October 25, 2024

What I’m Drinking: The Warlock

It’s nearly the 31st of October, or Warlockoween, the day (or/and the weekend before depending on what day of the week the 31st falls on) when everyone follows along with the below video, drinking their Warlock (the mystical mix of brandy, Strega, limoncello, orange juice, and Peychaud’s bitters that has been favored by magicians, sorcerers, conjurors, witches, and the like for thousands of years) and then turning into zombie spell-casters. Fun! Watch and learn and fall under its spell. A spell also good on something called Halloween, which hasn’t taken off yet like Warlockoween, but hey, it could.

October 18, 2024

What I’m Drinking: The Highland Fling

Here’s a swell fall number (weirdly, no-one thinks, or rarely thinks, about fall flings, or winter, perhaps, but fall gets especially short shrift on the romance side). It also is good in winter! And spring, honestly. And even summer, if not too hot, or when you’re feeling daffy (as flings can make one feel). It’s also a near relation to a few better-known drinks that share not only qualities but ingredients, specifically the rocking Rob Roy (which has Angostura bitters instead of orange bitters, and a slightly different vermouth to Scotch ratio), and then pushing it out somewhat, the beautiful Bobby Burns. The Highland Fling is slightly sweeter and with a different bitter-y hint, not better than its cousins, but wonderful none-the-less. Oh, I found it in a sweet bound book called A Guide to Pink Elephants, Volume II (Richards Rosen Associates, 1957), sized to fit in a decently-large pocket.

The Highland Fling

The Highland Fling

2 ounces Scotch (I’d suggest a nice blended number, but you be you)

1 ounces sweet vermouth

2 dashes orange bitters

1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with cracked ice. Add the Scotch, sweet vermouth, and bitters. Stir well.

2. Strain the mix into a cocktail glass.

October 4, 2024

What I’m Drinking: The Santa Cruz Daisy (or darn close)

I have a pal named Daisy. She’s not from Santa Cruz, but I still feel I should introduce her (and probably others, as it’s not what you’d call a well-known drink today) to this charming sipper, which I found when perusing the liquor book shelves and pulled out the pocket-sized The Standard Cocktail Guide: A Manual of Mixed Drinks Written for the American Host. Written by gadabout, bon vivant, and early cocktailian Crosby Gaige (author also of the Cocktail Guide and Ladies Companion, which is a bit more fun) and published in 1944. A dandy little read, so keep your eyes open for it. And full of good drinks. Browsing random old books is a jolly way to decide on a drink to have when you aren’t feeling 100% in any direction, as I was when first making this. I used mint – because I had a lot – instead of the traditional Daisy fruit topping, and used crushed instead of shaved ice, as the shaver was down (or non-existent). Still, a tasty drink, and one all Daisies – and most others – will probably dig sipping.

The Santa Cruz Daisy Cocktail

The Santa Cruz Daisy

2 ounces white rum

1/4 ounce maraschino

1/4 ounce simple syrup

Crushed ice

Fresh mint sprigs

Splash of soda water

1. Add the rum, maraschino, simple syrup to a mixing glass and stir well.

2. Crush a bunch of ice in your Lewis bag (see NOTE below).

3. Fill a goblet or comparable glass with ice, and strain the mix gently over it, topping with more ice as needed.

4. Add a splash of soda and garnish with mint sprigs.

A NOTE: If you don’t know (and I didn’t at one point) a Lewis bag is the traditional bag bartenders use to crush ice. If you can get one, the McSology Lewis bag is ideal, made in Seattle out of 100% cotton canvas. Put ice cubes in the bag, get out your muddler, and start crushing.

September 20, 2024

What I’m Drinking: Steaming Spiked Cider

steaming spiked cider

We are just two days until the calendar start of fall – not saying it’s not the actual start of fall either, but really, seasons aren’t meant to be started up and shut down like light-switches, and are as much perhaps a state of mind as much as anything. For me, on some level, fall hasn’t started properly until I’ve had a glass of this Steaming Spiked Cider, which traces back to a recipe had when I was young (sans booze, unless I snuck a glass from the parental pot). Does that mean the years I forgot and didn’t have this didn’t have a fall, going straight from summer to winter? Maybe? Maybe not, but there’s something about this apple (apples being the fruit of fall, naturally) and cinnamon and spice and rummy mix that screams (gently) of hayrack rides, barn dances, chillily pretty evenings, eventually Halloween and the surrounding happily haunted days, and if that wasn’t enough, I think it’d be swell for fall football afternoons (as is Football Punch, of course). So, it’s fall in a warm glass. Yummy fall. And, to be fair, it’s pretty good during winter, too. But that’s another season, and I don’t want to skip the days too rapidly.

Steaming Spiked Cider

4 quarts fresh apple cider

20 ounces cinnamon schnapps

16 ounces white rum

1 teaspoon whole cloves

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

10 cinnamon sticks

10 apple slices, for garnish

1. Add the cider to a large nonreactive saucepan. Heat over medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes

2. Add the cinnamon schnapps, rum, cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon sticks.  Simmer for 15 minutes, but don’t let the mixture boil.

3. Once thoroughly warm, ladle the mixture into heatproof mugs, making sure that each mug gets a cinnamon stick. Garnish each with an apple slice.

A Note: Here are three thing that I believe are important when making this. 1. Be careful with the cloves when scaling (meaning, if you make a bigger batch, be careful as too many cloves can take over the flavor). 2. Use apple cider (which is good and cloudy) not apple juice. 3. Boiling boils off some of the alcohol. If getting mistakenly to a boil, or leaving the cider on the stove for an extended period, add more rum as needed. Cause you gotta stay warm on multiple levels.

