King of Industry

  Chapter 269 Alaska and Alabama

  When I came out of St. Paul Hotel, it was raining lightly outside.

  In March, Sao Paulo is at the end of summer, with heavy rainfall, and flash floods are common.

  After going out, Zhao Guoyang held up an umbrella and walked slowly towards the bar street Suzanne mentioned.

  In front of the first bar on the street, Zhao Guoyang saw Susanna sitting alone under the round awning.

   It may be because the weather is slightly cooler at night. Susanna wore a knitted sweater with a fluffy ponytail, which looked extraordinarily neat and stylish.

  Susanna also saw Zhao Guoyang approaching, put down the order in her hand, and waved to him with a bright smile on her face.

  After Zhao Guoyang was seated, Suzanne handed over the order with a smile and asked, "Look, Zhao, what do you want to drink?"

   After taking the wine list, Zhao Guoyang was immediately attracted by the dazzling cocktail names and recipes.

   Cocktails are no stranger to Zhao Guoyang.

  As a wine taster with a high style, Zhao Guoyang in his previous life liked to drink, but he was not addicted to alcohol.

  Because of traveling around the world all year round, Zhao Guoyang has quite a detailed understanding of cocktails from all over the world.

  Even he himself can make several cocktails with different styles casually.

  Seeing the types of these cocktails on the wine list at this time, Zhao Guoyang couldn't help but recall the days when he was drinking alone in the bar in his previous life.

   "Zhao? How about I choose a cup for you?" Seeing that Zhao Guoyang's eyes were a little erratic, Suzanne next to him couldn't help reminding him softly.

   "Ah..." Waking up from Suzanne's voice, Zhao Guoyang scratched his head in embarrassment and said, "Sorry, I thought of something..."

"it does not matter!"

  Susanna supported her chin with one hand, looked at Zhao Guoyang intently, and said, "The Bacardi in this bar is pretty good, do you want to try it?"

  The "Bacardi" Suzanne mentioned is a cocktail made with rum as the base liquor. It has always been very popular in Samba.

  However, the taste of "Bacardi" is a bit strong, which is not the type that Zhao Guoyang likes.

  Looking at the rainwater splashed on the ground from time to time, he thought for a while, then asked with a smile: "Miss Suzanne, can customers make drinks by themselves here?"

  As soon as Zhao Guoyang's voice fell, a pleasant mature woman's voice sounded behind him: "Of course, if the wine you make is good, our bar can even give you a discount..."

   Zhao Guoyang turned his head in surprise when he heard the words, and saw a beautiful bartender with blond hair, blue eyes and a hot figure standing gracefully beside him and Susanna.

  Susanna is obviously very familiar with a beautiful bartender. After hearing what she said to Zhao Guoyang, she joked, "Sister Matilda, I can also enjoy this benefit, right?"

   "Of course, as long as this gentleman also helps Miss Suzanne make a cocktail above the standard, then I can also give you a discount." The beautiful bartender Matilda said with a smile.

  After hearing what she said, Suzanne turned her head to look at Zhao Guoyang and said, "Well, Zhao, it's up to you now. I don't know anything about bartending."

   Zhao Guoyang said indifferently: "OK, no problem. Then please Miss Matilda to lead me the way."

   "Sir, this way please!" Matilda bowed, and under Suzanne's gaze with great interest, she led Zhao Guoyang to the bar at the front of the bar.

Following Matilda to the bartending area at the door, Zhao Guoyang asked: "Miss Matilda, I don't know if your bar has all the base wine, is there any Amsterdam gin? I want to mix it for Susanna first. A glass of Alaska…”

   The gin Zhao Guoyang mentioned, also known as gin, is one of the top-ranked spirits in the world.

  Gin was first produced in Windmill Country, and then gradually spread to European and American countries.

   This kind of wine is a grain wine obtained by fermenting and distilling at least three times with grains such as barley malt and rye as the main raw materials.

   After that, add juniper berry spices and distill, store in glass tanks, and get the wine after it matures.

   Its biggest feature is its unique style, cool color and outstanding aroma. When tasting, it often has a herbal fragrance.

  Although the quality of gin is very unique, most of the time it is only suitable for single drinking and is not suitable as a base wine for cocktails.

   Amsterdam gin, in particular, is notoriously difficult to make.

   Now that Zhao Guoyang asked this question, Matilda knew immediately that this handsome guy with an oriental face must be a master of bartending.

   "Sir, you are asking the right person. Our bar happens to have this kind of Amsterdam gin. I'll bring it to you right away!" Matilda glanced at Zhao Guoyang expectantly, and turned to get the drink.

  With the base wine, Zhao Guoyang chose the more common liqueurs "Campari" and "Xinar".

