From The Coral Wig’s Painkiller to The Duchess’s Pirate Princess, tiki-inspired cocktails—bold, boozy, juicy, and often over-the-top—are enjoying a renaissance.

“There are a few factors as to why tiki or tropical cocktails are trending,” surmises mixologist Brendan Dorr, who owns the gin bar Dutch Courage and the James Beard nominated Pink Flamingo. “The whiskey bubble has popped, and people are moving on to other spirits. Also, guests are becoming more educated with their spirit knowledge, especially when it comes to rum.”

Dorr does make a distinction between tropical and tiki drinks, however.

“Tiki cocktails are more theatrical, whereas tropical cocktails is a general term for cocktails using tropical fruit, spices, and citrus—the styling is simpler,” he says. “Also, with tropical cocktails we aim to avoid the cultural appropriation that can go along with tiki.”

That’s exactly why bartender Pat Turner of True Chesapeake Oyster Co. is careful to honor the history of the kitschy cocktails with the Hampden spot’s “Tiki Tuesdays.”

“Tiki recipes are classics,” he says. “The people who came before us aced these drinks, so for our recipes, we’ve turned to places like Smuggler’s Cove [in San Francisco] and Don the Beachcomber [in Hollywood]. Most workers who made tiki drinks were Filipino—these cocktails are an ode to them.”

The revival of the tiki tradition is an antidote to current craft cocktails.

“Cocktail culture has been trending more and more minimalist,” says Turner. “The nicer cocktail spots have the daintiest glasses with the most minimalist garnish—maybe just a simple trimmed peel or a spot of oil. Along with that, there’s a desire for a goofy mug, extravagant garnishes, and setting things on fire—sometimes you need a little maximalism.”

From behind their bars, they’ve seen it all. Blossoming love affairs and breakups. Fights and reconciliations. Joy and despair. They’ve served as amateur psychoanalysts, sounding boards for business ideas, and the voice of reason—some people need to be told when it’s time to go home While many people become bartenders for practical reasons—the flexible hours, the wide availability of jobs—others find the profession a calling.

“It takes a very special human to be in hospitality,” says Amie Ward, president of the Baltimore Bartenders’ Guild. “We enjoy putting other people’s needs before our own. We are creative in our solutions. We can empathize, actively listen to people. There’s nothing easy about that at all.”

Bartending has changed dramatically in the last decade. The dawn of the craft cocktail era has attracted those with creative and even scientific minds to the profession. The ability to make drinks using liquors and ingredients from around the world is finally treated with the respect it deserves by restaurateurs, customers, and critics alike. Although getting the perfect head on a beer is an art unto itself, engineering a cocktail using sous vide shochu with coconut, cantaloupe juice, yogurt fat-washed soju, and egg white, as Gabe Valladares can do at CookHouse, is something different entirely.

In Baltimore, designer cocktail bars like Rye, W.C. Harlan, The Coral Wig, Southpaw, Dutch Courage, and Kenwood Tavern peacefully coexist with beer bars and corner pubs. They are all important parts of our city’s social fabric, as are the people who work at them.

There are more than 610,000 bartenders nationwide, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statitics. We’re lucky to have some of the best of them right here in Baltimore.

Gabriel Valladares

CookHouse

Saturday nights at 10 p.m., Bolton Hill’s CookHouse transforms from one of the best restaurants in the city to one of the best cocktail bars…anywhere. The man responsible for this metamorphosis, Gabriel Valladares, is just 25 years old, but to sample one of his drinks is to taste the work of a wunderkind.

During the weekly three-hour sessions (and of course during  CookHouse’s regular dinner service), the self-taught Valladares’ creativity is evident in every sip. Each cocktail on the menu is a Gabe original.

Take for example The Cilantro. Valladares, CookHouse’s bar director, is a lover of mezcal, and he had begun to experiment with sous viding liquor.

“Mezcal is Mexican, and I wondered what else was in that realm,” he says. “Cilantro popped into my head, so I sous vided cilantro, a little bit of honey, and mezcal for eight hours. My friend Lane [Harlan of Clavel and W.C. Harlan] inspired me to do my own tepache, which is basically fermented pineapple juice.”

But Valladares wasn’t done. To garnish the drink, he added little pellets cleverly dubbed “lime caviar” on the menu. They’re made by combining sugary lime juice and the chemicals sodium alginate and calcium lactate, an idea he read about in a book published by The Aviary, the cutting-edge cocktail bar in Chicago. When the pellets pop in the drinker’s mouth, they add a kick of acidity to the smoky drink.

“It was a one-and-done thing that came together really well,” Valladares says of the concoction. But that’s not the norm. The ability to accept failure, he says, is a key component to being a successful mixologist.

“I’ve done so many cocktails that literally taste disgusting. They never make it onto the menu. Not everyone is going to like everything you do. That can hurt my ego. But putting your creative aspects [forward] brings people in.”

Judging by the crowds that flock to CookHouse, Valladares’ wins far outpace his losses. A former student at Maryland Institute College of Art, he’s also an avid photographer, and his beautiful shots of the restaurant’s food and drink routinely wow people on Instagram.

“I love when new people come into the bar,” he says. “My goal every night is to blow their minds and give them an amazing experience.”

Kim Vo

Dutch Courage

Kim Vo sees potential ingredients for cocktails everywhere. Over the summer, she challenged herself to begin making drinks with zero waste. This she took quite literally. Vo used corn as the backbone for the drink she calls La Cosecha, which means “harvest” in Spanish. Not only did she juice the kernels, but she turned the cob and all of the husk into a stock.

“When you put them together you get the most powerful corn flavor,” she says.

From there she added mezcal and basil to the stock. Next, she put in a little watermelon. She even pickled the rinds for garnish so they too did not go to waste.

In November, Vo tapped into her Vietnamese roots to create the Snug Bug, her take on a Hot Toddy inspired by artichoke tea. She made a tincture using the artichoke heart and charred the leaves. Then she added carciofo, which is an artichoke-based amaro, and mixed in a cane sugar spirit, plum liqueur, and reduced cider syrup.

“It gets wild,” she says. “It’s toasty. It’s earthy. It’s just perfect for the season.”

