How to Stock Your Bar

Aside from booze blogs, web comics, regular comics, and as many books as we can get our hands on, we (specifically Matt) like to read certain menswear blogs. In particular we recommend An Affordable Wardrobe and Put This On, which inspired our video segments. One of the common questions addressed on menswear blogs is how to build a wardrobe and not surprisingly, the process is very similar to stocking your bar.

This is our collection a year ago. Much like a child, it has only gotten larger and more expensive since then.

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Post #100: the Century Cocktail

Holy crap you guys! We have officially reached our 100th post. It’s a small milestone to be sure, but I’ll take any excuse to pour a celebratory tipple. To mark the occasion we thought it’d be appropriate to invent an IPTB original cocktail which we have fittingly dubbed the Century. I was actually rather surprised to find that there wasn’t already a drink by that name, but all the better for us. We fiddled with the recipe for a few days and tried a few variations, but it was Shanna that hit upon the winning combination. Those who know us and/or are regular readers won’t be surprised by the ingredient list. The result is a cocktail that’s complex in flavor, but not in execution, and which we think has the merits of a classic.

So let’s raise a toast: May the next 100 posts be even more fun than the first, and may you always drink in good health and better company!

Celebrating 100 posts with a Century Cocktail

Aviation

One of our new favorite drinks, which makes excellent use of maraschino liqueur, is the Aviation cocktail. Of course it’s new to us, but the Aviation goes back almost a hundred years. The creme de violette is actually optional in this recipe, so don’t fret if you haven’t got any on hand. I like it though, because not only does it add more dimension to the flavor, but it also gives this cocktail a cloudy appearance which is as pretty as it is appropriate.

3 oz gin

1 1/2 oz lemon juice

1/2 oz maraschino liqueur

1/2 oz creme de violette

Combine all ingredients in a shaker half filled with ice. Shake thoroughly and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Aviation Cocktail