A Second Note: This may be too much cinnamon for some. I see no problem, for balance, in upping the rum.

September 6, 2024

What I’m Drinking: The Electrician

I made this smoky, fruity, herbally, wonderfully wonderful (if I can say that ‘umbly), lots of ingredient having, good in late summer, double base spirit (!!), globe-trotting, full flavored, curvy, talkable, sippable, not too strange even if it looks sorta strange, shaked up but not over-shaked, dreamy in the afternoon (but also in the evening, and maybe even at brunch), delightfully friendly tipple for the first time a ways back. I think it was in honor of all the electricians who put the cables and cords into my various houses (though maybe it was in some sort-of smoky way a doubling down on smoke during one of those Seattle days when there are sadly fires on the east side of WA, bringing smoke our way, as this has a double smoke shot), but if not, then hey, have it, and toast to your favorite electrician. Some, or one (the Chase Smoked vodka, from the UK) of the ingredients might not be super easy for all to get, though the internet is a smashing (and scary) place, but trust me: it’s worth it.

The Electrician cocktail

The Electrician

Ice cubes

1-1/2 ounce Chase Smoked vodka

3/4 ounce mezcal

1/2 ounce Pama Pomegranate liqueur

1/2 ounce Breckenridge Bitter

Dash Peychaud’s bitters

1/4 ounce simple syrup

Cherry (Rainer is nice), for garnish

1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add everything but the cherry. Shake well.

2. Add the cherry to a cocktail glass, and strain the mix from Step 1 into the glass. Enjoy, but not while actually, you know, doing electrical work.

August 23, 2024

What I’m Drinking: The Portofino

In late August, as you know (but I’m going to refresh our memories anyway), in many parts of the northern hemisphere, it gets rather hot. Or really hot. Or crazy hot. And in those hot days, it’s best to have a bubbly, cooling, drink, one that perhaps is a little lighter on its feet (read: not quite as strong) while still bursting with flavor, as long as said bursting doesn’t increase any temperature reading. Also, in late August, for some, it’s a time when you realize that you missed out on summer vacations (by choice or circumstance), and want to quickly remedy the sitch. This drink won’t actually take you on a vacation, but it does metaphorically (or drinkaphorically) do so, as it’s two key ingredients are Italian aperitif Aperol and British aperitif Pimm’s No. 1 Cup. The drink itself is named after a port city in Genoa, Italy, with the Pimm’s standing in for English sailors who used to dock in said city. Neat, right! And so, by drinking this effervescent (bubbles and refresh uptick via ginger ale) treat, you will both be taking a European trip, of sorts, and taking the heat off. Quite a combo.

The Portofino cocktail with Aperol and Pimm's

The Portofino

Ice cubes

2 ounces Pimm’s No. 1 Cup

1 ounce Aperol

Chilled ginger ale

Orange wedge for garnish

1. Fill a highball glass three quarters up with ice cubes. Add the Pimm’s and Aperol and stir briefly.

2. Fill the glass almost to the top with ginger ale. Stir again and garnish with the orange wedge.

August 16, 2024

What I’m Drinking: The Bijou

This jewel of a favorite of mine and many was (at least the stories tell us this) originally created by the legendary Harry Johnson in the late 1800s, featuring the recipe in his New and Improved Bartender Manual from 1900. It’s a flavorful gem of a drink, balancing herbal notes from a trio of ingredients nicely. Here and there you see it made differently, with another ingredient added or otherwise. I find the three below the most artistic rendering, and goes with I believe the original idea, aligning three ingredients with three gems (Bijou the word having jewel as one definition): gin and diamond, sweet vermouth and ruby, and green Chartreuse and emeralds.

The Bijou cocktail

The Bijou

Cracked ice

1 -1/2 ounces gin

3/4 ounce green Chartreuse

3/4 ounce sweet vermouth

Lemon twist, for garnish (sometimes this is skipped, and if you skip it I won’t fuss, but I feel it’s not a bad adornment)

1. Fill a cocktail shaker or mixing glass halfway full with cracked ice. Add the gin, Chartreuse, and vermouth. Stir well.

2. Strain the mixture into a cocktail glass. Twist the twist over the glass and drop it in.

August 2, 2024

What I’m Drinking: The Turfed Cocktail with Moxie Mule Bianco Vermouth 

I was recently lucky enough to be able to write about the 40 Acres Blending Co. for the snazzy Sip Magazine. 40 Acres, based in Snohomish, WA, is the first black-owned vermouth company, with one delicious vermouth available, Moxie Mule Bianco Vermouth, and more on the way. Go check that article out! In it, you’ll discover this cocktail I made with Moxie Mule, but I wanted to put it up on the ol’ Spiked Punch as well, just cause it’s good enough to have two mentions on the interwebs. To learn more about The Turfed, well, once again, read that article. While having this drink, if possible.

The Turfed Cocktail with Moxie Mule Bianco vermouth

The Turfed

Cracked ice

1-1/2 ounces Moxie Mule Bianco Vermouth

1 ounce Astraea Forest gin

1/4 ounce maraschino liqueur

1/4 ounce Pacifique absinthe

2 dashes Scrappy’s Orange bitters

Lemon twist, for garnish

1. Filling a mixing glass or cocktail shaker halfway full with cracked ice. Add all but the twist. Stir well.

2. Strain into a cocktail glass (or comparable like a Nick and Nora glass), and garish with the lemon twist.

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