February 15, 2013
Yesterday (which means, at least for this moment, Valentine’s Day) was the day for hearts, flowers, chocolate, unicorns, and mooning under the moon. Today, well, it’s still the day for all that. But it’s also the day for Stockholm Tar, which, to me, seems almost like it could be the name of a grungy drug gotten by scraping the barnacles off a ship and then boiling them down with a mixture of formaldehyde, corn starch, and Juicy Fruit gum. This drink, however, contains none of that, and while it is strong and all, well, between us, it’s probably closer to the whole flowers and romances mentioned first. So, have one with your favorite sailor and stretch the heart-iest holiday out another day. This recipe’s from Dark Spirits.
Stockholm Tar
Ice cubes
1-1/2 ounces dark rum
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 ounce cranberry juice cocktail
1/2 ounce Simple Syrup
1/4 ounce maraschino liqueur
Lime slice for garnish
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add the rum, lime juice, cranberry juice, simple syrup, and maraschino liqueur. Shake well (you want to ensure it doesn’t get a tar-like appearance).
2. Strain the mix into a cocktail glass. Garnish with the lime slice.
Tags: cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, cranberry juice cocktail, dark rum, Friday Night Cocktail, lime juice, maraschino liqueur, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Dark Spirits, Liqueurs, Recipes, Rum, What I'm Drinking
February 8, 2013
What you do, friends, when you’re up in anyone’s room isn’t any of my business. I like to keep those things under wrap, so to speak. However, if you’re drinking an Up in Mabel’s Room cocktail, which is from Dark Spirits, and which is a dreamy number combining rye, grapefruit juice, and simply syrup, then, well, it’s a bit of my business, cause I want you to be using the below recipe so your life is better. Cause that’s what I want for you. Oh, one more thing (since I’m being so serious). You should know that having a few of these with a certain someone will probably (94.3% probable) have you ending up in a room together, snuggling. Or whatever you kids do. And now you know.
Up in Mabel’s Room
Cracked ice
1-1/2 ounces rye
3/4 ounces fresh grapefruit juice
3/4 ounces simple syrup
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with cracked ice. Add everything. Shake exceptionally well.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass. Enjoy.
Tags: cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Friday Night Cocktail, grapefruit juice, ounces rye, simple syrup, Up in Mabel's Room, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Dark Spirits, Recipes, Rye, What I'm Drinking
February 5, 2013
You may not know it, but today is the anniversary of something Alfred Hitchcock did. I’m not sure exactly what it was, be he was a busy big guy, so it was probably something cool. So, he deserves a toast. But maybe not with the sloe gin cocktail detailed below (though it’s from an anthology he edited called 14 Suspense Stories to Play Russian Roulette By). To figure out why that’s a bad idea, read the below.
‘Hurry up with that liqueur!’ said her husband. Mrs. Watkins went into the pantry and took out a liqueur glass. She poured a little sloe gin into it, and then she put down the bottle and left the pantry. She went into the children’s darkroom – they were allowed that for their photography. She still had the glass in her hand. There was a bottle on the highest shelf. She took it down and measured it carefully with her eye. The children’s manual of photography and the medical dictionary in Henry’s dressing room had been a great help. She poured out into the deep red of the sloe gin some of the contents of the bottle; it looked very white and harmless and hardly smelt at all. She wondered it if was enough, and she tipped up the bottle a little to make sure. She used a good deal more than the medical dictionary said was neccessary, but the medical dictionary might have underestimate Henry’s constitutions. She put the bottle back where she found it, and returned to the pantry. There she filled up the liqueur glass with more sloe gin.
–The Liqueur Glass, Phyllis Bottome
PS: He deserved it.
February 1, 2013
I’m not sure if it’s January’s gloom (we’re aching for sun here in Seattle – please send us some if you live anywhere it’s sunny. Please), my continually growing love of Scotch, or the fact that I like people with accents, but I’ve been on a bit of a Rob Roy jag lately. And, funny enough, I’ve been having them mainly at the bar that shares the same name (the Rob Roy, in case you’re feeling a bit slow today). But I’ve had a couple at home, too, using the recipe from Dark Spirits. In honor of that book-I-wrote, I wanna actually quote from it, because I’m self-referential sure, but mainly because I can’t believe the fine folks at Harvard Common Press let me get away with having this in a headnote:
Remember what Fandral said in the Marvel Spotlight on Warriors Three (Marvel Spotlight Issue 30, 1976) to the guy who bugged him when he was drinking a Rob Roy (at least I think he was), “Churl! Hast thou no manners? Never interrupt a man whilst he is drinking!” In the last part of that quote “a Rob Roy” is only implied, but don’t miss the point.
The Rob Roy
Ice cubes
2-1/2 ounces Scotch
1/2 ounce sweet vermouth
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Lemon twist, for garnish
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add the Scotch, vermouth, and bitters. Shake thee well.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with the lemon twist. Methinks you’ll be happier for it.
