SB-60

SB-60 Cocktail
1/2 oz freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 oz minted syrup 
2 oz vodka
Stir with ice in a double old-fashioned glass.  Use cranberry juice ice cubes if you like.  Top with sparkling wine.

St. Croix Cocktail

As always, many thanks to Lindsey of Brown, Bitter and Stirred for hosting the August edition of Mixology Monday. Of course, let's also raise a glass to Paul for rallying the party.

My taste for bourbon has drawn me to brown, bitter and stirred cocktails for decades. However, in the summer, I have a taste for rum, so I morphed a Manhattan into a lower-latitude version.

St. Croix Cocktail

3 oz gold rum (I used Cruzan Single Barrel)
1/6 oz (1 teaspoon) ruby port
1/6 oz (1 teaspoon) Grapefruit Tea Bitters

Stir ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Mixology Monday: Roasted Bloody Mary

Mixology Monday: Roasted Bloody Mary

Many thanks to Mike McSorley at McSology for hosting April's Mixology Monday. As a home mixologist I haven't experienced the exact scenario he described of having to make a last-call pain in the ass drink, but I certainly have inflicted some high-maintenance drinks on myself and others. I try to think of it more as a tradeoff of trouble for quality, perhaps at least as consolation. My perspective likely would be different if such a drink were keeping me from getting home at night.

The effort in my submission, a variation on a Bloody mary, lies in the tomato base. This freshly roasted and milled sauce is sweet, fresh and complex -- and far better than anything I've tasted in a bottled or canned mix. The following base recipe makes about four cups.

Roasted Tomato-Pepper Base

10 tomatoes
2 red bell peppers

Halve tomatoes. Core, seed and quarter peppers. Arrange peppers and tomatoes skin side down on a rimmed baking sheet or roasting pan. Roast at 425 degrees for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and cool, reserving any pan juices. Press tomatoes and peppers through a food mill. Combine with reserved juices in a pitcher.


Aside from the base, the drink is true to classic Bloody Mary proportions, which are of course a matter of some debate, with three modest personalizations. With New Orleans still fresh in my memory, I used a liberal amont of Crystal hot sauce. Also, I used the recipe as an excuse to use my new one-handed pepper mill; two pumps did the trick. Finally, I traded celery seed for the celery salt many recipes feature. After all, celery salt is just celery seed with salt, and the recipe already calls for salt.

The complicated but rewarding recipe follows. Cheers!

Roasted Bloody Mary

4 oz roasted tomato-pepper base
1/4 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 to 2 teaspoons horseradish, to taste
5 drops Worcestershire sauce
2 oz vodka
5 to 10 drops hot sauce, to taste (I used Crystal)
Pinch of celery seed
Dash of salt
Dash of freshly ground black pepper

Stir ingredients together with ice in a highball glass. Garnish with a celery stalk.

O-T Cocktail

MxMo: O-T Cocktail

This round of Mixology Monday features cocktails based on or including tea, and is graciously hosted by Cocktail Virgin / Slut. My submission is a gingered tea syrup, which paids well with seasonal blood orange juice in this cocktail, and opens up a whole range of other possibilities. Considering it all came together during the Saints' OT win in the NFC playoff, I'll call it the O-T Cocktail. Cheers!


O-T Cocktail

2 oz vodka
1 oz simple syrup
Juice of 1 blood orange
1/2 oz Gingered tea syrup

Shake vodka, simple syprup and juice with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Gently add gingered tea syrup so it pool is the bottom of the glass.

A Rejiggered Sidecar

This weekend a nearby bar did a nice job with a sidecar, but I wanted something more novel and shook up a variation with a smooth hint of apple.

Calvados Sidecar

2 oz cognac
2 oz calvados
2 oz Grand Marnier
1/2 oz simple syrup
Juice of one lemon

Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. If you like, garnish with turbonado sugar and strip of lemon rind.

Mixology Monday: Christmas Cheer

Mixology Monday: Christmas Cheer

This round of Mixology Monday, kindly hosted by Kevin of Beers in the Shower, carries the theme of "Money Drinks." According to the MxMo announcement post, that means a drink with wide appeal -- and it also means a top shelf twist on a classic drink. My submission aims for both categories, with holiday festivity thrown in as well.

