The Astoria Whiskey Society

Mixology Mondays – Lavender Brown Derby

The Gal About Town — Tue, 21 May 2013 01:14:42 +0000

The Brown Derby is such a perfect cocktail in my book because its a great example of the ratio of spirit to sour to sweet. A Brown Derby is typically made with bourbon, grapefruit juice and honey syrup. I didn’t have any regular honey syrup around so I used a lovely lavender infused honey syrup that I had around. It made a nice, flowery companion to the citrus of the grapefruit juice and the vanilla and caramel flavors of the bourbon. I could drink this one all day long and not get tired of it. It’s a perfect balance of sweet and sour. I hope you’ll enjoy it as well.

Lavender Brown Derby

Lavender Brown Derby

2 oz Bourbon

1 oz Grapefruit Juice

1/2 oz Lavender Honey Syrup

Shake ingredients with ice and double strain into a coupe. Garnish with several sprigs of Lavender.

Astoria Whiskey Society May Tasting – Larceny Bourbon

The Gal About Town — Mon, 20 May 2013 13:58:54 +0000

Larceny Bourbon

So, last night marked our first tasting event at Hell Gate Social. It was a bit of a trek in the rain and with the subways being all screwy we ended up with a smaller turnout than expected, but that was actually really nice. It gave us some time discuss the bourbon, but more importantly to get to know our new members. A special thank you to those that showed up last night despite the weather. We were originally planning to do things outside on the patio, but with the rain, we were relegated to hang inside. The space at Hell Gate is plenty big, and we had some nice, comfy chairs to relax in while sipping our bourbon. Larceny happens to be my new favorite right now. The reason I chose it for the tasting was because of its versatility in making cocktails and also it’s price point. At about $27 bottle, you can’t ask for a smoother, more versatile bottle of bourbon. For being 92 proof it is surprisingly mellow. First sip yielded some nice vanilla and caramelized fruit as well as a bit of spice. The finish doesn’t linger long, but leaves a nice coating of warmth and molasses sweetness behind that is very pleasant. Owner George Rallis was on hand with some delicious BBQ sliders so I thought it might be nice to do a play on a mint julep. I incorporated watermelon to really bring out some of the bourbon’s spice and depth. It was a tasty treat and everyone seemed to enjoy it. Its a super easy drink to make at home and would be great to serve guests when you are entertaining outdoors this summer.

We had a great time last night and we hope if you were unable to join us this time that you’ll come on out for our June tasting event back at William Hallet.

The Hell Gate Julep

Hell Gate Julep

2 oz Larceny Bourbon

1/2 cup Fresh Watermelon

3/4 oz Lime Juice

5-6 Mint Leaves, 1 sprig for garnish

Muddle watermelon in a mixing glass or tin, add mint leaves but don’t muddle. Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a collins glass with ice. Garnish with mint sprig.

May Tasting Event – Tickets On Sale!

The Gal About Town — Mon, 13 May 2013 21:00:26 +0000

Tickets are on sale now for our May Tasting Event. Don’t miss out on the fun! Get ‘em here now.

Astoria Whiskey Society’s May Tasting Event – Larceny Bourbon

The Gal About Town — Sun, 12 May 2013 21:09:53 +0000

Hey Kids, it’s almost that time again. The AWS May Tasting Event is right around the corner. Mark your calendars for 6pm on Sunday, May 19th. We’ll be tasting Larceny Bourbon in the lovely outdoor space at Hell Gate Social. Put on your spring finest, and join us for some delicious cocktails courtesy of our founder, Emily Ross-Johnson, and tasty tidbit’s from the Hell Gate Social kitchen. Here’s a refreshing teaser for what you’ll find in store for your tastebuds next Sunday. Tickets will be on sale tomorrow evening through Eventbrite.

See you there!!

The Hell Gate Julep: Larceny Bourbon, Watermelon, Mint and Lime Juice. The perfect prelude to summer.

Mixology Mondays – Sansa’s Swizzle

The Gal About Town — Tue, 07 May 2013 02:07:26 +0000

So there has been a lot of Game of Thrones in our house as of late. As such, I saw fit to name this week’s drink after one of the characters. This drink is light and refreshing, with a lovely fragrance of lavender. I don’t know why, but I imagine people of noble birth from old times and stories like Game of Thrones would have smelled of fresh flowers and essential oils. Things common people wouldn’t have had access to. Sansa Stark reminds me of the kind of girl that would have spent hours picking flowers in a field, perhaps even lavender.

Sansa’s Swizzle

Sansa’s Swizzle

2 0z Bourbon (we used Larceny)

3/4 oz Meyer Lemon Juice

3/4 oz Lavender Honey Simple Syrup

2 dashes Orange Bitters

Shake with ice and pour into a collins glass filled with crushed ice. Using a swizzle stick or bar spoon, swizzle the drink until the glass frosts. Garnish with dried sprigs of lavender.

Derby Day – The Mint Julep

The Gal About Town — Sat, 04 May 2013 20:58:30 +0000

It’s Derby Day and what better way to celebrate than with the official drink of the Kentucky Derby, the Mint Julep. We were in a hurry this afternoon, but the julep is the perfect drink when you need something quick that doesn’t require much work. Normally I’d try to add a little twist of my own to a classic recipe, but when it comes to the julep, it’s perfect the way it is. So unless you’re going to improve upon an original, don’t mess with it!

Mint Julep

Mint Julep

3 oz Kentucky Bourbon (we used Larceny)

1 tablespoon/cube Sugar

6-8 Mint Leaves

Put 6-8 mint leaves in the bottom of a silver julep cup or rocks glass. Add sugar and a splash of water and lightly press the sugar into the mint. It’s important not to grind or mash it, otherwise you will get a bitter flavor from the mint. Fill the cup with ice, pour the bourbon over the top and stir until the cup frosts up. Top with more ice and a sprig of fresh mint. Give the mint a good smack to release the essential oils before placing it in the cup.

