October 1, 2013
Those chosen few, who have dawdled here on Spiked Punch since days of yore, or since days of long ago, may have been blessed enough to chance across a Cocktail Talk post featuring some wit or wisdom from one of the Compleat Imbibers that I am lucky to own. If you, rascal that you are, missed one of those earlier posts (my guess is you were out chasing whiskey bottles up trees), then by all means, go read them. Now you know that The Compleat Imbiber was a series of anthologies covering everything about drinking, with lots of wine talk, some boozy poems, some pictures of glassware, some etching of famous tipplers, and more. Overall, awesome. And during my recent trip to the U.K., I managed in a London bookstore to find a copy I didn’t yet own, number 5. So, expect some quotes over the next little while from it, starting with this one from a short essay by C. Gordon Glover about those who might bore you at the bar with their chatter.
‘Good gracious Fossbridge! Never seen you drinking gin before.’ ‘Hollands, dear boy. And chilled. I always telephone Mrs. Mason in the afternoon if I propose to drink a glass of Hollands in the early evening. She puts a bottle in the refrigerator for me. But not gin, as you understand it – definitely not the brutish juniper. . .’
Of course, there is no need to suffer it at all. There is always the snug fireside. But yet, and yet – they would be missed. And we, too, possibly, may bore the dying nightlights out of them!
– C. Gordon Glover, Boring at the Bar, The Compleat Imbiber 5
September 27, 2013
I recently was talking to a friend, and they mentioned that they didn’t like Chartreuse. I was flabbergasted. I didn’t, like, knock them over the noggin with a three-legged stool or anything, but I did decide then and there to never talk to them again (okay, maybe not – but that would have been sorta great). I also decided to go right home and make myself a Chartreuse Daisy, in honor of the lovely herbal French liqueur/aperitif that had been maligned by my one-time friend. I think you should do the same. We certainly don’t want Chartreuse to feel bad, after all.
Chartreuse Daisy, using the recipe from Ginger Bliss
Cracked ice
2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 ounce grenadine
1 ounce yellow Chartreuse
Strawberry, for garnish
Orange slice, for garnish
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with cracked ice. Add the gin, lemon juice, and grenadine. Shake very well, until the shaker gets frosty.
2. Fill a goblet three-quarters up with cracked ice. Strain the mixture over the ice. Stir briefly. Float the Chartreuse over the ice, and stir again briefly. Garnish with the strawberry and the orange slice.
Tags: Chartreuse, Chartreuse Daisy, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Friday Night Cocktail, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking
September 13, 2013
Holy Toledo! Everyone who’s been holding your breath can now exhale – the new season of the Cocktail to Cocktail Hour is finally upon us. They (those bastardos) said it couldn’t be done, said that the Cocktail to Cocktail Hour was too radicool, too awesome, too tasty for modern T.V. – but they were wrong. To prove it, the first episode of the new season, where I teach you have to make the Kick-Off, a combination of gin, dry vermouth, anisette, Benedictine, and Angostura. Get to it, y’all!
Tags: Angostura bitters, anisette, Benedictine, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Cocktail to Cocktail Hour, Cocktail video, Cocktail Videos, dry vermouth, Friday Night Cocktail, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: bitters, Cocktail Recipes, Cocktail to Cocktail Hour, Cocktail Videos, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Italy, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking
August 30, 2013
A week ago today, I put up a Friday night drink called the Portofino, which was a drink I made for my mother’s 75th birthday party. One of the other drinks (there were three) was the Marguerite. As mentioned in that earlier post, I was slightly angling the drinks the Italian way, and the Italian connection here is anisette – specifically Meletti anisette, which is one of the finest sippers I know. I blogged more about it on a specific Meletti post, so go catch up if you missed it. Then, when back, make this drink. It has an interesting balance, as it’s equal parts gin and vermouth, but the end result is awfully wonderful (oh, the recipe is from Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, if you wondered).
The Marguerite
Cracked ice
1-1/4 ounces gin
1-1/4 ounces dry vermouth
1/4 ounce anisette
Thin lemon slice for garnish
1. Fill a cocktail shaker or mixing glass halfway full with cracked ice. Add the gin, vermouth, and anisette. Stir well.
2. Strain the mix into a cocktail glass or comparable glass
3. Give the lemon slice a small squeeze over the glass then drop it in.
Tags: anisette, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, dry vermouth, Friday Night Cocktail, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Marguerite cocktail, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Liqueurs, Recipes, vermouth, What I'm Drinking
August 20, 2013
Those who are regular readers (and who among can admit that you are not? None of you, that’s who. Cause then I’d cry, and pout, and do the whole crying-pouting thing, which would make everyone a little embarrassed, so just say you read this blog all the time, okay?) will remember that I’m a big fan of the works of Anthony Trollope. So much so, I have to admit, that I own every book of his that’s readily available, and a number that aren’t as readily available. But there are still a lot that I haven’t read – he was a prolific dude. To track one remaining Trollopean holdout, I had to find a copy via a company called Forgotten Books, which prints facsimiles from old old texts. So, no footnotes here. But that’s okay with me, cause I’m knee deep in another Victorian country tale, one that started early with the following quote (said quote why the book is being mentioned on this blog. But you might have guessed that) talking about the town and about the townspeople’s drink of choice:
There rages a feud in Bullhampton touching this want of a market, as there are certain Bullhamptonites who aver that the charter giving all rights of a market to Bullhampton does exist; and that at one period in its history the market existed also – for a year or two; but the three bakers and the two butchers are opposed to change, and the patriots of the place, though the declaim on the matter over their evening pipes and gin-and-water, have not enough of matutinal zeal to carry out their purpose.