This drink -- dubbed Christmas Cheer -- features lemon and orange sour flavors with the earthy caramel appeal of dark rum, tempered with fizzy dry champagne. This combination results in a balanced taste that should appeal to a variety of palates. This drink is also money because of the esteemed pedigree of its base liquors. Finally, it plays on the currency of holiday punches in the cocktail scene, reducing the bowl of rum, citrus, sugar and fizz to a simple glass full of holiday cheer.

Christmas Cheer

2 oz aged rum (I used Cruzan dark rum)
1/2 oz Grand Marnier
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Juice of 1/2 orange
1/2 oz simple syrup
Brut champagne

Shake rum, Grand Marnier, juices and syrup together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Top with champagne. If you like, garnish with a strip of orange or lemon.

36%

36%

Thirty-six percent -- butterfat, that is. That's what separates heavy cream from all its dairy counterparts, at least those still in liquid form, and that's what makes it such a decadent ingredient for cocktails. After all, fat is the messenger of flavor.

Why did I select heavy cream for this round of MxMo, and its dairy theme? After all, egg white is much more in keeping with my recent listing towards experimenting with (little "o") old-fashioned cocktail methods. Yet heavy cream pervailed. Perhaps I was still basking in the unctuous comfort of the pot of mashed potatoes I made for dinner tonight. They had plenty of heavy cream, of course. Maybe I am still inspired by the joyous, fatty epicurean scenes from Julie and Julia and the magnifique French dinner meal I had afterwards. Or I could be overthinking it. Heavy cream just might be, quite simply, the heavyweight champion of dairy mixers.


Aside: I will admit to a disastrous evening of mixing buttermilk cocktails. Buttermilk is an irresistable temptation, really, to a Kentucky guy like myself. The results were complex, but not exactly palatable.

Regardless, cream is the theme, and I came up with two selections. The first is an idea that I have been dying to try for years -- an ice cream inspired cocktail. I have tried a couple of times before, but never shook up a drink to my satisfaction. This time was different. I backed off the hard liquor and focused on cordials, yielding a smooth, full taste. Too bad it all fell in place in September rather than July.



The second drink truly struck me out of the blue as I was looking for another low-octane option. I thought the earthy flavors of calvados and marsala would marry well, and turned that base into a fizz on a whim. The result took me full circle, reminding me of those frothy egg white cocktails as the other path I had considered for this round of MxMo.



Recipes follow. Cheers!

Ice Cream Shots

1 oz heavy cream
Splash of whole milk
1 oz liqueur

Use a base liqueur of your choice. Three nice options are Midori, chocoloate liqueur (I used Godiva) and equal parts peppermint scnapps and chocloate liqueur

Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a small glass or large shot glass. The bottom of an ice cream cone makes an interesting and edible presentation.

Fall Fizz

1 1/2 oz calvados
1/2 oz marsala
1 oz cream
Club or lemon-lime soda

Shake calvados, marsala and cream together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Top with soda.
Garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Beefeaters, Bludgeons and Maidens

When I twisted open a new bottle of Beefeater gin, my thoughts ran to an icy cool, shimmering, dry martini -- and I was not disappointed. Beefeater struck a satisfying balance between botanicals and dryness at a time when gins at both extremes of the spectrum are making their appearance.


Perhaps out of habit, I tend to think of gin as a fall and winter drink. Rum generally commands my summer shaker, but I needed to explore. Even the reggae radio station chided me by adding "Gin and Coconut Water" to its rotation. So, I slipped out of the current and tried some Beefeater in a tropical cocktail. The result was the Bludgeon, a spicy and citrusy cocktail of, yes, blue gin.


Bludgeon


2 oz gin (I used Beefeater)
1 oz blue curacao
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Juice of 1/2 orange
1 oz ginger syrup


Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Consider garnishing with a sugared rim and a lemon rind.


