Liz Reprise

Day 271, Cocktail 274

Liz Phair rocked at Turner Hall last night!  And to really make my night she mostly played cuts from her “Exile in Guyville” disc, which is my favorite!  The only song I she didn’t play that I would have really liked to have heard was “Flower”, but hey, I guess you can’t always get what you want.

After the show I headed home and found our friends Patti and Greg down in the Lounge with Gwen.  I was just in time to help out with the last round of cocktails.  Before the show I had come up with my Liz Phair cocktail.  While I was working on it, in the back of mind, I had a similar drink that I wanted to call Flower in honor of the song.  So I tried it out….and it didn’t work.  I used the Knob Creek again, but replaced the orange bitters with Peychaud’s and tried St. Germain instead of the Luxardo maraschino.  It was not very good.  The St. Germain and the bourbon clashed and the Peychaud’s just didn’t jibe with either in this drink.  I made a note to myself last night to try adding Cointreau, and maybe that would help, but I doubt it. 

Fortunately, the concert was much better than my post show drink!

Cheers!

Liz Phair

Day 271, Cocktail 273

I’m going to see Liz Phair tonight at Turner Hall Ballroom in downtown Milwaukee, and I am psyched!  I’ve never seen her live and she is one of my all time favorites!  I’ve been listenening to her music since Exile in Guyville and I just love her music.

Sooo, I began to think, just what would Liz Phair drink before or after her show?  I’m pretty sure she’s not a girlie cocktail kind of gal.  No, she be drinking like the guys.  But not beer.  Probably tequila or bourbon I figure.  So it’s time to dump Brandi (sorry girl, you were such a fine girl, but your week is over) and I reached into the cabinet for the Knob Creek bourbon.

  Liz Phair

• 2-1/2 oz Knob Creek bourbon
• 1/4 oz Luxardo maraschino liqueur
• 2 dashes Agnosturo orange bitters

Combine the ingredients in a mixing glass with ice.  Stir vigorously to mix and chill.  Let the drink sit for a moment or two (OK, more like 30 – 60 seconds) to give the ice a chance to melt a bit.  Meanwhile, prep a rocks glass with an ice ball.  Strain into the rocks glass over the ice ball.

Of course Liz drinks her bourbon with an ice ball – she’s the epitomy of balls for heaven’s sake!  And the extra melt is important to help take the edge of the bourbon.  Overall, a good cocktail, although I did have to sneak up on the amount of Luxardo in it.  It has a nice kick from the bourbon a just a hint of cherry and orange flavors from the Luxardo and Agnosturo orange bitters. 

Maybe I’ll sneak back stage and make for Liz Phair tonight…or maybe I’ll just worm my way up to the front of the stage and dance my butt off instead!

Cheers!

Brandy, Fetch Another Round!

Day 265, Cocktails 265 & 266

There’s a port on a western bay
And it serves a hundred ships a day
Lonely sailors pass the time away
And talk about their homes

And there’s a girl in this harbor town
And she works layin’ whiskey down
They say “Brandy, fetch another round”
She serves them whiskey and wine

The sailors say “Brandy, you’re a fine girl” (you’re a fine girl)
“What a good wife you would be” (such a fine girl)
“Yeah your eyes could steal a sailor from the sea”
(dooda-dit-dooda), (dit-dooda-dit-dooda-dit)

This 70’s classic by Looking Glass seems as good a way as any to introduce a week of Wisconsin’s favorite, brandy.  More brandy is consumed (by far) in Wisconsin than any other state (40% of Korbel’s total output of brandy ends up here), but the bar at the hotel where one of my friends stayed did run out of brandy, along with Miller Lite.)  So with winter in full swing and several bottles of brandy in the Twilight Lounge liquor cabinet it seemed like a good time to explore this Wisconsin favorite.

