opinionated alchemist

  It seems, that there is an elephant in the room, when it comes to the latest developments in the finance world: blockchain, crypto, NFT's - it is a bit like quantum mechanics in science: the only thing, what respective experts are agreeing upon is, that if you say, that you are understanding it - you probably don't understand it... Blockchain is a book with 7 seals - the basic idea is pretty straight forward, but the when it comes to the details, the function principles, we all got lost in space. But like in quantum mechanics: not understanding fully the principles won't held us back to use some of the features (think about transistors, lasers diodes etc. which are applications of quantum mechanic principles).  So let's enter blockchain. While blockchain overall is quite interesting, NFT's and smart contracts attracted quite my attention in the last couple of months. Let's put the whole techno jabber to the side and let's go back in mixology-history: Most ...

In my Whiskey Sour experiment (and also in the taste of my last Whiskey Sours in the bar), I haven't been fully convinced about the taste of the whiskey sours. I did everything right: used quality bourbon, used proper ice, shook long enough, used fresh lemon... yet the whiskey sour was slightly too lemony - it had enough alcohol, the right sweetness, the sourness - yet it was somewhat off. No - it was not somewhat off - let me rephrase it - I was not 100% satisfied with the results. It wasn't as good as the Whiskey Sour in front of my imaginary eye (or on my imaginary tastebuds). Not that I tried a Whiskey Sour in another bar which has been better... That sounds crazy to you? Welcome to my world... The problem is that: as soon as I will change the ratios, the cocktail will also loose its balance... and to be honest, I don't really think, that solely tinkering with the ratios, will bring me anywhere... I have been breaking down how to improve cocktails before on...

I know, that a lot of people in the industry are rolling their eyes, if you are using the moniker mixology or mixologist. However I totally see, that a lot of modern cocktail creation and especially the ingredients manipulation goes far beyond the classic methodology of a bartender. I believe, one of the most clever new introduction in bartending in the last years has been the use of aquafaba as egg white substitute in the bar. What is aquafaba? Aquafaba is the cooking liquid of pulses - and in most cases it is based on chickpeas. What to do with aquafaba? Instead of using egg white in foams or as cocktail ingredient (as foaming agent and for a smoother mouth feeling), you can use aquafaba (1:1 ratio). What are the advantages of aquafaba? There is one significant advantage: aquafaba is vegetarian / vegan. More and more people are avoiding animal protein - hence it fits perfectly into these times Aquafaba is a byproduct - and if "your kitchen" is...

To be honest, I shied away of this topic, because I think, people can misinterpret this - big time. I don't want to be part of the problem - I want to be part of the solution!  But when Chris, over at A Bar Above  discussed this subject- I literally could not resist to join into "the discussion". Here is the video: I - however take a bit slower approach than Chris. What is citric acid? Chemical Compound Citric acid is a weak organic acid with the formula C6H8O7. It is a natural preservative/conservative and is also used to add an acidic or sour taste to foods and drinks. Wikipedia Formula: C6H8O7 Molar Mass: 192.124 g/mol Melting Point: 153C Density: 1.66 g/cm3 Boiling point: 175C Soluble in: Water Why is it controversial? In my "mixology world" it is controversial, as citric acid is the stuff, which makes the nightmarish sour mix [ preferably in powder form ] sour. Yeah - citric acid is the main ingredient in one of the most ...

Here is a quite controversial documentary about the obsession of chefs, when it comes to winning of one, two or even three stars of the veritable Guide Michelin. Just to comment shortly on this video, I have to say, that you can't really make Michelin responsible, for the obsession, what people on all sides: journalists, chefs and guests show. It is just the point of reference, which everybody sees as "lightning house". But really - I believe, that the Michelin is one of the best gauges, what a chef can have. You can see the variance for example in the UAE, which isn't (yet?) covered by the Michelin: You have TimeOut, which is highly subjective. You do have Zomato [very similar to Yelp], which is haunted by casual reviewers, which might be or might not be genuine [same applies for the reader reviews of TimeOut]. You have TripAdvisor, which sports definitely more genuine reviews, however it is still very subjective [and compares apples with oranges]. Non one ...