The Bludgeon is akin to the Maiden's Prayer, a cocktail I find myself pouring at least once a week. Beefeater in hand, I pressed further on my course towards new and summery gin cocktails by trying some variations. These variations were particularly delightful:


Twists on the Maiden's Prayer

Basic Recipe

1 1/2 oz gin (I used Beefeater)
1/2 oz triple sec
1/2 oz freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice

Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

The Twists

Add a mere splash of peach schnapps or orange flower water
Pool pomegranate syrup in the bottom of the glass
Garnish with a flamed orange rind or the barest sprinkle of orange water

A Rejiggered Daiquiri

In aspring to true Hemingway style, I prefer old school daiquiris that have everything to do with fresh, rummy, citrus flavors and nothing to do with swirling and slushy machines. In other words, serve it straight up or on the rocks, and not frozen. On several occasions I've offered a batch to friends who ask (at the bottom of the glass) what they are drinking, and are surprised to hear it's a simple, traditional daiquiri. White rum works well as a base, but a mix of various rums makes this otherwise straightforward drink more complex. Fair warning -- this drink can, well, otherwise change your plans for the evening.

This recipe is in "parts" rather than ounces in case you're serving a crowd.

Happy summer!


Rejiggered Daiquiris

2 parts raspberry rum
2 parts pineapple rum
1 part gold rum
1 1/2 parts freshly squeezed lime juice
1/3 part simple syrup

Shake or stir ingredients together with ice. Strain into a cocktail glass.

Image from stock.xchng (http://www.sxc.hu/)

A Few Rounds with Leblon Cachaca

I recently received a bottle of Leblon cachaca and was delighted to try it. I had mixed with cachaca in the past (such as in the blood orange caiprihinia), so I had a sense of the base flavor. That said, Leblon's smooth and delicate taste stood out from other cachacas. It was true to its roots -- I could pick up the sugarcane and even some earthy tones underneath. It pairs well with citrus of course, and also with ginger, as in the cocktails below.

GC Splash

2 oz Leblon cachaca
1 oz triple sec
1 oz freshly squeezed orange juice

1 oz ginger syrup

Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. If you like, garnish with a splash of pomegranate syrup.

A few other ginger concoctions:

Round One

2 oz cachaca (I used Leblon)

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1 oz ginger syrup

Shake ingredients toegther with ice and stain into a cocktail glass. Consider garnishing with a stream of pomegranate syrup.

Round Two

2 oz cachaca (I used Leblon)
1/2 oz ginger syrup
Champagne

Shake cachaca and syrup together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Top with champagne.


Round Three

2 oz cachaca (I used Leblon)
1/2 oz Grand Marnier
1 oz ginger syrup
Juice of 1/2 lemon

Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Consider garnishing with a stream of pomegranate syrup.

And now a concoction with no ginger at all.

Pine and Cane

2 oz cachaca (I used Leblon)
1 oz triple sec
1 oz freshly squeezed orange juice
1 oz pineapple juice

Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Consider garnihsing with a stream of pomegranate syrup.

June's Surprise

The first Saturday morning after the close of the spring soccer season promised to be leisurely. A whole day without packing up and hustling to a field, a day to spend as I chose. I had planned a trip to the local farmers' market. When I woke, the weather was not exactly inviting -- dreary rain falling from a cool gray sky. However, I was determined, and braced myself with my trusty University of Kentucky ball cap and rain jacket.

The trip defied its dismal beginning. The clouds parted for a half hour, just enough time to make the rounds through the small oval of tents and stands. They held many of the usual early summer offerings -- berries, greens, squash, tomatoes. One tent stood out, though, because of its pints and pints of plump indigo berries -- black raspberries -- something I handn't seen at this market or any other in some time. Maybe I am too easily entertained, but I was thrilled. Their flavor was rich, sunny, sweet and extraordinary. I managed to save enough to garnish a cocktail that night, named for this unexpected delight. Of course it called for Chambord, and I paired it with bourbon and amaretto for complexity, along with a bit of citrus to tame the sweetness.

