April 25, 2014
Don’t yell at me. Usually I stay away from blue curaçao, because it’s only blue due to some chemical additions, and not the addition of some secret herb only found hidden in the jungle. But here, it’s balanced out by true orange curaçao. And this drink tastes awesome, so screw it, blue curaçao. Also, I’ve heard this drink was created for an award given to the liner making the fastest Atlantic crossing; variously held by British, French, German, and U.S. ships. So, get out your white admiral’s yachting cap and white trousers for this one, friends.
The Blue Riband (from Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz)
Ice cubes
2 ounces gin (something sorta British is best, like Plymouth)
1 ounce Pierre Ferrand orange curaçao
1/2 ounce blue curaçao
Lemon slice, for garnish
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add the gin, orange curaçao, and
blue curaçao. Shake well.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with the lemon slice if that will make your voyage more enjoyable. And it will.
Tags: cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Friday Night Cocktail, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Pierre Ferrand orange curaçao, The Blue Riband, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking
February 28, 2014
This is (and I’m being both tongue-in-cheek and deadly, deadly, serious here) a nutty drink. Really, I’m not 100% sure how I came up with it, as the ingredient list is wide-ranging and may appear to be one that would only turn up in the ramblings of a drink-making madman. A madman, I tell you! Wait . . .
Anyway, the recipe’s printed in Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, and, strange-ish ingredient list aside, it’s darn good. A great drink for a Friday, really, especially if you’re getting ready to go on a world tour, or want to pretend to take a world tour from your living room or home bar. If you can’t find the Kahana Royale macadamia nut liqueur, well, I feel for you. But you could sub in another nutty liqueur – then email me and tell me how it is. If you can’t find Amaro CioCiaro, dang, I’d move. But if that isn’t feasible, try another of the amaros, one that leans towards the bitter side. If you can’t find Fee Brothers Whiskey Barrel Aged Bitters, then just go read another blog. Sorry.
Friday Kahloe
1-1/2 ounces bourbon
1 ounce Kahana Royale macadamia nut liqueur
1/2 ounce Amaro CioCiaro
Dash of Fee Brothers Whiskey Barrel Aged Bitters
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add the bourbon, macadamia nut liqueur, CioCiaro, and bitters. Shake well—it’s Friday, so show you appreciate it.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass.
Tags: Amaro CioCiaro, bourbon, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Fee Brothers Whiskey Barrel Aged Bitters, Friday Kahloe, Friday Night Cocktail, Kahana Royale macadamia nut liqueur, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: bitters, Cocktail Recipes, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Italy, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking, Whiskey
February 7, 2014
Sometimes, you even have to change drinks you like. Heck, even drinks you wrote about. Though maybe “change” isn’t the right word, as it sounds a wee bit pejorative, and I don’t mean to say the original drink in this case, the Cara Sposa, wasn’t and isn’t super tasty. Cause it was and is. However, I just got a bottle of the new coffee liqueur from the Seattle Distilling Company, Luana Beach coffee liqueur (made with Orca Blend coffee from the Vashon Island Coffee Roasterie), and wanted to try it in a cocktail, and, well, the Cara Sposa seemed a perfect match, even though the main ingredient in it, Tia Maria, isn’t necessarily a coffee liqueur. But it does have a coffee-esque quality, so I wasn’t that far afield when making the sub. And, you know what? The end result was amazing. Delicious. A worthy successor to the original. I, naturally, changed the name a stitch, since it is a different drink. You would have done the same, I hope.
Cara Sposa Mattina
Crushed ice
1-1/2 ounces Luana Beach coffee liqueur
1 ounce Pierre Ferrand orange curaçao
1/2 ounce heavy cream
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with crushed ice. Add the Tia Maria, orange curaçao, and cream. Shake well.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass.
A Note: I’ve seen this blended and then strained, but I think that makes it too watery. Using crushed ice and shaking like a machine gets things slushy but not overly watery.
Tags: Cara Sposa Mattina, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Friday Night Cocktail, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Luana Beach coffee liqueur, Pierre Ferrand orange curaçao, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking
January 31, 2014
In Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, I start my talking about this dessert-y drink by saying, “Ooh, Friar, what a long robe you have on–but why is it so ruffled?” I’m not sure there is anything else needed, really. Outside of suggesting you serve this after dinner, in the evening, with you and your sweetie.
Friar Untucked
Ice cubes
1-1/2 ounces Praline Liqueur
1-1/2 ounces Sound Spirits Depth crème de cacao
1-1/2 ounces ounces heavy cream
Cinnamon stick for garnish
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add the praline liqueur, crème de cacao, and cream. Shake well.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with the cinnamon stick.
A Variation: I’ve seen this made with Frangelico (the Italian hazelnut liqueur originally made by monks, and with the monk-like bottle), and called just Friar Tuck. It’s tasty, but adding the praline instead gives this drink a bit of a Southern flair that adds a lot to an evening. I’ve also seen a drink called the Friar Tuck made with vodka, coke, and blackberry cordial. Which seems so unholy I would suggest not even mentioning it.
Tags: cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, dessert drinks, Friar Untucked, Friday Night Cocktail, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, praline liqueur, Sound Spirits Depth Crème de Cacao, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking
November 15, 2013
Hello students of the cocktail, and welcome to another episode of the finest series on cocktails, drinking, and good times ever: The Cocktail to Cocktail Hour. In this episode, our favorite foreigner, Alastair Edwards, is back with another drinking problem, one I solve with the help of the Trilby Cocktail, a bit of an undiscovered treasure featuring Broker’s gin, Dolin dry vermouth, and crème Yvette.
PS: Special thanks to Natalie Fuller, Jeremy Holt, Beatrice Holt, Markie Butler – perhaps the finest actors this side of Stratford, and the wizardry of director Dr. Gonzo.
Tags: Alastair Edwards, Broker’s gin, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Cocktail to Cocktail Hour, Cocktail video, Cocktail Videos, crème Yvette, Dolin dry vermouth, Friday Night Cocktail, Jeremy Holt, Mark Butler, Natalie Fuller, Trilby cocktail, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Cocktail to Cocktail Hour, Cocktail Videos, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Liqueurs, Recipes, vermouth, What I'm Drinking
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
