Bananas Foster, cherries jubilee, bombe Alaska, crêpe Suzette, steak Diane, and coq au vin are a few well-known dishes that utilize this method for both imparting complex flavors in the food and, in the case of all but the last, a spectacle performed at the tableside.
[2] For special occasions and depending on availability of the ingredients, various punches, toddies, egg nogs, grogs, or mulled wines might be provided, especially at social events.
[citation needed] The first bartender's manual, written by Jerry Thomas and published in 1862, contains the recipe for the first flaming cocktail, the blue blazer.
[3] The book, How to Mix Drinks, describes[4]: 76–77 how to turn a hot toddy made with Scotch into a "blazing stream of liquid fire":[5] The "blue blazer" does not have a very euphonious or classic name, but it tastes better to the palate than it sounds to the ear.
A beholder gazing for the first time upon an experienced artist, compounding this beverage, would naturally come to the conclusion that it was a nectar for Pluto rather than Bacchus.
[6] The art of preparing mixed drinks with style and pizazz, as opposed to simply pouring sedately from a bottle, is referred to as flair bartending.
A little flair, such as a quick flip or spin of a bottle, is a fairly common way for bartenders to impress patrons and enhance the drinking experience.
Bars and nightclubs that specialize in this style of bartending tend to develop reputations for it, and people visit the establishment as much for the show as they do for the drinks.
[7] This fire ritual is a modern invention, originating in the 1990s and initially meant to distract from the fact that Czech absinthes of that era were often simply overproof vodkas with artificial coloring and flavoring.
Any comments about liquors are attributed to the listed sources Beer, with its high water content, is used in many cocktails both to quench flames and for flavor.