Author: Matthew Arkin

So, here’s the great thing about the martini: It can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. Heck, for many people, a gin or vodka martini is a chilled glass with—well—gin or vodka in it. Maybe you drop a little vermouth in there. Or maybe an olive or a cocktail onion. Let’s face it, a cocktail can’t get much simpler than that.

Recently, all kinds of martini variations have become a hot trend in the cocktail world. There’s a Parmesan martini. There’s the ubiquitous Espresso Martini. There’s even a Parmesan-Espresso Martini! Martinis work with all kinds of fruits—tropical, citrus, or stone—and they can be sweet, savory, or spicy.  No matter what kind of cocktail you like to drink, chances are there’s some variation of a martini that will work for you.

Here are five martini variations that will get you thinking about all the different directions you can go with your creative martini recipes. All of them substitute aquavit (Batch 22 New American Aquavit is best!) for some amount of gin or vodka. Two are simple variations on the classic (The Vesper Martini and the Dirty Martini), another is a sweet and citrus-forward sipper (The Lemondrop Martini), another is an earthy and herbal variation (The Sagetini), and the fifth is a crowd-pleasing, dessert-friendly riff on the popular Espresso Martini. 

Vesper Martini
In the classic Bond movie, Casino Royale, 007 (Daniel Craig) introduced audiences to the now iconic Vesper Martini, named for love interest and double-agent, Vesper Lynd (Eva Green). The traditional version of this martini is notable for two reasons: It combines vodka and gin and substitutes Lillet for vermouth. In our version, we add another substitution: Batch for the vodka and rebalance with the gin.

​Ingredients

• 1.5 ounces Batch 22 Classic Gold aquavit
• 1 ounce gin
• ⅓ Lillet Blanc or Cocchi Americano

Directions

• Combine all ingredients in a shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously for 15 seconds
• Strain into a chilled coupe or martini glass
• ​Garnish with a large, thin lemon peel.

Classic Dirty Batch Martini
If you’re a simple martini lover, this aquavit cocktail recipe is sure to satisfy. It works well with just the olive bitters, but also shines with the addition of olive brine (we love the Olive Twist olives and juice from Tillen Farms), so make it as dirty as you like! Lots of folks also like to split the vermouth differently between dry and sweet, according to their taste.

Ingredients

• 3 ounces Batch 22 Classic Gold aquavit
• .5 ounces dry vermouth
• .5 ounces sweet vermouth
• 2  dashes, olive bitters
• Olive brine to taste

Directions

• Shake all ingredients over ice
• Strain into a martini glass
• Garnish with olives or a cornichon

The Stockholm Lemondrop Martini
(Created by Starlite, San Diego, CA)
This special martini was created especially for Downtime Cocktails and debuted at our San Diego launch party in June of 2022. The talented bartenders at Starlite found just the right balance of aquavit flavor and lemon with this delicious and addictive cocktail.

Ingredients

• 2 ounces Batch 22 Classic Gold aquavit
• .75 ounce fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• .75 ounce simple syrup
• .5 ounce aquafaba (liquid from a can of chick peas)

Directions

• Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice
• Shake and strain into a martini glass
• Garnish with a lemon peel twist

SageTini
This martini is the most ambitious in the group, but the results are well worth the extra effort. Start by infusing 22 grams of dried shiitakes in 300 ml of Batch 22. [Heat Batch to just below a simmer, add shiitakes, and turn off heat. Let stand for a minimum 1 hour.] You’ll wind up with a wonderfully complex and earthy aquavit that is both herbal and highly aromatic. Make a fresh sage simple syrup by dissolving 10 ounces agave (by weight) in 100ml of water with 1/3 cup chopped sage. Allow to cool.

To assemble the martini:
Muddle 2 strips of fresh lemon peel with 3-5 fresh sage leaves in a shaker. Then combine:

​Ingredients

• 1.5 ounces Porcini Batch 22
• .25 ounce gin
• 1 ounce lemon juice (fresh)
• .5 ounce sage simple syrup
• .75 ounce aquafaba (liquid from a can of chick peas)

Directions

• Dry shake ingredients for 10 seconds
• Add ice to shaker and shake another 15 seconds
• Strain into a chilled coupe glass and garnish with sage leaves

Aquavit Espresso Martini
This variation of the super popular Espresso Martini substitutes aquavit for vodka. Scandinavians have known for a long time that aquavit and coffee marry beautifully together, in fact they often just add aquavit straight to their coffee.

