April 2019

National Gin & Tonic Day is coming up on April 9, and we think the best way to celebrate the drink holiday is by raising a glass of the stuff.

While you could simply mix gin with tonic and call it a day, we’re fans of these creative libations that put an inventive twist on the classic cocktail. Mix one of these delicious Gin & Tonic variations at home to show your love for the drink.

The Charleston Affair

Hendrick’s Gin ambassador Mattias Horseman created this beautiful Highball to be equally interesting and refreshing. The cucumber and rose garnishes bring out the gin’s unique botanicals.

Ingredients: 

• 2 oz. Hendrick’s Gin
• 1 oz. Lillet Rosé
• 1 oz. Tonic Water
• 1 oz. Fresh Young Coconut Water
• 1 oz. Fresh Lemon Juice
• ⅔ oz. Honey Syrup
• 1 dash Rose Water
• Cucumber Slices (to Garnish)
• Rose Petals (to Garnish)

Preparation: Fill a highball glass to the brim with high-quality ice. Pour ingredients over the ice and mix gently. Garnish with a slice of fresh cucumber and rose petals.

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Fortunella

Mixologist A-K Hada created this flavorful G&T variation to celebrate the World’s 50 Best Bars 10th anniversary earlier this year. It’s an impressive and refreshing libation to serve as the welcome drink at your next dinner party. 

Ingredients:

• 1.5 oz. Tanqueray No. TEN
• .5 oz. Contratto Bitter
• .5 oz. Kumquat Syrup*
• .5 oz Grapefruit Juice
• 3 oz Tonic
• Rosemary Sprig (to Garnish)
• Grapefruit Wheel (to Garnish)

Preparation: Add all ingredients to a copa glass over ice. Stir gently. Garnish with a rosemary sprig and grapefruit wheel.

*Kumquat Syrup

Ingredients: 

• 285 grams Kumquats
• 285 grams Simple Syrup

Preparation: Blend equal parts by weight of kumquats and a 1:1 simple syrup with a hand blender. Fine strain, bottle and refrigerate.

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Em’s Tonic

Miami eatery Ariete has a diverse cocktail program that features modern twists on classic drinks. This take on the Gin and Tonic features a homemade cucumber tarragon shrub that’s actually pretty simple to whip up at home.

Ingredients:

• 2 oz. Letherbee Gin
• .75 oz. Cucumber Tarragon Shrub*
• 1 oz. Lemon Juice
• .5 oz. Honey Syrup
• .5 oz. Fever-Tree Mediterranean Tonic Water
• Dehydrated Orange Wheel (to Garnish)
• Cucumber Ribbon (to Garnish)

Preparation: Place all ingredients, except tonic water and garnishes, in a shaker tin with ice, and shake. Pour Fever-Tree Mediterranean Tonic Water in the tin. Pour into a Collins glass over ice. Garnish with a dehydrated orange wheel and cucumber ribbon, if desired.

*Cucumber Tarragon Shrub 

Ingredients:

• 2 Cucumbers, Sliced
• 2 Limes, Sliced
• 5 Tarragon Sprigs
• 10 Coriander Seeds
• 1 Water
• 1 quart Sugar
• .5 quart Apple Cider Vinegar

Preparation: Combine all ingredients in large pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, bring the temperature down and simmer for 30 minutes. Let rest and cool, then strain.

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Berry Nice

The NYC outpost of Bluebird London dedicates an entire section of their cocktail menu to Gin and Tonics, and this fruit-filled recipe is one of our favorites. A mix of Brockmans Gin and Fever-Tree Indian Tonic is garnished with a bouquet of berries for a simple sipper that’s perfectly refreshing in warmer weather.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 oz. Brockmans Gin
• 4 oz. Fever-Tree Indian Tonic
• 3 Raspberries
• 3 Blueberries or Blackberries
• 3-4 Juniper Berries
• 1 Dehydrated Grapefruit Slice

Preparation: Combine all ingredients over ice in a wine glass or large goblet.

