Punch Parties!

Those dog days of summer are here and who wants to shake and stir cocktails all night?  Make it easy on yourself and whip up these fine punches and rest your weary dogs.  Enjoy the party! 

Iberian Punch

Named for the European peninsula that contains Portugal, Spain and parts of France, this party drink packs its punch with wines and grape based spirits from that region.

¼ cup Madeira (if you can find the Rare Wine Historic Series New Orleans, you’ll thank me.  The Savannah series is great too)

¼ cup Ruby Port (I use Sandeman)

1 ½ cups amontillado sherry (try Lustau Los Arcos)

¼ cup Grand Marnier

2 chilled 750-ml bottles sparkling wine (Spanish Cava works well, Champagne is you are feeling fancy)

1 ½ cups Cognac (I use Pierre Ferrand 1840)

8 lemons

1/2 cup light raw sugar

Block Ice

Apple slices cut into festive shapes and frozen grapes

Fresh Grated Nutmeg (the fresh nut is a must)

Using a vegetable peeler, peel the lemons, and try to only remove the peel as the with pith can be bitter.

Muddle the peels in a bowl with the sugar and set aside for an hour to let the flavors combine.

Juice the lemons to make about 8oz of lemon juice. Add lemon juice to the bowl and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Strain the mixture, without the lemon peel into your punch bowl.

Add all the wines and liqueurs except for the Bubbles (save that for right before you serve) and add a block of ice (this can be made days before with a silicone baking dish)

For Garnish: Freeze individually picked grapes.  Right before serving, cut apples going from top to bottom and cut out festive shapes like stars, circles and trees with cookie cutters.  Add sparkling wine right before serving and grate fresh nutmeg over the entire punch bowl.

Irish Channel Punch

Satsuma is a local Louisiana citrus in season in the fall.  Its bright and bitter citrus flavor is perfect match with the subtle golden spiciness of the Irish whiskey.

Satsuma Punch

MAKES 9½ CUPS
 

INGREDIENTS

8 oz. fresh satsuma juice, plus zest
8 oz. fresh lemon juice, plus zest
8 oz sugar
750 ml strong Assam tea
1 (750 ml) bottle Irish whiskey
2 oz. Amer Hiver (Bitter orange and cinnamon liqueur)
1 oz. rosewater syrup*
Freshly grated nutmeg, for serving
Satsuma peel, for garnish
 

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a large punch bowl, toss the satsuma zest and lemon zest with the turbinado sugar and muddle well. Let sit for one hour.
   
   2. Add satsuma juice, lemon juice, tea, whiskey, liqueur, and rosewater syrup; stir until sugar has dissolved. Strain, chill, and serve with a dash of grated nutmeg. Garnish with satsuma peel, if you like.

Rosewater syrup can be found in some specialty stores.  Or you can make a simple syrup and ad a few drops of rosewater to taste.

Apple Pickin’ Punch

Upstate New York, where I am from, has a fine tradition of picking apple in the autumn.  This punch would be the perfect refresher after spending a crisp fall day in the orchard with the rye giving it a nice spice.

SERVES 15-20

INGREDIENTS

8 cups apple cider
3 cans (about 750ml) of dry hard cider (such as Crispen)

1 750ml bottles of ginger beer (such as Gingeroo) 

1 750ml bottle Rye Whiskey (such as Willett or Bulliet)
4 oz lemon juice

Several dashes orange bitters
1 orange sliced into rounds, and apples into Stars for garnish
Cinnamon sticks, star anise for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS

Combine the ciders, ginger beer, whiskey, lemon juice, and bitters in a large punch bowl or pitcher. Stir to combine. Top with orange slices and cinnamon sticks. Ladle into ice-filled punch glasses.

I’ll Take Manhattan

My Manhattan variations 

My favorite historical cocktail is the Manhattan.  This is the drink that exemplifies the cosmic shift in the universe from New Orleans to New York.  Why I dare say the cocktail’s rise to fame and glory began the day they finished the Eire Canal.  New York City becomes the most important port in America and our elders across the pond began to take notice.  Trade brings wine, spirits and vermouth from the Old Country as well as their tired and poor yearning to drink free.  This old world drinking style combines in a glass with bitters,  American Rye whiskey, the spirit George Washington and Thomas Jefferson made,  and pour like silk woven into the new American fabric.  The drink represents the new sophistication of Industrialized America and the world wide scope that our power now reached.

