August Cocktail of the Month: Tom Collins

Now that we’re moving into the dog days of summer, we here at Bryant’s know that on a really hot and humid afternoon you just might not be in the mood for a cocktail as heavy as a Manhattan or as rich as a Brandy Alexander (although if you are, we got you covered!). No, what you’re looking for is a light, refreshing, and crisp sipping drink. Thus, we think it an appropriate time to offer as our August Cocktail of the Month one of the all-time warm weather classics: the Tom Collins.

You just may scoff at the idea of a Tom Collins, a drink that has had its reputation (and deliciousness) ruined over the years thanks (or no thanks) to things like sour mix and a mistaken belief that it’s a simple and boring cocktail. Sure, it’s simple, made of only gin, lemon juice, sugar, and soda water, but oftentimes the simplest drinks are the best, and definitely not boring (see the Manhattan or the Brandy Alexander, for example). We think it’s received a bum rap.

But don’t just take our word for it. The cocktail world at large agrees with us. Back in the 1950s, David Embury said of the Tom Collins: “This is a long drink, to be consumed slowly with reverence and meditation.” More recently, Gary Regan said that it is “a drink worthy of more respect than it gets” and that “this refreshing quaff can be delightful in hot weather.” And Dale DeGroff, “King Cocktail” himself, has hailed it as “a wonderful summer drink that’s much more interesting than a gin and tonic.” But if those endorsements haven’t convinced you, wait until you hear about this cocktail’s origins. You’ll never think this drink boring again once you discover its association with, of all things, a nineteenth century hoax.

The story of the Tom Collins begins in the early 1800s at Limmer’s Hotel in London, where patrons enjoyed a Gin Punch invented by the resident bartender, John Collins. The drink, or a variant of it, made its way to New York City by the 1850s, and its recipe first appeared in print as, you guessed it, the John Collins in an 1869 book called Haney’s Steward & Barkeeper’s Manual. But by the time Jerry Thomas, the father of American mixology, committed the drink to print in the 1876 edition of his book How to Mix Drinks, the name had changed to Tom Collins. Wait! How did that happen? Why aren’t we drinking the John Collins these days? Who was Tom Collins?

It’s possible that the name change occurred because, in those days, the drink was most often made with Old Tom Gin, a gin that’s slightly sweeter than your typical London Dry. Makes sense, right? However, in changing the name Jerry Thomas might have wanted to capitalize on a recent cultural phenomenon. In 1874, a practical joke ran rampant in the saloons of New York and Philadelphia. Here’s what would happen: A fella would approach another fella at a bar and tell him a man named Tom Collins was badmouthing him at a nearby establishment. Enraged, the man would then go to that other bar looking for Tom Collins, a man who didn’t exist. Sometimes the patrons at other bars would be in on the joke, and send the angry man on a wild goose chase around town. This became all the rage, so much so that newspapers even printed fake stories about Tom Collins sightings.

We recommend that you don’t attempt this trick these days—it’s silly, cruel, and you’re liable to end up with a lawsuit on your hands. Plus, we all know where you can find a Tom Collins this month. Here at Bryant’s!

Stop in between 5pm and 8pm Sunday through Thursday and get to know the Tom Collins for just $6 all month long. No joke!

July Cocktail of the Month: The Forever Amber

The strawberry: with its distinctive aroma, its bright red color, and its lush juiciness, is there any other fruit that immediately reminds us of summertime? According to a couple of recent studies, the answer is no. More than any other fruit, researchers say, strawberries are correlated with summer and warm weather: most people tend to associate strawberries with fond memories of summer, sunshine, picnics, and childhood in general. Now that we find ourselves well into summer and in the midst of the peak season for strawberries, we here at Bryant’s want to help you make another great summer memory, so we present to you our July Cocktail of the Month: our strawberry hurricane drink, the Forever Amber.

While its sweet strawberry flavor is well suited for the summer months, the Forever Amber is nonetheless a popular cocktail all year round at Bryant’s. Why? Well, as you know, Bryant’s can be quite a romantic place—stories about customers’ first dates and marriage proposals abound here— and for centuries the strawberry has been considered something of an aphrodisiac. Even if you’re unfamiliar with the fruit’s associations with Venus, the Roman goddess of love, desire, beauty, fertility, and sex (among several other things), or its prominence in Hieronymus Bosch’s painting The Garden of Earthly Delights (in which some art historians see their presence as symbolizing temptation and promiscuity), certainly its bright red color and heart shape makes us think of passion and seduction. Lore has it that sharing a double strawberry with someone will cause you to fall in love with that person, and, if that doesn’t do the trick, you can always dip the sumptuous fruit in chocolate or champagne to help your cause.

