Drinks! (2013 Part 2)

[KD1191]

Last night, an Improved Holland Gin Cocktail:

1.5 oz Anchor Genevieve

.75 oz St. George Dry Rye

.25 oz Simple

.25 oz Leopold Bros. Maraschino

.125 oz Vieux Pontarlier Absinthe

Dash Miracle Mile Sour Cherry Bitters

Dash Bitter Truth Grapefruit Bitters

Grapefruit Twist Garnish

http://forums.egullet.org/public/style_images/eg_forums_3_4/attachicon.gif BZocm8MIIAE0jhw.jpg

Afterward, a pour of Four Roses Limited Edition Single Barrel (2012 Edition)...I used to say this was the best bourbon out there that no one really talked about, but that's certainly changing.

Do you know the ABV and recipe of the 4R bourbon?

I do love my Four Roses single barrel selections. Jim Rutledge is a great master distiller and a hell of a nice guy

The 2012 was OESK. Out of town at the moment, but I believe it's in the neighborhood of 110 proof.

[Plantes Vertes]

Today, feeling apocalyptic, Fins du Monde:

1 1/2 ounces English dry gin

3/4 ounce sweet vermouth

1/4 ounce Amer Picon

1 dash orange bitters

Stir in an ice-filled mixing glass

Strain into a chilled cocktail glass

They were rather small! I would drink a lot more at the end of the world.

Edited December 8, 2013 by Plantes Vertes (log)

[turkoftheplains]

Typically I buy a bottle of sherry once-a-year around this time of the year (but usually only one a year). What do people recommend as a good sherry that is both nice straight and excellent in cocktails?

That's a tough one. PX is fantastic stuff with Christmas pud or blue cheese, and in a Rapscallion (et al). Fino or manzanilla are brilliant in summer, both alone or in things, but you may by climatically disadvantaged this time of year. I haven't tried cream sherry in a cocktail, but it's a delight with a bit of ice and orange zest - again, better in warmer weather.

On balance I might go for PX, but this may just reflect my love affair with the stuff.

After some more time with it, I think the PX is dynamite-- portier than port, with some very distinctive notes. It definitely lends itself well to the cold weather, as both a digestif sipper and because it works nicely in brown boozy drinks. It's potent as hell and can run roughshod over a drink if you aren't careful with the balance, though.

My fino/manzanilla experience is limited to the fine drinks (many) other people have made with them.

I don't think you can really lose either way.

Edited December 8, 2013 by turkoftheplains (log)

[turkoftheplains]

In honor of my own fresh batch, a small bottle of my friend's Fish-House Punch concentrate, which had been sitting on a shelf at room temperature since 2009. No off-flavors or spoilage of any kind, only a little fruit/pectin sediment that decanted off easily.

Started off diluting with water, then switched to champagne. If I had more, this could have gotten dangerous.

[bostonapothecary]

2 oz. old forester 100 proof

1 oz. martini rossi gran lusso sweet vermouth

1 oz. campari

this is really tasty. I didn't think the gran lusso is any great masterpiece. it has an oregano/menthe thing going on and isn't exactly the most enigmatic thing I've ever come across, but in this drink it is wonderful. I suspect the problem, if it could be called a problem, is that the regular vermouths are already just so great that any special edition at 4x the price has a lot to live up to. I noticed that the vermouth contributed a more alluring color than normal with this drink. I would have loved to sip it by candle light. I am wondering that if they knew it would move through the supply chain at a different faster rate than the usual, they were able to color it differently than the norm, perhaps in a way that isn't the typical bomb shelter level of stability.

[tanstaafl2]

Afterward, a pour of Four Roses Limited Edition Single Barrel (2012 Edition)...I used to say this was the best bourbon out there that no one really talked about, but that's certainly changing.

Do you know the ABV and recipe of the 4R bourbon?

I do love my Four Roses single barrel selections. Jim Rutledge is a great master distiller and a hell of a nice guy

The 2012 was OESK. Out of town at the moment, but I believe it's in the neighborhood of 110 proof.

The Four Roses 2012 Single Barrel Limited Edition (or FR 2012 1B LE!) was indeed OESK. The 12 year-old Bourbon was reportedly bottled at cask strength between 100.6 and 114.4 proof, or 50.3-57.2% ABV, depending on which barrel it came from.

OESK is used with some regularity in the limited edition small batch bottlings (it has been used in the last four for example as well as the regular small batch bottle) but is fairly uncommon by itself which made this one somewhat unusual. Not to mention tasty!

[Vieux Carré]

Typically I buy a bottle of sherry once-a-year around this time of the year (but usually only one a year). What do people recommend as a good sherry that is both nice straight and excellent in cocktails?

That's a tough one. PX is fantastic stuff with Christmas pud or blue cheese, and in a Rapscallion (et al). Fino or manzanilla are brilliant in summer, both alone or in things, but you may by climatically disadvantaged this time of year. I haven't tried cream sherry in a cocktail, but it's a delight with a bit of ice and orange zest - again, better in warmer weather.

On balance I might go for PX, but this may just reflect my love affair with the stuff.

