Holiday Bitters Mixologist Brad Coburn Teaches The Art of Inventive Cocktail Flavouring
Aromatic bitters can take a libation from drab to dashing, and mixologist Brad Coburn knows just the right formula for crafting holiday flavors.
An award-winning bartender whose base is Pangea Alchemy Lab and meLange in downtown Sarasota, Coburn even teaches classes on how to properly use bitters (alcoholic flavor extracts).
“Amaro means ‘bitter’ in Italian, and amari (plural) refers to a collective class of Italian-made aromatic, herbal, bittersweet liqueurs traditionally served as a digestif after a meal,” explains Coburn, whose recent tutorial was entitled “Bitter Flavors: Taste the Rainbow” and built on what he learned at the Tales of the Cocktail conference in New Orleans. “Bitters are created by macerating and/or distilling bitter barks, herbs, seeds, spices, citrus peels, flowers, and other botanicals in a neutral spirit or wine that is then sweetened with sugar or syrup.”
Some of Coburn’s bitters-rich cocktails are the Eostre with Amaro Montenegro, which is made from a secret blend of 40 botanicals (including vanilla and orange peels); the Flying Artichoke with Cynar (a mix of 13 herbs and other plants, including artichokes); and the Root to the Fruit with Fernet-Branca (bitters comprised of 27 herbs).
Popular in the 1800s, bitters became scarce during Prohibition but have experienced a continual resurgence. Like salt in food, they improve the flavors that already exist in boozy drinks by elevating and magnifying them. And with the bevy of herbs, spices, and florals often found in wintery cuisine, bitters are a seamless fit for the holiday bar.
> Pangea Alchemy Lab: 1564 Main St, Sarasota, 941-870-5555; pangealounge.com
> meLange: 1568 Main St, Sarasota, 941-953-7111; melangesarasota.com
To find these bitters visit: Brocs Liquor Locker: 5403 Fruitville Rd, Sarasota; 941-377-5477