Ingredients

• 2 ounces Batch 22 Classic Gold aquavit
• 1/2 ounce coffee liqueur (Kahlúa is best)
• 1 ounce espresso, freshly brewed (or cold brew concentrate)
• 1 tablespoon French vanilla ice cream (softened)
• Garnish: coffee beans

Directions

• Combine all ingredients in a shaker filled with ice and shake until well chilled
• Strain into a chilled cocktail glass
• ​Garnish with 3 coffee beans

What’s going to be your first martini creation?

If you’re familiar with our story and the origins of Batch 22, you know that Matthew’s dad, Alan, played a pivotal role in the birth of our spirit. It was at Alan’s urging that Matthew first started to experiment with making aquavit at home in his kitchen in Burbank, California. The original thought was to attempt to re-create the amazing spirit they had tasted together on a movie set in Eastern Europe decades before.

Thanks to Alan’s encouragement (Matthew sometimes referred to it as “hocking me to do it”) a delicious prototype emerged from the Los Angeles test kitchen. Alan was among the very first people ever to taste the earliest iterations of what would become Batch 22, and it was with his encouragement and moral support that Matthew pursued further development with his best buddies Marc and Bruce.

When the perfect formulation was finally reached (yes, the 22nd round of Mason jars crowding up a countertop) the trio realized that there could be only one name for their uniquely delicious concoction: “Batch 22” was not only a literal description, it also offered a special “tip of the cap” to the man who played Yossarian in the movie “Catch 22″—the man who planted the idea of homemade aquavit in Matthew’s head.

Alan passed away on Thursday, June 29, at his home in Southern California. He was not only a loving father to Matthew (and brothers Adam and Tony), he was also a wonderful friend and cheerleader for Batch 22. We’ll always be grateful to him for his kind words of encouragement and for igniting that spark of creativity that led to us to something truly wonderful. Thank you, Alan. We’ll miss you.

Pop a cork!

It’s taken months, but it’s finally done: Batch 22 is on the shelves at Total Wine. 

Last week we received initial orders from all 32 stores in California (we don’t yet have retail distribution in other states) and Batch 22 is being stocked right now at all locations. ​

Currently, Total Wine has 4 locations in San Diego County, plus 1 in Temecula. There are more than 6 locations in the greater Los Angeles area, 9 in the Bay Area, and a dozen more from Tustin to Folsom to Sacramento. Nationwide, there are more than 240 stores in 27 states. 

Getting on the shelves was the hard part, but our work is not over. Now that we’re officially available, we’ll be spending many hours visiting each location for staff trainings and customer tastings. In fact, a road trip from San Diego to the Bay Area is currently in the planning stages. We’ll keep you updated on the details as soon as they are firmed up, and we’ll be sure to document our travels as we go. 

If you have a Total Wine near you, please pay them a visit and ask the staff where you can find a bottle of Batch 22. And, if you’re so inclined, be sure to mention it to all your friends so they can do the same!

You can get all the store information you need at totalwine.com.

The image of 750ml bottle has not yet been uploaded by the corporate office—that’s in the works. 

Gaining this level of statewide availability and exposure is a huge thing for us and we’re so happy to have all of you to tell about it. 

Cheers!

What do you feel like drinking tonight? How about a Monkey Gland?

The Monkey Gland is just one of dozens of iconic cocktails created by the legendary barman Harry MacElhone at Harry’s New York Bar in Paris (you can find the recipe at the end of this article).

Few bars rise to the level of true legends in the industry, so we thought it would be fun to start a series of profiles about the greatest of the great.

The original Harry’s New York Bar, located in Paris, France, at 5 Rue Daunou, has been around for more than a century. Former American star jockey Tod Sloan bought the place in 1911 and converted it from a bistro to a bar. Its initial name, “New York Bar,” was a literal description; Sloan actually dismantled a bar from Manhattan and shipped to Paris. He then hired a talented and ambitious Scottish barman named Harry MacElhone to run the bar.
 