On a personal note, this is the first drink I learned how to make.  My grandpa taught me when I was 7 so I literally have over 30 years of experience making a Manhattan.  My Gramps had 44 grand kids and I was a girl right in the middle trying to get his attention and since I was always obsessed with those classic cocktail placemats at the diners our family would frequent, I became his personal barman.  He liked his sweet, a  1:1 ratio bourbon to sweet vermouth.  I like mine perfect with a twist, and with Rye, natch.

It was family lore that my Grandfather’s parents met while they were working at the old Waldorf-Astoria hotel.  But I have only recently discovered that my great –grandfather worked as a Waiter and bar man and made have been under the tutelage of the famous Oscar Tschirky.

It is my personal quest to find out more of about the origins and popularity of my favorite cocktail, The Manhattan and the city where my family bloomed.

My variations

Big Chief

2 oz Bourbon (Willet Pot Still)

½ oz Averna

½ oz Punt e Mes

Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.  Garnish with a flamed orange disk

Longshorman

2 oz Rye (Willet Rye)

½ oz Averna

½ oz Punt e Mes

Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.  Garnish with a flamed orange disk

The bitters are in the Punt e mes and this has a darker, deeper richer Manhattan.  Make it with Rye and I call it The Longshorman, because of its similarities to a Red Hook, which is based on the Brooklyn, which, in turn, was based on the Manhattan. They are both great 3 ingredient cocktails.

New York Mutt

2 oz Irish Whiskey (love Knappogue Castle 12 year old single malt..or Power’s John Lane)

½ oz  Pierre Ferrand dry curacao

¾ oz Sweet vermouth (Cinzano)

Dash of Maraschino Liqueur

Dash of Bitter Truth Jerry Thomas Bitters

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

I am Irish, Italian, Sicilian, French and Austrian.  My Mom used to call me a New York Mutt.  The ingredients in this cocktail represent every country my ancestors left to come to America, specifically, New York City.

7 Steps to Hell

2 oz Scotch (Black Grouse)

½ oz  Pierre Ferrand dry curacao

¾ oz Sweet vermouth (Cinzano)

Dash of Maraschino Liqueur

3 Dash of Bitter Truth Creole Bitters

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

A twist on my New York Mutt, this contains ingredients from all the countries my Grandfather Vincent served in during WWII.  He fought in Patton’s 7^th army, his unit’s name?  7 Steps to Hell.  My Grammy’s nickname to this day is Hell Kitty.  She was their pin up mascot.

Old Square

1 oz Bourbon

1 oz Lairds Apple Brandy, Bonded

1 oz sweet vermouth

Barspoon of Benedictine

Dash of Ango bittere

Dash of Orange bitters

Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass, garnish with a lemon twist

Really a Vieux Carre variation (which I see as a Manhattan variation for sure), but more “American” with the apple brandy and Bourbon, our official spirit as of 1964, and served up instead of on the rocks.  Came to me when I preferred my Vieux Carre’s served up and my Nola bartending friends told me emphatically that it was not a Vieux Carre if it was not served on the rocks.

Hickory Chicory Dock

2 oz Rye (Willet Rye)

1 oz Hoodoo Chicory Liquor

Dash of Orange bitters

Dash of Chocolate Mole bitters

Strain and serve up in a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a cherry

This is a nice twist if you can get your hands on this chicory liqueur.  

Perfect Pearing

1 oz Bourbon

1 oz Pear Brandy

1 oz Martini Gran Lusso (Or Lillet Red)

Stir over a big rock and garnish with a dusting of fresh grated cinnamon

Really I think this is another Vieux Carre variation, but certainly rooted in the principle ideas of the Manhattan.  Spirit, Vermouth and hint of bitter or bark in a 2:1:dash ratio.

