The Liquid Muse

Just Say “No” To The Cosmo!

Ladies, this is a plea to you. The Cosmo is dead. Done. Buried. Forget it. Sex in the City has been in reruns for like, four years or so. It is time to pick up your Manolos, and move on. There is a whole exciting world of libations to explore! (And, to the guys who actually order Cosmos in public, which is alarming unto itself… just stop. Don’t believe me? Maybe the Modern Drunkard will convince you.)

Being a “girl” is not always easy when it comes to ordering drinks. Seriously. I come across an enormous amount of kickin’ cool cocktails and for some reason, at the moment I find myself in front of a fully stocked bar – hundreds of bottles and combinations at my disposal, sometimes, I choke. Freeze. Go blank. I have actually heard myself stammer, “A… a… Cosmo?” (Ok, truthfully, I haven’t actually ordered a Cosmo for a couple of years - but you get my point.)

My default drink these days in the Negroni, which I highly recommend. It is both classic and rejuvenatedly swank. I make it at home mostly because, unfortunately, many bartenders have no f-ing clue how to make a good one. (I was severely disappointed with the sludge served at LA’s Formosa Café, normally a place I like. It, too, is a classic. But, that bartender had no business making a Negroni. They need to either teach the staff the art of that drink, or take it off the menu!)

To try a Negroni at home, check out this LM post featuring San Fran Mixologist, Jacques Bezuidenhout’s recipe. Another Negroni-phile is the Modern Mixologist himself, Tony Abou Ganim. (My profile on Tony is coming soon…)

There are a zillion cool cocktails to discover so I am going to make a point of sharing more on The Liquid Muse. Drinks using gin, bourbon, whiskey and tequila are often overlooked by us, ladies. My theory is that we don’t order them because we are not generally exposed to “manly” drinks. And, I’m about to change all that…

I’ve been planning to implement Liquid Muse Events for a while now. Among those events, will be liquor presentations, especially for women, called Booze for Broads (tm). These educational (and fun!) seminars will take place on both coasts, and often feature guest mixologists.

I’ll post them here, of course, but if you want to be “in the know” please send me an email and I’ll add you to my mailing list. (btw – I will never share your addresses. I hate being spammed, too.)

In the meantime, try a little experiment. When you’re out this weekend, think of something your dad drinks, and order that. Chances are it is in fashion now, anyway. Let me know how it went, and I’ll post it here. (Especially if you have pix!)