Tracker Pixel for Entry

Mixology 101

Cocktail Showdown | October 14th, 2015

Crafting a cocktail

By Scott Motschenbacher

Cocktail -- what is a cocktail? What is the definition of cocktail? According to Wikipedia, on May 13, 1806, the editor of a local publication in Hudson, N.Y., defined it as such: “a potent concoction of spirits, bitters, water and sugar.” Has that definition stood the test of time? Personally, I say yes; I’m sure I would be battled on this by many drinkers, drunks, beer tenders, bartenders and contortionists. Send me an email, we’ll chat.

Now, when I look at this definition it screams one cocktail: The Old Fashioned, the cocktail that every bartender should have in his or her arsenal. This cocktail should be held to the highest standard -- no self-appreciating, salt of the earth bartender would ever use a rail bourbon for this. There have been many takes on it, but the true Old Fashioned is the same as its name: SIMPLE! Now, I could employ my recipe for an Old Fashioned. But, I would much rather you go visit one of the many great mixologists in town.

Cocktails can be crafted in so many different ways for so many different occasions. We are heading into our fall months, and I’m sure more than one tender in town is working on pumpkin spice something. Cocktails, like food, are all very seasonal: winter rolls around and everyone wants a hot toddy; spring comes back and we want fresh and unique; when summer months hit us, we want something cold and refreshing.

This is great for the mixologists because we won’t get stuck blending the same margaritas all year round. For myself, and I’m sure for a lot of mixologists out there, fresh ingredients are a staple.

For instance oranges, to me, are the best cocktail fruit readily available. Utilizing all the citrus products is almost a mother sauce (mother sauce is one of five sauces that is utilized in the kitchen) of ingredients for libations.

Mixology is the new “science” of the cocktail. What drives the bartender/mixologist to create? Is it to please the guest, the dinner party, or some pretty girl you met at the laundromat? Well I’d have to say those particular people are a bit lower on the totem pole than the person creating.

The person creating the cocktails, in my personal belief, is more about impressing themselves than anyone else in the room. We bartenders/mixologists can be our own worst enemy. I’ve made a barrage of shots, martinis, margaritas, whiskey drinks and anything else you can think of, and when I taste my drinks, I only taste my regretful decision to add mint bitters over the pineapple cherry mint pigeon poop bitters, or really any other ingredient to make the beverage beyond great.

This is why we constantly try to better ourselves in our craft. Pushing the limits as far as possible. Why sit idle and constantly pour Jack Diets? Because myself and all the other wonderful people tendin’ bar, are in a sense, artists.

Living in the Fargo-Moorhead area over the last few years has been an amazing transition in the cocktail business, from the Boiler Maker to the Dirty Fur Trader, which is one of my fav’s in town from our good friends over at the HoDo. Try that tasty libation, or check out an Old Fashioned at any of our wonderful local establishments. Post haste!! Whatever it might be, please drink responsibly.

RECENTLY IN

Cocktail Showdown

Tracker Pixel for Entry fmva2 Tracker Pixel for Entry Tracker Pixel for Entry FPL Tracker Pixel for Entry Nicholes Tracker Pixel for Entry ValleyCon Tracker Pixel for Entry WestFargoEvents

Recently in:

By Sabrina Hornung  sabrina@hpr1.comPhoto credit: Kayana SzymczakLeading Voice on Climate Change to Embark on Three-Stop ND TourInternationally…

By Michael M. Miller michael.miller@ndsu.eduOne of the most important books published about the Germans from Russia in North Dakota is “Along the Trails of Yesterday: A Story of McIntosh County” by Nina Farley Wishek, published…

photo credit: Jessica GavinSeptemberOktoberfest: Now-October 3Wurst Bier HallStein-holding competition, happy hour Mon-Fri from 4-6, wear your dirndl or lederhosen, German music.https://wurstfargo.com/Papa’s Pumpkin…

By John Strandjas@hpr1.comOur Opinion: Thank you, Reader readers, for 29 fulfilling yearsChugging along, The Little Newspaper That Could commences its 30th volume and year with this issue. Simply getting here speaks volumes. Just…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comIs Cruelty a Part of Nature—or Is It Just Part of Human Nature?Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman has been my economics guru for many years for his pithy columns in The New York Times. In…

We are looking for 55-gallon plastic food grade barrels, do you have ideas or connections?We use these barrels to teach our resilient yard workshop series including Make Your Own Rain Barrel and Make Your Own Compost Tumbler. If…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.comMy new venture as a master’s degree student has got me thinking…again about food. Although I’m in an online program with the University of North Dakota, I thought it would be handy to list and…

By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comThe Melvins formed in 1983 Montesano, Washington, founded by singer/guitar player Buzz Osborne. The group is known for its heavy sound mixed with a dose of punk, forming its own subgenre.…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.comAs reactions and reviews of Wes Anderson’s return to the world of Roald Dahl attest, the quartet of short story adaptations undoubtedly would have been better experienced as a theatrical…

By HPR Staffsubmit@hpr1.comThe Fargo Moorhead Visual Artists’ much-lauded neighbor lovin’ Studio Crawl is just around the corner – October 7 and 8, noon to 6pm. During the free event, the people who add culture and vibrancy…

By Eric Dallmanericd@hpr1.comWe recently watched “The PROM” at Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, and it was an experience that left a lasting impact on us. The story, a heartwarming yet familiar one, follows a group of Broadway stars…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

By John Showalter  john.d.showalter@gmail.comThey sell fentanyl test strips and kits to harm-reduction organizations and…

JANUARY 19, 1967– MARCH 8, 2023 Brittney Leigh Goodman, 56, of Fargo, N.D., passed away unexpectedly at her home on March 8, 2023. Brittney was born January 19, 1967, to Ruth Wilson Pollock and Donald Ray Goodman, in Hardinsburg,…

By Faye Seidlerfayeseidler@gmail.com On the first day of the month I ask people to thank a journalist they know or someone who contributes to papers in some meaningful way. When I grew up, my best friend's father was a journalist…