Drinks! (2011–2012)

[tanstaafl2]

Once more into the breach, dear Canton...

Continuing the exploration of recipes on the Canton website. A few more left that sound interesting. Tonight something a little simpler that will also help use up the open ginger beer from the other night.

Dark & Stormier

1 Part Domaine de Canton

1 Part Dark Aged Rum (Cruzan Blackstrap, not particularly aged but wanted to try it)

Splash of Fresh Lime Juice

Fill a collins or high-ball glass with ice. Fill 1/2 of the glass with ginger beer, and then add Domaine de Canton, dark aged rum, and fresh lime juice. Garnish with a lime.

Found it to be quite nice. Between the Fever Tree ginger beer and the Canton it was quite spicy at the back end but tasty and smooth at the start to provide a nice contrast.

Still a couple more recipes on the Canton website that I want to try before I move on to less gingery pastures.

[EvergreenDan]

I agree with tanstaafl2 about measurements. I hate "top" and "splash". I realize these may be fine within a specific bar with given glassware, but I don't think it is a good way to communicate quantities to others. A French 75 is a different drink with 1 or 3 oz of sparkling wine.

Did it take a 1/2oz squirt of soda to fill the glass, or 2 oz?

[Tri2Cook]

I agree with tanstaafl2 about measurements. I hate "top" and "splash". I realize these may be fine within a specific bar with given glassware, but I don't think it is a good way to communicate quantities to others. A French 75 is a different drink with 1 or 3 oz of sparkling wine.

Did it take a 1/2oz squirt of soda to fill the glass, or 2 oz?

And you can multiply that frustration by a pretty good margin for those of us who are much less cocktail-experienced. At least those more in-the-know can probably make a reasonable guess based on the rest of the recipe... I'm not sure I can. Not with any degree of confidence anyway.

[Yajna Patni]

I had something called a Paris Manhattan that I found online. I was not a fan. It was 2oz of rye, and I used Rittenhouse, and 1oz of st Germaine, and half of white vermouth. It was far too sweet. It tasted like a drink at the kind of club where the girls have orange fake tans and short dresses with sequins. I think the rye did go kind of well with teh st Germaine, but I prefer a regular manhattan by about a million times.

[brinza]

Friday evening, desiring something as an aperitif, other than a Mahanttan but still whiskey based (and not wanting to leaf through a cocktail book), I assembled the following:

1.5 oz rye (Bulleit Rye)

0.5 oz Luxardo Amaro Abano (this is a dry, very peppery amaro)

1 tsp Punt e Mes

1 tsp Gilka Kummel

4 or 5 drops TBT aromatic bitters

I have to say this worked very well and was quite satisfying. The flavor was dry and pleasantly bitter with a pepperiness from the Abano and hints of spice from the Punt e Mes, Kummel, and bitters. Next time I might increase the Kummel to see how it interacts with the rye.

[EvergreenDan]

Yajna - Dry vermouth is not acidic enough to balance twice its volume of a sweet liqueur like St Germain, particularly one without any bitterness. If you find the flavors appealing, you might try inverting the ratio and maybe using an assertive bone dry vermouth like Sutton Cellars Brown Label or maybe Vya (which I haven't tasted in a while). In my mind, some nutty flavors would go well, too, so a bit of Fino sherry might work, no? I think there's a good idea here somewhere....

[Sunny&Rummy]

The rye and the St. Germain combo certainly works in something like a Ninth Ward (properly mede with Bulleit which is very rye heavy), so I think tweaking ratios and possibly subbing a drier dry vermouth like Dan suggested will give you a winner.

[tanstaafl2]

I agree with tanstaafl2 about measurements. I hate "top" and "splash". I realize these may be fine within a specific bar with given glassware, but I don't think it is a good way to communicate quantities to others. A French 75 is a different drink with 1 or 3 oz of sparkling wine.

Did it take a 1/2oz squirt of soda to fill the glass, or 2 oz?

Not sure if this was addressed to me in regards to the "Dark and Stormier" or was just a general comment on the frustration with vague measurement instructions!

I went with 1.5 oz of rum and Canton so I decided to use 3 oz of ginger beer according to my notes. My "squirt" of lime juice was a healthy 0.5 oz. Seemed to work well to me but haven't had a chance experiment with other quantities.

Last night was my last Canton based drink for the moment.

Jarnac

¾ Part Domaine de Canton

1 ½ Parts Partida Anejo (I used Dulce Vida Anejo which is 100 proof. That might have been a tad strong...)

½ Part Punt y Mes (The ever ready Carpano Antica filled in again)

1 Bar Spoon Fernet Branca

1 Dash Orange Bitters (Regan's)

Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.

