FrogPrincesse

Cobra's Fang (Don the Beachcomber) for Valentine's Day, with Lost Spirits 151 Cuban-inspired rum, B.G. Reynolds' passion fruit syrup, homemade falernum, lime & orange juice, St George absinthe, Angostura bitters The banana in this rum is insane. Banana-passion fruit smoothie.

I tried the Bonal & Rye a while back. It's much improved without the Cointreau! It does not need that extra orange flavor (and sweetness). With just Bonal the flavor is much more mysterious and interesting.

It's very good. I purge the bottle with inert gas before storing in the fridge.

Does it have a name yet? Just tried it with 2 oz of High West Son of a Bourye, 1.5 oz Bonal, and a few dashes of Abbott's bitters (I have Boker's too, but grabbed the wrong bottle). Delicious. The only problem is that I am almost out of Bonal. :-(

Not a purchase - this was a gift (I have great friends). DrinkUpNY has this note about Kings County bourbon and this one about the Van Brunt. It was close enough for me. I was happy with the end result in any case. It would have been hard to tell in a blind test that there was maple or Montenegro in there, and I guess that's what I liked about the drink. The final flavor was unexpected and did not taste like the individual ingredients.

Thank you. The Libation Goddess herself approved (via Twitter).

A Negroni made in San Diego (and a riff on Gaz Regan's Rosita) - the Jalisco Stroll by Eric Giger of Noble Experiment, with 7 Leguas tequila blanco, Campari, Dolin dry vermouth, salt solution. I forgot to try it without the salt. With the salt it's great. the Campari is toned down enough to fully enjoy the tequila. Some chocolate in the finish.

This one was a tad sweet but still very enjoyable. Jubilee Street (Richard Boccato) with Van Brunt Stillhouse American Whiskey (Kings County bourbon), amaro Montenegro, maple syrup (scant barspoon; I would use 1/2 barspoon next time), St Elizabeth allspice dram. Replaced one semi-obscure boutique Brooklyn whiskey with another. Roasted chestnut, chocolate, spice. It reminded me of another old-fashioned/sazerac variation with Montenegro I had at Craft & Commerce a while back - their DiMaggio cocktail with rye, Montenegro, demerara, absinthe. Also this one in the same vein. Montenegro is surprisingly versatile. My bottle is half gone already.

Thanks for the detailed answer, Hassouni. I am tempted to order one but already have three, so it's a little hard to justify (Oxo, AG Hawthorne, and Bonzer 2-prong) Last Sunday with good friends. Audrey Saunders' Old Cuban with Havana Club Añejo 7 Años, lime juice, cane syrup, mint, Angostura bitters, champagne (Kirkland). Also 10:3:2 Daiquiris with La Mauny rhum agricole, and plenty of champagne.

Racines cake that I served with eggnog ice cream. I forgot to take a photo after it came out of the oven.

Everything looks fabulous. Is that the new Cocktail Kingdom/Don Lee-designed strainer in the last picture? How do you like it?

Franci - it's a very solid book, quite comprehensive in its coverage of the different regions of France. I don't think you will be disappointed. Here is the easier madeleine recipe. I believe you read French... I bake them at 180C/350F.

Here you go, Franci. It's the recipe from Anne Willan Country Cooking of France. It's a little fussy; I also use another recipe with honey that is quicker and that I can post later. Thanks!

It looks like I've neglected this thread, although I've made plenty of cocktails from the book since I last posted. Here is the Widow's Laurel (Joaquín Simó) with Busnel VSOP calvados (Daron XO calvados), Drambuie, Carpano Antica Formula vermouth (Punt e Mes & Dolin sweet vermouth), St Elizabeth allspice dram, Angostura bitters. I really like the little kick of spice at the end from the allspice dram, and any occasion to mix with calvados and fine by me.

Beautiful, Franci. Now I have a major craving for madeleines. :-) Do you have a favorite recipe? I've had the best luck with the ones that use honey.

Nice selection. Did you and Hassouni have a giant tasting? Last night I was looking for a good way to showcase a gin distilled in San Diego, San Miguel Southwestern gin from Old Harbor. The gin is distilled with fresh local ingredients that include cilantro and sage. I thought about making a Southside but in the end the cocktail did not need the fresh mint - the flavor of the fresh herbs already present in the gin really came through nicely. 2 oz Old Harbor San Miguel gin 1 oz lime juice 3/4 oz simple syrup dash Angostura bitters

Bartender's Weekend is coming back to San Diego on March 1-4. Lots of events, including a day trip to Mexico.

Interesting piece about the history of the Brooklyn Cocktail in Edible Brooklyn, by David Wondrich.

Have you tried the side-by-side experiment that he suggests?

Actually, just a small amount makes a difference. That's the reason why a lot of cocktail bars add salt to their simple syrup. This is also discussed in Dave Arnold's Liquid Intelligence (page 61). You cannot taste the salt in small amounts (he recommends adding saline by the drop), but it affects how you perceive the other flavors in the drink.

A lot of the information about salt and how it affects flavor perception comes from a paper by Herve This that was quoted on the beta cocktails blog a while back. I like to give credit where it is due. :-)

I tend to make mine up, no salt, no garnish.

I went classic last night with a Martini, 2:1, Tanqueray Old Tom, Dolin French vermouth, Regan & Fee orange bitters. A couple of nights prior, didn't feel like mixing a cocktail, and just went with St. George Breaking & Entering bourbon. Too bad they can't make more due to increasing costs.

Last night's home work...