Early on in the 20th century, Paris became exceedingly popular with American artists, writers, and tourists. As visitors and ex-pat populations increased, Sloan wanted to capitalize on his fame in America. He also wanted to make his bar a spot where expatriates would feel at home. His bar did become widely popular, but Sloan’s financial incompetence, coupled with overspending on a lavish personal lifestyle, forced him to sell the place.

In 1923, barman MacElhone bought the bar from his former employer and added his name to it. Harry would be the talent and force that made Harry’s American Bar a legendary Parisian landmark. Harry’s is widely credited with being the birthplace of classic cocktails like the French 75, the Sidecar, The Monkey Gland and the world-famous Bloody Mary.

By the late 1920s, Harry’s had become famous as the “go to” place for the world’s chic jet set. Sitting at the bar, one could regularly spot royals, Hollywood stars, sports legends, business titans, and renowned writers enjoying Harry’s offerings. Sinclair Lewis, Ernest Hemingway, Coco Chanel, Humphrey Bogart, Rita Hayworth, and the Duke of Windsor were all regulars. George Gershwin supposedly composed “An American in Paris” at Harry’s “Ivories” piano bar. 

When Harry died in 1958, his son Andrew took over and ran the bar until 1989. His son, Duncan, inherited the bar and ran it until his death in 1998, when his widow, Isabelle MacElhone took charge of the operation. The MacElhone family still runs the establishment to this day. 

Monkey Gland

Harry MacElhone created this cocktail at Harry’s in the 1920s. It supposedly got its name from a pseudo-scientific theory that became popular in the 1920s, which theorized that grafting tissue from a monkey testicle into humans would boost longevity. 

Instructions

• In a shaker with ice combine:

• 1.5 oz. gin
• 1.5 oz. fresh orange juice
• 1 tsp. grenadine
• 1 tsp. absinthe
• Shake vigorously and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with orange wheel.

We are happy to announce (flaunt?) two more very nice awards we recently received for Batch 22. These two are especially gratifying because they come from a collection of judges we haven’t previously heard from: One competition was judged by spirits consumers in a completely blind tasting and the other competition was judged by pro bartenders from successful and influential bars around the country.

Innovation Award from SIP Awards

Last week, we learned that Batch 22 won a prestigious Innovation Award in the 2023 World Spirits Competition, which is organized by SIP. The SIP Awards are the only internationally recognized consumer judging spirits competition. A unique event that highlights the opinions and palates of the discerning public, the SIP Awards present a judging venue that is unaffected by industry bias and where top brands go head-to-head with small and medium-sized brands in a completely blind tasting. 

The competition organizers explain that, “the Innovation Award applauds spirits with an interesting and unique taste profile or design. Consumer judges deem these spirits as innovative and groundbreaking by highlighting them with this exclusive recognition.”

According to the organization, the SIP Awards were created with a simple question in mind, “What about the consumer’s opinion?” The goal was to fill this void, bringing the people who regularly consume spirits together to decide which brands deserve this prestigious award. “We set out to create a fair competition by strategically choosing consumers from all demographics, conceiving an event that cuts to the core of public opinion as a starting point, rather than an afterthought, in branding and product development.”

This year, there were a total of 304 consumer judges evaluating a wide variety of spirits categories from a record-setting 1,382 entrants.

Gold Medal from Bartender Spirits Awards

Last week also brought news of a Gold Medal win for Batch 22 at the 4th Annual 2022 Bartender Spirits Awards, which took place in San Francisco in May.

According to the BSA, “the Bartender Spirits Awards looks to identify spirits that should become additions to bar inventories. The aim of the spirits competition is to provide independent and honest reviews for brands looking to enter the U.S. on-premise industry.” 

The Beverage Trade Network, a leading online platform dedicated to connecting the global beverage industry, is the organizer of the competition, which aims to help beverage professionals connect with peers and understand the global business landscape. The BTN also hosts nearly 20 other major competitions around the world.

“This competition recognizes that bartenders are the true influencers,” the official statement from the BSA reads, “Their passions and tastes provide direction for the consumer, especially via their guidance with wine, beer or spirit recommendations. The creation of new drinks is often driven by bartender tastes and perceptions of current trends.”

