In case you don’t remember, Father’s Day is coming up on June 19, 2016. That’s Sunday, for those of you who don’t know your made-up holidays.

Normally, I would be against things like Father’s Day. But you know what, I’m a father, and it’s nice to have one day where you may get to do what your kids want to do for you. Sheesh. Is it still all about the kids?

Anyway, this year, I figure I will give you some advice.

What to give your father on Father’s Day

Give him liquor. Trust me here. In fact, don’t just give him liquor. Give him whiskey. Or whisky. Whichever.

The Scotch to buy

If he’s a scotch man, you can’t go wrong with the the Balvenie Tun 1509, second batch, a selection of 32 of the finest casks – 23 traditional American oak casks and nine European oak sherry casks – hand-selected by Malt Master David Stewart from the distillery’s precious aged stocks. All were transferred to Tun 1509, which sits in The Balvenie’s Warehouse 24, for several months before bottling. This is a rare interpretation of the marrying process and allows the different whiskies to come together to create a unique expression of The Balvenie that is greater than the sum of its constituent parts.

In case you’re not convinced, I’ve tried it. It’s good. It’s the stuff Anthony Bourdain called “nectar of the gods.” He’s right. At $350 a bottle, I admit it’s a splurge. And here’s a tip. That $350 is only worth it if he’s willing to crack it open while you’re there, and you can share a dram together. Perhaps with a cigar.

Good times.

If $350 isn’t your style, I would go for a bottle of Monkey Shoulder. Those in the know know Monkey Shoulder. For $32, you can’t go wrong. It’s blended, yes, but it’s a blend of three of finest malts out there. I love this stuff, and I always keep a bottle on hand. With single malts, I will always try something new, but when it comes to my everyday dram, I always go for Monkey Shoulder.

The bourbon or rye to buy

I recommend Hudson whiskey. Everything they make is fantastic, but I especially like their Manhattan Rye or their Four Grain Bourbon. Both are excellent, although the Four Grain Bourbon is not available in 750mL. It’s still only in 350mL, which may be a deal breaker. Go for the Baby Bourbon, instead. It’s great, too.

Both the Baby Bourbon and the Manhattan Rye are $52 for the 750 mL bottles.

What to eat on Father’s Day

Sure, you could take your father to an overcrowded, overpriced brunch place on Father’s Day, but if I know your father, he doesn’t really want that. It’s a hassle, and it’s not that fun, and the food is probably disappointing anyway.

Instead, grill for him. These grill packages from BB Butchers look downright decadent. If I opened a package that looked like that, I would about melt. Especially if I got to grill it. Or better yet, one of my daughters grilled it for me.

Okay, so my daughters aren’t old enough to buy liquor for me or grill for me. But still, my wife could pretend.

Tequila Milagro

I may not be a tequila expert, but I know what I like, and the Milagro Margarita made by Pico’s in Upper Kirby is pretty damn good. Not too sweet, but just enough. More lime than sweet, sour than sugar. Kind of like me.

I tend to prefer the blanco tequilas. To me, they taste the most like what is quintessential tequila. When they start aging them for years, they lose much of what makes them taste like tequila in the first place.

Don’t get me wrong. I love tequila that’s been aged, too. It’s good stuff. But it doesn’t have the rich, agave, vegetal quality that makes something taste like tequila.

Milagro makes a perfect margarita, but the blanco tastes good on its own, as well. It’s one of those rare spirits that is good enough to drink straight yet priced at $36, so I don’t mind mixing with it. And it will make a damn fine Margarita. Or Paloma.

If you read about Milagro online, you will find a lot of reviews that say that it’s distilled three times. And people fault them for it. Some say it’s a good thing because it takes out the harsh tequila flavor, but others want that harsh tequila flavor. “If you can’t do it right the first two times,” these critics say, “then you have to do it three times.”

But it isn’t true. Accoring to Moy Guindi, one of the founding owners of Milagro, they only distill it twice. There was a brief time, he said, when they were experimenting with pot stills and column stills that they continued to distill twice in the pot still before moving it to the column still, but they ceased doing that years ago, and it was only for a brief time, anyway. Now they distill it in the pot still first to bring out the agave flavor before moving it to the column still to remove all of the unwanted flavors that don’t highlight the agave itself.

