The Liquid Muse Cocktail Club
Manhattan (left), gin cocktail (right)
Natalie Bovis-Nelsen of The Liquid Muse recently started a cocktail club, and I was lucky enough to snag a spot (okay, I was technically a +1) to the last meeting at BOA Steakhouse in West Hollywood.
We cocktail lovers, including Matt of Rumdood, Danit and Paul of LA Decostified, H.C. of L.A and O.C. Foodventures, Danny Kung Food Panda and Esther of estarLA, enjoyed two drinks made for us that night: a Manhattan made with Maker’s Mark bourbon, roobios red tea, Luxardo cherry liqueur and garnished with a brandy cherry on the bottom of the glass; and a gin cocktail made with No. 209 gin, rhubarb, sage, soda water and garnished with strawberries.
They were two very different drinks, and I liked both of them. The Manhattan was well-balanced; strong but not overpowering. The gin cocktail was much lighter and refreshing, almost soda-like, and the strawberry was a nice touch. Boa’s head bartender, Josh, was great in explaining his thought processes behind each drink, too. He said he chose the drinks because he wanted to offer a summer cocktail (the gin drink) and a fall cocktail (the Manhattan). One thing was a little disconcerting, though: Josh shook the Manhattan, which was immediately apparent by the froth on top. He said he shook it to ensure the bourbon and the cherry liqueur mixed well. Even though Manhattans are supposed to be stirred, I still liked this one.
BOA also provided some small bites for us, including goat cheese baklavah (good), beef sliders with blue cheese (OK, but salty), and shrimp, leek and feta flat bread (OK, but the bread didn’t hold up). I’ve eaten at BOA Santa Monica before, but that was years ago and I can’t remember what I had. I do remember the restaurant had these great rolls, though. Aside from the food, the BOA space on Sunset Boulevard is pretty amazing, with a total of 13,000 square feet, 4,000 of which is outdoors. The staff was also very pleasant, even when they didn’t know I was part of the cocktail club.
The Liquid Muse Cocktail Club meets about once a month. Membership is free, as are the events. It’s a great deal, and it’s a good way to meet new people with shared interests. And the person running it is a sweetheart, too (Natalie and I served on the Blogger Prom 2009 committee together)!
