What to do with Drambuie?

[Deus Mortus]

I just tried the rembrandt, living in Holland I already had the bottle of jenever on standby for visitors (not a big fan of the stuff myself, at least not straight), I have to say it's pretty interesting, I quickly infused the raisin and Drambuie with a quick vacuum hack (a one way valve, a bit of gum and my vacuum) and I have to say, it's pretty cool. Not sure whether I would add it to my list of regular drinks, but it was very nice none the less.

Seeing the virgin slut is making me seriously want to buy some maraschino, though I have no clue what kind is any good.

[Frederic]

A pair from the blog:

Supernova

1 oz Gin (Death's Door)

1 oz Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)

1/2 oz Drambuie

2 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.

Created by Anu Apte of Rob Roy. The Drambuie adds some whiskey notes to the mix and turns regular gins into something more akin to Ransom's Old Tom. Very similar to the Flora's Own aperitif from the 1937 Cafe Royal Cocktail Book.

Madelaine Cocktail

1 oz Light Rum

1 oz Drambuie

Juice of 1/2 Lime (1/2 oz)

Juice of 1/2 Lemon (1/2 oz)

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. I added a lemon twist to the recipe.

A classic from the 1947 Trader Vic. Drambuie both as a (partial) base and sweetener.

[FrogPrincesse]

I recently inherited a bottle of Drambuie and decided to look it up in the Bartender's Choice app. I used it last night to make a McKinnon: white rum, Drambuie, lime juice, lemon juice. This version was served up (I've seen it served tall as well with club soda).

I was pleasantly surprised; it was crisp and very good. The scotch base of the Drambuie did not clash at all with the white rum.

I am glad to see lots of other suggestions on this thread because it is not a liqueur I was familiar with.

[mkayahara]

Nice, I'll have to check that out. If you have some sherry, do try a Tabard.

[judiu]

If you like Scotch, there's always a Rusty Nail to be considered. Sorry, no proportions, it's scotch and Drambuie, served on the rocks or just served up.

[FrogPrincesse]

Nice, I'll have to check that out. If you have some sherry, do try a Tabard.

Unfortunately I don't have cocktail-quality sherry (just some stuff that I use to cook with and has been opened for a while...). But it's on my list once I make some room - I am working on it!

[FrogPrincesse]

If you like Scotch, there's always a Rusty Nail to be considered. Sorry, no proportions, it's scotch and Drambuie, served on the rocks or just served up.

That's on the list too. Is there a type of scotch that works best in that drink?

[KatieLoeb]

Rusty Nail is usually 2 parts blended scotch (I like Famous Grouse for this) and 1 part Drambuie. Stirred over rocks.

I occasionally will substitute Drambuie for Triple Sec in a Margarita, making what I call a Bonnie Maggie. The slightly herbal notes of the Drambuie work well with reposado tequila. It won't set the world on fire, but it's a decent variant.

[Frederic]

We put a Drambuie-containing Scaffa (room temperature cocktail) on the menu for a Women of the Wild West-themed night last week at the Blue Room in Cambridge, MA. It was originally created for a someone's birthday (who loves rhum agricole) and I figured that it would not get much traffic on the menu. Surprisingly, it was one of the top 2 or 3 drinks of the night and we came a jigger away from clearing a freshly opened bottle of Drambuie during the 4 hours of service.

Madame Mustache

1 1/2 oz Aged Rhum Agricole (*)

1 oz Drambuie

1/2 oz Cynar

1 dash Angostura Bitters

Build in a rocks glass, give a quick stir (no ice), and garnish with a grapefruit twist.

(*) The drink was developed originally with aged cachaça, so feel free to substitute for a funkier drink.

More 4-1-1 (including history of Madame Mustache herself): http://cocktailvirgin.blogspot.com/2013/02/madame-mustache.html

[brinza]

Here are some recipes that I created for a cocktail competition last year. At first glance, they are all going to appear to be overly sweet, being heavy on the Drambuie itself, because the rules indicated that Drambuie had to be the "lead" ingredient, whatever that means. Feel free to dial down the Drambuie if you want, but I tried to mitigate the sweetness as best I could with the other ingredients. I deliberately avoided using Scotch just to be different (even though the Rusty Nail is in fact one of my favorite drinks). Here goes:

Drambuie Skye

1 ounce Drambuie

1 ounce straight rye whiskey

1 ounce dry vermouth

1 dash Peychaud's Bitters

Stir and strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with lemon twist or peel.

This is actually kind of crisp and bracing with a little sweetness.

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Drambul'orange

muddled orange peel

1 ounce Drambuie

1 ounce Lillet

3/4 ounce fresh orange juice

2 dashes orange bitters

Muddle a piece of orange peel in a mixing glass or shaker tin. Shake and strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with flamed orange peel.