Also, another note, they still roast the agave in brick ovens, not in the giant stainless steel autoclaves. They may not be a small, artisanal operation, but they are attempting to make a tequila that tastes like tequila.

And they’re doing a fine job with it.

For this one, I turned back to Ted Haigh (AKA Dr. Cocktail)’s Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails. It had such a great name that I just couldn’t resist.

And it uses apricot liqueur, too. The only other thing I have used that in is Fish House Punch. So I was happy to have another use for it.

How to make the Barnum (was Right) Cocktail

To make the Barnum (was Right) Cocktail, combine with ice:

• 2 oz gin (I used Ivanabitch, a cheap London-style gin)
• 1 oz apricot liqueur (I used Rothman and Winter Orchard Apricot)
• 1/2 oz lemon juice
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters

shake well, and strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a lemon twist.

It’s not often that I turn to the older cocktails. For the most part, they seem all played out. The really good ones have been adopted as modern drinks and no longer seem foreign. The other ones, well, there’s a reason they were forgotten.

But this one is good! Really good. Notice that there’s no simple syrup. That’s because there’s an entire ounce of apricot liqueur, which really shines in the drink. I would say that it’s more of an apricot drink than anything else. It just comes through so fruitily.

So my temporal bias against the past may be misplaced, I admit. The Barnum deserves a seat at the bar.

My parents always had a garden when I was little, but they only grew a few things: tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and cantaloupe.

We ate a ton of cantaloupe when I was a kid.

And I still love cantaloupe! It’s one of the few fruits that I truly enjoy. The rest of them are just too sweet, but cantaloupe is right there in the middle. It’s not too sweet, and it’s firm, and it feels good in the mouth.

So when Kroger had them for 99 cents each, I knew it was time to try a Cantaloupe Smash.

The Cantaloupe Smash Cocktail Recipe

Take a bit of cantaloupe, and put it in the bottom of a mixing glass. About four cubes of the stuff.

And now smash it.

Think Hulk here.

Then add to the mixing glass:

• 1 1/2 oz Flor de Cana white rum
• 1 oz Aperol
• 1/2 oz lime
• 1/4 oz simple syrup
• 10 dashes Angostura bitters

Shake well with ice, and strain over crushed ice in a tall glass. Garnish with a sprig of rosemary.

You can try it without the rosemary, of course, but I highly recommend the combination. The rosemary and the cantaloupe work great together.

I admit, though, that this isn’t the best drink I have ever come up with it. I tried of ton of different stuff, and cantaloupe just doesn’t lend itself to cocktails that well. It’s the lack of sweetness that doesn’t work that well, I think. Therefore, I had to add simple syrup.

But it’s still good, and the group I made them for enjoyed them, or at least they told me they did. And when cantaloupe is on sale for $1 again, you can bet I will be experimenting again.

Hmm, maybe cantaloupe mixed with pineapple juice?

Not sure about that, either.

El Jimador Tequila and the Houston Press searched throughout Houston looking for the best Margarita in town. And they threw a party to celebrate it.

A huge, kick-ass party.

With lots of tequila.

The Texas Margarita Trail finale happened on May 3, 2016 at Winter Street Studios in Houston, and there were five featured margaritas. Each one was different, but they all featured el Jimador tequila and some even held the lime.

How make a traditional Margarita

But first, let’s make a real Margarita. A traditional Margarita with four ingredients: tequila, lime, triple sec, agave syrup.

All you have to do is combine the four. Me, I like the following proportions:

• 1 1/2 oz blanco tequila (el Jimador is a great choice)
• 1 oz triple sec (you can use Cointreau, but I think the choice of triple sec doesn’t matter that much)
• 3/4 oz lime
• 1/4 oz agave syrup

Build in a glass with ice that has a salted rim.

Beautiful.

But sometimes you want something different. That’s why El Jimador went on their quest.

The Jolly Jimador from El Big Bad

First, there was the Jolly Jimador from El Big Bad, a tequila bar and restaurant in downtown Houston that has a tequila elevator with all of their infused tequilas on display. I admit I have never been there, but I want to take a ride on that elevator pretty badly.

The Jolly Jimador, created by Zachary McClendo, included

• 1 1/2 oz El Jimador Reposado
• 1/2 oz fresh strawberry puree
• 1/4 oz agave nectar
• topped with ginger beer

It was good. The ginger didn’t come through that strongly, for it was just a splash of it, but it gave it a different texture from the rest, more of an effervescence.