June's Surprise

3 oz bourbon
1 oz amaretto
1/2 oz Chambord
Juice of 1/2 lemon

Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Consider a garnish of a sugared rim, some skewered black raspberries, or both.

Or, perhaps a quicker variation:

2 oz bourbon
1 oz Chambord
Blackberry soda (I used Izze)

Combine ingredients together in a highball glass with ice and stir.

Mine That Cocktail

Early May can be full of surprises. On the first Saturday in May, a longshot surprised the crowds at Churchill Downs. A few days later, I was surprised how a few simple flavors and a little muddling right out of the gate can create a cocktail that tastes of spring and is as bright as Calvin Borel's silks.


Mine That Cocktail

3 oz gin
1 oz triple sec (I used Hiram Walker)
1 oz simple syrup
Handful of fresh mint leaves

Muddle mint leaves in a cocktail shaker. Add other ingredients and ice. Shake and strain through a fine mesh strainer into a cocktail glass. A sugared rim is a nice touch, as is a fresh mint leaf.

Sandeman 10-Year Port and The Red Jacket

I've always enjoyed Manhattans, but as I mixed round after round, it occurred to me that I was really just tolerating the sweet vermouth in the drink. In truth, I didn't enjoy its flavor. I would never down a glass of sweet vermouth. Others might, but in truth it's just not right for me. Perhaps it's a taste I should acquire, but it hasn't happened quite yet. At least at first, I was loath to meddle with such a classic recipe. Then the epiphany: why should I mix with ingredients I don't like? To ask is to answer.


I don't enjoy sweet vermouth, but I do like port. I always have. For The Ruby Gauntlet I developed a Manhattan featuring port instead of vermouth. I used ruby ports of decent quality and was quite pleased with the change. The cocktail's flavor was deep and earthy, and slightly sweet.

Then I had the good fortune to try a bottle of Sandeman 10 year tawny port. Switching from vermouth to ruby port was a decisive improvement. Using the Sandeman tawny port instead of the ruby port was better still. The drink traded its residual sweetness for a new layer of complexity. I enjoyed this drink night after night -- as well as a glass or two of the Sandeman tawny port standing alone.

Not content to leave well enough alone, I detoured a bit further from the baseline Manhattan. I skipped the bitters and poured in some Cherry Heering, which lent enough fruit and sweetness to accommodate a splash of Galliano, yielding a drink I suppose I'll dub with a name fitting for this cool early spring.


The Red Jacket

2 oz bourbon
1 oz tawny port (I used the Sandeman 10 year tawny)
1 oz Cherry Heering
1/4 oz Galliano

Depending on your tastes for the evening, either stir ingredients with ice in a double old-fashioned glass, or shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Almond Cherry Buzz

I had been chomping at the bit to mix up a drink or two with Cherry Heering. The local ABC finally began to stock it, and here is the first creation.

Almond Cherry Buzz

1 1/2 oz vodka

1 oz Cherry Heering

1 oz amaretto

Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Chocolate, Reworked

When presented with a bottle of Godiva chocolate liqueur, I finally took the opportunity to develop my own take on a chocolate martini. My general ground rule is that a martini should be of high proof, letting the flavors of the component liquors take the spotlight. In this case, I chose to round out the chocolate liqueur with subtle and deep almond and coffee flavors. If you like, slip in a pool of Irish cream liqueur as I did for a creamy taste and color contrast.


Chocolate, Reworked



2 1/2 oz vodka
1/2 oz coffee liqueur (I used Kahlua)
1/2 oz amaretto
1 oz chocolate liqueur (I used Godiva)



Shake first four ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Consider a sugared rim and a pool of Irish cream liqueur as garnishes.

Kumquat Mojo

With astonishment I realized that I had not posted in weeks. I suppose it was one of those stealth work crushes -- no one particular matter taking the lead, but instead a handful of demanding projects. On the local traffic reports, they call that situation "volume" on the highways -- no crashes blocking the way, just way too much traffic to get through in a timely manner.

