thirtyoneknots

I could see Viognier, particularly one from the Northern Rhone or Australia making an interesting base, high acid and very floral character. I would feel bad using a nice bottle of it, though. Also not sure how stable it would be (I know the fortification shoudl help, but still). I would think Austrian Riesling might be a little on the austere side, though I've never had one from Loimer. Grenache Blanc might be a good one, already having some spice characteristics, but the affordable ones can be flabby. M. Chapoutier Belleruche CdR Blanc 2006 might work, rated very highly and not terribly expensive. I haven't tried the 06, but the 05 was very nice indeed for the price. It already has a similar mouthfeel to vermouth.

Killer Cocktails lists an Elks Club Fizz as essentially this exact same drink with an egg white and an implicit top-off with soda (though it doesn't actually specify that soda should be added, it's just implied by the inclusion in the fizz chapter). Whats the connection of Rye whiskey and Port to the BPOE?

Very clever, have to give that a spin.

I had to read this several times before I figured out (or at least I think I figured it out) what drink recipes were being requested. 20th Century Cocktail: 1.5 oz Gin .75 oz lemon .75 oz Lillet .5 oz White Cacao Shake/strain/up. There's actually a good deal of flexibility in the ratios, just be sure that you are controlling the amount of cacao enough that it can only be tasted in the finish. You may want to use less than what is printed here, I often do. As for the 19th Century Cocktail, I can't help you there, though I'm sure someone around here can. ETA: Plymouth works well in this.

This is highly excellent, congratulations to you sir.

As someone on the Drinkboy forums said in response to this very video, "I have nothing to say to that video, not because there is nothing to say, but because I don't know where to begin." I've seen this about 4-5 times and it leaves me with jaw agape every time. It's like I always hope someone showed her her errors since the last time I watched it and it will be more correct. Each time I am, of course, disappointed -Andy

Thanks for the info, I now recognize the label from the liquor store, might have to check it out.

I'm not familiar with Diplomatico, what type of rum is it?

I'd love to get this, rebranded or no. I've been shopping at Spec's for years and I've never seen or heard of this in the context of the store (though it sounds vaguely familiar). Where did you come by it? -Andy

Though CocktailDB is his project, in Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails, Dr. Cocktail indicates that the grenadine recipe is the way to go "unless you need an emetic." -Andy

My first instinct if I were going to attempt something like this would be to use the highest proof spirits possible, for greatest preservative effect. Wouldn't be too hard to get some barrel-proof Bourbon and some Demerara 151 rum. I've never had it myself but Advocaat is basically eggs preserved in liquor, no? I'd think that's essentially what you're making here. -Andy

I'd definitely prefer weapons to cellphones any day. ← Maybe the compromise is that those with iron are authorized to use it on those who are discourteous with their phones.

Not terribly original I know, but tonight I had a friend in town who I hadn't seen in many months, so we combined our fellowship in with our Repeal Day observance: first, Sidecars, then some nice Rye Manhattans, then a lovely bottle of Australian Shiraz (2004 D'Arenberg The Love Grass, if you care) to go with some ribeyes and lamb chops off the grill, followed up by a little jot over to one of our favorite spots out in town here for a pint where we played a trivia game with a nice guy named Zack who it just so happens is on the cusp of graduating (this very month), so I decided to introduce him to the joys of Red Breast, which was the whiskey present that I liked most. All in all a wonderful celebration of our Right to Imbibe. -Andy

Good one to have around this time of year, try it in Mr. Taggart's Reveillon: 2 oz Applejack or Calvados (Bonded Applejack works best here) 1/2 oz pear eau-de-vie* 1/2 oz pimento dram 1/4 oz favorite red vermouth or Punt e Mes (or slightly more to taste) 2 generous dashes favorite aromatic bitters stir/strain/up Beautiful drink for the Christmas season, and a lovely showcase for the allspice liqueur that one has made or been so lucky to acquire. It's a wee on the sweet side, but not unbearably so, and certainly not so much as to be inappropriate to have before dinner. -Andy *I have used Brizard Poire William, which is sweetened, in lieu of dry eau-de-vie, and it worked fine since the liqueur is not terribly sweet as those things go.

