Inventory for November 30th, 2014

This is November’s last inventory folks, so let’s make it a good one! This week Forbes profiled Maker’s Mark new Cask Strength edition, we “learn” that bartenders are full of bullshit, Tabasco’s just opened their call for their annual Bloody Mary challenge, and Fork and Shaker interviews Jeff Bell.

Though the opening date of their new restaurant Nobelhart & Schmutzig is still TBA Billy Wagner and Micha Schäfer have plenty to celebrate already. Join them tomorrow for a wee party held at the building site of their new venture.
There will be plenty of beer and Lambrusco. Sometimes, a celebration is worth it just for the pure heck of it. Dress warm friends!
1) Maker’s Mark releases Cask Strength
Never one to flood the market with new products, Forbes just profiled Maker’s Mark Cask Strength edition. The bourbon is diluted with less water at the bottling stage than usual and has oak nose, with slight vanilla and baking spices.
According to Forbes if you like the original then you’ll love this: “The taste is classic Maker’s with more nuances — citrus, sugar, caramel and more cinnamon.” Hear, hear.
2) Bartenders are Bullshitters
The satirical, anonymous bartending blog has confirmed what we’ve all been secretly thinking for a while now: mixologists are full of bullshit. They say that new research has shown that the more intoxicated a bartender becomes, the more his ego swells as he, or she, tries to ‘sound clever’.
They advise that the public start confronting the said bartender before they reach peak bullshit and start spewing nonsense facts about any given cocktail.
Peak bullshits hours mainly occur after the bar has closed: “Mixologists, fuelled by a cocktail of denial, self importance, and alcohol become insulated from reality through a process of self-reinforcement.” Well there you have it dear drinkers, the truth behind your artisanally brewed, oak-aged, hand mixed cocktail is out.
3) Tabasco’s Bloody Mary Challenge
As announced on UK’s bar magazine the first stage of Tabasco’s annual British Bloody Mary Challenge 2014 is now open for entries. With a deadline of December 4th the initial judging round will be held at the Blind Pig at Social Eating House in London on December 10th.
Each bartender needs to enter two recipes – one classic bloody mary and one alternative bloody mary which gives the contestants some space to play as long as the recipe contains Tabasco pepper sauce.
4) An Interview with Jeff Bell
If ever there was a poster boy for pretty bartenders, Jeff Bell would be it. Having recently taken over the helm at PDT, after Jim Meehan’s move to Portland, he sat down with Naren Young of Fork and Shaker.
He speaks about the people that have, and continue to, inspire him, and how key phrases such as “‘a place for everything and everything has its place’ ‘talk and work, talk and work’, and ‘always use both hands’” have shaped him both professionally and personally.
Bell reveals his favorite drink after a long shift (a Banks 5 Island Daiquiri), his favorite NY bar to unwind in (Attaboy), and his go-to beer (Brooklyn Local 1). If you’re contemplating a drinks-inspired visit to NYC let Bell be your guide.