Holland America Adds New Craft Cocktail Menu

You won’t find a Flor de Jerez cocktail in my mother’s 70-year old handwritten cocktail recipe book. As the trend for new and renewed craft cocktails flourishes, Holland America is keeping ahead of the pack.

Dale DeGroff, also known as King Cocktail, is a member of Holland America’s food and beverage Culinary Council.Holland America Line and Master Mixologist Dale DeGroff have teamed up to introduce an exclusive craft cocktail menu.

The innovative cocktail recipes were developed by Master Mixologist Dale DeGroff and his team of talented mixologists. Also known as King Cocktail, DeGroff has authored two bestselling cocktail books. He’s also the founding president of The Museum of the American Cocktail.

The new craft cocktail menu features seven specialty drinks that exemplify the craft cocktail movement. Four of the featured cocktails are sure to become modern classics.

The prestigious James Beard Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America inducted DeGroff in 2015. Since 2016, DeGroff has directed Holland America Line’s cocktail program and introduced new libations in the bars on board.

Read next:  Holland America Culinary Cruises for 2019

“Dale and our beverage team have put together an exceptional new craft cocktail menu that is an expressive collection of drinks created by some of the foremost experts in the craft cocktail world,” said Orlando Ashford, president of Holland America Line. “We’re continuously working with Dale to evolve our cocktail menus to be on the cutting edge of what’s trending and what’s going to resonate with our guests.”

The new craft cocktail menu includes

• Foggy Boulevardier: This eclectic drink has a mysterious vibe thanks to its smoky presentation. This cocktail, a twist on a Boulevardier, will be served in the Ocean Bar. It features Ratafia, a wine-based cherry liquor from Italy.
• Alliance: An original drink by DeGroff and Tony Abou-Ganim, an industry veteran and author of The Modern Mixologist: Contemporary Classic Cocktails. Created for the Trade Board of Peru, The Alliance features the unique Peruvian brandy, Pisco.
• Flor de Jerez: Created by Joaquin Simó at the famous Death & Co. craft cocktail bar in New York City.
• Oaxaca Old Fashioned: Phil Ward is an alumnus of both Death & Co. and Pegu Club, bars that defined the recent craft cocktail movement in New York City. He created this classic Old Fashioned variation that features agave spirits in place of whiskey.
• Penicillin: This cocktail is based on malt scotch whisky. Australian bartender Sam Ross paired an Islay whisky and a blended scotch with honey, lemon and ginger.
• Red Hook: Enzo Enrico began as a barback at Milk & Honey in London and then moved to bartending at Milk & Honey, New York City. This is Enrico’s tribute to New York’s Red Hook neighborhood made famous by the 1954 classic movie On the Waterfront.
• Strange Brew: This unusual combination of a hoppy IPA brew, gin and pineapple was created by bartender Thomas Waugh at Death & Co in New York. Waugh is also director of bar operations at Major Food Group.

Bars that serve these new craft cocktails

You can sip the new drinks from the craft cocktail menu at the Gallery Bar and also at the Ocean Bar, the Explorer’s Lounge, the Crow’s Nest and my favorite, Tamarind Bar. Head up to the Lido pool bar, too.

The signature cocktail menu includes the Gallery Gimlet, Hemingway Daiquiri, Yuzu Margarita, The Ritz Cocktail. Plus, Whiskey and Joe, Another Shade of Greyhound, and a Slightly Less Than Perfect, Perfect Manhattan.

In addition to creating exclusive cocktails for all Holland America Line bars, DeGroff also oversees beverage staff training.

Cheers!