Ragtime!

Before I even moved up to the northern Virginia area, I knew Ragtime – it was the bar we always seemed to end up at in Courthouse around 1 AM, just before last call, with a “surprise” tray of shots and a hangover the next day. Indeed, that reputation stuck with me for a while after moving to NoVA, mostly courteous of one friend who was always giving his number to the servers.

When I moved into Courthouse, though, I discovered that it’s actually a fantastic bar – not just because it’s a WVU Mountaineers bar (which made my parents happy when we went there just after my move) but because of a great staff and a constantly improving beer selection. I’ve been there hundreds of times (according to Foursquare, nearly 400 times) and probably had just about everything on the menu.

The one thing I never really drank, though, were the mixed drinks, with just two exceptions. One was when they did a martini night, and I could get a nice big glass of cold gin with extra vermouth for cheap. The other was the infamous (to us) pomegranate martini, which despite being called a martini was based off tequila. We (we being the guys) would go to Ragtime claiming girlfriends/wives wanted the pomegranate martini, but really we’d end up drinking lots of them. They were kind of addictive.

The latest restaurant by the same owners had a more focused cocktail program and Ragtime went through a time of doing flavored liquors, but still I was surprised recently when they announced their new cocktail program, focusing on classic drinks and fresh ingredients, including squeezed to order juices and housemade syrups such as orgeat. I, of course, needed to check this out as soon as I could, on a night when I wasn’t doing something stupid like drinking two or three pitchers of Blue Point Toasted Lager.

Death in the Afternoon

Fortunately, I got my chance last night finally when I was meeting a friend there (like I’m going to drink all nine cocktails in one night!).

The first thing that really surprised me was the cost of the drinks. The most expensive drink on the menu was $10, and most were $7-$8. In this town that’s a steal! But still, I’d have to try them first. Just to note: I wasn’t sitting at the actual bar, but at a high top near it. I could see the bartenders making my drinks, but I did not notice brands being used.

Death in the Afternoon – $8 – absinthe, lemon, simple syrup, champagne. I’ve had these before and never been a huge fan, but this one hit me just right – the absinthe taste was prominent, and I’m not a fan of absinthe for the most part, but the combination worked out really well. It was served in a traditional champagne coupe (see right) and was exactly the drink I needed to start off the night.

Vieux Carre

Vieux Carre – $10 (only $10 drink on the menu) – rye, cognac, Dolin Rouge, green Chartreuse, Angostura, Peychauds, lemon. First off, I was glad to see Dolin listed! That’s my favorite vermouth. As you can see in the picture, it’s served over one large ice cube and felt like a substantial drink (I did not measure, so that’s why I said “felt like”). I sipped off the top first and wasn’t impressed but liked it more as I drank out of the straw. For me, personally, it could’ve used a bit more bitters in it, but I also know the environment they’re working in – a super-bitter drink probably ain’t gonna work in a sports bar. (Really, the fact that they’re doing this menu at all is amazing and exciting to me, and makes me even more excited about football season!)

Unfortunately, they were out of mint, so the?mint julep and the?Queen’s Park Swizzle weren’t available (the latter being my next choice). So let’s stick with Hemingway!

Hemingway Daiquiri and Pimm’s Cup No. 1

Hemingway Daiquiri – $8 – white rum, maraschino, grapefruit, lime, simple syrup. This came out well-balanced as well, with a solid taste of maraschino in the back end that I thought brought the whole thing together nicely. My companion didn’t agree, as she felt it tasted more alcohol-y, but I’ve grown an appreciation for the taste of maraschino recently. It’s very easy for maraschino to overwhelm a drink so someone newer to those flavors might be hesitant at the flavor but I think after a drink or two they would really enjoy it.

My friend got a Pimm’s Cup.

Pimm’s Cup No. 1 – $7 – Pimms, rosemary syrup, lemon, ginger beer, garden garnish. Yes, technically the “Pimm’s Cup No. 1″ is the name of the liqueur in the drink, as Pimm’s makes a few varieties (which you really can’t get any but #1 in the US). I’ve never had one with rosemary syrup in it and at first was hesitant, but I grew to like it – it gave it a dry herbaciousness (is that a word?) which I think would make it more easily drinkable in quantity on a hot summer day than a sweeter version may be, though it still had a sweetness to it.

