I'm thirsty.
February 19, 2010 8:28 AM Subscribe
What is the best liquor store in NJ / NYC/ Phila that sells fancy frou frou liquors for my cocktails?
I usually go to warehouse style stores (like Canal's and Spirits) for the cornerstone liquors, but I'm having a hard time finding rarer imported flavorings for cocktails. For example I'm having the darndest time tracking down creme de violette. Does anyone know of an awesome liquor store that sells a bunch of rare regional flavoring liquors? Thanks in advance!
I usually go to warehouse style stores (like Canal's and Spirits) for the cornerstone liquors, but I'm having a hard time finding rarer imported flavorings for cocktails. For example I'm having the darndest time tracking down creme de violette. Does anyone know of an awesome liquor store that sells a bunch of rare regional flavoring liquors? Thanks in advance!
Astor Wines has a good selection, they also have a match for that one example you gave:
http://www.astorwines.com/SearchResultsSingle.aspx?search=18483&searchtype=Contains&term=creme,de,violette&p=2
posted by devbrain at 8:38 AM on February 19, 2010
http://www.astorwines.com/SearchResultsSingle.aspx?search=18483&searchtype=Contains&term=creme,de,violette&p=2
posted by devbrain at 8:38 AM on February 19, 2010
State stores in and around Philadelphia don't have much in the way of selection. You'll probably get a wider choice sticking to NJ and NYC.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 8:59 AM on February 19, 2010
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 8:59 AM on February 19, 2010
Nthing Astors. If it exists, they'll have it or know where to find it (I found creme du violet verre there!)
posted by The Whelk at 9:17 AM on February 19, 2010
posted by The Whelk at 9:17 AM on February 19, 2010
Also! Vintage, up on Broadway on the UWS does local wines and local liquors - some really obscure and idiosyncratic tastes plus - local!
posted by The Whelk at 9:19 AM on February 19, 2010
posted by The Whelk at 9:19 AM on February 19, 2010
I typed out a whole answer until I realized you meant liqueurs, not liquors (am I right? you're looking for flavored stuff right? Not frou frou liquors as in fancy pants spirits?)
The bitters shortage is only having to do with Angostura. Besides Fee Brothers, The Bitter Truth also recently became available in the U.S. (as in you can purchase it retail, not you order by emailing a request to the company to send it to you from Germany) and has a huge line of different bitters from Celery Bitters to Jerry Thomas Decanter Bitter. There's also Regan's Orange Bitters and Peychaud's. It all depends on how experiment-y you want to get. Unless you're buying wholesale or bulk off the internet, in New York you kind of have to poke around place. At least in my experience, I don't think any one place has all the bitters you'd want.
Again, depends on what you're looking for and how experimenty you want to get. In New York, I know folks regularly go to Kalyustan's for items like rose water of orange flower water. It's not really a liquor place, but they sell spices and possible flavoring stuff. Dave Wondrich recently did a punch seminar, and one of his punches used Indonesian palm sugar that he said got from Kalyustan.
As listed above, Astor Wines & Spirits is probably your best non-pro, one stop shop if you're just browsing to see what you can get without something specific in mind in a pretty easy to get to location. They definitely have creme de violette there as well as other liqueurs. And if you did mean, liquors, they definitely have that too.
There's also Sherry Lehman, which is a wine place but has some spirits and spirit related things like aperitifs (absinthe, vermouth, Carpano). Which Astor also has (along with Fernet Branca, I believe).
And if you are looking for different liquors to flavor drinks, try out some different gins, or even its grandpappy genever. Trying genever for the first time was kind of an eye opening experience for me.
posted by kkokkodalk at 9:32 AM on February 19, 2010
The bitters shortage is only having to do with Angostura. Besides Fee Brothers, The Bitter Truth also recently became available in the U.S. (as in you can purchase it retail, not you order by emailing a request to the company to send it to you from Germany) and has a huge line of different bitters from Celery Bitters to Jerry Thomas Decanter Bitter. There's also Regan's Orange Bitters and Peychaud's. It all depends on how experiment-y you want to get. Unless you're buying wholesale or bulk off the internet, in New York you kind of have to poke around place. At least in my experience, I don't think any one place has all the bitters you'd want.
Again, depends on what you're looking for and how experimenty you want to get. In New York, I know folks regularly go to Kalyustan's for items like rose water of orange flower water. It's not really a liquor place, but they sell spices and possible flavoring stuff. Dave Wondrich recently did a punch seminar, and one of his punches used Indonesian palm sugar that he said got from Kalyustan.
As listed above, Astor Wines & Spirits is probably your best non-pro, one stop shop if you're just browsing to see what you can get without something specific in mind in a pretty easy to get to location. They definitely have creme de violette there as well as other liqueurs. And if you did mean, liquors, they definitely have that too.
