Onwards, to the first drink of the night.

#1

• 2oz Hangar One Raspberry vodka
• .75oz fresh lime juice
• .5oz St. Germain
• 3 dashes Peychauds bitters

Combine all with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

#2

• 1.5oz Hangar One Raspberry vodka
• .75oz fresh lime juice
• .33oz Fernet Branca
• .33oz Clear Creek Pear liqueur
• 1 touch of rose water

Combine all with ice. For the rose water, I dipped a straw in the jar and then swirled it in the shaker. It is powerful stuff. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

For this first edition, I thought I’d start with the distillery that single-handedly  brought back the spirit industry to Washington State- Dry Fly Distilling in Spokane, Washington. They initially produced a vodka and gin in a  squat, heavy, thick glass bottle. It felt hefty in the hand and looked good because it featured their signature solid, red fishing fly. (With a quick glance, it reminded me of the Pendleton bottle.)

Since then, they’ve added a 100% wheat whiskey and a bourbon to their lineup. Let’s take a closer look at the (former) Washington Wheat Whiskey.

I have two of these bottles from the first release. You can’t really see it in this picture, but the band on the front actually has a trout pattern on the sides of the bottle. It looks nice, pays homage to their company, and isn’t something you see on any other bottles. The only downside to this bottle was the fact that there are a few other spirits that use the exact same bottle. Who really cares, though? It’s a quality bottle. I liked this design with minimal text and graphics.

Fast forward a year and they switched bottles and bottle labels. Gone is the trout pattern. The Dry Fly name and logo are downsized and we have the name of the product in some crazy-ass font. It reminds me of professional wrestling for some reason. “This whiskey is awesome!!! Explosions!! Yeah!! This will get you drunk bro!!” I mean… really? Who are they trying to sell this stuff to? The addition of the footed bottle is cool and all, but the font is just terrible. It’s not much a step up from Comic Sans (if it’s a step up at all).

It would be interesting to see if the label change made a difference in sales and whether Dry Fly is adding new customers because of it. Maybe the Dry Fly guys can provide some insight in the comments. My last thought: good product, good old label, lame new label.

See, I was a Boy Scout, an Eagle Scout in fact, and one of the things we were taught to do is help people. So whenever I see those bartender classes pop up on Groupon, I take to Twitter and warn people to not buy them. Shocking, I know, but you will not learn how to make quality drinks if you take those classes. If you like drinking crap, go for it. There were few opportunities to learn proper technique and drink making in Seattle before Swig Well. Your best bet was to watch the Small Screen Network (which is how I got my start.)

When I heard about Swig Well I wanted to find out more. I wanted to find out if this was the program I could recommend to anybody looking for some quality cocktail education. After attending the preview event, I’m happy to say that Swig Well is now the go to cocktail education program in the Puget Sound.

What Is It?

Swig Well is the result of a friendship between Anu Apte and Hallie McGee. Hallie runs the operations side and Anu programs and instructs. I think they have all the necessary skills to develop Swig Well into the concept they want it to be.

I think that is important to note. The plans Anu and Hallie have for Swig Well are grand. Initially, most classes will take place at Rob Roy. Classes will be small; 11 at the bar and maybe a few people at the tables near the bar. Local cocktail experts will lead classes along with Anu. Paul Clarke has already taught a class. Rocky Yeh will hopefully be teaching some. They’ve already covered topics like Halloween cocktails, holiday cocktails, and apple brandy.

Most classes will run $75, but some will probably be cheaper if they are sponsored by a spirit company, and some may be more expensive depending on the content of the class. You’ll get three main things for your cash: delicious cocktails, top notch instruction, and the experience of making your own drinks. I’m not sure if you’ll be making drinks in every class, but Anu wants to make sure people seated at the bar have the opportunity to learn how to mix the drinks. Of course you’ll have time to talk with the instructor and other classmates after the structured class has ended. (You’ll really feel like you’re in the industry when you find yourself in a bar at noon making drinks.)

One Cocktail Education Program to Rule Them All

From my perspective (which is that of a cocktail and spirit enthusiast), Swig Well will be extremely successful if they nail a few key areas of this business endeavor.

Quality of Education – I have no doubt that they will absolutely nail this. Anu knows her stuff and she is connected to other people who know their stuff. This is in the bag.

Price – Anu said that at $75 a class, it is enough for their time and supplies for the class and to pay the instructor. Even with that, I think this is on the high side. If they’re selling out all of their classes at $75 per person, then they priced it right. And I know they are doing what they can to offer cheaper classes too. I’d love to see them offer a package deal, where I prepay $150 for three classes or something like that. One hundred and fifty dollars for my wife and I to take a class together just seems a little high.

Another tactic to address the price is to make it very clear who the class is for. If it is a class is on an advanced subject like applying chemistry to cocktails, make sure that you clearly define what content is going to be covered. The more I know about a class, the more comfortable I am with paying a higher price. I wouldn’t be very happy if I paid to take a class about technique and it spent considerable time on basic stirring. From what I have seen, they are doing a good job of outlining the classes and making sure people know what they are getting into.

