Cocktail Recipes Tonight

[StephanieL]

Trader Vic's El Diablo.

• 2 oz. blanco tequila
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 3 oz. ginger beer
• 1/2 oz. creme de cassis (we just have cassis liqueur, which I think is different)

Combine the first 3 ingredients in a highball glass.  Add ice, then float the creme de cassis.

[Sneakeater]

As I thought, eating at the West Indian Day Parade this afternoon pre-empted dinner.

So ice cream (McConnells!) and cocktail(s).

Since everybody knows how to make a Corpse Reviver No. 2 (that most sheerly delicious of all cocktails), the interest here was in the choice of specific ingredients.

Using Kina l'Aéro d'Oro in place of Lillet Blanc is old news.  (I know some people who think Kina l'Aéro d'Oro is too gross, too harsh.  Those people can BITE ME.)  So let's talk about the choice of Gin.

The consensus favorite Gin in a Corpse Reviver No. 2 is probably Plymouth.  The thought is that the prevalence of floral botanicals and the deemphasis of juniper as compared to a London Dry promotes the flavor blend of this cocktail.  I decided to take that even further.

G'Vine Floraison is a French "modern" Gin.  I usually have no use for these, which typically -- like this one -- have practically NO juniper.  Juniper is what I WANT in a Gin; it's what I go to Gin for.  (To me, it plays the exact same role as hops do in beer.)  This Gin is almost entirely floral botanicals (and, further softening it, it's wine-based rather than using neutral spirits).  I wouldn't want this in a Martini or a Gin & Tonic.

But in a Corpse Reviver No. 2?  I think this really worked.  Mixing metaphors, I would have to call this drink (pair of drinks, TBH) (I did stop short of Harry Craddock's four) melifluous.  It was a symphony of soft flavors -- except for the Absinthe rinse, which provided just the right kick.  (Some people say that if you use Absinthe rather than Pastis in a Corpse Reviver No. 2, you should use a dash rather than a rinse, lest the more powerful Absinthe overwhelm the drink.  Those people can also BITE ME.)

I really feel sorry for people who don't mix cocktails.

Edited September 5, 2023 by Sneakeater

[Sneakeater]

Actually, let me talk about the Lillet Blanc replacement for a moment, since Lillet Blanc was discussed here recently.

OG Lillet Blanc was very different from what you can buy now.  It had a substantial quinine component, making it much bitterer than its current iteration.  Indeed, as fans of the James Bond novels know, it was originally called Kina Lillet.

Sometime since then, Lillet Blanc was reformulated to make it more universally palatable for the international market (meaning it was dumbed down for the American palate).  The Quinine was removed to remove the bitterness.  So current Lillet Blanc is milder, more anodyne than its OG predecessor.

Since the cocktails calling for Lillet Blanc are almost all old classics, the recipes really call for something different than what is currently available.  They're expecting a bitter flavor component that Lillet Blanc no longer has.  So attentive mixologists have sought substitutes.

The most popular one is that excellent aperitivo Cocchi Americano.  It has a bitter component, but (as you'd expect from an Alpine aperitivo) it's supplied by Gentian in addition to (and even more than) Quinine.  So it's similar, but different.  A very good substitute -- but not the same thing.

In the wake of the Cocktail Revival, it's not surprising that attempts were made to reverse-engineer a Kina.  The most notable one is Tempus Fugit's Kina l'Aéro d'Oro.  People who've had Kina Lillet say it's not the same:  harsher, less integrated.

I say it's fine.  I like it more in drinks like a Corpse Reviver No. 2 than Cocchi Americano (which I love in general, don't get me wrong).  It sharpens them up.

[Sneakeater]

This is especially the case when you use an essentially juniperless Gin, as I did here.

The bite you lose from the Gin has to come from somewhere.  Otherwise you'll be drinking mush.

Edited September 10, 2023 by Sneakeater

[Sneakeater]

Here.  Don't listen to me.  Listen to Simon Difford.  (I swear I didn't read this till after I wrote the post about Kina Lillet above.)

https://www.diffordsguide.com/beer-wine-spirits/298/kina-lillet

[Sneakeater]

Considering how much I have to do tomorrow, this was one of the stupidest and most self-destructive cocktails I've ever mixed.

A creation of the reigning bartender of what will soon be my former neighborhood, Del Pedro.

Hi Falutin'

I'm giving you what I actually used to approximate the ingredients Del used.  Not Del's original recipe.  (The fucking around is in the whiskey.)

1 oz. Bourbon

3/4 oz. Mellow Corn (Del calls for 1-3/4 oz. Ransom Whippersnapper) (I'm lucky enough to have Byrrh)

1 oz. Swedish Punsch

1/2 tsp. Byrrh

2 lemon peels

Stir the liquid ingredients in an ice-filled mixing glass.  Express the 2 lemon peels and toss in.  Stir.  A lot.

