november2011

Old Fashioned

114 SanDiegoMagazine.comNovember2011

❯❯ DINING | Drinks

NYC transplants look to bring a taste of Manhattan

to SD—and we’re not talking Big Apple-tinis

JOHN DOLE

ERIN WILLIAMS AND BEK ALLEN bore

fi rsthand witness to the evolution of NYC’s

thriving mixology scene, logging time at

Soho’s famed Pegu Club. It’s there they

slung drinks and honed their skills under

the tutelage of P.C.’s renowned owner and

mix-master, Audrey Saunders. That experi-

ence inspired them to venture to a city with

an emerging cocktail scene—our own—to

follow Saunders’ model, and do their part to

boost San Diego to the next level.

Enter Hush Cocktails, San Diego’s first

women-owned and operated cocktail devel-

opment company. Just months a er moving

to SD, they’ve already been tapped to estab-

lish the mixology program at Saltbox (1047

5th Ave., inside Hotel Palomar). There’ll be

a number of original drinks, but the main

thrust at this new gastro-lounge will be

modern takes on age-old recipes. That’s fi t-

ting considering it’s those time-tested clas-

sics that fi rst piqued Williams’ interests in

adult beverages and continue to inspire her.

“In the beginning, I used recipes from

long-lost books to make my first Sidecar,

Hot Toddy, and a Salty Dog with a very old

bottle of Boodles gin, and I continue to use

the books as my guide to make, and perfect,

the classics,” says Williams. “I think it’s im-

portant for people to be able to familiarize

themselves with the cocktails of old. With-

out the Sour, Manhattan, Old Fashioned, and

Martini, we wouldn’t even have a cocktail

resurgence.”

With their fi rst big gig under their belts,

the dynamic duo (who are also a couple)

have been able to breathe a little easier and

take in their new digs. Their impressions

of San Diego so far? “We love it here,” says

Allen. “Everyone is friendly, the weather is

beautiful, and there is so much potential.”

Much as the classics excite her partner, it’s

the future of places that are perfectly suited

for mixology greatness that excite Allen.

“This town is full of Xanadus—the amazing

mid-century dives that look as if they’ve

been preserved by a curator on the inside.

It’s like stepping back in time. All these plac-

es need are great cocktails and bartenders

who care about the cra .”

She points to the Red Fox Room and

Hillcrest’s long-forgotten sore thumb, Per-

nicano’s, which she dreams of reopening

with an amazing cocktail program. Trans-

plants are commonplace in San Diego, but

newcomers like these have the vision to

help us grow upward as well as outward.

// BRANDON HERNÁNDEZ

Raising the Bar

Queens

Park Swizzle

 THE SIP 

The Girls’ Guide to Beer Week

By Melani Gordon, co-founder of Tap Hunter

Once upon a time, the

best-known woman in

the beer industry was

the St. Pauli Girl. Not

surprising, considering

that busty blondes and bombshells are used

to sell everything from muscle cars to miter

saws. But the cra beer industry is playing a

signifi cant role in dashing those stereotypes,

as well as the misconceptions about beer

itself. From Kim Jordan, co-founder of New

Belgium Brewing Company, to San Diego’s

own Laura Ulrich of Stone Brewing Co.,

who is famously responsible for the Stone

Smoked Porter with Vanilla Beans recipe,

women have emerged as the industry

darlings and have also forged a permanent

seat at the head table in the cra beer world.

Just as cra beer continues to draw

female artisans and brewers to production,

the quality of the brews themselves is

steadily attracting the palates of women

who may have previously opted for wine

or cocktail alternatives. Today’s “ladies of

cra ” are saying no to cheap and fl avorless

mass-produced beer and are discovering

rich, complex brews with carefully selected

ingredients that off er cuisine-compatibility

and a sense of personal style and preference.

So, ladies... although you may not consider

yourself to be a hophead, there is a cra

beer style to suit just about everyone. San

Diego Beer Week runs from November 4-13,

sdbw.org.

HOP TO IT, LADIES!

All Girls All the Time Beer Fiesta Cooking

Class at Sea Rocket Bistro

Impress at your next dinner party.

Nov. 5, 11:30 a.m., $55, shelikesbeer.com

Barley’s Angels at Stone Brewing Co.

Take your beer knowledge from a 3 to a 9!

Nov. 9, 7 p.m., $30, stonebrew.com

Beer Garden at The Lodge at Torrey Pines

Featuring 10 of San Diego’s top chefs. Represent!

Nov. 13, 12 p.m., $65, sdbw.org