  Saratoga Cocktail

• 2oz brandy
• 1/2 oz pineapple juice
• 1/8 oz lemon juice
• 1/8 oz maraschino liqueur
• 1 dash Agnosturo bitters

Combine all the ingredients in a shaker with ice and shake, shake, shake to mix and chill.  Strain into a chilled coupe and garnish with a cherry.

I amped the pineapple up from 1/4 oz to 1/2 oz after making my first one.  The pineapple just seemed lost without the extra 1/4 oz.  My modified drink was good with a very complex and layered flavor profile.  The brandy, maraschino and pineapple all blend harmoniously.  Towards the end it did start to get a little syrupy sweet the way some drinks with pineapple can get, but overall I thought this was a winner.  By the way, for those of you keeping score at home I used Korbel brandy and Luxardo maraschino liqueur.

The Saratoga on the left and Pisco Punch on the right.

For my next brandy drink I decided on the Pisco Punch.  Pisco is an acquired taste.  It is a brandy distilled from white muscat grapes and has a sharp flavor to it, somewhat similar to kirschwasser.  So why choose it?  Well, I had a bottle left over from New Year’s Eve courtesy of Christian and Meredith and had some pineapple juice left from the Saratoga.

  Pisco Punch

• 2 oz Pisco brandy
• 1/2 oz pineapple juice
• 1/2 oz lime juice
• 2 dashes Angosturo bitters

Combine all the ingredients with 1/2 cup of cracked ice in a blender.  Blend until smooth and pour into a chilled wine glass.  Garnish with a cherry or lime slice.

I had to let this one grow on me.  This drink, although it looks frilly, is not.  Between the pisco and the bitters it is a sour son of a gun.  As I expected, it was a complete no go for Gwen.

Well, that’s it for today.  Off to watch the Packers with all my brandy swillin’ friends at Ivee’s!

Cheers!

 

Isn’t That Special

Day 246, Cocktails 242 & 243

Notice how everyone is always eyeing a good cocktail, especially when its made at the Twilight Lounge?  I mean just look at it…Gumby is all over it, Pokey is charging in, Kevin Mack is trying to head Pokey off and Bernie Kosar is about to hoist himself up into the drink.  And Chief Wahoo?  Why do you think he’s grinning?

Tonight I had a few fresh oranges and a brand new juicer (thanks to Gwen and the girls) to try out.  By now, you regular readers know that I border on a fetish for orange and rye whiskey, so this should be no suprise to you.

  Whiskey Special

• 1-1/2 oz rye whiskey
• 1/2 oz dry vermouth
• 1/2 oz orange juice

Combine in a shaker with ice and shake, shake, shake.  Strain into a chilled coupe.  Garnish with an orange peel and a dusting of ground nutmeg.

Hmmm….my official taste tester wasn’t too crazy about this, and I kinda’ agreed with her.  The flavor of the dry vermouth overwhelms the drink and the nutmeg just tastes gritty.  So what to do?  Well, that’s easy, try again!

  Whiskey Extra Special

• 2 oz rye whiskey
• 1/8 oz Luxardo maraschino liqueur
• 1/2 oz orange juice
• 1 dash orange bitters

Combine in a shaker with ice and shake, shake, shake.  Strain into a chilled coupe.  Garnish with an orange peel.

Now that’s more like it!  The Luxardo stays in the background and allows the orange flavors and rye to blend and play together very nicely.  This turned into a nice, semi boozy cocktail that I could drink all night!  Alas, work calls tomorrow, so I’ll hold myself to one tonight.

Cheers!

Bourbon and Juice

Day 231, Cocktail 230

If Snoop Dog can have his gin and juice, then I can my gin and bourbon, right?

After Saturday’s movie night and the several Manhattan variations I had tried, I had the brilliant idea to combine bourbon with orange juice and Luxardo maraschino liqueur.  Actually, I used a clementine for the juice instead of an orange.  I had bought a box of them last week and this seemed like a good way to use one up.  Besides, since they are so much smaller they fit very nicely into my juice press!