The Jim Jim Miel from La Grange

Matt Ainsworth from La Grange restaurant in Montrose featured ginger and vanilla bean in his take on the Margarita:

• 1 1/2 oz El Jimador Silver Tequila
• 1 oz lime
• 1/2 oz raw honey
• 2 slices muddled fresh ginger
• 1/4 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
• splash of apple cider

Tasty. I hoped the vanilla bean would be stronger, but all of the flavors came together nicely.

The Tuscan Sun from Batanga

Anthony Taye of Batanga in downtown Houston made a traditional Margarita but then included a bit of bitters and some wine:

 

• 1 1/2 oz El Jimador Silver
• 1/2 oz lemon
• splash of simple syrup
• dash of Angostura bitters
• layered with birbet (a red, sweet, sparkling wine)

In the little taste I had, I couldn’t place the wine or the bitters, though. I think this is a drink that has to be experienced in the larger quantity. Otherwise, the nuances get lost.

The Flor de Menta Margarita from Pistoleros

Joel Luna’s For de Menta Margarita was one of my favorites. Luna is from Pistolero’s in Montrose, and, while I’ve never been there, I really want to go after trying his Flor de Menta. If all of their drinks are this good, we should meet there for happy hour.

 

To make one, combine

• 1 1/2 oz El Jimador SilverProcessed with VSCO with c1 preset
• 1/2 oz triple sec
• 2 dashes peach bitters
• muddled mint
• 1/4 oz lime juice
• fill with sour (lime and syrup)
• float hibiscus liqueur on top

It was the hibiscus and the peach that made this one stand out.

Mango Habanero Margarita from La Fisheria

Steven Rodriquez-Ferreira’s Mango Habanero Margarita was the night’s winner. Of La Fisheria retaurant in downtown Houston, Rodriquez-Ferreira combined everyone’s two favorite things: fruit and spice. Man, they worked perfectly together. I would drink this thing all night.

To make your own:

• muddle cucumber, cherry, and habanero
• 1 1/2 oz El Jimador
• 1 oz mango puree
• 1/2 oz tamarindo juice
• splash of lime
• 1/2 oz orange liqueur

I wouldn’t hesitate to try each of these at the restaurants themselves. Let’s just hope they include them on their menus.

 

If you’re reading this blog, and you don’t know about the Culturemap Tastemaker Awards sponsored by Tequila Herradura next week, you must not be from Houston. This is THE foodie party of the year.

Where else can you try beverages from

• Anvil
• Eight Row Flint
• Moving Sidewalk
• Public Services
• Spare Key

and food from

• Southern Goods
• Pax Americana
• Hunky Dory
• State of Grace
• Underbelly
• Oxheart

all for $40 to $60 for a ticket?

Nowhere, that’s where.

So go right now to the Tastemaker website and order your tickets.

And I will see you there. After all, all the cools kids will be there.

Unfortunately, my wife is going out of town to go to a graduation on May 21. Otherwise, I would totally be at NRG ready to drink good beer at the Houston Big Texas Beer Fest!

If you’re in town, you should go. And if you go, send me a report. I want to know what crazy, funky beer you tried.

Cheers!

First Houston Big Texas Beer Fest set for May 21, 2016

Houston, TX – May 8, 2016 – The Big Texas Beer Fest (BTBF) takes its festival on the road for the first time, landing in Houston at NRG Center on May 21. After 5 consecutively sold out festivals in North Texas, the festival has chosen to expand to Houston as its first city outside North Texas. The event was first founded in 2012, and has raised over $45,000 for the North Texas Food Bank since inception. The event expects to draw 3-5,000 attendees in its inaugural run in Houston. Expected to attract 70+ breweries with 300+ beers to sample, BTBF always has unique selections that you can’t normally find at your neighborhood bar or bottle shop.

One of the festival organizers, Chad Montgomery, co-founder of the festival was asked why Houston was chosen. “We like a lot of what is going on in the Houston beer and food scene. There are some really innovative things happening, and we wanted to try and be part of that community which connects brewers, small businesses and consumers together in a unique indoor/outdoor GABF-style festival. We have sold out all of our events in north Texas, and hope to do the same in Houston.”

