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Friday, July 21
Absinthe Discussion
Hotel Monteleone
10:30 a.m.
$25
Absinthe historian Ted Breaux will lead a discussion of absinthe - from its early beginnings as an herbal tonic, through its immense rise in popularity during the Belle Epoque, until its eventual demise. The discussion will focus on historical and modern aspects of the famous liquor, including the crafting and content of the spirit, as well as modern misunderstandings and myths. Participants will be able to view antique absinthe memorabilia, glassware, bottles, various herbs used in crafting absinthe, and a tasting will be held of Breaux's very own absinthe that he imports from France.
Tools of the Trade - Setting Up Your Home Bar
Hotel Monteleone
10:30 a.m.
$25
Don't be intimidated about making great cocktails at home. Join Tony Abou-Ganim, The Modern Mixologist, as he shows you what you need to stock your home bar, the tools of the trade and how to use them, and all the secrets behind mixing great drinks. Be it a classic Bloody Mary for brunch, a Mint Julep on Derby Day or twist on a classic Mojito, from shaking to stirring, muddling to blending, Boston Shakers and Hawthorn Strainers, you will learn everything you need to know to step behind your home bar and tend it. All attendees will sample cocktails and the first 40 guests will receive a complementary muddler from Tony’s collection.
Dine and Design
Presented by Food & Wine and St. Charles Avenue Magazine
Brennan's Restaurant
Noon
$45
Join author and designer Beverly Church and Rob Willey, deputy editor of Food and Wine’s annual cocktail guide, for a lesson in seasonal entertaining. Enjoy a fabulous meal by Brennan's and Martin Wine Cellar, complete with cocktails and wine and leave with great ideas for table settings, party favors and special events. Proudly pouring Alize Bouvet Brut, Jadot, Vina Salceda Crianza and Rioja.
Menu:
First Course:
Fabulous cheese presentation and sampling by Martin Wine Cellar Welcome Bloody Mary or Champagne Cocktail Wine served with lunch Brennan Salad: Romaine lettuce with a tangy Creole dressing, grated Parmesan cheese and croutons Combination
Second Course:
Tournadoes Brennan, a 3 ounce filet with Béarnaise sauce and Trout Nancy, a Filet of trout sautéed and topped with lump crabmeat sprinkled with capers, lemon butter sauce.
Dessert:
Bananas Foster, A Brennan Creation and now World-Famous. Bananas sautéed in butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and banana liqueur, then flamed in rum. Served over vanilla ice cream.
Bourbon Academy
Presented by Buffalo Trace
Dickie Brennan's Bourbon House
Noon
$45
This is not your ordinary prep school... Led by Master Distiller Harlen
Wheatley, enjoy a course on the art of making fine bourbon, from grains
to bottling, taste bourbons from the award-winning portfolio of Buffalo
Trace paired with a delicious menu prepared by Bourbon House resident bourbon enthusiast Chef Jared Tees.
Menu:
Assorted Hors d' Oeuvres
New Fashioneds & Mint Julep by Buffalo Trace
First Course:
Pickled Crawfish and Green Tomato Salad
Eagle Rare Single Barrel, 10 year
Intermezzo:
Sazerac Sorbet
Second Course:
Bourbon and Orange Glazed Short Ribs
with a Chilled Totsoy Salad
Weller 12 year
Dessert:
Blanton coffee mousse with wafer cookies
Hot Drinks, Cool Bars
Hotel Monteleone
2 p.m.
$25
Jack Robertiello discusses the cocktail revolution in the U.S., as well as in the U.K., Australia, Europe and Asia. Meet international bar stars involved in these trends and discover their philosophies and techniques for cocktail creativity. It's not only bars and restaurants in the U.S. that are fomenting the cocktail revolution; in the U.K., Australia, Europe and Asia, bartenders are taking bar creativity to the next level, updating classic recipes, adapting new spirits and using old and new ingredients to come up with winning beverages. At this session, some of those international bar stars will share their cocktail philosophies and their techniques, how they develop drinks and where they see the industry going. On the panel to talk with Jack include Ed Nesta and Debra Argen, travel writers and editors of LuxuryExperience.com, Simon Difford, author of “Difford’s Guide to Cocktails,” and Douglas Ankrah, author of “Cocktails: Shaken and Stirred.”
The Southern Comfort Cocktail Tour
Begins at the Gray Line Lighthouse
4 p.m.
$24
It's history... with a twist!
