MR. & MRS. PETRASKE: EFFORTLESS ENTERTAINING: COUPLING UP FOR A MODERN COCKTAIL PARTY AT HOMEJANUARY 14, 2017 | 1:00 PM - 2:15 PM | $45.00
EMBASSY SUITES RIVERWALK DOWNTOWN Georgette Moger & Friends BUY TICKETS Within the pages of Regarding Cocktails, there are essays written by Georgette and her husband, the late Sasha Petraske, on the art of entertaining with cocktails for a crowd. In this seminar, Georgette will be joined by friends to demonstrate home entertaining cocktails from the book, and maybe even a few artful go-to’s for aboard a train or a plane. |
January 2017 Book Signing & SeminarGeorgette Moger-Petraske is a spirits and style writer whose work has appeared in Wine Enthusiast, Departures, Imbibe and Edible magazines. Her best-selling book, Regarding Cocktails, published by Phaidon, is a liquid memoir and celebration of her late husband Sasha Petraske's legacy in spirits and cocktails. 2017 SEMINARS |
Press: My San Antonio
By Emily Spicer
The San Antonio Cocktail Conference wrapped up Sunday after five days of downtown San Antonio spilling over with classic and new cocktails being shaken, stirred and sipped.
I attended a couple of events and came away with wonderful ideas I can’t wait to put in action at my next cocktail party, and no doubt other attendees feel the same way. But however important good cocktails and good food are — and they are very important — more important is the overall party, the mood and the scene.
Think about it. When was the last time you left a friend’s party complaining because your Moscow mule had too much lime juice or because you wish she would start serving goat cheese in addition to the baked brie and cheddar?
But I have left some parties thinking the lights were too bright, wondered why there was no music and wished it had been easier to get a drink. (To my friends reading this, I assure you none of these complaints came from your house. Smiley face.)
Georgette Moger-Petraske, who led a seminar Saturday at the conference about how to throw a home cocktail party, and I agree on much about entertaining.
Moger-Petraske is a travel writer focusing on spirits and cocktails and the widow of Sasha Petraske, founder of the influential New York cocktail bar Milk & Honey and many other polished drinking spots across the world. His role in the modern cocktail revival is difficult to overestimate, and he was one of the founders of the San Antonio Cocktail Conference.
Moger-Petraske recently finished and published a book started by her late husband, “Regarding Cocktails” (Phaidon), which she referenced heavily in the tips she presented at the conference and which was written as a minimalist guide to creating Milk & Honey-worthy cocktails at home and for parties.
“We loved entertaining,” Moger-Petraske said by phone after the conference.
The scene setup from a cocktail party thrown by Georgette Moger-Petraske and Sasha Petraske. At their cocktail parties, he always handled the cocktails and she made the canapés.She says they entertained three to five times a month, counting small occasions with just another couple. But their actual cocktail parties were something special: dressy, adult, classy, often themed, and one suspects there was more than a splash of mischievousness at play.
Still, Petraske’s seriousness for the art and technique of a good cocktail and party comes through in the book with such meticulous instructions as, “One bartender working with batched cocktails and punch, in a well-set-up bar with a clearly visible menu, can serve up to forty guests, maximum. If you make beer and wine a separate self-serve station, that can up the capacity to fifty. And if you add a self-serve punch station you can serve up to sixty people.”
This was a guy who took his fun seriously. Here are more of the couple’s tips, with my 2 cents’ worth:
Darken your rooms with dimmers or by installing lower-wattage bulbs. Seriously, y’all, fluorescent brightness gives your party all the charm of a doctor’s office. A darker room adds intimacy and coziness and inspires conversation.
Candles are great, but only in places where they won’t get knocked over or set a curtain on fire. For those areas, newer LED flameless candles that actually flicker and look like a real, moving flame, are a much safer choice.
You’re the host, and responsible for the safety and the enjoyment of your guests. Don’t get drunk. It’s fine to enjoy a drink at your own party, but you need to remain coherent enough to judge a guest’s sobriety and to be able to call a cab or an ambulance if needed.