Ring of Fire

I present a Valentine's Day cocktail!  It is spicy, sweet and sour...just like a real love affair!

I saw June Carter Cash sing for Johnny Cash's birthday once.  She came out with her harp and said, "This is a song I wrote about what it is like to be in love with Johnny Cash"  To see this gentle little old lady sing this song, her own composition, to her dying husband...well it just broke my little heart.  I hope one day to be a little old lady who loves someone this much.

Here is the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnplCRQVLDM

Here is the drink:

The Ring of Fire

1 1/2 oz Rougaroux Praline Rum

1/2 oz Willett Rye

1/2 oz cinnamon syrup

3/4 oz Lemon juice

healthy pinch of Cayenne/chili pepper blend

Shake all ingredients and strain into a chilled cocktail glass with a half rim of Cayenne sugar.

Whiskey

Santa Baby, slip this whiskey under my tree?

Just to let you know how far we have come in our selection of Whiskey...

Last night I was at a new music venue to see The Black Crowes.  PS, Amazing show, my first time seeing one of my favorite rock bands...Finally!  They played Twice as Hard and I was 17 again, driving those country roads in Virginia in my pick up truck names Elvis again.

But I am not 17 anymore, and thank goodness because now I can drink at rock shows!  And drink I did.

I started with a really fine Tennessee whiskey cocktail.  No, not Jack...they had George Dickel!  They made a delicious Old Fashioned with honey and Boston bitters.  Well done, Civic.  They teamed up with my dear friend Neal Bodenheimer of Cure and Bellocq to make easy and delicious cocktails using small batch and organic spirits.  The batched cocktails look clean and inviting in lovely glass bottles.  I will go back to try them all, but I decided I was on a whiskey adventure.

So next stop on my whiskey safari was Islay.   I had some Organic Bruichladdich scotch.  A treat but I had to!  I have been to that distillery, so I slurred to the bartender as he called it a Bourbon!  No!  Its a scotch.  And a mighty fine one too.

I slowed down and next just poured some Rye Whiskey from my Punch Brother's flask over some fresh rocks.  I assume its some Bulliet Rye.  Tastes good.

They I ended my whiskey parade with some Micheal Powers Irish whiskey.  I had heard rumors that this Whiskey had been discontinued.  Better drink it up before its gone, I guess.

Tennessee, Scotch, Rye, Irish.  So many whiskeys available on a single night.  Whiskey is back.  We are living in a new golden age.  Golden brown honey spicy smokey age.  Yum.

Bourbon for Breakfast?

Rock Stars

Rock Stars

One of the best things about my job is the delightful wonderful charming lovely people I get to meet.  Thanks to my dear friend Lorelei, and some positive Yelp reviews, some more of these people found me.  These guys were sweet enough to get some of us from the restaurant into their sold out show, hang out with us in the VIP room, and be generally awesome, kind and funny.  And they had the audacity to call ME the rockstar!  

Here is The Barnacle created for Aaron of Awol Nation last night.  Thanks guys!

The Barnacle
1 1/2 oz Johnny Drum Bourbon
1/2 oz Willett Reserve Rye
1/2  oz Apricot liqueur
1/2 oz lemon
dash of ginger syrup

shake serve up

So This Happened...



I'm on a bus!

 There is still a magic to living in New Orleans.  Just when I felt all used up.  Just when I started to feel the persistent battering ram of doubt, pity and self hate.  Then something wonderful happens.  Some boys came into town.  But not just any boys.  Lovely sweet boys with massive talent.  Genius talent some say...Boys that dedicated a song to ME in a crowded room filled with fans.

I am RyeGirl, after all.  Rye Whiskey is my jam.  LeSigh.  Thank you, oh goddess of Nola.

Creole Commando

One of my favorite drinks I learned during my time at The Beagle in NYC was the Commando.  Its a variation of the Sidecar, another favorite classic of mine.  And here at SoBou, when people ask for an off menu drink, I often guide them to the Commando.  Its refreshing and citrusy but has a nice Bourbon kick.  And the Absinthe rinse is pure New Orleans.  