A Variation: Wanna take a wee trek away from the Rob Roy? Switch Angostura for orange bitters, and skip to a Highland Cocktail.
Tags: Angostura bitters, Cocktail Recipes, Dark Spirits, Fandral, Friday Night Cocktail, Marvel Spotlight on Warriors Three, Rob Roy cocktail, Scotch, sweet vermouth, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Bars, Cocktail Recipes, Dark Spirits, Recipes, Scotch, vermouth, What I'm Drinking
January 29, 2013
Hello young cocktail lovers. As I’ve mentioned in past Seattle Magazine blog posts here on Spiked Punch, I write beyond this blog’s hallowed digital halls, specifically and mostly for Seattle Magazine (a blog post a week, the Bar Hop column, and more). In case you haven’t been visiting the mighty Seattle Magazine, shame on you. But not so much shame that I won’t point you to recent pieces I’ve written for them, in bulleted fashion:
• Five Hot Drinks for Cold Winter Nights
• Cocktail Home Remedies to Cure What Ails You
• Two New Bars Opening and Other Drinking News
• Bottled Resolutions: Five Spirits and Liqueurs to Try in 2013
• Five Champagne Cocktails
• Where to Drink with Relatives in Seattle
• The People Have Spoken: Locals’ Favorite Bars and Cocktails
• Give the Gift of Booze: Six Bottles That Will Impress Your Friends
PS: Want to see every single Seattle Magazine piece I’ve done? Check out the Seattle Magazine A.J. Rathbun page.
January 25, 2013
In late January, many of us are starting to dream about June. We’ve had just long enough of the cold weather that we crave the warm weather – and heck, many travel to find a summerlike setting right about now. But, many others can’t take the time to take the trip. This drink is for those folks (hmm, I may just be one of those folks), and the recipe’s from Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz.
The Temporary Getaway
3 apple slices
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
Ice cubes
1 ounce St-Germain elderflower liqueur
4 ounces chilled brut Sekt or other sparkling wine
1. Place 2 of the apple slices, the orange juice, and the lemon juice in a cocktail shaker or mixing glass. Using a muddler or wooden spoon, muddle well.
2. Fill the cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add the St-Germain and, using a long spoon, stir well.
3. Pour the chilled Sekt into the cocktail shaker. Using that same reliable spoon, stir briefly, being sure to bring up the fruit on the bottom when stirring.
4. Strain into a flute glass or cocktail glass (in this instance I like the way the latter breathes, but a flute’s more traditional). Garnish with the remaining apple slice, putting a little notch in it if needed for rim balancing.
Tags: cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Friday Night Cocktail, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, sparkling wine, St-Germain elderflower liqueur, The Temporary Getaway cocktail, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Champagne & Sparkling Wine, Cocktail Recipes, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking
January 22, 2013
I’ve never been to Hawaii. I want to go, at some point, to visit some of the classic Tiki bars still there, but hey, there are only so many moments in day. And, as Jack Lord isn’t there anymore (by the way, I realize there is some new Jack Lord, but he’s a fake), I don’t feel quite as driven to head to the island. Luckily, though, I have the book Hawaii Five-O (based on the real TV series, not the new fake one), and while I read it, it’s a bit like I am in Hawaii. And I’m there surrounded by one of the manliest men ever. Jack Lord.
His cotton shirt and green chino slacks had begun to cling to his skin. His mouth longed for a refreshing chilled pineapple drink. Or even a frozen daiquiri.
Mr. Silverkite and Karl Orlanski met in the cocktail lounge of the hotel. There was a glittering glass fish tank at the back of the bar. They had found a round table in a quiet corner. Lauhala placemats, made from the leaf of the pandanus tree, rested beneath their drinks. Mr. Silverkite was having a glass of papaya health juice. Orlanski was enjoying a Moscow Mule, forsaking all things Hawaiian.
—Hawaii Five-O, Michael Avallone
January 18, 2013
There’s another drink also called The Blue Train (as happens, cause people are creating drinks all the time. Like ten were created as I typed “ten”), or the Blue Train Special, which shakes together 1-1/2 ounces brandy and 1 ounce fresh pineapple juice over ice, and then tops it with Cap Classique or other sparkling wine and a pineapple chunk in a flute glass. This is not that Blue Train. The Blue Train is in Wine Cocktails. This one is in Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz. Both drinks are awesome. This just happens to be the one I’m drinking today. But tomorrow? Who knows?
The Blue Train
Ice cubes
1 ounce gin
1/2 ounce Cointreau
1/2 freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 ounce crème de violette
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add the gin, Cointreau, lemon juice, and crème de violette. Shake briefly.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass.
Tags: Blue Train cocktail, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Cointreau, Crème de Violette, Friday Night Cocktail, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, lemon juice, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Gin, Ginger Bliss and the Violet Fizz, Liqueurs, Recipes, Wine Cocktails
