Austin Way Magazine - GreenGale Publishing - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.
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photography by Jody h orton RECIPE: PÉCHÉ'S BLOODY 75 1 oz. absinthe rouge, made in-house* ½ oz. fresh lemon juice ½ oz. simple syrup, made in-house Splash of Montmartre Brut *Miller's absinthe infusion comes from an old recipe for absinthe rouge, but his version combines Kübler absinthe, hibiscus, toasted macadamia nuts, vanilla bean, and dried black currants. Shake the absinthe rouge, lemon juice, and simple syrup with ice and pour into a martini glass. Top off with bubbly and garnish with a twist of lemon. from left: The Scofflaw at Garage Cocktail Bar was originally created during the Prohibition era; Einstein on the Beach at Pleasant Storage Room is a spin on the Singapore Sling, and the Bloody 75 at Péché is an absinthe drink "that doesn't taste like absinthe." Drinks to Remember AUSTIN LE ADS THE WAY IN PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES OF BAR LIFE. HERE, THREE TOP MIXOLOGISTS SHARE THEIR MODERN TAKES ON CLASSIC OR FORGOTTEN COCKTAILS. BY JANE KELLOGG MURRAY Equal parts scientist and artist, truly great mixologists know how to tame a potent spirit with harmony and precision. Nothing quite puts their skills to the test like rediscovering and reinventing drinks from days (and nights) gone by, and that's exactly how these three bartenders are helping to keep Austin's craft cocktail scene fresh and relevant. At the speakeasy-style Garage Cocktail Bar (503 Colorado St., 512-369- 3490; garagetx.com), hidden inside the McGarrah Jessee parking garage, barman Chauncy James predicates his original cocktails on long-forgotten classic recipes. Take the Scoff law—a drink originally created during the Prohibition era—which the East Side Show Room veteran reimagined with his house-made blueberry grenadine. It may seem odd to romanticize a time when consenting adults were forced to congregate in window- less rooms drinking spirits mixed in bathtubs. But sitting in the dimly lit Garage with a coupe glass in hand, it's easy to feel like you're indulging in a sophisticated pastime. "There are drinks that have withstood the test of time, but now we can make them more dynamic," says Alfonso Hernandez, also an East Side Show Room alumnus. Using midcentury Havana as muse, Hernandez designed the beverage menu for the recently opened Pleasant Storage Room (208 W. Fourth St., Unit D, 512-322- 9921; pleasantrumbar.com). The Einstein on the Beach—"the thinking man's tiki drink," he says, and one of the few non- rum-based cocktails on the menu—is a spin on the Singapore Sling, a Southeast Asian recipe first mixed in 1915. "I took drinks that I knew had potential and revived them," Hernandez says, noting that he adds a dash of absinthe to the original recipe. Next door, Péché (208 W. Fourth St., 512-494-4011; pecheaustin.com) has built a reputation for inadvertently converting the unadventurous liquor drinkers of today into absinthe enthusiasts—a spirit historically adulated by the likes of Oscar Wilde, Ernest Hemingway, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. Behind Péché's bar, Larry Miller describes how he scours tattered cocktail tomes to repopu- larize the drinks of yesteryear. He has a few original creations as well, such as the Bloody 75. "It's the first absinthe drink I've made that doesn't taste like absinthe," he boasts. Cheers to that. For recipes for all three of these cocktails, visit austinway.com. AW 104 AUSTINWAY.COM TASTE Cheers!