Drinks! (2004–2007)

[lancastermike]

Last night had a Bijou for the first time. A very interesting drink. Lots of different tastes. A little bit of pucker from the vermouth to start, but the finish was much smoother with the orange bitters really shining through. A fine example of an old style cocktail. I think this is an example of the orange bitters being essential for the drink to work

[Ajl92]

I had a great dinner at a local upscale Italian restuarant with family and a friend who had come into town for the holiday and ended the meal with a snifter of Grand Marnier Centcinquantenaire (150) and I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed it almost as much as the duck breast with fig and port reduction and walnut risotto that came before it.

[eje]

Driving back to CA from AZ, we stopped at Andersen's for the obligatory cup of pea soup. Figured an old school restaurant would be a fine place to for an old school cocktail and ordered the "Old Fashion" on the back of the desser card.

In execution, it was a fairly good old-fashioned of the non-muddled type. Just sugar and bitters garnished with cherry and lemon peel.

Sadly, for some reason the bartender chose vodka for the base spirit.

When will this "white whiskey" madness end?

[eje]

Got a bottle of Torani Amer and mixed up a Brooklyn using Old Overholt last night.

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The Mother-In-Law cocktail is a similar and very tasty cocktail from "Vintage Spirits..." based on bourbon. Made a double batch to take to a friend's holiday party. Sadly, its name did not endear it to the party goers. Every one went for a "Satan's Whiskers" instead.

Fortuntely, I got to take the leftovers home, so may be toasting in the New Year with them. I wonder if it would be good topped off with a little dry champagne?

[JAZ]

I made this Bee's Knees Variation from the CocktailDB site, using blood orange juice.

It was good -- more complex than I expected. I also tried it with gin, and preferred that to rum.

[eje]

My wife has an amusing story where after tasting virgin pina coladas on vacation with her family, she and a group of her peers skipped school to head out ask for them at a bar in Wausau, WI.

I don't think I've ever had a Pina Colada, so since hearing the story, (and reading about them in the first issue of Mixologist,) I've been itching to give them a try.

One of my perennial problems is an inability to completely follow a recipe, I had no fresh pineapple juice, (who does?,) was making thai chicken soup, and I still had some Brazilian Daiquiri left, so I went at it thusly.

2 oz Brazilian Daiquiri

1 oz Coconut Milk

1/2 oz Simple Syrup

1/2 oz fresh lime juice

Shake in an iced cocktail shaker and strain into a glass.

My wife said it smelled like a Pina Colada; but, she remembered them being blended.

Very tasty, though.

PS. Consuming "girly" drinks like this may result in eGullet posts using words like "yummy". If you are at all concerned about the appearance of masculity in your eGullet persona, you might want to stay away from the computer while under the influence.

PPS. After making this it occurred to me that a Ramos Gin Fizz made with Coconut Milk instead of cream might be a very fine thing.

edited for grammar.

Edited January 6, 2006 by eje (log)

[lostmyshape]

just recently did Gary Regan's Delmarva No.2. sort of a 20th century with bourbon or rye... well, and dry vermouth instead of lillet, but same difference.

it was something like:

2 oz rye or bourbon

1/2 oz dry vermouth

1/2 oz lemon juice

1/2 oz creme de cacao

i forget what the garnish prescribed was... i just used a lemon twist.

result: BEST DRINK EVER. seriously, my new favorite. unlike the 12th century, the creme de cacao doesn't really come off as chocolate. it's just this earthiness floating at the bottom of the flavor of this spectacular drink.

just blown away.

and eje: ugh on the old fashioned with vodka. why would anyone do that?

[eje]

Tried Regan and Terrell's Thai Lady this evening.

As is, the formulation is pretty sweet for me. This is about the 3rd cocktail from his column that I've made and had this response. I guess I should just realize he likes his cocktails sweeter than I do, and adjust before making them.

Aside from being a little sweet, it is an amazingly aromatic cocktail.

[johnder]

We had a few of Audrey's Velvet Harvest to start, I would have liked a second one, but ran out of egg whites.

We ended up just having a sidecar after that.

Very tasty.

[eje]

This is much better for the flannestad household:

Thai Lady Revised

(for two)

4 oz Plymouth Gin

2 oz fresh lemon juice

3/4 oz Lemon Grass infused Simple Syrup

3/4 oz Cointreau

Chill well and strain into two cocktail glasses.

[slkinsey]

We had a few of Audrey's Velvet Harvest to start....

Just for the sake of accuracy, the Velvet Harvest on the menu at Pegu Club was created by Chad Solomon -- a talented young bartender shaking at Pegu Club and elsewhere.

[Nathan P.]

