Archive for the 'cocktails' Category

Tequila Monday!

Published by Matt May 17th, 2007 in recipes, cocktails and liquor. 7 Comments

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Well, the weather is brisk, Mexican beer bottles and cheap margarita glasses are being swept into the back alleys of our minds, and everyone is emerging from their Cinco de Mayo hangover…in other words, it’s time for Mixology Monday again! And from the looks like of the creative and awe inspiring entries, we’ve successfully broke free from the ordinary chains of tradition and put the “Mayo” back in the “Cinco,” if you know what I mean (ok, that doesn’t make any sense but who’s counting?).

So let’s start with the one-two punch of Anita and Cameron over at Married…with dinner. First up is Anita with the The Prado, where she divulges their not-so-secret Seattle drinking ritual and entices us with a tart and frothy tequila classic. Cameron delivers punch two with a twist on an old standby and gives us the Tequila and Tonic, and throws in a tonic tasting to boot!

The girls over at Liquor and Libations take the Irish Lemonade south of the border and offer up Mexican Lemonade. Start the revolution!

Putting the ‘ol grey matter to work, George over at Bartender Thinking gives us two ways to take a Cosmo and give it some huevos via tequila with his Tequila Cosmopolitans.

Participating for the first time ever is the world renown Jeffrey Morgenthaler. Jeff gives us an original with the Santa Carla. It looks amazing, and you can serve it by the pitcher!

Jay at Oh Gosh! makes us pucker up with the tart Bald Eagle. If you like ‘em sour, give it a try.

Mixing up three drink recipes could be dangerous but in the hands of Phil at Lamb Martini, its probably a good thing. Try the Caimarquiri.

Serving up the gorgeous, Haalo at Cook Almost Anything says “Ole’” and goes where few dare to tread by using BANANA LIQUEOR! CRAZY MAN!

Dr. Bamboo explains the immigration issue with Mexico on Fire. Despite the name, its a classy drink with some of my favorite ingredients.

Jimmy gives us two versions of his favorite modern day tequila classic with the Tequila Bramble.

The Natural Born Cynic whips up a Sandstorm with his variation on the Tequila Sunrise.

Rick over at the Kaiser Penguin marches out the tiki torches (like that takes alot…) and, as usual, gives us an amazing photo and cocktail in the Acapulco.

They say necessity is the mutha of invention, and Darcy over at The Art of Drink shows his ultra resourcefulness and trots out an unusual combination that sounds like a great Memorial Day weekend beverage. I suggest that you Ride the Bull. It can only make you stronger…

Michael at A Dash of Bitters (love the new look buddy), takes the ‘ol margarita and gives it a cool tweak. Check out the I didn’t name this cool drink and don’t explain why. ;-)

Our Mixology Monday founder, Paul acts all nervous and unsure at first, but then lays out two stunning recipes with effortless grace. Although he expresses his preference in the post, they both look amazing and will send me to the liquor store for the missing ingredients. Check out Rosebud and Sangre de Agave.

The Bottle Gang pulls out all the stops and gives us not two or three, but five tequila recipes over at The Bottle Gang.

The eGullet posts give us the following:

La Mojada.

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=102398&view=findpost&p=1406162

The Diablo.

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=102398&view=findpost&p=1406768

The Prado.

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=102398&view=findpost&p=1408767

Tequila Centeno.

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=102398&view=findpost&p=1408884

The Weaver Special.

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=102398&view=findpost&p=1409598

Dan Ryan gave us three cocktails, The Sadler, The Miramare (aka the Roselle Roselle), and The Azalea.

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=102398&view=findpost&p=1408905

EJE did a riff on a julep which he creatively called, “Spiced Pineapple Julep-ish Tequila Drink”

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=102398&view=findpost&p=1408935

Keith from the Union Restaurant in Seattle doesn’t let having no blog stop him from posting these two:

La Rosita (sometimes just called Rosita)

1 1/2 oz tequilla (I use a reposado at my bar)
1/2 oz dry vermouth
1/2 oz sweet vermouth
1/2 oz Campari

Stir, serve in a chilled cocktail glass
(I’ve also seen a dash of bitters and lemon twist garnish, but I personally don’t use them)

The Paloma

3 oz fresh grapefruit juice
1/2 oz fresh lime juice
2 oz silver tequilla

Shake, strain into ice-filled highball glass
Top with Sprite, garnish with a lime wedge

Same goes for Chip and Andy who post:

Silver Amour-a-rita

1 part fresh lime
2 parts Parfait Amour
3 parts Silver Tequila (I like Milagro Silver)

Shake hard with crasked ice and strain into a cocktial glass. Garnish with a very thin slice of orange.

