Cocktail creations by Umami Mart: shaken, stirred, and remixed.
Happy Hour
March 23, 2011
Happy Hour: March Cocktails: The American Trilogy
There is nothing like an expertly crafted Old Fashioned-style cocktail to help you navigate the rapidly changing weather of late March. Since, it is not quite Gin Rickey weather and too warm for a Hot Toddy, a solid whiskey cocktail is just what the Doctor ordered. Now let’s take it to the next level in […]
March 16, 2011
Happy Hour: March Cocktails: Bloody Caesar for the Ides
When selecting a mid-March cocktail for this article, I was tempted to go the easy route with a St. Patrick’s Day whiskey drink. Then this weekend, I had the fortune to dine at Magasin Wells (aka M.Wells), the critically acclaimed Québécois-American diner in Long Island City, Queens. M.Wells’ haute comfort food menu and greasy spoon […]
March 9, 2011
Happy Hour: March Cocktails: In Like a Lion’s Tail
March, as the idiom goes, comes in like a Lion, and goes out like a Lamb. This month may bring us spring-like temperatures, but also one more blizzard for the road. Winter’s last blast requires a libation celebrating the flavors of the season and is worthy of the ferocity of the month’s namesake, Mars, the […]
February 16, 2011
Happy Hour: The Vesper
“Just a moment. Three measures of Gordon’s, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it’s ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel. Got it?” “Certainly, monsieur.” The barman seemed pleased with the idea. “Gosh, that’s certainly a drink,” said Leiter. Bond laughed. “When I’m…er…concentrating,” he […]
February 2, 2011
Happy Hour: The Old Fashioned
Before we had bars, we had places called taverns and saloons. And before we had Manhattans, Martinis, and other fancified cocktails, there was a drink which people simply referred to as a ‘whiskey cocktail.’ It was the early 19th century, and the term ‘cocktail’ referenced a simple drink composed of a spirit along with a bit of sugar, water, and […]
January 26, 2011
Happy Hour: What’s a Mixing Glass?
Back in September of last year I wrote about some of the various bar implements that a devoted cocktail geek would own. Looking back I realize it deserves a follow-up piece devoted solely to the various mixing vessels used in cocktail-making. There are shakers and there are mixing glasses, and within each category there are various types. I’ll […]
January 19, 2011
Happy Hour: The Hot Toddy
Last week I wrote about the Hot Buttered Rum, and how it’s a winter drink for when you’re feeling festive (and when you’ve planned far enough ahead of time and made the essential spiced rum batter). Now that we’re nearing the dead of winter, you may be interested in something more simple– a drink that doesn’t require much advanced […]
January 12, 2011
Happy Hour: Hot Buttered Rum (Take 2)
We’re a couple weeks into 2011 and many of you are still hopeful about staying true to your resolutions. Although last year I did my best to aid you in detoxing from the holiday gluttony, this year my intentions aren’t so pure. Rather than fortify your resolve, I’m here to steer your ship back to the harbor of iniquity. How you […]
January 5, 2011
The Man Behind Happy Hour
Meet Paystyle– a dashing, whip-smart, er, smartass from Brooklyn by way of Los Angeles. He’s got dreams. Dreams of someday calling it quits as a lawyer (94 hour work weeks, fuck that!), and pursuing a career as a first-rate mixologist. Paystyle made this video with Vanessa (his wife and Happy Hour photog) for the Manhattan […]
December 22, 2010
Happy Hour: Cielo de Jalisco
I really wanted to do a special Christmassey cocktail for you all but in the end I couldn’t really get my mental mojo into it– sorry, folks. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always enjoyed the special feeling the season invokes despite being an avowed atheist. I think I’m like most people in that sense, who […]