Introduction to Cocktail Bitters

I was SO excited about this class at the Boston Shaker — Your Friendly Neighborhood Cocktail Supply Shop. Such a super cool concept — one cocktail made several different times over with different bitters each time.

We started by tasting each of the bitters straight up (the smaller circles below.) Regan’s had a nice orange tinge, Bittermen’s Boston tasted like chamomile tea, Angostura tasted like … Angostura? (not sure how to describe it except maybe a giant Christmas ball of spices), and Peychaud’s had a distinct anise taste. If you plan to taste them straight, just be prepared. They are considered non-potables for a reason!

We also tasted each one with a little bit of soda water — in some cases it changed the taste completely and definitely softened the bitterness.

Next we had a 1900s Martini, sans bitters, to taste as a baseline.

Then Adam, who knows everything about cocktailing, made the same martini with each of the bitters we had tasted. It was amazing what just a few dashes of bitters did to change the taste. For the record, my favorite was the one with the Angostura.

A little ice cube melting experiment … from left to right, traditional ice cube tray, perfect ice cube tray, and bagged ice.

The class ended with a free-for-all where they put all the bitters on the table so we could taste at will.

I got a little carried away. My favorite bitters will be no surprise. I LOVED the fireside bitters, which … you can’t buy. It was made by one of the store’s customers. I loved the smokiness and would have put it in everything.