Community – I’d love to see them expand this program beyond the walls of Rob Roy (and they said they are considering it). Anu and Hallie are smart to build a base and a reputation from that base, but this kind of program screams road trip. I’d love to see my local bar, 1022 South, do a Swig Well class. I think other bars and bartenders have a lot to offer this program. This also will help to build the Swig Well brand and expose it to different communities. I don’t think they want the same cocktail peeps to show up to every class. The cocktail community is strong in Seattle and I think they can really use this to their advantage.

What Lies Ahead

Anu and Hallie have ambitious ideas. Branded/recommended Swig Well barware (which is a great idea), classes ranging from seasonal cocktails to batching cocktails to home bar building, and big name instructors are just some of them.

They are two smart ladies who are bringing quality, structured drinking education to Seattle, branding it, and making it fun.

P.S. I’m really glad you didn’t name it Drink Well because that is the name of a water dish for pets.

P.P. S. Thanks for the best Ramos Gin Fizz I’ve ever had.

I’m sure your Thanksgiving table looked just like mine: decorations, sweet potatoes, turkey, cranberries, you know, all the Thanksgiving fixings. Oh yeah. I left off the bottles of Laird’s Straight Apple Brandy, Angostura, and Angostura orange bitters. What? You didn’t have those sitting on you table? I’m going to give you a reason right now to have those on the table at Christmas.

You see, I’m a simple guy. I drink my eggnog from the jar because I don’t want to dirty a glass. I’d also rather figure out a cocktail from something I already have on hand than buy something else, which is what happened here. I was already buying Martinelli’s Sparkling Apple Cider for Thanksgiving and I just didn’t want to buy one more thing like champagne. It might be a lame rationale, but it’s mine.

I based this cocktail off of the classic Champagne Cocktail which has a sugar cube, Angostura bitters, and a lemon twist. I wanted my cocktail to scream apple and spice. The apple cider is sweet enough, so I ditched the sugar cube and added the orange bitters because orange is a good flavor to mix with apple.

The Martinelli’s Cocktail

• .75oz Laird’s Straight Apple Brandy
• 3 dashes Angostura bitters
• 1 dash Angostura orange bitters
• Top with Martinelli’s Sparkling Apple Cider

Add the apple brandy and bitters to the coupe or flute and then top with the Martinelli’s. (Make sure your Martinelli’s is very cold.)

This is an extremely easy drink to make. (Remember, I like easy.) I was making these at the table as I was refilling glasses. It isn’t very alcoholic, so you can drink a number of them as you spend time at the table. It has great apple flavor, good spice, and uses one of the most classic American spirits, apple brandy.

The Lucky Rita serves 181,333

• 2,125 gallons of Margaritaville Gold Tequila
• 708 gallons of Triple Sec
• 5,667 gallons of Margaritaville Margarita Mix and Lemon-X sour mix
• 22,667 Lime Wedges

Serve over 9 days. October 14th to October 23rd coinciding with the 7th annual Margaritaville street party.

Now, I’m no gigantic margarita expert, but that recipe looks like a tanker truck full of liquid crap. The numbers work out to a vat of 8500 gallons, with .046 gallons (or 5.9oz) of Lucky Rita per drink (not counting ice dilution of course.) While the press release doesn’t get into the nitty gritty of making the drink, I’m guessing they are mixing all of the liquid together and then just adding ice when they serve the drinks. However they serve it, it will still taste like a syrupy cup o’ crap with a ratio of 2:1, mixer to spirits.

That said, while I despise the margaritas pumped out by Jimmy’s camp, I still want to be that guy. He makes millions off of frozen jalapeno poppers and coconut shrimp. Yes. I will make disgusting drinks for millions of dollars.

Just to highlight different between how we make our drinks, let’s just scale up a proper margarita to serve 181,333.

Using the margarita recipe of

• 2oz tequila
• 1.33oz Cointreau
• .66oz lime juice

we can figure out exactly how to supply almost the entire city of Tacoma (population 198,397) with margaritas.

The Tacoma Rita serves 181,333

• 4,248 gallons of tequila
• 2,832 gallons of Cointreau
• 1,416 gallons of lime juice
• 181,333 lime wedges (because everything drink should have a garnish and I don’t like to half ass things like they did with the Lucky Rita)

There you have it folks, a proper margarita at scale.

Note: I just realized that the way I calculated the servings of the Tacoma Rita is off. It would actually serve more than 181,333. So that means the city of Fife, WA is invited too. Sorry I don’t feel like going back and changing my numbers.

A few weekends ago I checked out three of their new business decisions.

Spirit Sampling – In certain stores in Washington, the WSLCB has started sampling programs to expose people to different kind of spirits. They serve your up small (1/4oz) samples of the spirits in plastic cups. On the day I visited, they were sampling three flavored vodkas and one other liqueur. The 360 vodkas I tried were sickly sweet and not something I’d buy.

While this sampling program is a step in the right direction, most of the products sampled will be vodka. Why don’t they sample verticals of scotch or tequila, or hell, even different brands of the same flavored vodka? Why would they want to promote competition between different brands? The WSLCB is always thinking about the consumer. At my local store, 8 of the 11 tastings in the month of October are vodka. So much for their goal of customers “potentially trying something they may never have considered before.”

