Lesley Jacobs Solmonson

Grenadine, ginger ale or Sprite, and a maraschino cherry. Who would think such a seemingly simplistic combination would have achieved the fame it did?  Ask any kid, from today or yesterday, and you will get your answer.  For generations, the Shirley Temple, served in a tall, ice-filled glass and topped......

WeHo has a new spot for the Pretty Young Things to decorate. Vaucluse soft-opened Dec. 27 and officially opened on Jan. 26 - a fitting date, as it was Australia Day and married owners Brad and Claire Cox hail from Down Under. Housed in Charlie Chaplin's old Sunset Boulevard home,......

There's something inspired yet oh-so-logical about putting together mezcal and horchata. That's what Gracias Madre's beverage director Jason Eisner has done in his El Guey Aguanta. Translation: The Dude Abides. After one sip of this smooth, creamy and spiced concoction, you too will abide. Eisner's inspiration for El Guey is......

The Brix Refractometer may sound like the title of a Dr. Who episode, but - despite its scientific wizardry - it's far more down to earth. In an oversimplified nutshell, the brix refractometer measures the amount of sugar in an aqueous solution. Patina Group's lead mixologist Paul Sanguinetti got the......

A man stands behind a bar, nattily turned out in vest, diamond neck pin, diamond cuff links and diamond rings, all agleam in the evening light. In each of his hands he holds a silver mug, from which he pours back and forth a flaming waterfall of scotch. The drink:......

When the Spanish brought grape vines to South America, it's unlikely  they knew that these same grapes would someday be the life force in the famous Pisco Sour, made with a potent grape brandy called aptly enough pisco. Both Chile and Peru claim to have created the spirit, but for......

In the 1920s, American sailors termed their daily respite from the stresses of life at sea "happy hour," with on-deck entertainment frequently taking the form of wrestling and fistfights. Back on land, the spirits well had dried up with Prohibition, so eager imbibers would sneak into clandestine speakeasies to grab......

Bar None is part of a part of an ongoing series that explores local bartenders' favorite ingredients, familiar haunts, tipple of choice and "scientific" methods.  Aidan Demarest knows what he likes. When Demarest opened his own bar - Neat in Glendale - he specifically chose to make the spirits the......

This column is part of a new series called Cocktail of the Week in which we highlight a cocktail we love that week.  (Simple, eh?) Bartender Peter Lloyd-Jones loves caipirinhas, so when it came time to assemble the winter menu at 1886, it wasn't surprising that he did some tinkering......

National Bloody Mary Day may be January 1, but Saturday night revelers know that a sure way to pep up  on Sunday - any Sunday - is with a bit of "the hair of the dog," most often a Bloody Mary. So, come Sunday, it's Bloody Mary Day all over......