The success from the first five festivals has helped garnered national attention from various publications, and continues to draw in more people from out of state. Montgomery says, “we had people from 4 different countries, and over 35 states attending this year’s North Texas event. It’s become somewhat of a destination.” Chad’s wife and event co-founder Nellie added, “My favorite thing about our event is making connections between brewers and other vendors. When we see local breweries do collaboration beers, or a local brewery teaming up with a coffee vendor for instance, that’s really exciting for us.”

In addition to award-winning beers from all over the world, the festival will also feature 9 of Houston’s best food trucks including Wokker TX Ranger, the Waffle Bus, Cousins Lobster and more. When asked about the music, Chad added, “we always try to pick out bands that are good beer-drinking music. We’ve always liked Shotgun Friday, and those guys are making the trip down to Houston also.” In addition, Matt Tedder from The Voice will headline, and The Roomsounds will kick things off in the outdoor food and music pavilion.

As always, a portion of the proceeds from ticket sales will benefit a local charity, in this case the Houston Food Bank. Nellie noted, “while everyone is gathering info about craft beer, they should know they’re also helping feed hungry north Texans. My other favorite aspect of this event is that we can do some good, while everyone has a great time.” Tickets for the festival are on sale now at http://www.bigtexasbeerfest.com. VIP tickets are very limited at this point, but can still be had. General admission tickets are $39 and VIP for $65. General Admission tickets will also be available at the door for $50. VIP tickets enable attendees to gain entrance to the event one hour early to enjoy all the rare and unique beers with minimal lines.

The festival’s hours are Saturday from 2:00-6:30pm. The VIP session is set to begin at 1pm. Parking will be available at NRG Park for $12, but the Montgomery’s recommend people use the METRORail Red Line, or use a ridesharing partner like Uber or Lyft. The METRORail Red Line has a stop at NRG Park, dropping attendees a quick jaunt away from the venue.

For all of the details, including participating breweries, vendors, and much more, visit the official event website. To schedule an interview with Chad or Nellie Montgomery, send an email or reach out via phone at the contact details below.

Chad Montgomery, Co-Founder chad@bigtexasbeerfest.com

Big Texas Beer Fest 214-531-4001 http://www.facebook.com/BigTexasBeerFest

http://www.bigtexasbeerfest.com

I’m a big fan of Lillet. I bought a bottle years ago to try making a Vesper Martini. You know, the one James Bond orders in Casino Royale.

While that drink is not my favorite, by any means, I have used it to great effect in the Gin de Provence, and it’s great in Drink.Well’s Spring Awakening Cocktail, and I even enjoy the stuff straight.

This time, I reached into my refrigerator (yes, you should store Lillet in the fridge), and was about to pour myself a refreshing glass of the stuff, when I decided to turn it into a cocktail.

The Lounge Machine Cocktail Recipe

To make a Lounge Machine, combine with ice:

• 1 1/2 oz Lillet
• 1 oz Martell V.S. Cognac
• 1/2 oz Hornitos Spiced Honey Tequila

stir it really well, and strain into a chilled coupe. Spritz a lemon peel into the drink, rub it around the outside, and bam! you have a very easy drink.

It’s strong, sure, but it’s still quite drinkable and even refreshing.

The Lillet is sweet on its own, and it complements the cognac nicely. The Spiced Honey adds just a tad more sweetness and a complex spice note that works well.

I admit, though, that I can’t explain how or why the drink works. Wine mixed with cognac and spicy sweet tequila does not sound appealing.

But it works, and it’s perfect for spring. So make yourself one. You don’t even have to juice anything. Just whip it up, and lounge on the back patio.

That’s me, after all: the Lounge Machine.

I’m just kidding about the liquor part, although I did get to imbibe a bit when the Four Seasons Houston hosted the Houston Food Blogger Collective, an organization of all the best Houston food bloggers. Sure, I mainly blog about drinks, but sometimes I talk about the food, too.

The food at the Four Seasons Houston Spa

First, the food. Let’s just get that out of the way. The renovated spa features a special menu served at the pool deck from the renowned Vinoteca and Quattro restaurants, which are featured in other areas of the Four Seasons Houston. We got to sample quite a few of the dishes, including the

• Southwest turkey wrap
• Bulgur and mushroom burger
• Signature power bowl
• Southwestern smoked chicken and quinoa
• Spinach and chayote squash salad
• Grilled verlasso salmon
• Tandoori ginger chicken

all with a very complementary Monterrey Vineyards Chardonnay.