  Cherry Orange Manhattan

• 2 oz Maker’s Mark bourbon
• 1 oz orange juice
• 1/8 oz Luxardo Maraschino liqueur
• 1 dash Peychaud’s bitters

Combine the ingredients in a shaker with ice and shake, shake, shake to mix and chill.  Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.  Garnish with an orange peel.

This was a very nice cocktail.  I’ve enjoyed orange and maraschino with rye on several occasions, so its not a big suprise that the transition to bourbon with these flavors works well.  There was just a hint of the maraschino in the background and the Peychaud’s really helps pull this together in a tidy little package.

Cheers!

Not a Finger!

Day 230, Cocktails 227, 228 & 229

Saturday night was another Christmas movie night – the weather forecast here was just too lousy to plan anything else. 

We watched a couple of movies, including on of my all time favorites, “A Christmas Story”.  I just love the whole leg lamp scene, from the moment the major award arrives to the ignominious end, a shattered relic of its glory.  “Not a finger” is all poor Darrin McGavin can blurt out when he sees what’s happened to his prized lamp, and that just cracks me up every time!

Of course, nasty weather outside, a roaring fire and Christmas movies inside all lend themselves to cocktails being mixed with care in the Twilight Lounge!  We ended up with a lineup of three new cocktails, so let’s get to it.

  Gwen’s Red Carpet

• 2 oz vodka
• 2 oz pomegranate juice
• 2 oz Pinot Grigio
• seltzer water

Fill a collins or highball glass with ice cubes.  Add the ingredients in the order listed, topping with selzter water.  Give a quick stir and serve.

This was a recipe that Gwen found and originally called for champagne.  Unfortunately, I didn’t have any about, so I improvised with the Pinot Grigio and seltzer water.  This was a nice starter cocktail, and I could easily enjoy several of these since they are not too sweet.  In fact, Gwen did have a second while I moved on to my next cocktail for the evening.

  Maraschino Manhattan

• 2 oz Maker’s Mark bourbon
• 1 oz sweet vermouth
• 1/8 oz Luxardo Maraschino liqueur
• 1 dash Peychaud’s bitters

Fill a shaker with ice cubes and add the ingredients, bitters first.  Shake, shake, shake to combine and chill.  Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a cherry.

This was very, very good.  You know how I love the flavor of Luxardo’s Maraschino liqueur and there was just a hint of it evident along with the bourbon and vermouth.  It was a very nice, slightly drier version of a sweet manhattan.  As much as I liked this I think it is the new house manhattan of the Twilight Lounge.

Finally, cocktail number three was an off the cuff mix prepared after I ran out of Pinot Grigio for the Gwen’s Red Carpet. 

  Not a Finger

• 2 oz vodka
• 2 oz pomegranate juice
• 2 oz lychee fruit juice
• lemon lime soda

Fill a collins or highball glass with ice cubes.  Add the ingredients in the order listed, topping with lemon lime soda.  Give a quick stir and serve.

This one really hit the spot, especially for Gwen.  In fact, she labelled it the best of the night!  The lychee adds a really bright, fresh flavor that I have a hard time describing…somewhat pear like, but it is a unique flavor that is really good.  If you can find lychee fruit juice in your local market pick up a can and try it out, you’ll love it!

Cheers!

Clark Griswold

Day 215, Cocktails 209, 210 & 211

Ahh, the day after Thanksgiving.  It’s Black Friday (a day that sounds like the plague) and like lemmings, Gwen and I got up at 5:40 to head to the local Menard’s for their 6am opening and a $100 TV.  We figured who would be at a home improvement store that early?  Well, as we drove up, the parking lot was full and the line at the door extended for several hundred feet.  We kept right on driving and went back home.  Thus, for the 3rd time now I’ll again vow to never shop on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

The day after Thanksgiving also means putting up the exterior decorations.  (The inside stuff is also going up, but that takes Gwen the whole weekend and then some).  It was a brisk, but sunny day as I pulled out the lights and ladders.  With Cookie’s help we banged it out in just a couple of hours and then admired the lights from the curb after it got dark.  It’s my first year replacing my old fashioned C9 bulbs with LED C9 bulbs.  I know I’ll save a ton of electricity, but they are just not the same.  I’m sure I’ll get used to them, it’ll just take some time.

