It’s another Whiskey Wednesday! I picked up some Rittenhouse this afternoon and wanted to try it out. This cocktail seemed very familiar to me, though I can’t quite place it. (It does seem kind of like a Brooklyn.) The rosemary is essential here, as it really gives a wonderful nose to the drink. I might even be starting to enjoy Cynar under the right circumstances.
Well, this really brought out the grape flavors in the Pisco. Works very well as an after dinner digestif.
I spent all of today biking around town for an Ingress anomaly event. By the time I was finished with the after party (and the after after party) and made it home I had little time to spare before midnight. I found this while looking up whiskey cocktails. Despite it’s silly name it’s a decent drink, slightly sweet but with a nice rye bite.
Sometime last year I was away on a business trip, I think when I was in Portland, and had a drink with Zirbenz. I knew immediately that it was something I wanted to get for Dane, as he has long described a fantasy drink of his that has a pine flavor. Unfortunately I’ve never seen it in Texas. I had a bit of luck while in Denver this week and found a bottle. I knew I wanted to make him a drink with it when I got back, so I searched a bit and found this recipe. It’s actually very low on the pine flavor. It’s something I might make again, though I’m more interested in experimenting with it to make his fantasy cocktail. I have several ideas for it, so you might be seeing it soon.
This afternoon William and I introduced some friends to Jodorowsky’s Dune, a documentary that we saw at Fantastic Fest 2013. It’s a really amazing film about when Alejandro Jodorowsky tried to make Dune into a film in the late 70’s. The film was never actually made, but it influenced many films for years after even so, and many of the creatives on the project went on to continue working relationships to make some of our favorite films. (Alien, in particular, would probably not have existed in the same form if Dan O’Bannon, H.R. Giger, Chris Foss, and Mœbius had not worked together on Dune.) We had some great discussions on the creative process and how the film landscape of America might be completely different had this film been made.
Afterwards we went for drinks at Whisler’s in East Austin. Whisler’s bartenders are famous for their “three questions” on slow nights, where they ask you three questions and then custom make a drink. It being a Saturday night it was far too busy for that, so we ordered off the menu. I had a classic Zombie, but another friend had their version of the Manhattan called a Brooklyn. I made sure to make a note of the ingredients and as soon as I got home I knew I wanted to recreate it for tonight’s drink. I think I did a decent job of it! You might increase the Averna if you want a more fragrant drink.
Since it’s the middle of winter, let’s have a tiki drink to remind us of the summer! This is one of my all-time favorites from Midnight Cowboy. I believe it was on one of their first menus. I’ve been working to replicate it properly for a while now, and I’m almost there. I think I added just a leeeeetle too much lemon this time. I had two lemons that were getting a bit old so I decided to use up both, and probably could have done with just one.
My mint plant is a little cold right now but still gave up a few tiny sprigs for the garnish here. The glass came from Texas Tiki Week this past year. (I’ve also got a pair from 2013, and will likely continue to grow the collection.) The vanilla brown sugar syrup is pretty fun to make: I cut open a vanilla bean and let it boil with the sugar and water. Mmm, vanilla.
I cannot for the life of me find a bottle of Lemonhart 151 in Texas. One time last year while visiting Atlanta I saw a bottle, covered in dust and on the back of a shelf, and I almost bought it to take home. Dane said it’d be too much hassle so I left it there and now I regret it. My understanding is that it’s a much smoother liquor than your typical 151 rum. One day I will find a bottle.