Happy Derby Day!!

Mixology Mondays – Next Café

The Gal About Town — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 01:00:20 +0000

The weekends around Astoria tend to be filled with lazy Saturday and Sunday afternoons spent at local Greek-oriented spots. A staple menu item for said spots is an iced Nescafé in the warmer months. I wanted some iced coffee today but figured it would be fun to find a boozy version of that heavenly, frothy goodness called Nescafé.

Next Café

Next Café

4 oz Fresh Brewed Cooled Coffee

1 oz Bourbon (we used Maker’s Mark)

1 oz Demerara Rum (we used El Dorado 12)

1 oz Bailey’s Irish Cream

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Shake ingredients with ice and serve in a collins glass filled with ice. Garnish with freshly grated Nutmeg.

Astoria Whiskey Society April Tasting Event – The Bowmore

The Gal About Town — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 18:49:37 +0000

This month marked a big event for us at the AWS. Instead of holding the event at a member’s home as we have in the past, we partnered with Astoria restauranteur, George Rallis, of William Hallet and Hell Gate Social. William Hallet had been on our list of places to approach about hosting an event with the AWS. Hallet has by far the most refined menu we’ve seen in the Astoria area and an ever-changing menu of fresh and seasonal ingredients. In a neighborhood where there are countless cafes that do nothing to impress, William Hallet had us at “fois gras”. Also, it’s literally around the corner from our apartment. As if the location alone wasn’t enough to warrant holding the upcoming events for our ever-expanding whiskey empire there, the fact that William Hallet consistently has the most interesting whisky selection in the hood really sealed the deal.

The whiskies featured at this month’s tasting were The Bowmore 12, 15 and 18 year expressions. They are Islay single malts with a range of smoke and peat to them. I am generally not a huge fan of peaty/smokey Scotches, so this was a tasting I was looking forward to. I was really hoping for a chance to get a little deeper into the subtleties of the Islay Scotch qualities. For me, most things with a smokey quality to them instantly overpower my pallet and I find it hard to recover from that enough to discern any other flavors or characteristics. Brand Ambassador, David McNicoll, walked us through the three expressions starting with a brief, but thorough and entertaining history of whisk(e)y. The 12 year was by far the most smokey, and after my palate had grown accustomed to the initial burn, the smoke lingered and turned into a more vanilla/caramel flavor that surprised me. A little water really opened it up and changed it’s character entirely, and for the better. Mr. Rallis had chosen a lobster dumpling to pair with the 12 and what a perfect pairing it was. The two complimented each other completely. Our second expression, the 15, was considerably less smokey and had quite a bit of dried fruit and toffee flavors going on. I found this one to be the most enjoyable of those we tried, and many others seems to be of that opinion as well. A dark chocolate truffle was chosen as the perfect match for this whisky and boy was it a delicious duo. Our final taste of the evening was the 18. There was hardly any smoke to this at all and it had almost a soapy quality to it that I couldn’t put my finger on. I liked it, but for me, for the money, I’d stick with the 15.

Finally, I designed a cocktail for the evening using the Bowmore 12, which was a bit tough given it’s very smokey quality. I decided to play with the somewhat vegetal/grassy qualities of the Scotch by paring a lavender honey simple syrup with it, some lemon juice and a bit of egg white. It turned out quite nicely and seemed to be a big hit. I call it, Islay Be Seeing you. Recipe is below for those of you that would like to try it out at home.

Local photographer, Francine Dominguez, of 1gsphotos.com was on hand to capture some great photos of our event. A big thanks to her for the wonderful moments she caught with her camera. And thanks to all of you that turned out last night to enjoy some whiskey, some fun and some neighborhood pride. We hope that you’ll join us again. For those of you that couldn’t make it, please sign up for a membership and we’ll keep you posted about upcoming events.

Islay Be Seeing You

1 1/2 oz Bowmore 12 Single Malt Scotch

3/4 oz 2-to-1 Lavender Honey Simple Syrup

3/4 oz Lemon Juice

1 Egg White

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker and dry shake (shake without ice) until the egg whites emulsify. Shake with ice and serve in a coupe or martini glass and garnish with a sprig of fresh lavender.

Astoria Whiskey Society’s April Tasting – Tickets!

The Gal About Town — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 16:57:43 +0000

Hey there whiskey fans! Tickets to our April tasting event are going fast. The Bowmore will be with us at William Hallet this Sunday, April 28th. Bowmore will be on hand offering their 12, 15, and 18 year expressions. The William Hallet kitchen will be offering some small bites to pair with our whisky. We’ll also be offering specials on cocktails featuring The Bowmore. Join us and try some delicious drams, meet some new peeps, and have a great time showing your neighborhood pride! You can grab your tickets at http://astoriawhiskeysociety.eventbrite.com/

Space is limited, so get yours before they sell out!

Mixology Mondays – Fig. 92

The Gal About Town — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 02:56:33 +0000

This weeks cocktail was inspired by the lovely fig jam I picked up at Cyrpus Deli a while back. I had never had fig jam until I moved to Astoria, where it is a permanent fixture in the neighborhood Greek stores. It’s really tasty on some crostini with a little fresh ricotta. Turns out, it’s just as tasty in a cocktail.

Fig. 92

Fig. 92

2 oz Larceny Bourbon

3/4 oz Lemon Juice

1 bar spoon Fig Jam

2 dashes Angostura Bitters

Shake ingredients with ice and serve in a chilled coupe with a twist.