The drink demonstrates the scientific way that Vo’s brain works. She earned a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience from Johns Hopkins University but gravitated toward the hospitality industry because she treasures the interpersonal relationships.

“Ultimately what I love about cocktail bartending is the connection with people, both the guests and other people in the industry,” she says.

After stints at hotel bars and the late, great whiskey-focused bar Bookmaker’s in Federal Hill, she’s been the bar manager at Dutch Courage in Old Goucher for three years. During her time in the industry, she’s seen the world of upscale cocktails change dramatically.

“Cocktailing was [once] kind of like a very exclusive practice,” she says. “You had to go to a speakeasy or a craft cocktail bar to find a good cocktail. But post-COVID, with Instagram and that whole boom with social media, it’s more accessible.”

She believes that the culture she has helped to create among the staff has contributed to Dutch Courage’s welcoming spirit.

“It’s a completely supportive environment, and it really lends itself to this uninhibited creativity,” says Vo, 33. “The owners are super supportive, and we have a very, very tight staff. And I think, honestly, our guests have the most fun because we’re all very happy.”

Charlie Vascellaro

Clandestino

There’s no mystery as to why people enjoy going to the tequila-centric speakeasy Clandestino in Belvedere or, for that matter, any of the other establishments where Charlie Vascellaro has worked over the course of his 20 years behind the bar.

He knows how to throw a party.

“I’ve always felt like, being the bartender, you are the host of the party, which I’ve had plenty of experience doing at home over the years,” he says. “I was always the kind of guy who hosted the parties, and everybody would come to my house, and I would make the drinks for them. When I first started tending bar and I was worried about my relative lack of experience, I used to coach myself and say, ‘Just make them like you make it at home.’”

That policy has served him well. At Clandestino, which he manages and helped open in 2022, he specializes in preparing cocktails with a Southwestern flair.

Vascellaro, 59, who spent much of his childhood in Arizona, originally started bartending because he liked the hours. They allow him the freedom and flexibility to pursue his other passion: writing about baseball. His work has appeared in The Baltimore Banner, Baltimore Fishbowl, and New York’s Village Voice, for which he writes about “the Mets and all of their travails.”

Each year during spring training he returns to Arizona, where he curates museum exhibits about baseball (one on the history of Japanese-American baseball history eventually made its way to Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles) and organizes baseball-themed trips for groups of senior citizens. The groups of 35 to 40 people take in games at the spring training homes of the Chicago Cubs and San Francisco Giants, listen to guest speakers, visit museums, and eat all their meals together. It’s intense, Vascellaro says, but his bartending skills often come in handy.

“You’re kind of a public speaker as a bartender,” he says. “You’re a public persona. So if people have anxiety about public speaking, bartending can get you over that. And I think you’re also a peacemaker. You’re creating an atmosphere. I think the skills that you learn as a bartender definitely cross over in real-life situations quite often.”

There’s another perk of bartending, he says, that works out well for his hybrid career.

“I pick up a lot of writing assignments behind the bar, too. Editors, publishers, come into the bar and I get introduced to them not only as the bartender, but as a guy who does some writing. And before you know it, I’m working for people who were my customers at the bar before. It’s perfect.”

Dan Burks

The Prime Rib

Over the course of his dozen years behind the bar at The Prime Rib, one of Baltimore’s most venerable steakhouses, Dan Burks has developed a somewhat simple philosophy of bartending.

“The customers that come in are generally nice folks,” he says. “A lot of them have been coming in for years and years and we know them, and we like them. It’s easy to give good service to people that you like.”

Burks, 47, has been doing just that since he started bartending in the late ’90s on the Eastern Shore. A music performance major in college, he had a feeling that he would gravitate to the hospitality industry. (“With that degree, you’ve got to eat, sleep, and breathe music,” he says.)

When he found his way to The Prime Rib, he knew he was home.

“I’ve had other jobs here and there, but at The Prime Rib it’s not like we’re slinging beers and shots to a rowdy crowd that is out partying,” he says. “It’s a lot of martinis, Manhattans, and Old-Fashioneds. Anything served in an up glass. I’ve made a million Cosmopolitans. We go through a lot of martini glasses.”

The art of being a bartender lies not just in mixing drinks. It’s also knowing how to interact with customers. At an upscale restaurant like The Prime Rib, that’s even more pivotal. The affable Burks has a natural rhythm and intuition that keeps the mood upbeat yet still gives customers space.

“The people that we know we talk to all the time. But with some folks, you have to gauge whether they’re doing something. Are they buried in their phone? But you get plenty of regulars that want to talk sports. Some folks want to talk politics. And some people you can see that they’re with friends and they’re just catching up and bullshitting.”

On a recent night, a customer paid Burks a compliment that stuck with him.

“We’ve been coming here for a long time,” the man said, “and while we love the food and the atmosphere, we come here for you.”

Amie Ward

The Healthtender, Southpaw

Amie Ward loves bartending, and she’s devoted much of her professional life to making sure others in the industry have the tools to love it as much as she does. Ward is the executive director of Safe Bars, a nonprofit dedicated to making bars, restaurants, and other alcohol-serving spaces safe and welcoming for guests and staff alike.

She also owns and runs The Healthtender, a company that provides business owners and those on the frontlines of hospitality with the tools necessary to care for their bodies and minds.

“I started working in bars because those were the kind of people that I liked being around,” says Ward, 42, who has a master’s degree in kinesiology. “I liked talking to strangers for a living. I was taking care of myself, but I saw my peers were not. I created The Healthtender to teach people in the hospitality industry to eat better, take care of their bodies, and talk about the risks, because we have access to excess, we have weird hours, all that jazz.”

Ward started tending bar in 2009, and she says it took her a while to learn to counteract the physical and emotional challenges in the profession. Remembering to hydrate and eat while working a 10- to 12-hour shift (she always keeps nuts in her pockets for a quick snack), avoiding afterwork drinking sessions, stretching, resting—all of it is important.

“Bartenders and people in the industry are like endurance athletes, but we treat our bodies worse than any athlete ever would,” she says.