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Roku Gin and Tonic

To celebrate cherry blossom season in Northern California, the St. Regis San Francisco is offering a special “East Meets West” cocktail menu through the month of April. Their Japanese-inspired Roku Gin and Tonic uses a green tea yuzu syrup to give it a bold, citrusy punch.

Ingredients:

• .75 oz. Green Tea Yuzu Syrup*
• 2 oz. Roku Gin
• Tonic Water (to Top)
• Lemon Rind (to Garnish)
• Szechuan Pepper (to Garnish)
• Edible Flower (to Garnish)

Preparation: Combine syrup and gin in a balloon glass. Top with tonic water. Float a dash of Szechuan pepper on top and garnish with a lemon rind and edible flower, if desired.

*Green Tea Yuzu Syrup

Ingredients:

• 2 cups Water
• 2 cups Sugar
• 6 tbsp. Green Tea Leaves
• .5 cup Yuzu Juice

Preparation: Add sugar and water to a saucepan and stir over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Add green tea and yuzu juice, and mix over low heat to combine. Strain the mix and allow to cool before use.

The post 5 Cocktails to Celebrate National Gin & Tonic Day appeared first on Chilled Magazine.

Source: Mixology News

Before all things Fortnite and having multiple consoles from which to choose, video games were relegated to the arcade.

Kids of all ages would head to their local mall or pizza parlor to play Ms. PAC-MAN, Space Dungeon, and Street Fighter for hours on end. Those days may be long gone, but you can relive them in the arcade bars that have been popping up across the country over the last 20 years. And we’re not talking Dave & Buster’s, but rather great craft cocktail and beer bars that also curate a selection of nostalgic ‘80s and ‘90s arcade classics—some even include board and boardwalk games like Connect Four and Skee-Ball. Here are eight arcade bars from around the country that will level up your next night out.

Barcade – Multiple Locations

Barcade was opened 15 years ago by 4 friends in Brooklyn who were dedicated to vintage arcade games and craft beer. There are now seven locations across New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut. Each Barcade has a full bar with a focus on craft spirits and cocktails. The beer selection is solely from American craft breweries, and the beers are only served on draft to reduce waste and energy. The video games are mostly from the classic period of the early 1980s through the early ‘90s. New locations are slated for San Jose, California; Norfolk, Virginia; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; and Detroit

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Boxcar Bar + Arcade – Raleigh, Durham, and Greensboro, North Carolina

This bar is home to hundreds of games, including classic and modern arcade cabinets, pinball machines, and consoles. Boxcar features 24 constantly rotating American craft drafts, which is not a hard task when it comes to all the great beer made in North Carolina alone. There are free weekly tournaments and live music on a covered patio. And given that this is college basketball country, with both the University of North Carolina and Duke University nearby, Boxcar is likely the center of March Madness.

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EightyTwo – Los Angeles, California

On the West Coast, two childhood friends opened this coin-op bar near Downtown L.A. in 2012. The classic arcade features a rotating collection of pinball and arcade machines, an outdoor patio, weekly competitions, and monthly pinball tournaments. The L.A. Pinball League is in action on Tuesday nights, and DJs spin a variety of music every night.

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Emporium – Chicago, Illinois

This string of Chicago-based arcade bars was founded in 2012, and just added a new location in San Francisco last year. Emporium has arcade games from the last 30-plus years and a full bar, but its focus behind the stick is craft beer and whiskey—the menu includes 23 of the former and more than 75 of the latter. The bar also regularly hosts live music and movie screenings.

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Ground Kontrol – Portland, Oregon

In operation since 1998, Ground Kontrol is the granddaddy of them all. Its original location was just an arcade, but when it moved to its current spot in Old Town in 2004, the bar was added. Ground Kontrol currently operates more than 100 classic video games and 40 pinball machines. It also offers a full-service bar and hosts DJs, comedy shows, high-score competitions, game tournaments, and Rock Band karaoke—which could either be a good or bad thing, depending on who’s performing and how much you’ve had to drink.

