What does one do with a 26-pound lug of peaches? Eat them. Bake muffins. And, when you’re tired of that, make a batch of peach liqueur. I’ve written about infusions for years, most recently for an upcoming piece on cocktail trends in the Kansas City Star, but never done one myself. It turns out Scott… Continue Reading
“Anything that smells good and doesn’t poison us can be the start of a cocktail.” This from Chris Conatser, the botanist bartender at Justus Drugstore in Smithville. During a recent interview about cocktail trends, Conatser told me that he draws inspiration from everywhere—daisies along the road, corn tassling out, aromas from the kitchen. If it… Continue Reading
My guess is not as far as Jonathan Justus, executive chef and owner of Justus Drugstore in Smithville, Mo., and bartender botanist Chris Conatser. Justus buys as much locally produced meat, veg, fruit and so on as he can for the restaurant, but he and Conatser also regularly help farmers harvest more esoteric crops like… Continue Reading