The Green Party: Eco-cocktailing comes to life

Green: it’s the color of money, the characterization of envy and, in today’s world, a double-edged status symbol that’s “changing the world”—for those who can afford it. Eco-culture is transforming grocery stores, clothing boutiques, car dealerships and now your local neighborhood tap. It’s a phenomenon I discovered on a recent pub crawl to three “green” establishments offering organic bar specials that included locally grown, pesticide-free and naturally cultivated wines, ales, vodkas, gins and house-infused flavors.

The first destination was the vegan-friendly Heartland Café in Rogers Park (7000 North Glenwood). Billing itself as “The Enterprise,” this commercial commune could have its own zip code, as it’s comprised of the café, a general store, studio theater, live radio show and our current stomping ground, The Buffalo Bar. The first thing my sidekick and I noticed, besides the not-so-environmentally conscious buffalo head giving us the evil eye, was the organic wine-tasting (Fridays from 7pm-9pm) and the absence of people enjoying it. Taking a seat at the bar, it became even more clear that we were the only ones ordering organic—and the taste test of Samuel Smith’s organic ale and an eco-friendly Cabernet Sauvignon proved why. The beer was so watered-down, it could have been from a Canadian spring. And, after the bartender mistakenly gave us the regular wine first, the comparison easily awarded the original the winner.

Our impression of organic ale and wine polluted, the green started growing on us once we arrived at our next stop, Wrigleyville’s Uncommon Ground (3800 North Clark), whose motto, “Live it Green,” was matched by a forest-friendly interior of rich earth tones and leafy paper lanterns. The cocktails served here are clean and sulfite-free (a bonus for my allergic cohort) thanks to Uncommon Ground’s almost exclusive use of Rain Vodka distilled from organic white corn grown on local Illinois farms.

Not only are the drinks palatable but—in the nature of green ideology—they pay it forward, too. The “Tree-tini” is a seasonally variable concoction that plants a tree each time it’s ordered—to date, over 2,000 trees have been committed to be planted in monsoon-devastated Tamil Nadu, India. And the “Rescue Me grilled pineapple greyhound” is a sweet citrus number that makes a donation to P.A.W.S. Chicago each time it’s ordered. So even with your hangover, you’ll at least feel good about yourself.

Although the do-good nature left a sweet taste in my mouth, it had me wondering—is this latest drinking trend a short-lived fad the way of Carrie Bradshaw’s cosmo, or do people consciously drink green in a bid to “save the earth”?

“Sometimes, I really don’t think people understand what organic is,” says Andre, former ecology-club president, and currently our bartender at the most popular of eco-bars, Butterfly Social Club (722 West Grand). “They just think it’s special.”

The newly revamped space is blatantly more modern with clean, white walls that leave room for the colorful drinks he serves up from a back wall littered with organic labels of every variety. Our favorites: the excellent Ginger Mojito (made of organic fair-trade Papagayo spiced rum) and Juniper Green Gin ‘n’ Juice, which goes down smooth, more like the latter part of the equation.

As Andre pointed out, it may be due to talking heads like Oprah that the green thing is sweeping the country—but for those honestly concerned with their health and that of the planet, a night of organic drinking is the perfect way to say cheers to Mother Nature. (Selena Fragassi)