For Safe Bars, Ward’s work focuses on teaching the staff of any alcohol-serving establishment how to do bystander intervention, deescalation, and intervene in safe and non-confrontational ways to prevent sexual assault, sexual aggression, and other forms of violence.

“My world has mostly transitioned to advocacy work for the hospitality industry, doing a lot of health and wellness for people to make sure that they can stay in this business that we love for so long.”

But because she so treasures the work, Ward still steps behind the bar for the occasional shift at Southpaw in Fells Point.

“I love creating ridiculously over-the-top drinks and really special experiences for people,” she says. “I’m just one of those weirdos who loves the community and loves the job. I still have those moments when I want to be bartending. I fucking love it so much.”

Andre Levon

Clavel

Andre Levon, 37, has been tending bar for nearly half his life. A native of upstate New York, he started working at Turp’s in Mount Vernon before arriving at Clavel nine years ago. After all those years behind the bar, he still savors the relationships he builds with his customers.

“I find myself interacting with lots of different types of people,” he says. “You meet engineers and all these literate people. If anybody in the industry tells you that at this point that isn’t still a part of their job that they dig, they’re [over it] because it still is such a great thing.”

Levon has helped the popularity of the renowned Mexican restaurant’s cocktail list keep pace with its food. He leads mezcal tastings each Tuesday and, along with the team, plays a big role in curating the cocktail list. (He’s also part of the reason that the taqueria has been twice nominated for a James Beard Award in the Outstanding Bar category.)

He starts working on drinks three months prior to a menu change, a process that often includes traveling to Mexico, which is where he came up with the inspiration for the drink Tuba Por Favor. It’s based on the Filipino alcoholic beverage tubâ, which is made from the sap of palm trees and was introduced to Mexico centuries ago.

Levon’s cocktail combines tepache, coconut liqueur, lime juice, housemade kümel, and honey. It’s served shaken in a Hurricane glass.

“It’s a good amount of volume,” he says. “It’ll put a little buzz on but for the most part I designed it to be something that someone could enjoy for a while without getting too drunk.”

Although there’s no mezcal in that drink, it’s clear that the agave based liquor holds a treasured place in his heart.

“Mezcal is, of course, an agricultural product, but mezcal is a cultural product as well,” he says. “We have Mexico so close. We’re on the same continent, you know? And it is so vastly different from us. In a way, being able to drink mezcal connects me to this other culture in a really serious way in language, in art, and in cuisine.

“It doesn’t hurt that it’s delicious.”

This piece appeared in our March 2024 issue. For more great Baltimore stories, consider becoming a subscriber.

Those little cardboard discs that go under your cocktail are more than just a way for restaurants and bars to brand themselves—they’re a style statement of sorts.

The earliest coasters, in wide use by the mid-1700s, were designed for wine bottles and decanters and were named for their ability to glide, or coast, across the table. They were commonly made of wood, papier-mâché, or silver. It’s believed that the original, more modern-day coasters (known as beer mats or bierdeckel) were designed by Friedrich Horn, a German printing company, in the 1880s.

Horn’s coasters were flimsy, but several years later, a German entrepreneur named Robert Sputh manufactured and patented his beer mat made of a more absorbent wood pulp to act as a surface saver. The bierdeckels were round or square and often stamped with the printer’s name. Before long, breweries started branding their coasters.

These days, the resurgence of coasters will delight Baltimore tegestologists—yes, that’s the word for coaster collectors. You can find them all around town, from Dutch Courage in Old Goucher to 29th Street Tavern in Remington to Perennial in Towson. (Fun fact: Guinness World Records lists Leo Pisker of Austria as having the largest collection in the world, with 152,860 coasters from 192 countries.)

“There are lots of different types of coasters,” says Brendan Dorr, owner of Dutch Courage. “There’s the cardboard types that act as a little liner for your drink and those ones that look like grandma doilies that you get at a fancy bar.”

While coasters dress up a drink, they also serve a practical purpose.

“Coasters help stop drinks from sweating all over the bar,” says Dorr. “No one wants to put their hand on the bar and get their wrist wet.”

Move over Aperol Spritz, there’s a new buzzy cocktail in town. Well, really, an old cocktail that’s having a second moment thanks to our obsession with all things caffeinated.

“The espresso martini is trending again,” says Brendan Dorr, owner of Dutch Courage in Old Goucher. “Cocktails come in and out of style—bartenders love to look back at what was popular, even as recently as 20 years ago.”

The backstory on this unique martini, usually some combination of fresh espresso or coffee liqueur paired with vodka, simple syrup, and sometimes a pinch of salt, is now the stuff of legends. The story goes that in the 1980s, celebrity bartender Dick Bradsell of Soho Brasserie whipped up a drink for a model (rumored to be either Kate Moss or Naomi Campbell) who requested something that would “wake me up, and then f**k me up.” Using shots of vodka, freshly pulled espresso, and a little simple syrup, Bradsell obliged, dubbing the drink a “vodka espresso.”

“The drink didn’t truly take off until the 1990s, when everything started being served in a stemmed glass,” explains Andrew Nichols, head of mixology for the Atlas Restaurant Group, which is when it was named the “espresso martini.”

So why the comeback? “I see the espresso martini as a coming of age for the vodka and Red Bull crowd,” says Nichols. “It allows guests to get their caffeine boost without the stigma of ordering something typical of clubs and dive bars.”

With its coffee bean garnish floating on a cloud of foam, the cocktail is also a stylish statement. “It’s a fun drink,” says Dorr. “And it’s delicious.”

Apparently, others agree. The drink is featured on area cocktail menus including Duck Duck Goose, The Owl Bar, and La Scala.

“Several times a month, someone comes in and requests one,” says Dorr. But beware, the cocktail is contagious: “Whenever one person orders one, everyone at the table wants one.”

For better or for worse, when we think of gin, we often conjure images from across the pond, from the moralists who condemned a lawless, drunken London to the precision of James Bond’s Vesper martini. The spirit was so tied to the British identity that, in 1808, as tensions rose leading up to the War of 1812, Baltimoreans even staged their own version of the Boston Tea Party, burning 720 gallons of that other beloved British beverage at Hampstead Hill.

