SCOTT CAMERON, 42, Logan Square
“I’ve got a bottle of grappa that tastes exactly like soap, and I don’t even understand why. There’s a genever-style gin from Anchor Distilling Company that has been reviewed pretty well, but it’s foul-tasting! So it just sits at the back of the shelf, and it’s like a warning bottle.” Meet Scott Cameron, software developer and cocktail obsessive, a man who claims he is “very easy to buy a gift for,” yet who can tell you exactly which high-end jar of cocktail cherries not to buy. For the aspiring cocktail aficionado who has everything, he helps us come up with a spirited wish list.
My favorite budget-friendly stocking stuffer is…bitters. Former Violet Hour bartender Ira Koplowitz is behind the Bittercube line, with varieties like cherry bark-vanilla ($9.75 at Lush). “Basically it’s a lifetime supply because you only use bitters in a couple of shakes in a drink.”
If you have to get a gift certificate, get it from…Drinks Over Dearborn. “Pretty much anything out of that shop would make a good gift for somebody that has a bar.”
Please don’t get me any more…fancy syrups. “I’m having a hard time coming up with cocktails to put them in.”