So where did the name of this drink come from? No doubt from Forever Amber, an immensely popular (not to mention racy and controversial) bodice-ripper written by Kathleen Winsor in 1944. That book, which was the best-selling novel of the 1940s despite being nearly 1000 pages long and banned in 14 states, describes, oftentimes in a rather frank manner, how its titular heroine Amber St. Clare seduces a succession of men to become the king of England’s mistress, all the while surviving the plague and the Great London Fire in Restoration England. It was shocking and salacious stuff at the time, to be sure. But what better moniker for a strawberry-flavored cocktail than that of the seductive, the promiscuous, the notorious Amber? And when better to enjoy it than now, the summertime? Here at Bryant’s we think every summer can be a summer of love.

Stop in between 5pm and 8pm Sunday through Thursday and be seduced by the Forever Amber for just $6 all month long. Or share one and fall in love.*

*Actual results may vary. 

June Cocktail of the Month: The Blue Tail Fly

If the recent weather is any indication, summer is just around the corner. And while summer officially begins June 20^th, we here at Bryant’s Cocktail Lounge know that Milwaukee welcomes any sign of warmer weather with open arms. So why wait three more weeks? Let’s celebrate summer’s arrival early by bringing back the Cocktail of the Month!

For those of you who don’t remember how our Cocktail of the Month special works, every month we’ll highlight a different classic Bryant’s drink and offer it to you for the special price of $6 during our Old Fashioned Cocktail Hour (Sunday through Thursday 5pm-8pm). So, in addition to the $5 Old Fashioneds and Depression Era Drinks, you’ll have one more discounted cocktail to choose from. This month, we bring you the Blue Tail Fly.

The Blue Tail Fly is one of our four dozen ice cream drinks, and, we think, one of the oldest here at Bryant’s. Invented by the original owner, Bryant Sharp himself, this cocktail’s primary ingredient is Blue Curacao, which gives this drink both its light blue color and a flavor reminiscent of Valencia oranges. Once as locally famous as some of the other ice dream drinks Bryant invented like the Pink Squirrel and the Banshee (both of which, along with the Blue Tail Fly, can still be found on the menus of historic Wisconsin supper clubs), its popularity undeservedly and inexplicably waned over the years. This month seems like a perfectly appropriate time to correct that.

So why is it called the Blue Tail Fly, you ask? Much like many other ice cream drinks, such as the Grasshopper and the Pink Squirrel, its name was most likely inspired by its color. But it was quite possibly named after a very old and enduring song as well. “Blue Tail Fly” (you might know it better as the “Jimmy Crack Corn” song) was popular with traveling minstrel shows in the 1840s, and was a mainstay with an 1860s minstrel troupe named, of all things, Bryant’s Minstrels (Coincidence? We think so.). But after World War II, the song regained popularity in a more whitewashed and kid-friendly version, especially with a 1947 recording by Burl Ives and The Andrews Sisters. Although nowadays we primarily associate the tune with child sing-alongs, the 1940s and 1950s saw this song recorded numerous times by the likes of Leadbelly, Kate Smith, Pete Seeger, and Lawrence Welk. It’s as if the drink had its own soundtrack. Given how popular it was, Bryant might have found inspiration in the song while naming his new creation.

However, unlike the contemporary iterations of the song, Bryant’s Blue Tail Fly is neither watered down nor child appropriate. It’s a delicious and refreshing cocktail, the perfect complement to a hot summer day or a fitting dessert to a backyard cookout.

Stop in between 5pm and 8pm Sunday through Thursday and get a Blue Tail Fly for just $6 all month long. 

Where do I park?

We have decided to dedicate some time to a question we get asked quite a lot: where do I park?

The answer to this question is, it depends on the night.  On weeknights, we recommend parking on Lapham Boulevard.  There are generally plenty of spaces next to Bryant’s or across the street. 

On a weekend, the Lapham Boulevard spaces fill up fast.  Most people’s first instinct is to drive down 9^th to look for parking.  This is not the best idea.  Many residents of this neighborhood don’t have off-street parking (garages weren’t that popular in the 1890s), so they will be competing with you for the limited number of parking spaces.  Plus, 9^th street is strangely dark and hard to navigate. 

Instead, head ½ block south of Bryant’s on 9^th Street.  There is an amazing, huge, well-lit parking lot that is owned by the city.  There are over 250 parking spots in this lot.  Park here and walk the ½ block-

it is the easiest place to park.

The history of this parking lot is interesting for those who remember when the city wanted to turn Mitchell Street in to a walking mall, as was popular in the 1970s when suburban malls were rapidly becoming the preferred shopping centers.  The idea was to close off main urban shopping streets and raze the buildings adjacent to the shopping street to create large parking lots that would appeal to shoppers.  The results were not good and most of the stores on Mitchell Street closed during the 1980s, leaving only the remnants of a bad idea.  The last department store on Mitchell to close was Goldmann's Department Store, which used this lot until 2007 when it finally closed its doors (on a side note, as of 11/9/2013, the Goldmann's building is for sale- you should buy it and help us bring back retro Mitchell Street!).   

We hope that someday shoppers will again flood to Mitchell Street for Christmas Shopping and holiday cheer, but for now there are plenty of parking spaces for you and all your friends!

