Hey Bartender

The Craft Cocktail is back, and I'm obviously very happy about it. This documentary (currently on Showtime) is an amazing love letter to bartenders and their craft.  It's a bit long for a movie about cocktails, but I was never bored watching it for the first time.

It opens on a quote: "The culture of drink endures because it offers so many rewards...above all the elusive promise of friendship and love." -Pete Hamill

One opening comment is "There should be a drinks column in every newspaper in America.  There should be shows on TV." I couldn't agree more.

They go through prep in a bar, and honestly I have a huge appreciation for everything they set up.  I often admired the set up in different bars (such as Z Bar), but I never really thought that someone had to set that up every night.  It's a lot to set up, and if you are high quality like 1864, you have to sculpt ice as well as set up everything for the night.

Employees Only in NYC is featured in the documentary has an amazing cast of characters.  They go into the background of a few people that work there that is fascinating. You really find yourself rooting for all the people involved in everything they want to do, and you are not disappointed.

However I have to say my favorite quote, maybe of all time, is from Frank of Rao's.  He says "The object is to bring your job, whatever it is, to the level of art."  He goes on to say "There is an art to being a waiter, there is an art to being a chef.  There is an art to being a bartender.  Be the best bartender anyone has ever dealt with."  This is around 45 minutes into the documentary (a little less than halfway through), and when I heard that it really changed how I felt about not only bartenders, but jobs in general.  It is a profound statement; you should always give it your all and take it to another level, a level of art.

Thank goodness for Dale DeGroff, and this documentary for really expanding my view of this profession, and of the craft cocktail.  Check it out soon!

Hot Toddy at Red Rock Bar

Although Bourbon is usually used, Red Rock gave me a Whiskey Hot Toddy a few months ago.  The snow was just over Mt. Rose and headed our way, and that bite was in the air.  We were at the bar and I just couldn't bring myself to have a cold drink and go back out there.

I'd never had a hot toddy before, but my friend insisted that I'd like it, and that it was made with local honey, which would be in one of my rules for the official state drink!  I was excited for my prospects before I took my first sip.

I'm not gonna lie, this is not my kind of drink.  It just tasted like hot Whiskey.  I didn't taste the lemon I clearly saw in there, I didn't taste any honey, and I had to constantly sir it so I didn't get a mouthful of....spice?  Nutmeg?  Something floating in it.

As I continued to muscle my way through it, I found the hot was really warming me up, and the whiskey was rather nice.  By the time I finished, it made me warm and drunk enough that I liked it.  Once I sobered up though, I knew it was a drink I'd never order again, unless I moved to Alaska.

Red Rock Bar
241 S Sierra St, Reno, NV 89501
(775) 324-2468

Monday	4:00 pm – 2:00 am
Tuesday	4:00 pm – 2:00 am
Wednesday	4:00 pm – 2:00 am
Thursday	4:00 pm – 2:00 am
Friday	4:00 pm – 2:00 am
Saturday	4:00 pm – 2:00 am
Sunday	4:00 pm – 2:00 am

A Wine of a Tale

During the holidays I got a panicked call from a friend.  Apparently an important gentleman in the community had decided to come to the party last minute, and he only drank a certain type of wine.  The caterers were nearly there, and she asked me to stop by a Liqour store and pick some up.  I asked her to text me the exact type of wine so that I didn't screw it up.  When I got the text I was flabbergasted.  This guy's only request is that he only drank what amounted to just above a 2 Buck Chuck?  I was embarrassed for him, then for me for having to pick it up.

The Neon Beast and I were in a snarky mood, so the entire trip turned out to be one quip after another.  It took forever to find it because was literally in the "Others" section of the store.  NB said "Maybe we can try to find an earlier year than 2014."  I said "I'm sure it's all vinegar by now, the 2013 is on a salad somewhere."  NB retorted "You can use it for just cooking now, as long as you are cooking for your enemies."

We picked up the bottle and NB remarked "Oh, a screw cap; so you know it's quality!"  I'm sure we got the same kind of looks that Frasier got when he talked about wine, because as we walked to the front we shot back and forth lines like "When wine in a box is too big of an investment!"  "The brand is good for cars, but clearly they put this wine in the gas tank!"

Once we were out of the store we texted our friend, "We had to buy it with a Hustler so we'd feel less dirty."

Napa has really turned us into some horrible wine snobs.  But hey, they can't all be a de La Tour.

Of course, after all that fuss and comedy-inspired wine jokes, the guy didn't even show up.  "Maybe they can use the wine for fondue?" NB said.  I retorted "Yeah, fondue with your enemies."

Original New York Seltzer is Back!

My mom is from NYC, the Bronx.  Even though I've never been there I always feel like being a New Yorker is in my blood.  That being said, when I was a child and mom had stacks and stacks of New York Seltzer all over the house, I wasn't a fan.  It was too bubbly, and didn't have any flavor to my 6 year old palate.  I did always like the label though.

Which is why when it started popping up in stores again last year it immediately caught my eye.  I put off actually getting one for awhile, mostly due to price.  $2-5 for that new tiny bottle?  Nuh-uh.  You aren't gonna get me like that.  Unless someone else is paying...which is honestly what happened.

