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You might want a centrifuge to make this cocktail
After a long morning of sweating through the first glimpse of New York City's 90-degree summer, I found myself inside a West Village bar called Existing Conditions. Its shiny leather banquettes, expensive art and mood lighting proved that the area now belonged not to the writerly bohemians of old but the Instagram influencers of new. Fortunately, as a microinfluencer, I fit right in. But I hadn't arrived two and a half hours before the bar opened out of mere enthusiasm. After following a trend of bartenders (excuse me, mixologists) using centrifuges to craft cocktails, I wanted to taste one for myself. As well as -- let's be honest -- steal the recipe to make at home.
Barsys $1,500 robot bartender promises cocktails with AI precision
The "Keurig of cocktails" concept isn't exactly new, but that's not stopping companies like Barsys from perfecting the robotic bartender. Next week, Barsys is launching its robotic cocktail mixer 2.0. Like the original, the next iteration offers automated cocktails and customizable drink recipes. But now, you'll be able to control the machine with up to three devices at a time, thanks to Bluetooth. And Barsys 2.0 will use AI to keep drinks consistent.
Drinkworks Home Bar is a literal Keurig for cocktails
I have seen countless companies claim to deliver the Keurig of (fill in the blank). The "Keurig of cocktails" market in particular is crowded with wannabes that don't seem to be gaining much traction -- Barsy, Bartesian, Somabar, Bibo... am I missing any? But now there is a company building a literal Keurig for cocktails. Drinkworks is a joint venture between the single-serving coffee pod giant and Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev), and it's building a familiar-looking machine that mixes up cocktails using disposable pods. If anyone can build the Keurig of anything, well, it's got to be Keurig itself, right? The insanely deep pockets of AB InBev certainly don't hurt either.
Make better cocktails with this LED-covered Bluetooth stick
The idea of using technology to make a better cocktail is hardly new -- companies as big as Google on down to the smallest startups are trying to enable those of us with no mixing skills to make a passible Martini or Manhattan. The latest is the MixStik, an LED-covered stick you connect to your phone with Bluetooth. Once the MixStik is paired with your phone, you simply pick a cocktail recipe with the corresponding app -- the stick then lights up with colors that correspond with your selected drink's ingredients. Just drop the stick into the glass, fill it up according to the directions,and you should theoretically have your desired cocktail mixed to the correct proportions.
Here come the K-Cup drunks
My desire for a mechanized mixologist is as strong as an overproof rum. Much to my chagrin, and despite a long history of inventors toiling to perfect the drink-mixing machine, the practice is still largely the domain of human beings. That said, two Kickstarter projects are offering a new, more consumer-focused take on the "robot bartender." Ladies and gentlemen, 2015 is the year of the "Keurig for cocktails."
I trusted my gut to IBM's Watson and it gave me a fowl old-fashioned
Cognitive Cooking with Chef Watson is a collaboration between IBM and the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City. Once a week, as part of an ongoing series, we'll be preparing one recipe from the book until we've made all of them. Wish us luck. Before taking the helm at Vogue, where she laid the groundwork for the Devil to wear Prada, Diana Vreeland wrote a series of columns for Harper's Bazaar called "Why Don't You?" In a sort of goop for the 20th century, she would goad the super rich into ridiculous feats of capitalism. "Why don't you rinse your blond child's hair in dead champagne to keep it gold, as they do in France?" she'd ask. Or, "Have your bed made in China -- the most beautiful bed imaginable, the head board and spread of yellow satin embroidered in butterflies, alighting and flying, in every size and in exquisite colors?" Watson seemed to be channeling Ms. Vreeland in Cognitive Cooking, a collaboration between IBM's supercomputer and a group of humans at the Institute of Culinary Education (ICE). "Why don't you make an old-fashioned with a splash of chicken broth and a slice of grilled chicken for garnish?" it inquired. And in the spirit of excess we did just that.
