Cocktail Chat | Recent Repeats

It’s been a crazed couple of weeks and the Dilettante has been a bit remiss about keeping up with the bevy of new bevs we’ve been trying.  But between work, The Partner’s birthday, and a holiday weekend, there’s been precious little time to write.  My goal is to get everything up to date this week.

In the meantime, I thought I’d share some recent repeats we’ve enjoyed on the social scene and on the roof now that the weather in the Old Northwest is finally looking less like the weather of the New Northwest.
I’m here to report that I’ve living the whole point of this project, not ordering my old Ketel and instead have settled into Manhattans when I go out.  It’s tasty and one any bartender can make.  Back in March, Betz commented on the Manhattan post that a bartender once recommended that she try a dash of Worcestershire in her Manhattan.  One Kiss Creations then tried it and liked it.  Intrigued, I gave it a shot.  It’s wonderful!  When just a dash is added, the sauce doesn’t give any discernable flavor, actually.  Instead it imparts a depth, some dimension.  The foodie in my wants to say it’s umami, the 5th taste the Japanese have identified as “savoriness”.  It’s an enjoyable counterpoint to the sweetness of the rye & vermouth.  So I highly recommend!  Thanks for the suggestion, Betz!

For the Chicagoan followers, head over to Sprout, Dale Levitsky’s place, of Top Chef fame.  He makes his own Worcestershire, crazy man that he is.  Not only are the Manhattans incredibly well made, but if you ask for the homemade stuff they’ll add it to your drink.  (Then be sure to order the Steak course on the tasting menu.  But be warned, it’ll be a tough transition back to Lea & Perrin’s.)

As the weather’s turned warmer here in Chicago, I’ve gone back to the “summer” tag.  Twice now I’ve made the Pegu at home.  I then ordered it out, again at Sprout.  Despite the fact that H & M say it’s making a resurgence, the server had no idea what it was and needed some coaching.  Taking the chance paid off handsomely.  He even asked if I had a preference of bitters.  He then wanted feedback to take back to the bartender.  Impressively, the first try was spot on – pale orange color, citrusy dryness, refreshingly cool.

The other cocktail we’ve had now more than once is the Cuba Libre, both at home and out.  This one too, needs a little coaching if ordered out.  Be on alert, though.  If you find a mixologist who has heard of a CL, be prepared to coach that this is not simply a rum & coke by a hoity toity name, or that’s what you’ll likely get.  I busted this one out for the season inaugural of our roof deck.  While The Partner sipped wine spritzers in the 90 degree sunshine, I went to CL route.  When our friends, C., N. and baby A. dropped in for a surprise visit, C. joined me.  “Wow,” he said, coming up from his first sip.  “This is nice…  I like it!  It’s very refreshing…  I could drink a lot of these, especially on a hot summer day.”  

Not only do I love validation, I also love not drinking alone! The great thing about the Cuba Libre too is that it’s a soothing hair of the dog after a night of over-indulgence.

What’s been very interesting as I venture out with new beverage requests is the responses of the servers and bartenders tasked with stretching filling my order.  They’re expanding their own repertoire and their responses have run the gamut.   Everything from the server at Sprout who wanted feedback for the mixologist and asked my bitters preference, to the bartender who sent out a bottle of Worcestershire sauce with my drink because he was too timid to add the unexpected accent to my drink.   Still another listened to my ingredients list and then consulted a recipe book he had stashed under the bar.  I love that one.  There’s no shame in not knowing if you know where to go to find the info you need. 
So far, taking the chance to ask for a new cocktail when going out and coach it along makes for some great conversation with new and interesting people.  Plus, it’s good to have the only unique cocktail at the table or along the bar.  After all, these are the things of which cocktailing’s all about.

Old Fashioned | 24 down 251 to go

In another nod to the ancestors and not wanting to work too hard for this evening’s cocktail, we went with the Old Fashioned.  This is another one I remember the adults drinking at parties when I was a kid.  The cherry and the orange in the glass always seemed so exotic to me.  And the rich smell of the bourbon mingling with the pipe smoke from my father and grandfather… heady stuff.

This is another super easy one that requires some muddling, which is always fun.  And can I say, wow, right to the brain!  Starting with a real kick, they get sweeter and easier as they goes down.  The combination of bitters and sugar adds that je ne sais quoi dimensionality as they balance and counter each other, just as they do in a Champagne Cocktail.