…and with that, I switched back to Toasted Lager, because I didn’t really need more liquor.

Tomorrow (Friday, May 30th) at 7 PM in the back bar they’ll be releasing some barrel-aged cocktails: Basil Hayden Manhattans and Makers 46 Sazeracs. I’m going to try to swing by because I’d like to see how they come out, so say hi if you see me!

– ?SeanMike

Ahhhh . . . Mixology Monday XLVI.? I’ve never been good at roman numerals, so I’m not even going to guess what that translates to in normal non-roman number type things.? Regardless, it’s that time again and this month we are being hosted by Sonja at Thinking of Drinking.? Sonja’s chosen theme is absinthe and a fitting theme she has chosen, especially since Sonja is the brain behind North Shore Distillery’s Sir?ne Absinthe Verte.? Sonja’s instructions:

The topic for February is Absinthe. That much maligned, misunderstood, mistreated spirit, suddenly plentiful again in the US and other parts of the world. Absinthe played a role, whether large or small, in a variety of great cocktails from the 1800?s and early 1900?s ? the Sazerac, Absinthe Suissesse, Corpse Reviver No. 2? I?m getting thirsty. So let?s celebrate absinthe?s history, and it?s future, with all manner of cocktails using absinthe.

For this task, I turned to a myriad cocktail books to find a new drink to present to you good folks.? Looking through the 2009 Tales of the Cocktail Recipe Book, I found a very tasty looking tipple.

Green Fairy Sour
1 oz Absinthe (I used Vieux Carre)
1 oz fresh lemon juice
1 oz mineral water (I used plain ole filtered water)
.75 oz simple syrup (2:1)
1 dash Angostura
half an egg white

Dry shake all nice a long.? Add ice and shake like a 19th Century absinthe addict.? Fine strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

First, I’d like to point out that this was the best foam I’ve ever gotten on a drink with egg white.? Woot!? Second, this is a fantastic drink!? It isn’t too sweet or too sour.? The absinthe is front and center but not overpowering by any means.? Honestly, I think I’d like to try it with a little extra absinthe in the mix.? Maybe another dash of bitters.? Regardless, this is a damn fine tasty drink.

I can’t wait to see what other beverages folks write about utilizing absinthe.? But, as is our want, we like to give you at least one more drink for your consumption.

So I’m going to use this opportunity to pimp my favorite cocktail yet again.? Plus there is the added benefit of having the New Orleans Saints as Superbowl Champions to celebrate while drinking this down.

Cocktail a la Louisiane
1 oz rye whiskey
1 oz sweet vermouth
1 oz Benedictine
.25 oz absinthe
3-4 healthy dashes Peychaud’s bitters

Stir all ingredients until frosty cold.? Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and twist some lemon peel over the drink.? Garnish with a maraschino cherry and a lemon twist.? Yes, I like both lemon peel and a cherry.? Sue me.

There you have it.? A few great uses for absinthe.? Thanks again to Sonja for hosting and I’ll see you at the bar!

Cheers!

This month Mixology Monday is being hosted by Vidiot over at Cocktailians and the chosen theme is vermouth.?? Our instructions,

So: your challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to present a delectable vermouth cocktail for us all to drool over. Sweet/Italian or dry/French vermouth are fair game of course, as are quinquina, aperitif wines like Pineau des Charentes, or for that matter any fortified, aromatized wine such as Lillet (red or white), or Dubonnet (ditto.)

I can’t necessarily promise a delectable cocktail, but I thought this would be a great opportunity to try something new.? Vermouth, as most folks will tell (and as I’m sure you’ll read in other MxMo posts) is an incredibly versatile ingredient.? Without getting into the nitty-gritty on the correct storage methods, the various types, or the various herbs and flavorings that go into vermouth, the most important thing to know that vermouth brings a lot of complementary flavors to a cocktail.

When I first started getting indoctrinated into the world of classic cocktails, I wasn’t a big fan of vermouth.? Maybe I had some not-so-fresh vermouth.? Maybe my palate wasn’t as refined as it is now.? Regardless, I’m now a vermouth convert.

In wanting to try new a new cocktail, I turned to our old friend the Savoy Cocktail Book.? This is a cocktail I’ve wanted to try for a while but for some reason never got around to it.

