What Do I Call This?

A variation on a Negroni with...(insert drum roll here)...

1 oz Bak's Bison Grass vodka

3 dashes bison grass bitters (homemade)

1 oz Imbue

1 oz Aperol

Stir over ice, strain into a cocktail glass, garnish with a swath of lemon peel. 

The Dusty Bowtie

This one goes out to someone with whom I work, who often wears bowties and requested his own signature drink using Sloe Gin. He's also not a heavy drinker so this cocktail is light on the booze.

1 oz Bitter Truth Sloe Gin
1/2 oz Bitter Truth Creme de Violette
1/2 oz Scrappy's Sirop de Gomme
3/4 oz Meyer lemon juice
2 dashes Fee Bros Whiskey Barrel Bitters
1 egg white
2 oz soda water

Dry shake to froth egg white. Add ice and shake it like you caught it stealing your lawn mower. Strain into glass with one or two large cubes of ice. Top with 2 oz soda water and two sippy straws.

Paradise Louched

Paradise Louched

It's been exactly one year since I entered an about.com cocktail contest, so after returning from Tales of the Cocktail and feeling full of renewed inspiration, I decided that it might be time to step up to the plate again.

It just so happens that the July/August contest for this year just happens to involve one of my favorite spirits--absinthe, so I was immediately excited about getting to work on my entry.

As a long-time member of The Wormwood Society, America's Premier Absinthe Association & Information Network, I have a great deal of knowledge about the myths and realities of absinthe, and have sampled in the realm of 60+ different absinthes, including one pre-ban absinthe. I used my familiarity with the different flavor profiles to select what I believe is the perfect absinthe to use in my creation. 

My new-found love and enthusiasm for all things tiki led me to pick up a signed copy of Beachbum Berry's new book, Remixed: A Gallery of Tiki Drinks while I was in NOLA. From my reading, I learned that one of Don The Beachcomber's tricks was to use Pernod (once a great absinthe, now a pale shadow of it's former self) in small quantities to add depth and dimension to certain tiki drinks. So if a few drops of Pernod could punch up a tropical drink, could a tiki drink be created that used absinthe as the base? I decided it was my task to find out!

I chose to use a Swiss/blanche absinthe as the base of my drink since I believe the more anise and fennel-forward flavors would work better with tropical tiki flavors than would a more herbal verte. While I believe La Valote works best in Paradise Louched (a play on Paradise Lost), I realize that in many areas the selections of absinthes are limited at best and so I will mention that Pere Francois or Kubler would also work well in this drink.

In Paradise Louched, the absinthe is clearly present, yet functions in harmony with the rhum agricole, fresh juices, floral water, and is supported by the cinnamon syrup’s subtle spice. My goal was to create a drink that is readily accessible to even those who might not otherwise try or believe they would enjoy absinthe. Absinthe’s history is filled with so much myth, misinformation, and mystery, that the come-hither allure of a tropical drink presented in a whimsical tiki mug may just be the perfect introduction to the green (or in this case white) fairy.

1.25 oz of La Valote (Pere Francoise or Kubler are also acceptable)

1 oz Rhum J.M Gold

1 oz pineapple juice

1 oz fresh lemon juice

1 oz homemade cinnamon syrup (recipe below)

½ tsp orange flower water

In a blender, puree all ingredients with 1.5 cups of crushed ice until slushy. Serve in a tiki mug, adding additional ice to fill, and garnish with a straw and a sprig of fresh mint.

To prepare the cinnamon syrup take 3 cinnamon sticks, crushed, 1 cup water, and 1 cup demerara sugar and boil until sugar dissolves. Let the mixture sit to further infuse for 2 hours, then strain into a container and refrigerate for up to 1 month.

What's Up Doc?

I love Cocchi Americano. I also love Plymouth Gin. Aperol?  Love it. And I can't get enough of Meyer lemons. They make winter more tolerable. What can I make with all 4 ingredients?

What's Up Doc?
1.5 oz Cocchi Americano
1 oz Plymouth Gin
0.5 oz Aperol
0.5 oz Meyer Lemon juice
Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

The color is a beautiful cloudy apricot. The flavor starts out with a hint of sour, pungency, slight sweetness, and ends with a significant bitterness. This, my friends, is cocktail magic.

Cheers! ~Dr. Cocktation

 

Irish Dinner

It's a cold and rainy Thursday evening nearing the end of a hard week. While I typically avoid drinking on "school nights", the recipe for a Complete Irish Meal cocktail passed before my thirsty eyes on Facebook via Liquor.com. A few years back, in 2009, Bushmills held a contest asking someone to create a Bushmills and egg drink. One of the entries was the Complete Irish Meal by Anthony Malone. I'm both hungry, but not too hungry, and thirsty. Oh, what the heck. I'll try one, but with my own twists.

Luckily I have a few free-range eggs laying around in the fridge, but no Bushmills, and which cherry liqueur should I use? Also, for reasons unexplainable, I despise the word meal, so...

Irish Dinner
1 oz Paddy's Irish Whiskey 
1/2 oz Cherry Heering
1/2 oz freshly squeezed orange juice
1 fresh egg

Dry shake all ingredients in a cocktail shaker for 20 seconds, the add ice, and shake to chill. Strain into a coupe glass. 


The whiskey is present, but not overbearing, and the texture is like a thinned eggnog. The flavor has a hint of cherry, orange, and nuttiness interwoven with the hint of Irish whiskey and bound together with the creaminess of the egg. A lovely dinner indeed!

Cheers! ~Dr. Cocktation

The Doctor Is Out

To compensate for the grievous faux pas of missing the birthday of a new friend, I offered to make her a birthday cocktail.  She likes lemony things, gin, and bitter stuff, so here's what I created:

The Doctor Is Out
1 oz Boomsma Genever Jonge 
1 oz Cardamaro 
2.5 oz San Pellegrino Limonata  
Build over ice in a short glass and garnish with a slice of lemon.

It's refreshing, a hint bitter, and bracing. Just like Kate. ;-)  

Valentine Sour

2 oz Maker's 46
1 oz Meyer lemon juice
1 oz Toschi Vanilla syrup
1/2 oz Joseph Cartron Pomegranate liqueur

Shake with ice and strain into a short glass filled with ice. Happy Valentine's Day!