Medal recognition from the BSA is a highly sought after accolade; it’s the ultimate seal of approval in the global spirits on-premise industry. Spirits were judged in five major categories: Mixability, Balance and Versatility, Taste, Mouthfeel and Finish, Package & Price. Batch 22‘s overall score was 93 points out of 100, which included a 98-point score for Taste, Mouthfeel and Finish, and a score of 97 for Balance and Versatility. Only five aquavits won medals, and Batch 22 had the highest score in that group. The high score also qualifies Batch 22 to be listed in BTN’s “Top 100 Spirits Guide.”

Great bartenders and mixologists are often inspired to create cocktails that honor the specific tastes and drinking habits of their regulars, especially when they are famous people. Some Hollywood legends—Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley, for example—didn’t have habits that were well suited to creating cocktails; Sinatra loved Jack Daniels on the rocks, and that’s it. Elvis was a big peanut butter and banana fan; tough ingredients to work with if you want something other than a silly umbrella drink.
​
In the recent past, bars have created signature cocktails to honor everyone from Taylor Swift to David Bowie to Tom Cruise to Pink Floyd, and the list goes on. Those are fun, but none of them have been around long enough to be considered established “classics.” A few, however, like the three that follow, have definitely stood the test of time. They may not be common orders at your local watering hole, but they’re worth trying when you’re in the mood to sip a little something special from the past.

Charlie Chaplin
In the early years of the 20th century, Charlie Chaplin was the world’s most famous funny man.  By 1915, he was an international cultural phenomenon and was earning an unprecedented salary of $10,000 per week. By 1919, he had co-founded his own film distribution company—United Artists—and controlled the creation, production, and marketing of all the films he made. 
This cocktail was first created in 1920, at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. This legendary hotel has actually been the home of many great cocktail innovations since it was founded in 1893.
​
The Charlie Chaplin

Instructions

• In a shaker with ice, combine:

• 1 part Sloe gin
• 1 part freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1 part apricot brandy
• *Optional: 1/4 part simple syrup, if you prefer cocktails on the sweeter side
• Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled coupe

Winston Churchill
Britain’s most famous Prime Minister was a well-known gourmand—he had a voracious appetite for the finer things in life, loved cigars and raw oysters, but he was not a huge fan of cocktails. He did, however,  love his wine, whisky, and his brandy. He often watered his whisky down, which he drank throughout the day (from breakfast—which regularly featured a bottle of Pol Roger champagne—onward) but he never watered down his brandy. 
Legendary Savoy Hotel Barman, Joe Gilmore, created this whisky-lover’s cocktail in Churchill’s honor. The Savoy today remains London’s oldest surviving cocktail bar.
​
 
The Winston Churchill

Instructions

• In a shaker with ice, combine:

• 1 1/2 oz. blended scotch whisky 
• 1/2 oz. Cointreau
• 1/2 oz. sweet vermouth (preferably Dolin rouge) 
• 1/2 oz. lime juice, freshly squeezed
• Shake and strain into a chilled coupe glass. Garnish with orange peel.

Marilyn Monroe
Like Chaplin, Elvis, and James Dean, images of Marilyn Monroe still evoke the grandeur and glamour of old Hollywood. Though she struggled all her life to be taken seriously as an actress, she eventually became a universal sex symbol and the embodiment of the idealized “good life.”
This martini variation, created at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City, is a cocktail homage to the world-famous actress, who had a special penchant for martinis and was also a legendary lover of champagne. 

The Marilyn Monroe

• Ingredients

• 3/4 oz. apple brandy
• 1 teaspoon grenadine
• 3/4 cup champagne or sparkling wine
• 2 maraschino cherries
• Directions
  • Shake the brandy and grenadine over ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. Top with chilled champagne and garnish with cherries.

If you’ve gone looking for a bottle of Chartreuse at your favorite liquor store lately, you’ve probably found an empty spot on the shelf where this specialty spirit is supposed to be. That’s because there is currently a worldwide Chartreuse shortage, and it’s causing cocktail bars and restaurants to rethink and rejigger their cocktail menus in a big way.

