1 oz Scotch
1.5 oz ROOT
0.5 oz Applejack
0.5 oz Simple Syrup
0.25 oz Luxardo
5 drops Cinnamon Tincture
Shake well with ice, serve up garnished with a maraschino cherry.
NOTES: Not bad. Cinnamon could be a little stronger. Also might try with a decent rye instead of Scotch. I enjoyed it, but something was lacking, I just can’t put my finger on what. Worth toying with later.
Posted in Applejack, Cinnamon Tincture, Luxardo, Root Liquor, Scotch | Leave a Comment »
Not sure how these will work in practice yet, but they were incredibly easy. Also unsure whether it is better to use Everclear or regular old 80 proof Vodka, so we did half of each. The process was simple:
In a wide-mouth jar, fill with herbs or whatever you’re using for the tincture. Cover (and then some) with the alcohol. Let sit and keep an eye on. Once the alcohol seems to have leeched all the color from the botanical, strain it out and seal into a dropper bottle. Assorted reading has led me to believe that leaving the botanicals in the alcohol beyond this point only serves to make it more bitter than it has to be.
These are the 5 we started out with:
1) Rosemary
Pretty self-explanatory. Small fistful of rosemary, covered with Everclear. Seemed to hit peak of color around the two hour mark.
2) Jalapeno
This one is going to be interesting to try. Didn’t use actual jalapenos, as I was out, so just attempted with a tea bag full of dried red pepper flakes. It was slow to start leeching color, but in the end only took about 3 hours. Tried a drop, and it is actually pretty hot. Want to also try out with real peppers. Used Vodka rather than Everclear.
3) Lemon Clove
Tea bag full of ground clove (would have preferred whole cloves, but didn’t have any) and the zest of one lemon (no pith). The clove lost color and went gray after about 45 minutes, so I removed that and left the lemon for an additional hour or so. Vodka, not Everclear.
4) Mint
Same as the rosemary.
5) Cinnamon
Used the tea bag method again with ground cinnamon because we were out of whole sticks. Tastes pretty good, would like to try the alternative. Maybe could have let sit longer than I did OR use more cinnamon because while tasty, could stand to be stronger.
Posted in Cinnamon Tincture, Jalapeno Tincture, Lemon Clove Tincture, Mint Tincture, Rosemary Tincture | 8 Comments »
1.5 oz Scotch
0.5 oz Benedictine
0.5 oz Lime Juice
0.5 oz Creme de Cassis
2 drops Absinthe
2 dashes Whiskey Barrel Bitters
2 drops Rosewater
Shake ingredients well with ice. Pour into a rocks glass over crushed ice, splash with seltzer water, and garnish with a sprig of mint.
NOTES: Finally got a scotch cocktail to work. I really like this one. Jen noted that it tastes like iced tea for some reason, and it actually does. Nicely floral, a little sweet, and absolutely no whiskey burn, though some of the nice peat flavor remains. Possibly the most successful drink we came up with.
Posted in Absinthe, Benedictine, Creme de Cassis, Rosewater, Scotch, Whiskey Barrel Bitters | 1 Comment »
1.5 oz Bluecoat Gin
0.75 oz Earl Grey Syrup
0.5 oz Lime Juice
0.5 oz Grenadine
1 tsp Creme de Violette
2 dashes Rhubarb Bitters
Shake ingredients with ice, strain into coupe.
NOTES: Pretty much the same as the earlier version of this drink (possibly my favorite we’ve come up with so far), but slightly adjusted for the homemade grenadine.
Posted in Creme de Violette, Earl Grey Syrup, Gin, Grenadine, Rhubarb Bitters | 3 Comments »
1.5 oz Rye
1 oz Mezcal
1 oz Sweet Potato Rosemary Shrub
0.5 oz Honey Syrup
0.5 oz Sweet Vermouth
Shake all ingredients well with ice, pout over crushed ice, garnish with a sprig of rosemary.
NOTES: One of my favorites from earlier in experimenting, it’s smokey and a little sweet, and surprisingly smooth for how much stiff, strong-flavored liquor is in it.
Posted in Honey Syrup, Mezcal, Rye, Sweet Potato Shrub, Vermouth | Leave a Comment »
1.5 oz Brandy
0.5 oz Light Rum
1 oz Chai Syrup
1 Egg White
3 drops Molasses Bitters
Shake ingredients WITHOUT ice hard as shit for about 15 seconds to work up a good froth. Add ice and shake for an additional 10 seconds and strain into a coupe. Make sure to get all the froth out of the shaker (the best of it is the last to come out) and garnish with some cardamom.
NOTES: This one tastes just about exactly like you’d imagine. Sweet and chai-like. The egg white gives it some really nice body, and the whole thing is really smooth. Almost like a strongly spiced eggnog but without the heaviness.
Posted in Brandy, Chai Syrup, Egg White, Molasses Bitters, Rum | Leave a Comment »
2 oz Light Rum
1/2 oz Benedictine
1 oz Strawberry Mint Syrup
Shake ingredients well with ice. Muddle a strawberry in the bottom of a rocks glass, and fill with crushed ice. Pour the drink, and top off with a splash of seltzer water. Garnish with a slice of strawberry.
NOTES: This was the winner for the rum drink. Probably the simplest of the ones we came up with, but it worked surprisingly well. Nice and refreshing, not too rummy.
Posted in Benedictine, Rum, Strawberry Mint Syrup | Leave a Comment »
So we decided to put the experiments into practice and have a cocktail party, which I think went pretty well. Recipes of the drinks that made the cut to follow. The dogs were big fans of the extra attention.
Posted in Miscellany | 1 Comment »
1.5 oz Blackstrap Rum
.75 oz Cherry Heering
0.5 oz Frangelico
2 dashes Chocolate Bitters
Shake ingredients well with ice, pour over a large ice cube in a rocks glass. Top with seltzer water and stir gently.
NOTES: Interesting direction, but in the end, too much rich molasses flavor. Needs to be a little less intense to be successful, but worth revisiting.
Posted in Aztec Chocolate Bitters, Blackstrap Rum, Cherry Heering, Frangelico | 1 Comment »
So, we are having a cocktail party, and need a metric crapload of ingredients for the drinks we’ve decided on serving. This is the finished product, and since a few people have asked for a recipe here and there, This is going to be the full clearinghouse for all of them. Full list of recipes after the jump:
Posted in Chai Syrup, Earl Grey Syrup, Ginger Syrup, Grenadine, Honey Syrup, Maraschino Cherries, Orgeat, Strawberry Mint Syrup, Sweet Potato Shrub | 6 Comments »