The Commando was such a hit with a customer last night, that he asked for further variations of THAT drink!  Well, easily done as Creole Shubb makes an interesting, more Nola alternative to Cointreau and this blog is called RyeGirl, after all.  So I present the Creole Commando!  Reminds me of all my New Orleans friends who spent the recent hurricane with pistols and automatic weapons strapped to their sides (yikes!).





Creole Commando
1 1/2 oz Rittenhouse Rye Whiskey
1 oz Rhum Clément Creole Shrubb
1/2 oz Lemon juice

Rinse coupe with Absinthe. Shake, strain up, no garnish.

Commando 

1/2 oz lemon,
1 oz Cointreau,
1 1/2 Elijah Craig 12yr.

Rinse coupe with Absinthe. Shake, strain up, no garnish.

Sidecar

3/4 oz Lemon

3/4 oz Cointreau

1 1/2 oz Brandy or Cognac (Lairds apple brandy is good!)

rim glass with lemon juice and sugar rim, shake, strain up. 

The Next Battleground: The Old Fashioned

Yes! 19th Century Old Fashioned

In recent years, we historically minded bartenders have fought the good fight for the case of the Martini.  A Martini is a drink consisting of Gin, Vermouth and sometimes bitters with a twist.  They are not made with vodka and no vermouth, and they are not Dirty.  They certainly DO NOT have any fruity thing like Apple pucker, pom or choco tacked on to the front of them.  They can be served in a martini glass, though I prefer an classic Nick & Nora.  If you like Vodka in a martini glass with no vermouth, you just ordered chilled Vodka in a Martini glass.  That, in no way, is a Martini.  If you do not like the taste of vermouth (and I keep my vermouth chilled and fresh so you really should like its delicious taste) then no amount should go into your Vodka drink.  Since Vodka, by its very nature, has no odor or taste, it won't matter if I make your drink "dry" or extra dry.  I splash or a full ounce, all you will taste will be vermouth.   


I could go on, but you know what I am talking about, right?  PS...if you really are afraid of Gin, try my Vesper.  It has converted 9 out of 10 dirty vodka drinkers when made by my hands.  What really helps is the story, and that is where we bartenders can flourish and nail the sale.

Em..No, thanks. 20th Century Old Fashioned.

While this battle obviously rages on, I see a new battlefield opening up.  The Old Fashioned.  I'll admit, as a young drinker, I was besotted with that mush of orange and cherry.  It was like a Shirley Temple for grown ups.  I always knew it was too sweet and asked for extra bitters and eventually requested no sugar at all.  Extra bitters, no sugar, nice cherries, bitter orange rind, the 20th Century Old Fashioned (as we called it at Fort Defiance) is not a terrible drink in the right hands.  Some drinks still demand this fruity slush, such as the Wisconsin Brandy Old Fashioned.


But a true Old Fashioned is from the 19th century and one of the oldest cocktails ever made, hence the name and the fabulous story that goes with it.  Bartenders...convert your customers with the story of how the Old Fashioned got its name and see your educated customers flourish with your sales.

The Story of the Old Fashioned

May 13th, 1806 Hudson, NY- the first recorded date of the definition of the word cocktail.   Spirit, bitters, sugar, water.  Boom.  That is it easy peasy.  It was basically a bittered Sling.  It was a drink, singular, like the Martini, not a class of drinks (see above).  Introduce ice and fresh citrus peel and you have got a more modern looking Cocktail.  More specifically, you have what we at Fort Defiance called the 19th Century Old Fashioned.  But when did the drink become old fashioned?  Well flash forward to the 1860's-1880's.  This is bartending's first golden age, the days of Jerry Thomas, Only William and the Bon Vivants.  You have all sorts of mustachioed barkeeps in vests and diamond stick pins making all sorts of drinks, lighting Blue Blazer's on fire and putting on a show behind the bar (sound familiar?).  Well an old timer would stumble into one of these new-fanagled saloons and order a Cocktail, you know, the DRINK.  Well these wise ass bartenders or "Mixologysts", as they called themselves, would ask what kids of fancy cocktail the old timer wanted.  After all they were trained and well versed in all sorts of cocktail creations, fizzes, flips, bucks, improved cocktails etc...