Well - it is not exactly a review of the episode, but rather a discussion. Just first of all watch the episode below: So - which techniques is really better? Unfortunately Chris left a couple of points out of the equation (at least in the video):  You can cut leaves, which result into a much better infusion - but might also have a major impact in the color - the smaller the botanicals, the more concentrated the solution - and for the lemon, you really need to zest or use very thin strips of lemon, to have a big impact. Time - the infusion time is ample. But the liquid even infuses, after it is strained. When was the testing done? Temperature - room temperature works just best. Fridge temperature works obviously not good at all. The quantity of the botanicals - while the time honored method takes much longer, the quantity of the botanicals are not as important as in the profusion method.  But most important: cavitation infusion works with some ingredients ...

I rather dislike flair bartending - or lets concretize: exhibition flair. Not that I don't value the work, dedication and skill, which is needed to be a good flair-bartender. But what does flair bartending has to do with real bartending? Yes - the flairer is using bottles and shaker tins, but really, this could be also pins and… I don't know what. The focus of bartending is culinary. The idea of flair-bartending is: entertainment. Here are 10 points, why I dislike flair-bartending: Most drinks produced in exhibition-flairs are either way as simple as a screwdriver or just horrible and undrinkable. Waiting for a drink >10 minutes - which is substandard kinda sucks. Flair-bartenders are often dicks to male guests - always focussing on the ladies around. Flairers are living in a farraginous 80's world - the drinks are usually accordingly. Flair bartenders usually have this behaviour, to get recognition from the audience - and I just can't stand th...

Most of my regular readers might already guessed it and I might have mentioned it already: I am not the usual German. But even I cannot dismiss everything from my roots. This is not always apparent, but sometimes it flashed up. And I don't mean the contemporary German bar culture. This is in full swing - just at this time, there is the BCB - the Bar Convent Berlin , a mixologists' fair, which doesn't only attract Germans anymore - it is an international event and bar personalities are travelling there from around Europe [and some even further]! My career started in Germany and when I left, the raise of the bar was in remarkable. But everything which is happening in the bar, has strong international [means American] influences and are just supported by some regional variations and regional products. The bar in San Francisco will be more different from the "modern American bar" than the bar, which you can find in Germany. Long story short, but there ...

It was - well, it is a journey. I was torn between using crystalized fructose and using organic unbleached caster sugar. And I still don't feel 100% confident, that I found the "final" solution for all my mixology-sugar demands. However  the Tate + Lyle Fairtrade Cane Sugar is the finest granulated sugar, which is currently on the market in the Middle East. Yes, it is bleached, which might not be the perfect solution [unbleached would be better - but all organic unbleached caster sugar brands are just much coarser]. And it ain't cheap [while it is not as expensive as organic sugar]. But it is just the finest caster sugar available. And for those, who are concerned: it is made from cane sugar. It dissolves easily in cold liquid. Use your normal caster sugar, to make your syrups [well - you decide. Is "fairtrade" as important for you, to raise your cost?]. But for anything like a Mojito, Caipirinha, a Mint Julep or even sours and fizzes, it is a...

When I discussed on linkedin.com my last more substential blog entry - about the app-linked cocktail scale system, it suddenly stroke me: What if not only assisting technologies like this are popping up, but complete machines, which can mix beverages? Lets face it: we are in an age of self driving cars [ok, in prototype stadium - however driving assistants and self-parking cars are already commercial reality] - mixing a drink after a recipe is much less complex than, e.g. driving a car. And there are already numerous prototypes [e.g. here  or here ]. Usually these things are made by people, who really don't have an adequate knowledge of mixology or an understanding of the operation of a drinking establishment, to pull this off [they have the knowledge to solve the technical problems...]. Therefore the automates are not very… convincing. Trust me - the developments never stop and soon, bartenders might be facing systems like this: If these systems will be more adapted, ...

I was so enthusiastic about the agave infused tequila. But sometimes you have admit, if your ideas are failing- and this infused tequila just did. The tequila didn't got any further boost in vegetal flavors but got a weird astringency, which I haven't foreseen. However - it is not exactly back to the drawing board... Long time ago, I tried to make homemade agavera liqueur and it ended up to be much better than the original. With. Artichoke. Sounds funny, but then I have envisioned, that artichokes are having exactly the strong vegetal flavors, I searched for. And as artichokes are just getting into season (well at least they are popping up in the supermarkets again) it is just a great thing, which proofed toe work. So artichoke infused tequila it is!