Chartreuse is an herbal liqueur that’s been made for centuries by a special order of French monks who gleaned the recipe in 1605, while decoding an ancient manuscript on what was called “The Elixir of Long Life.” The traditional version, which is bright green, is made in the French Alps from a secret blend of 130 different botanicals by the Carthusian order of monks. They are the only ones with the recipe. And they are the only ones who make it. The Chartreuse market is, in effect, a monk-opoly.
 
For the past two hundred years or so, the worldwide demand for Chartreuse has been fairly steady. For a long time, it was largely considered a “niche” or “curiosity” spirit that was mostly used as a background ingredient in old-style cocktails. But recently—in the past ten to twenty years or so—this floral, herbaceous, aromatic liqueur has seen a boom in popularity. Everything old is new again, and hip mixologists and bartenders have enjoyed the curiosity factor in introducing their patrons to what seems like a “new” kind of spirit.  And patrons have responded positively to the elevated level of herbal and floral complexity that Chartreuse provides, as well as the unique aroma it adds to any cocktail. According to market data collector Chartreuse Diffusion, sales of Chartreuse doubled in 2020 and reached $30 million globally in 2022.

Its increased usage at bars has also meant greater demand from cocktail lovers who want a bottle of Chartreuse for their home bar. So here’s the problem with this huge uptick in demand for Chartreuse: The monks don’t want to make more than they have been making; rising demand be damned (though the monks probably don’t put it that way). Evidently, in 2019, the monks voted to cap their production for various reasons, including their desire to limit the environmental impact (the spirit is very herb-and-flower intensive) and to focus more on what monks usually do, which is sit in solitude and pray.
 
For the foreseeable future, annual production will be capped at 1.6 million bottles, which is the highest level since the 1800s. Big-customer countries like the United States will thereby be limited to 90% of their 2021 volume. That shrinkage in supply means lots of bars and retailers are feeling the squeeze.

Is there a silver lining in all this? Well, if you’re trying to sell Batch 22 New American Aquavit to bars there is. While it’s not exactly the same, Batch 22 does share an herbal and floral profile similar to Chartreuse, and we’ve had some notable success substituting it in some classic Chartreuse-centric cocktails. Here’s the recipe for our riff on the Bijou, which traditionally combines gin, vermouth, and Chartreuse. Using Batch 22 instead renders a cocktail that’s bit more subtle and elegant, but every bit as satisfying. No monks required.

Bijou 22

Instructions

• Combine in a mixing glass with ice:

• 1 oz London dry gin
• ​1 oz sweet vermouth
• 1 oz Batch 22
• 3 dashes of orange bitters​
• Stir for 20 seconds to chill well and strain into a coupe or Nick & Nora martini glass. Garnish with lemon peel or orange wheel.

Need a few more good stories to tell your buddies at your next cocktail party? Well, we’re here to help. This is the first in a new series we’ll be doing on the Greatest Cocktail Stories Ever Told. They’ll include intriguing accounts from history—and the intriguing people who made history—where cocktails have played a central role. 

Our first installment takes us back to around 29 B.C.E., to the reign of Egypt’s Queen Cleopatra. For centuries, the story of Cleopatra’s “pearl cocktail” has captivated history buffs and has fueled arguments between those who believe it actually happened and those who don’t.

As the story goes, Cleopatra made a bet with her lover, Marc Antony, that she could spend 10 million sesterces (roughly equivalent to about $5 million today) on a single meal. For the second course of that repast, servants placed before her a single goblet that contained only vinegar. Marc Antony was intrigued. And Cleopatra was eager to show off her impressive knowledge of chemistry.  As her lover looked on, Cleopatra proceeded to take off one of her earrings, placing the pearl from it in the cup of vinegar. This was no ordinary pearl, by the way. According to a later account from renowned Roman author and philosopher Pliny the Elder, this was the “largest pearl in history,” and worth—probably—at least 10 million sesterces. Once the pearl was in the vinegar, Cleopatra waited (likely) for about ten minutes or so before drinking down the contents of the goblet. 

For centuries, most historians seriously doubted the veracity of this tale, but recent experiments by scientists and historians actually confirm that this account is very likely to be accurate. Researchers have proven that a pearl weighing about one gram will dissolve in a basic white vinegar solution (the experiment used common white vinegar purchased from a supermarket) in about 24 to 36 hours. White vinegar was the kind of vinegar most commonly available in ancient Egypt, and the solution that Cleopatra drank was likely stronger than commercially produced white vinegar today. Even more interesting is the fact that the calcium carbonate in a pearl softens the acidity of the vinegar, making it more potable. 