"No!  Just stop high there, fancy pants!", I imagine the salty old timer saying.  "I just want a cocktail, an OLD FASHIONED cocktail!"  There is the magical moment in the story.  "And shave that mustache, you hippie", he might have added in my imagination.


And there is how the Old Fashioned got its name.  So mix one up...its so easy to do at home and I can do it even when the cupboards are bare.  That reason is probably why the Old Fashioned is the most popular drink in this household.  The cupboards are often bare.  


Raise a glass to the old timers who just want an Old Fashioned cocktail!


The 19th Century Old Fashioned
2 oz Spirit (Whiskey, rum, tequila, gin etc...)
sugar cube or bar spoon of simple syrup or maple or honey
Bitters (oh just have fun and pick 1 or 2)
Citrus Twist


Build in an Old Fashioned glass (duh) and stir in big rocks.  Twist a spiral or large swath of citrus.  Mostly Lemon, but lime for rum is awesome and grapefruit for tequila and mezcal rocks my world.  This drink gets better as it sits.

Rye Whiskey in RyeGirl's Hometown!

To be more specific, there is not rye whiskey being made in one of my hometowns.  I had a bit of a nomadic childhood as the daughter of radio broadcaster.  My Dad calls me an Air FARCE Brat.  But from the middle of my high school senior year til the day I packed a suitcase and moved to NYC 17 years ago, I lived in the beautiful blue ridge mountains of Northern Virginia.  While I spent a majority of that time running off to DC, the Mall or an elementary school parking lot to make out with my very cool (younger!) boyfriend,  always enjoyed the history and beauty of this historic part of the country.

Frank the Distillery Dog

I was not alone.  After a nomadic childhood as well, Scott Harris and his wife Becky decided to settle in Purcelville and start a distillery.  With a nod to a historic Virginia crop, they distilled 100% rye.  Thomas Jefferson planted it, George Washington planted and distilled it himself at Mount Vernon a few miles away.  Farmers still rotate a rye planting in their crops, though most just plow it under these days.  Scott and Becky get their organic rye from the midwest, but are looking to start getting local organic farmers involved.

Scott doing his tour

Local and sustainable is a theme at this small distillery.  The high alcohol "heads" are used to clean the equipment and the tails are recycled into the next batch, as most distillers do.  Becky and Scott do much of the work themselves (Becky fired up the forklift to take in a 4 ton rye flour delivery while I was there) and they count on volunteers when bottling time comes around.  Their love and dedication comes through as the product is quite delicious.


The first small batch product we tried was Mosby's Spirit.  This is an unaged rye not distilled enough times to be a vodka.  It also lacks the white lightening bite to be a rye "moonshine".  Despite being diluted down to 80 proof, it has a hot flash of ethanol that hides the grainy rye taste I look for in white lightening. When the burn in my pallet fades though is had that pleasant rye chewy mouth feel.  Nice for breakfast (when I am doing this second tasting...)


The Mosbey spirit is also aged in new charred white oak from Minnesota to produce Catoctin Creek Roundstone Rye.  The nose has that classic toasted oak with a hint of sweetness that bursts through when it hits the tongue.  Again there is a hotness that belies its 40% alcohol.  It mixes well and I made both a Manhattan and Vieux Carre to great success.  I used 1/2 Capano, 1/2 sweet vermouth to balance and bring out the beautiful vanilla notes in this rye.

The Still

Triple distilled form both rye and wheat, Catoctin Creek Watershed Gin is my favorite of the bunch.  Here the proof is pumped up to 100 and the creamy notes of the rye is tempered with dryness of the wheat.  Like many American style gins, it is citrus forward with a nice bite of juniper.  I have to experiment with it more, but I imagine it would make an excellent Corpse Reviver no 2.  Again, the creamy vanilla make it a perfect match for Carpano and a handsome Martinez.


Perhaps Catoctin should barrel age some of their Watershed Gin ala my boys in Brooklyn.  Or perhaps I should barrel age that Martinez?  Yes!  That is the ticket!










