Tuesday, September 15, 2009

New Cocktail for #1 Bestseller's Launch Party

A timely story: an exclusive cocktail for the launch party of Dan Brown’s #1 bestselling new book, “The Lost Symbol”
This is the backstory:

Award-Winning Mixologists Paul Zablocki and Steve Schul of the popular Web site CocktailBuzz.com have just created a hot new signature cocktail for the New York launch of Dan Brown’s latest best seller The Lost Symbol. The cocktail made its exclusive debut at Gotham Hall in Manhattan last night to an eager crowd of 350 invited guests. “Langdon’s Folly,” named after the novel’s sleuthing Harvard professor of religious symbology who appeared in Brown’s novels Angels & Demons (2000) and The Da Vinci Code (2003), is a beguiling mix of POM, vodka, and St-Germain elderflower liqueur (see below for picture and recipe).

“The nice people at Doubleday asked us to create a martini-style cocktail that reflected the book’s red jacket. We started playing with POM pomegranate juice, which mixes nicely with many spirits and makes any drink glow a deep rich red. The St-Germain adds a delightful herbal touch. We ended up making three drinks we just loved, and the folks at Doubleday chose one.”

Both Steve and Paul were told nothing about the book, which has been shrouded in mystery but quickly rose to number one on Amazon in presales, except the title and that it featured Robert Langdon, who was played by Tom Hanks in the film version of The Da Vinci Code. After doing a little Google sleuthing of their own, they discovered that the Freemasons and George Washington’s putative treasonous acts were perhaps the focus of this new book.

“We’re delighted with the results. The ‘Langdon’s Folly’ reminds us of white grapes bursting with juicy tangy sweetness.

Langdon’s Folly
(created by Steve Schul and Paul Zablocki, Cocktail Buzz)

1 1/2 oz. POM (pomegranate juice)
1 oz. vodka
1/4 oz. St-Germain elderflower liqueur

Shake in ice for 15 seconds. Strain into chilled cocktail glass. You can add an orange twist to this drink. Do not twist above cocktail—simply toss into the drink. A small peel (using a vegetable peeler and about 1/2 inch by 1 1/2 inches without the pith) would float nicely.

About Steve Schul and Paul Zablocki

Steve Schul and Paul Zablocki have been plying their love for cocktails, mixology, and food pairings on their Web site, Cocktail Buzz, and their blog “Buzzings” from Cocktail Buzz. They present videos that offer demonstrations of cocktail/appetizer pairings, recipes for meals to follow your cocktail, as well as photo essays about cocktail bars and restaurants in NYC and other cities. They love to share cocktail info and recipes to those who want to have fun at home and celebrate the joys of imbibing, yet like an occasional night at the bar. So check out what they have to say at CocktailBuzz.com and watch them create intoxicating delights.

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