I know it'll be tough to find another vermouth, but Dolin is fantastic, and somewhat easier than Carpano to mix with as well.
― I DIED, Monday, 15 March 2010 05:13 (fourteen years ago) link
In most cocktails I use about 2/3 the amount of vermouth specified when I'm mixing w/ Carpano, just because it's so intense.
rare daytime cocktal update! didn't want to lose this one from last night.
RECIPE TWENTY-SIX: the casino
2 oz. old tom gin.25 oz. lemon juice.25 oz. maraschino2 dashes orange bitters
stir with ice and strain.
this is a great intro to how old tom gin works--notice there is no added sugar and no sweet liqueurs or vermouth.
― call all destroyer, Wednesday, 17 March 2010 17:33 (fourteen years ago) link
i cut up a grapefruit tonight and was able to make these. i believe both are originals from cocktail virgin slut
RECIPE TWENTY-SEVEN: cravan
1.5 oz. bourbon.75 oz. grapefruit juice.5 oz. maraschino.25 oz. campari1 dash angostura
shake and strain. garnish with an orange twist or a mint sprig
this is one of those nonintuitive happy mess drinks afaict. i was concerned about that amount of maraschino but it turned out to be fine. a sip of this goes through three distinct phases--bourbon and bitters, bright fruit, weird maraschino/campari bitterness. i used a pretty good bourbon and it wasn't wasted--flavor came through nicely. not sure if angostura is the best play here though.
― call all destroyer, Thursday, 18 March 2010 04:36 (fourteen years ago) link
RECIPE TWENTY-EIGHT: leonid
so named as a variant on something called the star cocktail.
.75 oz. gin.75 oz. apple brandy, applejack, or calvados.75 oz. grapefruit juice.5 oz. dry vermouth.25 oz. cointreau[1 dash angostura]
shake and strain, garnish with grapefruit twist
tbh i forgot the angostura and i think if i remake this i'd be more likely to use orange or grapefruit bitters. it's a dry cocktail that was strongly alcoholic on the first couple sips; thankfully it mellowed out after that. interesting ideas here but i'd consider modifications in the future.
― call all destroyer, Thursday, 18 March 2010 04:40 (fourteen years ago) link
tonight: inverse cocktails
RECIPE TWENTY-NINE: growing hold and dying happy is a hope, not an inevitability
(yes that is the name, from cure in new orleans)
2 oz. cynar1 oz. ryepinch salttwo pieces lemon peelherbsaint for rinsing
combine the cynar and rye, add the salt and stir. twist the lemon peels over the liquor and drop them in. add ice and stir. strain into a glass that has been rinsed with herbsaint. garnish with another lemon twist.
http://www.betacocktails.com might be me new favorite mixology blog. this drink is weird--sweet to start like you'd expect with so much amaro but a much more interesting finish. sort of an inverse of a manhattan variation, in keeping with tonight's theme.
― call all destroyer, Tuesday, 30 March 2010 03:01 (fourteen years ago) link
RECIPE THIRTY: le coquetiez du lion
(from somewhere in germany by way of ohgosh.tv)
50 ml lillet blanc (sorry this is in metric. 50 ml is just about 1.5 oz afaict)30 ml dry gin (just a tiny bit under 1 oz.)2 dashes peychaud's bitters
stir over ice, garnish with a lime twist.
an inverse gin martini with lillet. simple and elegant, this is a grown-up drink.
― call all destroyer, Tuesday, 30 March 2010 03:26 (fourteen years ago) link
RECIPE THIRTY-ONE: ruirita
(from the guy at adashofbitters.com)
2 oz. blanco tequila.5 oz. cynar.5 oz. lime juice.25 oz. simple syrup3 dashes fee's rhubarb bitters2 drops orange flower water (for rinsing)
shake and strain all except the o.f.w., which you just used to rinse the glass
too pungent at first; this mellowed out nicely in the glass. will i ever use those rhubarb bitters again?
― call all destroyer, Wednesday, 7 April 2010 02:03 (fourteen years ago) link
RECIPE THIRTY-TWO: the mai tai
but enough of these weirdo drinks, right?
1 oz. aged rum 11 oz. aged rum 2.75 oz. lemon juice.5 oz. triple sec or orange curacao.25 oz. orgeat.25 oz. simple syrup
shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a rocks glass filled with crushed ice. garnish with a mint sprig and a lime husk.
i'm using cheap orgeat (fee bros because most good liquor stores have it) but pretty good rums. one common rec for mai tais is an aged jamaican rum (easy enough to find an appleton product, i'm using their v/x) and an aged martinique rum (tougher, i've seen saint-james and clement and today shelled out for clement vsop). but i think you can experiment as much as you want. soooooooo good.
