Post Your New Cocktail Creations Here

[bostonapothecary]

"yanquee"

2 oz. st. james rhum agricole...

1 oz. raspberry shrub*

2 dashes of reagan's or peychauds

*the shrub is made from organic raspberries, sugared to 25 brix just like many sweet vermouths, and the fortifying spirits are infused with black tea cultivated by sherpas in nepal... (same recipe as my blackberry shrub but different fruit)

the rum on its own is highly intimidating, flabby, nothing but dirt and earth, and probably doesn't have many fans... therefore its perfect for the drink... the fruit from the shrub breaths serious life back into the rum and makes it highly enjoyable... the measurements and sugar contents make it the same as any manhattan out there and therefore very familiar...

this turned out to be quite the crowd pleaser. people that would ordinarily not be able to handle the rum went for seconds... it probably needs a name more french less spanish... (i didn't name it)

[eje]

Damn that sounds good. Yeah, the St. James Ambre (if that's what yer using) ain't much of a sipper. Definitely requires special care to take advantage of its qualities. The first time I tried it, it completely took me back to being in Hawaii when I was in 2nd grade. Somehow the smell of burning sugar cane in Hawaii seemed completely expressed in the spirit. Brave of you to use it as the sole spirit in a drink. I almost always cut it with some other light rum or spirit.

[avant-garde]

Over Thanksgiving break I was digging through one of my Difford's Guide magazines (#5.4) and noticed a recipe on page 250 from Tony Conigliaro that contains ingredients I actually have in-home. If you saw his feature in issue #5.1 you already know he typically uses very rare ingredients that most of us don't have or can't get.

The drink is simply called Wink. It's made very similarly to the Sazerac but with Gin as the primary ingredient and contains a small amount of Cointreau. Apparently the only garnish required is to "wink" at the customer as you pass it to him or her. Anyway, it's truly a breathtaking cocktail and wanted to share it; even though it is not my creation.

Ingredients:

1/2 oz. Absinthe

Filtered Water

2 oz. Gin

1/2 oz. Simply Syrup (50:50)

1/4 oz. Cointreau

1/2 oz. Filtered Water

8 drops Peychaud's Bitters (or two dashes)

Method:

1. Fill rocks glass with ice.

2. Add Absinthe and top off with water. Set aside to chill.

3. Add remaining ingredients to cocktail shaker.

4. Add ice and shake vigorously for at least 20 seconds.

5. Empty Absinthe and ice water from rocks glass.

6. Strain shaker ingredients into rocks glass and serve without ice.

Give yourself or a friend a good wink and enjoy.

[lostmyshape]

just bought a bottle of Amaro Ramazotti on a whim and i've been trying to figure out what to do with it. tasted a cocktail at the flatiron lounge (La Rosa, i think) that paired it with tequila. the black pepper spice worked really well with the amaro. also, Ramazotti reminds me of a sweeter, more intense sweet vermouth, so i messed around with a variation of a manhatten (maybe my favorite cocktail... and kinda a no-brainer here).

i'm calling it the Midtown, and this is the variation i think worked best:

1 oz Bourbon

1 oz tequila reposado (i imagine any peppery tequila would work)

1/2 oz Amaro Ramazotti

1/2 oz sweet vermouth

1 dash Regan's orange bitters

1 dash Angostura bitters

stir, garnish

[plattetude]

Something I'll call "Fruits of Eden":

2 oz applejack (Laird's bonded)

1 oz apricot liqueur (Rothmann & Winter)

.25 oz Benedictine

Combine applejack and apricot liqueur in mixing glass with ice.

Stir thoroughly.

Swirl Benedictine in chilled cocktail glass to coat.

Pour applejack/apricot into glass.

Enjoy.

Christopher

[avant-garde]

1 oz apricot liqueur (Rothmann & Winter)

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I have Rothmann & Winter's Creme de Violette coming today or tomorrow. Can't wait. Bet their products are good. How's the Apricot Liqueur?

[notahumanissue]

1 oz apricot liqueur (Rothmann & Winter)

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I have Rothmann & Winter's Creme de Violette coming today or tomorrow. Can't wait. Bet their products are good. How's the Apricot Liqueur?

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Good. Personally, I like it better than Apry.

[plattetude]

I do like the R&W Orchard Apricot very much, though I don't actually have any others to compare to (as in, say, the Brizard Apry). It's certainly not cloying, and mixes very well.

Here's a big ol' thread discussing Apry and, on the last page or so, R&W.

Christopher

[avant-garde]

Also posted this here.