¬ Anthony Trollope, The Vicar of Bullhampton
August 2, 2013
The Alexander, if for some insane reason you don’t know it already, is the emperor of sweet cocktails, dessert drinks, and the year 1914. If you pretend you don’t like sweeter drinks, cause it makes you feel macho, or what-have-you, then A: I feel sorry for you, B: get off your high horse, C: try this anyway, cause you’ll love it. If you aren’t afraid to admit you like pie, as well as a dessert-y drink, then you will already love the Alexander, naturally. But dig this – it’s now even better, thanks to the fine folks at Sound Spirits here in Seattle. Because they recently came out with a new crème de cacao that knocks the socks off most commercially available varieties. It’s under their “Depth” line of liqueurs, and that moniker sums it up nicely: pure chocolate aroma, deep chocolate taste, some sweetness, but not too much. It’s also made with chocolate nibs that are added in the distilling process, and said nibs are from local Theo’s Chocolates. All great things! But even better is how great the classic Alexander tastes when made with Sound Spirits Depth Crème de Cacao and Sound Spirits Ebb + Flow gin. But don’t take my word for it. Try it why dontcha (using this recipe from Good Spirits).
The Alexander
Ice cubes
1 ounce Sound Spirits Ebb + Flow gin
1 ounce Sound Spirits Depth Crème de Cacao
1 ounce cream
Strawberry slices for garnish
1. Fill a cocktail shaker half way with ice cubes. Add the gin, cream de cacao, and cream. Shake well.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a strawberry slice, or two if you’re still waiting on dessert.
Tags: cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Friday Night Cocktail, Sound Spirits, Sound Spirits Depth Crème de Cacao, Sound Spirits Ebb + Flow gin, The Alexander, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail News, Cocktail Recipes, Distillery, Gin, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking
July 26, 2013
I’m not gonna lie – drinks that take the names of other drinks instead of having their own individual name, well, that irritates me. Call me an old stick-in-the-something, or shake your head at my nuttiness, but I think creative drink makers also need to be creative drink namers. That’s just my thing, baby. But it doesn’t keep me from drinking really good drinks that hold less-than-awesome names. Such as the Purple Basil Gimlet, from Paul Abercrombie’s wonderful book Organic, Shaken and Stirred, which is packed with tasty drinks that utilize organic ingredients (as you might guess, if you were anything but an awful guesser). Its spice and citrus flavor is swell. Try it, and see if I’m wrong (PS: I’m not wrong).
Purple Basil Gimlet
2 ounces Bluewater Halcyon organic gin (or other organic gin)
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed organic lime juice
1/2 ounce organic agave nectar
5 organic purple basil leaves
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add the gin, lime juice, agave nectar, and 4 purple basil leaves.
2 Shake vigorously, then fine strain the mixture into a martini glass. Float 1 more basil leaf on top of the drink.
July 19, 2013
One of my favorite old-timey books of cocktails and drinks is called Crosby Gaige’s Cocktail Guide and Ladies Companion. It’s by Crosby Gaige (hah!), who was a bon vivant about town in the early-to-mid part of last century. The book is a gas, as well as having bunches of good recipes. Recently, I tapped into it when I wasn’t sure what I wanted to imbibe, and found a fine recipe called Ants in the Pants, in The Old Gin Mill section – which makes sense, cause I wanted some gin. There was one wrinkle, however. The recipe called for Grand Marnier, which I was somehow out of (quick, Grand Marnier people, send me a bottle. Oops, too slow). Which led to me subbing in Pierre Ferrand orange curaçao, which yeah, I know is different, but it’s so so so good. And you know what? The drink ended up delicious, and I think Mr. Gaige himself would have approved. Oh, the change did make me alter the title, as you can see if you can read, and why would you be here if you couldn’t? Because where I come from, drinks have individual names, like people. And individual gins, which here should be Alpinist Gin, from the Seattle Distilling Company, if you can find it. It’s got the juniper hopping, but also has some other herbally and botanical goodness that adds a lot to the drink.
Pants in the Pants
Ice cubes
2 ounces Alpinist Gin
1/2 ounce Pierre Ferrand orange curaçao
1/2 ounce sweet vermouth (I used Cocchi Torino, and suggest it)
1 dash fresh lemon juice
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add it all why dontcha.
2. Shake well. Strain into a cocktail glass.
Tags: Alpinist gin, Cocchi Torino, Cocktail Guide and Ladies Companion, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Crosby Gaige, Friday Night Cocktail, Gin, Pants in the Pants, Pierre Ferrand orange curaçao, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Crosby Gaige, Gin, Liqueurs, Recipes, vermouth, What I'm Drinking