ATTY Cocktail (p. 25)
1/4 dry vermouth? (.50 oz dry vermouth)
1 bar spoon absinthe
3/4 London Dry Gin (1.50 oz London Dry Gin)
1 bar spoon creme de violette

Shake (really? please stir this drink!) with ice, strain into a cocktail glass.

Basically, the ATTY is a 3 to 1 dry martini with a little absinthe and a little creme de violette added to the mix.? It isn’t a bad cocktail, the aromatics and herbs of the dry vermouth really shine through.? The absinthe gives a slight anise note and the violette adds color.?? You can see from the photo the light purple hue to the drink.? To be honest, the flavor of the violette melds into the herbs of the dry vermouth and gets sort of lost.? Definitely stir this drink really well to get it as cold as you can.

And, in Scofflaw’s Den tradition, I can’t just leave you with one drink for MxMo!? I decided to try another new cocktail and with Halloween around the corner the following number from Gary Regan’s The Joy of Mixology seemed quite appropriate.

Deadly Sin (p. 245)
2oz Bourbon
1/3oz sweet vermouth
1/4oz maraschino liqueur
1 dash orange bitters
orange twist for garnish

Stir with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The Deadly Sin is definitely a bourbon lovers cocktail.? Unfortunately, I didn’t have any oranges in the house so I couldn’t use the peel for a garnish and I think that would really make the drink better.? As it was made you get a slight cherry note from the maraschino and the vermouth underscores the inherent sweetness of the bourbon.

And this brings another Mixology Monday to a close.? Thanks again to Vidiot for hosting this month!

Cheers!

It’s been a while.? We hit Tales of the Cocktail back in July – and not long after I got back from that I found out that my job was sending me out of the country.? It was the first time for me doing so, which also meant I got to do the fun of trying to get a passport in less than two weeks (surprisingly easy in the DC area once you get past the misinformation and apathy), get my stuff together, and head out to South Korea.

Which, really, at least the parts I was in, seemed to have no cocktail culture.? I didn’t even see a bottle of Campari the entire time I was there which meant that first Negroni back was magical – not to mention how I almost came to tears tasting hops in my Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA the first day back.? I did have my soju, and lots and lots of Cass and Hite, but that’s neither here nor there for this post.

Before I left I had a chance to meet up with Erich and Lindsay from Leopold Brothers over at The Gibson.? They took me on a tour of fourteen of their products, from vodka and gin to flavored whiskey to liqueurs, and I was honestly surprised at a lot of them.? When I got back I was lucky enough to find my favorite liquor shop was carrying some of them.? One thing you might not be able to see from the picture is that each bottle is hand numbered.

Keep away, this bottle is mine

We first started off with the vodka.? It uses multiple bases for it and instead of filtering distills it more.? I was really expected to say “meh, vodka” but liked the complexity I tasted in it when warm.? I haven’t bought a bottle yet but I’d have to say it’s more likely to be the kind of vodka I’ll buy for drinking straight – yes, I do that, shut up vodka haters – than for mixing.? Use the cheaper, more one dimensional stuff for mixing where you ain’t gonna taste it.? This is the kind I’ll knock back and chase with caviar and sour cream on homemade potato chips at New Year’s Eve.

Next up was the gin, which has a number of botanicals that are all distilled separately before being added together.? I picked out cardamom and coriander, I’m going to guess by accident, though I was surprised to see how floral it was and that there wasn’t much of a pine hit to it.? This is the gin I used to make my first Negroni after coming back to the States and while it was fine in that, it really shone in gin and tonic, especially with the Fentiman’s tonic.? I’ll be making more of those now that I managed to steal my bottle back.

After the gin we hit the rum.? It reminded me quite a bit of a rhum agricole – not something I’d necessarily drink straight but an interesting flavor.

The next three drinks we had were their flavored whiskeys.? They’re working on a plain whiskey but I didn’t get a chance to try that.

First up was the apple whiskey.? This was, as I said then and will still say now until I’ve drank too much of it, “slap yo’ momma” good.? (Note: now my momma will probably slap me, but what will be will be.? It’s worth it.)? They use real apples and smash the fruit in house.? I was reminded me of a story my grandfather told me about drinking hard cider made in bourbon barrels that had bourbon left in the bottom.? I seriously need to get at least a bottle or two of this, especially as fall approaches.? In fact, I have plans for me, a bottle, and NOBODY ELSE BOTHERING ME WHILE I WATCH FOOTBALL.? I don’t wanna share.

