Drinks (2009–2011)

[bostonapothecary]

Moderator note: The original Drinks! topic became too large for our servers to handle efficiently, so we've divided it up; the preceding part of this discussion is here: Drinks! (2007–2009)]

i needed some mood adjustment so i went with something very ruthless in structure and flavor contrasts.

1.5 oz. rum jm unaged from cape verde
.5 oz. kirshwasser (hiram walker)
1 oz. lemon juice
bar spoon sugar
2 long dashes peychauds bitters

the rum is more or less sugar cane moonshine. there is no alcoholic burn or uncut fusel aroma like wray and nephews but rather a strange, completely unmellowed, fierce character. incredibly similar to the unaged sample of leblon cachaca i tasted at TOTC. the kirshwasser cuts it down to something manageable and adds awesome fruit contrast. i wonder if crafted american moonshine can be as interesting.

Edited April 8, 2013 by Mjx (log)

[FireAarro]

Made a small Fair and Warmer from the Savoy book/thread tonight. Was pleasantly surprised. Vermouth was a bit dominating, more than in a Manhattan, but tasty regardless (I love sweet vermouth times infinity). I was glad I liked it because I haven't yet found any other good uses for the Havana Club Anejo Especial I got from relatives duty free (accidental buy, I requested the Anejo Blanco). Any suggestions? I tried an Anejo Highball with it but didn't like it much- have been having bad luck with these ever since I ran out of Appleton V/X, which is a pity because they were one of my favourites before.

[Ktepi]

i wonder if crafted american moonshine can be as interesting.

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Tuthilltown Spirits' Old Gristmill corn whiskey is very cool stuff with a sort of cachaca-like funk. They've discontinued it in favor of a slightly higher-proof (92 vs 80) and pricier New York Corn Whiskey, which I haven't tried, but I'm definitely awake to the possibilities of unaged corn whiskey now.

[slkinsey]

My problem with the Tuthilltown products is that they are ridiculously overpriced for the level of quality. 40 bucks for just 375 ml? Really?! This stuff prices out similar to spirits like Vintage Rye 21 Year and Michter's 10 Year. It is more than triple the price of Wild Turkey 101 Proof!!

If this stuff were the absolute elixir of the Gods, it might be worth the money. But who is going to pick up two bottles of Hudson Baby Bourbon over a bottle of Michter's 10 Year, Van Winkle 15 Year, etc? I guess the advantage is that it comes in a half-sized bottle so the outlay isn't as much. But I just can't bring myself to spend that money on Tuthilltown versus what I could spend the same money on.

[Ktepi]

My problem with the Tuthilltown products is that they are ridiculously overpriced for the level of quality.  40 bucks for just 375 ml?  Really?!  This stuff prices out similar to spirits like Vintage Rye 21 Year and Michter's 10 Year.  It is more than triple the price of Wild Turkey 101 Proof!!

If this stuff were the absolute elixir of the Gods, it might be worth the money.  But who is going to pick up two bottles of Hudson Baby Bourbon over a bottle of Michter's 10 Year, Van Winkle 15 Year, etc?  I guess the advantage is that it comes in a half-sized bottle so the outlay isn't as much.  But I just can't bring myself to spend that money on Tuthilltown versus what I could spend the same money on.

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Yeah, that's the problem I have with the New York Corn Whiskey. I paid a little over $20 for 750ml of Old Gristmill. The New York Corn Whiskey is $30-something for half as much, and the difference in proof certainly isn't enough to justify that.

I don't know if I paid a clearance sale price on the Old Gristmill, since I bought it *just* before the NYCorn came out. Could be. But I can't talk myself into paying twice as much for it.

I don't regret the purchase of the Baby Bourbon, and I bought it at the same time as the Old Gristmill so I could try them side by side, but I don't expect it to be a repeat purchase at that price.

[vice]

an alchemist-inspired night. first a prince parker swizzle. then, because it's finally hot here, quite hot, a bastardization of the juliet and romeo:

2 oz hendricks

0.75 oz mixed lime and lemon juice

0.75 oz 1:1 simple

12 drops rosewater

2" cucumber

9 basil leaves

peel and muddle cucumber to pulp, then lightly muddle basil. add liquids, shake and strain over ice into a tall glass. top up with soda and garnish with a basil sprig.

hit the spot while standing by the grill.

[aidan]

Maybe not the same as the other drinks, but is there really anything better than drinking a beer in the shower after a long night making drinks for everyone but yourself? It may just be me....

[bostonapothecary]

more fun with maracuja. hoping for something like a side car...

