August 17, 2018

What I’m Drinking: Brightly Rouged Cheeks

It was long ago – just last week! – when I had a drink here on the Spiked Punch featuring Louis Raison French Cidre, or cider, made in France, by the Raison family who’ve been making such since 1923. That drink was called The Puget Seine (being a drink that used ingredients from hither and yon), and if you missed it, go back in time and drink it up.

It was so good, that I wanted to try another cider cocktail (or cidre cocktail) right after, going in a different direction, to see where I might land. And I landed with Brightly Rouged Cheeks! What, I hear you ask, is that? Not a cosmetic, I assure you. But a completely different cider drink, one’s that’s also swell for August, using some summer favorites, including mezcal. That’s right, mezcal and apples, and you know what – delicious! This time, I used Louis Raison’s Rouge Delice cidre, made from bittersweet and Rouge Delice apples (you may have guessed the latter). It’s a stitch redder in color (you may have guessed that, too), with a floral, apple, plum flavor, a hint sweeter than other Louis Raisons, but not sickly sweet like some “ciders” out there.

I decided a splash of zing and heat might be nice (sometimes, spiciness in a hot way mingles memorably with the high mercury days of summer), so brought the world’s finest ancho chile liqueur – perhaps the only, but oh so great, and such a favorite of mine – into our party, Ancho Reyes. Everything was going well, but the drink needed something more. Voila! Bitters. And is so often the case. The time, it was The Bitter Housewife Aromatic bitters, whose cherry, ginger, spice, bitter nature brought the needed flush. A wedge of lime, and we’re all set for a sunshine day.

brightly-rouged-cheekBrightly Rouged Cheeks

Cracked ice
2 ounces Montelobos Mezcal Jovan
1/2 ounce Ancho Reyes ancho chile liqueur
Dash Bitter Housewife Aromatic bitters
Big ice cube
3 ounces Louis Raison Rouge Delice cidre
Lime wedge

1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with cracked ice. Add the mezcal, Ancho Reyes, and bitters. Stir well.

2. Add a big ice cubes (or a few pretty big ice cubes) to an Old Fashioned or comparable glass. Strain the mix from above into the glass.

3. Top with the cidre. Stir to combine. Squeeze the lime wedge above the drink and drop it in. And start sipping.

PS: Want to learn a bit more about Montelobos Mezcal Jovan, check out the Fire on Popocatépetl cocktail, which is, if I can say it, amazing.

September 11, 2015

What I’m Drinking: The Bowling Roberto

There are nights when inspiration hits like lightening, or like a very fast snake on the prowl, or like bowling ball dropped off a tall, tall building. On nights like that, you, if you’re like me, realize that if you subbed Ancho Reyes (the ancho chile liqueur, which I go much deeper into in the recipe for the Summer Near Puebla, if you missed it) for sweet vermouth in a Bobby Burns, you’d have a drink of genius. Of genius! Especially if you perhaps twisted the proportions just a little, and then added a dash of Peychaud’s bitters, and served it over a giant piece of ice. Double genius! Don’t believe me? Try the below recipe, as you watch for lightening, snakes, and falling bowling balls. After one sip, you’ll realize how lucky you are and forget all the rest of that stuff.

Oh, one thing. I used Speyburn 10 year old Scotch here. Its slight fruitiness and balance and friendliness make it a good match. It’s also not super expensive, so you won’t feel bad mixing it up with other powerful personalities.

bowling-roberto

The Bowling Roberto

Cracked ice
1-1/2 ounces Speyburn 10 Year Scotch
1/2 ounce Ancho Reyes ancho chile liqueur
1/2 ounce Bénédictine
1 dash Peychaud’s bitters
Big ice cubes (or a couple sorta big ice cubes)

1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full of cracked ice. Add everything but the second piece of ice. Stir well.

2. Add a big piece of ice to an Old Fashioned or such glass. Strain the mix over the ice.

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