Finally got around to trying the Jimmie Roosevelt from The Gentleman's Companion as discussed over here, building it, for the first try, exactly to Baker's specifications, using Hardy VS for the Cognac and Freixenet Cava in lieu of Champagne (it's what I had on hand in a split). This is the sort of thing I could only attempt on a long afternoon with no responsibilities. So far, this is quite a drink, boozier even than I had imagined. It's a little overwhelming, but the flavor combination is nothing short of fascinating, and the combination definitely has some room for tinkering. Not today, but sometime I'll have to try Pegu Club's adaptation. With 3 oz of Cognac, 1 oz of Green Chartreuse, and half a split of Cava, this should last me all afternoon -Andy

VSFC notwithstanding, I wouldn't go so far as to call Pink Gin a drink for the gin-averse, but I may be able to offer a few hints to try it again: 1) Stirring with very cold cracked ice with actually get a colder drink than shaking, and should still produce sufficient dilution provided you stir long enough. 2) Pink Gin is a simple drink, but those are often the trickiest of drinks. Try reducing the amount of bitter by one or two dashes. 3) Pink Gin will still work reasonably well on the rocks, which will of course keep it colder. If all else fails, maybe try a dash of simple syrup for every dash of bitters. Of course it won't really be a Pink Gin anymore so much as a Gin Cock-tail, but it may help you get accustomed to the flavor profile. On the other hand, while I think the Pink Gin is a bonafide classic and a fine and interesting enough drink, I rarely if ever crave one, and I can count on one hand the number of them I've ever made, much less drank.

Re: rules in Prohibition era bars, p. 34 of The Joy of Mixology has a list of 10 such rules from a NYC joint that opened in 1924, so the concept is not entirely new. -Andy

Wow thanks so much for the great notes. The liquor rep said he was going to bring me a sample but I don't know if I can wait that long now. And as for 100 proof Overholt? Woo-Hoo! -Andy

Anybody have an opinion on the new Russel's Reserve Rye? Made by the WT mater distiller Jimmy Russel, but the distributor rep said it was mostly a marketing thing to not put the turkey on the label (to get people who might otherwise shy from the high-proof reputation). If it's the same guy who makes regular wt rye it can't be terrible, but I was wondering if anybody has actually tried it yet. -Andy

Yes! And now is the best time of year to look for one -- I got my 48-bottle fridge at a Home Depot the weekend after Thanksgiving three years ago for about $150 (normally $300). Sure, it is not a Vino-Temp, but keeps my wine at a consistent 55 degrees with moderate-enough condensation for me to live with. ← Home Depot does seem to be the place to go. About a month ago I got one on clearance for $197; the box said 50 bottles though it had rack space for 52 and currently has 62 bottles and half-bottles crammed into it. The only gripe with this particular model is that the shelves are so close together that I've damaged a few labels extracting bottles, but once you learn the trick it happens far less frequently. -Andy

I checked with Rob Cooper, owner of St. Germain, and he said that they're with Glazer's, but still doing the paperwork, so it's not available for sale yet. Soon, I'd think, though... Ciao, Marty ← Thanks, I'll get with my Glazer rep and give them a heads-up. In the meantime a friend who was working on the west coast was able to get me the last two bottles found on the shelf of a Bevmo in San Diego, so I'll be getting in to that soon. -Andy

Awesome.

Wow. Foie Gras infused Cognac (or Armagnac), anyone?

← I took note of the Jimmie Roosevelt some time back and wanted to try it but was somewhat wary of it's enormous size and profligate use of expensive (and high-proof!) ingredients. This adaptation looks far more manageable. Would you say the Chartreuse is more or less than 1/4 oz? Seems like that much would be enough, but one can never tell, at least not before trying it. -Andy

I have also taken note of all this, including comparison with some antique bottles, but I find that for my purposes 1/8 tsp is a useful way to quantify a dash from any of these bottles, and it makes measuring easier (8 dashes of rich syrup instead of measuring out a tsp for your Old Fashioned) -Andy