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Thursday, August 3, 2017

The Bar at Husk's new bottled cocktails are easy-sipping, patio must-haves

99 bottles of booze on the wall

Posted by Mary Scott Hardaway on Thu, Aug 3, 2017 at 10:25 AM

click to enlarge Order the Corpse Reviver #2 with absinthe or Aero Mexico with tequila - MARY SCOTT HARDAWAY
  • Mary Scott Hardaway
  • Order the Corpse Reviver #2 with absinthe or Aero Mexico with tequila

Why order a bottled cocktail when you can order, say, a regular, made fresh in front of your face cocktail? That's the question we had when we visited the Bar at Husk last night. The bottled cocktail trend has been floating around for the past few years, with the ostensible end-game being: let's serve more people in a shorter amount of time.

The concern is, of course, if you focus on quantity, are you sacrificing quality? We can't speak for other locations, but if you visit the Bar at Husk, you're going to get a damn good cocktail, no matter what vessel it comes in. Here are a few options — bottled or otherwise — you should try, responsibly, with a pal, during the final dog days of summer. 
click to enlarge The Aero Mexico is crisp and cool - MARY SCOTT HARDAWAY
  • Mary Scott Hardaway
  • The Aero Mexico is crisp and cool

The Aero Mexico and Corpse Reviver #2
The Bar only serves their bottled cocktails (currently there are 4 on the menu) on the patio, which just opened this past February. With the inside bar almost always poppin', the patio serves as a quieter expansion of the space.

The menu describes the bottled cocktails as "made fresh daily and served in an individual bottle." It goes on to read that, "Not exactly historical but mention of bottled cocktails began in 1827. Milk punches were once the bottled cocktail of choice. Enjoy these riffs on the original bottled cocktails with a tilt of your head on a hot day." Our server informed us that basically, the bartenders needed a break from the shaking and twisting and pouring, so they started bottling their spirits to serve to patio-sippers. And on a 90 degree day with 80 percent humidity, a bottle delivered promptly to your table is about as good as it gets.

For a trip south of the border, try the Aero Mexico. Made with tequila, sauvignon blanc, lemon, agave, and Giffard apricot, it's basically the Corona of cocktails — one you could drink all afternoon.

The Corpse Reviver #2 would certainly bring you back from the dead. It's strong. With heavy notes of licorice, absinthe is the most notable ingredient in this drink. It also has gin, cointreau, lillet blanc, and lemon. This is the perfect cocktail to start with, before you switch to a lighter cocktail, or maybe a session beer, or water.

click to enlarge The Beets on Tour '95 - MARY SCOTT HARDAWAY
  • Mary Scott Hardaway
  • The Beets on Tour '95

Beets on Tour '95 and Watermelon Sorbet Float (with gin)
If you, like us, have a palate that appreciates a multitude of boozy beverages, then you may want to order bottled cocktails plus a good ole fashioned regular cocktail (which you can enjoy inside).

The Beets on Tour '95 is hands down the best beet iteration we've ever encountered. Seriously. Made with golden beets (no purple tongues!), rum, aperol, amaro, agave, lemon, and rose water, this is the smartest $10 you'll spend in the near future. It's new on the menu, so go grab it while it's hot.
click to enlarge The watermelon sorbet can be served with a shot of gin - MARY SCOTT HARDAWAY
  • Mary Scott Hardaway
  • The watermelon sorbet can be served with a shot of gin

The Bar's dessert menu has recently been revamped, too and now boozy shakes and sorbets are available for post-burger sipping or to serve as a sweet meal in and of itself. We tried the watermelon sorbet float — made with lime soda, mint frozen yogurt, and gorgeous chunks of fresh watermelon — sans alcohol, and it was the perfect refreshing end to a liquor-based meal. When we go back, though, we will definitely add that suggested pour of barrel aged Jasper's gin. Nothing says summertime like watermelon and gin.

Location Details The Bar at Husk
72 Queen St.
Downtown
Charleston, SC
(843) 577-2500
Dinner & Late Night. 4 p.m.-close
Cocktail Bar and Bar
Map

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