World’s First 100 % USDA Certified Organic Bar Celebrates Opening Night
by Brian Merchant, Brooklyn, New York 
on 11. 9.08
Gustorganic before the bar, courtesy of Keetsa
GustOrganic, an all-organic restaurant in New York is now also home to the world’s first all-organic bar. Using entirely organic spirits—beers, cocktails, wine, and liquor, GustOrganic is the first bar to be certified organic by the USDA. I was on hand for the celebratory opening night to find out what 100 percent organic martinis, mojitos, and margaritas taste like—and eventually, to investigate the first 100 percent organic hangover.
Since GustOrganic is a restaurant by day, it was pretty impressive how suitable the atmosphere was for an eco-chic bar. Dim lighting, stark décor, and an expansive layout made the whole place seem more like a SoHo nightclub than a Greenwich Village organic restaurant. And it all helped bring the focus towards the newly christened, pleasantly crowded bar.
Introducing the All-Organic Bar
The bar is stocked with certified organic rum, vodka, whiskey, tequila, organic wine, Peak Organic beers, and plenty of fresh fruit for the creation of all-organic cocktails. This means, according to GustOrganic, “All the drinks are free of chemicals, artificial substances, hormones and pesticides.” In addition to the environmental benefits, this theoretically means headaches should be easier in the morning, too (more on that later).
I tried golden standards like the martini and the mojito, both of which more than passed muster—the mojito was perhaps the freshest I’ve ever had. But the real stars were the creative cocktails made with fresh fruit: the Fresquito, made with mangos, orange juice and vodka, and the strawberry filled Rojito were standouts. They all made for quite a (blurrily) memorable night. As for the morning—well, let’s just say ‘organic drinks’ does not equal ‘hangover-proof.’ But it certainly could mean fewer headaches for someone who isn’t bent on trying every drink on the menu. Perhaps a follow up is in order.
GustOrganic Lives Up to Its Name
As a restaurant, GustOrganic already boasts a strong dedication to organics and sustainability. Owner Alberto Gonzalez has covered as many eco-friendly bases as he can, with gusto: there’s a wind turbine on the roof, the menus are made from 100 percent recycled paper and printed with soy ink, and every single ingredient he uses is certified organic. Just to name a few.
Gonzalez plans on keeping the bar open late every Saturday night to serve up his impressive organic cocktails, but it’s open during normal restaurant hours too. If you’re in New York, it’s well worth a visit to the world’s first organic bar.
More on Organic Drinking:
Pedal Your Way to a Cold Beer : TreeHugger
How Green Is Your Beer ? : TreeHugger
Introducing the World’s Largest Solar Powered Winery : TreeHugger
Follow @TreeHugger on Twitter & get our headlines with @TH_rss!
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London has had an all-organic bar/pub since 1998 (http://www.dukeorganic.co.uk/), so GustOrganic might be the first of its kind in the US, but not in the world.
Cool! Organic Mojitos! We'd been making them at home, but could never get a real organic cocktail when we left the farm. Sure hope they taste as good as mine!
If you're lucky enough to be sipping a tasty organic cocktail, you're really going to need some tasty organic entertainment to go along with that organic drink so, for a few laughs, check out our hysterical organic rap video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBXZeJcwB8E
And then, for yet more fun, you'll want to watch our funny "Dirty Jobs" episode here:
http://media-mobi.com/en/?play-vrih8nii7y8ul25sxux076nqtt6z44d3
Enjoy!
Might be the first USDA certified organic bar but not the first organic bar. Oregon has Roots Brewery which is Oregon Tilth certified whose standards are generally regarded as higher than those of USDA whom often consults Oregon Tilth for certification standards.
Example: USDA certified Anheuser-Busch Wild Hop which is made from hops treated with pesticides. Promoted on your site: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/07/anheuserbusch_r.php
Just goes to to show there is definitely a difference between being a tree hugger and being informed. Check your facts.