By Paul Nelson –

I didn’t grow up on James Bond. I wasn’t allowed to watch the movies until I was a teen, and even then it was only the edited-for-television broadcasts on ABC. I may have seen one James Bond film in the theater, and I watched Skyfall on Netflix a few years ago. But in general the films have been too over the top for my tastes, whether on the scale of explosions and car chases or in the realm of drop-dead gorgeous femme fatales.  I’ve never even read any of the books.

By Paul Nelson –

Legend has it that the Negroni came to be nearly a century ago when the Italian Count Camillo Negroni asked a bartender in Florence to make his favorite cocktail, the Americano, stronger. The bartender substituted gin for the traditional soda water, resulting in the Negroni. Whether or not you believe this particular story isn’t terribly important, but it’s another example of the fascinating and by and large thoroughly unsubstantiated world of cocktail lore. It’s also an example of a classic cocktail that makes gin somewhat palatable!

By Paul Nelson –

Our recent family trip to Europe cemented this reality in my mind – whether traveling through Europe, the Middle East, or the Orient, cocktails are far more of a rarity than here in the US. But one cocktail advertised heavily throughout the many countries we passed through in Europe is the Aperol Spritz – sometimes just referred to as a Spritz. We loved it there as a refreshing and light drink in the midst of a hot day of sightseeing. We continue to enjoy it now that we’re home, despite the fact that it’s not a very common drink in the US.

By Paul Nelson –

It isn’t that I haven’t been drinking, I just haven’t taken the time to do anything compellingly different in a while. However Billie kindly provided me with an amazing bottle of aged dark rum for my birthday, and it seemed only fitting to find a good use for it (other than just sipping it straight and smelling it!). This led me to the Acapulco, which is quickly becoming a go-to alternative to the Manhattan  for my wife.

By Paul Nelson –

I don’t consider myself much of a mixologist. I don’t have the time to really get into it, and I can’t geek out on the science side of culinary or cocktail creations. I remain convinced that food and drink should be good, but there is a vague line that varies from person to person where appreciation of God’s good gifts turns into idolatry or vanity.

Rounding out the the Holy Trinity of whiskey drinks is the Old Fashioned (Sazeracs and Manhattans being the […]

One of the many gifts I received from my very loving congregation this Christmas is another bartending resource guide – Vintage Spirits & Forgotten Cocktails. Being a Christian, a history buff  and a bartender, I have a natural affinity and desire to connect with those who have gone before me, whom I might benefit from and pass on to those who come after me. It’s this propensity that has launched me into my new theological reading project: The Ante-Nicene Fathers (another delightful Christmas gift from a parishioner!). 

By Paul Nelson –

Every Sunday evening we host happy hour for some of the college students and recent college grads in the area. It’s an informal event – as a happy hour should be. We make popcorn, put out chips and crackers and veggies and home-made ranch dressing, slice up some salami and incorporate whatever else we have on hand or someone brings. We spend a few hours just chatting. Sometimes it’s theological. Sometimes it’s personal – helping young people find their way to surer footing after the break-up of a long-term relationship or praying with them as they struggle to find employment options and make decisions for their future. Some of the regulars are very gifted musically, and the guitar(s) come out or the piano tinkles and people are singing. 

By Paul Nelson – Bourbon is seriously challenging tequila for my favorite liquor. I don’t think bourbon will […]

By Paul Nelson –

Blessed as we are to live in the Southwestern US, we’re privileged to have access to citrus relatively easily this time of year. A parishioner graciously gifted me with a basket of oranges from his tree, and I wanted to put them (or at least one of them!) to good use. Plus, we’ve got that bottle of mezcal from last week to work with, right?

By Paul Nelson –

I was first introduced to mezcal when I inherited a half-bottle from my best friend who was moving away for work after college. I didn’t really know what it was, but it was cool because there was a worm in the bottom of the bottle.

I haven’t had mezcal in the last 20 years probably, but I happened upon a bottle of it at the local grocery store and picked it up for nostalgic reasons. Then I stumbled across this article in Slate on the burgeoning mezcal industry and figured it was time to do put that bottle to use. 

By Paul Nelson –

I’m somewhat back into my normal routine after traveling to the other side of the world. Ready for something different, I checked out one of my cocktail recipe books for some new ideas the other night. What I came up with was a little something called the Apple Fizz. 

By Paul Nelson –

Cocktails, as much as I love them, are not a universal thing.  Several of the places I’ve traveled over the years really just don’t do them. It’s not their culture. They may have a distilled beverage that they drink over ice, but there isn’t a history of mixing it with anything else to create a cocktail.  We’re finding out that this is sort of the case with Vietnam. I hope to report on some locally sourced and inspired creations at one place in town. But in the meantime, we relaxed on the rooftop of the second-tallest building in Hanoi, the Lotte building (check it out here if you’re curious) this evening after dining on street sushi. There we tried a cocktail with a Southeast Asian flavor courtesy of passion fruit juice. My guess as to the recipe would be:

By Paul Nelson –

In a few days, my wife and I will be heading overseas to Vietnam and Thailand to visit with friends and do some other stuff.  It’s been over two years since we found a Vietnamese inspired cocktail in an issue of Sunset magazine, and while I hope to be able to share some local recipes in the next couple of weeks, for now, this is as close as I can get to a Southeast Asian cocktail I’ve actually made. This originated in Seattle, and is named for Tran Hung Dao, a 13^th century Vietnamese general regarded by many as one of the most brilliant tacticians in military history due to his victories over, among others, Kublai Khan. It takes a bit of work, but the complexity of flavors will likely have you making it over and over again, particularly if you enjoy Asian food!

By Paul Nelson –

We’re familiar with the major liquors that make up a majority of cocktails in the US: tequila, whiskey/bourbon, rum, gin, and vodka. Each has major brands that you’ll typically find in your liquor store or bar. Each also represents just one type of production or process. Around the world, there are other liquors that are similar in some respects to the ones we’re familiar with but different enough to be worth exploring.

By Paul Nelson –

A couple of years ago my wife and I were able to get away by ourselves for a week. We headed up the coast to San Francisco and enjoyed time in that city and the beautiful country north of there. After a long day of walking around the city to see the sights, we found ourselves in the financial district. It was on a weekend so it was fairly deserted. We were pleased to stumble upon Harrington’s Bar and Grill, a delightful little pub in a historic building.