H&M dispute whether the OF may have been the first American cocktail.  Regardless, it’s indeed and oldie.  They offer two versions of the history of the OF and say they won’t take sides.  I on the other hand will.  My fave of the two is the far more interesting one that traces its origins back to the Whiskey Rebellion of the early 1790’s.  When the new Federal government levied its very first excise tax on whiskey to raise some money to pay down the national debt, folks on the frontier didn’t take it so well.  (Sin taxes?  Deficit spending?  Regionalism?  Tax rebellion?  What exactly has changed in 220 years?)  Westerners found it particularly onerous arguing it hit their pocketbooks harder than Easterners’ since farmers made whiskey from surplus grain left over from the harvest.  Whiskey also operated as an alternate currency since money on the frontier was often scarce.  Poor folks were sometimes paid in whiskey.  So for them it was also an income tax.  When tax officials tried to collect, in many instances the response turned violent.  This was particularly the case in the southwestern counties of Pennsylvania where the rebellion was centered.  In Kentucky, as it turns out, no one was trying to collect the tax.  So some farmers and tavern owners moved their whiskey operations there.  When they went, they took with them their recipe for the Old Fashioned.

As a result of this muddled history (yep, hadda do it!) there’s some disagreement about whether the bev was originally made with bourbon or rye.  Today however, use whichever is your fave and you’ll not only be correct, but you won’t be disappointed either.

Old Fashioned
2 oz. whiskey
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 t. sugar
Splash of seltzer

In a chilled Old Fashioned glass, muddle sugar, bitters, orange wheel, and a maraschino cherry until the sugar is dissolved.  Add whiskey and ice and seltzer.  Stir.  Optional: garnish with a lemon twist.

Maiden's Prayer or Between the Sheets | 23 down 252 to go

Maiden's Prayer with edible flower garnish

Pussyfoots, Cubanolas, and Bosom Caressers are just some of the cocktails that kept the Maiden’s Prayer & Between the Sheets company during Prohibition.  There’s a lot of interesting info H & M share about cocktails & culture during this era.  I started to include it in this post, but it was going too far afield.  Instead, it can be found at this Cocktail Chat entry instead.

This is a sort of twofer.  When made with gin, it’s the Maiden’s Prayer and an aperitif.  When brandy is the base, it’s a digestif and called Between the Sheets.

It pays to make this one as a true top shelfer.  I mixed Hendrick’s gin, Bacardi light rum, & Cointreau.  If you can find them, use sweeter Meyer lemons for the juice.  Your jaw will hit the floor when you get to the cashier, but for two rounds they’re worth it.  The MP is wonderfully citrusy, light, bright, with just a hint of tartness to give it some dimension.  And simpler it couldn’t be with equal parts of all ingredients.   After we finished the Meyer lemon juice our appetites were primed for dinner and off we went to one of our favorite bistros (the fact that the chef’s Dutch has nothing to do with the love affair, I’m sure :-)

After dinner we came home & decided to give the aperitif a try.  While we had to “settle” for regular lemon juice, we did use Courvoisier for the brandy.  The Between the Sheets had a distinctively different note, obviously, with the brandy.  It had a mellow sweetness, not cloying at all.  The lemon juice and Cointreau maintained the citrusy notes for balance.

“What’s this one called now?” asked The Partner upon draining his glass.
“Between the Sheets,” I replied.
With that devilish smirk of his and a come hither glint in his eye he set down his empty and headed for the boudoir….  

Between the Sheets with lemon twist garnish

Maiden's Prayer/Between the Sheets

Equal parts of each (3/4 oz.)

+gin (Maiden's Prayer)/brandy (Between the Sheets)

+light rum

+Cointreau

+lemon juice

Shake with crushed ice, strain & pour into chilled  goblet or cocktail glass.  Garnish with lemon twist or edible flower.

