Drinking in the 'Nob

San Francisco Magazine has an article this month on Tendernob bars without full liquor licenses. I've been to the 222 Club for an acid house night. Unfortunately, it was a night when the power went out in the neighborhood and suddenly we were in a dark basement without sound in the middle of the ghetto. We did the only thing we could at that point- had another round of drinks.

Cocktails at Range

I went back to Range yesterday on the request of my friend Bev (aka DJ GreenB). I didn't have my usual cocktail- the Smoking Gun. That drink is a gin and tonic with Lillet Blanc (a dry white wine aged with fruit liqueur). It's amazing and simple. The wine and gin/tonic sit on different planes on your tongue, allowing you to taste them independent of each other. It adds even more depth to a gin and tonic, which can be rich and delicious on its own when made with high end ingredients.

Tonight I had the specialty drink called the French Pirate. The drink consists of a raspberry soaked in Grand Marnier, less than an ounce of dark pirate rum, and the rest of the flute filled with champagne. Sadly, it tastes like champagne with occasional notes of the raspberry and Grand Marnier rather than a sparkling rum drink, which is what I had hoped for.

I also had a drink called something like the Fickle Pickle (I should really write things down when I'm drinking). It is essentially a gin martini in muddled huckleberries, with shaved orange peels for decoration. Like many of the drinks on Range's menu, it sounds sweeter than it is. It is a very whole, round-tasting drink with unsweetened fruit. Very light, very good.

The bartenders were generous this evening and gave me a few freebies to try as well. I had their sangria, which they serve in a martini glass after shaking with ice to cool. The flavors in the drink were well-balanced and unobtrusive to each other- the wine was sweet but not acidic, and the fruit lightened the flavor without tasting like an orange soaked in vodka. It would be great with food.

Finally (I guess this explains why I came home drunk so early), I had a martini made with Potrero Distillery (a.k.a. Anchorsteam Brewery)'s Junipero Gin and dry sherry instead of dry vermouth. What a simple and wonderful drink! I think the reason people want a regular martini (especially a vodka martini) so "dry" or with a lot of olives is because the aftertaste of vermouth is horrid. Vermouth seems to mellow out the some of the harshness of vodka or gin on the palette but takes its revenge on the drink’s memory. I hate dirty martinis but even I'd prefer one briny with too many olives to one with too much vermouth. Anyway, the sherry in this martini has the same effect as the vermouth on the flavor but leaves you with the memory of something richer and statelier.

Sure, at Range everybody raves about the food, but the simple drinks have great depth and are worth a trip to the bar even when you can't get a table.

Range
842 Valencia Street (at around 20th)
(415) 282-8283
http://rangesf.com/

Bar Chefs

I was quoted in yesterday's SF Chronicle about the rise of cocktail menus in restaurants and bars. I was noticing the same thing that the writer Laura Compton called me about- that now every venue is expected to have its own bar menu with specialty cocktails on it, and every bartender is expected to spend all day muddling fruit into juice. Anyway, it's a good resource on bars and restaurants that have the best cocktail menus.