Cheers

www.cheersonline.com 38 | JUNE 2014 want to have a good time, but a lot of the time they have things to do afterwards," explains beverage director Matt Tocco. "You can have a low-octane cocktail and still be able to go to the baseball game or the kids' soccer game." Pinewood Social features five low-alcohol options. Most popular is e Italian Coke ($12), with Ramazzotti Amaro, Carpana Antica, Angostura bitters and soda water, which Tocco describes as drier and less sweet than a regular cola, and not quite as bitter as an Americano. "It's perfect for someone who wants to bridge the gap in between." e Easy Like Sunday Morning cocktail ($8) combines palo cortado sherry with Fernet Branca and demerara sugar, and the beer-tail Gentleman-Mosa ($10) tops brandy, Amaro CioCiaro and orange juice with ale. Tocco also reaches for Cynar, Aperol and Campari when he wants complex, flavorful additions to low-alcohol creations. BARELY LEGAL In some cases, low-alcohol cocktails may be the only type a venue can offer ometime, because of liquor license regulations. TBD, a seasonally-focused, 50-seat restaurant and bar in San Francisco is one of four concepts operated by Mercer Restaurant Group. TBD has a beer- and wine-only license, but it offers four selections on its Loopholes drink menu ($11 each) that contain fortified and aromatized wines (a.k.a. the loophole), juices and bitters. Owner and manager Matt Semmelhack notes even though bitters are 44% ABV, they are legally permitted as an exception to his concept's license. "e assumption is that bars are only using a dash, but put half a bottle of bitters in a glass and voila, you have a booze drink!" Most popular is the Nogroni, in which Peychaud's bitters stands in for Campari, and juniper-infused fino sherry for gin (the inclusion of sweet vermouth in the classic sip remains.) e Stouter Old Fashioned mixes oloroso sherry and a healthy dose of Angostura bitters with a Bourbon barrel-aged stout. "It takes some know-now and creative ability to make the thing taste good, but that is our bar team's specialty," he says. DEVELOPING HIGH-IMPACT, LOWER-ALCOHOL LIBATIONS For successful low-alcohol sips, Semmelhack suggests bartenders go beyond the usual citrus or soda, and add other ingredients and flavor profiles to their backbar repertoire, such as roots, wood, berries and herbs. And Goodspeed admits this category of drinks requires a little thinking outside of the box. "ey need to be approachable, so you kind of end up looking at the ingredients and presentation from a different perspective." When creating new options for the Low Impact menu, Ehrmann turns to ingredients including aromatized and fortified wines, uniquely flavored and low-alcohol liqueurs, and tea, all of which offer multilayered flavor. "Build a [low- alcohol] drink just like a regular cocktail, and think about texture, aroma and appearance," he advises. Beverage director Bryan Dayton, who runs the cocktail programs at the 67-seat Oak at Fourteenth in Boulder, CO, and the 120-seat Acorn in Denver, suggests tweaking crowd-pleasing sips. "Look at some of your favorite cocktails, and think about ways they can be scaled back in terms of alcohol content." He reaches for sake for the Pimm's Cup riff e Japanese Cup ($10) at Oak at Fourteenth, which is mixed with Pimm's No. 1, cucumber, ginger and lime. Oak at Fourteenth has three low- alcohol libations priced from $8 to $10. Acorn offers four low-alcohol selections, including Brunch on the Danube ($7), with tawny port, Nocino walnut liqueur, ginger beer and Zwack, a Hungarian liqueur with more than 40 herbs and spices. Across the Mediterranean ($9) stirs Bonal, Contratto Bianco white vermouth, Licor 43 and Cocktailpunk cherry bitters. Both Oak at Fourteenth's and Acorn's cocktail menus are divided into no-alcohol, low-alcohol and high-alcohol sections. "People like having options, especially as they make their way through a meal from beginning to end," notes Dayton. Kelly Magyarics, DWS, is a wine, spirits and lifestyle writer and wine educator in the Washington, D.C. area. She can be reached through her website, www.kellymagyarics.com, or on Twitter and Instagram @kmagyarics. The savory Murder on the Ebulliant Express cocktail at New York's Pearl and Ash, made with white port, Bonal, celery and lime. 34-38 low alcohol CH0614.indd 38 6/3/14 9:44 PM

• Cover