Women and Whiskey Features the Sazerac: Whisk(e)y Wednesday presented by Lock & Key

The Lock & Key Whiskey Bar may have a new sign, but that doesn't mean anything will change on the inside. If you're a lady and you've been missing the Women and Whiskey events, do yourself a favor and head over to Lock & Key this evening. They'll have special guests to come in to teach everyone the history of the Sazerac, Louisiana's official cocktail, along with a demonstration on how to make your very own.

Each month, Women and Whiskey is lead by Brandi Bostic Lauck, one of the owners of the whiskey bar. She organizes this special monthly tasting in order to provide an opportunity for women to come learn about whiskey with other women. Socially, whiskey is usually associated with the male gender and Brandi is looking to change that by providing women with vocabulary and facts they need in order to "talk like a man about whiskey." Forget everything you knew about girls night, because Brandi is going to hit you with free whiskey tastings, door prizes, and knowledge.

It all starts at 6:30 PM on one Wednesday a month at Lock & Key, and the April event is tonight (4/15).

Between Two Shells: Raw Gulf Oysters and Fresh Margaritas

by Blair Loup aka BRFluff

A Raw Gulf Oyster paired with a Fresh Margarita at Jolie Pearl

I remember as a child growing up in Southwest Louisiana, all of the men in my family gathered around a table slurping oysters out of shells at crawfish boils and fish fries. When my dad handed me my first Gulf oyster he encouraged me to try it without crackers and cocktail sauce. I looked at this slimy thing with a few drops of Tabasco and a squeeze of lemon cautiously, then knocked it back in true YOLO fashion (sorry not sorry). I’ve been a sucker for raw oysters ever since. When Jolie Pearl Oyster Bar opened up in downtown Baton Rouge I was excited to taste oysters from other areas for the first time.

Jolie Pearl offers a wide range of raw, baked, and chargrilled oysters and we at Bite and Booze have made it our self-serving mission to pair each of these with a delicious craft beer, wine, or one of Jolie Pearl’s stellar cocktails.

While I enjoy trying different types of oysters, the Gulf oyster tastes nostalgic to me for obvious reasons. It’s creamy, briny, and slightly murky (which is where the flavor comes from); add to that a little pop from a spicy horseradish sauce and you’ve got yourself a bite of Louisiana. Most of the time I would pair this with a beer, but I couldn’t pass up the fresh margarita. This version is made with freshly squeezed lemon, lime, and orange juices in addition to a little agave nectar. There’s something about the taste of fresh citrus and tequila with a sugar/salt rim paired with a freshly shucked Gulf oyster that makes me feel like I’m in one of those wind machines with money flying all around.

It’s a good time at Jolie Pearl Oyster Bar. There’s a vinyl happy hour (because yas) Monday-Friday from 4-7pm, and live music most Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights.

We’ve only shucked the surface with these pairings, so check back here every month for more Bite and Booze pairings from Jolie Pearl Oyster Bar!

Burt Reynolds' Mustache: Whisk(e)y Wednesday presented by Lock & Key

Burt Reynolds' Mustache at Lock & Key

Few things are as legendary as Burt Reynolds' mustache. Perhaps a Hulk Hogan leg drop or Britney Spears in a school girl outfit could come close, but still, that is one Hell of a mustache. In fact, it is such the 'stache that the Lock & Key Whiskey Bar named a cocktail after it. Part bourbon, part Scotch, and part other elixirs, the cocktail presents a smokey, whiskey forward balance that is great for sipping with or without upper lip hair.

The drink begins with a generous pour of Buffalo Trace bourbon. The skilled barkeeps at Lock & Key precisely add dry vermouth, simple syrup, B&B brandy, and Laphroaig 10 yr single malt Scotch to the mixture then pour it over a large square ice cube in a round rocks glass. The cocktail looks simple. It isn't garnished with an herb garden or served up where expectations are for the drinker to extend a pinky while sipping. Instead, the classic whiskey drink presentation is exactly how Burt Reynolds and his mustache would want it. And once you draw it to your tongue, your taste buds will tell you that the drink is anything but simple. There's a touch of sweetness that gets rounded out by the smoke from the Scotch. Every ingredient plays its role, and you'll be looking forward to ordering another.

Burt Reynolds and his famous mustache

My First Thoughts on Crispy Catch

by Jay D. Ducote

First things first: I enjoyed the food. No, it didn't stand out as revolutionary, inventive, or inspired. Then again, I don't believe anybody ever said that it would be. Crispy Catch is what it is – a place to get fried catfish fingers, fries, hushpuppies (or as they call them, corn bobbers), and boudin balls akin to Tony's Seafood, which are some of the most snackable and magical boudin balls in the world. They finished second in our ranking of Baton Rouge balls. The restaurant itself is a new fast-casual concept seeking to bring the flavors of Louisiana to a hungry audience.

