Halloween Recipe: Zombie

The first Zombie was created by Beaumont-Gant in the 1930s. Supposedly he named it so because after asking a customer how it was, the customer replied, “I felt like the living dead.”

Ingredients
* 1 ounce light rum
* 1 ounce dark rum
* 3/4 ounce fresh lime juice
* 1 ounce unsweetened pineapple juice
* 1 ounce fresh orange juice
* 1/2 ounce apricot brandy
* 1 ounce passion fruit syrup
* 1 teaspoon superfine sugar

Shake all the ingredients above with ice, then strain into a hurricane glass.
Then float on top:
* 1/2 ounce 151-proof rum

Garnish with something fruity - orange slice or a pineapple wedge would work fine.
The name is a propos for Halloween, and it's a great mind-bending drink for the parties ;)

On Busy Nights, Coke, and Pepsi

After a hectic bartending gig last night, where dozens of Pepsi bottles were used over the night, I start to like Coca Cola more and more ... Why?

Let me put it this way. You're very busy and want to be as efficient as possible, so when people as you for regular vs diet coke/pepsi, you want to be able to distinguish them instantly right?

Coca Cola got this down with their colored bottle labels. From regular to diet to Zero they go: Red, Gold, Black. They stand out, they're distinguishable, just like that. You spot it from the corner of your eye, you're good to go.

Pepsi? The new Pepsi Max is dark blue with black edges. Pepsi One is black. Oh, don't forget it tends to be dark when/where one bartends. See the problem here?
If Pepsi was a website or software, it will be way less user friendly than Coke.

And don't get me started on Sprite.

Absinthe in LA

Absinthe, a green licorice flavored liqueur, was legalized in the US more than a year ago, and more and more bars are offering either straight absinthe or absinthe cocktails.

One of my favorite is the drink below from The Edison Bar in downtown.Pisco Punch - contains Pisco (a grape-based liquor from Peru), pineapple juice, and a dash of absinthe (which they like to call "the green fairy")
Delicious!
Not cheap at $14 but the bartenders at the Edison know how to mix drinks!