Stirring Renditions: DIY Artisan Cocktails

By Kirstin Jackson Ellis, Contributor

While a deft shake of a cocktail sets most hearts a-fluttering, San Franciscans demand a little more love in their collins glass. So we’ve tracked down five top bartenders to find out how they stir us up. Start chilling your glasses–you’re about to experience layered recipes, cocktails that pay homage to vintage master mixers, innovative use of fresh and local ingredients, and pure artistry that you can try at home.

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  Lawhill Cocktail
  Absinthe Brassiere and Bar

   

  A classic drink found in a 1963 edition of the “Old Mr. Boston” bartenders guide served by mixologist Jonny Raglin.

   

  1 1/2 ounce Rittenhouse 100 proof Rye Whiskey
  3/4 ounce Noilly Prat Dry Vermouth
  1/4 ounce Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
  1/4 ounce Kubler Absinthe
  2 dashes Angostura bitters
  Twist of orange peel

   

  Combine all ingredients with ice in a mixing glass, and stir slowly for approximately thirty seconds. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass, and garnish with an orange peel that has been flamed.

   

 

 

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  The Boutenniere
  The Alembic

   

  An Alembic signature cocktail that “tastes like gingerbread,” says the drink’s creator, bar manager Daniel Hyatt.

   

  1 1/2 ounce Glenrothes Select Reserve Scotch
  1/2 ounce Nocino della Christina (a locally produced walnut liquor)
  3 dashes of orange bitters
  Thick twist of orange peel

   

  Stir ingredients together in a mixing glass filled with cracked ice. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass, and garnish with orange peel.

 

 

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  Breakfast At Tiffany’s
  Bar Drake

   

  A creation of mixologist Jacques Bezuinhout, passed on by Diana Lee Brent.

   

  1 3/4 ounce Kettle One Citron Vodka
  1 bar spoonful of orange marmalade
  1/2 lime, juiced
  Dash of blood orange bitters
  Float ginger beer
  Lemon-wedge garnish

   

  Mix all ingredients in a cocktail shaker, and strain twice, the second time into a chilled Collins glass. Garnish with a lemon wedge.

 

 

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  The Pear Sonata
  Bourbon & Branch

   

  From the shaker of mixologist Joel Baker.

   

  Drink base:
  1 1/2 ounce Plymouth gin
  1 ounce Saint Germaine Elderflower Liquor
  1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
  1/2 ounce dry Vermouth
  1/4 ounce Poire William Eau de Vie

   

  Pear foam:
  4 parts pear puree*
  1 part elderflower liquor
  3/4 ounce egg white (or white from one egg)

   

  *Pear puree:
  Fresh pear
  Sugar to taste
  Water

   

  Put pear flesh, sugar (to taste) in a food processor or blender, and blend. Add enough water so puree is of a pourable consistency.

   

  Mix the pear puree in the proper ratio to elderflower and egg white (indicated in the foam recipe) in a small bowl. Pour the mixture into a whipped-cream siphon (found at any high-end culinary store) and charge it with nitrogen oxide. Set aside.

   

  Combine the drink-base ingredients in a cocktail shaker, shake, and strain into an iced Collins glass.

   

  Shake the whipped-cream siphon, and spray the pear foam over the Pear Sonata.

 

 

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  Touch Of Evil
  Orson

   

  Created by wine-bar manager Jacqueline Patterson.

   

  Drink base:
  1 1/2 ounces Bulleit Bourbon
  3/4 ounce rhubarb syrup*
  1/2 ounce lemon juice
  Dash St. George Absinthe Verte
  Fresh mint leaf

   

  *Rhubarb syrup:
  Fill a small saucepan with chopped fresh rhubarb, and cover rhubarb with water. Bring to a boil, and simmer the mixture until the flavor and color is leached from the stalk. Next, strain through a chinois (fine sieve) into a bowl. Mix with equal parts sugar, and stir until dissolved.

   

  Shake all above ingredients together, and strain into a chilled coupe glass. Smash a piece of fresh mint on the counter and add to the glass for flavor.

   

   

• Photo credits: All photos by Joseph Lubushkin