Combustible Edison | 22 down 253 to go

Here in the Windy City the high got all the way to 46 degrees today.  It’s been gray and rainy for the last 72 hours and the wind chill today feels like it’s 36 degrees out.  Really?  It’s May 15th! Friday the temp dropped 20 degrees in about 10 minutes and by Happy Hour,  I must admit, my choice of the daiquiri was an attempt to “springify” the weather a bit.  But today, I just couldn’t fight Ma Nature.  So I mixed a batch of Combustible Edisons to warm things up.  My first (literally anyway) flaming cocktail  :-P

If you have some friends over who appreciate good cocktails and you feel like being a showman, make this one.  Not much tops the drama of ignited brandy and that ethereal blue flame streaming into a cocktail glass.  Prep your friends, though, before the first sip.  Campari and lemon juice make for a bitter first couple sips.  Ditto for the warmth of the bev.  Being used to icy cocktails means this is not unlike an American getting his first beer in England.  But The Partner noted that he thought the warmth worked in the CE’s favor.  Cold with this level of bitterness might be even more challenging. 

As you sip the body and flavor change, becoming a bit syrupy in the mouth and less astringent.  By the bottom of the glass the lemon and brandy together are the predominant notes.

If you’re not feeling brave enough to light your cocktail on fire, shake the brandy along with the other ingredients and call it an Edisonian.  In the name of research, I tried it this way too.  Contrary to The Partner’s prediction, it was good cold as well, though notably different.  Thinner in the mouth, lighter and with bright citrus flavors it goes down a bit easier than the Combustible version.  It’s dryness lasts well past the last sip which leaves a rather pleasant memory as the evening progresses.

Combustible Edison/Edisonian
2 oz. brandy
1 oz. Campari
1 oz. lemon juice

Warm the brandy in a chafing dish.  Shake the Campari & lemon juice with cracked ice and pour into chilled cocktail glass.  Light the brandy and pour into the other ingredients in the cocktail glass.  Garnish with lemon twists.

Daiquiri | 21 down 254 to go

Drink the daiquiri cold, cold, cold!

One of my best and earliest memories of my DC college days was going off campus for the first time with friends.  We went to Georgetown, cruising M St. as most college students do.  It was at a cool little joint called The Daiquiri Factory in the back of Café Rondo that I had my introduction to what I thought was the daiquiri.  Turns out, they weren’t even close.  Up until now I thought they were big “spirituous Slurpees”, as H & M call them, and came in flavors like strawberry & banana & pineapple with some rum mixed in.  But I was 19 at the time.  I’m all growed up now.

H & M tell us that an American industrialist is credited with inventing the daiquiri while working in Cuba and naming it after a seaside town of the same name.  But odds are good that Cubans had been enjoying this mix long before some gringo capitalist gave it a name.  Apparently, the daiquiri was JFK’s fave, enjoying a couple before dinner.  That tidbit shot the cocktail into the stratosphere of popularity.  (Is anyone else appreciating the historical irony here?)

A true daiquiri, I should think, would be very popular these days with the current tastes for the tart & sour.  The first two sips are a little jarring.  But from the third on, this frosty imbibe is light and refreshing.  With all of 3 ingredients, it couldn’t be easier to mix.  Squeeze the limes fresh for the juice.  Adding a dash more simple syrup and rum makes it a bit less tart.  But use restraint if adding rum.  Too much and it’s just too sharp.  Also, the colder the better on this one, so shake it until the tin is so cold it frosts and your hand burns with cold.  Have a refreshing summer afternoon!

Daiquiri
1 1/2 oz. light rum
3/4 oz. lime juice
1/4 oz. simple syrup

Shake with cracked ice; strain into chilled cocktail glass and garnish with lime wheel.

Cocktail Chat | A belated Easter cocktail

Ok, this is way late, I know.  But it must be posted.  

Check out the Easter card my sis-in-law sent.  Thinking of the Dilettante even during the high holy days? Jesus at Cana would be so proud!

Cocktail Chat | An Original Cocktail for Mother's Day

This entry is a Cocktail Chat since it is not a drink out of Cocktail.  However, it is absolutely an inspiration that's resulted from this undertaking.

A couple hours ago, I thought it'd be fun to create a cocktail for Mother's Day.  Since I can't be with my mom today, I thought I'd design something she would enjoy.  So mom, if you're reading this, Happy Mother's Day.  This bev's for you!

