Omnivore - What to drink with Thanksgiving dinner - Part I

• Justen Clay
• Julian Goglia’s Wooden Teeth cocktail

Still at a loss for what to drink with your Thanksgiving turkey cake and cherumple on Thursday? We asked Atlanta beer, wine, and cocktail experts to share a few of their recommendations. If you’re in need of some turkey-friendly, boozy inspiration, today is your lucky day.

This series comes to you into three parts. Part I covers beer and spirits starting with thoughtful cocktail recipes from talented barkeeps Julian Goglia (the Pinewood), Andy Minchow (Ration & Dram), and Bradford Tolleson (Restaurant Eugene). CL’s resident beer guy Austin L. Ray also chipped in with three fall seasonals from Atlanta breweries that opened in 2014. In parts II and III, we tap into Advanced Sommelier Tim Willard’s near-encyclopedic body of wine knowledge and hear from [http://clatl.com/omnivore/archives/2014/11/25/what-to-drink-with-thanksgiving-dinner-part-iii|southern wine geek extraordinaire Steven Grubbs], respectively.

Julian Goglia, The Pinewood

The minute I feel winter’s bite, one of our favorite fall cocktails “Wooden Teeth” comes to mind. George Washington loved Laird’s Apple Brandy, and even wrote to the Laird’s Distillery in the mid 1700’s asking for thier recipe. They were literally the first licenced distillery in America and made a major impact on our nation’s history. Secondly, I wonder what his chattering wooden teeth would have sounded like in our country’s early winters. This easy to make drink could easily become a tradition with your friends and family over the holidays. Enjoy.

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Wooden Teeth

1 1/2 ounce Laird’s Straight Apple Brandy
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
1/2 ounce maple syrup (We prefer “Grade B”)
1/2 ounce Bitter Truth Pimento Dram
1 Dash of Angostura Bitters

Combine all ingredients in a shaker and fill with ice. Shake to chill, then strain. Serve up, or on the rocks.

Bradford Tolleson, Restaurant Eugene

Here’s a drink I think would go great with Thanksgiving. It’s savory, with plenty of acid to cut through the fat, and richness to accompany any gravy or thick sauce.

The concept from the drink comes from flavors of mole and Tandoori curry, with light hints of cocoa, Tumeric, scallion, Hazelnut, and black pepper. The name alludes to the yellowtail bird, but also The Yellowtail wine, which is often consumed during Thanksgiving dinner.

• Bradford Tolleson Photography
• Bradford Tolleson’s Yellowtail cocktail

The Yellowtail

3/4 ounce lemon juice
1/2 ounce Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
3/4 ounce Solbeso Cocoa liquor
1/2 ounce Tumeric-Scallion syrup (see below)
1 1/4 ounce Adet VS Cognac

Shake, Strain, in a rocks glass with fresh ice.
Garnish with a scallion split open.

To make the Tumeric-Scallion syrup:

In a blender, add 1/2 cup ice, 1/2 cup water
Blend 1 small hand of peeled tumeric
1/4 cup chopped scallion
Blend until completely liquefied.
Squeeze mixture out with cheese cloth into a pot.
Measure the liquid and put on stove over medium heat.
Add an equal amount of sugar to the liquid.
Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.
Take pot off eye and let cool.

• Caitlin Crawford
• Andy Minchow

Andy Minchow, Ration & Dram

The Plymouth Rocktail

1 ounce Plymouth gin
1 ounce Dolin Blanc (any sweet white vermouth will work)
1 barspoon of cranberry sauce(yes I did. That and the name are the cheesy parts)
2 barspoons of lemon juice
Shake and double strain into a champagne flute or wine glass.
Top with 3 ounces of dry sparkling wine(rose if you have it)
Garnish with an orange twist.

This can also be done as a punch over ice. I think it will be a nice cocktail to start the drinking off and look funny in the hands of any men watching football.

• CL File
• Austin L. Ray

Austin L. Ray, writer/Atlanta beer biographer (our words, not his)

Fall seasonals, all from breweries that opened in Atlanta this year:

Second Self Beer’s Mole Porter

Following a quiet release at Decatur’s Makan over the weekend, the brand new Westside brewery’s first seasonal makes its proper debut this week. Mole Porter is brewer with a spice blend of cocoa nibs, cinnamon, clove, and three types of dried chilies. Inspired by Second Self co-founder Jason Santamaria’s family mole recipe, the draft-only release can be found at bottle shops like Ale Yeah!, Hop City, and My Friend’s Growler Shop, and bars and restaurants like Brick Store Pub, Holeman & Finch, and Octane Westside.

Orpheus Brewing’s Sykophantes Fig Sour

One of the slightly-less-brand-new Morningside/Lenox Park brewery’s four rotating sours, Sykophantes is a fall seaonsal made with dark candy syrup and hundreds of pounds of dried, organic Black Mission figs. Find it on draft at places like Kimball House, White Oak Kitchen, Highland Tap, and Chai Pani. Orpheus won’t be open on Thanksgiving, but plans to hold its regular Friday and Saturday tours this week, where Sykophantes will be pouring as well.

Eventide Brewing’s Red Headed Haley Red Ale

Named after Eventide Brand Manager Haley Cowan, the Grant Park brewery’s Red Ale boasts a slightly sweet maltiness with toffee and pecan notes. Eventide suggests pairing it with nuts, creamy cheeses, and pumpkin pie. The draft-only fall seasonal can be found at establishments like the Albert, Six Feet Under, and My Friend’s Growler Shop.