And they were all good. Absolutely everything. I could go on about the salmon and tandoori chicken, which were cooked perfectly, or talk about the crazy, pleasing consistency of the signature power bowl.

But the one that stood out was the southwestern smoked chicken and quinoa. The first bite hits you with smoke, which seems unnatural in quinoa, but then it settles down into a hearty, fulfilling, tangy, and a little fiery salad that made me want to keep eating. I would order that dish every single time. It was seriously that good.

The Four Seasons Houston Lobby Lounge

The Lobby Lounge on the bottom floor is the place to go for drinks, though. They specialize in the classics. The menu actually includes not only an Old Fashioned (which any respecting hotel bar should include, dammit!), but also a Vesper, a Blood and Sand, the Last Word, and a Hemingway Daiquiri.

Now that’s unusual.

In fact, I will venture to say that I have never seen those drinks on a signature cocktail menu, especially one as small as the Four Seasons Houston Lobby Lounge (it’s only a one-page menu). What it tells me is that these bartenders know what they’re doing when it comes to making cocktails. I would have no problem going in and asking for a gin martini and expecting one of the best martinis I have ever had. Probably stirred. With a lemon twist.

The Old Fahsioned with Bulleit rye whiskey was great. Sure, the bartender muddled the orange and cherry, but heck, even Dale DeGroff does that. And they used simple syrup, I believe. But that’s okay. It’s not the way I make them at home, but we’re talking about a hotel lobby here, people! And the drink was good, I must say. The bartender was friendly and knowledgeable, and I would go back anytime.

Next time, though, I plan on tasting some of their whiskey library. They had quite the whiskey selection, and they let you make your own flight. I don’t know what the price is for that, but I would love to go in and try five Japanese whiskeys. Yes, I do believe they had five Japanese whiskeys.

While a hotel lobby bar may not be the place you think of when you’re going downtown for a night on the town, I think the Four Seasons Houston may have changed my mind. It’s right down the street from the House of Blues, so why not stop in before I go see a show?

I wish we still did the three-martini lunch thing, for I would totally do that here, but I would be very happy with a pre-show drink.

Or stop in after I get my next pedicure and massage in their quite opulent spa on the fourth floor.

Not that I’ve ever had a massage…

Tekeen is a new premium pre-mixed cocktail that you can drink straight out of the bottle over ice. I can attest that it’s pretty good that way. We’re not talking about some crappy wine cooler here. It uses actual fruit, has actual flavor, and is sweetened with agave.

If you generally don’t like bottled mixers (like me) or like pre-mixed cocktails (like me, usually), then you may want to try Tekeen. It’s changed my mind. Something in a pre-mixed bottle can actually be pretty good.

But I’m here to mix with it.

Two cocktails using Tekeen Passion Fruit Lime

The Gallery Cocktail

First, we have the Gallery Cocktail pictured above. To make one, combine in a shaker:

• 3 oz Tekeen Passion Fruit Lime Premium Cocktail
• 1 1/2 oz cachaca
• 1 1/2 oz fresh grapefruit juice
• 1 /4 oz simple syrup

shake well with ice and strain into a tall glass over fresh ice. Garnish with a DIY bourbon and maraschino cherry and a large swath of grapefruit peel.

I never use cachaca anymore, since I don’t usually drink Capirinhas, but something about the tropical flavor of the Tekeen Passion Fruit made me reach for it immediately. The grapefruit is the obvious choice, too.

The Amerikeen

The Amerikeen is a different animal. To make one, combine with ice in a shaker:

• 1 1/2 oz Tekeen Passion Fruit Lime Premium Cocktail
• 1 1/2 oz Laird’s Applejack
• 1/2 lemon juice
• 1/4 oz cinnamon syrup

shake well, and strain into a tall glass with fresh ice. Top with a few ounces of ginger beer.

This one is fruity and spicy in a way that makes me happy. And with Laird’s Applejack, it seems like Americana. Hence, the Amerikeen cocktail.

Finding Tekeen

Tekeen is available all over Texas (it’s made in this great state, in Dripping Springs!), so you shouldn’t have trouble finding a bottle. Check their website, which has a handy “Find It” feature if you want to make sure your local Spec’s or HEB has it before you go.