opinionated alchemist

Do you have also the feeling that last year passed light-speedy fast?  And to be honest,  there hasn't been a lot of room for trends to stick - except everything related to the pandemic (we are talking about take away, in different iterations, ghost kitchens and so on). I try not to go too much in this trends and stay with true beverage related trends (products and all) - if you are interested, let me know, if you like to see another article about trends, which are more venue related... So which trends can we predict for 2022? Alcohol-free spirits This is a big one. It seems to really penetrate the market. Even here in Dubai - even the major supermarkets start to carry those spirits. I do think though, that there is definitely a lot of area of improvement. Some products are good (e.g. gin) - some are simply not enjoyable (until now I could only try one "0º Whisky which was simply disgusting! Alcohol-free spirits are changing totally the paradigm for alcohol-free cocktails....

In the last year, there has been some change in my life. This isn't so unique - as the pandemic has been challenging for most of us. While the bar was closed and I have been on unpaid leave, I left "my" hotel and joined an independent restaurant (new opening) as GM.  Unfortunately this didn't worked out very well. Hence after half a year I left (close to be totally burnt out) and rejoined my "old hotel" - now not anymore as Bar Operations Manager, but as Beverage Manager. Besides of "hanging out" in the evening behind Noir (again - now even with more emphasis) - my duties are also updating the beverage lists of the other restaurants. The cocktail discussed is for the Levantine restaurant. Now the Levant is the area on and around Lebanon. This area is rich of culinary culture and traditions - but not so much of alcoholic drinks (and yes - Lebanon is a great wine producing country - and they also create arrack... and: especially Beirut is known for t...

Masafi is a UAE based drinking water supplier. There has been another brand (Al Ain)  which has started the "zero sodium trend".  But what I have to give to Al Ain is, that they just advertised their water what it is: zero sodium. They didn't implied any health benefits or anything else. I found that pretty smart - as a lot of people are concerned about their sodium intake - hence they are "playing with the perception" that the water "can help" to reduce the sodium intake, without being misleading. Masafi though is definitely misleading. They suggesting, that their water actively helps to maintain a healthy sodium intake. Why is it misleading? Because it all depends on ratio. Look - the recommended sodium intake of a normal adult is 1,500 mg (1.5 grams). The sodium content of "normal" mineral water is about 3mg to 33mg (latter is already pretty extreme- it is Badoit sparkling water with one of the highest sodium content of all commerci...

via GIPHY om/gifs/rooster-teeth-xoUiNjrK8iHwA">via GIPHY I am not a big fan of using a lot of crazy ingredients. Well - this isn't completely true - it is more the random use of crazy ingredients. Rizki, one of my head bartenders and me were discussing today the cocktail for a competition. He had the brilliant idea to use lotus leaf (which is very vegetal but rather very delicate) - and he also opted for gin and for pomelo. We discussed to do a lotus leaf liqueur and use "soured pomelo juice" - and the whole drink supposed to be a type of collins. It turned to be a pretty nice drink - however it lacked something special. It was all pretty bright, acidic and citrus'y - with underlying aromas of the gin (Bombay Sapphire). So we discussed to use the peel of pomelo to enhance the lotus leaf liqueur. However this wasn't enough. I don't really know anymore how it happened, but suddenly I remembered that Mezcal producer in Mexico are producing a...

Darcy did a great job, in hosting this event and we had quite a lot of guests who could try the different G&T. Unfortunately I didn't made pictures... Cucumber & Coriander G&T with Strawberry Darcy: Strawberry & coriander share similar aroma compounds; coriander is further very common in gin. Darcy emulsified coriander essential oil in simple syrup, he was using for the drink. That we quite a slam-dunk - most guest liked it. It was very refreshing and very cool - we used Plymouth for it, which was definitely a great company with the drink. Cardamon & Mint G&T Darcy used the popularity of the Mojito, to "capture" guests - the cardamom syrup (again made with essential oils and emulsification) was giving it a more unique and Middle Eastern flair - basically there was only cardamom syrup, gin, mint, lemon and tonic water involved. Again very refreshing, with a distinctive oriental note. We used partly Plymouth and Bombay Sapphire for it a...

