←
El Presidon’t… Oh dear, I’m afraid I’ve bungled this. The first time I made this drink I used Degroff’s recipe (the classic), which calls for dry vermouth. I found it to be tasty if overly austere. Then I read Wonderich’s article in Imbibe magazine complaining of the same austerity, though I think the word he used was undrinkable. His solution (based on historical research) was to swap the dry vermouth with bianco and throw in some orange Curaco for good measure. Sounds reasonable. He also specifies homemade grenadine, which is much more tart than store bought. Much more tart. I used store bought grenadine and the result is a bit of a mess. An overly sweet vermouthy cup of bourbon manhattan barf. And I _like_ a good bourbon manhattan (though rye is better). Even with homemade grenadine on hand, I’m not sure I’d bother making this again. 1 1/2 oz Cuban white rum 1 1/2 oz bianco vermouth 2 tsp Orange Curaco 1 tsp grenadine (homemade, if you’re making this) Orange twist, cherry garnish No citrus or egg, so stir, then strain.
Mojito! I nailed this one tonight. The mojito is what I would term a robust drink, by which I mean you can find a lot of recipes with different proportions and preparation methods. That said, this particular recipe is killer, and I would only tweak one thing with it in the future, the syrup. Normally I like to start off making a drink following the recipe to the letter, but I’ve been making mojitos for close to a decade now, I feel like I know the drink well enough to tinker (even with Degroff’s recipe). He recommends building the drink in them glass, I prefer giving it a light shake first to get things nice and cold. I also went with crushed ice in the glass, and I’m never going back (even though crushed ice necissiates the use of a straw). You may notice that this drink is not the color of mojitos you may have had before, I add bitters to mine - a tip I picked from a bartender in Cuba who claimed to have one the world mojito contat in 2003. Best damn mojito I’ve ever had until five seconds ago. The one thing I’d like to change up is to try a 2-1 demerara syrup instead of the 1-1 white sugar syrup I’m using. The mojito originated as a farmers drink, and they wouldn’t have had access to processed sugar. The more raw demerara is also likely to add a bit of body to the white rum, we’ll say. You’ll also notice that unlike the mojito you made at home, mine has no crappy bits of mint floating around in it. That’s cause I used the weird metal triangle guy you see in the picture - it’s a julep strainer. You use it as a second strainer to catch excess ice and mint leaves as you pour the drink. Does this require an action shot? Oh, if you’ve never had a good mojito, the lime rum and sugar meld into in this wonderful bed of tastyness that the mint springboards off of straight into your taste buds. White rum has a bit of natural funkiness to it (haut gout as the French call it, or hogo as it became bastardized chez America - try cachaca for a wallop of hogo) that prevents the mint from being too front and center (as it can be in the Southside) and the bitters give a wonderful spice that is both islandesque and old timey urban. So make one of these, and make it like this. 2 oz white rum (Havana Club) 1 oz simple syrup 3/4 oz lime juices 8-10 mint leaves 1 - 2 oz club soda Pour the syrup and the mint leaves the mixing glass of your shaker and muddle gently (until the leaves get a bit darker). Add the rest of the ingredients save the soda. Get your Lewis bag and beat the ever loving crap out of a whole bunch of ice, say 4 handfuls, until it’s Snoopy Snow Cone crushed. Fill your 10 oz highball glass 2/3 full with crushed ice and your mixing glass half full with the rest. Shake gently. Using both your shaker strainer (either the built in metal mesh of your metal Martin shaker, or the Hawthornew strainer of your Boston shaker) and the julep strainer, pour into glass. Top with soda, give it a couple of stirs and a straw. Adapted from Degroff pp 131
Paperol! Taking a bait of a break from th double Ds tonight,with a drink from Goncalo de Sousa. My partner in crime picked up a bottle of Aperol so I took mister de Sousa’s Paperol for a test drive. The predominant spirit in this drink is Aperol, which has aptly been described as “Campari with training wheels”. It’s a sweet, low proof (11%) digestif with a very forward orange flavor and some of the characteristic bitterness of Campari. Similarly, the Paperol is like a Negroni with training wheels - not nearly as strong or as bitter, but still nuanced. Like the Negroni, this drink is an ideal midday before meal appertif, though it’s lower proof makes it less likely to inspire dinner shenanigans. 1 1/2 oz Aperol 1/2 oz gin 2 tsp Cointreau 1/2 oz lime Shake with ice and strain into chilled martinit glass. Garnish with orange twist.
Morning Glory Fizz! The trick with this you’ve got to drink it quickly. At least that’s the idea this drink and the fizz category in general. The title suggests this drink was conceived to be consumed first thing in the morning with what one can assume is a truly epic hangover. Perhaps a bit on the sweet side, the absinthe and scotch nicely balance each other and the lemon and lime provide a subtle back drop. A very interesting drink, old timey goodness through and through. 2 oz Blended scotch (Johnny Walker Red) 1/2 oz lemon 1/4 lime 3/4 tbsp simple syrup (2-1 Demerara) 3-4 dashes absinthe 1/2 egg white (modern eggs are bigger than their forebearers) Shake with shaved ice very vigoriously, strain into an 8oz glass and top with seltzer/club soda. Drink immediately. Wonderich, pp. 115
Blood and Sand! I have a confession to make, I’ve generally made drinks calling for blended scotch (or any blended whisk[e]y) with Canadian whiskey. Specifically 40 Creek, far and away the best Canadian whiskey I’ve ever had. Here in Canada we have a bad habit of referring to said whiskey as “rye”. While it is true that there is rye in every Canadian style whisky, the only “rye” from Canada that is 100% rye guaranteed is Alberta Premium. Suffice it to say, that if I see a recipe that calls for rye, I make sure it is a 100% rye (usually Rittenhouse) and a recipe that calls for blended whisky I reach for 40 Creek. But this time I’ve followed the recipe as written and instead of a Canadian style blend, I’ve gone for Johnny Walker Red, a blended scotch. And I have to say, I prefer the Canadian whisky here. With the Johnny Walker, this drink is all smoke, with a sweet punch of cherry at the end. Like shooting Laphroaig and chasing with cough syrup. With the 40, the drink is definition of harmony, and one of my favorite cherry cocktails. 3/4 oz blended scotch (I prefer Canadian whisky) 3/4 oz Cherry Brandy (Cherry Heering - don’t bother with other brands) 3/4 oz Red vermouth 3/4 orange juice Degroff pp. 68
Rum Daisy! I’ve got mixed feelings about this. It’s balanced, complex and strong but the finish is on the thin side. I’d try it again with an older Bajan rum next time, I don’t think the Mount Gay Eclipse quite has what it takes here. Then again the ice was straight from my ice maker, and may have been a bit on the wet side, watering down the drink. 2 oz med body rum 1 - 1 1/2 tsp simple syrup (2-1 demerara) 1 1/2 maraschino (or orange curaçao) 1/2 lemon Shake with ice, stain into cocktail glass, splash a goodly amount of seltzer / club soda on top. Wondrich, pp. 109
“I only drink Champagne when I’m happy, and when I’m sad. Sometimes I drink it when I’m alone. When I have company, I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I am not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise I never touch it - unless I’m thirsty.” (Lily Bollinger)