I have to geek out for a minute and admit that ever since I heard Toby had a drink on The Violet Hour's menu called the Blue Ridge Manhattan I've been scratching my head at how I could make this drink in my own home (miles away). Or at least how I would envision it to be in my head. If there are two things I really love, it’s Islay Scotch and Rye Whiskey.

I tried making a version of the Blue Ridge Manhattan numerous times before, but ultimately decided that I just really didn’t like the Fee Brothers Peach Bitters I was adding. However, tonight I decided to say screw it and take a completely new approach. Rather than using Laphroaig, I hit my newly opened bottle of Lagavulin 16 and matched it with two of my favorite other ingredients: Carpano Antica and Peychaud’s bitters. To make a long story short, I am very happy that I took this route and ended up with what I can only call the…

Islay Manhattan

Ingredients:

2 oz. Wild Turkey Rye

1 oz. Carpano Antica

1/2 oz. Lagavulin 16

8 drops Peychaud’s Bitters

Method:

1. Add all ingredients to Boston glass.

2. Add ice and stir for 30 seconds.

3. Allow to sit 15 seconds (to dilute).

4. Stir another 30 seconds.

5. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Amazing how the empty glass afterwards almost smells like a rack of freshly smoked ribs.

Thank you for the inspiration on this one Toby…

[Nathan]

yup...I've been playing with variations on this at home for a while. both with Peat Monster and Lagavulin 16...I've actually come to think that orange bitters work best...

[bostonapothecary]

so i'm trying to create a cocktail to showcase dessert wine...

i did a sauterne flip style drink a while ago with the addition of benedictine... (to approximate pairing dessert wine with a cigar) the dessert wine i used was apiane moscato reale. two oz. of dessert wine to a 3/4 oz. of benedictine with a whole egg... the results with the particular wine were stunning... results with other dessert wines didn't sync up so well... i can't get the particular wine anymore so i'm looking for more potential ideas to go with the wines i have... moscato d'asti, california noble rots... ice wine... budget sauternes... chateau y'quem... (dreaming)

well it seems like trial and error to make a beautiful flip with serious longevity on the palate but i thought besides benedictine, luxardo's amaro abano might be beautiful... i tried it last night with equal parts sauternes, cachaca, and amaro abano and an egg... it tasted like some sort of dough... interesting but not divine. the cachaca was taking up space... i need 2oz. of dessert wine to 1/2 to 1 oz. of something else to get a beautiful pairing... an over the top single malt maybe? pimento dram anyone?

anyone have any ideas or experience?

need to reachieve the success of apiane / benedictine flip...

[KatieLoeb]

This literally came to me in a dream last night. It's frightening to think that my mind is hard wired this way, but I suppose that chefs dream about food, so my subconscious is no stranger than theirs. Right?

I wanted to create a cocktail that tasted like a Mexican mole sauce - spicy, chocolatey, nutty, etc. What I came up with, using what I had on hand at work was the following:

"Hot" Chocolate

2 oz. Absolut Peppar vodka

.75 oz. Godiva Dark liqueur

.25 oz. Godiva White liqueur

.5 oz. Frangelico

.25 oz. Spiced simple syrup

2 dashes Peychaud bitters

1 dash Fee Brothers Whiskey Barrel Aged bitters

In the end, a spicy and savory cocktail that was reasonably well balanced, if not perfect on the first try. I think a spiced darker (Demerara) simple syrup a little heavier on cinnamon and a house infused hot pepper (Habanero, maybe?) vodka will only improve this drink tremendously. It wasn't quite as spicy heat wise or savory wise as I might have liked, but the blueprint is definitely down. I think I'll try rimming the glass with some Demerara sugar, cinnamon and chile powder that's been buzzed through the coffee grinder to powder it. That might kick it up the notch I'm seeking.

[TMFIII]

Woo-Hoo first post!

Here is my first cocktail creation.

Virginia Autumn

1.5 oz Laird's Applejack

1 oz Apple cider* (use the unfiltered, pressed apple juice, not the hard stuff)

.5 oz St. Germain

.75 tsp Rich Simple Syrup

1 dash orange bitters

3-4 dashes Fee's Whiskey Barrell Aged Bitters

*Depending on the drinker, I may add an extra half ounce of apple cider.

Shake all over cracked ice, strain into chilled old-fashioned glass and garnish with an apple wedge (rubbed with citrus juice so it doesn't oxidize.) Enjoy.

Cheers,

Marshall

[thirtyoneknots]

This literally came to me in a dream last night.  It's frightening to think that my mind is hard wired this way, but I suppose that chefs dream about food, so my subconscious is no stranger than theirs.  Right? 