― call all destroyer, Wednesday, 7 April 2010 03:20 (fourteen years ago) link
DAMMIT, lime juice
think i'm over my campari aversion (ie drinking negroni as intended as we speak). that was fast!
― bieber benz or bentley (donna rouge), Wednesday, 7 April 2010 03:29 (fourteen years ago) link
glad 4 u! last time i went out to a mediocre bar i got them to make me americanos the whole night.
― call all destroyer, Wednesday, 7 April 2010 03:30 (fourteen years ago) link
we're doing manhattan variations until further notice.
RECIPE THIRTY-THREE: manhattan
2 oz. rye1 oz. sweet vermouth2 dashes bitters
stir over ice and strain. some people use cherries but not me. i go with lemon twist.
― call all destroyer, Saturday, 10 April 2010 01:28 (fourteen years ago) link
i've been assembling ingredients for manhattan variations for a while, capped off by today, when i finally bought some affordable high-proof rye (wild turkey's 101 proof rye, which is very nice stuff).
― call all destroyer, Saturday, 10 April 2010 01:29 (fourteen years ago) link
RECIPE THIRTY-FOUR: red hook
2 oz. rye.5 oz. punt e mes.5 oz. maraschino liqueur
stir and stain, garnish w/a cherry
sweeter, more upbeat manhattan. for the uninformed, punt e mes shares the same sweet qualities as my beloved carpano antica, but with a less complex finish. not really like other sweet vermouths at all, a fact which extends to its location in the liquor store: sometimes it's near the vermouths, but today i grabbed it from a shelf it shared with the amaros and other italian specialty liqueurs.
― call all destroyer, Saturday, 10 April 2010 03:18 (fourteen years ago) link
RECIPE THIRTY-FIVE: little italy
2 oz. rye.75 oz. sweet vermouth.5 oz. cynar
stir and strain, garnish with a cherry.
a real winner if you, like me, are an amaro fan.
― call all destroyer, Monday, 12 April 2010 01:30 (fourteen years ago) link
That sounds good.
I am a big amaro fan - I like trying different recipes w/ an amaro subbed for vermouth. Ramazzotti manhattans are great!
Speaking which, the weather's getting warm enough to switch to my simple summer patio standby of last year, Ramazzotti and soda on ice. Tastes like an adult cola, nicely deep and bitter but refreshing and not too boozy.
― I DIED, Monday, 12 April 2010 01:42 (fourteen years ago) link
man that sounds excellent, going to make one of those in a min
― call all destroyer, Monday, 12 April 2010 02:09 (fourteen years ago) link
ramazzotti and soda was an excellent suggestion, i enjoyed those v. much that night.
my life is insane right now and i haven't even been drinking much nevermind making manhattan variations. but i do have a pause for a couple of drinks tonight.
― call all destroyer, Saturday, 17 April 2010 00:12 (fourteen years ago) link
RECIPE THIRTY-SIX: peralta (1)
there's an alternate peralta recipe too, but i'm making the one from drinkboston.com. developed by a bartender at deep ellum, an awesome bar in my nieghborhood that i don't go to nearly enough.
1.5 oz. rye.5 oz. cynar.5 oz. green chartreuse.5 oz. grapefruit juice1 dash grapefruit bitters1 dash orange bitters
shake and strain, garnish with a grapefruit twist.
― call all destroyer, Saturday, 17 April 2010 00:15 (fourteen years ago) link
i've never seen ramazzotti in london but it sounds like just the kind of thing i like. enjoying cynar + soda tho
― just sayin, Saturday, 17 April 2010 08:18 (fourteen years ago) link
successfully signed a new lease yesterday, figure i deserved a bottle of st germain for that:
http://www.thenibble.com/reviews/main/cocktails/images/bottle-greybackground-300_000.jpg
as you may have noticed this stuff is in a lot of drinks these days. i had never been able to isolate the flavor in cocktails on my own, so being able to take a sip of it is helpful. the trick is that it tastes like fruit, not flowers or anything else. mostly like a mild lychee imo. i'd venture that it's been so successful because the amorphous "fruitiness" it adds is pleasant without evoking any one thing.
― call all destroyer, Monday, 19 April 2010 02:19 (fourteen years ago) link
RECIPE THIRTY-SEVEN: boutonierre
invinted at rendezvous, central sq, cambridge, ma
2 oz. applejack1 oz. dry vermouth.5 oz. st germain1 dash peychaud's1 dash orange bitters
stir and strain, garnish with orange.
a really good introduction to st germain in a classically-proportioned drink. it's easily detectable here while enhancing some of the other flavors that are going on.