West Seattle Premier Liquor Store – A couple months ago, the first “premier” state run liquor store opened. I stopped by one night and I do have to say that it is the best state run store in Washington. The selection is top notch and the store does not smell of cigarettes. There are still massive holes in the stock though. The vermouth selection is lacking and the gins seemed like they could be much more robust. Again, it is a step in the right direction, but what about the rest of the state who can’t get the products they want because there is no online ordering?

When I think upscale, I think massive Captain Morgan displays.

Beer and Wine at Farmers Market – I tried some Harmon beer at the Proctor farmers market the other day and it was a good experience. The best part about this is that people will actually see alcohol in a public environment. Again, a step in the right direction but something that should have been done years ago.

The WSLCB is doing some good things here, but they should have been done years ago, and they should be doing more to support the local spirit industry in Washington.

The beautiful metal ceiling inside Canon.

The Bar – As Jamie said, at this point Canon is 90% done. To the naked eye, though, the bar itself looks fantastic. From the Angostura-stained bar and tables to the antiqued mirror and vintage Wrigley, Jr. cash register, the decor of Canon is spot on. It makes you feel like you’re in a place where the focus is on the spirits and not one specific theme or era. Eventually the spirits themselves will cover what looked like about 50% of the wall space. It truly is a shrine to spirits and cocktails.

Behind the bar at Canon.

Case in point: in the bathroom, small vintage bottles of whiskey are displayed in a glass case near the sink. One of those bottles is from the Kellogg Distillery of Tacoma, WA on K Street. I actually live on K Street. There are probably 100 other little things like that in Canon and only with repeat visits will they come to light for patrons.

A vintage bottle of whiskey from the Kellogg Distillery in Tacoma, WA

The Menu – I had heard rumors of his 100 cocktail menu and Jamie finally revealed the details at the preview event. Turns out it is more book than menu. Hands down this is the one thing I am most excited about. While other bars produce books that cover the cocktails they serve (see PDT’s new book), this approach to inform patrons of how the cocktails are constructed is fresh, thoughtful, and will cause cocktail nerds to come from all over the country. Jamie said the book will be about 90% classics and 10% modern drinks–and the best part is that you can buy one and take it home. He’s also going to include a bookmark with special/seasonal drinks–this is how Canon will rotate drinks and take some of the intimidation out of the book for the regular folks.

I could see the cocktail nerds bringing their books to the bar every time they come to add any new cocktails that Jamie has included on the bookmark to their own books. I only hope that they leave blank pages in the back so I can write in new cocktails as Canon produces them.

Jamie’s Philosophy – Change. He made it very clear that change is built into the blood of Canon. The menu bookmark is continually going to change, punches will change, and I’m sure he’ll be bringing in new spirits. True cocktail nerds, while they appreciate the old favorites, constantly search out the new and exciting. This commitment to change is what will win the hearts of cocktailians the world over.

The Food – It sounds like they food is just going to be tasty. Nothing fancy, just delicious.

A night of eating and drinking at Canon.

The Canon Cocktail – At the preview event only two drinks were served: a punch and the Canon Cocktail. The Canon Cocktail consisted of whiskey, cognac, and Dolin Rouge topped with a cassis foam with the Canon logo sprayed on with Angostura. It was delicious and is an excellent choice for a bar that labels itself as a whiskey and bitters emporium.

Jamie making Canon Cocktails.

My Canon Cocktail a few minutes later.

I’m so excited to see how Canon develops and I totally believe that it will become of the premier bars in America, if not the world. Thanks to Jamie, Erin, and Andrew for a special night.

The first video features the amazing Derrick Schommer making a recipe he received from somebody on the internet. Nothing like the internet recipe-poor technique combo. Thanks Derrick.

Doing it right is the lovely Anu Apte of Rob Roy in Seattle, WA.

The facility and tasting room looked good. The woman manning the front was nice and seemed knowledgeable about about their products and white dog whiskey in general. My main gripe was the fact that they only let you taste their 80 proof “sipping” Headlong White Dog Whiskey and not the 110 proof version that gets packed in with their Age Your Own Whiskey kit. Why not let people try the 110 to be able to compare it with the 80 proof? I get that most people won’t like it and it would be too “hot” for them, but throw us experienced drinkers a bone.

Overall, a good experience and worth a stop if you’re in the Woodinville area.

Peabody Jones Vodka – This vodka was really good. It had a creamy, viscous quality that felt good in my mouth. I liked the flavor that had a grain/fresh earth facet to it. As with all vodkas, you lose what flavor they do have in cocktails, but if you’re into sipping vodka, give this one a look.

Headlong White Dog Whiskey (80 proof) – This was actually the first time I had tasted white dog neat. I liked it, but did not buy a bottle for home as I have other spirit priorities at the moment. The flavor was refreshing and the corn really came through. This spirit could be the base of some interesting cocktails and at $30 for 750ml isn’t a bad price.