I wanted to create a cocktail that tasted like a Mexican mole sauce - spicy, chocolatey, nutty, etc.  What I came up with, using what I had on hand at work was the following:

"Hot" Chocolate

2 oz. Absolut Peppar vodka

.75 oz. Godiva Dark liqueur

.25 oz. Godiva White liqueur

.5 oz. Frangelico

.25 oz. Spiced simple syrup

2 dashes Peychaud bitters

1 dash Fee Brothers Whiskey Barrel Aged bitters

In the end, a spicy and savory cocktail that was reasonably well balanced, if not perfect on the first try.  I think a spiced darker (Demerara) simple syrup a little heavier on cinnamon and a house infused hot pepper (Habanero, maybe?) vodka will only improve this drink tremendously.  It wasn't quite as spicy heat wise or savory wise as I might have liked, but the blueprint is definitely down.  I think I'll try rimming the glass with some Demerara sugar, cinnamon and chile powder that's been buzzed through the coffee grinder to powder it.  That might kick it up the notch I'm seeking.

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Maybe try infusing with a smoked, roasted, and/or dried pepper for a little more depth of flavor. And perhaps on a (slightly) aged rum base instead of vodka; I like the Flor de Cana 4 year gold. Rum and chocolate is an underappreciated flavor combination, even without the chiles.

[KatieLoeb]

Andy:

Thanks for your thoughts. I ran a beta sample of the drink in its present form past a fellow cocktalian friend and his thoughts were similar - use a dried chile that's smoky (I'm thinking a dried ancho at this point) and perhaps go with a different spirit than vodka. He suggested a reposado tequila, in fact. I'm also considering using a white creme de cacao rather than the Godiva so I can retain a relatively clear drink in the end, although I do like the texture and mouthfeel from using the more viscous cordials. Perhaps an egg white for mouthfeel and a less sticky sweet chocolate element will be the end result. I have to continue to experiment.

[JAZ]

Katie, a couple of years ago, cocktailgeek made a tequila and hot chocolate drink that he let me preview (not sure if it ever made it on to the menu -- we tasted a test version) that was fabulous. I'd definitely go with tequila.

[thirtyoneknots]

I'm not big on tequila so my mind always goes first to rum, but if pressed I'll drink Corralejo Reposado. It's pretty mellow but already has the nice peppery notes so it might be a good choice. Unfortunately though it's relatively expensive. As for the Cacao + eggwhite, I think that might be a good way to go, or perhaps if you had some other emulsifier in your spiced syrup to help with the mouthfeel. Godiva is popular where I work but doesn't do much for me personally.

I wonder what a dash (or two) of Kahlua would do in this combo, maybe as a variation subbing for the frangelico. I think with aged tequila and smoked chiles in this you're going to want to be careful about putting too many different flavors in there. I find it easy to get carried away when I get excited about a new drink idea

-Andy

[KatieLoeb]

It's all good input. I think I want to stick with the basic Chile+Chocolate+Nut flavor profile for now. If I get that right I can tweak it from there. I think more than three basic flavor elements tend to get muddled, in my experience. I'd love to be able to recreate the pipian or pumpkin seed nutty element more authentically, but I think substituting another nutty and readily available flavor element like hazelnut or almond might be the compromise.

[judiu]

It's all good input.  I think I want to stick with the basic Chile+Chocolate+Nut flavor profile for now.  If I get that right I can tweak it from there.  I think more than three basic flavor elements tend to get muddled, in my experience.  I'd love to be able to recreate the pipian or pumpkin seed nutty element more authentically, but I think substituting another nutty and readily available flavor element like hazelnut or almond might be the compromise.

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Katie, have you thought about getting the roasted pumpkin seeds they sell for snacks at the grocery store and rinsing the salt off (or even a brief blanching), crush lightly and use to infuse your vodka? Might work... HTH!

[bostonapothecary]

It's all good input.  I think I want to stick with the basic Chile+Chocolate+Nut flavor profile for now.  If I get that right I can tweak it from there.  I think more than three basic flavor elements tend to get muddled, in my experience.  I'd love to be able to recreate the pipian or pumpkin seed nutty element more authentically, but I think substituting another nutty and readily available flavor element like hazelnut or almond might be the compromise.

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Katie, have you thought about getting the roasted pumpkin seeds they sell for snacks at the grocery store and rinsing the salt off (or even a brief blanching), crush lightly and use to infuse your vodka? Might work... HTH!

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i like the particular nuttiness of luxardo's abano amaro... if you have any around it might be worth trying... it goes really well with chocolate.

[eje]

I was paging through the new Gourmet magazine and happened to notice a salad that involved Clementines in a spiced syrup.

Sliced Clementines in Ginger Spice (star anise/cardamom) syrup garnished with pomegranate seeds.