With the lights up and a movie on after dinner, it was time for a cocktail.  Since I had just finished putting up the outdoor lights, Chevy Chase’s Clark Griswold seemed like the perfect inspiration for a new drink.  Bourbon seemed like the ideal base.  Remember the scene after the squirrel attack when Clark asks his dad how he got through the holidays and his answer was that he had a lot of help from his friend Jack?  Well, I don’t have Jack but I do have bourbon.  But what to add with it?  Peach is a flavor that works well with bourbon.  I tried a mix of 2 oz Maker’s Mark, 1 oz Stirrings peach liqueur and a dash of Peychaud’s bitters.  Hmmm, even Gwen thought that this was too sweet.  We also agreed that this wasn’t very emblematic of Clark.  This one will go back in the hopper and I’ll play around with it in the future.

So, what would a Clark Griswold taste like.  We batted around a few ideas and decided it would be cherry and chocolate flavors.  Back to mixing I went and tried 2 oz Maker’s Mark, 1/2 oz Luxardo maraschino liqueur and 1/4 oz Kahlua.  I know, Kahlua is coffee flavored, but it ends up tasting like chocolate to me when mixed with bourbon.  I tested this out on Gwen and she though the maraschino was too strong and that it was still too sweet.  I enjoyed it (big suprise there) but did agree that the maraschino overpowered the rest of the drink.

The third time was the charm.

  Clark Griswold

• 2 oz Maker’s Mark bourbon
• 3/8 oz Luxardo maraschino liqueur
• 1/4 oz Kahlua

Combine all the ingredients in a shaker with ice.  Shake, shake, shake to mix and chill.  Strain into a chilled coupe or cocktail glass.  Garnish with a cherry.

We both enjoyed this one.  Even my mom thought it was good.  Just the right blend of bourbon with cherry and chocolate overtones from the maraschino and Kahlua.  So now every time we watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation we’ll be able to enjoy our very own Clark Griswold.

Cheers!

Turkey Day

Day 213, Cocktails 207 & 208

Happy Thanksgiving!  Today is that day for us to gather and reflect on what we have to be thankful for…for me it is my family and friends, my health, and…the hope for a Brown’s win on Sunday!  We’re having several friends over along with Paula and Cookie.  Not sure if I’ll get into any new cocktails today as I plan on serving up Caramel Apples and Pecan Pies.  If I do, you’ll read all about in the next post.

Yesterday was a day for a couple of new drinks.  Much of the day was spent in final preparation for today.  By dinner time we were winding down and playing shut box down in the Twilight Lounge.  I mixed up a drink I found on the CocktailDB.

  Southern Bride

• 1-3/4 oz gin
• 1/2 oz grapefruit juice
• 1/4 oz Luxardo maraschino liqueur

Combine the ingredients in a shaker and shake, shake, shake to combine and chill.  Strain into a coupe.

My first observation is that this is a dainty ‘lil ‘ol thing, only filling my coupe about 2/3 of the way with a nice, pink hue.  It is a tasty cocktail with the maraschino taking front and center, followed by the grapefruit and then gin as a supporting platform.  I used Plymouth gin for this one.  If you want more “bite” from your gin, use Bombay or Beefeater.