The blackberry whiskey was much more aggressive in the taste profile.? I almost felt like it was more like a blackberry wine in taste.? It didn’t bowl me over, but I could see how someone who really likes blackberries would love it (coughcoughMarshall) and it could be good in some things.? It was my first hint at what was my problem – there are too many good things in the line-up, I can’t afford them all!? (Not to mention store them, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.? If Leopold Brothers (coughing again, man, what is in the air tonight?!) gave me a bottle of each, I’d damn well find somewhere to store ‘em…and not just in my belly.)

The peach whiskey was something I didn’t expect at all.? The proof on this one dropped from 80 to 60, but while I typically am not a huge fan of peaches I liked this.? I immediately started thinking of a lot of drinks that I’ve seen that incorporate peach? brandy or the such and was wondering how this would work (such as the Georgia Mint Julep from the first edition of Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails – it might be in the second, but sigh I haven’t gotten that yet).

From there we went to the liqueurs.

The peach liqueur, like most of them if I remember correctly, uses three pounds of peaches per 750 milliliter bottle.? It was very concentrated, almost to a syrup.? It seemed much more of a one-trick pony to me and not something I’d buy unless I had something specific to use for it.

The tart cherry, though, made me thinking “maraschino liqueur that actually tastes like cherry”.? I’m tempted to pick one up – the difference between it, maraschino liqueur, and cherry Heering is a fascinating idea to me and something I’d like to experiment with.

yes it's dark, what, The Gibson is a dark bar

Next up was the blackberry.? If I thought the blackberry whiskey was like wine this was REALLY like wine, made with four pounds of blackberries per 750.? I liked it a lot – however, I saw myself drinking it more on its own as a dessert (or like I’ve done (ahem) to Horton blackberry wines in the past, chilled and straight from the bottle while at a horse race).

Cranberry was described as “great for your mom” and I was wondering if my mom was getting hit on in absentia.? I wasn’t a huge fan of it, but it did make me think of Thanksgiving, maybe kind of Christmas, so I might try to revisit it as those holidays approach.? (What?!? It’s September?? Feh, I guess I better get on that!)

The sour apple liqueur was like apple juice to me and I mean that in the nicest possible way.? Maybe I need an Apfelkorn versus sour apple liqueur battle in my future.? They’re not the same but they are both very delicious.

The French Press coffee liqueur was something I did not expect at all.? The use the same press to make coffee with the liqueur as they do the fruit, with one added exception – they actually add sugar to the coffee liqueur.? My goodness.? You can taste the quality in this one.? If you like coffee liqueurs either be prepared to give all your money to Leopold Brothers or don’t bother trying it.

Overly bright, overly tasty

Then we hit the herbal side.

They had a digestif called 3 Pins.? Very herbal, but sweet, I would definitely enter it in a battle royale with some of my favorite European digestifs.? It honestly probably reminds me of Hog Master more than a lot of them, since it’s so sweet, but I’d love to break it out for my friends who also like 999, the new Zwack, and Jagermeister.? If I was going to make an old fashioned with it like one might do with Fernet it would need a solid hit of bitters but maybe nothing else.

But the absinthe.

A quick note on me and absinthe: I like absinthe okay but I’d never really seen the holy grail of absinthes.? At Tales, over at the Mixo house, I was introduced to an Obsello reserve absinthe that had aged in barrels.? It wow-ed me.? I loved it.? I was like “OH THIS IS WHAT YOU LOVE”.

The Leopold absinthe uses 15 herbs for flavoring, is aged for three months, and uses 15 herbs for coloring.? It has a HUGE oil meniscus when it louches, and was amazingly smooth when I tried it.? At $71.99 at Ace, I was sorely tempted to buy some, the first time I’d really considered spending that much on an absinthe.? I may still do so, once I take care of a few other things, because it’s damn delicious.

If you haven’t tried these yet you really need to do so.? Ace carries a few of them; Best Cellars in Dupont Circle, from what I hear, carry more.? I’ll be heading out there soon to buy apple whiskey, believe you me.

And great to see y’all again!

But it’s still a tasty drink, though I have to say that this version tonight – using commercial agave syrup instead of homemade simple syrup – isn’t as good.? Use the good stuff, folks.

And there’s the problem of taking a picture of it.? Here is the picture as I took it originally:

What's the problem you think? I'll tell you what it!

