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Email Marshall@ScofflawsDen.com for more information and class tickets.

Each class is $45 per student and will be limited to 6 to 10 students depending on space.  Payment for classes will need to be made prior to class in order to reserve your spot.  Cost of consulting services will be based on your individual project and goals.  Classes will be held at Last Exit and the schedule will be announced as a post here on the Den and on the Scofflaw’s Den Facebook page.  If you are interested in setting up a class or tasting at your home, we can arrange that as well.  To sign up for a class or consulting service, please email Marshall@ScofflawsDen.com.

For more details on individual classes, new classes and consulting services, please check here.

Our Bitters class will be offered on February 12, 2012 at 5:30pm. Come learn everything you wanted to know (and probably more) about bitters! An essential class for anyone interested cocktails.  This class also makes a great early Valentine’s Day gift for that cocktail lover in your life.

Where: Last Exit, 3155 Mount Pleasant Street, N.W., Washington, DC
When: February 12, 2012 @ 5:30pm
Class is limited to 10 people, so sign up early!  Email Marshall@ScofflawsDen.com

Hope to see you on February 12!  Cheers!

Last Exit is a speakeasy-esque cocktail bar located next to Tonic in the Mount Pleasant neighborhood of DC. The entrance is an unmarked door to the left of the entrance to Tonic, though you can enter through Tonic as well.

The bar is fairly short, only accommodating about six guests. But there are plenty of other seats in the form of couches and lounge chairs. The eclectic furniture, exposed brick walls and concrete floor underscore the ambiance that you are in a clandestine speakeasy hidden from the patrons of Tonic.

Of course you really want to know how the drinks are right? Before answering that question, I need to give a little caveat. Tonic itself is not a cocktail bar. The cocktails at Last Exit are not the prime focus of the establishment. With that said, Matt the bar manager is very enthusiastic about the cocktails at Last Exit and from my observation is working hard for Last Exit to succeed.

So about those drinks . . . delicious! Our tour guide for the evening was Anthony Rivera and the lovely Ashley. Both bartenders were beyond friendly and hospitable and more so they enjoyed talking and debating the finer points of mixellany.

Their winter menu contains several hot drinks such as a glögg and a Root Toddy. Both were delicious and perfect to warm the cockles. Anthony made me a Martinez which was just about perfect. My final drink was my standard La Louisiane and I’m happy to report it was made just the way I like them.

I’m looking forward to more trips to Last Exit. The staff are making a big push to become another cocktail destination in DC and I see good things in their future. I don’t believe they will be an unknown outpost for very long.

Last Exit
3155 Mount Pleasant Street, NW
Washington, DC. 20010
(202) 986-7661

Cheers!

It is no secret that I love searching through antique stores for bar tools, cocktail related memorabilia or simply quirky items I can use in my home bar. This past Thanksgiving, while visiting my Mother in southwest Virginia, we traveled to Bristol, Tennessee where Main Street is lined with antique stores.

What you see in the picture above is the find of the trip. It is a silver plated beverage warmer.

The base holds a glass candle holder which fits a tea candle. The carafe is suspended over the flame by small metal nibs which set into the arms of the base. The really neat aspect to this piece is that it tilts forward to fill your glass without the need to remove the carafe from the base.

This thing is also a looker!

I really can’t wait to use this to serve warm cider, mulled wine, glogg or some other warm tipple this winter!

What are your best antique finds? Share them in the comments!

Cheers!

The pictures above are the most visible portion of my home bar. The first picture was taken inside the kitchen looking into the living room. You can see the bottles on the bar top (more on those in a bit), the stemware holders above the counter and various tools strewn about. The second photo is of a bookshelf in my living room.

The first thing I recommend when organizing and cleaning your home bar is to keep a list all your bottles. This could be done on paper, on a computer, or, like I do, in a note-taking/to-do app on my iPhone. However you decide to do it, make sure it is backed up or saved in case something happens. There is nothing worse than typing in 250 bottles only for the computer gods to treat it as a sacrificial lamb for their nourishment and eat the file forcing you to begin all over again. Not that that ever happened to me . . .

As you are writing everything down, look at what categories in which your spirits fall. Put the gins together, the bourbons together, the rums together, etc etc etc. If you have something you absolutely hate, toss it in the bin or give it away to a friend who will enjoy it. If you have a bottle that you love that has a very small amount, make yourself a cocktail to enjoy while organizing. The goal is to streamline as much as possible with minimum waste.

Give some thought on how you want your home bar organized. If you spend any time on a bar stool at a craft cocktail bar, you will notice the bartender’s movements are very precise. They have their mis en place and tools within arms reach. Many base spirits, syrups and bitters are also within arms reach of their station. You can easily do the same thing at home.

Look at the first picture above. When I make drinks for my guests, my station, if you will, is to the right of the sink. This is what is directly in front of me.

From left to right you can see paper towels, cocktail napkins, bar spoons, garnish picks, stirrers, mixing glasses, jiggers and mixing tins. On the wall directly to my left are strainers, bottle opener, conical strainer, muddlers and the wall o’ bitters.

Behind me and to the right is the refrigerator/freezer containing my syrups, vermouths and ice. All the tools I need are within arms reach.

I also suggest giving a thought on how you store your bottles. In my setup, the bar top contains all base spirits. (See, told you I’d come back to it.) Liqueurs and modifying spirits are kept in the cabinets above the stemware holders. The bookcase from the second picture hold less-used spirits and extra bottles of base spirits.

My bitters collection was a special consideration. I have over forty different types of bitters and the collection continues to grow. [Shameless Plug: If you make bitters and would like to send me a bottle, I'd be more than happy to add them to my collection. Maybe you'll even get a bottle of my Barrel Aged Mountain Moonshine bitters in return. Just shoot me an email.] Ahem . . . so where was I? Ah yes, the Wall o’ Bitters! Because the bitters were taking up so much counter space, I moved them on the wall. Some relatively cheap Elfa shelving and that was it. It has turned out to be a great way to use underutilized space and keep the bitters organized and within reach.

Now I haven’t really mentioned cleaning. As you organize, dust off your bottles; wash any sugar residue off the necks; dust and wash the bar top and shelves; wash your stemware. It doesn’t take a lot of effort and makes your home bar look great.

So that is how my home bar is setup. How about yours? Do you have any bar organization tips or tricks? If so, let us know in the comments.

Cheers!