Certain things are just too hard to watch -- whether it's a friend's super-serious expression as she winds up to bowl or your boyfriend in the throes of "Guitar Hero".That's how we felt upon discovering this video, a greatest-hits compilation of cocktail-shaking by New York City's top mixologists. The 10 minute long odyssey features 30-second clips of 33 mostly-male NYC barkeeps. It starts with the Cars provocative "Shake it Up" and trails off eerily into bar noise, the cacophony of shakers and fierce, game-face expressions.
Boring? Nope. Oddly mesmerizing, in the same way that you can't look away from "The Bachelor" but might put your hands over your eyes.
These are true practitioners of the art, however, so let us know if this gets you inspired to go practice your shakin' style, whether it's the one-hander (some bartenders put the other hand behind their backs, sommelier-style) or the hard shake practiced by Tailor's Eben Freeman. And here's a pretty raspberry-and-gin laced Belmont Stakes elixir from Gourmet (the race is on Saturday) in case you wish to practice your skills before the weekend hits.
[Star Chefs] via [Grub Street]
I recently entered the world of Cocktails and have been playing the role of Mixologist, experimenting with all the great spirits I have leftover from my reviews. I am trying to invent cocktails using some of the new products, but following the classic cocktail formulas. 
If you thought that a mixologist was just a fancy term for a bartender, you'd only be partially correct. Most mixologists start off as bartenders, but the terms are not entirely interchangeable according to 
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