Ewe Owe Yourself a Cocktail at Black Sheep

Owner-GM-maitre 'd Ruben Perez admits his head's swimming a bit, and it's because his lovely brasserie Black Sheep has just begun a cocktail program, having landed a full liquor license. Don't blame the drinks themselves--Ruben is an always sober if jovial host--but the way a bar program led to a revamp of what Black Sheep is. (Don't worry, nothing is messing with Wednesday moules-frites night.) It's just the goal is to loosen the mood bit--a bit less expensive, a bit less formal, a bit more raucous. And, yes, to provide some kick-ass drinks. It's made for the past few days to be a bit of a business blur for him.

Speaking of blur, sorry the photo above doesn't do the drinks we enjoyed justice--it's dim but not too dark in the dining room, and it seemed rude to illuminate or flash. But both cocktails were winners, the further an Aztec Goddess which fully earns its name as its base liquor is Casa del Sol Añejo, aged in barrels for 14 months, usually just sipped. It's luxurious and rich and round and a fine offering to Mayahuel, the Aztec goddess of agave. (Hence the drink's name.) And don't even think it's merely a high test Marg, for its other ingredients are Yuzu, egg whites, bitters, and Thai basil. It truly takes you on an adventure.

The nearer drink is from the Classics list, a Corpse Reviver #2. Long time readers of this blog might know it's one of my favorite cocktails, witness a post waxing poetic about them way back in 2012. Black Sheep nails it, starting with the absinthe wash that brings the anise to your nose as much as to your tongue. And then the Sipsmith gin, Lillet Blanc, Cointreau, and lemon all do their magic conjoining trick, leading to a sweet-n-sour, Goldilocks approved utter delight. Also crucial--they got some elegant glassware to show off their creations, an essential touch for an elevated cocktail service.

And the cocktails better be elevated to keep up with the fine food coming out of Chefs Jake Reimer and Robert Perez's kitchen. Start, as we did, with the salt-roasted pickled beets, pictured above. You pick up a lick of that salt but then all the good earthiness you expect from the tender beets, although it's all that sauce that sends the dish into the stratosphere. It's an aji, blood orange, and Yuzu kosho citronette, with both a heat kick from the first and last ingredients and then the tang from all of them, all neatly rounded by sweet and salt. We ordered baguette to sop up what was left. That Pt. Reyes blue cheese espuma is something else, too, like whipped cream and blue cheese had a baby, and now you're all for infant munching. (Hmm...metaphor took a dark corner, sorry.) An effortlessly sophisticated, wildly pleasing dish. 

Chryss got to sing the praises of the sea with the local catch--this evening a Channel Islands halibut--served moqueca baiana style, that is a Brazilian fish stew/curry. It's zippy with coconut milk, lime juice, red palm oil, tomatoes, and red bell peppers all reduced and whirred into a smooth sauce. The cucumbers keep things a refreshing cool, sort of yogurtless raita.

We shared a side of fried fingerling potatoes that were a wonder of texture and smokiness--I've got to assume they had a moment directly in some open fire or were buried in embers? Crisp and crackly on the outside, moist and meaty in the middle. Plenty of Maldon salt making it clear why finishing salt's a thing. What set the dish truly apart was the romesco, the Catalan wonder paste that makes everything extra delicious--more red peppers, almonds and maybe hazelnuts pine nuts, etc. Also note the wide-ranging influences that weave through the kitchen. The chefs know their stuff, and will make whatever is certain to please you. (This dish really reminded me of something you'd get at Gjelina down in Venice.)

Last but not least for me was this steak. Sure, ordering the filet mignon can feel like waving your hand high when they ask, "Who lacks a culinary imagination?" But I was celebrating and feeling carnivorous. Even more, it comes bathed in a double-Cognac peppercorn Bordelaise, which is so my jam I wish someone made actual jam from it. (Note to self: start new business.) Some of that sauce even, sloppily, got on some potatoes. It's great to eat messy, you know. If you want a steak that the kitchen nails, you aren't going to do better than this one.

We had no room for dessert. We have a great desire to go back.

Considering Zaddy's Canned Cocktails

One of the great joys of cocktails is the making of them--a tiny bit of precision, a whole bunch of taste, quality ingredients, a modicum of physical effort. Bonus points for any witty bartender banter. Boom, you've made people pleased in less than 10 minutes. How often does that happen?

So I guess I'm not the audience for canned cocktails, and based on Zaddy's website that's certainly true--I go there and feel late Gen X old in a nanosecond. That said, the cartoon skeletons featured on their Corpse Reviver are right up my Halloween loving alley, so I have to admit they've got marketing down.

As for the drinks, they aren't bad, particularly if you aren't hoping they nail a full flavored, just shaken version. The 100 calories bit is appealing but not half as much as the 4% ABV. Sure, these aren't as flavorful as a regular cocktail, but they are playing one with mighty fist of alcohol tied behind their backs. Think of them as delightfully refreshing midday sippers that are easy to take to the beach or on a hike. Or just to your "why is it still so warm" backyard.

My vote would be for the Gin(ger) Fizz first, and not just because I'm a sucker for ginger's sweet tang. It works in a register that one could easily confuse for hard seltzer or kombucha, if not for that background hum of juniper thanks to the gin. And, yes, it's the Corpse Reviver I like the least, only because I'm so partial to the real one and there's no skimping on all its moving parts, even with fennel subbing for Pernod/absinthe. 