If every producer would directly explain his product so nonchalant and passionate [without too much marketing b.s.]... Sirocco - Dubai's specialized beer company, is bringing since several moons some craft beer to Dubai. And while I am still arguing, that it might not have been a great idea, of bringing English and then New Zealand crafts, instead of bringing the crafts from its cradle [the USA], I still very much appreciate, that they do the unheard off, and bring more than just products from multinational companies. They are introducing the crafts on rotational basis, which has the advantage, that there is [finally] always something new on the market - but the disadvantage, that you will run out of luck, if you are finding your "dream-beer". The lovely Laura, my keyaccount manager brought me a couple of bottles to try... Ka Pai is one of those. Appearance: Well - the bottle is pretty - proper brown glass [so you don't get directly skunk if you would like ...

I am usually not a big fan of mocktails! Really - come to a bar and drink some proper drinks - or just drink water, a soft drink or orange juice [please spare me, with something like watermelon juice or kiwi juice!]. However being a beverage manager of a resort, also included "creative" introductions of alcohol free drinks - and especially in family restaurants, you will sell a lot! So - as you can see on the picture, these are a quite evolutionary type of drink! Basically it is an instant soda pop. You muddle your fruit and/or herb [you can add also some syrups like elderflower or vanilla] - you fill the glass with ice and fill it up with a neutral soda pop base. This contains water, sugar, citric acid, carbon dioxide, a small pinch of salt and a small pinch of bicarbonate of soda. I actually realized, that adding a bit salt and bicarbonate really boost the flavors and make the "pop" sing!  I am using Soda Plus, to carbonate the soda b...

Another new drink, to be featured in Blue Jade - the amazing Pan Asian restaurant in the Ritz Carlton Dubai... The Gin 'n Tonic is one very popular drink in Dubai. Yeah - here are a lot of Brits. But it is also a really great drink - and it defies very much the heat! For Blue Jade I wanted to break with the normal highball procedure, and really wanted to shake a drink up. As I reviewed East Imperial before, and titled it "not a lazy bartender tonic", I thought it will work as ingredients far better than any other tonic. It has some medium sweetness - however no acidity, which we will anyway apply with some fresh citrus juice... There is some muddled lemongrass [yeah - I don't usually like to muddle, but lemongrass just usually taste not that great, if used differently] - but the game changer is here the house crafted pandan syrup. It just brings the whole G&T into the East! The Jade Gin 'n Tonic We didn't only called it Jade G and T because of...

Since I have had this blog (inclusive the previous installment of it), I have shied away of doing bar reviews. If you work as manager in a bar (or in my case even as beverage manager), you know, that you shouldn't question too much others, as your own courtyard might not be that clean... But then I still make exceptions - this happens specially if bars receiving awards (and/or taking themselves too serious and  This apparently happened in Speakeasy in the Ramada Plaza. Let's first off all get the most obvious from my breast: the name.... It is an audacity in the light of modern speakeasies (you can't compare anyway a bar to historic speakeasies - unless it is e.g. Located in Saudi Arabia - and well, a review there wouldn't be that clever, to say at least! Anyway - the name is stupid and misleading. However please note, that this bar received the Best New Pub Award of TimeOut Dubai! So it has to be good? Well, I went with a friend and colleague to this place. I am just f...

Yes, we introduced the new menu a couple of weeks ago... and I kept a bit silent, as we still working on a better consistency. But hell - I am proud on this menu. From the layout [the drawings were made by the lovely Sima, which not only able to mix some spiffy drinks, but also have a very artistic side in her] - to the drinks selection, to the drinks presentation. Please let me know, what you think... or pass by in La Baie Lounge [if you happen to live in the UAE] and ask for me. Really looking forward to your comments! So please here - check out the link !