Strain into a rocks glass.

Happily for how stupid it was for me to have this, it's REALLY good.

Edited September 10, 2023 by Sneakeater

[Sneakeater]

Yeah REALLY good.

[Sneakeater]

I'm thinking I should have another.

I'm also thinking I shouldn't.

[Sneakeater]

I lose.

Or win.  Depending on how you look at it.

[StephanieL]

One of my favorite roasters, Onyx Coffee, now makes coffee extractions to be used in cocktails, cold drinks, etc.  Much easier than making espressos, and very useful for people who don't have an espresso maker.  Here's today's cocktail, using their recipe.  Note that I split this drink in two so that N and I wouldn't need a nap afterwards.

Espresso MartinI, Onyx Style

• 1 1/2 oz. Onyx Coffee Extractions
• 2 oz. vodka
• 1/2 oz. coffee liqueur (I used Kahlua--all I had)
• 1/2 oz. simple syrup (I used Demerara syrup)

Shake over ice and strain into a martini or coupe glass.

[small h]

Grape juice (a Purim gift from my down-the-hall neighbors), lime juice and seltzer. My first mocktail! Not too bad.

[bloviatrix]

On 9/1/2023 at 2:01 PM, StephanieL said:

Trader Vic's El Diablo.

• 2 oz. blanco tequila
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 3 oz. ginger beer
• 1/2 oz. creme de cassis (we just have cassis liqueur, which I think is different)

Combine the first 3 ingredients in a highball glass.  Add ice, then float the creme de cassis.

I just bought a bottle of creme de cassis which means I have everything I need to make one. Will have to try.

[Wilfrid]

I have added Bronx River to my rotation. Found it in the Harrington book. Very nicely balanced.

• 2 oz gin
• 1/2 oz sweet vermouth
• 1/4 oz lemon juice
• Dash of simple syrup

I am using a very low carb Agave syrup as simple syrup. A very small amount will sweeten a drink, but there's no strong flavor to it.

[StephanieL]

On 9/10/2023 at 4:37 PM, StephanieL said:

One of my favorite roasters, Onyx Coffee, now makes coffee extractions to be used in cocktails, cold drinks, etc.  Much easier than making espressos, and very useful for people who don't have an espresso maker.  Here's today's cocktail, using their recipe.  Note that I split this drink in two so that N and I wouldn't need a nap afterwards.

Espresso MartinI, Onyx Style

• 1 1/2 oz. Onyx Coffee Extractions
• 2 oz. vodka
• 1/2 oz. coffee liqueur (I used Kahlua--all I had)
• 1/2 oz. simple syrup (I used Demerara syrup)

Shake over ice and strain into a martini or coupe glass.

Used the extractions to make a Carajillo.  Shake 2 oz. of Licor 43 and 1 oz. espresso over ice until nice and foamy, then strain into a cocktail glass.

[Wilfrid]

Unexpectedly, I have an orange from which juice can be extracted. This is my chance to try cocktails that require OJ. Orange Blossom is an obvious place to start. Must do more research.

[StephanieL]

It's Negroni Week!

[small h]

Every week is Negroni Week!

[small h]

I only get a few of these a year, 'cause it takes a long time to save up enough tomato water. The Byproduct.

[MitchW]

It is Negroni week, after all...

Old school styling.  This is such a great drink, I might've had another.

[Wilfrid]

With my exciting free orange: Satan's Whiskers (Curled) and an Orange Bloom (the Blossom requires orange flower water in the recipe I saw and I ran out of that a while back).

[Sneakeater]

Just what I was in the mood for.

Improved Genever Cocktail

2 oz. Genever

1 tsp.  Simple Syrup

1/2 tsp. Maraschino liqueur

2 dashes Boker's bitters

Rinse of Absinthe

Rinse chilled cocktail glass with Absinthe.  Stir the rest of the ingredients in an ice-filled cocktail shaker and strain into rinsed glass.  Garnish with a lemon twist.

[Wilfrid]

Abbey. Gin, orange juice, dry vermouth, Angostura.

Recipes I am seeing online this morning call for Lillet Blanc in equal proportions with the OJ. Harrington's book, which I consulted when making it, had dry vermouth in a slightly smaller proportion to the OJ.

[MitchW]

Kinda close to a Bronx cocktail.

[Wilfrid]

I did also have a Bronx some time over the last few days. All driven by my unaccustomed acquisition of a very large orange.

[small h]

(eyes very large orange in fruit bowl, gets ideas.)