Immediately upon walking up to the restaurant that has been built out of the old, iconic Kean's Dry Cleaning building near the Perkins Road overpass, you get the sense that they are going for something bigger than just one location. The branding screams corporate, like they've already designed their logo and color palate to expand to numerous locations. It may work. There is clear evidence of utilizing a Raising Cane's model, which certainly paid dividends for them.

Catfish Fingers at the new Crispy Catch on Perkins

Like Cane's, which started at the nearby North Gates of LSU, Crispy Catch offers a welcoming environment and a simple menu. There are four main combinations to order with different amounts of fried catfish and extras. They also offer fish tacos, which I definitely want to try but haven't yet. I opted for the Surf & Turf combo – the meal that came with boudin balls in addition to the catfish, fries, cole slaw, and hush puppies. The total for the entire plate and a drink came out to just over $13.

Based on the way the combo came out on a plate with fries and catfish fingers, I couldn't help but to think of Cane's and their chicken fingers with crinkle cut fries. They even had their signature "Reel Sauce," a remoulade style sauce very similar to Cane's Sauce. All in all, the fries weren't all that much to speak of, though they were fries, and certainly not bad. They were plentiful and thin cut, but not to the point of being shoestring.The cole slaw offered very little to my taste buds, though I suppose a little tang to go with all the fried food isn't bad.

Compared to Cane's (not they have to be compared to Cane's, but they brought the compare and contrast on themselves), I noticed the absence of fresh squeezed lemonade and really good sweet tea. The beverage options were pretty much limited to a Coca-Cola lineup of fountain drinks, which I feel can be improved upon. If you want to be a local joint, bring in a cooler with some Swamp Pop and other regional beverages. If the idea is to build something that can be scaled to many locations, and you're copying Cane's anyway, don't underestimate the value of the beverages.

Another thing that makes Crispy Catch fast-casual but not necessarily "fast food" is that there is no drive through. Nothing wrong with that, though the convenience sales to night-owls in the overpass area could be a good business model. That being said, as of now the hours at Crispy Catch don't go into the late night market anyway.

The star of the show definitely proved to be the fried fish, with a nod to the boudin balls as well. At the end of the day, a place is judged on what they truly claim to be good at, and at Crispy Catch that's the USA farm raised catfish fingers. The don't do any whole filets of catfish. They don't fry shrimp or any other Louisiana seafood. The star of their limited menu is the catfish, and it lived up to expectations. The slender strips of catfish are marinated and battered in seasoned flour. It is a departure from the more common cornmeal style fish fry base around here, but I didn't mind. The catfish indeed had plenty of crispiness. The reel sauce and the house tartar sauce were both great dips for the catfish.

I also can't complain about the hush puppies or boudin balls. I'd even go back for the boudin balls. They really are very similar to Tony's, which again, is good in my book. In fairness, the owners of Crispy Catch are tied to the family that owns Tony's, though they no long share any stock in the famous seafood market. Still, I can see why if they wanted to put boudin balls on the menu that they'd go with a replica of the Italian-inspired boudin ball.

I can see myself going back to Crispy Catch, but I don't know how often. The very limited menu will make it hard to go often. And the fact that they aren't as convenient nor do they have all the intangibles as Cane's means they won't really get the quick-meal-on-my-way-home kind of business. And as much as I've compared Crispy Catch to Raising Cane's, it is missing perhaps the most important element: the "One Love" motto and attitude. I didn't feel it. I just had a decent fried catfish platter, but nothing else about the experience would make me identify with the brand. Perhaps in time they'll find their own motto.

Who makes the best American whiskey? - Whisk(e)y Wednesday presented by Lock & Key

Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Rye Whiskey

Last week I wrote about the best single malt whisky in the world for 2015 according to Whisky Magazine's World Whiskies Awards. For this week's Whisk(e)y Wednesday posted, presented by Baton Rouge's Lock & Key Whiskey Bar, I wanted to reveal the results of the American Whiskey category.

For starters, the Balcones Texas Single Malt represented America in the single malt category. The Son of Liberty Seasonal Hop Flavored Whiskey also too the American spot in the flavored whiskey category.

For Best American Whiskey, the categories are best bourbon, best non-bourbon, best rye, and best wheat whiskey. The Pappy Van Winkle's Family Reserve 20 Year won best bourbon, proving that their hype isn't solely based on supply and demand. The Mellow Corn Kentucky Straight Corn whiskey won for best non-bourbon. The Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Straight Rye Whiskey took the prize in the rye category while the Parker's Heritage Collection Kentucky Straight Wheat Whiskey won its round. Out of those finalists, the Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Rye took home the best American Whiskey. Congrats to them! Oh, and you can find it at the Lock & Key Whiskey Bar!