An Original Recipe by Kevin Diedrich - Kevin Diedrich it appears is (or was) a San Francisco area bartender/bar manager. One article suggested he is opening or has opened his own bar now.

This seemed more a flavorful shot of tequila than a cocktail to me. And the Dulce Vida packed a punch! An ice cube and tincture of time helped it mellow a bit and made it much more enjoyable particularly if you are a fan of tequila as I am.

But not one I would plan to break out at my next party as an opening cocktail!

[Sunny&Rummy]

Lion's Tail. Tasty, but the St. Elisabeth Pimento Dram overpowered the Buffalo Trace I used just a bit. Any suggestions on a good, sturdy bourbon up to the task of balancing out the allspice on this one? Bulleit is my first inclination, or opting for rye over bourbon altogether.

[KatieLoeb]

Just finished a batch of pink grapefruit-lemongrass cordial. Like Rose's Lime but better and prettier! There's a wee bit of rose flower water in there for aromatics so it seemed a no-brainer to make myself a Ruby Gimlet with some Hendricks. I could get used to these...

[EvergreenDan]

Lion's Tail. Tasty, but the St. Elisabeth Pimento Dram overpowered the Buffalo Trace I used just a bit. Any suggestions on a good, sturdy bourbon up to the task of balancing out the allspice on this one? Bulleit is my first inclination, or opting for rye over bourbon altogether.

The same question came up on KC. The suggestion was a high-proof bourbon like Booker's, Rowan's Creek, or Bakers. Personally, I sub'd Nux Alpina Nocino for the Alspice Dram and liked it. 3/4 oz of St Elizabeth Allspice Dram is a helluva lot.

Lion's Tail

by L. A. Clarke

2 oz Bourbon

3/4 oz Allspice Dram (or less)

1/2 oz Lime juice

1 t Simple syrup (or less)

2 ds Angostura bitters

Shake, strain, straight up, cocktail glass

My notes: Subbed Nux Alpina Nocino. Good, well-balanced. Nice citrus / spice notes.

[EvergreenDan]

Brinza's Amaro Abano recipe got me thinking, so I tried equal parts

high-rye bourbon (Finger Lakes Distilling)

Cherry liqueur (Finger Lakes Distilling, but Heering would be fine)

Amaro Abano

Campari

Lemon juice

The Abano is very strong tasting. I tried it without the Campari, but it was too peppery, not bitter enough, and not enough body. With the Campari I thought it was quite good. Wife loved it.

I want to try Brinza's recipe, but lacking Kummel, I guess I'll have to sub Aquavit.

[mkayahara]

Lion's Tail. Tasty, but the St. Elisabeth Pimento Dram overpowered the Buffalo Trace I used just a bit. Any suggestions on a good, sturdy bourbon up to the task of balancing out the allspice on this one? Bulleit is my first inclination, or opting for rye over bourbon altogether.

The same question came up on KC. The suggestion was a high-proof bourbon like Booker's, Rowan's Creek, or Bakers. Personally, I sub'd Nux Alpina Nocino for the Alspice Dram and liked it. 3/4 oz of St Elizabeth Allspice Dram is a helluva lot.

This is one of my partner's favourite cocktails, and when I mix them for him (or, occasionally, for myself), I always cut the pimento dram back to 1/4 oz, and up the simple to balance the lime juice. On the other hand, I also have some homemade pimento dram that's rather weak in flavour compared to the St. Elizabeth (don't know what went wrong there), and it makes a lovely Lion's Tail at the full 3/4 oz.

[Sunny&Rummy]

I think scaling back the dram to 1/4 oz is my plan of attack the next time around as well. The St. Elizabeth is lovely stuff, but a dab will do you for sure.

[mkayahara]

I think scaling back the dram to 1/4 oz is my plan of attack the next time around as well. The St. Elizabeth is lovely stuff, but a dab will do you for sure.

It also helps me stretch out my supply, since I have to travel to another country to buy it.

Edited to add quote for clarity.

Edited September 27, 2011 by mkayahara (log)

[brinza]

Brinza's Amaro Abano recipe got me thinking, so I tried equal parts

high-rye bourbon (Finger Lakes Distilling)

Cherry liqueur (Finger Lakes Distilling, but Heering would be fine)

Amaro Abano

Campari

Lemon juice

The Abano is very strong tasting. I tried it without the Campari, but it was too peppery, not bitter enough, and not enough body. With the Campari I thought it was quite good. Wife loved it.

I want to try Brinza's recipe, but lacking Kummel, I guess I'll have to sub Aquavit.

I see no reason Aquavit wouldn't work--in fact that would allow you to play with the ratio without adding sweetness. I only added the Kummel to put another spice into the mix. In fact, afterward, I got to thinking maybe instead of the Punt e Mes, Bonal would have been even better in that position. I might try that out. As for the Abano, I don't use it very often, but at the same time I'm always intrigued by it. I really should experiment with it more. I've yet to encounter a recipe that calls for it specifically.