1.5 oz. cognac (gaston de lagrange vs)

.75 oz. maracuja do ezequiel passion fruit liqueur

.75 oz. lemon juice

pretty cool for the cost basis (i paid $6 for the cognac on closeout and $14 for the liqueur). even though i think the liqueur has more sugar than a triple sec i bet it also has significant acidity making the structure pretty extreme like a normal 2:1:1 side car. triple sec is a great foil for spirits because it hides near nothing in the spirit when contrasted. maracuja is not as transparent and for some reason seems to hide a portion of the awesome cognaciness.

fun but not as brilliant as a normal side car.

[Corinna]

Made Negronis. In the second round I subbed Cynar for the Campari. Interesting comparison.

This forum is a great resource as I come back to cocktails and delve further. Thank you

[KD1191]

Made Negronis. In the second round I subbed Cynar for the Campari. Interesting comparison.

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At Bradstreet, Alchemist put a 'Negroni Tredici' on the menu: Tanqueray, Cynar, Campari, Carpano Antica...I've not had it, but have heard from those who have that it is quite something.

[plattetude]

Made Negronis. In the second round I subbed Cynar for the Campari. Interesting comparison.

←

At Bradstreet, Alchemist put a 'Negroni Tredici' on the menu: Tanqueray, Cynar, Campari, Carpano Antica...I've not had it, but have heard from those who have that it is quite something.

←

Oooh. That pushes all my buttons. I gotta play with that.

Christopher

[KD1191]

Hey, we're back...

To celebrate, I'm enjoying a Kola Champagne...needed something non-alcoholic after sampling a few bourbons this afternoon. Was quite impressed by the complexity of Black Maple Hill.

[Chris Amirault]

Broke out the Luxardo cherries, the Fee's 2007 Whiskey Barrel Aged bitters, and some Bulleit bourbon for an Old Fashioned. More to follow, I'm sure.

Cheers, all.

[bostonapothecary]

2 oz. cognac (mason surreine)

1 oz. lemon juice

.5 oz. triple sec (citronge is all there is at work)

.5 oz. miele amaro (bitter strawberry tree honey dissolved in vodka 1:1)

this is similar to a side car but trades some of the triple sec for an exotic honey liqueur. the very unique honey brings awesome contrast to the cognac and the over all experience reminded me of early grey tea. the honey liqueur being sweeter than the citronge averages the drink's sugar ethic into something a little more crowd pleasing.

will make again.

[avant-garde]

Made a couple delicious little numbers last night:

1 oz. Beefeater

1 oz. Aperol

1 oz. St. Germain

Big Fat Orange Twist

Stirred and served on the rocks.

Followed by a similar (almost Negroni) drink.

1 oz. Beefeater

1 oz. Carpano Antica

1 oz. Aperol

Big Fat Orange Twist

Stirred and served over ice.

Edited September 8, 2009 by avant-garde (log)

[bostonapothecary]

needed a refreshing drift after a big lunch...

1 oz. cognac (gaston lagrange vs)

1 oz. unaged cape verdean rum

1 oz. lemon juice

.5 oz. cape verdean orange liqueur

half spoonful of sugar

dash peychaud's bitters

i had recently had some havana club 3 year anejo. it was okay but just reminded me of bacardi silver with a splash of bacardi 8 in it. (not a bad thing. and bacardi 8 is spectacular rum for the money). anyhow i was wondering if i could create the same effect by juxtaposing two spirits to find an interesting overtone of flavors. pisco and cognac might be more appropriate but you'd swear the cape verdean stuff is made from grapes if you tasted it blind. the scant amount of orange liqueur adds its own tonal effect and the overall result is awesome. sometimes for me even a VS cognac in a sour is too mature and too rich. blending it down creates something my moods identify with better.

[Corinna]

I went to a great local spot tonight, The Stonecat (Hector, NY). It's the best place for cocktails in the area, so after enjoying several local wines, I ordered a Negroni (my fascination at the moment) with the new, and local, gin-- Seneca Drums from the Finger Lakes Distillery. (http://www.fingerlakesdistilling.com/) I had been wanting to try this in a Negroni and, as I thought, the extra botanicals in this gin (cardamom was the most prominent to me) really rounded out the drink. I've had tastings of the gin (along with other products from the Distillery), but this is the first time I've had it in a cocktail. I'm looking forward to getting a bottle to experiment with at home, because it has a lot potential.

Transparency: I work in the tasting room at a local winery (Lamoreaux Landing). I enjoy the wines there, but what really fascinates me is the abundance of amazing food & drink in the area.

[thirtyoneknots]

Made a couple of Metropoles this afternoon...a somewhat difficult drink for me in the past, notable for its austere elegance more than its extreme deliciousness. The other day though I noticed I had 3 different dry vermouths open in the fridge at the moment (old and new Noilly, plus Dolin, and the Dolin Blanc and Tio Pepe Fino Sherry as well) so I tried it out with the "new" Noilly Prat and the Dolin as a comparison. When double checking the recipe in my new Mud Puddle edition of Kappler (and in Imbibe!) I noticed that a scant amount of gum was called for, which I had never seen in more recent recipes before. Both drinks were delightful but I must actually credit the scant half tsp of rich simple for that more than the change in aromatized wines.

