Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/960891
42 / the tasting panel / april 2018 BEAUTY IS ONLY Skin Deep Mara Marski is an Associate Editor at The Tasting Panel and serves as the magazine's resident bartender. (BUT IT'S VERY INSTAGRAMMABLE) My parents were explicit in their warning to never judge a book by its cover, but they didn't grow up in the age of social media. In a nod to Instagram's role as a virtual stage for mixologists, I'm celebrating some of my favorite presentation-focused cocktail trends this month. PHOTO: JOHN CURLEY Rye Su of Bear and Stone in Los Angeles created The Last Chinese New Year cocktail to honor the memory of his grandfather. PHOTO: RYE SU The establishment of "ice programs" at bars and restaurants is nothing new: For years now, venues with upscale cocktail programs have understood that seemingly-minor aesthetics like quality ice can set them apart from other establishments. Recently, though, the craft ice trend has evolved even further with the onset of branded cubes. At the NoMad Hotel in New York, for example, bar staff use a weighted copper stamp to emblazon the five-star venue's stylish logo on their cocktails' house-produced cubes. On the West Coast, Southern California–based Ice Bulb is one mem- ber of a growing group of luxury producers crafting small-batch ice in a major way. Their facility uses a reverse-osmosis water system to create crystal-clear, machine- cut ice that's shaped, filled with snow, and fused back together. The company's designer cubes even hit the red carpet in March at the 90th annual Academy Awards, where they filled the drinks of the rich and famous with the likeness of the awards' Oscar statuette. ICE ICE BABY LUXURY ICE IS THE YEAR'S COLDEST HOTTEST TREND Gastronomic trends are becoming increasingly visible on bar tops, with printed beverage garnishes—inspired by a baking technique in which an image printed in edible ink is transferred to a cake—serving as perhaps the most eye-catching examples. Rye Su of bartending company Bear and Stone recently made a splash in Los Angeles with his Rittenhouse Rye–based cocktail The Last Chinese New Year, a tribute to his late grandfather. The colorful horse garnish is printed with edible ink on wafer paper, which doesn't alter the flavor profile of the drink. COCKTAIL OR CANVAS? BARTENDERS CREATE EDIBLE WORKS OF ART BY THE GLASS PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NOMAD HOTEL The NoMad Hotel logo is emblazed on the ice inside the Start Me Up cocktail at the hotel's New York establishment. Hollywood's favorite statue graced celebrities' glasses at the 90th annual Academy Awards, thanks to Southern California ice décor company Ice Bulb. PHOTO COURTESY OF ICE BULB