“The proscribed [sic] liquor blazed to heaven amidst the discharge of cannon and the applause of fifteen thousand citizens met to show their love for independence, and to burn gin that had paid tribute to England,” wrote historian John Thomas Scharf. Luckily, in the 200-plus years since that terrible waste, locals have changed their tune a bit.

Gin has experienced a series of meteoric rises and a few steep falls from grace. It’s been demonized and celebrated, made secretly in dubious bathtubs and proudly in shining copper stills. And now, at the dawn of the second Roaring ’20s, it’s back again. Perhaps better than ever.

But first, a quick history lesson. Gin as we know it today is a far cry from its roots, which are firmly planted in Dutch, not British, soil. It all began with a distilled beverage flavored with juniper called genever, the first record of which comes from the Netherlands in 1552. Juniper is still the most prominent botanical in today’s gins, though some distillers have gotten more creative with the flavoring in recent years. And genever itself has been making a comeback. This malty precursor tasted more like a young whiskey than the clear spirit we know today, but it laid the groundwork for several hundred years of innovation.

Genever made its way to England during the 80 Years’ War, and it was dubbed “Dutch Courage” because it was given to soldiers to steady their nerves before battle. When a Dutchman, William of Orange, took the English throne in 1688, all things Dutch came into fashion. The king began encouraging his new countrymen to produce a version of his home spirit.

“So then we have what becomes the first sort of English gin,” says spirits historian Al Culliton, who also runs an online program for home bartenders called Al’s Cocktail Club. “They start calling it ‘gin,’ which obviously comes from genever. Usually it was sweetened, but still made on a pot still and based in grains. It’s always going to be based in grains, but how that grain is distilled is what changes. We’ve got the whole William Hogarth ‘Gin Lane’ period, where basically people that are used to drinking beer and ale across England start drinking genever in copious amounts. We have this sweetened form called Old Tom…and then finally we have London dry style. You don’t really see this super clean spirit take hold, especially in the U.S., until the very late 19th century.”

Today, many different styles of gin are flourishing, from classic Dutch-style genevers to New Western styles, which stray from the unwritten rules. The basic definition of gin is “a colorless alcoholic beverage made from distilled or redistilled neutral grain spirits flavored with juniper berries.” But tell that to the pink gins, the tea-colored gins, and the gins that veer way off course from the traditional juniper notes.

The aptly named Dutch Courage in Old Goucher alone stocks 140 styles, and includes tasting notes for each. Some exciting options include Corgi “Earl Grey” (black tea, brisk bergamot, and juicy citrus), KI NO BI Dry Gin (yuzu, orange oil, pine note, and eucalyptus), and Catoctin “Watershed” (caraway, faintly floral, woody, and white pepper).

“The cool thing is, we have so many options up there that people just want to try different stuff,” says Brendan Dorr, who co-owns Dutch Courage with Eric Fooy. “If you wanted to come in and just make your own sample, our spirit menu has those little descriptors under all the gins so you can get an idea of what flavors you might be getting or what you might get off the nose of it before you enjoy it.”

While some enthusiasts enjoy just sipping on the spirit, gin on its own isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. And that’s no problem. Gin has been essential to cocktails for as long as folks have been making them.

“Since the word cocktail was created and defined as a mixture of bitters, water, sugar, and spirit, gin has been in that mix. That’s kind of why we opened Dutch Courage. We wanted to pay homage to a spirit that has deep roots in cocktail history,” says Dorr. “Whiskey bars are out there, but in this city, there definitely weren’t any gin bars. So for us to open Dutch Courage was to be like, hey, here’s a whole other category of spirit that people probably didn’t realize is as vast as it is.”

There are currently around 6,000 gins produced worldwide, and Nielsen data shows a rise in U.S. gin consumption. Last summer it managed to outpace bourbon, rum, and even vodka in sales.

It’s a trend that’s been a long time coming. An August 2020 episode of The VinePair Podcast asked, “Is the Gin Boom Finally Here?” and, for once, the answer seemed to be yes. Gin’s rampant popularity across Europe appears to have finally made the leap across the pond, much to the delight of distillers.

Max Lents, CEO of Baltimore Spirits Company, has been watching that particular needle move with a keen interest for years. In 2015, BSC began distilling the first legal gin in Baltimore since Prohibition, Shot Tower. These days their lineup includes two other varieties, Barreled Shot Tower Gin and Skeleton Spirit Gin. The distillery’s recently opened Cocktail Gallery features all three offerings alongside other house products in both new and classic drinks.

“Gin seems to be having a moment, which has been predicted for many years. Europe had this gin revival over the last decade and Spain I might say was ground zero,” says Lents. “People figured because it was having such a moment there that eventually it would come over to the U.S. Normally, liquor trends happen the other way [America to Europe], but this seems to have happened the other direction, and I couldn’t be more thankful for it.”

The boom has come on the heels of another couple of trends, the revival of cocktail culture and the consumers’ desire to be more educated about the products they choose, making it an ideal time for both spirits enthusiasts and the curious casual drinker.

“I don’t think we would be having an amaro revolution, or a vermouth revolution, or a gin revolution without the reemergence of cocktail culture in America,” says Lents. “I think it’s the finding of the old cocktail books, it’s the reemergence of the [pioneering bartender] Jerry Thomas recipes. I think it’s their application in cocktails that’s driving the resurgence of these spirits.”

Culliton, who studies cocktail history and recreates many once-popular drinks for their cocktail club, has seen the same. Europe may have birthed gin, but cocktails made their journey across the Atlantic from the United States in the 1800s. From the earliest bartending guides to more recent history, gin is at the center of that story.

“We see a lot of gin in those recipes, and gin is always at least a variation, so we know that it had a huge foothold,” says Culliton. “And then I think the dry martini is very emblematic of the second half of cocktail history and the staying power of the American cocktail across the world. It supplanted a lot of drinks as the emblem of our cocktail culture. [The cocktail] is one of our first and greatest exports.”

The martini in particular has taken on dozens of iterations. Its original recipe included London Dry, sweet vermouth, orange bitters, simple syrup, lemon peel, and an olive, a veritable kitchen sink compared to the current standard.