Neat way to show off the very different characters of the vermouths as well.

Metropole:

1 oz Cognac (Hardy VS in both)

1 oz Dry Vermouth

2 dashes Peychauds

1 dash Orange Bitters (Fees/Regans)

scant 1/2 tsp rich simple

Stir with ice and strain into chilled glass, lemon twist.

[Vieux Carré]

I normally drink El Dorado 15 year straight up. Tonight I added 1/4 oz simple (1/3 raw sugar + 2/3 white sugar) with 3 dashes Angostura Bitters added one fat lemon twist on the rocks. Quite nice!

[KD1191]

A Creole Cocktail variation:

1 1/2 oz Rittenhouse Rye BIB

1 1/2 oz Punt e Mes

1/8 oz Amer Picon

1/8 oz Yellow Chartreuse VEP

Swapping the Bénédictine for Chartreuse was an act of necessity, but I didn't feel it lessened the drink at all...at that quantity, I imagine plain yellow chartreuse would have been fine, too. The traditional Creole is one of my favorite drinks, and this is certainly a delicious minor riff.

Edited September 15, 2009 by KD1191 (log)

[thirtyoneknots]

A Creole Cocktail variation:

1 1/2 oz Rittenhouse Rye BIB

1 1/2 oz Punt e Mes

1/8 oz Amer Picon

1/8 oz Yellow Chartreuse VEP

Swapping the Bénédictine for Chartreuse was an act of necessity, but I didn't feel it lessened the drink at all...at that quantity, I imagine plain yellow chartreuse would have been fine, too. The traditional Creole is one of my favorite drinks, and this is certainly a delicious minor riff.

I am always curious to see measures like "1/8 oz" and wonder how people hit those with any precision...do you merely consider a 'scant teaspoon' close enough or are you making two or more and measuring the multimple amount? For my own part I don't think I've ever seen any measuring apparatus marked with 8ths of an ounce, though 1/8 and 3/8 and 5/8 show up with some unnerving frequency in recipes.

[KD1191]

A Creole Cocktail variation:

1 1/2 oz Rittenhouse Rye BIB

1 1/2 oz Punt e Mes

1/8 oz Amer Picon

1/8 oz Yellow Chartreuse VEP

Swapping the Bénédictine for Chartreuse was an act of necessity, but I didn't feel it lessened the drink at all...at that quantity, I imagine plain yellow chartreuse would have been fine, too. The traditional Creole is one of my favorite drinks, and this is certainly a delicious minor riff.

I am always curious to see measures like "1/8 oz" and wonder how people hit those with any precision...do you merely consider a 'scant teaspoon' close enough or are you making two or more and measuring the multimple amount? For my own part I don't think I've ever seen any measuring apparatus marked with 8ths of an ounce, though 1/8 and 3/8 and 5/8 show up with some unnerving frequency in recipes.

I was making two, so I was able to hit the 1/4 mark on my Oxo angled 2 oz measure without a problem. When making one, I usually use a bar spoon or fractions thereof for anything less than 1/4 oz.

[KD1191]

Autumn is coming...finally gave up trying to fight it.

Applejack Old Fashioned:

2 oz Laird's Bonded

Heavy 1/4 oz Maple Syrup (1:1 Granulated Maple Sugar:Water)

Scant Barspoon Amaro Nonino

Dash Angostura Orange Bitters

Flamed Orange Peel

[Troy Sidle]

Autumn is coming...finally gave up trying to fight it.

Applejack Old Fashioned:

2 oz Laird's Bonded

Heavy 1/4 oz Maple Syrup (1:1 Granulated Maple Sugar:Water)

Scant Barspoon Amaro Nonino

Dash Angostura Orange Bitters

Flamed Orange Peel

Mmm.

[brinza]

I am always curious to see measures like "1/8 oz" and wonder how people hit those with any precision...do you merely consider a 'scant teaspoon' close enough or are you making two or more and measuring the multimple amount? For my own part I don't think I've ever seen any measuring apparatus marked with 8ths of an ounce, though 1/8 and 3/8 and 5/8 show up with some unnerving frequency in recipes.

I was making two, so I was able to hit the 1/4 mark on my Oxo angled 2 oz measure without a problem. When making one, I usually use a bar spoon or fractions thereof for anything less than 1/4 oz.

1/8 oz is 3/4 tsp, so you could measure out three 1/4-tsp measures or do what I do and use a 1/2-tsp measure, filling it once and winging it for remaining bit.