Sipping

Stuff to drink

We challenged nine local mixologists create the perfect cocktail. They didn’t disappoint us.

By HEATHER BOUZAN | January 8, 2007

It's no secret that we love a good cocktail, but when said cocktail is created with us in mind, it become struly impossible to resist. So we challenged some of the most knowledgeable, inventive, and booze-obsessed mixologists in town to create a drink that embodies the Stuff@night lifestyle. The result? Nine completely original concoctions. Read on to learn where to order ’em, how to make ’em, and why they’re so Stuff.

The drink: Brock’s Buck
The creator: Jackson Cannon,bar manager

Where to get it: Eastern Standard (528 Comm Ave, Boston, 617.532.9100)
What makes it aStuff@night cocktail: “I wanted something very special for this drink. Stuff@night, a resource for where to go for people who work hard and play harder, brings to mind an unpretentious sophistication. So I wanted to create something that was at once elegant, accessible and unusual. With modesty, I submit that I’ve done just that. Bucks are a classification of drinks that stem from the Gin Buck, a classic which packs a punch. This one is named for one of our staunch regulars.”

1 1/2 ounces Old Monk Indian Rum
3/4 ounce Bauchant Liqueur Napoleon
1/2 ounce Cherry Heering
1/2 ounce fresh-squeezed lime juice
Shake together vigorously over ice and strain into
a chilled cocktail glass.

The drink: Casbah Cocktail
The creator: John Gertsen, principal bartender

Where to get it: No. 9 Park (9 Park Street, Boston, 617.742.9991)
What makes it aStuff@night cocktail: “When I think of Stuff@night, I definitely think of the international base of Boston, because of the university system here. We have a lot of people who settle in Boston who have very diverse backgrounds, and I think that the drink is very international because it has ingredients from three different countries: France, Italy, and the United States. From France, we have Amer Picon — it’s actually an outpost of France, in Algeria, where the ingredients were originally made, so that’s even
more international. Italy, being vermouth — sweet vermouth specifically, which was created in Italy. And rye whiskey, which is an American original. I think the combination of those three things really speaks to the international spirit of Boston, and the way that I envision the drink is that it has a very sophisticated framework. It’s very much like a Manhattan, and the word ‘Manhattan’ has a certain connotation. There is a little bit of an adult-ness to it, that it’s not just drinking a sour, or having this or that. You go out and you’re feeling very cosmopolitan, and you say, ‘Hey, I’m going to have a Manhattan tonight,’ as opposed to a Cosmopolitan, which is a very different thing. I think that that’s where the inspiration for the drink comes from. And that’s where we decided upon the name Casbah. We wanted to focus on a city that would have a name that had a good ring. I tested the drink out with a couple of my regulars, and I’ve gotten many thumbs-up.”

2 ounces Rittenhouse Rye Whiskey
1 ounce Amer Picon
1/2 ounce Cinzano Sweet Vermouth
1 dash Fee’s Orange Bitters
Stir, strain, and garnish with an orange twist.

The drink: City Lights
The creator: Lisa Mulligan, bartender

Where to get it: Redline (59 JFK Street, Cambridge, 617.491.9851)
What makes it a Stuff@night cocktail: “Basically, the City Lights is a good, fun, bold drink. It’s sexy. It has a nice kick to it because of the grapefruit. It’s Stuff@night because Redline is a hip place. It doesn’t seem like a hip place because Cambridge has this thing where you have to go downtown to find the nightlife, but we have it right next door to us in Cambridge. You can see the lights across the river from Harvard.”

1 1/2 ounces Plymouth Gin
1/4 ounce Grand Marnier
1/4 ounce Campari
splash of grapefruit juice
splash of orange juice
Serve chilled and straight up, garnished with an orange wheel covered in
caramelized sugar that’s sprinkled with Grand Marnier.

The drink: StarStruck Martini
The creator: Kevin Durgin, head bartender

Where to get it: District (180 Lincoln Street, Boston, 617.426.0180)
What makes it a Stuff@night cocktail: “It’s Stuff@night, I think, because you guys commonly feature local and national celebrities, and since we’ve been open in June ’06, we have been catering to that clientele as well. I think that it’s an interesting drink, because of the way it looks, the star [fruit].
It’s a middle-of-the-road kind of cocktail. The green-apple martini is really sweet. But this one, it’s not too sweet and it’s not too strong. And the color goes great with the star fruit that we have in there.”

2 ounces Three Olives apple vodka
1 ounce Shakka Red Apple
cranberry juice
Serve garnished with a star fruit.

