Cocktail magic, or, Ptooey!

"That's disgusting," said the agent.

As it turns out, he was right.

The drink menu at Beverly Wilshire's BLVD Lounge said A Rose is a Rose was made from Shaker's Rose vodka, fresh tarragon and Laurent-Perrier rose' Champagne. Shake; strain.

The reality is $16 worth of vodka with a handful of potpourri. Sip; spew.

At this point, we get it. Bartenders are mixologists and cocktails aren't just a way to make the medicine go down. Hard liquor is an art form unto itself and our liver transplants are that much sooner for it.

But for $16, shouldn't it taste good?

Money was better spent at Sona, where chef-owner David Myers wrote up a seasonal cocktail menu for the bar. Honey and Ginger ($14) is two Scotches with honey, ginger juice, garnished with honeycomb and slices of crystalized ginger. A  vodka sour uses Indonesian peppercorns and vanilla beans. Each come with a hand-chiseled block of ice (!), the shape of which supposedly "accomodates the unique qualities of each drink."

If you say so. Aesthetically, they're hard to beat and honey goes well with a smoky Scotch. zAt left, that's Sona's Chambers ($14): The menu says Charbay Blood Orange vodka, kumquats, brown sugar and lime, but those look like Mandarin oranges to me. 

Still, I'd rather drink almost anything at Hungry Cat, where they go through something like 400 lbs. of citrus in a week. It's a little like Jamba Juice with less ice and more booze.

METAPHOR UPDATE: Didn't mean to damn with faint praise. Make sure your fruit washes its hands.

Comments

[Big Bomb]

that last quote ... sounds familiar ...