January 16, 2015
This international (of sorts) country hopper is another that has a bit of a holiday-overload-reviving quality. It even has double bitters, and the slightly bitter vermouth Punt ‘e Mes, making it good anytime you’ve had a filling meal. It’s all underlined by the fine Irish Whiskey, Teeling, which I hope you can find in your neighborhood.
Let It Fly
Cracked ice
1-1/2 ounces Teeling Irish Whiskey
1 ounce Kronan Swedish Punsch
1/2 ounce Punt ‘e Mes vermouth
2 dashes Scrappy’s orange bitters
1 dash Angostura bitters
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with cracked ice. Add everything, and stir.
2. Strain the mix into a cocktail glass.
Tags: Angostura bitters, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Kronan Swedish Punsch, Let It Fly, Punt ‘e Mes vermouth, Scrappy’s orange bitters, Teeling Irish Whiskey, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: bitters, Cocktail Recipes, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking, Whiskey
December 12, 2014
Baby, it’s cold outside. Luckily, this drink makes it warm inside (both inside you, and inside a domicile, if you happened to be drinking it inside. Though, honestly, it would be tasty if had outside as well, and probably be a welcome sight to anyone who had been outside in the cold). It uses SIA, a lovely blended Scotch that’s recently been released, and which boasts a mélange of citrus, spice, vanilla, and smoke and nuttiness. It’s a great Scotch to woo people who don’t like Scotch as well (and yeah, there are those people out there). Mix it up with the swell French aperitif Pineau des Charentes White Pineu – which is a little citrusy, too – and the always-awesome Scrappy’s orange bitters, and you have this wonderful winter warmer.
The Long and Short
1-1/2 ounces SIA blended Scotch
3/4 ounce Pineau des Charentes White Pineu
2 dashes Scrappy’s orange bitters
4 ounces hot water
Lemon twist, for garnish
1. Add the SIA Scotch, Pineau des Charentes, and the Scrappy’s to a mug that’s been warmed slightly with hot water. Stir briefly.
2. Add the hot water and stir again. Garnish with the lemon twist. Indulge yourself with every sip.
Tags: cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, Friday Night Cocktail, Pineau des Charentes White Pineu, Scrappy’s orange bitters, SIA Scotch, The Long and Short, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: bitters, Cocktail Recipes, Recipes, Scotch, What I'm Drinking, Whiskey
September 26, 2014
In an earlier post, I talked about football, football season, and having better drinks at your football parties. My suggestion there was that you call an audible over your past party selections and serve an Audible cocktail. It’s a good plan. However, the Audible (drink) is a strong mix, and after a couple, you may need to go on the defensive, so you make it until the end of the fourth quarter, and overtime, perhaps. With that in mind, at some point when the emotion is high, move to The Defensive Formation, which will refresh and perhaps balance things out. It still has a strong kick, but it’s mellowed some — but it could still hit the game-winning field goal from 45 out as time ticks down. Don’t think that it can’t.
The Defensive Formation
Cracked ice
2 ounces Woodinville Whiskey bourbon
1/2 ounce Letterpress limoncello
3/4 ounce orange juice
2 dashes Scrappy’s orange bitters
Ice cubes
3 ounces chilled soda water
1. Fill a cocktail shaker or mixing glass halfway full with cracked ice. Add the bourbon, limoncello, orange juice, and bitters. Stir well.
2. Fill a highball or other comparable glass three-quarters up with ice cubes. Strain the mix from Step 1 through a fine strainer over the ice and into the glass.
3. Fill the glass almost to the top with the club soda. Stir to combine. Drink and cheer, drink and cheer.
Tags: bourbon, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, football drinks, Friday Night Cocktail, Letterpress limoncello, limoncello, Scrappy’s orange bitters, Seahawks, tailgating drinkgs, The Audible, The Defensive Formation, What I'm Drinking, Woodinville Whiskey bourbon
Posted in: bitters, Cocktail Recipes, Italy, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking, Whiskey
September 19, 2014
Are you ready for some football? No, really, are you ready? Because we’re now in the thick of it, with passes being passed and blockers blocking, and, most importantly, football parties happening in parking lots and homes alike. Don’t let your party get stuck with the same old plays (and by “plays” here, I mean drinks) being served up to defenses who will then laugh at your tired plays. Instead, call an Audible and serve up the below mix. It’s a strong one – because sometimes we need a strong drink when watching our favorite team. 
It’s delicious, too, because sometimes we deserve a reward for our support. Oh, it’s also a tad Italian – just cause I like Italy. And because Italian fans are, outside of you, the most rabid fans in the world, and when drinking this, you will channel all rabid fans and become the most fanatical fan in the world. Promise. I used Woodinville Whiskey bourbon, Letterpress limoncello, and Scrappy’s orange bitters here, because they’re made in Seattle, and I like to support my home teams.
The Audible
Cracked ice
2 ounces Woodinville Whiskey bourbon
1/2 ounce Letterpress limoncello
3/4 ounce orange juice
2 dashes Scrappy’s orange bitters
1. Fill a cocktail shaker or mixing glass halfway full with cracked ice. Add everything Stir well.
2. Strain through a fine strainer into a cocktail glass or smallish football helmet. Drink and cheer, drink and cheer.
Tags: bourbon, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, football drinks, Friday Night Cocktail, Letterpress limoncello, Scrappy’s orange bitters, Seahawks, tailgating drinkgs, The Audible, What I'm Drinking, Woodinville Whiskey bourbon
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Italy, Liqueurs, Recipes, What I'm Drinking
July 25, 2014
Recently, I was browsing again through Applegreen’s Bar Book, a book sized to fit in your vest or shirt pocket, by a guy named John Applegreen, printed first in 1899. I’ve gone through it many times before, but like a lot of old bar books, I still love looking it over. And sometimes I find gems I missed or didn’t make before. The McCutcheon Cocktail is one of those very gems.
It’s a gin-based drink, and I decided to go with G’Vine’s Floraison gin, which is a small batch gin made in the Cognac region of France, and crafted from neutral spirits distilled from grapes. The juniper is there, but subtle, and mingling with a strong grape-ness (in a good way) and other floral notes leading into spices (chamomile and ginger and a few more). It’s has enough going on that it can play well with other herbal mixers (though really, try it solo, too), which is why it seemed – and is – an ideal gin for this unburied treasure of a cocktail, a cocktail which also contain both dry and sweet vermouth (I went with Dolin for the dry, and Carpano for the sweet) and a bit of maraschino and orange bitters. I went with Scrappy’s on the bitters, in a local shout out. It’s a beauty of a drink, and here’s a toast for Mr. Applegreen for introducing me to it, at whatever afterlife bar he’s shaking and stirring at.
The McCutcheon
Cracked ice
1-1/2 ounces G’Vine Floraison gin
3/4 ounce Dolin dry vermouth
3/4 ounce Carpano Antica sweet vermouth
1 dash maraschino liqueur
1 dash Scrappy’s orange bitters
1. Fill a mixing glass or cocktail shaker halfway full with cracked ice. Add everything (be careful on your dash of maraschino, you don’t want to go too heavy). Stir well.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass. Dream of the late 1800s, and France.
Tags: Applegreen's Bar Book, cocktail recipe, Cocktail Recipes, dry vermouth, Friday Night Cocktail, G’Vine Floraison Gin, Gin, Maraschino, Scrappy’s orange bitters, sweet vermouth, The McCutcheon Cocktail, unburied cocktail recipe, What I'm Drinking
Posted in: Cocktail Recipes, Gin, Recipes, vermouth, What I'm Drinking