See, you haven’t seen the recipe yet.? The problem is fire.

It angers up the Paul Clarke-s something rightenous like, but the “garnish” – because I don’t have any grain – is flaming absinthe, something fierce like Ms. Sergi.? But my camera wouldn’t take a picture of the flames, and I couldn’t get it to flame up when I made it for my camera.? Thus I relied on MS Paint.

See? Fire!

Much better!

And here’s the recipe.? Rachel and I discussed the name and I took a bit of a liberty in its spelling.? Though now I’ve promised one named the Rachel, too, so we’ll see that later I bet…

The Gin-Gin-Ser
2 ounces gin (Martin Miller)
3/4 ounce abinsthe (Vieux Carre)
1 ounce lemon juice (more if you spill it on the floor)
1/2 ounce simple syrup (NOT agave!)
dash The Bitter Truth Repeal Day bitters
Shake with ice in a cocktail shaker and strain into an UNchilled cocktail glass.? Top with a small measure of grain or absinthe (I used Mata Hari) and light on fire.? I’ve also thought about trying it with green Chartreuse – let me know if you do!

I’ve been pretty happy with this drink and I’m not a huge absinthe fan, so I’d love to see what other people think.

[Fourteenth in a series of drinks named after bloggers, mixologists, and random others who'll hopefully be at Tales.? The first post in the series is here.]

Cognac, I feel, is often a misunderstood liquor.? People have an impression of it that it’s only for the rich, while that’s not true; on the other hand, when introducing people to the subtypes of brandy that are available, or even for other drinks, cognac is often easily used as an example because people are familiar with it.? All cognacs are brandy; not all brandies are cognac, it depends on where they come from.? (There are other requirements, too, but that’s the big one, at least, in my humble opinion.)

And where cognacs come from is the French area known as, well – Cognac.

I won’t get into Wikipedia-esque detail on VS versus VSOP versus XO, or the other different types.? The important thing to remember when using cognac in drinks, in my opinion, is to remember that while cognacs vary, you can use a cognac to replace a brandy but not vice versa.? Cognacs, in my experience, tend to be richer, and often sweeter – in my opinion – than other brandies from similar areas.? Armagnacs might be able to replace a cognac, but really, if a drink is so specific to request a cognac you should use it.

Not that many do.? You might see a “special” version of a drink using cognac that has it instead of brandy, but only a rare few use cognac as an ingredient, and there’s one in particular that I know catches more than a few eyes.

I know this because on the last, admittedly hazily remembered, night at Hummingbird to Mars I was offered one – and the bartender (I want to say it was Owen) I seem to remember was surprised that I knew what it was (and drank it anyways). ? If you’ve got the Regan’s The Joy of Mixology you might already know where I’m going…

Tremblement De Terre (Earthquake)
2 1/2 ounces cognac
1/4 ounce absinthe
1 lemon twist, garnish
Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.? Add the garnish.

Now, I’ve had that drink, and it’s a killer.? Not bad whatsoever, in my opinion, but oof!

My favorite cognac right now is Chalfonte VSOP.? I just got word that it’s back at my favorite liquor store, Ace in DC, and that makes me very happy.? It’s not expensive but it’s quote luscious in its taste.? My goal is to make sure I have a bottle of two to enjoy in the snow, around a big bonfire, with family and friends next winter.? It was that goal last winter but never happened.

Still, I need a drink for a blogger or mixologist for tonight, and I thought of that drink and Stevi’s blog name.? Hmmm.? It seems to insinuate that you can only have two of her drinks in a night, and what’s a good drink to base that off of, in addition to her love of Peruvian horses, I thought – oh.? I know.

Two At The Most
1 1/2 ounces cognac (Chalfonte VSOP)
1 ounce pisco brandy (Macchu Pisco)
1/4 ounce + 1 dash absinthe (Kubler)
1/4 ounce simple syrup
1-2 dashes Peruvian bitters
Stir and strain into a cocktail glass.? Garnish with a brandy soaked cherry, which sinks to the bottom, and a lemon twist.

Yummy!? But that’s quite a bit of booze there, so be warned – you won’t want to have more than two at the most!

[Third in a series of drinks named after bloggers, mixologists, and random others who'll hopefully be at Tales.? The first post in the series is here.]

