Dry counties, bourbon drinkers, and liquor and package stores. Bars in Birmingham are taking modern day civic pride to new levels. When I walked into my first bar, the bartender introduced himself and made me feel right at home. It was later in the afternoon. The sun was just beginning to fade and the city felt a little quiet, but all that changed when the bartender asked, “What brings you in tonight?”Alabama celebrates the yellowhammer bird (not only the state bird, but also a cocktail) and black panthers (not only a formidable wildcat, but responsible for inspiring the Legendary Sex Panther cocktail at Birmingham’s Atomic Lounge).
Alabama
Though prohibition had a major impact on Alabama (the state went bone dry in 1915, five years before Prohibition began, and 386 illegal stills were seized to begin that dry spell, which made plenty of thirsty Alabama whiskey drinkers mighty upset), it’s refreshing to know there were people looking to celebrate life a little by throwing parties in nearby caves while the Eighteenth Amendment was in effect. The Bangor Cave Club, for example, served the Heart of Dixie in a speakeasy tucked away in the Bangor Cave, where gambling, dancing, and, yep, even the devil’s milk itself—alcohol—were being served. Alabama legalized alcohol in 1937, but many counties remain dry to this day.
It might surprise you to learn that Alabama—not Louisiana—introduced the Western world to Mardi Gras, as Mobile holds an annual celebration even older than the one in New Orleans. During the celebration, revelers drink on the streets, thanks to liberal open container laws, and toss Moon Pies, along with the more expected beads. And speaking of pies, black bottom pies—creamy, chocolaty custard pies with a little bit of rum and a chocolate cookie crust—are a local delicacy you should definitely sample, after having some catfish, boiled peanuts, and fried green tomatoes.
We name our drinks after people we know in and around Birmingham. See the Scott Howdeshell cocktail on the menu? The one that says “Direct, smart, and mildly threatening”? It’s a bottle of Miller High Life and a shot of Kentucky Gentleman whiskey, and it’s named after Scott Howdeshell, and he’s sitting right over there.
—Feizal Valli, owner, Atomic Lounge (Birmingham)
Drinking doesn’t happen just in Mobile during Mardi Gras, of course. Many of the Birmingham locals love dropping by Lou’s Pub & Package Store, for instance. Part bar, part package store (aka liquor store), Lou’s has been around since 1987, and serves a balance of cheap, cold bottled beer next to elevated, well-balanced cocktails made with fresh ingredients. It’s a no-fuss atmosphere and one that celebrates locals, regulars, and the almighty spirit of Louis Zaden himself, who passed away in 2008, leaving such an impact on the neighborhood they held a block party to mourn his passing, featuring complimentary beer donated by Budweiser. Come by Sunday or Wednesday, when notable barkeep Angel Negrin features Church Night, a brazen nod to the Holy Spirit. I was tempted to buy the “LOU’SER” T-shirt, but felt that it could be worn only by a true regular.
One cannot leave Birmingham without stopping by LeNell’s Beverage Boutique. LeNell Smothers hosts regular craft spirits tastings and features obscure, hard-to-find liquors at her tiny shop, along with celebrating female winemakers and winemakers of color. LeNell is a roll-up-the-sleeves, take-no-nonsense kind of person; she doesn’t answer emails, drives a car with a “Bourbon” license plate, and balances the rowdy with the classy as well as anyone I have ever seen. “Better drinkin’ for better livin’” is the motto for LBB.
While Birmingham has developed into a worthwhile destination for all things food, drink, and art, throughout the city there are important reminders of its history of civil rights struggle. The Birmingham Pledge, which was introduced in 1998, says, in part: “I believe that every thought and every act of racial prejudice is harmful; if it is my thought or act, then it is harmful to me as well as to others. Therefore, from this day forward I will strive daily to eliminate racial prejudice from my thoughts and actions.”
Alabama Spirit
Clyde May served in the army’s 77th Infantry in World War II and received a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star. His legacy of making illegal whiskey continued for the next few decades, until he died in 1990. His son Kenny took over the business after that, and Clyde May’s Conecuh Ridge whiskey was subsequently named Alabama’s state spirit in 2004; however, distilling spirits in Alabama was illegal until 2013, so Clyde May’s sources its Bourbon from Kentucky, bottles it in Florida, and sells it throughout the US. What a country.
These iconic cocktails that are so simple—they have no author. Everybody’s the author. It’s why I believe the name Martini was probably associated with Martini vermouth, which was the most widespread vermouth in its heyday. Somebody put it with gin and that’s the end of the story. The idea that one person came up with it at a bar is ridiculous. It’s Occam’s Razor—the simplest explanation is usually the truest.
