Tag: lemon

Day 45: Death & Co Fix Me Up

  • 1 1/2 oz sherry
  • 1 oz rye
  • 3/4 oz orgeat
  • 1/2 oz lemon juice
  • 1/2 oz orange juice
  • 2 dashes Angostura
  • 3/4 oz club soda (to top after shaking)

Every time I flip through the Death & Co book I find something that looks surprising and interesting. This time I was searching for something to use an orange, since Dane had completely peeled the rind off one when baking this (with my amazing new Y-peeler). The recipe says to pour into a “snifter over a large ice cube”, neither of which I had. I improvised with a red wine glass and it seemed to work just fine. I only have one kind of sherry right now, so my version had creme instead of amontillado. I’m guessing that makes mine a much sweeter version. Dane still enjoyed this one even so.

Day 44: Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai

  • 1 oz Demerara rum
  • 1 oz dark Jamaican rum
  • 1 oz light rum
  • 1 oz orange juice
  • 1 oz pineapple juice
  • 1/2 oz lime juice
  • 1/4 oz lemon juice
  • 1/4 oz orange curaçao
  • 1/4 oz Orgeat
  • 1/4 oz simple syrup

Another day, another tiki drink. Tonight we’re hosting a dinner party that is themed around citrus, so I decided to pick something that used as many citrus fruits as I could get. This is a pretty nice Mai Tai variant that I would recommend if you have a ton of juice you need to use up.

Day 40: Samoan Fog Cutter

  • 2 oz lemon juice
  • 1 1/2 oz light rum
  • 1 oz orange juice
  • 1/2 oz Orgeat
  • 1/2 oz brandy
  • 1/2 oz gin
  • 1/2 oz cream sherry (float)

Another beauty from the Beachbum Berry book. The actual recipe for this calls for it be blended, but I was feeling lazy. This is super tart and would make a great “sipping by the pool in summer” drink. I also finally got a chance to use my Horror in Clay fogcutter mug, designed by a friend of a friend. Clearly I need some longer straws.

Day 38: Aviation

  • 2 oz gin
  • 3/4 oz lemon juice
  • 1/2 oz Maraschino liqueur
  • 1/4 oz Crème de violette

The Aviation is the first cocktail that really got me into gin, and it’s because Lisa made me one with Hendrick’s many years ago. My only previous experience with gin was with Tanqueray, which is heavy on the juniper and fairly unpleasant to me. Hendrick’s has a wonderful cucumber flavor that makes it very versatile in drinks for people who don’t care for heavy juniper flavors. I’ve since been branching out and trying other gins, and the Uncle Val’s is a new favorite, so of course I needed to try it in an Aviation. It is glorious in this cocktail! It’s a fresh, floral flavor profile.

Day 37: Between the Sheets

  • 1 1/2 oz dark rum
  • 1 oz cognac
  • 1/2 oz lemon juice
  • 1/2 oz curaçao

This is one that I saw on a menu and didn’t even realize that it was a classic with an established recipe. So I took a stab at at it on my own, and it’s definitely a bit off. Even with the dark rum it mostly tastes of citrus. The recipes I found also use light rum, so I’ll try and follow an existing recipe next time.

Day 30: Aquadisiac

  • 2 oz gold rum
  • 1 oz lemon juice
  • 1/2 oz Orgeat syrup
  • 1/2 oz blue curaçao

My brother was having a Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy themed birthday party tonight, so I offered to make Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters for the event. All the recipes I found online for this fictional drink looked absolutely awful, so I decided to find something in the tiki book. I figured blue curaçao would be apt, as well as something that included lemon. I found the Aquadisiac. It turned out mostly ok. I specifically asked that my brother pick up a gold Barbados rum, and this one was not my favorite. I don’t have a ton of experience with Barbados rum, so maybe next time we’ll try something different.

Day 16: Midnight Cowboy Total Eclipse of the Lemonhart

  • 2 oz Dolin dry
  • 3/4 oz lemon juice
  • 3/4 oz vanilla brown sugar syrup
  • 1/2 oz 151 rum
  • generous dropper of tiki bitters

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.

 

 

Day 7: Twentieth Century

  • 2 oz french gin
  • 2 oz Cocchi Americano
  • 1/4 oz creme de cacao
  • juice of half a lemon

I’ve only made this drink once before, and have been guessing the ratios by using a cocktail menu from Midnight Cowboy (a glorious speakeasy in Austin). Turns out that it was originally a cocktail from the 30’s and that my ratios are WAY OFF. I honestly think that I would prefer mine, since the creme de cacao is so powerful. Maybe using Lillet rather than Cocchi would change my mind. This version of the drink is fairly bright with a hint of chocolate.

Day 4: Ste. Ellie Jack Rose

  • 2 oz Laird’s Apple Brandy
  • 1/2 oz Pama pomegranate liqueur
  • juice of half a lemon
  • juice of half a lime
  • splash of grenadine
  • maraschino cherry to garnish

Combine in a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake. Pour into a coupe or martini glass and garnish with the cherry.

The Jack Rose is a classic Prohibition cocktail. This version of it comes from Ste. Ellie, a wonderful basement cocktail bar in Denver, CO. I think they may actually use pomegranate juice, but I felt like boozing it up and used Pama instead. The citrus and the Pama make it a tart drink, so I added grenadine to the original recipe for a bit more sweetness. Feel free to add more grenadine to suit your own tastes.