Over in the Mixoloseum, some of us were talking about this and realized that we were all being hit on posts mentioning Mata Hari absinthe.

I wasn’t the hugest fan of Mata Hari but it wasn’t bad – and “bad” is all I’ve heard about La Tourment Vert (“Grain Neutral spirits + Scope Wintergreen = La Tourment Vert” was one comment on it in the chat room, as well as descriptions of how their spam is better than their product and how urinating in a jar and letting it sit was better than drinking it) and with the amount of good absinthe I have, well, I have no desire to BUY any.? Besides, over at The Wormwood Society they don’t even seem to consider it absinthe!

Seriously.? Who would do such a thing?? All I knew – from tracerouting the IPs – was that they were in LA.? Then one of our fellow bloggers pointed out the PR contact he had:

Kayla Isenberg
Interactive Media Manager, CASHMERE AGENCY
1110 North La Brea Avenue | Inglewood, CA 90302 Email: kayla@cashmereagency.com | www.cashmereagency.com EMBRACE THE RENAISSANCE

Does “EMBRACE THE RENAISSANCE” mean “spam the hell outta bloggers”?

Seriously, folks.? If you want good absinthe there are lots of better choices out there.? Mata Hari was very nice in providing us the resources to do the live TDN and it’s a different change of pace from many absinthes.? Kubler is one of the better deals in absinthe I’ve found.? I’ve heard good things about St. George.

Just don’t buy La Tourment Vert.

Every Thursday night (officially) beginning at 7pm EST, cocktail enthusiasts, bloggers, writers, bartenders and other sundry forms of riff-raff gather at the online Mixoloseum Bar.? We usually have a particular theme and everyone throws out recipes utilizing that particular themed ingredient.? Some drinks work, others get tossed down the sink never to be thought of again.? The fun is trying new things and occasionally hitting upon an undiscovered gem.

I’ve been lucky to co-create two drinks that have turned out to be favorites.? The first was way back in December when Rick of Kaiser Penguin and I collaborated and came up with the . . .

Cilician Voyage
1oz Citadelle Reserve Gin
1oz Strega
1oz Lime Juice
.50oz Grapefruit Juice
.50oz Cinnamon Syrup
1 dash Fee’s Whiskey Barrel-Aged Bitters
1 dash Fee’s Grapefruit Bitters
Ginger Beer to top

Build everything except ginger beer in a rocks glass filled with crushed ice.? Give it a good stir and top with ginger beer.? Garnish with a cinnamon stick and a lime twist.? Rick likes to throw a few strands of saffron on the top to gild the lilly.

Thanks to Rick contacting the good folks at Citadelle Gin, they tried it and loved it.? In fact, they liked it enough to send Rick and I a bottle of Citadelle Reserve for our efforts.? Keep your eye on the Den for a write-up on Citadelle Reserve.? It is a fantastic gin!

This past Thursday, TDN was sponsored by Mata Hari Absinthe and we were lucky enough to have a live outpost at the Tabard Inn here in DC.? Gathered at the Tabard’s bar were Sean and I, Rick of Kaiser Penguin, Nathan, a cocktail enthusiast from Pittsburgh, PA, Sam of Brand Action Team and Owen our videographer for the evening.? You can find Sam’s post on TDN here.? Chantal Tseng, head bartender at Tabard Inn was graciously making our drinks as we wrote down the recipes that came across the computer screen.

For my drink, I gave Chantal a list of five specific ingredients and asked her to find a good ratio.? The ingredient list consisted of brandy, amaro nonino, Mata Hari Absinthe, sherry and bitters.? The drink that was invented was . . .

The Bitter Industry
1.5oz Brandy
.50oz Amaro Nonino
.50oz Amontillado Sherry
1 dash Mata Hari Absinthe
2 dashes orange bitters

Stir in a quadrangular motion with cracked ice and strain with the flick of the wrist into a chilled cocktail glass.

And what do you know, The Bitter Industry won for best cocktail of the night!? A platitude I am more than honored to share with Chantal.? If you are interested in reading the full write up of this past TDN, you can find it here on the Mixoloseum blog.? For the brave of heart, there is also a link to the full transcript of the nights festivities at the end of the write up.

Give both of these drinks a try and let me know what you think!? While you’re at it, stop by the Mixoloseum Bar and chat for a while.? And please join us Thursday nights for a great night of recipe collaboration.