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Drambuie Island Dream

1 1/2 ounces Drambuie

3/4 ounce Jamaican rum

1 ounce grapefruit juice

1/4 to 1/2 ounce ginger beer (to taste)

1 dash Angostura Bitters

Build in a rocks glass with crushed ice. Garnish with piece of fresh pineapple.

This was an attempt to bring Drambuie and rum together and it ended up kind of tiki and could certainly be served that way. A paper umbrella would do it no harm.

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Drambuie Lemon Lifter

1 ounce Drambuie

1 ounce London dry gin

3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice

1/4 ounce Maraschino liqueur

Shake and strain into cocktail glass. Twist lemon peel over the top and discard. Garnish with maraschino cherry.

I like honey and lemon. The gin and maraschino add some complexity. Really nice color.

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Drambuie di Torino

1 1/2 ounces Drambuie

3/4 ounce Punt e Mes

Stir with ice. Strain into cocktail glass or liqueur glass.

Sounds goofy but it's surprisingly good.

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The Spirit of Drambuie

1 1/2 ounces Drambuie

1 ounce cognac

3/4 ounce Ramazzotti

Stir with ice and strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with orange peel.

This one is strong, spicy and sweet.

There they are. I think they are all at least worth a try, but I welcome any criticisms. Feel free to tear 'em apart!

[FrogPrincesse]

Last night I enjoyed a Confederation Bridge (Bulleit rye, Cynar, Drambuie, Dolin white vermouth, Angostura bitters), one of Fred's picks for 2013 top cocktails at cocktail virgin slut. I tasted orange, chocolate, and honey, with a bitter Cynar finish. It was a tad sweet but I liked it.

 

 

 

[Dave the Cook]

Here are some recipes that I created for a cocktail competition last year. At first glance, they are all going to appear to be overly sweet, being heavy on the Drambuie itself, because the rules indicated that Drambuie had to be the "lead" ingredient, whatever that means. Feel free to dial down the Drambuie if you want, but I tried to mitigate the sweetness as best I could with the other ingredients. I deliberately avoided using Scotch just to be different (even though the Rusty Nail is in fact one of my favorite drinks). Here goes:

. . . 

Drambuie Lemon Lifter

1 ounce Drambuie

1 ounce London dry gin

3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice

1/4 ounce Maraschino liqueur

Shake and strain into cocktail glass. Twist lemon peel over the top and discard. Garnish with maraschino cherry.

I like honey and lemon. The gin and maraschino add some complexity. Really nice color.

. . . 

There they are. I think they are all at least worth a try, but I welcome any criticisms. Feel free to tear 'em apart!

 

As suggested, we modified the proportions of this. I think we poured the following:

 

2 oz gin (Beefeater)

1/2 oz Drambuie

3/4 oz lemon juice

1/4 oz Maraschino (Luxardo)

 

Very nice --.sort of a variation on a Bee's Knees, but a bit more complex.

[lapin d'or]

A little Drambuie drizzled over hot porridge is delicious.

 

Makes a very special Sunday breakfast.

[FrogPrincesse]

Drambuie as the base... I was intrigued.

 

Shameless self-promotion...

These original Drambuie cocktails created by Adam Elmegirab were the winning drinks in the regional heat as well as the national final for the Drambuie Cocktail Competition 2010.

B.F.G

40ml Drambuie
25ml Noilly Rouge
10ml Laphroaig 10 Year Old
4dashes Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Boker's Bitters

Method: Add all ingredients to mixing glass fill with cubed ice and strir for 15-20 seconds
Glass: Vintage cocktail
Garnish: Lemon zest
Ice: N/A
Image: http://img863.images...drambuiebfg.jpg

 

 

 

So it is quite sweet as expected, even though I subbed Punt e Mes for the Noilly rouge. But very pleasant overall with the smoke from the Laphroaig to counteract the sweetness.

 

It's a good way to make a dent in a very old (inherited) bottle of Drambuie. I have the vague hope to finish the bottle and replace it with the drier & more scotch-forward Drambuie 15 since trying it a few weeks ago...

[Craig E]

@Rafa's Cassingle Revival #2 (bourbon, Drambuie, Cointreau, and lemon juice in equal parts).

 

Quite lemony - gave me pleasant flashbacks to a kind of Italian lemon ice I remember having as a kid. Dominantly sweet and sour, but zesty and complex underneath that. 

[Craig E]

Last night I tried a Silver Nail, which brightens up a Rusty Nail by splitting the base with gin and adding a little lemon juice. I quite liked it. I prefer it to any of my attempts at a more traditional Rusty Nail which are never quite as good as I want them to be.

[Craig E]

On a Reddit post I saw mention of a "Rusty Cross," which subbed Smith & Cross for Scotch, so I tried it out:

• 2 oz. Smith & Cross rum
• fat 1/2 oz. Drambuie
• dash Angostura
• lemon twist

This worked well. It's obviously high-octane, so benefits from a long stir and slow sips. If you're looking for something strong and sweet, you could do worse.