Umami Mart

Last night, I was at a local izakaya, Washio, with some friends. My friend Takachiho, fresh off of work, downed two bottles of beer, three sake servings and quickly moved onto his next drink all in the time span of about 80 minutes. “Master, please give me an awamori!” (Master is the word used in […]

The first Saturday in May is a special time of year for many Americans, especially those south of the Mason-Dixon. The month of May is to fans of horse racing what March is to college hoops fans, because it means it’s time for the annual “Run for the Roses,” better known as the Kentucky Derby. […]

For Happy Hour this week I’ve created another cocktail for you that’ll help you get your spring on! I call it the Jalapeno-Pear Caipiroska. The Jalaheehowhatyousay? Is that Russian you ask? Well, yes and no. Read on my friends. If you’ve ever had a Caipirinha then you’re halfway there. If you haven’t then you need […]

This week we’re going to have a little fun during Happy Hour as we set aside the history lessons and cocktail lore, along with all notions of cocktail purism and snobbery, to indulge in a little cocktail hedonism. For those who gave up chocolate for Lent, you can take pride in your perseverance, for this […]

During a picnic this past Sunday, a friend of mine asked me to recommend “the best cocktail I probably haven’t heard of.” Not being able to give it too much thought (as I was operating under the duress of trying to resuscitate the charcoals on the grill), I hastily recommended a Corpse Reviver or Corpse […]

Consider it a testament to Kayoko’s power of persuasion that I’m doing a Fridgin’ Out post. You wouldn’t otherwise know this, but for some time now I’ve been averse to the idea. The notion that strangers would open their refrigerators so other strangers can peer into them for no purpose beyond plain curiosity is a […]

You can tell from the cocktails featured over the past few weeks that I have had it with the nippy weather, mixing and imbibing as if summer were already in full swing–even if Mother Nature is still having trouble letting go. It’s my way of willing the warm weather into existence. I figure if I […]

After another late Tuesday night filled with drunken cocktail tinkering for today’s Happy Hour column, I’m back with the 2nd installment of the two-part primer on simple syrups. In case you missed last week, you can check out Part I here. Last week I showed you how to infuse simple syrups with fresh herbs and […]

Back atcha this week to talk about an ingredient that is essential for so many cocktails, yet is usually given a mere cursory glance: simple syrup. I suppose the reason for this is, well, as the name indicates, it’s a simple ingredient; so simple to prepare and it so exponentially simplifies the preparation of many […]

Another Wednesday is upon us, which means another opportunity for midweek tippling! The subject of today’s Happy Hour is one that’s been rolling–or rather mixing–around in my mind for a couple weeks now, as I’ve been working on something to contribute to the upcoming Mixology Monday session, or MxMo, as it’s called, where each month […]