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Help for a Couple of Cocktail Novices (Part 1)


Kerry Beal

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To be honest, the first time I made it, I thought "Hmmm, I can't get my head around Caribbean rum and Italian amaro." The second time I made it, I loved it.

Smith & Cross is a bit of an acquired tasted. My wife used to hate it, but now likes it just fine. It is sort of the Limburger of the rum world.

Kindred Cocktails | Craft + Collect + Concoct + Categorize + Community

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No picture tonight - but made the Brother's Perryman again. Beefeater, St Germain, Campari, flamed orange rind. Yum!

Sounds good, I would like to try this! What ratios are you using?

Ounce and half of gin, 1 ounce each of St germain and campari.

Thanks Kerry!

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I love the bitter mai tai, but i think proper dilution is key to bring the flavors completely together.

I believe it was intended to be served over shaved ice, and I think it makes a big difference.

The Bitter Mai Tai might be one of the best drinks I've had all year, but Campus Five is right - it needs some extra dilution to help tame all the aggressive, rich flavors going on. Another excellent drink to try with Smith & Cross and Campari is the Kingston Negroni from Death and Company - equal parts S&C, Campari, and sweet vermouth, stir, strain into rocks glass over ice, orange twist. Perhaps I have a weird predilection towards that that combo, but that drink also really does it for me.

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I love the bitter mai tai, but i think proper dilution is key to bring the flavors completely together.

I believe it was intended to be served over shaved ice, and I think it makes a big difference.

The Bitter Mai Tai might be one of the best drinks I've had all year, but Campus Five is right - it needs some extra dilution to help tame all the aggressive, rich flavors going on. Another excellent drink to try with Smith & Cross and Campari is the Kingston Negroni from Death and Company - equal parts S&C, Campari, and sweet vermouth, stir, strain into rocks glass over ice, orange twist. Perhaps I have a weird predilection towards that that combo, but that drink also really does it for me.

Buddy of mine did that same drink with Bonal. Called it "Negroni, Please". Winner.

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Andy Arrington

Journeyman Drinksmith

Twitter--@LoneStarBarman

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Not sure of the name on this one - it's Pimms with gin, angostura bitters and fizzy lemon. Enjoyed a first sip then set it down next to the child.

Heard it hit the ground. My mouse was under the mess - don't think it's ever going to work the same again. Kinda sticky this one.

Anyway hubby seemed to enjoy his!

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Not sure of the name on this one - it's Pimms with gin, angostura bitters and fizzy lemon. Enjoyed a first sip then set it down next to the child.

Heard it hit the ground. My mouse was under the mess - don't think it's ever going to work the same again. Kinda sticky this one.

Anyway hubby seemed to enjoy his!

Never had Pimm's #1 but my understanding is that it is a 50 proof gin based drink to begin with so if you add more gin that would be a lot of gin! I see from looking up a couple of recipes that gin is a common companion to Pimm's. Is it pretty typical to add more gin to drinks containing Pimm's? I suppose if it works then that's OK!

Does this drink have a preponderance of the fizzy lemon part of the equation?

If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and a man. ~Mark Twain

Some people are like a Slinky. They are not really good for anything, but you still can't help but smile when you shove them down the stairs...

~tanstaafl2

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Not sure of the name on this one - it's Pimms with gin, angostura bitters and fizzy lemon. Enjoyed a first sip then set it down next to the child.

Heard it hit the ground. My mouse was under the mess - don't think it's ever going to work the same again. Kinda sticky this one.

Anyway hubby seemed to enjoy his!

Never had Pimm's #1 but my understanding is that it is a 50 proof gin based drink to begin with so if you add more gin that would be a lot of gin! I see from looking up a couple of recipes that gin is a common companion to Pimm's. Is it pretty typical to add more gin to drinks containing Pimm's? I suppose if it works then that's OK!

Does this drink have a preponderance of the fizzy lemon part of the equation?

This particular version did have a preponderance of fizzy lemon - I don't think it necessarily needs to. Was just the size of the glass I chose. More sticky stuff for the floor, the papers, the check books, the computer mouse, the TV remote...

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Yes, Pimm's is 50 proof, which isn't so high -- comparable to Campari for example. You'd add gin to Campari, right?

True enough. It was just the gin on gin thing I guess that got me. Kinda like the Rusty Nail of gin... :biggrin:

If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and a man. ~Mark Twain

Some people are like a Slinky. They are not really good for anything, but you still can't help but smile when you shove them down the stairs...

~tanstaafl2

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Guess I need to add Pimm's to my long list of things to try!

If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and a man. ~Mark Twain

Some people are like a Slinky. They are not really good for anything, but you still can't help but smile when you shove them down the stairs...

~tanstaafl2

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Last night I had a Banff cocktail: Whisky, Grand Marnier, Kirsch and Agnostura bitters. No photo as my camera battery was dead.

Tonight a Caipirinha. I did not expect to like this at all but felt I should at least try it. Surprisingly I really enjoyed it. I used only 2 ozs of Cachaca so I could at least stay upright until after dinner. :biggrin:

Caipirinha.JPG

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

My 2004 eG Blog

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My first Sazarac - simple, peychauds, Fourty Creek John's Private Cask (I know it's not the right kind of rye - but damn it's smooth!), absinthe spritz in the glass and a lemon twist (now residing in the glass but don't tell anyone).

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  • 2 weeks later...

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A 'Little Italy' tonight. I used canadian whiskey in place of the rye, punt e mes, cynar, a bit of maraschino cherry syrup and a flamed orange rind. Most excellent!

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Ok, I admit to being a little light in the knowledge on cocktails so I am even more of a novice than you Kerry, but what the heck is a flaming orange? Does it make a big difference in the taste?

I just had my first attempt at flambe desserts so now I may need a new challenge!

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Nice one Kerry, sounds tasty. I'm still trying to convince the local store that they want to order a thing or two for me (rittenhouse and yellow chartreuse). I think they didn't read the part of the LCBO site that says "your local store will be happy to order anything the LCBO carries". But I can make that drink minus the punt e mes... if I can figure out a good sub.

It's kinda like wrestling a gorilla... you don't stop when you're tired, you stop when the gorilla is tired.

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Nice one Kerry, sounds tasty. I'm still trying to convince the local store that they want to order a thing or two for me (rittenhouse and yellow chartreuse). I think they didn't read the part of the LCBO site that says "your local store will be happy to order anything the LCBO carries". But I can make that drink minus the punt e mes... if I can figure out a good sub.

Recipe calls for sweet vermouth - it should work just fine with whatever you've got.

There is yellow chartreuse at a couple of the Toronto stores - let me know if you want me to grab it for you. Ditto on the Rittenhouse.

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Ok, I admit to being a little light in the knowledge on cocktails so I am even more of a novice than you Kerry, but what the heck is a flaming orange? Does it make a big difference in the taste?

I just had my first attempt at flambe desserts so now I may need a new challenge!

Beth - gotta try this - I think it does make a difference in the flavour.

.
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The boys decided they wanted Manhattans tonight - Canadian whiskey, carpano antica, dashes of angostura, absinthe, orange liqueur and grenadine. It was dad's 94th birthday - so we had cake, but no candles so we didn't burn the house down.

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