Last night, bartenders and imbibers from around Boston gathered at Drink to celebrate renowned cocktail maker Dale DeGroff’s latest book, The Essential Cocktail. Small samples of Manhattans (made with rye whiskey or bourbon) and Cosmopolitans flowed freely as DeGroff worked the room.

Before we sampled one to many of his libations, we talked to DeGroff about what he recommends you serve guests this holiday season.

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It’s safe to say that Boston chefs are ingredient-obsessed. You hear about mozzarella di bufala being flown in twice a week from Italy, sushi so fresh it was swimming yesterday, and farmstand veggies just plucked from the dirt.

Boston bartenders, too, have gotten in on the act. With the return of classic cocktails, everything’s fresh-squeezed and muddled to order. (Frankly, methinks most club-type bartenders are sick to death of making mojitos.)

But Drink, uber-chef Barbara Lynch’s new cocktail-centric venture in Fort Point Channel, is taking things to a whole other level: they’re busting out the gourmet ice. (more…)

Most eateries are hosting Restaurant Week until August 22, so you know where to go for eats. But if it’s cocktails you’re lushing lusting for, then you can count on us to refill your calendar.

Sundays, 3-10 p.m.
Sangria Summer Sundays
Zócalo Cocina Mexicana, Brighton
Sangria is like your blood, the supply should be constantly flowing. To the rescue with a steady stream is Zócalo’s summer sangria flight, three glasses of the fruit-addled wine libation for $12. The August selection: blood orange, pomegranate, and mango.

Aug. 18, 6:30-8:30 p.m.
Riesling Night
Boston Wine School
We love a sweet riesling, except when we like a dry one. Join Boston Wine School as they showcase the entire spectrum of this chameleon grape with refreshing wines from vineyards in Germany, California, Washington, Australia, and New Zealand.

Mojito Mondays
RumBa, InterContinental Hotel, 6-7 p.m.
They’ll teach you how to make the drink, but don’t expect a pass behind the bar. Every Monday evening, RumBa, the InterContinental’s rum and champagne bar, hosts mojito making classes sponsored by Bacardi.

Every day through September
Sushi and Sake Flight Special
Fugakyu
Looks like someone wants to make sure you’re eating while you’re drinking. For the months of August and September, the Coolidge Corner Japanese restaurant offers a flight special which pairs three sakes with five pieces of nigiri (that’s the one with the rice) sushi.

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Until now, Brookline craft beer fans have been somewhat puzzled by the arrival of Publick House Provisions. The retail arm of the beloved Publick House—the Washington Street mecca for microbrews, obscure European suds, and comfort food—promised fancy cheeses (a la Formaggio, but smaller-scale), gourmet packaged goods, incredible beer-appropriate glassware, and a vast selection of bottled beer to go.

Problem was, they couldn’t procure the retail liquor license they needed, owing to (surprise!) local blue laws that prohibit the owner of a sit-down watering hole from also selling beer to go. Though DailyCandy promised back in April that the beer would be arriving soon, the cold cases stood empty for months, while the Publick House’s lawyers hit the books. (Check out manager Jamie Hios’ plea for support on Beer Advocate; after all this headache, methinks these Brookliners—Brooklinians?—deserve a tall one.)

Thankfully, there’s light at the end of the tunnel. (more…)

Especially in Boston, where chefs and restaurateurs tend to tiptoe down the safe route wherever possible, it’s refreshing to see the occasional spark of daring.

Lounging al fresco on the fabulous square-front patio at Eastern Standard one recent evening, I decided (quite uncharacteristically) to pass on bar manager Jackson Cannon’s matchless cocktail list in favor of a glass of wine. The by-the-glass list featured the usual five or six white options, five or six reds, a sparkling wine or two. Then…eight rosés. Eight rosés? That’s, like, at least seven more than most restaurants offer on the entire menu, let alone by the glass.

Even self-styled Southern French restaurants, like La Voile and the Intercontinental’s Miel, which should be leading the rosé revolution (the world’s best rosés come from Provence and the Côte d’Azur, just down the Riviera from Cannes), muster only one or two choices. (more…)

Boston’s seen a bit of bottled-water backlash lately. First, there was the TAP project, which charged diners $1 for a glass of water to help raise funds for UNICEF, and which won me over on two counts: providing clean water to developing countries, and sparing diners the embarrassment of declining the $6 Pellegrino in favor of tap. (What? I’m cheap, and it’s $1 at Costco.) Then, as the Globe’s Devra First points out, a growing number of restaurants are ditching the bottled stuff altogether, citing its wastefulness.

Hear, hear, I say. Given the city’s relatively high quality drinking water supply, bottled water just isn’t necessary in most cases. (Add that to your list of reasons to love Boston, eh?) In general, I’ve been feeling pretty good about sticking with tap. (more…)

When most people have to work weekends, it means coming into an empty office and putting in hours of drudgery for no additional pay. Not so for Chowder. (Well, not this week, anyway.)

Lucky enough to score tickets to last Saturday’s $150-a-pop Tour de Champagne (Boston magazine was a sponsor), I showed up at The Charles Hotel a fashionable hour late and surveyed the scene: A mixed bag of giddy French and Bostonian guests, 18 Champagne houses pouring generous (read: half-glass) samples of bubbly, and some of the city’s top restaurants serving hors d’oeuvres. Yes, indeed: Another hard day on the job.

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We here at Chowder are big fans of Eastern Standard. Back in December, Matthew Reed Baker and the Boston magazine fact checkers enjoyed a great meal at the Kenmore Square bistro. Last week, a friend took me to the bar to try her new favorite cocktail, the Metamorphosis.

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Dining out as often as we do, it goes without saying that we do the dew a little more often than we should. A dirty martini, a good glass of vino, a nip of limoncello to finish the meal… There’s little we Chowder bloggers won’t imbibe.

An offer of free cocktails, then, is like my own personal Bat Signal. But last night, I found myself opting out of the Beija rum launch at fact-checker favorite Eastern Standard. (more…)