― call all destroyer, Monday, 19 April 2010 02:21 (fourteen years ago) link
RECIPE THIRTY-EIGHT: shaddock
invented at trina's starlite lounge, also in cambridge
.75 oz. each genever, aperol, st. germain, lemon juice.
shake and strain, no garnish.
another riff on the 4-equal-ingredients formula, this one is pretty smooth and sweet with an awesome orange-pink color. each ingredient pops out at different times.
― call all destroyer, Monday, 19 April 2010 02:23 (fourteen years ago) link
RECIPE THIRTY-NINE: one-armed french hooker
1.5 oz. genever1 oz. grapefruit juice1 oz. st. germain2 dashes peychaud's
shake and strain, top with sparkling wine (i omitted this).
st. germain and grapefruit seem like a natural combo, so i've been looking all over for recipes that use them both. this is nice, the genever is a supporting player only with the main flavor being sweetened citrus.
― call all destroyer, Wednesday, 21 April 2010 03:21 (fourteen years ago) link
what is the consistency/color on simple syrup supposed to be
― ibaka flocka flame (J0rdan S.), Saturday, 1 May 2010 01:14 (thirteen years ago) link
simple made w/regular sugar should be clear. consistency will depend on the ratio of sugar to water.
― the unfinest of viking jokes only (call all destroyer), Saturday, 1 May 2010 01:20 (thirteen years ago) link
a 1:1 syrup will be a little thick but not super-thick
― the unfinest of viking jokes only (call all destroyer), Saturday, 1 May 2010 01:21 (thirteen years ago) link
ok, i made 1:! with cane sugar and it's sort of like sugar water? attempting to make mint julep fwiw
― ibaka flocka flame (J0rdan S.), Saturday, 1 May 2010 01:21 (thirteen years ago) link
when i made grenadine with sugar and pom juice i thought it was p. watery at first, it actually thickened up after chillin in the fridge for a bit
― the unfinest of viking jokes only (call all destroyer), Saturday, 1 May 2010 01:23 (thirteen years ago) link
ok, that makes sense
― ibaka flocka flame (J0rdan S.), Saturday, 1 May 2010 01:23 (thirteen years ago) link
yeah you're probably ok
RECIPE FORTY: spiced tea cocktail
2 oz. absolut boston.75 oz. lemon juice.25 oz. simple syrup.25 oz. allspice dram
shake and strain, garnish with a lemon twist.
i guess this is a cad original--the absolut boston (which is tea- and elderflower-infused if u didn't know)/lemon/sugar combination is obvious in a way, but i felt it needed something to take it over the top. the bottle of allspice dram i picked up last week really did the job.
― call all destroyer, Monday, 10 May 2010 03:06 (thirteen years ago) link
RECIPE FORTY-ONE: william of orange
1.5 oz. bols genever.5 oz. aperol.5 oz. punt e mes.5 oz. benedictine2 dashes orange bitters (regan's #6)
stir and strain into a chilled rocks glass, garnish w/an orange twist.
no ingredients subs on this one imo--i made a version of this a while ago and it was not good enough to post. but this is.
― call all destroyer, Monday, 10 May 2010 03:55 (thirteen years ago) link
RECIPE FORTY-TWO: daiquiri no. 1
2 oz. white rum.75 oz. lime juice1 tsp superfine sugar
shake and strain
nothing need be said.
― call all destroyer, Thursday, 20 May 2010 03:49 (thirteen years ago) link
RECIPE FORTY-TWO: hemingway daiquiri
2 oz. white rum.75 oz. lime juice.5 oz. grapefruit juice1 tsp superfine sugarscant 1 tsp maraschino liqueur
a smoothed-out sweeter version of no. 1. err on the conservative side with the maraschino.
― call all destroyer, Thursday, 20 May 2010 03:50 (thirteen years ago) link
RECIPE FORTY-THREE: ramos gin fizz
havin a lazy afternoon atm, so the least i could do was whip up one of these labor-intensive beasts:
2 oz. gin (old tom preferred, or plymouth)1 oz. cream1 tbsp superfine sugar (or 1 oz. simple syrup).5 oz. lime juice.5 oz. lemon juice1 egg white3-5 drops orange flower water
shake the living hell out of this with no ice. then do the same with ice. like, a minute or more for each. shake until your arms hurt and your hands go numb.
strain into a tall glass with a couple ice cubes in it. top with an oz. or less of soda water. give it a quick stir and add a straw. a delightful thick foam will appear on top of the drink.
i forget where i read this but the i like it: the r.g.f. should taste like drinking a flower. in a good way.
