Blackbird Kitchen & Bar, which opened about four months ago, and Bartender Patrick O'Neill said a song inspired his addition to the Midtown Cocktail Week offerings with a drink he calls the William Tell. “I was taking light rail to work on a Monday – we are closed on Mondays so I like to come in and workshop some drinks and see what happens – but I was listening to the Brand New song 'You Won't Know,' and there are some references to William Tell in that song,” O’Neill said. “(I) got to work and started playing around, and all (of a) sudden I had this cocktail. I was happy with everything in it. Then I threw a slice of green apple over a rock cube and threw a cherry on top of it, and ther

Martinis, mojitos and mixology rule the day during Midtown's Cocktail Week, Aug. 19-26. The week features seven days full of cocktail tastings, mixology courses and the cocktail week bartending competition. Midtown Cocktail Week was founded in 2008 by mixology experts Erick Castro and Joe Anthony Savala to celebrate Sacramento’s thriving cocktail culture. The following year they formed the Cocktail Collective, comprised of industry professionals and cocktail enthusiasts, to help with the planning of cocktail week. In honor of election year, the theme of this year’s cocktail week is “A Spirited Debate.” According to Elizabeth Studebaker, Midtown Business Association Executive Director,

For Sacramentans who have ever pondered the mystery of what makes a cocktail special and want to sample new, classic, exotic and experimental cocktails, then they will have the opportunity beginning Monday. Midtown Cocktail Week is coming back to Sacramento for the fourth year, and for seven nights, 15 designated Midtown or downtown bars and restaurants will be featuring specialty cocktail events. For more information and a full list of events, click here.  “It’s good for business, (but) not in the monetary sense,” said Jason Boggs, co-owner of Shady Lady Saloon. “It lets people in Sacramento know they can drink better, and that makes quality of life better for everyone.” Midtown Cockt

"You've tried Ryan Seng's Drinks, right? I mean, YOU of all people have tasted the things he's doing down at Grange, right?" These are the sentiments that were repeated to me continuously as I got into this cocktail series. Seng hosts a bar that is not only fun to drink at, but creates a cocktail tasting experience as well. From working at New York establishments that are now showcased at the New York Times to the corporate world of bartending and waiting tables, Seng has quite a storied past working his way up the ranks. However, it was his new family that brought this Midwesterner to California, and that's when the cocktailing really began. From working with Patrick Mulvaney to Kurt Spa

When I first met the person next in line for my installment on this bartender series I immediately loved the image he projected, old-school "shady lady-style" bartender, and when I commented on his choices he said he didn't think anything of it, it's just how he does it. Mark Neuhauser has worked all over Sacramento establishments for the last 10+ years and come from a diverse background of corporate entities to boutique shops, but never has he gotten a chance to embrace the "drink" like he has now at Red Lotus. From working with Mixology giants like Erick Castro and Jayson Wilde, to helping create the beer program from the ground up at Red Lotus the talent and creativity are endless. "O

So behind all the razzle dazzle of the spirits culture here in Sacramento there is a strong hand that keeps it all going, keeps the new ideas flowing and is known as "The Godfather" of mixology in Sacramento. As the fourth installment of my series comes around this holiday season, it's Joe Anthony Savala from Zócalo that I'm talking to. Bringing Latin spirits to a town that only knew Jose Cuervo before has bridged new horizons for the tequila and mezcal world. Agave nectar is now a common additive instead of simple syrup, and it was visionaries like Savala who brought it here about five years ago, giving us access to tequila most of the world will never see outside Mexico. Widely acclaim

When the owners of Shady Lady Saloon decided Sacramento needed in on the newest bar craze, Prohibition-era drinks with people who are passionate about their craft, they lit up the Sacramento nightlife in a way that was just whispering through before. An artisan like Matt Nurge, an incumbent craftsmen at Shady Lady Saloon, makes the third bartender showcased in my All-Star Bartender series. The first time I met Nurge he was loaded down with drink orders and making it look like a snap. I don't like to burden bartenders with making labor-intensive drinks when they’re "in the weeds," but we waited a couple of minutes, and he was excited about the idea of making something new, not tired o

Ever wonder who's peer-recognized as the best bartender in Sacramento? Who makes the cocktails that scintillate the palate, dazzle the mind and always keep you guessing? Go no farther than 19th Street: we have a local treasure right here. For the second installment on the All-Star Bartender Series, I'm speaking of Chris Tucker. Tucker has been a Northern California local for much of his life, and after working in San Francisco for a period of time, and learning a great deal about his craft, he decided there was something special in Sacramento worth coming back for. So upon returning, Tucker has been working with L Wine Lounge and moonlighting at Shady Lady Saloon ever since. More than a

What's your favorite place to go get a drink? How do you like your cocktails made? When you order, are you really specific? There is a ridiculous amount of culinary talent in Sacramento, and it doesn't stop on the kitchen line. It makes its way to the speedrack and is being showcased all over downtown. In the next couple of weeks I want to give all those great drinksmiths their due, and highlight them in a series I’ve called: All-Star Bartenders in Sacramento. Check out the talent –you might be surprised the treasures that are right around the corner from you. The first in the series is a bartender that has a special place in my heart. He's a solid bartender who cares about his custome

Sacramentans in the mood for specially made cocktails need to look no further than Midtown this week. The annual Midtown Cocktail Week kicks off on Monday with seven nights filled to the brim with cocktail culture. Co-founder Joe Anthony Savala began the event in 2008 with Erick Castro after attending San Francisco’s Cocktail Week. “We really love the whole Midtown vibe and how it’s growing, so [we thought,] let’s put something together here,” Savala said. After some planning in conjunction with local restaurants and bars in Midtown and some help from San Francisco’s best bars, MCW was born. In 2009, the Midtown Business Association joined in. MCW is more than just enjoying beverages,

Bring your appetite and your camera for the Sacramento Zoo's King of Feasts Wine and Food Luau on Saturday, where the hot summer gets a taste of the jungle. King of Feasts has been running since the 1990s, though it took a hiatus for several years. This event is hosted by members of "Good Day Sacramento" and is a successful fundraiser for Sacramento Zoological Society. "The funds raised benefit zoo improvements, education programs and wildlife conservation, while at the same time providing the community a chance to get together and enjoy an evening at the zoo with good food and drinks," said Lauren Kraft, the zoo's public relations coordinator. This is the first year that the luau theme

The cocktail is one of few things Americans can call their own as part of the American legacy, aside from Texas barbeque and jazz, Erick Castro told his Cocktail 101 class Saturday afternoon at Midtown's Dragonfly. A former Zócalo bartender and cofounder of Sacramento’s annual Midtown Cocktail Week, Castro taught a group of almost 30 how to make an Oriental, gin gimlet and Manhattan in just two hours, while sharing more knowledge and history about the art of cocktail-making than they could hope to remember. This is the first year the class has been incorporated into the week-long event.  Participants worked at tables lined with shakers, jiggers (or measures), bottle openers, martini glas

It takes more than just top-shelf liquor to make a fine cocktail. It takes creativity with quality ingredients, inventive bartenders to mix them and establishments that like to be on the cutting edge. Starting Monday, the second annual Midtown Cocktail Week Sacramento begins a celebration of really good cocktails and the culture behind them: the people, the places, the spirits and the innovation of the city's growing artisan cocktail movement. "The cocktail movement -- it's just a movement toward quality," said 31-year-old bartender Erick Castro, considered by some to be the "godfather" of Sacramento's cocktail scene. "It's like the rebirth of a craft. And when you get down to it, it ju