Yup, there's a Sodastream for cocktails
Our modern consumer age hasn't been kind to SodaStream, since bottles of soda are cheap enough that you don't need to make your own at home. Thankfully, the company has finally worked out that cola-addicted teens aren't its future customers, but drunk adults who want something fancy for cocktail parties. That's why the firm has teamed up with name-brand designer Yves Behar (he's previously designed the SodaStream Source) to develop the SodaStream Mix, which is one part CO2 injector and one part internet of things device. You see, Mix can't be a buzzy new gadget unless it's connected to the cloud (it is), and the company has also baked in Bluetooth and app compatibility as well.
Sorry 007, Somabar's $430 robotic bartender won't shake your martini
"I have drunk cognac in Cognac, port in Oporto, raki in Turkey, tequila in Mexico City, moonshine in Kentucky, not to mention poteen in Fleet Street, bitter and industrial alcohol in Oxford, Yugoslav whisky in Yugoslavia, Japanese whisky in Glasgow and sweet Spanish wine and lemonade in Swansea. Also gin in England." -- Kingsley Amis, Everyday Drinking While I can't boast a list quite as long or accomplished, I've swilled my fair share of liquids over the past 32 years. Up until two weeks ago, however, I'd never met a bartender who wasn't at least mostly human.
Google wants to help make you a better bartender
If you've ever searched for the name of a capital city or a celebrity's place of birth, then you'll probably be familiar Google's Knowledge Graph. It's a cool little feature that picks out and displays the answers to questions, saving you from clicking through all of the links in your search results. After recently equipping it with the ability to dispense health advice, Google now reckons you might need a little help refining your bartending skills. Yep, you're going to cocktail-making school. A simple "How do I make a ..." search will list the main ingredients and recommended garnishes for your chosen cocktail, as well as the correct glass to serve it in. While it can't (yet) teach you all of the cocktail-making flicks and tricks that you might see in a Las Vegas bar, it'll certainly help improve the quality of those homemade Happy Hour refreshments.
Bartendro cocktail mixing robot lands on Kickstarter, wields Raspberry Pi (video)
If you prefer robot bartenders to lack limbs that could be used against you in the impending robopocalypse, Bartendro might be your kind of bot. After two years of building and tweaking, the folks at Party Robotics have finally polished their Raspberry Pi-powered cocktail-making rig and have posted it to Kickstarter. Born from a need to re-create mixed drinks in perfect proportion, Bartendro uses food-grade tubing, pumps and custom-built electronics to pipe liquids out with a measurement accuracy of a milliliter. According to the projects' site, however, it can't quite handle carbonated beverages in its current state. By using a device connected to the contraption's own WiFi network, thirsty folks will be able to select drinks from a web-based interface. Mixologists, on the other hand, can leverage the control panel to customize cocktail recipes, manage dispensers and even read reports of what drinks were made and how much of which ingredients were used. Both the hardware and the software that make up Bartendro are open source, and the team behind it even wants to create an online drink compendium that's free as in freedom and beer. The hope is that intrepid enthusiasts can hack together mods ranging from breathalyzers to a stirring or shaking mechanism. Early supporters can snatch a ShotBot with one dispenser for $249, a Bartendro with three for $375, a model toting seven for $1,199 and a fourth version carrying a whopping 15 for $2,499. However, crafty DIYers can roll their own system by pledging coin for individual dispensers and the Linux boxes that power them. The group has currently raised over $20,000, but it's aiming for $135,000 to push the bot into production. Click the bordering source link if you're inclined to chip in or hit the jump for Party Robotic's pitch video.
New York planetarium to host 200-player space game tonight (video)
Got plans for this evening? Cancel them now, and do everything you can to sneak into New York's Museum of Natural History. Because tonight, the museum's planetarium will play host to a 200-person space game, courtesy of Brooklyn's Babycastles arcade. It's all part of the museum's "Cosmic Cocktails and Space Arcade" evening -- an event that seems tailor made for anyone interested in cosmology, humans, and/or hallucinogens. The showcase of the soiree is the Space Cruiser game, which promises to turn the ceiling of the Rose Center for Earth and Space into a "living, breathing, space ship where participants navigate around a beautiful fictitious universe." With the Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt assuming the tripartite role of ship captain-navigator-narrator, the game apparently begins with the birth of the universe, before transporting visitors across new galaxies and through time-bending wormholes. The ship launches at 6:30 PM tonight, but unfortunately, tickets are already sold out. Head past the break, though, for a rather "duuuude"-inducing video.