― call all destroyer, Saturday, 22 May 2010 19:18 (thirteen years ago) link
i had a ginger lime gin fizz the other night and it was freaking amazing. it tasted like lime sorbet.
― mr. milquetoast (J0rdan S.), Saturday, 22 May 2010 19:19 (thirteen years ago) link
also had a gin & tonic with wine soaked strawberries which was also delightful
― mr. milquetoast (J0rdan S.), Saturday, 22 May 2010 19:20 (thirteen years ago) link
fancy!
― call all destroyer, Saturday, 22 May 2010 19:34 (thirteen years ago) link
yeah it was a fancy place that we only went to because it was a special occasion -- bartender was all talking about infusing his own syrups and what not -- one drink on the menu featured "jalapeno simple syrup" which i was curious about bcuz i like spicy drinks, altho at that point you're really stretching the "simple" part of "simple syrup"
― mr. milquetoast (J0rdan S.), Saturday, 22 May 2010 19:37 (thirteen years ago) link
eh not really--just about every infused syrup is the same: 1:1 or 2:1 sugar/water plus a bunch of whatever flavor you want it to have. i made cinnamon syrup last week and except for the annoying and messy filtration process it was no prob.
― call all destroyer, Saturday, 22 May 2010 20:11 (thirteen years ago) link
RECIPE FORTY-FOUR: the art of choke
from the betacocktails.com ppl
1 oz. cynar1 oz. white rum.25 oz. green chartreuse.125 oz. lime juice.125 oz. 2:1 demerara syrup (or any sugar syrup)fresh mint
muddle all ingredients with a couple mint sprigs, then stir with ice. strain into a rocks glass with fresh ice and garnish with more mint.
weird and impossible to categorize, i'll leave it to the now unavailable rogue cocktails book:
"Picture yourself in the limestone-walled courtyard of an Italian villa off the coast of the Riviera. You are surrounded by fragrant herbs and flowers, and the sea air is blowing gently. The sun is bright, but it's not hot, and you have nothing to do all day but relax and savor the sensations all around you. Drinking this cocktail is kind of like that if somebody suddenly punched you in the stomach just as you were beginning to doze off in the sun. In a good way."
― call all destroyer, Monday, 24 May 2010 02:27 (thirteen years ago) link
what is cynar?
― Face Book (dyao), Monday, 24 May 2010 02:38 (thirteen years ago) link
it's an amaro (bittersweet italian liqueur) made with a base of artichokes. it's dark and syrupy and <20% alcohol iirc.
― call all destroyer, Monday, 24 May 2010 02:55 (thirteen years ago) link
that sounds v. interesting. I don't think I've ever had an artichoke in my life - only artichoke dip.
― Face Book (dyao), Monday, 24 May 2010 03:07 (thirteen years ago) link
reminds me, I had my first negroni of the summer the other week. I had to teach the bartender how to make it :/
― Face Book (dyao), Monday, 24 May 2010 03:08 (thirteen years ago) link
RECIPE FORTY-FIVE: jet pilot
an authentic tiki drink 4 u:
.5 oz. lime juice.5 oz. white grapefruit juice.5 oz. falernum (fee bros. is readily available in liquor stores).5 oz. cinnamon syrup (recipe below).75 oz. gold rum (puerto rico or similar).75 oz. demerara 151 proof rum (lemon hart)1 oz. jamaican dark rum (myers, appleton)6 drops herbsaint, pernod, or absinthe1 dash angostura
technically this is a blender drink, but you can also shake with crushed ice and pour unstrained into a rocks glass or tiki mug. add straws.
cinnamon simple syrup:
3 sticks cinnamon1 cup water1 cup sugar
put the cinnamon sticks in a plastic bag and beat the hell out of them with the kitchen tool of your choice until you have mostly small pieces. bring all ingredients to a simmer over medium heat. cover and simmer for two minutes, then let the mixture rest for about two hours. strain and bottle. keep in the fridge (i added a little 151-proof rum to preserve).
to strain: get a funnel and a bunch of coffee filters. pour a little of the syrup into the filter resting in the funnel, then close the filter over and twist/squeeze the syrup through. this is messy and tedious, but what the hell.
― call all destroyer, Thursday, 27 May 2010 02:27 (thirteen years ago) link
hmm for straining the cinnamon syrup perhaps you could try using an aeropress?
http://broadripplecoffee.com/brcc/images/aerobie_aeropress.jpg
― Face Book (dyao), Thursday, 27 May 2010 02:31 (thirteen years ago) link
huh, yeah that would probably work really well
― call all destroyer, Thursday, 27 May 2010 02:33 (thirteen years ago) link