{"id":28882,"date":"2013-12-19T09:06:57","date_gmt":"2013-12-19T14:06:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.uncommongoods.pro\/?p=28882"},"modified":"2017-12-06T11:34:42","modified_gmt":"2017-12-06T16:34:42","slug":"gift-lab-bitters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/2013\/gift-lab-bitters\/","title":{"rendered":"Gift Lab: How to Make Cocktail Bitters"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Morgan<\/a><\/p>\n

Research<\/strong>
\nI\u2019m a devoted whisky (and occasionally whiskey) drinker and usually enjoy my Scotch like I enjoy the top shelf of my dresser: neat. But I was intrigued to see if bitters might prove an opportunity to salvage a liquor I\u2019ve all but quit–rum. The recipe calls for a high-proof rum, so I picked up one of my favorite antiseptics, Bacardi 151. I also bought an aged rum (to test my bitters in later) that I was hoping might change my opinions of the drink. That rum, Plantation Grande Reserve (note the fancy pants name), was a vast improvement over any rum I could remember tasting (in either direction), in my younger days, so I was looking forward to a different experience, perhaps.
\n\"Bitters

Bacardi 151? Hello old friend.<\/em><\/center><\/p>\n

Hypothesis<\/strong>
\nI don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever tried bitters before, but I\u2019m coming in with a semi-open mind. I like bitter things. There\u2019s something smart-sounding about the word \u201cbitters.\u201d As I have a general preference for straight alcohol, I\u2019m not sure how much this will \u201cadd\u201d to the experience, but perhaps since I\u2019m less predisposed towards rum, it may make that drink more enjoyable. (Spoiler alert: I cheated and came up with this last line after the experiment.)<\/p>\n

Experiment<\/strong>
\nPreparing the mixture is actually a good bit of fun, adding the composite spices and ingredients as if your high school science teacher were a part-time bartender. (I didn\u2019t see you and you didn\u2019t see me, Mr. Chard.)<\/p>\n

\"DIY<\/a>

Here I am masterfully peeling an apple and not cutting myself, the skins to be mixed into the jar of rum and spices. No blood! Easy enough.<\/em><\/center><\/p>\n

The preparation requires a morning and evening shake of the mixture in its jar, which is a fun way to interact with your little blooming bundle of joy, and to appreciate the visual richness and beauty of the concoction as it does its thing. Eventually you\u2019ll forget to shake it one morning and you\u2019ll feel guilty for the rest of the day. Just let it go–it\u2019ll be fine.<\/p>\n

DAY 1 TEST<\/em>
\nFinally, after a long and eager wait, 2 weeks are up and it\u2019s time to open my present! Hold on there just a minute, bud–a few more steps before we\u2019re ready for cheers. First we have to strain through cheesecloth (which doubles as gauze if you cut yourself peeling that apple earlier–try to use the clean portion).<\/p>\n

\"Bitters<\/a><\/p>\n

The liquid is separated from the solid ingredients, which are placed on the stove to simmer with water then cool. This is a good opportunity to be extremely impatient, blow on the mixture, and just dump it in hot anyway. (Again, you\u2019re probably fine.)<\/p>\n

\"Bitters<\/a><\/p>\n

After cooling, we strain the mixture once again. OK, this is your exit solids! In the trash you go! We then get started on simple syrup (a sugar and water mixture that is heated and added in equal parts to the rum mixture). Add to dropper bottle then the big payoff.<\/p>\n

I decided on bourbon because, well, I like bourbon and it seems to feature in a good number of bitters cocktails. I could make a cocktail, but I\u2019d rather really taste the bitters here just to see how they work with the alcohol. A bit of bitters drip drop into some Buffalo Trace bourbon. <\/p>\n

\"Drinking<\/a><\/p>\n

Unfortunately, it wasn\u2019t doing it for me. Nope. Had I done something wrong? I don\u2019t think so. Was it last Friday when I neglected to shake the bitters? Were they exacting their revenge? Nah \u2013 I don\u2019t think bitters hold grudges (although they are called bitters\u2026). I think it was just the combination. The iconic Buffalo Trace flavor now muddled into something indecipherable and a bit all over the place. I added a bit more but that just added to the confusion. My eyes saw the Buffalo Trace and my mouth was failing to compute.<\/p>\n

Give up? No way. We\u2019ll try again tomorrow.<\/p>\n

DAY 2 TEST<\/em>
\nNew shirt, new day, new opportunity to drink. <\/p>\n

Back on the saddle and off the wagon with something a bit more compatible, perhaps \u2013 rum. Yes, my aged rum would make a late-game, surprise guest appearance in a highly unscientific evaluation.<\/p>\n

In one glass \u2013 straight aged rum
\nIn the other \u2013 that same rum with a few drops of bitters. <\/p>\n

\"Bitters<\/a><\/p>\n

This one makes sense. The rums obviously blend well, and this time I\u2019m able to actually taste the spiced apple. Not overpowering, but definitely adds another dimension. Yeah \u2013 I get it.<\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/strong>
\nI could see this enhancing a mediocre rum or allowing for a drinker to taste a decent one from a different perspective. I imagine you could mix into a number of different cocktails with different alcohols. (The instruction booklet names a few.) <\/p>\n

The highlight for me though was the process. Enjoying a drink usually consists of nothing more than opening a bottle and pouring it. Occasionally this might involve stirring in a few extra ingredients–and sure–there are even bitters you could buy. But there was something very satisfying about the process; in the interaction with all the individual ingredients, in the ultimate unification of those flavors. There was something satisfying in the wait. Alcohol is one of those things that can take longer than anything to get right. We buy liquors that have been waiting for years, heck, decades to taste just right, then we sip them and they\u2019re gone. <\/p>\n

This kit represents the process, the time, the care that goes into a good drink. This probably won\u2019t change my lineup of standby drinks or undying love of a good straight Scotch, but it was an interesting ride, I learned a bit, and I have something new to taste along with some of my old favorites. Nah, I ain\u2019t bitter.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Morgan prefers is booze served neat, but isn’t afraid to experiment with something new. Will he end up sweet on the DIY Bitters Kit?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":29050,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[741],"tags":[474,137,149,2041,3,66,61],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28882"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28882"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28882\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":64138,"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28882\/revisions\/64138"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29050"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28882"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28882"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.pro\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28882"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}