Android-powered bar bot makes a mean Rob(ot) Roy (video)
iZac doesn't want to hear your sob stories. No, this Arduino-crafted bartender just wants to make cocktails, ordered through a tablet-based drinks menu. The bar patron can then place a glass on the digital scales, and iZac will measure out in the prescribed quantities necessary for the meatsack's choice of poison. The liquids are handled by aquarium pumps and laser-cut pinch valves, with accuracy to within one gram (0.035 ounces). Sadly, the bar bot's repertoire is limited by six bottles, arranged on two turntables. Risky drinkers can plump for the 'I'm Feeling Lucky' option, which creates a randomized drink of three (possibly identical) liquids. See how it all comes together in a loud, appropriately shady-looking bar after the break.
Making cocktails with video for iPhone
The App Store has some very nice apps with instructions for making cocktails. Type "cocktails" in the search field and you'll see a nice selection. Now, developer Unowhy from France has put together a very nice app with video, social features, and even information on the history of cocktails. iVideoCocktails [App Store link] is $3.99US and has detailed instructions for creating 50 cocktails. The video has to be downloaded to the iPhone or iPod touch, so 3G or Wi-Fi is a must.You can let the app know what you have on hand, and it will suggest what you can make with your ingredients. You can also get a random suggestion, or just explore the database for something that interests you. You tell the app how many people you are mixing the drink for, and it will adjust the ingredients list. It also contains a nice list of non-alcoholic drinks that should please those so inclined.The videos are very well produced, and obviously not the work of amateurs. I did notice that sometimes the videos were a bit slow to load, and a couple of times they stopped in mid-play, but eventually they picked up. The videos are not required to make the drinks, but they are a nice instructional touch.Although not the only iPhone app that helps you make cocktails, it is well organized and visually attractive. My only gripe was the 'send to friend' function. I thought it would allow you to email a recipe for a drink to someone, but instead sends a pre-formatted email suggesting they go to the App Store and buy this program. Boo. You can also get ten more cocktail recipes by filling out a brief form and providing your email address, and answering some marketing questions about other services the developer might provide. Double boo. Otherwise, this is a solid app that does what it advertises, and does it with visual style. A handy thing to have in your pocket when you want to drink something different, or see what you could create with what you have on hand. I'll drink a toast to this clever app.If you want to spend your money on drinks rather than iPhone apps, here is a link to Cocktails, and Cocktails + which are free. (Note: Although the icon on Cocktails+ notes that it is free, it is still apparently $2.99US. It was free for a limited time last week, and Apple apparently did not update the icon.)Screen shots below:%Gallery-50575%
Joystiq attends the Fallout 3 Launch Party
Joystiq attended the celebrity-filled Fallout 3 launch party last night, and although we were weren't allowed to bring in a camera or a recorder, they didn't have a lock on our eyes and brains. The game-branding was minimal, with a few signs and recycled booth setups doing double duty at the party, but they did have a lot of hands-on stations, staffed by a bevy of scantily clad ladies who ... actually knew the game. Check out the highlights after the break.
Get refreshed with Bartender DS
EA has released some screenshots of their mixological nongame, Bartender DS. And, in our opinion, it actually looks really neat! Each drink has a complete recipe as well as background information about its history and creation. You can search by ingredient or even by type of glass. And with over 850 different cocktails, you'll run out of money long before you run out of recipes.EA has truly done a brilliant job of catering to an expanded audience. This software could turn anyone with a DS (and advanced Japanese skills) into an ad hoc bartender instantly. And with its guided recipes, we could see this becoming more useful for the occasional mixologist than a book or even the cocktail tumbler with drink recipes printed on it.
