Bartending School Week 1

Right off the bat I gotta tell you that one of the reasons I like the SFSOB is that if you come to the Monday intro class, you actually get behind the bar. And I like that the first day after lecture we did just that. We were behind the bar making & learning drinks.

Some I knew, like the Screwdriver, the Cape Cod, the Fuzzy Navel. And some drinks were sorely testing me Wednesday and Thursday. Frou Frou drinks like the Purple Hooter and the Appletini are just foreign to my whiskey loving palate.

I know that there is quite a bit of disgust these days regarding bartending school among old guard bartenders out there, but I have to say, as well as I can spot which liquor is which and knowing what mixes with what, this is both a similar and dissimilar activity as working as a chef.

The movements, for example the lift & pop, take practice to get them smooth. Finding the rhythmic fluidity is important and yesterday I started to get it. I would rather do that in the classroom than on the job so that it becomes a natural habit without me looking like a total idjit in front of customers!

Since I already know that I am adept at retaining recipes, one trick I used was to find similar drinks and group them together. Make a Greyhound from grapefruit and vodka. Salt the rim for a Salty Dog, For a Sea Breeze, add cranberry. This has actually been a helpful tool in getting the drinks down. (pun possibly intended)

Some people are a little sad that we are using water to practice with. As our first instructor pointed out, beyond legalities, with the amount of practice we do he'd be having a heart attack every time we poured out a drink! It is also probably good for those who may think that it is all about drinking behind the bar....

I am also reading this book by William Grimes and think I need to get a copy of it.This is the sort of information I love, history and classic cocktails. Total win, right?! Well, I have to go because I have class and a midterm today, woo! But stay tuned, tomorrow we will be at the East Bay Wine Trail pouring for Stomping Girl and then tasting later in the day, so there will be an update Sunday!

Glittery hugs!