It is possible that Cleopatra took the pearl from her earring and crushed it before pouring it into her goblet. Or, she might have crushed it a bit while it was in the goblet. Either action would have greatly reduced the amount of time needed to dissolve the pearl, making it easier to swallow. It’s also possible that she dropped the pearl into the goblet and simply waited a bit longer for it to dissolve. That would have made for a much more dramatic presentation, and we all know Cleopatra loved drama. 

We don’t recommend throwing jewelry of any kind into your cocktails (even though the Spanish drop their gold jewelry into glasses of champagne on New Year’s Eve), but it is fun to know that Cleopatra pulled off such an impressive party trick, even by today’s standards. 

Because we are immersed in the world of cocktails, we like spending time in bars. In fact, we have to spend time in bars. It’s a critical part of our R&D and our sales and marketing strategy. 

One of the most fun things to do when sitting at a bar is to listen for some of the bar-specific lingo that’s tossed around. It’s the unique way bartenders, servers, and barbacks communicate with each other. Of course, many industries have their own lingua franca—Hollywood movie sets, diners, and operating rooms, to name just a few, but the language of the bar is especially fun for cocktail enthusiasts like us (and hopefully you!). 

Many terms, such as “dry,” “chaser,” “on the rocks,” and “virgin,” are commonly used by most of the drink-ordering public—there’s nothing terribly intriguing about those words. We thought it would be fun to give you a list of some of the lesser-known terms that are commonly used by bartenders and mixologists, so you can understand a little more about how your next drink is made. Here’s our listing of 40 of our favorite bartending terms.
​

