social studies

This hour and a half class is a hands on cocktail experience that also supports our community.

The Social Hour Carmel & The Bitter Ginger have teamed up with Big Sur Food & Wine and a portion of the proceeds from these classes go to numerous community causes.

Beyond the techniques required to build the cocktails themselves, the Bitter Ginger gives life to the lore behind the drinks, the history behind the tools, and all the tall tales in between.

Held at the beautifully curated social hour shop in carmel-by-the-sea.

Pre Prohibition

Three ingredient drinks are the back bone of mixology. Understanding the history and technique behind this style of drink is a great way to get a feel for the basics of making delicious cocktails. In this class we work our way through the technique behind a “French 75” and the “Old Fashioned” cocktail.ra, per inceptos himenaeos.

Holiday Class

We all love to enjoy food and drink around the holidays, and this class focuses on drinks that capture the flavors of the season. The first is a punch drink, “It’s Hip to be Here” which incorporates rose hips and is perfect for batching for a party. We also create an aromatic experience by smoking a rosemary Old Fashioned with persimmon syrup.

Valentine’s

Valentines themed cocktails can be playful and balanced. In this class we made a very special ingredient for everyone to use in the second drink of the night. Earlier in the year we met the chocolatiers of Tres Gallos at a Social Hour cocktail classes. They later gave us some of the bourbon left over from a single origin cocoa bean infusion. We made a chocolate bitters from this incredibly unique spirit and used it in the second drink of the night “Tootsie Roll.”

Sours

This class is all about learning balance and dilution whilst exploring the family of drinks known as “sours.” We cover the why and when you shake or stir a drink.  We play with the ever favorite, Margarita, by infusing tequila with fresh pineapple and jalapeño. Our second drink covers the dry shake and the beauty of a proper whiskey sour.

To the Derby

Springtime fun inspired by the food and drink traditions of the “Race for the Roses.” In our Kentucky Derby class we explore the Arabic origins of the mint julep, taste snacks straight off the official menu from the Millionaire’s Row set for the 149th Derby, and learn the techniques to make your favorite Derby drinks at home.

Amaro

The herbal and aromatic family of spirits that make up Amari are wide and varied. Each family holds tight to their secret ingredient list, but with a bit of understanding of their flavor profiles we can find interesting ways to integrate them into our cocktails. In this class we make “Across the Pacific” and the “Boulevardier” which both incorporate, and are enhanced by, their use of an amaro.

drinking with churchill

For this special installment of Social Studies, we co-hosted the class with the local authors of “Churchill, a Drinking Life.” Inspired by the cocktail book, we made some of Churchill’s favorite drinks with champagne, cognac and cocktails. We even tracked down a recipe from Churchill’s long time chef, Georgina Landmere, and made her recipe for the evening’s snack.