The drink: Double “P” (Pisco and pomegranate)
The creator: John Byrd, mixologist

Where to get it: Alchemist Lounge (435 S. Huntington Avenue, Jamaica Plain,617.477.5741)
What makes it a Stuff@night cocktail: “This drink is perfect for Stuff@night because it is a drink that follows trends but is still unique. The trend is the use of pomegranate, which has been popular in the past year; the uniqueness is the use of Pisco, a Muscat-flavored liquor which is seldom used in bar cocktails. Pisco adds a distinctive flavor and comes in a cool
bottle shaped like a monolith from Easter Island. The flamed orange garnish adds a little bit of magic. Altogether, this reates a cocktail that is unique, fashionable, and magical . . . things that every reader of Stuff@night needs in their glass and in their life.”

1 1/2 ounces Pisco
1 ounce fresh pomegranate juice
1/2 ounce fresh orange juice
1/4 ounce simple syrup
Flamed orange peel garnish
Pour ingredients over ice, shake, and fine-strain into a martini glass. Finish off with a flamed orange peel (slice a peel off a fresh orange; point skin to a flame and squeeze zest; flame will ignite orange oils and give the zest a caramelized flavor; float peel on top of drink).

The drink: Lycheedoro
The creator: Jenn Harvey, head bartender and resident mixologist

Where to get it: 33 Restaurant & Lounge (33 Stanhope Street, Boston, 617.572.3311)
What makes it a Stuff@night cocktail: “It’s a lychee-infused vodka, and I’ve been doing a lot of infused vodkas lately. Earlier, when I became the bar manager over here, I was hesitant to put a lychee-infused martini on the menu, just because I never really came up with something that I really, really liked. This one still has a little bit of the floral essence of the lychee, but it’s not overwhelming to people that don’t know what it is. It’s still got a little bit of sweetness from the white grape juice, and then it’s got a little bit of class to it from the Lillet Blanc, and then the lychee, so it’s kinda trendy, kinda
sweet, kinda classic. That’s how I feel the magazine goes. It’s always up on trends and different things that are going on in all the different industries in town.”

1 1/2 ounces lychee-infused vodka
1/2 ounce Lillet Blanc
1/2 ounce white grape juice
splash of simple syrup
Shake with ice and serve straight up with a lychee garnish.

The drink: Finger on the Pulse Martini
The creator: Mike Sheridan, general manager

Where to get it: Croma (269 Newbury Street, Boston, 617.247.3200)
What makes it a Stuff@night cocktail: “It’s for those of us who like to be ‘in the know,’ featuring all the right ingredients to keep you on your toes: gin — sleek, with a smooth finish, and its reputation is outstanding. Apricot brandy — pleases all palates. OJ — nutritious and delicious. Lemon juice —
keepin’ it real! Orange twist — introducing a new twist . . .”

1 part Plymouth Gin
1 1/2 parts Apricot Brandy
splash of orange juice
2 dashes lemon juice
Garnish with an orange twist.

The drink:Stuff@nightcap
The creator: Josh Norris, bartender/mixologist

Where to get it: Vox Populi (755 Boylston Street, Boston, 617.424.8300)
What makes it a Stuff@night cocktail: “I wanted to make something that was different. The color of it is almost like a radiant green — you probably wouldn’t find a martini that looks like that anywhere else, so we figured that that was hip and trendsetting, which Stuff@night is. I figured you’d be getting vodka drinks and flavored vodka drinks and mojitos, and I just wanted to try to play with something a little bit different, which you guys certainly are. So, we named it the Stuff@nightcap because of its contents. It’s more of an after-dinner or late-night drink. So, after a night on the town, you
can kick back at home and grab a Stuff@nightcap to end your trendsetting night on the town!”

2 ounces Three Olives chocolate vodka
1 3/4 ounces Baileys Mint Chocolate liqueur
3/4 ounce Dark Crème de Menthe
Garnish with three mint leaves.

The drink: Red Sky Wild Berry Martini
The creator: Peter LeRoy, bartender

Where to get it: Red Sky (16–18 North Street, Boston, 617.742.3333)
What makes it aStuff@night cocktail: “Everyone’s so big on health nowadays, and we decided to come up with a martini that’s based on nutritional value. It’s got antioxidants in it and things like that, so it appeals to people. You guys appeal to a very diverse group, and we’re trying to bring a diverse crowd into Red Sky. The martini itself is appealing to everyone. And
not just women — it appeals to men because everyone’s so health-conscious nowadays.”

6 ounces vodka
splash of Chambord
splash of cranberry juice
2 blueberries
2 raspberries
1 strawberry
Muddle the berries in a shaker. Add ice and the rest of ingredients, then strain over ice into a martini glass and garnish with one of the three berries.

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