Chaplin's Favourite Pastime*

You can teach an old bar older tricks, it seems. Such is the case at Chaplin's Martini Bar (remember Charlie owned the Montecito Inn back in the day), in the spot of the recently and quickly deposed Frankland's Crab Co.--turns out town doesn't want to pay the admittedly spendy price for ridiculously fresh seafood, particularly a few blocks from the sea, especially when chef-owners Phillip Frankland Lee and Margarita Kallas-Lee then opened The Monarch next door. Lesson learned: you can drive your own self out of business with a second very hot spot.

But that doesn't mean Montecito didn't need a free-standing bar (non-directly restaurant connected, "management would prefer you eat and not just drink at the bar bar," that is), and now it's got one in Chaplin's. Plus, where do you go for a drink until midnight, when the sidewalks roll up at half past nine? You might remember the spot when it was the Montecito Cafe's bar, a bit bright, and there was popcorn and a blue cheese stuffed olive Blue Sapphire martini and a mini-menu with that trout salad everyone loved. A jewel box of a spot, with its curved wall of windows looking out at the porte cochere for the hotel and Coast Village Road, and you were, no doubt, meant to gaze out while those hoping to be as chic as you ogled in hoping to glimpse a celebrity or someone having a better time than they were.

Now that glass door is mirrored, though, so you can only see out. For the Chaplin's theme is speakeasy-dark, a hide-away for assignations and those wishing they had some. You know, romantic and borderline Deco-y, especially when the piped-in tunes feature Rudy Vallee and other '20s crooners. It's like a deep dark secret right there on CVR.

Fittingly the menu leans gin, but not of the bathtub variety. Still the cocktails call back to an earlier era, too, leading with one of my faves, the Corpse Reviver #2, a blended joy of gin, lemon juice, Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao (think snooty Cointreau), and Kina l'Aero D'or (sort of absinthe-y). But, hey, Chaplin's, one of the drink's great kinks is you're supposed to serve it with a cherry, its red glowering at you sexily from the v-ed glass bottom. (Dr. Cocktail says so, not just me.)

But then there's the subtly honeyed Bee's Knees from the Ritz in Paris, and for those gin-averse, another one of my faves, the Vieux Carre from New Orleans (think a Sazerac jiggered up a notch), and heck, they even feature a Rusty Nail, and if anything is due for a comeback it's Drambuie. Classics, all.

What's more, Chaplin's some nights has one of my most cherished Santa Barbara servers working the bar, Jaime Rocha (not pictured above). He's worked at the Wine Cask, San Ysidro Ranch, bouchon, and where else but here at Chaplin's, which would be one of my favorite hangouts if I only could walk to it. Because it would be best if I then walked happily, woozily home.

Oh yeah, forget to mention in the original post: you can order the entire Monarch menu in Chaplin's. So go crazy!

*"His Favourite Pastime" is a 1914 American comedy film starring Charlie Chaplin as the drunken masher.

Sip This: Bluecoat Gin

If you’ve been looking for a way in to gin but don’t appreciate the fresh smack of pine many can provide, Bluecoat could be the spirit for you. Of course, its main botanical is juniper — it is a gin, after all — but Philadelphia Distilling has opted to go for a less piney juniper berry....

Want to read the rest then do so at the Independent's site.

Odds Are You Need the Edge Off for Vacation Eve

There's not much choice on a vacation eve, as you run screaming into it, hoping to get all your jobs done so you can enjoy yourself some, but that never quite happens to your satisfaction (you like a job done well), and tomorrow is vacation. You don't want to go into that feeling like you have to work at taking it easy and having a good time.

So what else could you have on a Friday evening but a Corpse Reviver #2? You see the ingredients before you, except for the lemon already drained of its juice, since the finished cocktails are there, too. That mason jar is filled with the real cherries we're still running on from last year (and it's just about season for the next round of cherries--homemade are so much better than the bright red store-bought ones that taste like food coloring).

This drink is a favorite of Dr. Cocktail's (Ted Haigh, before he earned his Ph.D. the hard way, by not passing out at the bar), and if you want to buy some odd ingredients, it will be yours, too. To make one (this is Dr. Cocktail's recipe):

1 oz. gin (oh my have we been loving Death's Door, which even got an LA Times shoutout today)
1 oz. Cointreau (that means Citronge in our house)
1 oz. Lillet Blanc (you need this for Vespers, too, and you want Vespers if you like martinis*)
1 oz. fresh squeezed lemon juice (it's good to live in CA)
1-3 drops (not dashes) Pernod

Shake all of that in a lot of ice. Strain into up glass. Add that stemless cherry.

This is a sum-of-its-parts cocktail--you'd never guess at how the flavors play with each other, creating something that's easy to drink to the point you'll want a second. And two Corpse Reviver #2's are Corpse Reviver 4 whether you're adding our multiplying, so you're ok. Now go have a vacation.

*Notice I did not say gin martini, for that's like saying chef Suzanne Goin or poet James Wright or pitcher Tom Seaver--some things just are what they are so don't want useless syllables.