Perhaps I need to go back to Loudoun Valley and get a custom filled barrel.  I would not mind another road trip up and down route 81 and the Blue Ridge Mountains.  That has got to be some of the most beautiful driving in this here United States.  I am so lucky I spent a great deal of my late teenage years rambling up and down these hills.

US Route 81 in Virginia

Divorce American Style

Awww...every night in NYC!

My inbox runith over with emails about Valentine's Day cocktails.  So here is my own bitter take on that travesty.  The Grounds for Divorce is a Manhattan variation, natch.  Pretty tasty too.  The recipe calls for Amaro so here is where you can get really creative, like deciding what on grounds you are actually going to file for.  Adultery? Fernet Branca.  Abandonment? Amaro Nonnio.  Indifference? Averna.  Cruel and unusual punishment? Amaro dell'Erborista.  Easy as Newt wives 1, 2, 3.

Grounds for Divorce
1/2 oz Campari
1/2 oz sweet vermouth
1/2 oz Amaro (choose your poison)
2 oz Whiskey, American Style


Stir over ice and serve up with a twist of very bitter lemon.

Charbonneau Way

This drink got the seal of approval from many folks at the bar tonight.  And, more importantly, it was approved by the Bossman to go on the new menu at Fort Defiance.  I wanted to honor my French Canadian roots with a Rye drink with french influence.  Suze is a light floral French bitter and it used to only be available in Europe.  Many a bottle has been brought back from trips across the pond.  Now that Suze is available here in the states, I have had so much fun working it into cocktails at the bar.  Naturally, I had to put some maple syrup in it too.  Charbonneau Way is the name of the the road where our sugar house lies.  The Sugar House is where we make sweet Catskill maple syrup.


Charbonneau Way
2 oz Rye
1/2 oz Maple Syrup
1/2 oz Lemon juice
1/2 oz Suze
Absinthe rinse on the glass.


Shake all ingredients with cracked ice and strain into a chilled cocktail coup rinsed with absinthe.

Cherokee Rose

Chef Julian says I am speaking his language with this one. I was fooling around with a Bartender's Choice for a dear regular, Matt and was inspired to make this twist on a La Rosita. Matt and Julian, and most people I know actually, are partial to a nice Rye. So I subbed out the tequila, added a touch of Benedictine and orange bitters in addition to the Jerry Thomas old fashioned bitters. The name came from last nights episode of The Walking Dead, a conversation started for myself and Matt tonight. Man, I love talking smart tv with smart tv people who like rye.

Cherokee Rose
1 1/2 Rittenhouse Rye
1/2 sweet vermouth
1/2 dry vermouth
1/4 Benedictine
1/4 Campari
Dash Bitter Truth Orange Bitters
Dash Jerry Thomas Bitters

Stir all ingredients over ice and serve in a rocks glass with fresh ice.

Garnish Lemon twist

Rye Girl Approved

So you know I love all things Rye, right? Even Triscuits! Maybe I can crumble this up and rim a cocktail with it. Ok..seriously. Sunday at The Beagle needs to be a bit more busy for me, people. At least I get a moment to be creative. Made a nice boubon honey chartrueause cocktail for my kitchen. And of course I went though the last of the concord grapes.

What fun fall fruits and veggies will Chef bring me next?

Fall Cocktails

A chill has fallen over New York City and I am looking for ways to warm up my insides.  Good thing I love good booze.


With Oktoberfest right around he corner, I am enjoying more beer cocktails.  My colleague at The Beagle, Tom, has created a refreshing cocktail called the Hop Over.  Its a refreshing mix of IPA, lemon, Genever and Velvet Falernum, or rather Velour Falernum since Dan has begun making his own.Falernum is a spiced liqueur from the cariibean flavers with clove and lime zest.


On the seasonal front, its apple time here in New York State and I made my own appletini with the last of the fresh raspberries, apple brandy, lemon, honey and ginger. Grate cinnamon over a red apple slice fan and you have a real fall beauty.


Apple Brandy is a wonderful introduction to Fall cocktails.  At Fort Defiance we have the Marconi Wireless, a Manhattan variation with Lairds mixed with two kinds of sweet vermouth.  How can you go wrong with a Manhattan variation?


