FrogPrincesse

Josh at Inu a Kena likes Chairman's Reserve spiced rum too. He rated his own spiced rum (made using a Martin Cate recipe) against the commercially available ones, but he still preferred Chairman's Reserve by a wide margin. I think it's funny that Chairman's Reserve makes a spiced rum. I never saw it in St Lucia. Because there, everyone makes their own. At the farmers' market there were bottles after bottles of homemade spiced rums, stuffed with a bunch of local spices. If I remember correctly this was mostly cinnamon (or cassia bark), mace, vanilla, cloves, star anise, bay leaf, allspice, etc. Maybe top it off with some falernum.

I made a variant of this drink last night. I used half Old Tom gin, half samphire vodka to continue to take this Martini to the ocean side. I skipped the dry curaçao and used a generous amount of orange bitters - Regan, Fee, Angostura. It was exactly what I needed after a long swim. Variation on the Surf and Turf with Tanqueray Old Tom gin, Kis Kangaroo Island samphire vodka, Dolin dry vermouth, Lustau fino sherry, Regan/Fee/Angostura orange bitters.

Exactly. And speaking of Denizen, I didn't get a chance to post this photo. This was during TikiO.

I know. That's what made me think of the DiMaggio last night actually.

More Old Fashioned fun. This time I recreated the DiMaggio from Craft & Commerce, their Old Fashioned variation with rye, amaro Montenegro, and absinthe. I didn't have the specs and went with 2 oz High West Double rye, 0.5 oz amaro Montenegro, 6 spritzes St. George absinthe (using an atomizer), 1 barspoon simple syrup, and a lemon twist. I really like this. The spice of the rye goes well with this amaro which is relatively mellow but very interesting. The cocktail reminds me of the Monte Carlo (rye + Benedictine + Ango). OMG I just looked at the current C&C menu and they have a new version of this drink - the Sadie Hawkins with rye, Montenegro, coffee liqueur and orange bitters. I am going to have to try that one. I am curious about the coffee & Montenegro pairing.

You are right of course. And I should know since I attended Martin Cate's seminar at Tiki Oasis last year that dealt with this exact topic. Long day!

It's pretty good but only 40%. La Favorite is still my favorite.

* As recommended by Rum Dood after a lot of experimentation (see here for his elucubrations). Note that I am pretty sure he uses Appleton V/X when he works at 320 Main... Or just use Denizen Merchant's Reserve which is already a mix of Jamaican (like the Appleton) and aged agricole (like the Clement). Developed in collaboration with Martin Cate, with Mai Tais in mind. The Clement VSOP that is often recommended for Mai Tais is an aged rum, so it's amber in color. It's from Martinique and it's a rhum agricole, therefore made from fresh cane juice, which makes it different from most other rums which are produced from molasses. But you should try your own rum mixes and see what you like. There are many, many permutations that have been tried on this forum if you feel like reading the 14 pages of discussions!

A friend gave me some fresh passion fruits and I was looking for something that could do them justice. I found a recipe for a Daiquiri variation with fresh passion fruit juice that I thought would be nice to try. Golden Prestige (Nicolas Michel via Gaz Regan) with Bacardi Superior rum (Plantation 3 Stars white rum), fresh passion fruit juice, lime juice, Monin gomme syrup (Small Hand Foods), orange blossom water, saffron. I used 1/2 barspoon of orange blossom water per cocktail which was plenty, and I reduced the amount of gomme a bit. It is very refined and delicate. It's floral, refreshing and light, but then the saffron gives it an earthiness that anchors it. It's complex and the taste keeps changing with every sip, so you feel like going for another one immediately after the first one.

Last night was an Irish-whiskey based Old Fashioned variation, the Wild Rover (Jimmy Hillegas via Gaz Regan). I went with Redbreast 12 for the Irish whiskey, a barspoon of simple syrup (it was Monday and I could not be bothered muddling a sugar cube), and Miracle Mile toasted pecan bitters for the nut bitters. Lemon peel for the garnish because a lemon wedge felt wrong. Its creator mentioned that a flamed orange peel would work great as well. Not too bad for a Monday.