“I only drink Champagne when I’m happy, and when I’m sad. Sometimes I drink it when I’m alone. When I have company, I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I am not hungry and drink it when I am.

Otherwise I never touch it - unless I’m thirsty.” (Lily Bollinger)

Egg Sour! Okay, so the picture makes it look like ass, and to be honest the visuals aren’t better on this side of them internets. But. The. Taste. This is the sour to end all sours. Sweet without being cloying, the lemon is nice and balances the egg beautifully, the dash of soda keeps it brisk and the float or of wine makes it very interesting. Also, holy crap the first episode of the BBC’s Dead Set is awesome. Right. Technically you might call this a New York sour as it’s made with rye, and egg sours were generally made with cognac. Whatever you call this it is damn tasty. 1 oz Rye (Rittenhouse Bonded) 1 oz Orange Curaco (Grand Marnier) 1/2 Lemon 2 tsp simple syrup (2-1 Demerara) 1 egg (Raw. Use fresh organic eggs. Also, cowboy up and stop worrying about salmonella) Shake very hard with ice, strain into in glass, add a splash of club soda followed by a 1/2 oz float (or dasher) of wine. Wonderich pp. 163
Whiskey Crusta! This drink is the progenitor of the sidecar, but IMHO a much superior drink. Like the sidecar, this drink needs the sugar rim to work (the spiral lemon peel is just for show, and can be replaced with a simple lemon twist). Like many of the old timey drinks you can make this with brandy (cognac - basically every drink recipe that ever for brandy pre WWII - should be made with cognac. Probably the ones after WWII as well) or genever (Bols makes the brand to get, apparently). Instead of drinking this properly and taking time to wring out some stunted similes that no one would ever confuse for tasting notes (excepting myself, perhaps), I got a tickle in my throat and coughed and hacked my way through the drink narrowly avoiding redecorating my laptop with Rittenhouse. Bottom line, if you’ve got the patience, you must try this. Like most of the drinks here, don’t order this at a bar unless it’s specifically on the menu. 2 oz Whiskey (Rittenhouse bonded) 1 tsp simple syrup (2-1 demerara) 1 tsp lemon 1/2 tsp curaco (Grand Marnier) or maraschino liqueur (Luxardo) 2 dashes bitters (Agnostura) peel half a lemon in a spiral and place into small wine or martini glass. rub lemon juice on the outside of the glasses and rim with sugar. add all ingredients to mixing glass 1/2 filled with crushed ice. Stir 20 times (more if using cubes, say 40) . Strain, serve, smile.
The Presbyterian! The Pres is a simple and classy drink, that while not outstanding is still very servicable. Not too sweet, finishes dry, and the bourbon doesn’t get completely stepped on. On a hot day, when you’ve got a hankering for some bourbon, but a glass full isn’t the thirst quencher you need (and it isn’t), the Presbyterian should be your go to. 1 1/2 oz Bourbon 2 oz ginger ale 2 oz club soda Lemon peel Build in ice filled highball glass, stir gently and enjoy Degroff, pg. 159
→