TRENDS By Michelle Paolillo Lockett A new trend of barrel-aging cocktails is erupting across the U.S. Aged to Perfection A
ll good cocktail creations seem to come with an equally appealing story. Th e story of aged cocktails in the U.S. is no diff erent. Th e epiphany came when Jeff rey Morgenthaler, bar manager of Clyde
Common in Portland, Oregon, was given an insider’s tip to order the aged Manhattan at Tony Conigliaro’s London bar at 69 Colebrooke Row. “Th e cocktail had been aging in glass for about fi ve years,” he recalls. “I started
thinking about that drink and it seemed like a natural thing to put it in wood.” And his fi rst trial was to recreate that same Manhattan, but age it in a small one-
gallon oak cask that once held Madeira. He aged the drink for about fi ve to six weeks, a time determined by weekly tastings and instinct. “It was fantastic,” notes Mortgenthaler. “I sold out in less than a week.” He has since experimented with various
cocktails, including the ever-popular Barrel Aged Negroni ($10), something he tries to keep on hand, which is made with Beefeater gin, Cinzano Rosso Vermouth and Campari, fi nished with an orange peel. After chronicling his adventures in aging
cocktails on his blog (jeff reymorgenthaler. com), word got around and savvy bar managers across the country are experimenting with this new evolution of cocktails. Th e drinks not only create buzz around when the quaff s will be ready, but also allow bar managers to charge a premium (about a $1 more per drink) because of the time it takes to create the drinks.
THE SPIRIT When determining what types of
cocktails to age, not all spirits are considered equal. “Our thinking is that since you are putting it in a barrel, you don’t want to use something that has already been barrel- aged,” says Alex Homans, bar manager at Temple Bar, an American bistro in Cambridge, MA. “We are using unaged spirits like gin, vodka and rum that hasn’t spent time in a barrel.” For example, his staple aged cocktail is
The Aged Negroni at Temple Bar in Cambridge, MA is a staple on the cocktail menu.
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the Negroni ($11), made with Berkshire Mountain Ethereal Gin, Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth and Campari. Another aged cocktail on his menu is the Cherry Valance ($11), made with Pyrat XO Rum, Cherry Heering Liqueur, Fee Brothers Chocolate Bitters and Bittermans Xocolate Mole. Meanwhile, Benjamin Schiller, bar
master at BOKA in Chicago, uses spirits and liqueurs that are used to seeing
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