I have had today a small promotion in the Ritz Carlton Club Lounge. We offered a couple of special drinks for our club guests. While it is a nice thing to do - you have to be very carefully what kind of drinks your offering - on one hand you have no proper bar set up. On the other hand, you might need to do a lot of drinks - so don't put yourself into the shit. I took the opportunity to promote La Baie Lounge styled drinks - and also I have proven the point, that with quite some mis en place, you can serve very fast, very good drinks - and this was also very important for me. One drink was a reconstructed pina colada - fresh pineapple juice, Matusalem platino and a hint of coconut [in La baie I thought to clarify the pineapple juice] topped with coconut espuma [made with coconut milk, lime and xanthan gum]. A lot of guest liked it and drink several of those. But the real triumph was a strawberry-basil soda. I served it as Gin & Tonic [added tonic at last] an...

I read a lot about American whiskeys these days. And this is a good thing [except, that nothing new and/or great seem to arrive in the Middle East]. For such long time, which spans from the end of the prohibition [respective from the start - depending how you see it] until the early 2000's, American whiskey was quite a shadow - a side remark in the whisk(e)y industry. But now - it is talk of the town [even if it is not this town]. And bourbon and rye have all the right to be en vogue. The flavors are bold - but also absolutely stunning. The prices are compared to other whisk(e)y really accessible. There were so many great brands and bottlings which resurfaced after the millennium or new distilleries, which gain traction. However these days, it seems, that the American distillers are loosing their way and it just seems, that they try too hard. It started with flavored whiskey- while I absolutely love the concept [and house-crafted bourbon infusions can be really amazing], t...

I do have for the moment quite regular with Scott Young, who founded extremebartending.com and bartendingschool4free.com. He asked me, if I have posted something about Molecular Mixology.  I did. But I picked out some techniques, which I think, make sense in good 'normal' bars. Sigh... some will know, that I am not that  keen on MM. But yeah, there are techniques, you can't really ignore anymore. Molecular Mixology in a pure form is in my eyes a dead end. The drinks are over-complicated, take too much time, they are fuzzy and its all surface. Yes, there are some successful bars, which are doing MM. But except of Tony Conigliaro's bar " The bar with no name", 69 Colebrooke Row in Islington and maybe Aviary in Chicago, I don't remember one. Let's face it - most of these bars repeating the few better known MM recipes with few variations over and over again. After I left, the folks over at Emirates Towers had a promotion of the  flown  in Antonio L...

I thought actually quite a few hours about the tricky parts of agar-agar clarification : the calculation of the variables: quantity of liquids, quantity of agar-agar, temperature of liquids... And then I 'tried' to clarify pineapple juice and just made myself wrong: I wanted to clarify 0.75 liters - though then used [without valid reason] 1.5 liter juice without the adjustment of the agar - and the most stupid thing was, that I've only acknowledged my mistake, when the "to be clarified" juice was already in the ice water bath! Lame! That is why I looked for a handy calculation widget, which I post here on my blog. Unfortunately it was quite tough to find a proper tool. I finally found editgrid.com , which is an amazing and simple tool, for just posting spreadsheets on blogs or on websites. It is not very elegant - however it works... And with my embedded calculation, you will be able to just add the weight of the liquids and the temperatures and you will...

After I have reviewed the ultimative Darbo elderflower, I was really looking forward to taste the other syrups as well. And after my days off, I found in our F&B office a bag with four more syrups. Let's get directly to the point: Darbo Blueberry & Cassis Syrup It is a very dark syrup - undiluted it is almost black. In the glass with some water it changes in a beautiful dark crimson. Already when you open the bottle, the room fills with wild blueberry aromas. It intensifies if you pour it into the glass. The black currents are almost not showing up in the nose. On the tongue there is a hit of blueberry aromas, but directly followed by black current notes = cassis. It plays back and forth - but the afterthought is definitely cassis. I cannot remember, to have tasted a better berry syrup. Ever. Well - a home-macerated wood strawberry syrup might be a worthy contender... but apparently it is always much easier to open a bottle [and if you think about wild wood str...

I am using Amarena cherry several years now. I thought they are the best compromise (even if they are a compromise at all) between taste, looks, quality. If only they were Amarena cherries with stem (they've got lower points in the style, due to this reason). Amarena cherries are beautiful almost black cherries in very sweet syrup, they still have a snap and they are quite natural [this is a bit confusing - because obviously they are heavily processed, they are cooked in a lot of sugar and half inverted - with quite natural I mean, that the producer don't help themselves with the box of food-additive wizary - all ingredients are "really" natural]. This is pretty much the opposite of the typical bright red Maraschino cherry, which is bleached, stabilized, dyed and flavored with artificial colors and flavors. It was not long after I've started to use this amazing product, that I wondered, how to use the dark sweet syrup, which is full of the Amarena flavor ...