Screen your pleasure

Double Straining

We all have been told at one time or another that we need to filter our thoughts or screen our responses, but now we have truly found a use of strainers for something other than restricting ourselves! Recently The Hedonistic Bar was asked, “What’s this double straining thing you are talking about?” In this post we are going to talk about the different tools used for straining cocktails, as well as how to properly double strain a cocktail.

There are three basic types of strainers,

Hawthorn Strainer, this is the quintessential cocktail strainer with the metal spring around the outside. This strainer is most often used to remove ice from a cocktail as it is poured into the serving glass. To use a hawthorn strainer, simply place the strainer on top of your mixing tin or glass. The metal spring should fit inside of the rim of the mixing vessel.

Julep Strainer, a lesser known tool, but still important.  A julep strainer is a saucer shaped piece of metal punched full of holes and a small handle attached giving it the profile of an oddly shaped serving spoon.  The julep strainer is used in much the same way as a hawthorn strainer. Julep strainers are typically used in place of a hawthorn strainer, or when you are straining ingredients that would get stuck in the spring of a hawthorn strainer, such as the mint leaves in a Mint Julep.

Tea Strainer, This fine mesh sieve or strainer is used when double straining cocktails. Double straining is a technique that is used in cocktails that include fresh juices, muddled fruit or herbs, eggs, or small ice shards that you don’t wish to have in the finished cocktail.  Straining a cocktail twice filters out any pulp, seeds, egg shell, or other impurities leaving a cocktail that is crisp and clean in appearance and texture.

To double strain, place a hawthorn or julep strainer on top of your shaker tin, pour the contents from the shaker tin through the hawthorn or julep strainer and into a fine mesh or tea strainer that you are holding above the glass in which you are serving the cocktail, straining the cocktail twice.

Cheers!

Get your Derby on!

This Saturday is the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. This is an exciting time for us because there is so much to enjoy - off track betting, parties, fancy hats and of course bourbon! Horse racing is called the "Sport of King's" and we at the Hedonistic Bar may not be aristocrats, but we can certainly drink like we are. We've looked around and dusted off a recipe for a simple Mint Julep.

20 fresh mint leaves
1/4 oz. simple syrup
2 oz. Old Heaven Hill Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Place mint leaves and simple syrup in a julep cup or medium glass. Muddle mint and simple syrup until fragrant. Fill cup half way with crushed ice. Pour bourbon over top and fill cup to the top with more crushed ice. Garnish with a sprig of mint and a straw cut so that your nose is just above the mint sprig.

Now isn't that pretty? A cup frosted on the sides from the ice and a sprig of mint on top.....mmmm.....tasty........

And while we are talking about Mint Juleps, we need to mention Kentucky Derby inspired nums from the folks at Maker's Mark. We attended a Maker's Mark event a week ago for Maker's Mark Ambassadors. The reps brought up a great idea to use mint chocolate ice cream doused in bourbon as an alternative to the traditional Mint Julep - and we liked it! True, there is nothing that compares to a well crafted Mint Julep but what do you do when you can't get fresh mint or your crushed ice is more like chunky shards because all you did was smash a bag of ice with a hammer? You improvise! This is a quick and easy way to get that cold, minty taste mixed with your bourbon. "Yeah, but there's chocolate chips" you say. And we say - everything's better with a little chocolate *wink*

Cheers!

Look what we found behind the bar

Just in time for the Kentucky Derby, we found a bottle of Maker's Mark Mint Julep.  This product was a limited edition offering from Maker's Mark several years ago, and we were fortunate enough to get our hands on a number of bottles. Other than making an authentic julep from scratch, this is the best tasting mint julep that we have tasted.