Even the service bar, which no customers see, is decorated in full island effect. And the complete lack of windows adds to the effect. It very much reminded me of a theme ride at Great America or Disney World. Unlike just walking in a front door to a themed bar, it's like the long entrance magically transports you to another world. I think the creepy back-alley entrance might actually add to the allure. And it's DARK.īy the time you get down there, it already feels like you're truly someplace different. Walls of the main room are covered in bamboo, bar has a thatched roof, Tiki totem carvings everywhere, paper lanterns. There's bamboo poles separating a front lounge which is lit just by candles. Doorman lets you in and you go down dark stairs, with the walls decorated in skulls bathed in blue light. There's a tiny sign hanging above the doorway. First you follow Tiki torches and a strip of blue neon light down an alley between Hubbard and Illinois. The commitment to the Tiki environment is insane. The thing is that it's not just a bar with some Polynesian decorations hung on the wall. Pour this tall drink on a sunny day, or any time when victories-either long term or short-are at hand.Three Dots and a Dash is pretty much the antithesis of every bar that's opened in River North in recent memory. While we agree this could be good, we are rarely in the mood to mess with perfection. Some people like this drink with dry curacao instead of fresh orange juice. Dram tends to be a little more intensely spiced than falernum, so consider cutting back a quarter ounce or more when substituting. If you don’t have both falernum and allspice dram, you can make this drink with just one (sorry to all the purists). If you don’t have that on hand, any combination of aged, black, or demerara rums would work well just be thoughtful about what you choose, and lean towards something medium-aged or smooth if you have it. If you have some, definitely reach that way it gives the drink sophistication without resorting to intense funky notes, which might overwhelm the other flavors. AOC Martinique is a set of production standards-like those used for bourbon and scotch-which helps deliver a consistent terroir. AOC Martinique Rhum Agricole Vieux is a generally expensive aged rum with a smooth character. The excellent Smuggler’s Cove cocktail book recommends an ounce-and-a-half of AOC Martinique Rhum Agricole Vieux combined with a half-ounce of blended aged rum. Recipes can be very specific about what rum bottles to use, though most recommend a combination of aged and dark rums, usually emphasizing the former. If you do like using a blender, most books recommend a flash blend poured with a gated finish. We’ve never felt like this method held us back, and if you are a slow sipper, it can yield a longer window before the drink becomes watery. We don’t like using blenders to make our cocktails, so instead we shake it to the moon and back over crushed ice, then strain the drink into another glass filled with more crushed ice. This drink, like many from its era, calls for a blender. As with most tiki fare, this cocktail makes an excellent summer sipper, but its strong allspice, vanilla, and clove elements give it a complexity that transcends season. Citrus is reduced to a secondary role here. This drink will reward lovers of tiki spice, as the double dose of falernum and allspice dram create a strong backbone that recurs through every step of the drink. Like most great tiki drinks, it engages the front of the tongue with citrusy flavors, before separating itself from the pack with a deeply transfixing wash of rum and clove. With joyous whiffs of cherry, clove, vanilla and buttery sugarcane, this drink smells like a magical tiki explosion. This makes it instantly recognizable to those in the know, though folks outside the know also rejoice, because hey look three tasty cherries. The name means “V” (for victory) in Morse code, and the trademark three-cherry garnish symbolizes the aforementioned dots. Originally created at the end of World War II by Tiki grand-pappy Don the Beachcomber, and lovingly revitalized by Beachbum Berry in his book Sippin’ Safari the three dots & a dash cocktail is fundamentally and undeniably tiki.
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