2020: 86’d
By Chelsea White
If you’ve ever worked in the service industry, odds are you’ve heard or used the term “86.” It’s a phrase almost as old as the profession itself, meaning that the supply of an item is exhausted. (Merriam-Webster supplies this definition). For example: “86 spaghetti!” This is usually acknowledged by a resounding “Heard!” from anyone within range of the announcement.
There’s a lot of conjecture about the origin of this phrase, but much like the origin of the term “cocktail,” nobody knows for sure from whence it came. My favorite theory is this: during the infamous years of Prohibition there was a speakeasy called Chumley’s, located at 86 Bedford Street in the West Village of Lower Manhattan. Legend has it that before raids during this era, police would call the speakeasy and tell the bartender to “86” their customers, meaning that they were to exit through the door opening to the Bedford Street address, while police would enter from Pamela Street to give patrons a solid chance of escape. (Prohibition was clearly only successful at damaging the alcohol production side of the industry.)
The past year, there’s been a lot of 86ing. Not in the kitchens that were, before March, teeming with life and energy, but throughout the world and our industry. Life as we knew it? 86’d. Waking up every day confident that we knew what to expect from our days? 86’d. Gatherings, school, spontaneous vacations, meeting up with friends and coworkers for an end-of-the-day cocktail: 86’d. Throughout it all we have, every one of us, bided our time, adjusted, baked bread and hoped. We gave the pandemic a resounding “Heard!” and we waited.
Bartenders bounce back
February 24 is apparently National Bartender’s Day and, with any luck, we’ll be wrapping up our first month back “behind the pine” since November. We’re seeing a lot of hope these days: cases going down, vaccines slowly rolling out. While life is far from our pre-pandemic normals, there may actually be a light at the end of this tunnel. 2020 has appropriately given us similar challenges to the early 1920s, and one can only hope that the rest of this decade roars like the last one of its name did.
I always joke that we bartenders are like cockroaches: you just can’t get rid of us. Whether it be Prohibition, economic downfall, or pandemic, we’re there, slinging drinks, pouring beers, learning our regulars’ names and listening to their life stories. We’ve learned to smile with our eyes, so you can still know that we’re happy to see you behind our masks. We’ve rolled with packing your food to go, and sadly relinquished it through your open car windows in the cold, when all we really want is to be able to give you that full, precious experience that we all miss. I know I, for one, would love to have something other than, “How’s your apocalypse going?” to folks I haven’t seen in a while. Especially since we didn’t even get zombies in this unmitigated disaster-of-a-year, and I’ll forever feel betrayed by that.
I’m going to leave you today with a historical cocktail, created by one of the first prominent women in bartending, Ada Coleman, or “Coley.” Coley was the first, and to this day only, female head bartender at the famous Savoy Hotel of London. Her most famous cocktail was the Hanky Panky, created for a comic actor named Charles Hawtrey. These days, a little hanky-panky sounds like the height of excitement, so I felt it was apropos.
The Recipe: Hanky Panky
This is such a simple yet delicious cocktail that’s essentially a spin on a “wet” martini, with equal parts gin and sweet vermouth, finished with a few dashes of the perfectly balanced bitterness of Fernet-Branca and an orange twist.
You’ll need:
1 ½ ounces of gin. I’d stick to a London style that’s heavy on that juniper flavor. Think Iron Fish Distillery or the slightly lighter Mammoth Gin. If you want to go a little further apart, Valentine Distilling from Ferndale (with roots in northern Michigan) is always an appropriate choice.
1 ½ ounces of sweet vermouth. This is where we stray from a traditional martini and that dry vermouth we typically turn to. Doulin Rouge is a classic and affordable option, trust me when I say that you want to spend your money on a quality gin here and the Doulin Rouge will balance out that splurge.
2 dashes Fernet-Branca. Not only is this a fantastic tool for balancing the sweetness of this specific cocktail, having it on hand to sip on after a big meal will do wonders for an overworked stomach. It may be an acquired taste, but that taste is absolutely worth acquiring.
Combine these ingredients in a glass, add ice, stir in a circular motion until the glass feels nice and cold in your hands, and then strain your cocktail into a chilled glass. This drink is served “up,” so discard the ice once you’ve strained it and don’t add more.
Finish your cocktail with an orange twist. The best way to do this is to use a peeler on the outside of the orange. Just be careful to not cut deeply into the rind. Gently twist the peel over the glass with the outer skin facing toward your cocktail. All those oils will coat the glass and the drink, and create a light, aromatic citrus effect that will perfect your cocktail. Cheers!
Chelsea grew up working in her parents’ former restaurant on Beaver Island. She’s been behind the bar on and off since she was 20 and is passionate about all things alcohol. When she’s not “behind the pine” or on the beach, you can find her navigating homeschooling with her daughters, dabbling in writing or experimenting with new cocktails at home.