Lately I am visiting more bars again. This definitely has something to do, that nobody waits anymore at home for me [respectively comes at the same time home]. In a bar, cocktails can be great. However it depends on the recipes of the bar and even on the bartender. Unfortunately in Dubai, there is a rather big chance, that you won't get a great cocktail. Another point is, that it takes time. And if you know the bartender, you don't want to be a dick, to order a cocktail, while he is busy. Whiskey and respectively whisky is also great. But usually it works much better in a real cozy bar, where you are sitting down and maybe have a cigar, than a bar, where you are socialising and walking around [at least, it is the case for me]. Rum falls into the same category. Longdrinks and highballs are usually boring [when done the "popular" way] - or cannot be found [made the artisan way, with house-crafted ingredients etc]. And vodka? C'mon - you should know me bette...

For the moment I am examining the range of Fuller's beers. The whole range is now available in Dubai and due to the lack of real microbrews, I have no other option as inspecting the best compromises between uniqueness and availability. I came already across Fuller's before. They have a beer called ESB - an English bitter, which is really good. London Pride, will be the second choice draft beer at Library bar. While it is thankfully different than the usually very similar lager options in bars, it is not blowing me away. A adequate ale,with medium taste, I would say. I tried also the Indian Pale Ale and as the ESB, it is a bomb. It is concentrated as bitter (yeah, beer should be bitter, and not watery!). The Discovery Blond Ale was until now the most disappointing. Weak character in my eyes - well truth has to be told: against your pathetic volume lagers (pick what ever brand you like) it seems still a pretty good beer. But yesterday I've tried the 1845. This is a bottle con...

I've just seen, that "Speakeasy" won the award as best new bar at the Time Out awards. I wasn't there yet - and even haven't heard yet from it - good job of them, you might think [as speakeasy's supposed to be clandestine]. The strange thing though was, that it was a Facebook post of DJ Lance, which brought me on that. I searched the web - and directly found their very own website. Which. Puts. Their. Name. To. Shame. So Wednesday they have a ladies night. How in the name of hell, they would do a ladies night in a speakeasy? But it is not only that. I see bright colorful [hello artificial] drinks on there, and a dart board and a rowdish crowd with beers cheering; or "impressing" girls. How is Dubai to screw up the character of a speakeasy bar? Now, it is important to understand - what exactly a speakeasy is and why is it called like that [maybe the guys of the Ramada should have researched this as well and might just used a different na...

Ladies and gentlemen - please forgive my even more perplexed writing style to the usual mess. I will cover the reason in a later post [for those who care - for those who don't care: don't you worry]. I was proudly appointed as one of the blind tasting judges in the Monin competition yesterday. It happened in the popular Bahri Bar in Madinat Jumeirah - and it was a full day of tasting [but not drinking]. One of the very unique things [for the UAE], what happened was, that representatives of both main liquor supplier, African & Eastern and MMi - were sitting on one table [they usually even don't like to share the side of the street]. Truth has to be told - Becky and Richard are both Trainers and Specialists of the respective company - and those are the most open minded and easy going personalities around. Despite of the "heft" of the competition and the fact, that both alcohol brands were represented, I haven't seen more known faces of those compan...

It is a challenge and I've only mastered this question after a long time: How to prepare mint. If you make it properly, you will have fresh and healthy looking sprigs for several days - or even a week! Really lucky bartenders are having a garden with lots of mint shrubs - however even they might have problems in the winter... And we are not yet in a position, that we can tell guests, that they cannot have Mojitos, Juleps and other minty drinks, because mint is out of season! Here in the Middle East, it is even more difficult to get healthy mint;  in culinary [especially MESA cuisine] a lot of mint is used, but almost everything is processed (at least shredded) so you can [fortunately] not even imagine, how the mint looked before! Long story short - here I am with a step by step explanation to get fantastic looking mint for at least a week!!! 1. This is the mint we get from the cold kitchen. I have to be honest, that this mint looks quite healthy, if you c...