Don’t invite more people than your home can handle. Cramming 100 people into a studio apartment and hallway was great in college, but only then. Invite what your home can really handle, allotting 8 to 10 square feet per person, Petraske suggests. And one bathroom can handle 40 people max.
On the flip side, if you have a large home and just a handful of guests, pick a more defined area where guests can feel cozier and like a group.
Include clear instructions in your invite. Moger-Petraske said she loves themed parties because they help guests figure out the right attire and what kind of party vibe to expect. If there’s no theme, write something like, “Come dressed for cocktails,” she suggests, so your guests don’t show up in jeans and flip-flops. “Six to 8 (p.m.) is a dressy time of day,” she said. “We loved to dress up. We were very simpatico.”
Divide and conquer as a couple. Moger-Petraske said that at her and her husband’s parties, she would handle the canapés and Petraske would be in charge of cocktails. It was natural for them.
I can say from experience that having defined roles and duties clearly laid out from the beginning is so important — SO important — when hosting as a couple. Well, do that, and then stick to the plan and let the other person do his or her thing. Chaos, anger and tears are likely to ensue otherwise (for reals, y’all), and that is hardly conducive to merriment later.
At a recent Atlantis-themed cocktail party at my house, a bowl of blue martinis (renamed Lost City Punch for the occasion) did nicely.Pre-batch it. Pre-make it. Pre-set it. No one expects your home to be a full bar. So pick a small, limited menu of cocktails to serve, and then make those in large quantities in advance. Make the menu visible so guests don’t have to guess what you have available or drive you crazy with special requests. This way, all you have to do is shake or stir to chill and serve in a great glass with a garnish.
(This clip from “Father of the Bride” of Spencer Tracy stuck in the kitchen making cocktails illustrates perfectly what happens when these suggestions are not followed. Moger-Petraske showed this at her seminar, and the laughter and many nodding heads spoke volumes about how common a pitfall this is.)
In addition, make a big, strong punch to welcome guests when they arrive. Punch bowls are great, but be creative. You can serve this in a pitcher, vase or any big bowl (even a well-washed fishbowl will work) and have fun with teacups or other glassware for drinking it.
And if your party is more in the 60-person range, adding a lighter, less boozy punch near the bar area can help take the pressure off your cocktail making while guests serve themselves.
Now on this point, I differ a bit from Moger-Petraske. If you are hosting alone, serving cocktail a la minute (even with pre-batching) can be hard to achieve without investing in a bartender or finding a volunteer, and it might be too expensive for some hosts. If you’re shaking a cocktail, you’re not mingling with guests and making them feel welcome. I would rather have more time with the host than a French 75. (Well, most hosts. Smiley face. I do love a French 75.)
I see nothing wrong in having one big punch and a self-serve wine and beer bar set up next to it with a large, iced wine tub for chilling and room on the table for the red wine bottles guests will always bring. But then, my crowd on average has a cocktail or two at most before switching to mostly wine the rest of the evening. Deciding what to serve is all about knowing your guests.
As much as you can, choose glass over plastic. Budgets don’t budge, and renting glassware or buying enough for a party can be expensive. But you lose the sense of fancy cocktail party with plastic, which Petraske believed only appropriate for serving cats. Meow.
.If you booze, you must serve food. Even a two-hour cocktail party needs something for guests for nibble on. Moger-Petraske served the prettiest canapés at her seminar to go with the classic, simple cocktails. There were tea sandwiches (small white bread sandwiches served crustless and cut into triangles) of salmon and cream cheese and of cucumber and microgreens. She also served the most divine cardamom-poached apricots filled with mascarpone and dusted with chopped pistachios, as well as goat cheese rolled into small, truffle-size balls and rolled in a variety of herbs and spices.
These are perfect for a classic cocktail party of the “Mad Men”-type with plenty of gin and rye drinks, but there are plenty of other recipes all over the internet, so have fun exploring for bites that match what you’re serving — and make sure these can be made ahead. Ideally, you should be able to just pull already-assembled plates out of the fridge and set them out just before guests arrive.
