July 23, 2013
Some say (or, said, cause after I caught up with ‘em they didn’t say any more.*) that the Cocktail Talk posts here shade too much to the pulp, noir, and mystery side, with only the occasional 1800’s English writer for balance. Pish posh, I say. But, I do believe in balance mostly and mainly, so this time, a little something that could be said to be more lit’rary. And French. And what’s more lit’rary than that? Nothing. This quote is gold, too, and reminds me of many an afternoon that started so purposeful and ended up sorta derailed. I’ll bet you’ve had those days, too, yes?
They entered a small café and took an absinthe together, then resumed their walk along the pavement. Morissot stopped suddenly. ‘Shall we have another absinthe?’ he said. ‘If you like,’ agreed Monsieur Sauvage. And they entered another wine shop. They were quite unsteady when they came out, owing to the effect of the alcohol on their empty stomachs. It was a fine, mild day, and a gentle breeze fanned their faces.
— Guy de Maupassant, Two Friends
*Kidding! I’m not so tough. I’m a cuddler.
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
July 12, 2013
I am not, as stated in other places, a medical doctor. Neither am I Doctor Johnny Fever. I do know that according to many many old wives, an apple a day keeps the doctor away, however. I am not trying to sew discord between old wives and doctors, either, but am saying that even if a true doctor wouldn’t prescribe this drink, the fact that it contains apple cider means that it does, according to old wives, have some medicinal properties. Oh, it has rum, too, which many folks once thought was healthy, unless it was being forced on you by pirates. If that wasn’t enough for you to realize the healing factor of this drink, let me add that its third ingredient is Sidetrack Distillery Nocino, the finest Nocino made outside of Italy. Nocino, if you need to know, is a green-walnut liqueur, well and famous in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. And everyone knows that walnuts are healthy. Maybe doctors really would order this, after all. At least Doctor Fever would.
What the Doctor Ordered
Ice cubes
2 ounces dark rum (Mount Gay works nicely)
1/2 ounce Sidetrack Nocino
3 ounces Seattle Cider Company Semi-Sweet cider
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add the rum and Nocino. Shake well.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass. Top with the cider. Stir carefully and briefly. Enjoy the good health.
Tags: cider, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, dark rum, Friday Night Cocktail, Nocino, Seattle Cider Company, Sidetrack distillery, What I'm Drinking, What the Doctor Ordered
Posted in: cider, Cocktail Recipes, Italy, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking
July 9, 2013
Howdee! Are you ready for some Seattle magazine miraculousness? I sure am. If you missed any of the below stuff I’ve recently written for that August publication, it’s now time for you to catch up. Don’t miss another second!
• 4 Cocktails for the 4th of July
• Five Fantastically Comfortable Seattle Bar Stools
• Four Refreshing Garden-Inspired Cocktails
• Late Spring Bar News
• Four Drink Experts on the Future of Cocktails
*See all my Seattle magazine pieces
July 5, 2013
Sometimes, very little needs to be said. This is one of those times. I’m drinking Dark and Stormys cause July, especially, demands them. Don’t disagree, or I’ll cut you off. There, I said it. Now drink your drink and keep quite. Oh, use the below recipe from Dark Spirits. Now back to your drink.
Dark and Stormy
Ice cubes
2 ounces dark rum (I think Mount Gay is dandy here)
Chilled ginger beer (Rachel’s is the best in the land, so works well here)
Lime wedge for garnish
1. Fill a highball glass three-quarters full with ice cubes. Add the rum.
2. Fill the glass with ginger beer, but don’t be wacky about it (no drink becomes a favorite if it bubbles over and stickies up the counter).