Then there’s perhaps the most famous drink order ever uttered, James Bond’s vodka martini, “shaken, not stirred.” The movie Bond may have snubbed his home spirit a bit—vodka was booming when he first hit the silver screen—but the novels have plenty of nods to gin. Bond author Ian Fleming had 007 invent the Vesper (“Three measures of Gordon’s, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it’s ice-cold, then add a large slice of lemon-peel. Got it?”) and enjoy a variety of other gin classics, including the gin martini, pink gin, and negroni.

Culliton also counts the pandemic among the reasons people have renewed their interest in the classic spirit. When bars closed, the bar cart and liquor cabinet got more use than ever before, and simple options like the gin and tonic thrived. People also expanded their home bartending skills.

“The pandemic has given people time to invest in learning more about the cocktails they’ve been drinking for years,” says Culliton. “There’s an extra aspect of people wanting to know what’s behind the drink and how to make it at home. I taught 60 Zoom classes this year. People are really into it.”

Whether it’s in a simple gin and tonic mixed at home, a historic recipe followed to the letter (try an Aviation, originally made with El Bart Gin distilled right here in Baltimore, from 1916), or an entirely new creation, experts advise taking note of what you like. There are thousands of international options and plenty of regional producers to try.

“Gin deserves attention, and the more people that drink gin and really start to love it, the more people are gonna understand the differences and what they like,” says Lents. “It’s a whole culture of understanding. Understanding your own consumption and the provenance of it.”

Not into that strong, Christmassy hit of juniper? No problem. McClintock Distilling in Frederick’s Gardener’s Gin leads with cucumber, hibiscus, and lavender for a refreshing, floral option. More of a dark liquor person? Seek out a bottle of Genever Inspired Gin from Tenth Ward Distilling Company, also in Frederick, for a malty, earthy flavor that looks to gin’s roots while winking at Maryland’s love of rye. Feeling adventurous? BSC’s Skeleton Spirit features an herbaceous blend of eucalyptus, aloe, and avocado leaf that begs to be the star of something simple that will let its unique flavors shine.

And if you don’t know what you like, well, that’s what those experts are for.

“It’s a fun, exciting spirit that’s finally seeing the light of day in the most positive way. The sky’s the limit for flavor combinations, so there will always be new combinations coming out by different distilleries,” says Dorr, glancing over at the hundred-plus bottles behind his bar. “It’s an exciting time. I don’t have enough shelf.”

Whether you’re working with years of experience or trying out gin for the very first time, our experts have a cocktail for you.

Brendan Dorr, Dutch Courage

When it comes to introducing the unfamiliar to the joys of this juniper spirit, Dorr recommends this easy cocktail, a variation on a gin sour, that probably doesn’t even require a special trip to the store. Just whip up the syrup, combine your ingredients, and enjoy the fruits of your minimal labor.

Bee’s Knees
1 oz. honey syrup
1 oz. lemon juice
2 oz. gin

Make a quick honey syrup (50/50 water and honey); add it to a shaker with ice, one part lemon juice, and two parts gin; then shake, strain, and enjoy. It’s the bee’s knees.

Max Lents, Baltimore Spirit Co.

Barreled Shot Tower Gin, which spends 9 months hanging out in Epoch Rye barrels, and Averna Amaro lend some citrusy, caramely notes to this gin option that may just convert the dedicated whiskey and rye drinkers out there. 

The Black Tuesday
2 oz. Barreled Shot Tower Gin
1 oz. Averna Amaro
5 shakes Black Walnut Bitters

Stir over ice and strain onto a large ice cube. Express an orange peel over the top of the glass and garnish with the expressed orange peel.

Al Culliton, Al’s Cocktail Club

Culliton’s study of cocktail history has led them to all kinds of historic drinks and their many variations. Follow a condensed timeline of gin history by making these gin, Old Tom, and genever drinks.

Fall Martini
¾ oz. gin (Neversink)
¾ oz. unaged apple brandy (Laird’s)
¾ oz. dry vermouth (Noilly Prat extra dry)
½ oz. Manzanilla sherry (La Guita)
¼ oz. Gentian liqueur (Salers)
¼ oz. “brine”*

Combine all in a mixing glass. Fill with ice and stir for 20 seconds. Strain into a Nick and Nora glass. Garnish with a Castelvetrano olive on a pick.

Improved Holland Gin Cocktail—Java edition
1½ oz. oude genever (Bols)
½ oz. Batavia arrack (van Oosten)
¼ oz. oloroso sherry (Hidalgo “Faraon”)
¼ oz. crème de banane (Tempus Fugit)
¾ teaspoon lime-ginger syrup*
4 drops chocolate bitters (Fee Brothers “Aztec Chocolate”)
Coffee bean, for garnish (BCRC)

Combine all in a mixing glass. Fill three-quarters with ice and stir for 20 seconds. Strain into a small, stemmed cocktail glass. Grate coffee bean on top using a microplane.

Band of Horse Thieves (serves 4-5)
9 oz. Old Tom gin
3 oz. Sweet vermouth
3 ¾ oz. Water
Absinthe for spritzing/rinsing

Combine Old Tom gin, sweet vermouth, and water in a ~20 oz. jar. Freeze for 6+ hours. Freeze single rocks glasses 2+ hours ahead of time. Before serving, spritz or rinse frozen glasses with absinthe. Pour 3-4 oz. of mixture in each. Serve immediately.

La Vie En Rose from Dutch Courage

It doesn’t get any prettier than this cocktail designed by Dutch Courage owner Brendan Dorr. “I wanted to create a cocktail that represented Dutch Courage as a gin cocktail bar, and what’s better than a martini?” says Dorr. “I took the classic martini recipe and put a oral spin on it.”

INGREDIENTS
2 ounces Glendalough Rose Gin
.75 ounce Dolin Dry Vermouth
.25 ounce Tattersall Creme de Fleur 1 dash Peychaud’s Bitters
1 dash Rose Water

DIRECTIONS
1. Stir all ingredients with ice.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass.
3. Garnish with lemon peel and surround with dried rose petals.
Serves 1.

Pretty in Pink: A pink-hued cocktail is perfect for your Valentine. The color represents compassion, nurturing, and love. It also signifies unconditional love and understanding. It’s feminine, intimate, and for any romantic occasion, but especially Valentine’s Day.

