Who’d think that Cheeseburger and gin would go together so smoothly? That’s just what happened at the meeting of New York City band, Cheeseburger, and the sexy alcoholic beverage named Bulldog Gin.            

PsychoPEDIA invited the boys out for a tasting of sorts at the illustrious, speakeasy-like bar, Home Sweet Home, on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The setting was perfect for this foursome to sip a London Dry Distilled Gin, infused with the taste and aromas of its selected botanicals, using traditional copper pot stills. Quite a change in preparation, compared to prohibition days when bathtub gin was a sought-after (and illegal) drink. Today, it’s all about sophisticated cocktails for the shaken-not-stirred circles who dominate the real estate in urban landscapes.

Bulldog Gin was founded by Anshuman Vohra, a former JP Morgan investment banker, and David Kanbar, an industry veteran from Skyy Vodka in 2006. Wanting to hone in on the needs of the hip set, who better than Cheeseburger to give it a whirl? Just recently back from a small West Coast tour and a new album out on Kemado Records, the guys were happy to oblige our invitation.

Upon the arrival of Joe, Christy, Luke and their touring guitarist Eric, Home Sweet Home’s bartender whipped up an array of cocktails for the band to test out. First on deck was a little something called a Brambelle, which consists of lemon juice, simple syrup, and Bulldog Gin (of course) with a splash of Chambord. Everyone’s eyes lit up upon their first sip and simultaneously said, “Hmmm, this is really good!” Christy also quipped, “Cheeseburger is more fun when we drink!” Next on the agenda was a Negronia. They referred to it as a girly drink, yet Christy chimed in again and said, “I’m closest to a girl here, I’ll taste that one,” then gulped it down.

There was one problem though -- they wanted to taste the gin straight from the source itself. So the bartender promptly fixed four gin martinis, allowing the band to truly feel the effects from Bulldog Gin’s exotic mélange of botanical flavors including Poppy and Dragon Eye, giving it an incredibly seductive fruit and citrus bouquet. Eric, being a self-proclaimed gin snob, said, “It was really smooth and had nice aftertaste to it. I’m not really a fan of the name, yet the gin itself is really good! That’s really the point, right?”

Not surprisingly, Cheeseburger found their way to Home Sweet Home’s bathroom for another round of gin martinis, as well as a philosophical discussion on whether or not it was the gin’s fault that toilet paper had mysteriously draped their bodies. We’ll say it was the gin.

-- Jessica McMenamin