Because I never tried it before, I can't say what it was like before, but it's pretty good now!  Actually worth the price, since it is so rich I don't know that I'd want more.  Of course, a New York anything isn't going to be the state drink of Nevada.  However I'm still going to enjoy that cute message under the bottle cap.

Chai Tea Latte from Hi Point Cafe

I ran into a friend from college the other day and we decided to meet for coffee.  I suggested a place close to her, Dunkin Donuts.  I really wanted to try their flavored hot chocolates for the blog.  As it turns out she ended up on the other side of the valley, and suggested we meet at Hi Point Cafe.

I'm not gonna lie, I felt like I was cheating on Swill for a bit.  It's very similar set up, both independently owned coffee shops running on Square and locally ingredients.  Okay, that last bit might just be made up...but it sounds great doesn't it?

I looked for my go-to fake coffee, the Chai Latte.  The Chai Tea Latte was all I could find on the menu, so I ordered that.  It was, as suspected, more of a tea than a latte.  That is not really my jam, but it was great for what it was.  It was a great little cafe, wonderful for chatting and getting coffee if you are in the Kings Row area.  The only thing I'm not really fond of is that they close at 4:00 PM, so you have to make your dates pretty early if you want to hang out.

Hi Point Cafe
3687 Kings Row, Reno, NV 89503
(775) 787-2477
Monday-Sunday 7:00 AM-4:00 PM 

Cookie Monster Shake at The Original Mel's Diner inside The Sands

I don't have a very good history with Mel's Diner inside the Sands.  In college I got food poisoning twice, and to this day still can't eat mozzarella sticks.  I'm still wary of it, and most of the time I end up just getting a milkshake.

They recently made up some new milkshakes and I was eager to try out the "Cookie Monster," an oreo and cookie dough combo.  For the $6 price point I was hoping it was going to be good.

It tasted like a normal run of the mill oreo milkshake out of the gate.  It seemed near the end (as you can sort of tell from the photo) they had chunks of chocolate chips and cookie dough at the bottom.  Since you drink it out of a straw, and the lumps are too big for the straw, I have to think this wasn't really a great idea.  I'm also kind of sad to report that the chocolate chips were the waxy kind, and not really suitable for a quality shake.  They almost tasted like small nuts to me.

Overall I was pretty underwhelmed and won't be trying it again.  I'd be more apt to buy some oreos and put them in some cookie dough ice cream for a better outcome.  Mels does have another new one that is an orangesicle type of flavor, so I will be checking that out soon.


The Original Mels
345 North Arlington Ave Reno, NV 89501
775-337-6357
Open 24 Hours

Pack a Mean Punch at Rawbry

The Basement has officially opened, and it is hipster paradise.  The grey walls with stark white faux brick, the low black ceilings...it's a beautiful design.  You forget that you are actually in the basement of the old post office, even though you took a rickety looking set of stairs to get there.

Until it is revealed which "major retailer" is taking over upstairs (my money is on an Anthropologie or UNIQLO), this is all there is.  While I was there they were doing lots of construction, I think on a stage small enough it could only take poetry slams, and even then only Haiku's.

That's a joke, son.

Anyway, along with a coffee shop, flower shop, barber shop, and chocolate shop, there is a juice bar.  Locally owned Rawbry says that they are raw juice, and I think their location was inside the old jail cell, so robbery.  Raw + Robbery= Rawbry.  They even have a video on their site that looks like a local filmmaker saw Spring Breakers and decided to get creative.  The branding is so intense that I really thought this was a national brand that had deigned to come to Reno.

However it ended up happening, I'm very glad that they came.  When we arrived, they were very nice and gave us a lot of information about how they make their juice.  They gave us a sample of their "juice of the day" which happened to be the "Pack a Mean Punch."  It has Pineapple, Apple, Lemon, and Ginger.  It actually does have a bit of a kick to it, due to the ginger, but I loved it.  I love all four  ingredients, and together they were so great.  This amazing drink comes in a large glass bottle that looks like a wide mouth version of an old time milk bottle.  Because it's pretty, and made of glass, you feel like you need to hold onto it.  Rawbry gets that, and you get a dollar off your next drink if you bring it back to them.

You'll need that dollar, because this particular juice will set you back just under $10.  That's not a mis-type, you could go cheaper by getting the most expensive burrito bowl at Chipotle.  However, as I sit here thinking about how much I want the rest of the juice, eyeing the fridge, feeling my mouth water...geez it's almost worth it.

As I perused their website, I saw a few others that I wanted to try out; the Rawket Science, Matcha Latte, and the Jalapen'yo Business.  Of course the ones that sound the best to me are also the more expensive ones.  They do go as low as $5, and that might be the one I get next time.

As they are a local business, they might actually be in the running for the official state drink of Nevada.  I'll just have to take out a small loan in order to try the rest.

Rawbry
The Basement
50 S. Virginia St
Reno, NV 89501
775 384 3468

Monday-Friday	7AM–7PM		Satruday-Sunday 10AM-6PM