Later in the evening we headed over to Brett’s house for his night before Thanksgiving party.  We don’t get to see Brett outside of Ivee’s nearly enough and he always throws a good bash.  Last night held true to form.  After several bourbon and cokes Gwen cajoled Brett into making up his own speciality cocktail.  It’s called Brett’s Passion Fruit Mojito and consists of Cruzan Aged Rum, lime juice, mint, powdered sugar and seltzer water.  Wow, was this ever delicious!  The Cruzan has a nice, silky and slightly smokey flavor.  The passion fruit and mint blend wonderfully together and it was just sweet enough.  Well done Brett!  If you want, give me your exact recipe and I’ll publish it!

Cheers!

It’s Martini Time Times Two

Day 201, Cocktails 196 & 197

If you are a regular reader then you know the Friday night is martini night at the Twilight Lounge.  Since starting this whacko journey of 365 cocktails in 365 days it’s hard to limit myself to my traditional martini on Fridays.  However, I can and do imbibe in a martini style cocktail (or two, as was the case this past Friday).

I cracked open Sally Ann Berk’s “The Martini Book” and started perusing.  This is the first one that caught my eye.

  Boardwalk

• 3 oz vodka
• 1 oz dry vermouth
• 1 bar spoon maraschino liqueur
• 2 bar spoons lemon juice

Combine the ingredients in cocktail shaker with ice.  Shake, shake, shake to chill and mix.  Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a lemon twist.

This worked out well, particularly since we were watching James Bond flicks on the DVR (Thunderball, to be exact).  I used Smirnoff vodka and Luxardo’s Maraschino Liqueur.  Just a hint of the maraschino comes through and balances out the vermouth very nicely.  I definately recommend this one. 

Since we were watching James Bond, one is just not enough.  Back to “The Martini Book” and this lovely offering.

  Bronx Terrace Cocktail

• 3 oz gin
• 1 oz lime juice
• 1 oz dry vermouth

Combine the ingredients in cocktail shaker with ice.  Shake, shake, shake to chill and mix.  Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a lime twist. 

The recipe in the book called for a maraschino cherry for the garnish.  Perhaps if I had a real maraschino cherry that had been soaked in vodka I might have, but I couldn’t see the sweet, red cherries sitting in my fridge sitting in this drink.  For the gin I used Bombay.  This one is different.  Because of the lime juice, it’s almost like drinking a margarita, just, well, different.  I might try this one again, but I won’t be in any hurry.

By the time we finished the second drink Bond was in a life raft with Domino…lucky him!

Cheers!

Gin and Maraschino

Day 165, Cocktails 163 & 164

As I contemplated what to drink tonight I decided I wanted to strike out on my own.  I’ve been a fan of Luxardo maraschino since my first Aviation and really like how well it works with gin.  But rather than the lemon juice that makes up the third leg of the Aviation I decided to experiment on my own and see what else I could come up with.

My first effort used Plymouth gin, Luxardo maraschino and Ty Ku, the asian superfruit flavored liqueur.

  Ty Ku Flyer

• 2 oz Plymouth gin
• 1/2 oz Ty Ku liqueur
• 1/4 oz Luxardo Maraschino liqueur

Combine the ingredients in a mixing glass with 4-5 ice cubes.  Stir to combine and chill.  Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Wow, pretty good, if I say so myself.  It’s not often that the first crack at a cocktail yields a drink that is well balanced and tasty, but I think I hit this one on the first try.  The Ty Ku mellows the Luxardo, leaving a delightful cherry, melon flavor that mixes well with the relatively mild Plymouth.  No garnish is needed for this one!

The next one I tried really was a flyer.  I switched to Bombay gin, kept the Luxardo Maraschino liqueur and tried using Pernod.  Pernod is considered an absinthe substitute and is one the many annise flavored liqueurs out there.  I keep sipping this trying to like it, but the Pernod is a flavor that doesn’t seem to play as well with gin as it does with rye or scotch.   At this point, although I’m counting this as a cocktail drunk towards my goal, it is not a recipe that I’m ready to publish.

Ultimately, the point here is to go ahead and experiment.  Try mixing and matching flavors that you like and see what you get.  If you come up with something good let me know and I’ll publish it here!

Cheers!