And this is my favorite time of year here in NYC.  The weather is spectacular so why not celebrate the change of seasons with my favorite drink, a Manhattan?  As long as your vermouth is fresh and your cherries aren't radioactive, a well made Manhattan should be easy.  Try cutting the vermouth with a rich amaro like Averna or a bitter one like Campari for a different twist on a Manhattan.  Or how about half bourbon half rye?  Its is Bourbon Heritage Month after all...


Indian Summer
2 oz Apple Brandy
1/2 oz honey syrup
1/2 oz ginger syrup
3/4 oz lemon juice
Fresh raspberries


Muddle raspberries with ginger and honey syrup. Shake with brandy and lemon juice and strain over fresh ice into an old fashioned glass.  Garnish with a fan of sliced apple and fresh grated cinnamon.

Barrel Aged Cocktails at The Beagle

Pal resting by some Tuthilltown Barrels

I had my doubts about barrel aging.  First of all, what is the point is there in putting barrel aged cocktails back in a barrel, hence the wealth of aged negroni's.  Second of all, make a mistake and its an expensive experiment gone awry, hence the wealth once again of aged negroni's.  


But I now have first hand knowledge on how delicious these cocktails can be.  Dan and Matt from The Beagle have introduced some cocktails that have been aged downstairs in our own little solara barrel system.  I am only at the bar on Sundays, and we sell thru them rather quickly but I have been lucky enough to taste all three.  We started with a Tuxedo no. 2, then a White dog Manhattan and now have a Rosalind Russell.  All three are quite different, but have a certain thread that holds them together; they are excellent!  The barrel blends the flavors together and gives it a spicy bite.  The corn-y-ness of the white dog gets a boost from the aging that is exactly what barrel aged cocktails are all about.  And it is a very different cocktail then the original, a truly unique cocktail in the right hands.  I am hoping to do my own, a Diamondback with Pisco and white dog rye.

Guardian of the Booze!

Think you want to try your own?  The Wall Street Journal has step by step instructions in this article here.


In the meantime, come down to The Beagle and see what we are pulling out of the barrels this week!


"Barrel-Aged Drinks: Mix, Store, Pour"
[WSJ]

Lemon Basil Julep

In this hot summer heat wave, its good to look to the drinks that our Cocktail forefathers turned to before the days of air-conditioning.  You may be filled with visions of fine southern gentlemen and their dainty ladies sipping Juleps on the porch of their plantation, but this drink is rooted in pre-antebellum times and was far more global.  First of all, as a classification, it does not have to have Bourbon in it, nor mint for that matter.  A Julep is all about the construction and perfect melding of sugar, spirit and ice.The Julep is one of the oldest cocktails and in the 1700's was used for medicinal purposes with all sorts of herbal relief, not just Mint.

So lets put a modern twist to this summer chiller and head to the Farmer's Market for some seasonal herbs.  Lemon Basil, which is now in season, has a crisp clean antiseptic quality to it.  It is heartier than regular basil and not as sweet with a verbena -like tang.  With a touch of sweetness from the honey syrup and a peppery bite from the Rye Whiskey, this frosty sipper certainly seems like just what the doctor would order on a sweltering day.  The metal Julep cup is a must here to create that nice frost on the cup.  If you don't have a silver Julep cup, the small part of a metal cocktail shaker will do in a pinch.

Lemon Basil Julep
2 oz Rye Whiskey (I like Rittenhouse 100 proof)
1/2 oz Honey Syrup*
Large sprigs of Lemon Basil
Crushed or shaved ice

Gently muddle about 7-8 leaves of lemon basil in the bottom of your julep cup with the honey syrup.  Add the Rye and a scoop of crushed ice. Stir until a frost forms on the outside of the julep cup.  Top with a big mound of snowy crushed ice and a big sprig of Lemon Basil.  Insert a straw cut short so your face is in the basil everytime you take a sip.  Sit back on the porch and sip the summer away.

*to make the honey syrup, mix equal parts honey and hot water until the honey pours freely.

Happy Canada Day!