Once the weather warms up, mom loves a good white wine spritzer.  So that's where this drink begins.  But since this is a special day and the tipple a part of the Dilettante project, it couldn't be just a spritzer.  The fact that mom isn't big on liquor, finding accents was a bit of a challenge until I thought about the aperitifs she enjoys.  So this will have a citrus note to it.  I'm sure I'll tweak the recipe over time, especially if I get some feedback and ideas from mom herself.  

But in the meantime, I offer the first draft of the Diane Spritzer!  May it refresh on a hot summer day!

The Diane Spritzer

4 1/2 oz. Sauvignon Blanc

2 oz. Cointreau or Grand Marnier

1 oz. gin

1 oz. lemon juice

4 dashes orange bitters

seltzer to taste

Stir with cracked ice; pour into a wine glass filled with ice; garnish with a lemon wheel.  For some added dimension, shake 3 dashes of Angostura bitters on a sugar cube and place in the bottom of the glass.

Blue Devil | 20 down 255 to go

What can we say about the Blue Devil besides "1 dash blue vegetable coloring" is less than a drop?  Not much else, I'm afraid.  There's not much that's memorable about this one, save the startling colors.  And that's not due to over-indulging.  One was enough on this one as well.  Honestly, I can't recall a single note, flavor or aroma that I could use to describe this.  Maybe because it's just so blue?

Although, I suppose peeing green the next morning isn't something one forgets in a hurry.





Blue Devil
2 oz. gin
1/2 oz. maraschino liqueur
1/2 oz lime juice
1 dash blue vegetable coloring

Shake with cracked ice; strain into chilled cocktail glass; garnish with a maraschino cherry.

Bitter | 19 down 256 to go

Bitter: a cocktail to be appreciated if not liked.

Bitter is an amazingly complex cocktail and the name perfectly describes it.  That said, it's not one I'd say we liked so much as appreciated.  A bonus of mixing this bev was finding another opportunity to use an ounce of Chartreuse (the level of which is now half a finger below the neck of the bottle).  

Besides the name, I knew I'd have to sneak this one passed The Partner.  He loathes licorice, so the Pernod would be a challenge.  When he left the room, I quickly scrambled to concoct.  But even at a mere dash, the Pernod was so strong it filled the bar with its dark, syrupy scent.

The Bitter demanded our attention.  We paused TiVo to give it its due.  We drew in the nose, intrigued (scared?).  The first sip was a test to be sure.  But each one following revealed multiple layers of flavor.  The gin provided a sort of liquid canvas accenting the herbal Chartreuse and citrusy lemon.  The Pernod, while contributing a strong licorice aroma to the cocktail, surprisingly enough, was not so much a flavor on the tongue as a dimension or depth.  Kind of an alcoholic umami.  

This is perhaps the strongest proof yet that tastes certainly have changed when it comes to cocktailing.  For the evening one Bitter was enough.  Still, characterizing it as either Make it Again or Once was Enough would be inaccurate.  Perhaps we need a new category that captures a beverage such as this one.  Perhaps something like…"Respected".

Bitter
1 1/2 oz. gin
1/2 oz. Chartreuse
1/2 oz. lemon juice
1 dash Pernod


Shake with cracked ice; strain into chilled cocktail glass; garnish with a lemon twist.

Fancy-Free | 18 down 257 to go

Cocktail is divided into 3 parts.  Part I is "Mixing Advice from the Alchemist".  Part II is "The Drink Classics Worth Imbibing First" and consists of 63 of the 275 classics.  It's from here that I find most of the history about a bev included in a blog entry.  Then there's Part III: "Drink Recipes".  And that's all they are.  Names and recipes.  It's from here that the Fancy-Free came so there's no official history.

However, as soon as I mixed and decanted this, the nose instantly took me back to my history as that little boy eating sotted cherries.  There's just something about the combination of bourbon & maraschino juice that reminds me especially of my grandparents' generation.  Too, in bourbon drinks maraschinos don't look quite so offensive.  I love how in this one it's almost a shimmering jewel set in the crook of the glass.

The Fancy-Free is so simple to mix, very Manhattanesque, and good.  So good, in fact, The Partner made one of his boldest declarations to date:  "Honey, I think this is the best one you've mixed yet!" 

"Wow!" I said.

"Can't wait to see that in print…" he "protested", practically begging me to include his quip here. 

But I'm a mixologist now.  I serve to please!