Cheers!

For this year’s party, I decided to print up a cocktail menu.? The reasons were simple.? First, I didn’t want to end up making forty-five different drinks or deal with the inevitable “Make me something fruity.”? Number B, I didn’t want drunk people rummaging around my hooch.? (Wow, that sounds kind of scandalous and dirty.)? Finally, I wanted to have a little something for everyone in addition to wine, beer and non-alcoholic drinks.

Here is what the menu looked like:

Once opened, guests were treated to six possible drinks, the non-alcoholic options mentioned above and, for the brave, a traditional absinthe drip.? (Or as traditional as I can get without having the huge water faucet drippy thing.)? Below are the drinks, their descriptions as printed on the menu, and the recipe.

Devil’s Daughter
Sugar and spice and everything nice with a heart as black as the night.
Vodka, Lemon, Lime, Egg White

This cocktail is actually a riff on Eben Freeman’s Bazooka Bubblegum Cocktail served at Tailor.? You can find the original recipe here. I followed Eben’s recipe to the letter, except I replaced the regular vodka with Blavod.? The resulting cocktail was dark violet in color but tasted just like bubblegum.? It was a hit with everyone who tried it.

Corpse Reviver #2
The dead will rise over this little refresher.
Gin, Cointreau, Lillet, Lemon, Absinthe

This was the basic Corpse Reviver #2 recipe.
Corpse Reviver #2
1oz Gin
1oz Cointreau
1oz Lillet Blanc
1oz fresh lemon juice
2-3 drops of absinthe

Shake everything with ice and strain into chilled cocktail glass.? Garnish with a maraschino cherry.

Murderous Manhattan
Reportedly the very recipe drunk by David Berkowitz after each kill.
Bourbon or Rye, Vermouth, Maraschino, Bitters

The twist on this Manhattan was that I used Bianco vermouth and added a barspoon of maraschino to the mix.? I also used some cherry bitters and aromatic bitters.? Here’s the recipe:

2oz Bourbon or Rye
1oz Bianco Vermouth
1 barspoon maraschino liqueur
dash of cherry bitters and aromatic bitters

Stir over ice, strain and garnish with a maraschino cherry.

Ignis Fatuus
The hellish flames found in the dark deadly swamps.
Chardonnay, Cognac, Pumpkin, Cider

This is another borrowed recipe.? This time from that crazy Canadian media hound Jamie Boudreau.? His original recipe is here.? This is another cocktail that went over really well.? A few months ago, our friend Roy tasked me with finding a cocktail using pumpkin.? His wife Danielle loves pumpkin and he wanted something that he could make for her.? At the time, he wanted me to use this “Pumpkin Spice Liqueur” that will remain nameless.? But you know what I’m talking about.? Yes, you do.? Well, I toyed around with playing with an actual pumpkin and doing an infusion of some sort, but then Jamie came along with this little number.? I’m still planning on doing a pumpkin infusion this fall/winter (keep your eyes peeled!) but Jamie’s creation was spot on.? Great drink.? Go to his site and see how it’s done.? You won’t be sorry.

Charon’s Dingy
Only the most damned have to cross the River Styx in this leaky vessel.
Brandy, Amaro, Lemon, Cinnamon, Honey, Bitters

This was actually a renaming of a drink I created during Thursday Drink Night at the Mixoloseum.? I based the drink off a standard Sidecar recipe – with a few tweaks of course.? First, I substituted the Cointreau with Ramazzotti Amaro.? Then, to compensate for the lack of sweetness, I added cinnamon and honey syrups.? I also guilded the lilly with whiskey barrel bitters and a flamed lemon peel.? I called the drink “A Sidecar to Milan” to highlight the origin of the Ramazzotti.? For the Halloween party, I simply renamed the drink.? Charon ferried the dead across the river Styx and I thought what would the the sidecar equivalent to a ferry?? A dingy!? So you’ve got Charon’s Dingy.? Here is the recipe (and the original name):

Sidecar to Milan
1.5oz Brandy
1oz Ramazzotti Amaro
.75oz fresh lemon juice
.50oz cinnamon syrup
.50oz honey syrup (or can substitute rich simple syrup, but may need to adjust proportions)
2 dashes whiskey barrel bitters

Shake everything with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.? Garnish with a flamed lemon peel.? After flamed, rub peel around edge of glass and drop in.