This is much better for the flannestad household:

Thai Lady Revised

(for two)

4 oz Plymouth Gin

2 oz fresh lemon juice

3/4 oz Lemon Grass infused Simple Syrup

3/4 oz Cointreau

Chill well and strain into two cocktail glasses.

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I was thinking about trying this after reading his last column but it seemed like the next step was to try palm sugar for the simple syrup. Anyone tried to make a syrup with palm sugar?

[johnder]

Ah you are correct. I actually knew that and was referring to it more of from the sense of where I last had it, as opposed to the creator. You can find the recipe here.

Good catch Sam. Sorry Audrey/Chad. :-)

We had a few of Audrey's Velvet Harvest to start....

Just for the sake of accuracy, the Velvet Harvest on the menu at Pegu Club was created by Chad Solomon -- a talented young bartender shaking at Pegu Club and elsewhere.

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[Jason Perlow]

Today I made myself a simple Irish Coffee, using a dark roasted Arabica blend using my single serve coffee machine and a nice shot of Baileys.

I really need to make those more often.

[lancastermike]

Last night we had a couple of old standbys. I had a Ward 8 and Maggie an Aviation. Both were very nice.

We use the Sam Kinsey method for our Aviations

2oz gin {Gordons}

1/2 oz maraschino {Luxardo}

1/2 oz lemon juice.

Maggie loves these.

I used the Cocktail DB receipe for my Ward 8, with my own made grenedine.

[birder53]

Manhattans last night. First round with Makers Mark, second with Blantons. Both wonderful, but Makers Mark is still our favorite. Tonight will be something with green chartreuse - Last Words maybe?

[Sazerac]

This one really hit the spot Saturday night, from Larousse des Cocktails:

Tipperary Cocktail

2 ounces rye whiskey. (We used Pappy Van Winkle 13)

1 ounce sweet vermouth.

1/2 ounce green Chartreuse.

Stir with ice; strain into a cocktail glass.

Chuck

[M.X.Hassett]

This one really hit the spot Saturday night, from Larousse des Cocktails:

Tipperary Cocktail

2 ounces rye whiskey. (We used Pappy Van Winkle 13)

1 ounce sweet vermouth.

1/2 ounce green Chartreuse.

Stir with ice; strain into a cocktail glass.

Chuck

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Out of curiousity(spl.) what type o' "sweet vermouth" did you use. Might not kicking back the chart to a 1/4 make a more balanced cocktail.

P.S. Great SITE

[KatieLoeb]

The latest round of Mad Science

Amazingly delicious results. An herbal tea infused cachaca sour. Great texture, wonderful mouthfeel and lovely aromatics.

[TallDrinkOfWater]

I made a couple of Corpse Reviver #2 cocktails last night for Little Ms Foodie and myself. Excellent -- though my eyeballing of the remaining contents of the Cointreau bottle had been a little off, and I came up 1/2 oz. short for having enough for 2 cocktails. Nothing to do but top that off with some Grand Marnier, which was the only thing I had handy in the same ballpark. Then for round 2, I had to use it as a 100% substitution (and the taste was slightly different as a result).

Having never made the CR#2 before, I don't know how a strictly-interpreted recipe would taste in comparison. Generally I prefer the richness of GM to Cointreau in many cases, but it might be a bit too much for this, which is otherwise a very delicate cocktail -- I think the GM may have masked some of what the absinthe was trying to contribute. Next time I'll try it with Cointreau and see if it makes a difference.

[edit: fixed typo]

Edited January 26, 2006 by TallDrinkOfWater (log)

[percyn]

Friday night's drink of choice:

[M.X.Hassett]

Last night I mixed up a potable unnamed cocktail:

Equal parts Lairds applejack and Bookers bourbon

barspoon demerara syrup

2 dashes Angostura

1 dash Regans

key lime twist

[Alchemist]

You could name it the Sarcofagus (Sp) Because it looks a little like a riff on the Tombstone. Have you tried it with rye? I was thinking (Please don't throw any rotten tomatoes at me) about a Pennsilrac With Apple jack, Rye, Peychaud ect. when I was reading the Saz thread.

[M.X.Hassett]

Sarcophagus, great name it did put me to sleep. Ill have to try it with rye I need to restock the Lairds though I left the remains of my last bottle at the hosts studio. Penssilrac.......Brilliant

[TallDrinkOfWater]

After reading the When Is a Collins Not a Collins? thread, and more-relevantly the linked Gary Regan article, we had Mark Mendoza's "My Favorite Sidecar" tonight.

I used Martell VS as the cognac, and Maraska instead of Luxardo as the marachino (just because Luxardo can't be bought in Washington state, so I hoard my mail-ordered bottle...)

I have to say I enjoyed it quite a bit, as did Little Ms Foodie, whihc is probably more important

I could just taste the marachino. A nice twist on the standard Sidecar.