Fancy-Free
2 oz. bourbon
1/2 oz. maraschino juice
1 dash Angostura bitters
1 dash orange bitters

Shake with cracked ice; strain into chilled cocktail glass; garnish with a maraschino

Petit Zinc | 17 down 258 to go

The grayish tinge should've been a warning!

As mentioned in the previous entry, we were on our way to dinner at J- & M-‘s place.  After 18 years, they’re more family than friends.  So I thought I’d bring the bible along and rustle up a cocktail with them at their place.  It was sort of a Top Chef moment with no idea what they would have in their bar besides their favorite bases of vodka & scotch.  Available mixers included some sweet vermouth & Grand Marnier & orange juice.  So a Petit Zinc it was (substituting Grand Marnier for Cointreau).

If you were starting to worry that we liked everything we made lately with all the “Make it again Sam” tags, fear not.  This was awful.  Figures it would happen at a friend’s  home.  Despite all the other ingredients and what you’d expect to be a glass full of orange, it was like drinking thickened sweet vermouth.  Horrible.  We adjourned to the roof to enjoy a spring evening if not the concoction.  The guys sipped dutifully, eyeing me over the rims of their glasses, telepathically asking each other “How much more of this will we have to drink this before quitting?”  Yet I didn’t want to give up and was heroically striving for the bottom of the glass. 

Finally, M- stands up with a half empty glass.  “If you don’t mind, I’m going to move on to something else.”  As the word “absolutely” was coming out of my mouth, The Partner stands as well.  “Yeah, me to.  I need a vodka.”   Really?  Et tu, Iohannes? 

 I couldn’t blame them.  If it’d been our liquor, I’d’ve been leading the way to the bar for a new bev.

Petit Zinc
2 parts vodka
1 part each: sweet vermouth,
Cointreau, OJ

Shake with cracked ice, strain into chilled cocktail glass, garnish with orange wheel or a maraschino.

Texas Fizz | 16 down 259 to go

Think strawberry Starburst.

It’s been very busy at the Dilettante house this week, so even though numbers 16 & 17 were concocted on Saturday, they are being posted a little late.  Apologies.

Saturday was a busy day.  I needed to spend some time with friends who were helping me out on a project.  That evening we were having dinner and cocktails with J- & M-.  On my way out the door I suggested to The Partner that he select a cocktail from the bible for a pre-dinner warm up.  He protested saying this was my thing.  I insisted.  He protested.  I insisted.  He…you get the drill.  Yet to my pleasant surprise, when I came home, he had picked out the Texas Fizz.

Yes, it looks like liquid baby aspirin with a radioactive maraschino glowing in the bottom.  Yet it wasn’t that bad.  It had an elusive yet familiar flavor that I couldn’t put my finger on until The Partner said, “It tastes like a strawberry Starburst!”  Spot on!  We only had one as we had an evening of cocktailing and dinner ahead of us.  But we’ll be revisiting this one again in the future.  Sante!

Texas Fizz
1 oz. gin
1/2  oz. orange juice
1/4 oz. lemon juice
1/4 oz. grenadine
Soda water

Shake gin, juices & grenadine with cracked ice; strain into chilled wine glass.  Top with soda & garnish with lemon twist & a maraschino cherry.

Pegu | 15 down 260 to go

Dry & citrusy...the Pegu from colonial Burma

I love it when H & M lead with a short but tantalizing history of a cocktail, especially one as exotic and literary as the Pegu.  This drink was fantastically popular during the 1920’s, 30’s & 40’s, but traces back to Burma of the late 1800’s.  The bev gets its name from The Pegu Club which was 50 miles outside Rangoon and was the regular haunt of British colonial officers.  One officer in particular may be a reason for it’s 20th century popularity.  For several years, George Orwell was famously stationed in Burma and a frequent patron of the club.
 
For my family back East, a quick Google led me to the club’s namesake in SoHo and purports to be an establishment dedicated to classic cocktailing culture.  How cool is that?  Maybe you could check it out and report back.  Or perhaps a field trip cum family reunion when I’m home next.  For research purposes, of course!  I sense a plan hatching…

H & M claim “the Pegu is more than mildly in resurgence, meaning that this inspiring gin aperitif has been successfully ordered at most bars and dining establishments.”  Now granted, the copyright of the bible is 1998.  But still, has anyone else heard of this tipple before?  I know I haven’t.
 