And lastly, moi, at this fine site, gives you:

The Marina Margarita (pictured above)

1 1/2 ounces of silver tequila

1 ounce of Cointreau

1/4 ounce of blue caracao

2 ounces of grapefruit juice

1/2 ounce of fresh lemon juice

Moisten the rim of your glass with the lemon wedge and dip in kosher salt. Add all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake. Pour into your salt-rimmed cocktail glass and ENJOY!

MMXIV: Champagne - Seelbach Cocktail

Published by Matt April 16th, 2007 in recipes, cocktails, bourbon, wine and liqueur. 5 Comments

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mm-14.gifI’m on a bourbon kick…for the last six or seven years… So, to anyone who knows me, it shouldn’t be a surprise that even a Champagne-themed Monday Mixology features a cocktail with a bourbon twist. The Seelbach cocktail is named for the most famous hotel in my hometown: Louisville, KY. It’s famous for its inclusion in the literary classic, “The Great Gatsby,” and for having jazz legend Dick Sisto in its house band. Since the hotel opened in 1905, it has housed nine presidents, countless actors, music legends, and Al Capone, and has been featured in many movies. With guests like that, craziness is bound to happen. Once such alleged act of craziness resulted in today’s cocktail…

Legend has it that the cocktail was created when a Seelbach bartender accidentally poured champagne into a customer’s Manhattan. On afterthought, that’s not so crazy at all. I’m sure much more interesting things have happened at the Seelbach that we’ll never hear about. Lucky for us this cocktail wasn’t one of them.
The Seelbach Cocktail is:

1 oz. bourbon

1/2 oz. Cointreau

7 dashes of Angostura bitters

7 dashes of Peychaud’s bitters

5 oz. chilled Champagne

Combine the bourbon, Cointreau, and bitters in a shaker filled with ice. Stir briskly and pour into champagne flutes. Top with chilled Champagne. Enjoy!

Now head over to Married…with dinner to see the rest…

Happy Place

Published by Matt January 14th, 2007 in recipes, cocktails and liqueur. 0 Comments

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We all want to find a safe, happy place…don’t we? Well now you can find it via the liquor cabinet with this pleasant little cocktail.

This cocktail based on the “Happy World” recipe from the “Complete Home Bartender’s Guide,” which I received for Christmas. The original recipe includes banana liqueur. While I don’t have anything against bananas (they are one of my favorite fruits) they tend to overpower any competing flavors in a recipe - whether we’re talking about a bread, a smoothie, or a cocktail. Plus, I haven’t figured out how to juice one to get a nice, fresh banana flavor instead of using a liqueur with a flavor manufactured chemically in a lab. That was my justification for swapping the banana liqueur for blue curacao (citrus liqueur). This had a twofold effect: first, it changed the drink color from bright yellow to light green and, second, it gave the drink a more balanced taste. No more getting slapped in the face with a bunch of bananas.

I was quite pleased how well it turned out. That’s the fun part of experimenting with cocktail recipes. It becomes a discovery process that can be rewarding, or disastrous, but that’s how new drinks get made. Obviously, in this case, it was a very simple swap between liqueurs. But getting the experience of tasting how the endless combinations work together is the first step in the creation of your own private stock of recipes.

The Happy Place cocktail is:

1 oz. of brandy

1/2 oz. of Cointreau

1 oz. of fresh orange juice

1/2 oz. of Blue Curacao

Combine all the ingredients in a shaker with ice and stain into an old fashioned glass.

Recommended listening for your Happy Place…Witty, upbeat rock from Belle and Sebastian:

Belle and Sebastian’s latest album was one of best releases in 2006. On this perfectly produced disc they draw from the 1970’s glam-rock of T. Rex and David Bowie while still keeping their classic pop rock sensibilities intact.

Blue Moon Martini

Published by Matt December 28th, 2006 in recipes, vodka and cocktails. 0 Comments

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Earlier this year, we celebrated my brother-in-law’s twenty-first birthday by spending the day in Orlando. My wife and I went with her brother, two sisters, and one of their boyfriends, Fred. Somehow during the course of the day we ended up at the Mall of the Millenia after lunch and while the ladies shopped their little hearts out, us boys found the “Blue Martini” lounge and planted ourselves at the bar. My brother-in-law doesn’t really drink, but Fred and I were determined to have him at least try a couple of cocktails to make the passage to “being official” official. Soon enough, we were rejoined by the ladies and for the second round and my wife ordered the “Blue Moon Martini”.
She liked it so much she copied the ingredients from the martini “menu” and we have since recreated the recipe for this fruity and refreshing cocktail.