Entertaining well is an art. And as in art, say, painting, it’s helpful to learn the basics before you find what works best for you and your “voice.” It also gets easier the more you do it.
So as your 2017 new year, new me resolutions start to fade, maybe it’s time to consider “throw more parties” as a viable goal for the year. You know, because art.
Readers, what are your favorite cocktails and hors d’oeuvres to serve at a party? Email me the details and recipes with photos if you have them, along with your name and daytime number, and you could be in my column.
The San Antonio Cocktail Conference wrapped up Sunday after five days of downtown San Antonio spilling over with classic and new cocktails being shaken, stirred and sipped.
I attended a couple of events and came away with wonderful ideas I can’t wait to put in action at my next cocktail party, and no doubt other attendees feel the same way. But however important good cocktails and good food are — and they are very important — more important is the overall party, the mood and the scene.
Think about it. When was the last time you left a friend’s party complaining because your Moscow mule had too much lime juice or because you wish she would start serving goat cheese in addition to the baked brie and cheddar?
But I have left some parties thinking the lights were too bright, wondered why there was no music and wished it had been easier to get a drink. (To my friends reading this, I assure you none of these complaints came from your house. Smiley face.)
Georgette Moger-Petraske, who led a seminar Saturday at the conference about how to throw a home cocktail party, and I agree on much about entertaining.
Moger-Petraske is a travel writer focusing on spirits and cocktails and the widow of Sasha Petraske, founder of the influential New York cocktail bar Milk & Honey and many other polished drinking spots across the world. His role in the modern cocktail revival is difficult to overestimate, and he was one of the founders of the San Antonio Cocktail Conference.
Moger-Petraske recently finished and published a book started by her late husband, “Regarding Cocktails” (Phaidon), which she referenced heavily in the tips she presented at the conference and which was written as a minimalist guide to creating Milk & Honey-worthy cocktails at home and for parties.
“We loved entertaining,” Moger-Petraske said by phone after the conference.
The scene setup from a cocktail party thrown by Georgette Moger-Petraske and Sasha Petraske. At their cocktail parties, he always handled the cocktails and she made the canapés.She says they entertained three to five times a month, counting small occasions with just another couple. But their actual cocktail parties were something special: dressy, adult, classy, often themed, and one suspects there was more than a splash of mischievousness at play.
Still, Petraske’s seriousness for the art and technique of a good cocktail and party comes through in the book with such meticulous instructions as, “One bartender working with batched cocktails and punch, in a well-set-up bar with a clearly visible menu, can serve up to forty guests, maximum. If you make beer and wine a separate self-serve station, that can up the capacity to fifty. And if you add a self-serve punch station you can serve up to sixty people.”
This was a guy who took his fun seriously. Here are more of the couple’s tips, with my 2 cents’ worth:
Darken your rooms with dimmers or by installing lower-wattage bulbs. Seriously, y’all, fluorescent brightness gives your party all the charm of a doctor’s office. A darker room adds intimacy and coziness and inspires conversation.
Candles are great, but only in places where they won’t get knocked over or set a curtain on fire. For those areas, newer LED flameless candles that actually flicker and look like a real, moving flame, are a much safer choice.
You’re the host, and responsible for the safety and the enjoyment of your guests. Don’t get drunk. It’s fine to enjoy a drink at your own party, but you need to remain coherent enough to judge a guest’s sobriety and to be able to call a cab or an ambulance if needed.
Don’t invite more people than your home can handle. Cramming 100 people into a studio apartment and hallway was great in college, but only then. Invite what your home can really handle, allotting 8 to 10 square feet per person, Petraske suggests. And one bathroom can handle 40 people max.
On the flip side, if you have a large home and just a handful of guests, pick a more defined area where guests can feel cozier and like a group.
