opinionated alchemist

Let me first apologise... this post is not directly about drinks. However I was reminded of a very unpleasant thing: being bullied. The starting point was that post about the Long Island Iced Tea . I got these comments in return: Jo-Jo Valenzuela  ·  Partner  at  Behind The Stick Consulting Group Dear Dominik S.: I don't like calling people out, but I am assuming you have never tended bar in your life. It's either that or you were just never good at making drinks, or at least balancing it. I've been tending bar for 20 years, and I've made thousands of LIIT. I made sure every single one of those drinks that I sent out is the best guests ever had. Not because I make the best, but because I care of the drinks that I make myself. Best is subjective. In case it is not their best, I would ask the guest how they preferred it, and I would customize it to their spec. Yes, I know most people just order it to get sloshed, but there really is a way to make this drink bet...

So just lately the Long Island Iced Tea post created quite a controversy on Liquor.com . It seems, that most people have only read the headline... and were just angry, that I was standing against the opinion of the mighty Jeffrey Morgenthaler.  Unfortunately I feel that the topic was hollowed out - and people screaming at me: how can you dare do doubt a so iconic drink?  Well - not much has changed. Yes - Jeffrey and a lot of other people are right: you can probably do every drink better, than in your average dive. Yes, you can use fresh juices and quality spirits and liqueurs (and you always should). But does that make a flawed recipe a good one? I don't think so! Even before 2000 I tended bars and was managing bars and I never used sweet and sour mix. Because this wasn't accepted at all in Europe (in Germany to be specific) - at least not in hotel bars, where  I started my career. I have encountered only one place, where I have worked as bartender, which h...