Blue Moon Martini

Vodka - 2 parts
Watermelon Pucker - 1 part
Blue Curacao - 1 part
Pineapple juice - splash
Sour mix - splash

Combine all the ingredients with ice. Shake hard and pour into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with pineapple.

Recommended listening for the Blue Moon Martini…The Cowboy Junkies

I like to say that the Cowboy Junkies are neither cowboys or junkies. They’re a Canadian band mostly consisting of siblings that have blazed their own style of music that blends rock, alternative, country, and folk. The perfect song kicks off the album: “Blue Moon Revisited”.

MMX:Festive Cocktails - Naughty or Nice?

Published by Matt December 11th, 2006 in recipes, vodka, cocktails and liqueur. 3 Comments

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mm-10.bmp Here we are again. Another “Mixology Monday” already. This time around the theme is “festive occasion” for obvious reasons and I decided to provide two options: naughty or nice. So depending on which list of Santa’s you’ll think you’ll land, you can still enjoy an appropriately festive cocktail.

First up is the D’Artagnan cocktail. This is the nice one. For all you do-gooders, the D’Artagnan cocktail is a nicely balanced champagne cocktail that incorporates some classic flavor combinations.
The D’Artagnan is:

1 tsp of brandy

1 tsp of cointreau

3 tsp of orange juice

1/2 tsp of simple syrup

Combine these ingredients in a shaker with ice to chill. Then pour into a flute glass and top with champagne. Garnish with an orange or lemon peel.

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Next up is naughty. This is the decadent choice. It doesn’t get much more indulgent than a mint chocolate martini. If you’ve been naughty all year then you’re probably used to treating yourself, so why stop now? Here’s how I did it.

The Mint Chocolate Martini is:

1 1/2 oz. of vanilla vodka

1 1/2 oz of creme de cacao

1/2 oz of creme de menthe

I started by garnishing the rim of a martini glass with peppermint crumbles. Then I swirled chocolate syrup around the inside of the martini glass. The rest is simple. Combine the ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker. Shake and strain into the garnished glass.

That’s it. And if your wondering which list I think I’m going to be on, the answer is neither…I don’t believe in Santa Claus :-)

Immaculate cocktail

Published by Matt December 5th, 2006 in recipes, cocktails, rum and liqueur. 2 Comments

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Posting a cocktail recipe with the name “the Immaculate” was not intended to coincide with the Christmas season or the fact that we just passed the first Sunday in Advent, it just happened to work out that way. Was it coincidence? Was it Divine intervention? Are there greater things at work behind the scenes? Or is this just another cocktail you should be sure to add to your repertoire? Maybe its all of the above. It is interesting that I couldn’t find any info regarding the “conception” of the cocktail… But regardless of your personal theological beliefs, I think that once you try making one, you will certainly enjoy its brilliant blend of subtle flavors, and perhaps more appropriately, feel more relaxed and thankful at this time of year. Maybe that’s after two immaculates…

The Immaculate is:

2 oz. of light rum

1/2 oz. of amaretto

1 oz. fresh lime juice

1 oz. fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp of sugar syrup

Combine all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake vigorously for 20 seconds. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and savor!

Ginger Martini

Published by Matt November 28th, 2006 in recipes, vodka and cocktails. 1 Comment

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Continuing to work our way through the abundance of limes, my wife found a great recipe (actually via one of the google ad links on this site :-) )for a lime-ginger martini that sounded like a must try. So we did. She took care of preparing the ginger syrup and I swooped in and finished off the drink from there. The martini makes a nice pre-meal drink since its on the spicy side. Making the ginger syrup does increase the time it takes to make the drink but you can always make a larger batch since it’ll keep up to one week in the fridge. I recommend you adjust the amount of ginger syrup in the drink to taste. The ginger is a powerful flavor…
To make the ginger syrup use the following ingredients:

1 lime

2 cups of coarsely chopped fresh ginger with peel (approximately 8 oz.)