Raw Oysters with Beet Horseradish from Dylan’s Oyster Cellar

“Our favorite way to eat oysters is dressed simply with prepared horseradish and lemon,” says Dylan Salmon, co-owner of Dylan’s Oyster Cellar. “For Valentine’s Day, we thought that adding beets for a pop of deep red to the gray color of horseradish would put a sweet, earthy, and colorful twist on an otherwise drab but spicy condiment.”

INGREDIENTS
Fresh horseradish root, at least 4 inches, peeled and cut into small cubes
15-ounce can cooked beets, drained
4 tablespoons white vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
Fresh-shucked oysters (pick up available at Dylan’s, of course.)

DIRECTIONS
1. Add horseradish chunks a little bit at a time into the feeding tube of your food processor.
2. Pulse several times, scraping down the sides if needed.
3. Add drained beets and pulse a few more times.
4. Add vinegar, sugar, and salt and process for 30 more seconds or so, until you get a nice finely textured consistency.

NOTE: Horseradish sauce will keep in a tightly sealed container in the fridge for three days, but it will lose heat over time. If you like it hot and zingy, eat it within a few hours after you prepare it.

WARNING: Do not breathe in too closely to freshly grated horseradish, as it is blindingly hot. Also, start with a tiny bit when you first taste to ensure you can stand the heat.

To freshly shucked, raw oysters, add 1⁄4 teaspoon of the beet horseradish and a dollop of salmon roe for color, texture, and ocean flavor. Finish by garnishing with a fresh grating of lemon zest.
Makes 2 cups. 

Chocolate Truffles with Powdered Strawberries from Cosima

Nothing says Valentine’s Day like chocolate truffles. Though chocolate has long been believed to be an aphrodisiac—the emperor Montezuma was said to have consumed the cocoa bean in massive amounts to fuel his romantic trysts—science says otherwise. If chocolate has any effect on the libido, it’s likely more psychological than physiological.

That said, this recipe from Cosima exectuive chef Anthony Franklin is sure to make your loved ones feel cherished. “I prefer to make these with my special someone in the early afternoon,” says Franklin, “and enjoy these endorphin-releasing treats for dessert with a scoop of ice cream. Nothing is more convivial than waking up on Valentine’s Day and playing with chocolate.”

INGREDIENTS
8 ounces of pure chocolate
2⁄3 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Strawberry powder
1⁄2 teaspoon sea salt

DIRECTIONS
1. Place chocolate in heat-resistant mixing bowl and set aside.
2. Heat heavy cream until it begins to simmer.
3. Once simmered, add butter and sea salt.
4. Pour hot liquid in the bowl of pure chocolate and allow cream to soften chocolate.
5. Add vanilla extract and mix ingredients until you achieve a smooth consistency.
6. Wrap bowl in plastic wrap and refrigerate for two hours.
7. Scoop out desired size of set truffle mix (a tablespoon works well), then roll into a ball.
8. Roll truffles into powered strawberry or desired toppings.
Serves 20-24. 

Fudgy Walnut Cookies from Citron

So many cookie recipes contain gluten, so this dense and delicious recipe for fudgy walnut cookies—by way of Citron’s pastry chef Carlie King—is a particular treat. “My inspiration for this recipe was really just a good chocolate snack everyone without a nut allergy could enjoy,” says King. “This is a great gluten-free cookie that everyone, including gluten eaters, really likes.”

INGREDIENTS
4 1⁄4 cups confectioner’s sugar
1 cup cocoa powder
2 1⁄8 cups walnuts, toasted and chopped
Pinch of salt
1 cup egg whites, pasteurized

DIRECTIONS
1. Sift confectioners’ sugar and cocoa powder into a large bowl.
2. Mix cocoa powder mixture with walnuts and salt.
3. Pour in egg whites while mixing. (You can mix by hand or at a low speed with a mixer.)
4. Mix until just combined. (Do not over mix.)
5. Scoop dough with a 2-ounce cookie scoop onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment.
6. Bake at 350 Fahrenheit for five minutes.
7. Turn and bake for an additonal five minutes.

8 A.M. EARLY HOURS

Most bartenders will tell you they go to bed at about three or four in the morning and wake up at noon. But for me, after five to six hours of sleep, I operate pretty well.

8:30 A.M. FEEDING TIME

My wife and I have a subscription to Motzi bread, so we’ll have an English muffin or slices of bread for breakfast. Coffee. A lot of mornings, I’ll make her lunch. Then, feed our cats; we have two well-dressed tuxedo cats, Hatch and Mr. Styles.

10 A.M. MORNING ROUTINE

I’ll start my day listening to WYPR, pop open my laptop, and see what the day brings. Besides Dutch Courage, I also have the Baltimore Bartenders’ Guild to keep running.

12 P.M. OFF TO WORK

I ride my bike to work. If I didn’t close the night before, I’ll check the numbers and see what happened. The middle part of my day is busy work. Often, I’ll get purveyors coming through to teach me on some wine, beers, and spirits, so that’s a nice bonus.

3 P.M. CHECK-IN

We start looking at the clock to see what needs to be done. Maybe I suddenly have to mop the floor or scrub the bathrooms down. I’ll jump behind the bar to help the bartenders set up. If I’m not bartending that night, I’ll go in the back and start juicing the lemon, lime, orange juice, all the things we produce in-house, including the housemade syrups.

5 P.M. OPENING ACT

Suddenly it’s five o’clock and we’re turning on the music. With Dutch Courage, I really wanted there to be a vibe. I love Motown, soul, and early R&B, so we chose to build a playlist with anyone from Otis Redding and Ruby Johnson
to Ella Fitzgerald and Tina Turner. And boom! The doors open. If I’m bartending, that’s my entire evening: serving up delicious beverages and making sure everyone has what they need.

6 P.M. EVENING HOURS

If I’m not bartending but I’m there all night, I’ll be out on the floor making sure the guests are happy. Sometimes I’ll have to run into the back and prep something, or get extra bottles for the bar. Then it’s back to doing the busy work. I try to make good use of my time since we’re open until 2 a.m.