Against that backdrop, I was getting concerned about my cocktail mojo. For weeks I shook up classic but unblogworthy recipes after a long day's work -- bourbon on the rocks, martinis, port manhattans, lemon drops. When I finally undertook a new creation two mights ago, it was horrid. It was reminiscent of the medicine cabinet, and went straight to the drain. What was going on? Was I losing my mixology mojo? Was I tired? Uninspired? A little worried?

In an effort to get back on track, I took a spin through the produce section this afternoon looking for inspiration. I saw all kinds of fruit. Berries -- not in season, imported from Peru. Citrus -- lemons, limes, oranges, all in season, but nothing new. Same with apples and pears. Then I saw a small box of kumquats, vibrant, tiny and orange, in the peak of their winter season. I scooped up a generous handful and made my way to the checkout. Luck continued to smile on me as the cashier could not find the product code after repeated attempts and settled for pricing them as eggplants, at a fraction of the posted price.

On the drive home I popped a whole fruit in my mouth. As I crushed through the thin rind, the flavor was citrusy, plentiful and sweet, but soon the flesh burst with the tart juices inside, leaving a playful balance of sweet and sour, along with a hint of bitterness from the minimal pith.

My plan was paintakingly to juice the kumquats, at the cost of sacrificing the sweet oils in the rind. Perhaps I could preserve the rind experience through a garnish. In short order I halved and pinched the juice out of the fruits, then strained the (surprisingly big) seeds and pulp out. About fifteen of them yielded about a half ounce of juice.

I softened the extreme tartness with a little honey syrup, and the complementary flavor of orange vodka. I shook it, tested it...and I think perhaps the mixology mojo is back.

Kumquat Mojo

2 oz orange vodka (I used Absolut Mandrin)

1 1/4 oz honey syrup

1/2 oz kumquat juice (freshly squeezed and strained)

Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Consider a rim garnished with turbonado sugar, along with a skewered slice or two of kumquat rind.

Gingerbread Liqueur Contest, Revisited

I'd like to extend my thanks to Samantha at Cocktail Culture and to Hiram Walker for hosting their contest to create a new drink using Hiram Walker gingerbread liqueur. I was fortunate enough to enter and win with the Bronze Autumn Cocktail. Please check out Cocktail Culture to see the amazingly creative entries other bloggers submitted.

The prize was a bottle of the hard to find spirit of my choice. Remembering how much I enjoyed Midleton Irish whiskey while in Ireland, I asked for a bottle of the limited run of Midleton Single Cask. Little did I know what a challenge that was to get. Samantha and others really went above and beyond, because the distiller had concerns with shipping a bottle, but came thorugh in the end.

On Wednesday night, after a nasty ice storm, FedEx arduously delivered the long awaited box. Now the only only challenge is how best to drink it. I plan to share it with the friends who helped me choose among the various entries for the contest, and with another who lived in Ireland for a time. The rest I might just enjoy myself, adorned only with a couple of chunks of clear, bottled-water ice already frozen just for the occasion.

So, Samantha and Hiram Walker, thanks so much -- it has been a challenge and lot of fun.

Slainte!

Cool Citrus Spice

If I hadn't been preoccupied with settling a big case the last few weeks, I would have submitted this cocktail in the last round of Mixology Monday. I may be a couple of weeks late but at least my client saved a few wheelbarrows of cash. Cheers!

Cool Citrus Spice

2 oz vodka
1 oz triple sec
Juice of one clementine
1 oz winter spice syrup



Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Glad Tidings

At this time of year, a refreshing and colorful cocktail with seasonal ingredients is key. So much moreso if it is simple. In that spirit, check out the Glad Tidings cocktail. Happy holidays to all.


Glad Tidings

2 oz vodka
1 oz triple sec
1 oz pomegranate juice
Clementine soda (I used Izze)
1/2 oz grenadine

Shake first three ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Top with clementine soda and add grenadine.

November Chill

November Chill

3 oz gin

1 1/2 oz apple cider syrup

1/4 oz pomegranate syrup

1/4 oz Tuaca

Shake gin and apple cider syrup together with ice and strain into a cinnamon-sugar rimmed cocktail glass. Stir Tuaca and pomegranate syrup together and pour into the center of the glass.