The Pegu is a good way, say the authors, for people who don’t like Angostura bitters to acclimate.  They also suggest adding a couple dashes of orange bitters as training wheels for the bitters-averse.  We tried it both with the orange bitters and without.  This is a beautiful, dry, citrusy drink.  Very refreshing.  If you make it with only the Angosturas, you can smell the difference when shaking, but the taste is not terribly different.  Though it does go from dry with the orange to dry, dry, dry with Angosturas alone.  An easy-breezy one to mix and a definite for a summer evening after a day in the sun.  Santé!

Pegu
3 parts gin
1 part Cointreau
1 part lime juice
2 dashes Angostura bitters
(2 more dashes orange bitters for a bit more citrus and less dryness)

Shake with cracked ice and serve in chilled Martini glasses.  Garnish with a lime twist.

Mint Julep | 14 down 261 to go

Sickness has continued to hang out in the Dilettante household.  This week The Partner came down with the Ick.  So we’ve gone easy again on the bible study.  Thinking about what my father does when he gets sick – like once every 10 years, the lucky son of a gun – I turned to bevs  that might make The poor Partner feel better.  Part of dad’s prescription includes a stiff shot of bourbon.  Since he’s never sick longer than a few days, a bourbon bev seemed a no-brainer.  What could have more powerful medicinal qualities with it’s combination of bourbon and fresh mint but a mint julep?

Turns out he wasn’t too interested in partaking.  But I was a trooper and downed it for him.  Don’t wanna relapse!  This was my second julep ever.  The first was at a Kentucky Derby party hosted by my college chaplain, a  Louisville native.  At the ripe old age of 20 I thought it was pretty disgusting.  I can remember thinking, “There are leaves in my drink!”  After a couple sips I ditched it on the kitchen counter amid other party detritus.  This time the only thing I left on the counter was an empty.  This will definitely be a welcome summer alternative to the trendy and (I’m gonna say it) tired mojito.  The only thing I'll adjust is to dial back on the amount of simple syrup suggested by H & M.  Definitely use shaved or crushed ice.  This one is a classic.  And with my now more grown up tastes, I say with good reason!

Mint Julep
3 oz. bourbon
2-4 T. simple syrup
6 sprigs of fresh mint

Mix 3 oz. of bourbon, 6 sprigs of mint, and 2-4 T. simple syrup in a pint glass.  Add 3 pieces of ice and muddle for about a minute.  Let stand for several minutes.  Strain into glass filled with shaved ice.  Top with seltzer and a mint sprig.

H & M suggest for mintier bevs, skip the ice when muddling and then pour all the muddled mixture into the serving glass followed by the shaved ice.

UPDATE:  Ah, the MJ.  As classic as it is, this one turned out to be equivalent to the bad wine you take out in desperation when the good stuff has run out.  While you think it would be a decent follow-on to the Bourbon Squash, it's a bit of a gear-stripper despite the fact that they're both tall bourbon drinks.  And if you're trying to make a transition via the mint from depleted mojitos or caipirinhas -- oh, please, Gentle Reader, learn from our mistake and don't try it!

On their own, mint juleps are not bad.  And no matter where you're sipping one, you can't help but feel you're in Kentucky watching the horse races.  But coming off another bev, they tend to be heavy and syrupy on the palate.  Not enjoyable at all.  This would be one to start with and then after a round, transition to something brighter if you're in for a long day of tippling.

Milk Punch | 13 down 262 to go

This week at a networking event a conversation turned to cocktailing.  Telling a fellow networker of the blog he noted that he’d been learning more about scotch and asked what cocktails I could recommend.  At that point I realized that I’d only done one.  So I figured I needed to do something about that: Milk Punch.  In the process, I’ve discovered a wonderful new practice.  I’ll call it the “neighbor shaker”.  A friend and neighbor has been working hard and unable to socialize as she’d like.  So I filled a shaker with the tipple, hopped in the elevator and knocked on her door.
 
She opened the door to find me shaking a tin.  “If Mohammed doesn’t have time to come to the mountain, then the mountain will bring cocktails to Mohammed.  There’s only enough here for one round.  That’s how long your break will last.  Then it’s back to work!”  She laughed and invited me in.