2 A.M. CLOSING TIME

Depending on the level of business we have some clean-up to do. By the time paperwork is done, we lock up the doors and I jump on my bike and ride home.

3 A.M. LATE NIGHT

The tricky part is getting home because I’m still wound up, especially after riding a bike. I’ve been trying to be better at winding down directly in bed because the dangerous part is falling asleep on the couch and trying to quietly walk up the stairs. I try to read something online or grab a book. But if the lights are totally off, I fall asleep much faster.

OPEN

The Reister’s Daughter: The 200 block of Main Street in Reisterstown has long been a destination for frozen custard and Italian ice at The Cow. And now, there’s even more to love in the area with the opening of this new coffee shop just across the street. Set in the historic Beckley House property that formerly operated as The Ski Shoppe, the cozy spot offers grinds sourced from Gracefully Coffee Roasters in Windsor Mill. Look out for nitro and cold brew on tap, espresso, and specialty drinks like matcha lattes and a soothing London Fog. The pastry program is also sourced locally, featuring sweets from Diablo Donuts in Federal Hill and JeannieBird Baking Company in Westminster.

Dutch Courage: Veteran bartenders Brendan Dorr and Eric Fooy have started 2020 off right with the opening of their highly anticipated gin bar in Old Goucher. Filled with vintage interior touches—try to spot treasures like the silver cash register or red velvet sofa—the bar offers a menu of innovative gin drinks alongside a seasonal list of cocktails showcasing other spirits. To get the full experience, enjoy gin-forward options including the “Jefferson Sour” (sage-infused gin with lemon and honey) and the “Lady Mercy,” which mixes genever with mezcal and orange bitters. Pair all of the libations with bites from the food menu, which lists charcuterie, deviled eggs, pickled veggies, and warm sandwiches.

COMING SOON

Rita’s at The Rotunda: The first day of spring is still a couple months away, but when March 19 crops up, so will this new kiosk at The Rotunda in Hampden. Stationed just off of the family-friendly playspace in the center of the retail-and-residential district, the dessert chain will offer its wide range of Italian ice flavors (everything from mango and cherry to blue raspberry and Swedish Fish) and swirls of frozen custard.

NEWS

The Phoenix Emporium: As we reported back in 2018, this neighborhood staple on Main Street in Ellicott City is among the 10 properties slated for demolition in accordance with Howard County’s “Safe and Sound” flood mitigation plan developed by County Executive Calvin Ball. The Phoenix Emporium owner Mark Hemmis recently took to Facebook to confirm that he has entered into an agreement with the county to sell his interest in the property effective April 1. Though this means The Phoenix will close at the end of March, there is a silver lining to Hemmis’ plan. As chef/owner Richard Winter of Ellicott Mills Brewing Company (located just up the street from The Phoenix) prepares to retire, Hemmis plans to purchase the brewpub—where he once worked and met his wife more than 20 years ago.

Hemmis, along with the existing management team at Ellicott Mills, are working together to merge the spirits of the two establishments under one roof. “Ellicott Mills Brewing Company will operate as normal as we figure out our next steps together,” he wrote. “The floods of 2016 and 2018 have taken a financial, physical, and emotional toll on my family, our staff, and all of our families, friends, and community that we continue to process to this every day. But we do not stop. We are eternally grateful for the support of our community and are overjoyed with the opportunity to remain a part of Ellicott City’s resurgence.”

SHUT

Edmart Deli: Baltimore lost yet another one of its Jewish deli institutions earlier this week. Edmart, which has been a go-to for classics like chopped liver, corned beef, and hand-sliced lox since 1958, closed its doors in Pikesville on New Year’s Eve. Owner Shelley Lev Wiseman, who inherited the business from her father, made the decision to shutter the store in an effort to spend more time with family. “I haven’t seen my grandchildren,” she told The Sun. “And they just grow up so fast.” Regulars have long frequented Edmart for its holiday trays, desserts, and array of deli meats. (Duff Goldman even gave the brisket a shout-out on an episode of Food Network’s “The Best Thing I Ever Ate.”) Though Wiseman has expressed interest in selling Edmart, the future of the deli is still up in the air.

Vaccaro’s Italian Pastry Shop Bel Air: Sadly, New Year’s Eve was the last day for Bel Air locals to grab a cannoli at Vaccaro’s in Harford Mall. According to a message posted to the shop’s Facebook page last week, the decision was made quickly. “We did not want to close, however we cannot afford to keep the location running and the mall has signed a new lease for our space,” the Vaccaro family wrote. “We are very sad to close this chapter. Thank you to all of our loyal customers.” Luckily, the beloved sweet shop’s other locations in Little Italy, Canton, and Hunt Valley remain open with plenty of almond macaroons, gelato, and pignoli cookies to go around.

Perhaps one of the most striking things about walking into Dutch Courage in Old Goucher before the sun sets is the amount of natural light that shines through the corner building’s many windows.

For industry veterans Brendan Dorr and Eric Fooy, the brains behind the soon-to-open gin bar that has been in the works for nearly two years, the light is symbolic of the spirit they’ve decided to showcase.

“Because gin is bright and airy, we wanted the space to feel bright and airy,” says Dorr, the president of the Baltimore Bartenders’ Guild, who previously worked at B&O American Brasserie alongside Fooy. “So many cocktail bars are dark and moody, but we want this to be a place where you can go to have a cocktail at night and actually read the menu.”

Highlighting a 100-bottle gin collection, the bar will offer a rotating list of cocktails that aim to educate guests about the complexities of the spirit.

Among them will be the “Sirocco” (Mahon gin, aloe liqueur, sherry, egg white, dehydrated apple) and “A Japanese Breakfast,” which fuses nikka gin with chartreuse, yuzu marmalade, and dehydrated lime. Another option, “The Eleanor” (Baltimore Spirits Company Shot Tower gin, rosewater, grapefruit, and sparkling wine), is named after Eleanor Roosevelt—who once dined in the space when it housed the president of Goucher College.

“There are thousands of whiskey cocktail bars in the country right now, but not a lot of gin joints,” Fooy says. “We wanted to do something a little different. There are lots of gins out there that aren’t recognized because they haven’t gained a lot of traction yet.”