Include clear instructions in your invite. Moger-Petraske said she loves themed parties because they help guests figure out the right attire and what kind of party vibe to expect. If there’s no theme, write something like, “Come dressed for cocktails,” she suggests, so your guests don’t show up in jeans and flip-flops. “Six to 8 (p.m.) is a dressy time of day,” she said. “We loved to dress up. We were very simpatico.”
Divide and conquer as a couple. Moger-Petraske said that at her and her husband’s parties, she would handle the canapés and Petraske would be in charge of cocktails. It was natural for them.
I can say from experience that having defined roles and duties clearly laid out from the beginning is so important — SO important — when hosting as a couple. Well, do that, and then stick to the plan and let the other person do his or her thing. Chaos, anger and tears are likely to ensue otherwise (for reals, y’all), and that is hardly conducive to merriment later.
At a recent Atlantis-themed cocktail party at my house, a bowl of blue martinis (renamed Lost City Punch for the occasion) did nicely.Pre-batch it. Pre-make it. Pre-set it. No one expects your home to be a full bar. So pick a small, limited menu of cocktails to serve, and then make those in large quantities in advance. Make the menu visible so guests don’t have to guess what you have available or drive you crazy with special requests. This way, all you have to do is shake or stir to chill and serve in a great glass with a garnish.
(This clip from “Father of the Bride” of Spencer Tracy stuck in the kitchen making cocktails illustrates perfectly what happens when these suggestions are not followed. Moger-Petraske showed this at her seminar, and the laughter and many nodding heads spoke volumes about how common a pitfall this is.)
In addition, make a big, strong punch to welcome guests when they arrive. Punch bowls are great, but be creative. You can serve this in a pitcher, vase or any big bowl (even a well-washed fishbowl will work) and have fun with teacups or other glassware for drinking it.
And if your party is more in the 60-person range, adding a lighter, less boozy punch near the bar area can help take the pressure off your cocktail making while guests serve themselves.
Now on this point, I differ a bit from Moger-Petraske. If you are hosting alone, serving cocktail a la minute (even with pre-batching) can be hard to achieve without investing in a bartender or finding a volunteer, and it might be too expensive for some hosts. If you’re shaking a cocktail, you’re not mingling with guests and making them feel welcome. I would rather have more time with the host than a French 75. (Well, most hosts. Smiley face. I do love a French 75.)
I see nothing wrong in having one big punch and a self-serve wine and beer bar set up next to it with a large, iced wine tub for chilling and room on the table for the red wine bottles guests will always bring. But then, my crowd on average has a cocktail or two at most before switching to mostly wine the rest of the evening. Deciding what to serve is all about knowing your guests.
As much as you can, choose glass over plastic. Budgets don’t budge, and renting glassware or buying enough for a party can be expensive. But you lose the sense of fancy cocktail party with plastic, which Petraske believed only appropriate for serving cats. Meow.
.If you booze, you must serve food. Even a two-hour cocktail party needs something for guests for nibble on. Moger-Petraske served the prettiest canapés at her seminar to go with the classic, simple cocktails. There were tea sandwiches (small white bread sandwiches served crustless and cut into triangles) of salmon and cream cheese and of cucumber and microgreens. She also served the most divine cardamom-poached apricots filled with mascarpone and dusted with chopped pistachios, as well as goat cheese rolled into small, truffle-size balls and rolled in a variety of herbs and spices.
These are perfect for a classic cocktail party of the “Mad Men”-type with plenty of gin and rye drinks, but there are plenty of other recipes all over the internet, so have fun exploring for bites that match what you’re serving — and make sure these can be made ahead. Ideally, you should be able to just pull already-assembled plates out of the fridge and set them out just before guests arrive.
Entertaining well is an art. And as in art, say, painting, it’s helpful to learn the basics before you find what works best for you and your “voice.” It also gets easier the more you do it.
So as your 2017 new year, new me resolutions start to fade, maybe it’s time to consider “throw more parties” as a viable goal for the year. You know, because art.
Readers, what are your favorite cocktails and hors d’oeuvres to serve at a party? Email me the details and recipes with photos if you have them, along with your name and daytime number, and you could be in my column.