I ended up making a Fernet Old Fashioned, because you can never have too much of a good thing. Fernet-Branca, simple syrup, Regan’s orange bitters, Fee Brothers’ whiskey barrel-aged bitters, orange peel garnish. I am craving one as I type...

Another rendition of the My Oh My Ty, the white agricole/absinthe Mai Tai created by Brian Miller, this time with Kō Hana Kea (white) Lahi for the rhum agricole. This rum is made from freshly pressed cane juice from a single varietal (Lahi) grown in Hawaii. Glasses by Michael Uhlenkott.

I had a fabulous meal at Les Bouquinistes earlier this summer. Unstuffy and elegant; memorable food. I highly recommend it. The wines were great as well. Is it anti-Michelin and David Chang-esque? Probably not. But excellent food for sure. I think chef Inaki Aizpitarte's Le Chateaubriand might fit your description to some level, but I've never been and it's quite hard to get reservations. Another place that I really liked was Au Passage which offers small plates in a very casual setting. It was reviewed last year by Ruth Reichl. I would check Paris by Mouth for more ideas, although their reviews are not always current.

Pamplemousse Punch (Wayne Curtis in Beachbum Berry Remixed) with white grapefruit juice (pink), spiced rum (Captain Morgan 1671), Clement creole shrubb, Angostura bitters, herbsaint or Pernod (St. George absinthe). Glasses by Tiki Tony. That cocktail would be better if Captain Morgan 1671 was not so damn sweet/chocolatey. I will be happy when that bottle is gone. Kraken would be nicer, or maybe it's finally time to make my own spiced rum.

And another one... Hearn (Jack McGarry, The Dead Rabbit) with Knappogue Castle 12 Year Old Single Malt Irish Whiskey (Redbreast 12 Irish whiskey), Dolin sweet vermouth (Margerum amaro), green Chartreuse, The Dead Rabbit Orinoco Bitters, absinthe (St. George) , orange bitters (Regan/Fee/Angostura), expressed orange peel. That one overwhelms with herbal notes at first. A flavor bomb with the green Chartreuse and absinthe dominating, and the Margerum in the background. Then a soothing wave of Irish whiskey with caramel and sweetness. But the wave is short-lived and the herbal tide comes back in full force. It's fascinating, although not as easy to like as the Irish Manhattan previously described. That one would make absolutely anyone fall in love with Manhattans, no question about it. It's irresistible.

Fabulous. Can't wait!

It's the egg, not your shaker. Although I have to say that I love my Koriko tins so much, I have two sets.

Martica (Phil Ward) with Hine H cognac (Pierre Ferrand 1840), Appleton Eastate V/X Jamaican rum (Appleton 12), Carpano Antica sweet vermouth (Cocchi vermouth di Torino), Luxardo maraschino liqueur, Angostura bitters. Rich and delicious.

Irish Manhattan (The Dead Rabbit) with Jameson Black Barrel whiskey (Redbreast 12 Irish whiskey), Dolin sweet vermouth + wormwood infusion (Margerum amaro), Pierre Ferrand dry curaçao, Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Orinoco bitters, expressed orange peel. Slightly sweet and dangerously smooth. These were gone in no time at all.

That might work if you enjoy your spirits neat and chilled, but for the vast majority of cocktails, dilution is actually desired.

Or use two wooden toothpicks like in this article about Sam Ross and the Penicillin.

You need one. They are cheap - you can find them on sale for about $15. Mine has both Celsius and Fahrenheit which is handy.

When I pay attention to temperature, I use a regular cocktail spoon and an infrared gun thermometer (that I got from Kerry at an eG conference). It's really easy to use and it works great. Plus it has a variety of applications - from chocolate and candy making to pool thermometer!

I wonder how I missed that one. Gordon's Cup (Sasha Petraske) which is really a gin-based Caipirinha with the requisite muddled lime wedges plus some cucumber to tie everything together. Great summer drink!

A ginger Gimlet, the Ginger Cocktail (Sasha Petraske) with Dorothy Parker gin, lime juice, BG Reynolds ginger syrup, candied ginger garnish. Next up on my list of gingery things to try is the Gershwin from Little Branch.