1 cup of sugar

2 cups of water

Remove the outer peel of the lime with a peeler and finely chop along with the chopped ginger in a food processor. Transfer to a saucepan and combine with the sugar and water. Boil mixture, then reduce heat to a simmer while partially covered. Then strain the mixture and let it cool.

Now to the drink…the ingredients are:

3 oz. of vodka

1/2 oz. of ginger syrup

1/2 oz. of lime juice

Combine the vodka, ginger syrup, and lime juice into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake hard for 20 second and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Enjoy!
Recommended listening for the Ginger Martini…smart, peppy power pop from Brendon Benson:

Before he joined forces with Jack White in the Raconteurs, Brendon released a couple of almost perfect indie rock albums. “The Alternative to Love” is one of them. Great songwriting and polished production make this disc a must have.

Vodka Sour

Published by Matt November 22nd, 2006 in recipes, vodka and cocktails. 1 Comment

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Sometimes good things come from necessity. Take today’s recipe for example. Thanks to my wife, aka “Lord Overstock” (a moniker I use with the utmost affection), our household had recently experienced an oversupply of limes. This abundance thrust a dilemma in front of us; either we suck down copious amount of cheap Mexican beer or we could use up the excess trying a few lime-based cocktail recipes. Fortunately the vote was unanimous in favor of the latter. Having already celebrated the joys of the amaretto sour, I felt it appropriate to turn to the Vodka Sour next. Most Vodka Sour recipes call for fresh lemon juice but as in many cases, a lime juice substitute makes for a nice twist, providing a sharper citrus flavor. The egg white creates a beautiful layer of foam over the top of the drink, giving the cocktail a unique look. The taste is similar to a vodka gimlet but since we’re using lemon juice here instead of Rose’s lime syrup, the drink is much more apt to make you pucker.
The ingredients are:

2 ounces of Vodka

1/2 ounce of sugar syrup

1 egg white

1 1/2 ounces of fresh lime juice

3 or so drops of Angostura bitters to garnish

Combine all ingredients, except the bitters, in a cocktail shaker with a cup or two of ice. Shake hard for 20 seconds or so and pour into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish the foam laden top of the drink with drops of bitters. Be gentle; you’d be surprised how potent more than three or four drops can be.

Recommended listening for the Vodka Sour cocktail…icy, cool trip hop from Portishead:

An album perfectly chilled for vodka based drinks. Plus, fitting to this cocktail, one of its best songs is the remarkably Bond theme-esque “Sour Times”. The rest of the disc is equally good, featuring haunting female vocals layered over a variety of beats and samples.

MMVIIII: Gloria Cocktail

Published by Matt November 12th, 2006 in recipes, gin, cocktails and liqueur. 1 Comment

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mm-9.gifToday’s recipe is for Mixology Monday, hosted this time around by a dash of bitters. For me, straight forward bitterness is an acquired taste and I’m confident that some of my compadres around the cocktail blogsphere will happily offer up more daring, bitter drinks. My offering has a strong bitter component provided by Campari that is tempered somewhat by orange liqueur. The cocktail gets a kick of dryness from dry vermouth and gin. It all adds up to a tart, bitter, lip-smacking aperitif. The drink has a beautiful color provided by the Campari and is sure to impress your friends before sitting down to a nice dinner. I hope you enjoy.
The Gloria cocktail is:

1 ounce of dry gin

1 ounce of dry vermouth

1/4 ounce of Cointreau or orange liqueur

1/4 ounce of Campari

Combine ingredients in a shaker with ice and stir. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and enjoy.

Recommended listening for the bitter Gloria cocktail…Alanis Morissette(kidding!), how about something smoother:

Between the Sheets…

Published by Matt November 10th, 2006 in recipes, cocktails, rum and liqueur. 0 Comments

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Provocative? Yes. Easy on the eyes? You betcha. Tasty drink? Affirmative. I don’t care much for brandy based drinks but I must say that this classic cocktail has all the goods. It’s simple enough to make and uses ingredients that you should be stocking your bar with. It is a sweet, citrus flavored cocktail with a nice balance of brandy and rum to add a little class. So whenever your tired of the same ‘ol, get between the sheets…you won’t be disappointed. The magic is:

1 1/4 ounces of brandy

1 ounce of white rum

1/2 ounce of Cointreau

3/4 ounce of fresh lemon juice

1/2 ounce of sugar syrup

Combine into a cocktail shaker with a cup of ice. Shake and serve into a chilled cocktail glass.

Recommended listening for between the sheets…classy, guitar-driven indie rock:

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