I like the looks of the recipe you've got here. I have Heering, and while I don't have any high-rye bourbon at the moment (strangely enough), I do have high-rye rye! (Bulleit 95)

[EvergreenDan]

Here are 3 Luxardo Abano recipes.

This caraway / black pepper thing seemed familiar. Amusingly, I guess I've already been there:

Bad Seed

by Dan Chadwick

3/4 oz Aquavit, Linie

3/4 oz Amaro, Luxardo Abano

3/4 oz Cynar

3/4 oz Lemon juice

Shake (ok, stir if you want), strain, rocks

[EvergreenDan]

Cocchi Vermouth di Torino and lemon. Damn that's good.

Edited September 28, 2011 by EvergreenDan (log)

[Sohoskiracer]

Not very interesting drinks as im new to craft cocktails, but today was Satan's Whisker's (straight), Ward Eight and a Whisky sour

Satan's Whiskers from Dale DeGroffs The Essential Cocktail

1 oz Tanqueray

1/2 oz Noilly Prat

1/2 oz Martini Sweet Vermouth

1 oz Fresh squeezed OJ

1/2 oz Grand Marnier

Several dashes orange bitters

Wish i had different orange bitters tahn Fee Bros, think they would elevate the drink, vermouth got a little lost, wish i had tangier oranges

Whisky sour was 1.5:1:1, my usual ratio if not 2:1.25:1 (Strong Sweet Sour)

[Yajna Patni]

So most of my introducing myself to cocktails is me following recipies. Tonight i winged it, and was not disappointed with the result, although I would not call it terribly complex. But i wanted something fall like with what i had in the house, that included a bunch of ginger beer that i had left over from a party. So i made half Lairds applejack, half ginger beer, reeds Jamacain, about a a third of a lemon squeezed, then the shell thrown in as a garnish, a drop of stones green ginger, and a big splash of angostura. it was not bad!

[EvergreenDan]

Yajna - May I suggest that if you enjoy creating your own cocktail recipes, that you start measuring as you make it. That way you can take notes about what you might do next time and can improve it with time. If you use loose measurements (such as half a lemon, which can vary quite it a bit in size and juiciness), then it's tough to refine the recipe.

[Yajna Patni]

That is a very good idea. i need a book. I learned to cook mainly from Indian ladies who never follow a recipe, and there is so much i do not remember and cannot recreate.

[tanstaafl2]

So, with the Martinez popping up in the cocktail novice thread I decided to have one myself last night. Have always tended to go with the recipe I noted in the Martinez thread a while back that came from a local retaurant:

Although admittedly fairly new to the Martinez I have found my favorite so far to be the following based on a recipe from a local restaurant with a strong bar tradition.

2 oz Ransom Old Tom gin

1 oz Carpano Antica

1 tsp Luxardo marschino

1 dash Regan's Orange bitters

Not sure if that is the exact formula of the restaurant but it is where I have ended up and I like where I am at the moment!

But given the discussion on the origins of the Martinez and the original recipe being a bit more vermouth forward I decided to go 1:1 with Ransom and Carpano and used angostura bitters tonight.

1.5 oz Ransom Old Tom (45 ml)

1.5 oz Carpano Antica (45 ml)

1 tsp Luxardo Maraschino (5 ml)

1 "dash" Angostura bitters (my usual 0.7 ml as my dash measurement)

A luxardo cherry for a bit of color

I suppose I would have to try them side by side to be sure but I think I liked this better than the 2:1 ratio of gin to vermouth. Might also try the Fee Brothers barrel aged bitters next time.

[Yajna Patni]

I made a kind of ward 8, as suggested further back to see how i could make the rye and st Germaine work. I used the st Germaine instead of the grenadine in the recipe. So 1 1/2 oz of old overholt, 3/4 an ounce each of orange and lemon juice, and one tsp of grenadine. I subbed st germaine for the grenadine, but increased it to 1/4 ounce. I liked this a lot. I don't like grenadine, and the st Germaine did the sweetening, and added just a little bit. I might like it all more with 2 oz of the rye, but that might make it something 100% different. I thought this worked for rye and st Germaine.

[thirtyoneknots]

I suppose I would have to try them side by side to be sure but I think I liked this better than the 2:1 ratio of gin to vermouth. Might also try the Fee Brothers barrel aged bitters next time.

1:1 is the way to go for a Martinez, unless you want to get real kooky and go 2:1 vermouth heavy.

Spicy orange bitters like Regans or Angostura are a nice touch. Personally, as in basically all vermouth drinks, a lemon twist is essential.