We sipped the first sip and a smile spread across my face.  It was an icy thin eggnog.  I couldn’t help but tell L- about my grandmother who was in charge of the Christmas bev.  She too used bourbon instead of rum.  She was big on tasting.  For balance and quality purposes, of course!  Still, by the time she and the nog emerged from the kitchen she was flush with Holiday spirit…and a might bit silly!  Like Gram’s eggnog, this is not a kiddy cocktail.  It is full on an adult sippin’ beverage.  While tasty, odds are there won’t be a second round of these.  But the good news is with 3 ounces of bourbon and a healthy splash of rum, it’s strong enough to get the job done all by its lonesome.

Milk Punch
3 oz bourbon
3 oz milk
1/2 t. dark rum
1T. simple syrup
Nutmeg

Shake liquids with cracked ice. Strain into chilled tumbler or highball glass.  Sprinkle with nutmeg.  Oh, and use whole milk.  Please, no blue gruel with skim!

Bellini | 12 down 263 to go

Definitely not the light pink hue of white peaches.

Dilettante has been a little under the weather this week.  When the nose is stuffy and throat a little sore, cocktailing is not something that feels right.  So we’re taking it easy with “healthy” ingredients, hence the Bellini.  After all, it is made with peach juice.  But here’s a heads-up.  I was not faithful to this recipe so we’ll need to revisit this one along with the Astoria.

Bellini
1 oz white peach puree
4 oz prosecco

Peel & puree 3-4 very ripe white peaches;
Mix nectar with 1 oz simple syrup.
Strain through course cheesecloth; refrigerate until chilled
Pour 1 oz of nectar into frosted champagne flute; top with prosecco.

April in the Midwest, white peaches aren’t exactly in season, so this weekend I used bottled peach nectar.  Come summer time we’ll mix as H & M suggest and update. 

To accompany our cocktail, The Partner prepared supper by appetizer:  a spread of cheeses, olives, steamed mussels, lamb “popsicles”, garlic shrimp.   The light sweetness of the Bellini was the perfect complement to all the savory saltiness of the menu.  For the first round we mixed the proportions as described above.  Using bottled juice it didn’t yield that much peachiness mixed as such.   Playing with the proportions in subsequent rounds yielded more peach.  The Partner commented that contemporary tastes have changed and that perhaps the proportions in the bible are from a different time with different tastes.  Totally plausible.  But then again, when made with the proper ingredients, these proportions may hold up.  We’ll have to wait and see.

Some cocktailalia: H & M note that the drink was created at Harry’s Bar in Venice – the regular haunt of such notables as Hemingway, Sinclair Lewis & Orson Welles and was apparently inspired by the soft pinks used by Venetian painter Giovanni Bellini.

Jasmine | 11 down 264 to go

The Partner:  I can see it now.

Me: What?

The Partner: The next time we're out with J- and  M- and the waiter comes to take our drink order and this time it'll be "3 vodkas and a Jasmine."

Gentle Reader, do be sure to hear that cocktail name as it was said, by stretching the "a" out for a good long time and giving  the "s" the slightest sibilance:  "three vodkas and a ... Jaaaaaasssmine."

He can be so funny sometimes.

As it turns out, the Jasmine is not an old classic but a relative newcomer, being named after Matt Jasmine, formerly of the world famous Chez Panisse.

We made this one right after the medicinal Drink Without a Name.  And while it looks like the love child of a Cosmopolitan and a Pink Squirrel, it was the perfect next step from DWAN as it tasted exactly like fresh squeezed grapefruit juice.  An unexpected and welcome surprise.  So much so that by the end of our second round, Someone was passing me his empty and nonchalantly asking for another.

Me: Huh….  Looks like the next time we're out with J- and M- it'll be two vodkas and two Jasmines!

The Partner: [Sheepish sideways smirk.]


Me: Don't worry, baby, I'll teach you how to say it like a man.

Jasmine
1 1/2 oz gin
1/4 oz Cointreau
1/4 oz Campari
3/4 oz lemon juice

Shake with cracked ice; strain into chilled cocktail glass and garnish with lemon twist

Drink Without a Name | 10 down 265 to go

To make the Drink Without a Name, I had to purchase Chartreuse and learned several things I never knew before. (Hey, alcohol as a “gateway” drug…to learning!  Ha!)  While it comes in two colors, yellow & green, it’s the green that is traditional.  In fact, the name of the color derived from the liqueur and not the other way around.  Chartreuse has been made exclusively by Carthusian monks for about 270 years and named after their monastery in the Chartreuse Mountains of Grenoble, France.  The recipe is highly guarded, though we know it’s made with 130 herbs and aged in oak barrels.  It’s one of the few liqueurs to continue to improve in the bottle as it ages.
 