Ok so this post is a bit belated..but I am old and this technology is new. Don't worry. I'll catch up. I learn fast. Just look at my mad leaps in my Mixology skills over the last year or so! Then again, I always had the talent..and you are just born with that, Darlings!

Speaking of Darling, I had the pleasure of spending happy hour on friday in the lovely abode of Mr and Mrs Cocktail Daddy. Inspired as we were to play with acid phosphate, my final cocktail came from the Great White North. It was Canada Day afterall, and I love using maple syrup in cocktails. So I made a Sazerac, eh? Straight up delicious. 'Bout time.

Sazerac, Eh?
2 oz Rye (Canadian,natch)
Barspoon pure maple syrup
4 dash Creole Bitters
3 dash ango bitters
Absinthe rinse
Lemon twist

Chill an old fashioned glass in the freezer.
Mix rye, bittters, and maple syrup in a glass with cracked ice. Rinse frozen old fashioned glass with absinthe while you name all ten provinces and three territories of Canada. Strain cocktail into glass. Express the oils of a lemon peel, dip the peel in the glass and then discard. Sazerac, eh?

Whiskey Primer

Whiskey under a Microscope: Cool, FSU!!!

Since I got back from Ireland and Scotland, a lot of people have been asking me about Whiskey production. I have a much better sense of it now that I have been to the great distilleries of Islay (its still a lot of waiting though and I am not a patient girl). But my dad has sent me a wonderful little primer from the BBC, always a great source of news. So check this out if you are still confused about Whiskey or Whisky or its place in the world.

Thanks Dad!

Travelwise: A guide to the lingo and history of Whiskey
[BBC.com]

Blues and Bluegrass

Still in the midst of my work-a-thon. I don't do drugs, rarely drink coffee (unless its the good stuff at The Fort), have no social life, and hardly drink anymore unless its tasting my own cocktails to make sure that I made them right in my delirious state. How am I functioning? How do I not have the Blues deep in my cold lonely soul? How do I keep my energy up, you ask? Bluegrass, baby. Bluegrass.

Play it boys!

Pop Up Art

So if you have been watching Top Chef this season you know that Pop Up restaurants are all the rage. They are a temporary concept for a restaurant that is bare bones and a bit more fun since they are not tied to permanent idea. The boys form Fatty Crab and Fatty 'Cue decided to do just that with their former Cabrito space in the West Village and open Fatty Johnsons. They also have had the brilliant ideas to get the city's talented bartenders in on the fun. Guest bartending is a lot of hard work but it is also a neat opportunity to show off some of your own drinks and just play in someone else's sandbox.

Tonight Ivy Mix and I are popping up behind the stick at Fatty's. Here is a sneak preview of our menu. Hope to see you all in my old neighborhood!

La Dulce Vida
1.5 oz Chairman's Reserve Rum
3/4 oz Vida Mezcal
3/4 oz lime
3/4 oz Spiced Syrup (Abby's Mix)

Shake serve up in coup with grated cinnamon

Morton Street
1 oz Bourbon
1 oz Wild Turkey Rye
2 oz Fresh Grapefruit
3/4 oz rosemary infused Maple Syrup
Club Soda

Shake, serve on the rocks in a collins glass, top with soda and garnish with a sprig of fresh rosemary

7 Steps to Hell
1.5 oz Compass Box Oak Cross
1/2 oz Maraschino liqueur
1/2 oz Cynar
Barspoon of Peat Monster
dash each of Jerry Thomas Own Decanter and Creole Bitters

Stir serve up in a glass spritzed with Peat Monster and lemon twist

Jezebel

1.5 hendricks
1 banks rum
.5 cocchi americano
.5 dolin dry
dash of angostura orange bitters
stir, coupe/martini/up, lemon twist

Collo Rosso

1 appleton VX
3/4 old forester 101
3/4 carpano antica
1/2 campari
stir, dbl rocks, rocks, orange twist

La Sonámula

1.5 jalapeño infused jimador blanco tequila
1 lemon juice
3/4 chamomile syrup
2 dash peychaud
shake, coupe/martini/up, thyme sprig garnish (optional)