I thought, hey, if that's not a drink, I don't know what is.

But, how to parse it out, and translate it into drink-i-ness.

First try:

4 Cardamom Pods

2 oz Pisco Alto del Carmen

Grenadine, hopefully homemade

1 oz Tangerine (Satsuma Mandarin) Juice

1/8 oz Clandestine La Bleu Absinthe (I was going to use Lebanese Arak, but couldn't find the bottle.)

Bundaberg Ginger Beer

Cardamom Leaf (Yeah, I know. I'm probably one of three people in North America with a Cardamom plant. You can order one of your own from: Mountain Valley Growers. Failing Cardamom, use Thai Basil. Failing Thai Basil, Mint.)

Crush 4 cardamom pods and combine with 2 oz Pisco in a mixing glass. After at least an half an hour, or whenever you finish making dinner, cover the bottom of a collins glass with grenadine. To the Pisco, add 1 oz Tangerine Juice and a dash of Lebanese Arak (or Blanche Absinthe). Ice and shake the drink. Add ice cubes to the highball glass and strain the Pisco mixture in. Top up the glass with ginger ale. Spank a cardamom leaf and add it to the glass. Serve with a straw or swizzle.

I think it was pretty true to the salad, but could use a little more tart to be a proper cocktail. Maybe a little lemon or lime?

edit - Sloppy post drink technique writing. I was mentioning to Mrs. eje that I thought the drink a bit too sweet and she said she quite liked it as it was. Maybe with the spice of the cardamom and ginger it doesn't need more tart. It does already have plenty of ingredients and flavors.

Edited January 31, 2008 by eje (log)

[KatieLoeb]

Tonight's effort - spurred on by my freshly made batch of ginger beer and a recent visit to a local Indian BYO that serves lovely pitchers of mixers in which to add your own vodka or rum. I tried a pomegranate-ginger mix that was so refreshing I couldn't wait to try and recreate it.

Mumbai Mule

1.5 oz. Pearl Pomegranate Vodka

1 oz. pomegranate juice

1 oz. homemade ginger beer

.5 oz fresh lime juice

.75 oz. spiced simple syrup

Shake over ice and drop into a Collins glass. Add a splash each of soda and ginger ale. Stir and garnish with a lime wedge.

This is going onto the cocktail menu at work this coming weekend. Everyone that tasted this loved it!

[hathor]

Katie, that sounds wonderful! Pomegranate, ginger and lime....a match made in heaven.

I wasn't sure where to post this, but we had a great time at Chick's last week, and it was fun to visit with you! I've even been able to duplicate that marvelous Avatrix that you made for me. I tracked down some St. Germain and now I'm afraid that we need to track down some more!

I've been thinking about your chile/chocolate experiments and I'm going to try an infusion of simple syrup and adobe chile and see what happens. You're a dangerous inspiration!

[thirtyoneknots]

Tonight's effort - spurred on by my freshly made batch of ginger beer and a recent visit to a local Indian BYO that serves lovely pitchers of mixers in which to add your own vodka or rum.  I tried a pomegranate-ginger mix that was so refreshing I couldn't wait to try and recreate it.

Mumbai Mule

1.5 oz. Pearl Pomegranate Vodka

1 oz. pomegranate juice

1 oz. homemade ginger beer

.5 oz fresh lime juice

.75 oz. spiced simple syrup

Shake over ice and drop into a Collins glass.  Add a splash each of soda and ginger ale.  Stir and garnish with a lime wedge.

This is going onto the cocktail menu at work this coming weekend.  Everyone that tasted this loved it! 

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Hangar1 Kaffir Lime vodka might be interesting there, too. I've always found that stuff challenging to mix with.

[KatieLoeb]

Katie, that sounds wonderful! Pomegranate, ginger and lime....a match made in heaven.

I wasn't sure where to post this, but we had a great time at Chick's last week, and it was fun to visit with you! I've even been able to duplicate that marvelous Avatrix that you made for me. I tracked down some St. Germain and now I'm afraid that we need to track down some more! 

I've been thinking about your chile/chocolate experiments and I'm going to try an infusion of simple syrup and adobe chile and see what happens.  You're a dangerous inspiration! 

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Jude:

A delightful surprise to see you and your charming hubby! My friend Tom had a blast chatting with you too. I've been called worse than a dangerous inspiration, so I'll take that as a compliment!

I wish I'd had the Mumbai Mule perfected when you visited, but the ginger beer and the visit to the Indian restaurant didn't take place funtil a few days later. Sometimes inspiration comes inconveniently timed. Please let me know if your experiments work out better than mine thusfar. Your deft hand in the kitchen could definitely have better success...