There's also Sherry Lehman, which is a wine place but has some spirits and spirit related things like aperitifs (absinthe, vermouth, Carpano). Which Astor also has (along with Fernet Branca, I believe).
And if you are looking for different liquors to flavor drinks, try out some different gins, or even its grandpappy genever. Trying genever for the first time was kind of an eye opening experience for me.
posted by kkokkodalk at 9:32 AM on February 19, 2010
Again, depends on what you're looking for and how experimenty you want to get. In New York, I know folks regularly go to Kalyustan's for items like rose water of orange flower water. It's not really a liquor place, but they sell spices and possible flavoring stuff. Dave Wondrich recently did a punch seminar, and one of his punches used Indonesian palm sugar that he said got from Kalyustan.
Kalustyan's has the best bitters selection of anywhere I'm aware of in the city, including any of the outer boroughs. They've got a bunch of Fee Brother's flavors as well as some other ones.
posted by wondermouse at 12:10 PM on February 19, 2010
Kalustyan's has the best bitters selection of anywhere I'm aware of in the city, including any of the outer boroughs. They've got a bunch of Fee Brother's flavors as well as some other ones.
posted by wondermouse at 12:10 PM on February 19, 2010
Response by poster: Thanks for all y'all's answers. I'll have to try Astor's, Vintage, and Kalustyan's. Special thanks to yous for pointing out Kalustan's even though its not a liquor store because it sounds like a good place to try to get obscure things like whatever the heck hibiscus syrup is.
Lately I've been looking at cocktail menus of various places and trying to replicate drinks at home for shits and giggles. If anyone out there is bored and tired of the same old Manhattan all the time, its kinda neat to do because its almost like collecting, trying to track down some of the ingredients. And you get a drink at the end!
posted by WeekendJen at 2:20 PM on February 19, 2010
Lately I've been looking at cocktail menus of various places and trying to replicate drinks at home for shits and giggles. If anyone out there is bored and tired of the same old Manhattan all the time, its kinda neat to do because its almost like collecting, trying to track down some of the ingredients. And you get a drink at the end!
posted by WeekendJen at 2:20 PM on February 19, 2010
Seconding Astor. I typically hit up Warehouse Wines first (on the off chance they have something) as it's usually cheaper than Astor, and then I go to Astor Wines. It's a 5 minute walk between the two. Astor Wines has the best selection of liqueurs all in one place and excellent service.
Sherry Lehman is good, too, when Astor doesn't have something, but sometimes something is only available from their warehouse and you need to request the item a day in advance.
Also seconding Kalustyan's bitters selection! It is also a reliable supplier of orange blossom water, rose water, all sorts of extracts (almond, vanilla, etc.), orgeat, agave nectar, sugar cane syrup, Fee Brothers syrups (like falernum), pomegranate molasses, coconut cream, etc. They also have bottled fruit juices of all sorts and frozen fruit purees (got some passionfruit the other day). The only thing they don't have is real maraschino cocktail cherries (not the bright neon kind but the small dark kind). I typically get those from Dean & Deluca.
For some items, it's actually really easy and probably better to make your own (like grenadine). There's a pretty active eGullet Spirits & Cocktails community about making your own syrups, bitters, etc. I really like Dale DeGroff's The Essential Cocktail: The Art of Mixing Perfect Drinks as a good starting point, with recommendations on making your own drink ingredients (honey syrup, ginger syrup, Don's mix).
posted by kathryn at 8:54 PM on February 19, 2010
Sherry Lehman is good, too, when Astor doesn't have something, but sometimes something is only available from their warehouse and you need to request the item a day in advance.
Also seconding Kalustyan's bitters selection! It is also a reliable supplier of orange blossom water, rose water, all sorts of extracts (almond, vanilla, etc.), orgeat, agave nectar, sugar cane syrup, Fee Brothers syrups (like falernum), pomegranate molasses, coconut cream, etc. They also have bottled fruit juices of all sorts and frozen fruit purees (got some passionfruit the other day). The only thing they don't have is real maraschino cocktail cherries (not the bright neon kind but the small dark kind). I typically get those from Dean & Deluca.
For some items, it's actually really easy and probably better to make your own (like grenadine). There's a pretty active eGullet Spirits & Cocktails community about making your own syrups, bitters, etc. I really like Dale DeGroff's The Essential Cocktail: The Art of Mixing Perfect Drinks as a good starting point, with recommendations on making your own drink ingredients (honey syrup, ginger syrup, Don's mix).
posted by kathryn at 8:54 PM on February 19, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
Though I hear there's something of a bitters shortage, so if that's what you're looking for, you may be out of luck.
posted by Grither at 8:36 AM on February 19, 2010