1. 86’d: This refers to an item that is no longer available at the bar or an order that’s been cancelled. Example: “86 that flavorless vodka and bring me some Batch 22!”
2. Angel’s Share: This refers to the amount of alcohol that evaporates during the aging process.
3. Back: This is a glass of something milder (like water, cola, or pickle juice) that accompanies a stiff drink. Picklebacks are one of the most commonly requested.
4. Bartender’s handshake: A gift from one bartender to another, usually in the form of a free shot.
5. Boomerang: A drink sent, usually via a trustworthy customer, from a bartender at one bar to a bartender at another.
6. Burn the ice: Pouring hot water into an ice bin to melt the ice; usually because a glass has broken over the ice bin.
7. Buy back: First rule of making friends with your bartender: Don’t be a jerk. As if you need a good reason to be not a jerk, here’s a good one: Your bartender just might shower some appreciation on you in the form of a complimentary drink, or a buy back. Don’t ever ask for one, though, because if you do, you’re being a jerk.
8. Burnt : Martinis made with Scotch.
9. Build: This typically means making a drink by starting with ice before adding additional ingredients, like alcohol, mixers, seasonings, and garnishes. Bartenders are traditionally trained to build a cocktail with the least expensive ingredients first (which usually means alcohol last) so, if there’s a mistake in the prep, it’s less likely to waste the good stuff.
10. Bruised: This refers to a drink that has been shaken too long and has a shabby appearance.
11. Box: To pour a drink in and out of a shaker, usually just once, without shaking the shaker.
12. Call drink: A drink ordered with both the specific liquor name and the specific mixer name, e.g., Jack and Coke, Tanqueray and tonic.
13. Crusta: A drink served in a glass lined with lemon and orange peel.
14. Daisy: This is an oversized sour-type drink typically made with gin or rum. It’s served over crushed ice and sweetened with some flavor of fruit syrup.
15. Dirty: Addition of an ingredient to change the color and or flavor of the main alcohol component, such as the addition of olive juice to make a Dirty Martini.
16. Dry shake: To shake a drink vigorously and without ice. Commonly used for cocktails that incorporate egg whites, such as sours.
17. Drain pour: Term for a terrible beer or beverage—one so bad, it isn’t even worth finishing. With a drain pour, there’s no choice but to pour the remainder of the drink down the drain. Hardcore beer geeks often take a perverse pride in the beers they actually consider to be “drain pours.
18. Dusties: This term refers to good bottles of booze that, for some reason, were never purchased, thus ending up covered with dust. Behind the bar, dusties could refer to certain oddball liqueurs that no customer ever orders and no cocktail ever necessitates. [Also see “turds.”]
19. Feather: This technique is usually done by floating a short measure of booze onto the top of a drink so that the first sip tastes strong. Feathering is designed to make someone think there’s more booze in a drink than there actually is.
20. Flame: This one is just what it sounds like: Setting a drink on fire before serving. Usually done with shots.
21. Finger: A unit of measurement that is no longer in wide use, due to the great variety of finger widths and sizes. Back in the days of the Wild West, this was the common unit for measuring alcohol in a glass.
22. Fix: Similar to a Daisy, this is a drink that consists of crushed ice and is made in a goblet. A mule is a common example.
23. Float: When a bartender builds a drink so one brand of alcohol is resting atop another brand of alcohol in a shooter glass. Sometimes, the float creates a pleasing visual, like the different colored layers in a Duck Fart.
24. Free Pour: Unfortunately, this does not mean a bartender is giving you a drink at no charge. This refers to making drinks without using a measured pour spout or jigger to measure.
25. Hazmat: A whiskey that is barrel-proof and extremely alcoholic. Even though it may be hot on the palate, it can still be quite tasty (George T. Stagg, for instance). Most specifically, “Hazmat” refers to bourbons over 140-proof, which is the threshold for liquors legally allowed on airplanes.
26. Lowball: This is a drink made up of water, soda, spirit, and ice typically served in a small glass.
27. Lace: Lacing is a technique where the last ingredient added to a cocktail is typically poured on top of the drink.
28. Lock-in: A longstanding industry tradition where staff and certain well-regarded regulars may remain and drink inside the locked bar after closing time, without other customers present. If you are a non-employee who is allowed to remain during lock-in to drink with the staff, congratulations! You have reached the highest level of bar-industry customer appreciation!
29. Nip: This is a quarter of a bottle. 
30. Pony: This is a shot that is equal to 1 ounce. 
31. Rolling: The process of blending ingredients by repeatedly pouring from one vessel to another.
32. Spill: This is the term bartenders use when a drink doesn’t make it to the guest. The cause can be anything, but most often it is because the drink is made incorrectly or was actually spilled. Regardless of the circumstance, it’s typically input in the bar POS system as a “spill.”
33. Snapping: What you should never do with your fingers to signal a bartender. If you do, the bar staff may refer to you (amongst themselves) as a “snapper.”
34. Spec: Essentially a cocktail recipe. If one bartender needs help remembering the recipe for a cocktail he or she might call out to another bartender, ‘What’s the spec on the X cocktail?’ The other bartender might respond, ‘Two, one, half, quarter, quarter, and Ango’ (Angostura bitters).
35. Staff Meeting: An impromptu round of shots taken by the staff during a shift.
36. Supercall: This refers to premium alcohols that are aged and super-flavored. 
37. Tot: A small amount of liquor, usually less than a quarter ounce, that is part of a cocktail recipe. 
38. Turds: Also known as “shelf turds.” Similar to dusties, turds are beers or bottles that sit on shelves unpurchased for a long time, thus “turding up” the place. Turds can be great bottles or beers that are overproduced or underexposed, so nobody knows to ask for them.
39. Up: The method for serving a drink chilled by shaking or stirring with ice but strained and served in a glass without ice.
40. Wet: A drink with more of the mixer and less of the alcohol than is usually required by the standard recipe.

Dear Batch Fans,

Introducing our Batch 22 bottle, which will hold 750 ml of our delicious elixir. Here it is with our prototype label. 10,000 of them are on their way to our warehouse right now in preparation for our anticipated launch in May. We also have 1,600 smaller bottles (375ml) coming, which we’ll use for giveaways, investor presentations, and as sales samples of all four expressions.

Stay tuned and get ready to join us for some cocktails!
Matthew, Bruce, and Marc

drinkdrinkdrinkbatch22.com

PS. Turn your friends on to Batch 22! Forward this email to them so they can sign up for our newsletter. Then you can connect with them and share a cocktail at one of our upcoming events!