Luckily, one of my guests, Victor, brought along his video recorder and through the magic of the interwebs you can see the flamed lemon peel.? And before any of you say it, I was using plastic cups for the cocktails.? I don’t have enough nice glassware for everybody and plastic is a lot easier to get rid of.

Halloween 2008 from Marshall on Vimeo.

Kill-Devil Punch
A misnomer: The Devil will kill YOU over this punch.
Rum, LIme, Pineapple, Bubbly

I found this recipe at Epicurious and it turns out to have been supplied by Phil Ward of Death & Co.? Everyone seemed to really like this punch and by the end of the night I had gone through an entire bottle of prosecco.? The recipe makes enough for six drinks.

Kill-Devil Punch
9oz Rum
6oz Pineapple Juice
5oz Simple Syrup
4oz Fresh Lime Juice
5oz Champagne/Cava/Prosecco

Combine everything except the bubbly in a container and chill in the fridge for a few hours.? Pour over ice and top with the champagne/cava/prosecco.? Garnish with lime wheels, frozen raspberries, blackberries or other fruit.? Or garnish as I did, with a stick of sugar cane.? One note regarding the recipe, depending on how sweet/dry your bubbly is, you will probably want to adjust the amount of simple syrup.? For a dry champagne, leave at 5oz.? If using a sweeter sparkling wine, you may want to use less.

There you have it.? My Halloween 2008 cocktail menu.? Give these drinks a try and feel free to leave a comment and let us know what you think.

It ends up some friends of mine from various parts of the country will all be up there at the same time, so it’s a good chance to meet up with a lot of people whom I profess to like (and vice versa).

Given that this isn’t like last time – i.e. a specific mission of cocktails – I’m having a few tonight, one last night, and I’m hoping against hope we can make it to Pegu Club and/or Death & Company. I think Pegu would be a big hit with a number in our group, and I’d love to say hi to Audrey again.

Last night, while over at Marshall’s, and having my first chance to try Fee’s Rhubarb Bitters (yummy), I had a Revival, from Food & Wine’s 2008 Cocktail book, and thankfully one that didn’t require specialty ingredients:

Revival
2 ounces rye (Rittenhouse 80 proof)
1/2 ounce Benedictine (the one, the only)
1/2 ounce maraschino liqueur (Luxardo)
2 dashes absinthe or Pernod (I used Pernod)
3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice
Shake and strain, garnish with lemon twist

I actually liked this a lot; it was kind of dry but it was honestly probably the best drink I’ve had with maraschino in it so far.

Tonight, a coworker came by, and I made him a drink passed on to me by a friend I’ll just call “Martini Con Queso” – yes, the liquors ARE specific:

Sacre Blue
1 1/2 ounces Bombay Sapphire
3/4 ounce Lillet blonde
stir and strain; traditionally it should be garnished with a cube of blue cheese on a toothpick but I use a blue cheese-stuffed olive

As we sat and gossiped about work I made myself the traditional (for me) Sazerac from Gary Regan’s _Joy of Mixology_.

Sazerac
3 ounces rye (Rittenhouse 100 proof)
3/4 ounce simple syrup
2-3 dashes Peychaud’s
Fill a rocks glass with ice and absinthe (Lucid). Stir drink, toss out ice and Lucid, and strain; garnish with lemon twist

Mmmmm.

So now I’m on the chat room. And I don’t understand what’s going on, but I come up with a drink that needs a name:
2 ounces cognac (Hennessy)
1 ounce sweet vermouth (Carpano Antica)
1/3 ounce Benedictine
2 dashes celery bitters (Bitter Truth)

Stir and strain.

Later, it was a cocktail that I came up with just, well, to be annoying:

2 ounces Veev
1/2 ounce green Chartreuse
1/2 ounce simple syrup

Hmmm, we need to work on that one.

Later came a rye one that was well-received:
1 1/2 ounce rye
3/4 ounce Benedictine
1/4 oz absinthe
1/4 oz Fernet Branca

Finally, I’m ending with some kind of tiki drink:

1 1/2 oz dark rum (Gosling’s)
1 oz coconut water
1/2 oz pineapple juice

Oof. I’m going to say that’s the one that got me.

With that, I am off – check my Twitter feed (I’m HighwayStar on there) for anything interesting (or not) on that trip!