  The addition of liqueur is mainly to reconcile the flavor and taste of the base wine.

  Due to the uniqueness of Amsterdam gin, the choice of liqueur is not so important.

  After choosing the base wine and liqueur, Zhao Guoyang chose pomegranate and blackberry. These two relatively rare fruits are the most auxiliary ingredients.

   Next, he first put the pomegranate and blackberries into the classic cup, then used a stirring rod to stir out the juice, and then added brown sugar to mix and stir.

   After removing the remaining fruit residue, Zhao Guoyang took a glass of ice cubes from Matilda's hand, poured them into it, and finally added several wines that he had prepared in proportion and put them aside.

  After mixing all these together, Zhao Guoyang rolled up his sleeves, picked up the classic cup with one hand and shook it left and right a few times, then gently put the quilt aside.

  Seeing Zhao Guoyang's smooth movements, Matilda's eyes sparkled with splendor.

  Although she has never seen this wine prepared by Zhao Guoyang, she still has good eyesight after being immersed in the bar for so many years.

   Needless to say, just based on Zhao Guoyang's actions and the color of this cocktail, he knows that this wine is definitely a boutique.

  Putting this cup of freshly baked "Alaska" aside, Zhao Guoyang smiled at Matilda and said, "This 'Alaska' is suitable for girls. I made it for Susanna. Please send it to me!"

   "Of course! Please wait a moment!" Matilda nodded again and again, carefully picked up the wine glass from Zhao Guoyang, and walked quickly to Susanna's side.

   "Miss Suzanne, this is the drink that Mr. Zhao made for you."

   Taking the wine glass in Matilda's hand, looking at the crystal clear wine in the glass, Susanna burst into joy.

Before she had time to take a sip, she couldn't help asking: "Sister Matilda, Zhao is very good at bartending, isn't he? I saw his movements just now, and it seems that he is no better than the bartender in your hotel." Poor! Of course, compared to you, a senior bartender, it is probably a little bit inferior, right?"

   "No, Miss Suzanne, you are wrong."

  Matilda shook her head, and said in a very sincere tone, "This gentleman's bartending skills are not inferior to mine. At least, I can't catch up with the two wines he made..."

  After hearing this, Susanna was shocked. She stared at Zhao Guoyang in a daze, only to find that he had already picked up a bottle of brandy and began to match the base wine of the second cocktail on his own.

   "Oh, is it really that powerful? This is too amazing! No, I want to taste it first!" After Susannah said to herself, she brought the wine glass to her lips and took a sip.

   "Uh, this wine..."

   After taking the first sip, Susanna felt somewhat disappointed, as if there was nothing special about the wine.

  However, before she could say her evaluation, the wine that had just swallowed down her throat had exuded a refreshing herbal fragrance, which directly shocked her whole body.

   "How does it taste?" Matilda asked while observing Zhao Guoyang's bartending movements in front.

   "Well, it's amazing, it has a strange taste that can't be described. Sister Matilda, you have a taste too!" Susannah held the crispy breast in her hand and handed the wine glass to Matilda.

  Matilda and Susanna should be very familiar with each other, but without any hesitation, they brought the wine glass over and took a sip.

   A few seconds later, when the fragrance flooded into Matilda's throat, her eyes showed the same shock as Susanna's.

   After taking a deep breath, Matilda looked at Susanna seriously and said, "I want to take back what I just said."

   "Miss Suzanne, this friend of yours has gone beyond my understanding of the 'Alaska' cocktail. This glass is the most special and most flavorful 'Alaska' I have tasted so far."

   "Wow, is it really that powerful?" Susannah covered her mouth and exclaimed.

  While the two of them were amazed here, the movements in Zhao Guoyang's hands had entered the final stage.

  The cocktail he is making now is called "Alabama", which is a rich cocktail with brandy as the base wine.

  Generally speaking, brandy is a more luxurious choice as the base wine. Good brandy usually sells for several hundred dollars, which is really a lot of money.

  However, Zhao Guoyang chose ordinary cognac with a lower cost, and the price was only more than ten dollars.

  I saw him add six ice cubes to the mixing glass, and then use a wine measurer to slowly pour brandy and several liqueurs into it in turn.

  Next, Zhao Guoyang used a bar spoon to stir the wine in the mixing glass 15 times in a clockwise direction, then used an ice filter to block the mouth of the glass, and poured the mixed wine into the wine glass.

  Finally, a slice of lemon is added to the wine glass, and this "Alabama" is freshly baked.

  When Matilda and Suzanne watched Zhao Guoyang approaching with this glass of translucent cocktail, they both showed eager expressions on their faces.

  (end of this chapter)