After some more time with it, I think the PX is dynamite-- portier than port, with some very distinctive notes. It definitely lends itself well to the cold weather, as both a digestif sipper and because it works nicely in brown boozy drinks. It's potent as hell and can run roughshod over a drink if you aren't careful with the balance, though.

My fino/manzanilla experience is limited to the fine drinks (many) other people have made with them.

I don't think you can really lose either way.

Thanks for the suggestion of PX. I have very little experience with sweet sherry, but thinking about it, it makes perfect sense for cocktails. I'll give it a go and see how it works.

[Plantes Vertes]

In continuation of my Red Period: an Affinity from the Savoy book.

1oz Scotch

1oz sweet vermouth

1oz dry vermouth

2 dashes Angostura bitters

Stir, strain, lemon peel twist

So good. It has such a silky texture and a beautiful buttery, honeyed almost rum-like flavour. I felt dubious about the high proportion of vermouth but what do I know? It's great.

Edited December 10, 2013 by Plantes Vertes (log)

[FrogPrincesse]

The Affinity Cocktail looks very nice, Plantes Vertes. It looks like it's a favorite of Erik too. What type of scotch did you use?

A couple of classics from this weekend.

A mini Old Fashioned with Elijah Craig bourbon, simple syrup, and Angostura bitters.

OK - I drank part of it and then remembered to take a photo.

This was very good with a quick weekend lunch.

A White Negroni with Sipmith London dry gin. I prefer mine with 1.5 oz gin, 1 oz Lillet, 0.75 oz Suze, on the rocks, with a lemon twist. With this gin the cocktail reaches perfection level. So much flavor.

[Plantes Vertes]

The Affinity Cocktail looks very nice, Plantes Vertes. It looks like it's a favorite of Erik too. What type of scotch did you use?

A couple of classics from this weekend.

A mini Old Fashioned with Elijah Craig bourbon, simple syrup, and Angostura bitters.

OK - I drank part of it and then remembered to take a photo.

This was very good with a quick weekend lunch.

A White Negroni with Sipmith London dry gin. I prefer mine with 1.5 oz gin, 1 oz Lillet, 0.75 oz Suze, on the rocks, with a lemon twist. With this gin the cocktail reaches perfection level. So much flavor.

Well I won't sniff at any sort of taste validation, but we should remember that he was working alphabetically and only up to A-F at that point...

I used Macallan10yo again. It has a sort of nut-sugar-caramel flavour that worked really well in this drink.

Edited December 11, 2013 by Plantes Vertes (log)

[Hassouni]

I think I need to get on this white negroni thing everyone keeps talking about...

[FrogPrincesse]

I think I need to get on this white negroni thing everyone keeps talking about...

If you like Negronis (I believe that you do), you owe it to yourself to try a White Negroni. Still plenty bitter, while being lighter in feel. Not a replacement for the "real thing" by any means, but a really great variation nonetheless.

In the PDT Cocktail Book which has Wayne Collins' original recipe, they use 2 oz Plymouth gin so it's a bit less intense, which some people may prefer, and they serve it up.

[EvergreenDan]

Thanks, PV; I was wondering what Scotch you used. I'm not sure I can get this one over on my wife. She did however like Maks's Red Hook Burning, which surprised me a bit.

I'm thinking that something like Auchentoshan Three Wood and Punt e Mes would make a pretty wonderful Affinity (which is really an equal-parts perfect Rob Roy, right?).

[Hassouni]

I think I need to get on this white negroni thing everyone keeps talking about...

If you like Negronis (I believe that you do), you owe it to yourself to try a White Negroni. Still plenty bitter, while being lighter in feel. Not a replacement for the "real thing" by any means, but a really great variation nonetheless.

In the PDT Cocktail Book which has Wayne Collins' original recipe, they use 2 oz Plymouth gin so it's a bit less intense, which some people may prefer, and they serve it up.

Yeah I just am in liquor thin-out mode after all my glut of rum and single malt purposes, I don't think I can justify getting something entirely new (Suze, in this case)

[lesliec]

Last night a preview of the second Hobbit movie was followed by a trip to the Hawthorn Lounge. Well, it's just around the corner.

"Do something Tolkieney," we said to Gian. So he did. And it was delicious, such that we ended up having three of them between the two of us.

JRR Tolkien. So Jamaican Rum (Smith & Cross), Ramazzotti and a Tangelo liqueur, with a dash of 'Elemakule Tiki bitters. Tangelo is a new ingredient for Kindred (sorry, Dan) and it occurred to me to wonder if the fruit was a local phenomenon, but Wiki says it was created in the US around 1911. The liqueur Gian used was Golden Bay, a local product I hadn't met before, but I'd think something like Curaçao would sub quite well (as long as you could forgive yourself for losing the T). Or make your own tangelo.

And a quick movie review would be "slow slow quick quick slow". There are some great action sequences, spectacular scenery and hilarious references to the LOTR movies, but it's an age before it really gets moving and the whole thing is just so long. Your mileage may vary, but we didn't see the full-on ride that seems to have left some reviewers breathless by the end.

Nice drink, though.

Apparently I can't spell Tolkien. Thanks, Matthew.