November Cocktail of the Month: The Great Pumpkin Drink

Here at Bryant’s Cocktail Lounge, November always marks the beginning of our favorite time of the year- the Holiday Season.  The fall crisp air, the festive parties, and (of course) the cocktails.

The Great Pumpkin Ice Cream Drink
Only $5 during Old Fashioned
Cocktail Hour!

This is the time of year we start moving away from the clear spirits of summer in to the dark spirits of winter.  ‘Tis the season of Whiskey, Brandy, and Calvados, mixed with amaros and spices most commonly associated with winter dishes and desserts.  Who doesn’t like the flavors of cinnamon, cardamom, and clove on a cold snowy day? 

The most exciting holiday drinking tradition is when we take these traditional flavors and mix them with ice cream, creating the most delicious Wisconsin pastime- the ice cream drink.  During the winter months grasshoppers, brandy alexanders, and cherry benjamins become as popular as popular as scarves, hats, and those funny little furry boots. 

For our November Cocktail of the Month, we have decided to go 100% in to the Holiday Season and offer our Great Pumpkin Ice Cream Drink for a very special price during Old Fashioned Cocktail Hour.  No subtlety here- just pure pumpkin goodness, ginger, and spices mixed with the finest ice cream.  And as always we top our ice cream drinks are topped with homemade whipped cream. 

Stop in for Old Fashioned Cocktail Hour, from 5-9 Tuesday through Thursday to get our small Pumpkin Ice Cream drink for only $5.  Ice cream not your thing?  We have over 45 other cocktails on special for half price.    

October Cocktail of the Month: The Milwaukee Manhattan

We love cocktails named after places.  The Manhattan, the Fort Point, and the Jamaican are all great drinks.  Heck, even the Long Island Iced Tea makes us a little warm inside.

What makes place cocktails so delicious?  We figure it’s because you are thinking of a great place while at the same time sipping on a delicious drink.  How can you not think of the brick lined Thames Street while sipping on a White Baltimore?  Or is it possible to not think of the sun soaked beaches of Waikiki while sipping on a Hawaii Kai?

Our October drink of the month is named after the most special place of all: Milwaukee.  The Milwaukee Manhattan is a fine mix of Jameson Irish Whiskey, sour cherry, and sweet and dry vermouths.   So why does this drink signify Milwaukee, you may ask.  The answer is seeped in symbolism.  First, the Milwaukee Manhattan is essentially a play on the perfect Manhattan, which is traditionally rye whiskey, and sweet and dry vermouths.  Milwaukee, we feel, is also a play on the perfect Manhattan- a quirky place that seems odd and out of place, but is in fact perfect. 

 

The sour cherry flavors are symbolic of the Italian immigrants that give so much character to the east side of Milwaukee, living in perfect harmony with the Irish whiskey of the Upper East Side.  A melting pot, a mishmash, and a hodgepodge that, once is mixed together, becomes a perfect mix of flavors.  This, my friends, is Milwaukee.

If you want to taste a drink that is as perfect and quirky as Milwaukee, this month is your chance to try the Milwaukee Manhattan for only $6 during Old Fashioned Cocktail Hour from 5-9 Tuesday through Thursday.  

Cocktail of the Month: The Amelia Cocktail

For September, our Cocktail of the Month is the Amelia cocktail, a vodka-based cocktail that is a play on the famous classic cocktail, the Aviation.  While few of our classic cocktails utilized vodka as a base (in fact, vodka used to be thought of as a cheap liquor more suitable for the drunkard than the sophisticated cocktail drinker), we believe the Amelia is a great cocktail for our vodka loving patrons who are looking for a citrusy cocktail that is more complex than a cosmopolitan.  In fact, if you are apprehensive about trying classic cocktails, or if you don’t know where to start, we believe this is the perfect cocktail for you. 

The Amelia is named after one of the most famous pilots of all time, Amelia Earhart.  For those of you who don’t know, Earhart was the first female pilot to fly across the Atlantic in 1928 and was a well-loved pilot, author, and pioneer of women’s rights in America.  She famously (and some people say mysteriously) disappeared over the Pacific Ocean during her attempt at a trans global flight in 1937. 

In 1938, when Bryant’s first converted his little tavern in to a luxurious cocktail lounge, the world was infatuated with the adventurous Amelia Earhart and her disappearance the year before.  The search teams were still looking for her and many were hopeful that she would be found somewhere alive and well.  After all, how could someone who captured the hearts and minds of a country simply disappear?

We like to believe Amelia Earhart is still alive in the spirit that drove America to recover from the Great Depression and to survive a brutal World War.  In fact, this spirit of adventure and exploration is probably what drove Bryant Sharp to take a risk on his new venture.  We can say with certainty that we are glad he did. 

So, when you sip the Amelia Cocktail, please sip with a spirit of hearty exploration and adventure.  If you are new to classic or craft cocktails, we encourage you to take a risk and try our cocktail of the month.  It is only $6 during Old Fashioned Cocktail Hour, Tuesday through Thursday from 5PM to 9PM.