Take a walk through the French Quarter on The Southern Comfort Cocktail Tour and discover the famous "spirits" of New Orleans. From the creation of the Sazerac and Pimm's Cup to the Hurricane and Hand Grenade, you'll enjoy a view of New Orleans history and culture through our legendary bars and restaurants, and the characters that frequented them. The Southern Comfort Cocktail Tour mixes classic stories of famous New Orleans establishments with facts about the unique concoctions made famous here, including Southern Comfort, which was created in a French Quarter bar in 1874.
This two and a half hour walking tour visits historical establishments such as Antoine's and Arnaud's restaurants, as Brennan's and the Court of Two Sisters restaurants, the oldest bars in the city including Jean Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop and Napoleon House, whose stories date back to the 1800s. Guests can taste cocktails along their walk and take home a cocktail recipe book and a discount for "Obituary Cocktail," the photographic essay and book by Kerri McCaffety, on which the Cocktail Tour is based. Enjoy history... with a twist on the Southern Comfort Cocktail Tour.
Book online for the Southern Comfort Cocktail Tour daily, or during Tales of the Cocktail. Visit "The Cocktail Tour" link in the top menu of this page.
Sippin' with 7
Presented by Rain Vodka
Hotel Monteleone, 7th floor
6 - 8 p.m.
$25
Designers include Susannah Koteen with Serena Bass, Inc., Mardi Gras Productions, local designer Heather McFarlane with Unique Products, Chad Harris with Oasis Horticultural and The Garden Gate of New Orleans, Alexis Ulfand from SPARTY, Jack Forbes and Brian Bockman with Bockman Forbes + Glasgow, a New Orleans architecture and design firm, and New Orleans native mikko take over seven rooms of the Monteleone to create seven cocktail party themes. Guests see thematic presentations, taste cocktails and meet each room's host/hostess.
Room designs include:
Susannah Koteen with celebrity caterers, Serena Bass, INC., in the William Faulkner Suite 1445 presenting “Cocktails and Cooking”
The Incredible Edible Room. Artists Mark Kirk and Heather Macfarlane are using the theme of "incredible edible" to create a delicious room from food products and actual tasty art -the use of royal icing, wheatgrass and dough, as well as food items such as foil and food packing to produce a one of a kind feast for the eyes and palette ....
From empty space to spa, the transformation starts with full service set design and on-site spa construction. With flowing white sheers, spa decor, furniture, and equipment, SPARTY! magically produces, services and staffs a spa event. Amidst a candlelit glow, guests enjoy a spa themed event with an indulgent range of spa services, music, fun and of coarse our signature SPARTINI! for all our guests to enjoy.
Oasis Horticultural owner Chad Harris in the the kind bedded room presenting “Outside In”. Beautiful Flowers…..heights, shapes and texture throughout the adventure. “With a combination of vintage obelisk, playful flowering pathways and Anduze ornamentation, your imagination will bring you to Eden. You may not have traveled to Eden before but you will travel there again. Your senses will be exaggerated when sipping our Eden Martini allowing you to explore your imagination closer.
Tony Leggio with Mardi Gras Productions in the Vieux Carre Suite, 1480, presenting “Elegance and Decadence.” This theme will be carried out in the décor, our signature cocktail and theme models with a very special surprise guest.
Jack Forbes and Brian Bockman with BFG Studios in the Vieux Carre Suite, 1477, presenting “Mid-Century’s Night’s Dream.” This theme extrapolates Shakespeare’s play and sets the party in mid-century America using original period artwork and furnishings and taking inspiration from Andy Warhol’s Factory.
Designer Mikko in the King Bedded Room, 1458 presents “Welcome to Our Party.” A take on things with snowy motifs, socialist art, prokofiev music, ice sculpture and the black list-a paper with a sliver pen for guests to sign……
A Taste of New York - Cocktails Past and Present
8 p.m.
Hotel Monteleone
$12
Presented by cocktail filmmakers Christy Pope and Chad Solomon, this is a review of classic New York cocktails from both the Golden Era of the late 1800's to the cocktail renaissance of today. Taste five classic cocktails and learn the stories and history behind them. Taste five "new classics" from New York's most relevant cocktail houses. Presented with visual aides, stories, quotes, and commentary, this seminar gives a quenching perspective of New York City's contributions to cocktail culture.
The first 40 guests will receive a complementary New York Recipe Box from 86recipes.com. Inspired by the traditional recipe box, it contains 86 individual recipe cards which feature some of the best restaurants in select cities.
Tales of the Cocktail After-Party
Presented by Heineken
Harrah's New Orleans Casino's Masquerade
11 p.m. - 1 a.m
Free!
Join the "cast and crew" of Tales of the Cocktail at Masquerade, Harrah's newest after-hours gathering spot. Masquerade features an ice bar, hot music, video tower, an ultra lounge and signature slots and table games.