Edited December 11, 2013 by lesliec (log)

[mkayahara]

*cough* It's spelled "Tolkien", not "Tolkein." *cough*

[EvergreenDan]

"Hobbit forming". A new low. Congratulations!

Wait, it gets worse. The Tangelo liqueur is made by .... Schnapp Dragon Distillery.

Edited December 12, 2013 by EvergreenDan (log)

[ChrisTaylor]

A Ti Punch with Flor de Cana 4. Never had FdC. It's pretty ninja, altho' maybe I prefer Banks. Altho', hey, good luck getting Banks at the local bottleshop in Australia, brother. Still. After pulling a 13 hour day while rabid with disease and having to listen to Christmas carols, this is pretty fucking rad. Of course, Rafa's Skittles-infused turps would be pretty rad at this point too.

[stevem13]

This really looks good and tempting

A cocktail is born ...

Last night felt like a good night (there are no bad ones) to visit our favourite bar, the Hawthorn Lounge in downtown Welly. While getting ready to go out a name/concept for a cocktail popped into my head, so when we got there I asked Gian to help me create it. The idea was something smoky with a good bitter element. With a bit of thought and some ideas from both of us, we had this:

Toast2.jpg

The Nice Bitter Toast.

The smoky bit is Mezcal, the bitter is Cynar (because Gian knows I like it), helped out with tequila, lemon juice, carrot marmalade (because it was there, plus it adds to the toasty vibe), simple syrup and an egg white. It's probably a little heavy on the lemon to be in my personal Top 20, but I'm notoriously averse to sour so others may like it just as it is. If we'd had any to hand, I think a sprinkle of toast crumbs on top might have been a nice touch.

[Moderator note: This 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! (2013, part 1)]

[KD1191]

Tonight, it's a Creole Cocktail...perennial favorite around these parts (or any parts I inhabit for long), suddenly happening more often now that I know my stock of WT101 Rye doesn't have to survive me.

2 oz WT 101 Rye

1 oz Dolin Rouge

1/4 oz Amer Picon (late 70's vintage, natch)

1/4 oz Benedictine (early 80's vintage, just 'cause)

[ChrisTaylor]

A bar annachan introduced me to in Melbourne calls this drink their own. It seems to be a fairly common thing, though. And, too, the 'house made sarsaparilla' that this bar uses came in a bottle that looked suspiciously like Bundaberg. Anyway, whether they acquired the recipe on a Google trawl or stumbled across it through independent experimentation, it works. And that is, perhaps, enough. A pretty bartendress that nerds out talking about amari and whisky is just a bonus.

60mL Fernet Branca in a high ball glass topped up with decent sarsaparilla (Bundaberg does the trick, funnily enough).

Edited December 15, 2013 by ChrisTaylor (log)

[ChrisTaylor]

Burning through Karl Ove Knausgaard's My Struggle: A Man in Love while trying to find the perfect matched dram for this very personal, contemplative book. Dalwhinnie 15? Far too fruity. Too light. Too cheerful. Onto the Glenfarclas 15. Suspect I'd be better off with something assertive and a little dangerous and undeniably masculine like Talisker. Although I guess aquavit is probably more geographically appropriate.

Edited December 15, 2013 by ChrisTaylor (log)

[Czequershuus]

Had this drink and absolutely adored it last night:

Ash Trey Heart(Erik Ellestad, Beta Cocktail, but I found it quite a while ago in the internet, maybe at KC)

1 Oz Smith and Cross Jamaican Rum

1 Oz Punt e MesSweet Vermouth (Carpano Antica)

1 Oz Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)

1 rinse Mezcal(Vida)

Stir and strain into a Mezcal rinsed glass. Garnish with a grapefuit twist(I used a dash of grapefruit bitters)

I found this a truly remarkable cocktail. Extremely well balanced. I would love to try it with the original Punt e Mes, but this worked out super well.

[lesliec]

Had this drink and absolutely adored it last night:

Ash Trey Heart(Erik Ellestad, Beta Cocktail, but I found it quite a while ago in the internet, maybe at KC)

1 Oz Smith and Cross Jamaican Rum

1 Oz Punt e MesSweet Vermouth (Carpano Antica)

1 Oz Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)

1 rinse Mezcal(Vida)

Stir and strain into a Mezcal rinsed glass. Garnish with a grapefuit twist(I used a dash of grapefruit bitters)

I found this a truly remarkable cocktail. Extremely well balanced. I would love to try it with the original Punt e Mes, but this worked out super well.

Yes, it's on Kindred: http://www.kindredcocktails.com/cocktail/ash-tray-heart?f=1

[tanstaafl2]

Brought cocktail fixin's to a holiday party this weekend and the hit of the party seemed to be the "In Bloom" from Paul Calvert. If I remember correctly it includes:

1.5 Vida Mezcal

3/4 Carpano Antica

1/2 St. Germain

1/2 Compari

Rosewater rinse

Flamed orange peel

Stir first four with ice and strain into rosewater rinsed coupe. Flame orange peel over drink and discard.

Smoke, bitter, sweet and floral. Had a little bit of everything!

Edited December 16, 2013 by tanstaafl2 (log)