—Robert Simonson, author, The Martini, A Proper Drink, The Old Fashioned, and 3-Ingredient Cocktails (Brooklyn, NY)
Alabama’s Oldest Bar
The Peerless opened in 1899 and still boasts the impressive mahogany bar constructed for the World’s Fair in 1904. Robert E. “Daddy” Garner, the original owner, served his own whiskey from bottles crafted in his glass company. Called “Old Wildcat,” the whiskey was served in “scant” bottles, which were approximately seven ounces, or slightly less than half a pint, or what we commonly use as juice glasses today. Come on down for a fried green tomato shrimp stacker, which makes me feel like there’s a Bloody Mary already in my hands. Where’s yours?
Alabama Beverage
Dropping a handful of peanuts into a perfectly chilled bottle of Coca-Cola may sound wild, but the pairing of sweet Coke with salty peanuts is believed to have started in the 1920s with farmers and manual laborers who didn’t want to wash their hands to eat a full meal but also needed a little snack while they were working. Soda and peanuts are always available in filling stations, so it’s a popular roadtrip combination. That’s the best way to “Roll Tide!”
Alabama Cocktail Bar
No, they do not have a cocktail menu at this wonderful little emporium, and no, it’s not very pretentious to sit and have a drink, and if I’m in Birmingham, no, that seat next to me is not taken. And yes: The wallpaper behind the bar’s liquor bottles is the periodic table of elements, and yes, the elements are replaced with Birmingham themes (Civil Rights is Cv, owner Andrew Collins is Ac, and there in the middle is Me, for the late Marty Eagle, local bar owner and advocate of live music), and yes, you want to take a photo for Instagram, and yes, you’ll probably need to charge your phone at one of the many available chargers at the bar, and yes, probably have some chicken and waffles to pass the time, and no, I won’t be mad if you want to eat them all by yourself. You know you’re in the right place when the bartender says, “My name is William, but my friends call me ‘Wild Bill.’”
Alabama Bucket List Bar
The Atomic is a space built for the history of Birmingham and its wonderful people (big props to the Angela Davis room, named after the local social activist and female superhero). They have costumes to wear—literally: costumes like a full banana outfit, a shark, or Cookie Monster (everyone who wears this one gets a cookie). Everything about this place is inviting and comfortable, and it shows in the people dropping by and the mega-talented staff working the room. Hell, even the door guy opened the door for me when I entered! There are not many bars like the Atomic. Alabama is lucky to have it, and America is as well.
Alabama Slammer
Though the Yellowhammer (a vodka and rum variation with pineapple juice) has been making more of a modern impact at University of Alabama football pregames, Alabama has long been associated with the Alabama Slammer. (“Slammer” is a reference to the shot serving: You take a shot and “slam” it, or drink it down quickly.) I made my fair share of these shaken masterpieces during what I call my “Saved by the Bell: College Years”—but in Wisconsin, and most bars, this was more often served as a shot and not an actual cocktail. It’s no surprise this little devil caught on alongside the sweet, syrupy drinks of the 1970s and is a staple of college life, and it would probably have disappeared for good if it weren’t for Tom Cruise calling it out in Cocktail. (See? Tom Cruise still finds a way to influence us all.) So here we are. Southern Comfort, originally called “Cuffs and Buttons” and created by a New Orleans bartender in 1874, is a must here.
Serves 5 (shots)
1 ounce Southern Comfort
1 ounce Luxardo amaretto liqueur
1 ounce Hayman’s sloe gin 3 ounces fresh orange juice 5 dashes grenadine
Shake the Southern Comfort, amaretto, gin, and orange juice with ice until chilled; strain into five shot glasses. Dash the top of each with grenadine. Bottoms up!
The Legendary Sex Panther
The Atomic is famous for many things, such as its mural of the 1967 Beatles album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band behind the bar—except with Birmingham locals as the band and club members—but the cocktail everyone talks about is the Legendary Sex Panther. The Legendary Sex Panther is named after a cologne in Will Ferrell’s movie Anchorman. “It may or may not be made with bits of real panther. Sixty percent of the time it works every time.” Every order gets served with a sex panther temporary tattoo. Not only is the Atomic a popular cocktail destination, the Sex Panther is easily the most popular cocktail on the menu, often Instagrammed alongside the tattoo.
1½ ounces Old Grand-Dad bourbon
½ ounce Cynar amaro
¼ ounce Hoodoo chicory liqueur
¼ ounce Demerara simple syrup (1:1 Demerara sugar to water)
1 dash Angostura bitters
Garnish: flamed orange peel (or plain orange peel, if you don’t have matches)
Temporary (or permanent) Sex Panther tattoo (optional)
Stir the ingredients with ice until chilled; strain and serve over (ideally) one large ice cube in a chilled rocks glass and garnish with the orange. To flame an orange peel, hold the orange-colored side of the peel approximately 3 to 4 inches (7 to 10 cm) from the glass, with a lit wooden match between the peel and the drink, and squeeze a couple of times. Serve with the tattoo on the side, if you’d like.