To accompany the drink menu—which will also include local beer, wine, and cocktails highlighting other spirits—Dutch Courage will offer a food program with shareable snacks and sandwiches. (Think pickled veggies with herbed buttermilk dip, a cheese and charcuterie platter, and a pressed Cubano.)

“Gin has become such a global spirit,” Dorr says. “It’s being made everywhere. I just tasted a gin from Mexico made using agave and a lot of different botanicals, including juniper. So the food can kind of be global in that way, too.”

Though gin will be the focus, the spot—set in a historic North Charles Street property that was most recently a printing business—also shows its uniqueness through the many DIY pieces and vintage finds scattered throughout the interior.

Dorr and Fooy made it a priority to preserve as much of the building’s originality as possible—maintaining woods, trims, and moldings throughout. But their additions only elevate the bar’s charm.

“I have a ton of art,” says Dorr, who has gathered many of his collectables from places such as Second Chance and Wishbone Reserve. “I also have reclaimed cast iron fireplace faces and grandfather clock faces that I’ve picked up over the years. You just gotta match the right pieces.”

Here are a few other treasures to look out for when visiting Dutch Courage—named after British soldiers’ tendency to consume copious amounts of Genever before battle during the Thirty Years’ War—which could be open as soon as next month pending final inspections.

Tables made of reclaimed wood and old sewing machines
While renovating the space with contractor Lewis Hibbs and architect Jay Orr, Dorr discovered wood panels that caught his eye. “I said, ‘Wow, these boards are really nice. What are we doing with them?’” Dorr says. “No one had a real immediate answer, so I said, ‘Can I have them to make tabletops out of?’” And that’s exactly what he did with the reclaimed panels, which now sit atop cast iron bases taken from old sewing machines.

Vintage cash register
Stationed at the end of the quartz-topped bar is this cool conversation piece, which Dorr inherited from his father. “My dad liked collecting different things, and this was probably his fanciest one,” he says. Though he remembers a time when the register opened, it’s now strictly for show. “It doesn’t work anymore, because when I was 12, I broke it,” he shares. “I cranked it, and my dad says he thinks a gear must have slipped. So it’s still locked.”

Red velvet sofa from Wishbone Reserve
Though the majority of the space is bright and airy, there is one area just past the bar that has a more cozy feel. There, guests will spot a red velvet couch that Dorr found at Wishbone Reserve in Hampden. It’s set against a wall covered in navy blue wallpaper with hints of gold—which we can only predict will be Charm City’s next great Instagram backdrop.

Outdoor courtyard with its own satellite bar
The location is also equipped with its own outdoor courtyard, which Dorr and Fooy envision being decorated with string lights and lots of greenery. It will feature custom-built planters made out of leftover pallet wood from equipment deliveries. During the warmer months, the team will set up a satellite bar to make the patio more of an outdoor hangout.

Both inside and outside, all of the touches are meant to contribute to an inviting feel—something Dorr and Fooy feel strongly about given their many years in the service industry.

“I’d like this to be a neighborhood bar,” Fooy says. “I’d rather fill every seat every day than make it a special occasion place. We have wood on our walls, but we’re not the Engineer’s Club. We want you to come in and just be excited to have a drink here.”

Brendan Dorr, head bartender at B&O American Brasserie and president of the Baltimore Bartenders’ Guild, is well regarded as the godfather of the cocktail scene in town. Since the mid-2000s, Dorr has been managing bars and consulting on drink recipes, all the while dreaming of starting his own place.

“It feels like forever,” Dorr says with a laugh. “But I didn’t just want to open another bar in Baltimore. I want it to make national headlines.”

Next spring, Dorr and his bartending business partner Eric Fooy, will open the doors of Dutch Courage, a gin bar at 2220 North Charles Street in the Old Goucher neighborhood. The space was built in 1851 and features crown molding, marble fireplaces, ceiling medallions, and a 1,000-square-foot courtyard out back.

“We’ve had this concept for a long time, but we knew we couldn’t put it just anywhere,” Dorr says. “This place—and in the neighborhood—are pretty spectacular.”

Dorr says that he was drawn to the neighborhood because of the work being done by Old Goucher Community Association president Kelly Cross, who has helped to establish businesses like Brown Rice and a beer garden from Clavel’s Lane Harlan, slated to open in 2018.

“There are so many great businesses that Kelly has brought to the neighborhood and we wanted to be a part of that,” Dorr says. “It’s exciting that Lane is opening a cool beer garden—we’re rife for that kind of outdoor space. We’ll be around the corner and be able to send each other guests.”

As for Dutch Courage, the 1,500-square-foot interior will be divided into an upbeat main bar room on one side and a relaxing parlor on the other. Dorr and Fooy are thinking the cocktail menu will take a cue from Anvil Bar & Refuge in Houston, which has a list of 25 classic cocktails and 10 rotating seasonal drinks on the menu. There is no plan to put in draft lines, but bottled and canned beer will be available. The owners are applying for a live music license to offer the occasional jazz trio for guests.

“Gin is a bright, fresh spirit so we want to the bar to have a bright, upbeat vibe,” Dorr says. “We want to bridge that gap between classic cocktail bar and something more modern. We will have something for everybody in all price ranges so anyone will feel welcome.”

There’s talk of opening earlier on Fridays and Saturdays for happy hour in the courtyard, which the owners are excited to turn into a lush garden for possible chef pop-up events. The bar itself won’t have a kitchen, but there will be snacks like crostini, nuts, crudité, and meat and cheese plates. Dorr says his “fingers-crossed timeline” is six months, but more realistically, Dutch Courage will take nine months to get through the construction and permitting process.

As for the name, Dorr’s love of history and, of course, cocktails played a role. During the Thirty Years War in the 17th century, British soldiers said that drinking Hollands gin gave them strength and confidence going into battle—”pretty much like liquid courage,” Dorr says. The title seems fitting for the pair, who are finally opening a space of their own.

“It’s funny, I go back and forth between being super excited and overwhelmed,” Dorr says. “Yesterday I felt like I got to open one of my stocking stuffers and this morning it was back to, ‘Oh man, we’ve got a lot of work to do.'”