you like it.

Love,

Alfa



Thursday, December 3, 2009

If the 300 Spartans were made of Ground Beef...

The Great Burger Wars of 2009 have produced legions of ground beef centurions who have waged a pitch battle over the gullets of our fair city. It started with arsenals of Tuna Burgers and Tofu Burgers and escalated into cavalries wielding such exotic weaponry as fried eggs, foie gras, crispy onions, corned beef and even the occasional cranberry something or other. The Knights of the Patty gutted, garroted, and grilled one another across the barren battlefield of our fair city, while a stunned populous gaped at the carnage.

Through the fog and the horror of war there stood one young warrior, one champion of the people, whose purity and deliciousness shone forth from the murky haze of the ruthless savagery. Born of hearty peasant stock, this Avatar of Americana bore only the humble arms of mushrooms, bacon, caramelized onions, and cheese. This was the ALFA BURGER who, through the simplest of means, would liberate the beleaguered peasantry from the attrition of the Knights of the Patty, and the gruesome gloom of the Great Burger War.

So since you can only put one burger in your face at a time, why not make it an ALFA BURGER.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

One of our favorite cocktails, the Widow's Touch is back!

The Widow's Touch

1 oz Laird's Apple Brandy
1 oz B&B
1/2 oz St. Germaine Elderflower Liquor
Dash of Angostura Bitters

We love this cocktail. A great cocktail should always be bigger than the sum of it's parts. What this means for a cocktail is that the ingredients blend together to create a flavor that is wholly new, without any indication of the component flavors. It's one thing to do this with juices and syrups, but to simply blend liquors by themselves into a wonderful new flavor is the height of the art. The Widow's Touch is a great example of this. Come try it and see for yourself.

P.S. For all you cocktail vets out there here's a little secret: next time you're in Alfa ask EB to make the Irish Whiskey Dry Manhattan that he came up with on Monday. It's pretty special.