Cocktail Lore

When I was visiting with Erik Adkins at Hard Water last week, he was showing me photos from his favorite bar in London called Nightjar (which I have to admit looks incredible). I guess they did a pop up at this year's Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans that just blew people's minds (cocktails out of giant conch shells, things like that). I love pageantry when it comes to drinking (hell, when it comes to just about anything), but I also love simplicity and pure, uncomplicated flavor. In talking about London bars, Erik asked about my favorite cocktails in the city. The answer was easy because it's still one of the best drinks I've ever had: the Blue Moon from Rules; the oldest restaurant in London (they even go there in an episode of Downton Abbey). My wife and I dined there during our honeymoon and we ordered the Blue Moon because, at that time (around 2010), creme de violette was all the rage and we had been making pre-Prohibition drinks at home. It's a simple recipe: gin, creme de violette (Creme Yvette if you're being historically-accurate), and lemon juice; but something about this particular concoction was life-changing.

I love a little shake-and-bake out on the basketball court; a 360 dunk or an alley-oop from a behind-the-back pass. But nothing compares to the sweet swish of a Steph Curry three. That's part of the reason I love drinking at the Interval with Jennifer Colliau. There's something about her drinks that dissects everything else about the cocktail presentation and gets straight to the root of the flavor. That being said, look at the pictures from Nightjar and tell me you don't want to go there tonight. Are they still flying the Concorde?

-David Driscoll