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I/O Arcade Bar – Madison, Wisconsin

Named after the input-output interface between humans and electronics, this is where University of Wisconsin gamers can take in Overwatch with an IPA. The bar serves custom cocktails and craft beers while you play more than 50 games. It also offers a variety of board games, pinball machines, and the opportunity to join different types of gaming leagues.

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Kung Fu Saloon – Austin, Dallas, Houston, and Fort Worth, Texas, and Nashville, Tennessee

First opened in Austin in 2009, Kung Fu Saloon now has six locations with vintage arcade games like Galaga, Centipede, Ms. PAC-MAN, NBA Jam, Mortal Kombat, Golden Tee, and Big Buck Hunter. It also features non-video entertainment like shuffleboard, foosball, ping-pong, Skee-Ball, a giant Jenga, and Connect Four, and other board games. The bar serves domestic and craft beer on tap, including Nashville’s Yazoo Hop Perfect and Austin’s (512) Pecan Porter, and is famous for its pickle shots. On Sundays, all games are free.

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Play – Pensacola, Florida

Opened in 2010, Play is the result of combining your favorite neighborhood bar with the nostalgia of vintage pop culture. Opened by former music industry execs who decided to abandon the digital space for the physical space, Play features  of vintage and state-of-the-art arcade games, a pool table, Skee-Ball machines, shuffleboard, air hockey, and much more.

The post 8 Awesome Arcade Bars to Bring Out Your Inner Child appeared first on Chilled Magazine.

Source: Mixology News

When one thinks about California and craft beer, the first place that comes to mind is Los Angeles.

And while it’s true that grand ol’ L.A. is renowned for its brewery list, one doesn’t have to travel very far to find themselves in uncharted territory and stumble upon a hidden treasure. Right along the coastline is the small city of Long Beach, which is located just outside of L.A. This oceanfront city is one of the surfing havens of America, and it’s full of a few excellent breweries that are providing surfers, beachgoers, and tourists alike with quality craft beers.

Situated in a vacant shopping center is the Long Beach Beer Lab. This hidden gem is quite literally out of sight because it sits in between two empty storefronts—the only indication of existing life is a sign that reads “Brewery.” Inside are large steel tanks with wooden barrels stacked up on the adjacent wall. The polished wood interior is a great place to sample the Beer Lab’s freshly brewed beers, which include a delicious grapefruit gose that presents notes of juicy grapefruit, salt, lime, and a hint of watermelon; a hazy IPA; a Norwegian imperial buttercup stout; and a bourbon barrel-aged Russian imperial stout.

Not far from the Long Beach Beer Lab stands the Liberation Brewing Company, which makes several IPAs as well as a brown ale, hazy pale ale, oat lager, and a few others. The night we visited happened to be the brewery’s  “Beer & Politics” night, where several Long Beach city councilmen and councilwomen answered questions from fellow citizens, which was tough for the council, but rather entertaining for everyone else.

Up the street from Liberation is Ambitious Ales, a simple, modern brewery that lets craft beer drinkers enjoy its brews and conversations without distractions. To eliminate the need for too much decision-making, Ambitious Ales provides craft beer lovers with only a few options, all of which are purely satisfactory. Its list consists of a Belgian table beer brewed with chamomile, lavender, and fresh, local strawberries and an imperial stout brewed with coffee and cocoa beans, as well as a blonde ale, gose, and session IPA.

Across town is Steady Brew Beer Co., where an oil pump logo greets you with a couple of retro arcade games to entertain. The aroma of malts and hops are swirling through the air as soon as you step inside this brewery. Steady Brew makes an array of different brews to satisfy all types of beer drinkers, ranging from light-hued pale ales to hopped-up, copper-colored IPAs to a dark-as-night roasted stout. Two more breweries, Timeless Pints Brewing Company and Ten Mile Brewing, complete the list, with their own intriguing designs and satisfying brews that span the flavor spectrum and entice the palate for more. For every beer lover visiting Southern California, Long Beach should be a destination at the top of your list.

The post All the Breweries You Need to Visit in Long Beach, California appeared first on Chilled Magazine.

Source: Mixology News