As for its taste, it is exceedingly smooth, very herbal and bitter.  Even medicinal.  It reminded me of a digestif my friend brought me from the Czech Republic, once upon a time, Becherovka.  It is not an inexpensive liqueur and now I know why.   Given that it packs quite a wallop and challenges the contemporary palate, one doesn’t drink it in vast quantities.  Therefore, it will last forever.
 
I had high hopes for this cocktail.  How could you not with its cool, pale green hue made even more vibrant with the orange garnish.  But at the risk of sounding downright Rumsfeldian, the DWAN tastes like Old Europe in a cocktail glass.  Still, we were troupers and finished our medicine before we moved on to our next Saturday evening refreshment.

Drink Without a Name

2 oz vodka

1/4 oz Cointreau

1/8 oz Chartreuse

Mix over cracked ice, stir to chill and serve in chilled cocktail glass.

Floridita | 9 down 266 to go

Bases, mixers & accents for the Floridita

We’ve been having major wireless router issues for the past few weeks.  After about 8 hours total on the phone & chat with Cisco & HP, I finally decided to hire someone to come in and make a fix on-site.  Unfortunately, he could only come after 7pm on Friday.  Really?  That’s the end of happy hour!

At 7:15, 2 Diablos in, and having just mixed our next bev --  the Floridita -- he knocked on the door.  The Partner let him in, directing him upstairs to my office, which doubles as our entertainment room and wet bar.  As he settled in to troubleshoot, our new cocktails sat waiting.  After some time, I couldn’t take it anymore with these two frosty bevs calling my name.   

“Well, this is our usual happy hour, can I off you a cocktail?”  
He heaved a sigh clearly indicating he’d had a week and said, “Yes, that’d be great.  What do you have?”  

I told him we have anything he could want.  I took a quick opportunity to tell him about the cocktail project.  “I just made a vintage cocktail called a Floridita,"   I said, pointing to the dainty, pink concoction in a small Martini glass.  "I could make another one for you.”  

Graciously he said, “I think I’ll just have a beer.”  His thought bubble: “Yeah…they’re gay.”  

A funny moment.  

Leaving him to do his thing, I took our cocktails downstairs.  Clink.  Sip.  And The Partner’s face collapses into the tip of his nose.  “Do we have to finish it?”  

It’s pretty hard to describe, but it evokes a flavor from childhood.  What, I can't put my finger on.  The crème do cocao gives it a cocoa essence without being chocolaty, but the overall effect is too sweet.
All-in-all, the tech guy’s beer was sounding real good at that moment.

Diablo | 8 down 267 to go

It looks like a pink lemonade, but watch out! 

After writing this entry I’m going to need a new tag in the tag cloud.  Something like “summer” or “steamy weather” or “hot day on the deck”, for that’s the perfect place for sipping the Diablo.  And even though the first round was not the best, on only his second sip The Partner declared, “I could drink a lot of these.”

Ingredients:
1 jig tequila
¾ oz crème de cassis
½ ounce lime juice
Ginger ale

Stir the tequila, cassis & lime juice with cracked ice; strain into chilled, iced Collins glasses; top with ginger ale and garnish with lime slice.

Caveats:  We did two rounds of the Diablo.  The first wasn’t as enjoyable with both the nose and slight taste of the bathroom of a girly-girl’s first apartment: all calico, soap & potpourri.  H & M advise using as clear a tequila as possible which we did (and be sure it’s not a smoked variety).  However, in our second round I used Cuervo Especial which was darker than the clear and lighter than a resposado.  Also, I’d recommend not filling the glass with ginger ale.  With the first round I left about a ¼ inch collar.  In the second it was closer to ½ inch.  These two subtle changes made quite a difference.  It was sweeter, but in a refreshing way, and lost all the soapiness of the first round.  A most enjoyable and refreshing cocktail.  Enjoy this summer!