3. Squeeze the lime wedge over the drink, and then let it slide on in. Stir, but briefly.
Tags: cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, dark rum, Dark Spirits, Friday Night Cocktail, Rachel's Ginger Beer, The Dark and Stormy, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Dark Spirits, Rum, What I'm Drinking
July 2, 2013
I’ve mentioned Charles Williams on here before, but it’s high time he’s on here again, as he’s one of the pulpiest pulpers out there – at least from the books I’ve read, and I’m always looking for more. If you happen to have any old Charles Williams books, actually, and want to give them to me, I will buy you many drinks. Promise. Anyway, the book of his I’ve read most recently is called A Touch of Death, and was reprinted not long ago by the fine folks at Hard Case Crime. It features a guy who gets himself into all kinds of trouble, mostly due to a women that has been called “the toughest babe you’ll meet in fiction,” by Mystery File, and I couldn’t agree more. She is bad news, people. The below quote is good news, however.
We went up on the outside stairs at the rear of the building and in through the kitchen. She pulled a bottle of bourbon out of a cupboard and set it on the drain.
‘Mix yourself a drink, and go into the living room. Soda and ice cubes in the refrigerator.’
‘I hate to drink alone this early in the day,’ I said. ‘It scares me.’
She smiled. ‘All right. If you insist.’
–Charles Williams, A Touch of Death
June 28, 2013
It’s late June, a sleepy sort of summertime, full of days where waking up early and going to work seems downright silly. Though maybe you have these feelings all the time? Anyway, a good suggestion* for overcoming that feeling is starting things off right with a London Fog – this very drink. For celebrity endorsement, Burgess Meredith used to swear by this concoction as a morning pick-you-up. And Norton Pratt, who edited the Boston Telegram once up a time, says this will cure you when you feel “like a basket of busted bungholes.” I can’t think of anything to say that would top that, so just go make the drink whydontcha?
London Fog (from Good Spirits)
Cracked ice
2 ounces gin (something London-y, of course, like Voyager)
1/2 ounce Pernod
1. Add about a cup of cracked ice to a mixing glass or cocktail shaker. Add the gin and Pernod.
2. Stir well (so well that it seems you’re frappe-ing the mix). Pour everything into an Old Fashioned glass. Drink quickly, before the body realizes what’s going on.
*The actual validity of the “good” here varies depending on the job naturally. I’m sure not suggesting you drink before operating heavy machinery. But if you’re just heading to the cubicle farm? Why not?
Tags: a basket of busted bungholes, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Friday Night Cocktail, Gin, Good Spirits, London Fog, Pernod, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Gin, Good Spirits, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking
June 24, 2013
As I’ve mentioned somewhere on here before (if you haven’t read every single post, now is a good time to do it), I here and there get random items in the mail. Sometimes, they’re dumb. Sometimes they’re okay. Rarely are they mind-blowingly cool. However, that recently happened, thanks to Caorunn Gin. See, one day, I came home from the zombie mines and found a package on my doorstep. In that package, was a bottle of gin, and this box:
The gin looked good, but the box was intriguingly shaped, so I opened it, and inside there were two little shelves, each with some smallish glass jars on it. The first shelf had jars with samples of the 5 dried Celtic botanicals used in the gin (I forgot to mention, Caorunn is handcrafted small-batch Scottish gin. So, the Celtic connection isn’t coming out of left field). The second shelf had identical jars with the essences of the botanicals – little cotton balls with the oils of the botanicals. It looks like this:
Neato, right? At first, I thought it was merely curiosity (and fantastic packaging, for sure), like a sideshow of sorts. But then as I started opening the jars one by one, and realizing how well they focused the aromas, it made more sense – especially when trying the gin alongside the smelling. The five botanicals are: rowan berry, bog myrtle, heather, dandelion, and coul blush apple (which sounds somewhat like they could also be mixed when you wanted to turn someone into a, oh, frog I suppose), and they really give the gin an intense and individual, flavor, aroma, and tail. But don’t think that it isn’t still like a gin. The juniper-ness of a London dry gin is still intact, just bolstered and backed by a hints of herbs and spice and a touch of sweet. Nice stuff. I haven’t tried mixing much with it yet, but am looking forward to it. Here’s the gin in bottle (interesting bottle shape as well) so you know to watch out for it:
Now, if only everything in the mail was as interesting.
