Amateur Mixing at the School Fundraiser

[Yojimbo]

I've been asked to do a "special cocktail" for my daughter's school fundraiser next month. Last year I did a variant on the Last Word, subbing St. Germaine for the Chartreuse and topping it with green tea to avoid slaying people before they bid at the auction. This year I impanelled a jury to test a few recipes, they chose a spin on the Red Hook with Cio Ciaro subbed for half of the vermouth, which puts it near to a Brooklyn Cocktail a la Spliflicator. Speaking geographically, halfway between Red Hook and Splif's neighborhood is probably somewhere in the Gowanus Canal, which may suggest a name . . .

Anyway, how can I streamline the mixing process, while still preserving some of the fun (for me and the guests) of having the drink made in front of them? Do I mix to order so as to show off my dubious skill with jigger and strainer, or do I batch the whole thing beforehand, pour it in a glass and drop in the twist?

[thirtyoneknots]

I'd batch it and stir with ice to order, in a pitcher. Even executing one drink like this can be overwhelming for one person if they're not experienced, so take every advantage you can get. And it will also prevent special orders when people see the individual bottles you have, which would just slow you down.

[tanstaafl2]

You could perhaps batch all but one ingredient (maybe the Cio Ciaro) followed by the twist so that it looks like you are mixing something and the Cio Ciaro probably looks a bit exotic to most people I would think and that way perhaps strike a balance between ease and a bit of "flair".

Not sure if or how that might effect the drink. No doubt some testing would be in order!

Edited February 19, 2012 by tanstaafl2 (log)

[weinoo]

Actually, there already is a Gowanus cocktail, from Bar Tano in the Gowanus neighborhood.

That said, I have to agree with thirtyoneknots; batch it all up, and make the show of stirring them in pitchers and garnishing the drinks individually.