Cocktails, the libationary art!

2 oz Evan Williams bottled-in-bond

3/4 oz guava liqueur (see note)

3/4 oz Chinola passion fruit liqueur

1 oz lemon juice

Shaken.

It's every bit as good as it sounds. Not too sweet but fruity and boozy.

Note: the guava is guava jam jar rinsed out with vodka, this trick courtesy of the brilliant Claire Lower of lifehacker.

Ever since I got a shaker a year ago, my goto drink is a Margarita. Just love them.

Whipped up a new to me cocktail tonight:

Pomegranate Margarita

2 Reposado Tequila 1.5 Triple Sec .5 pomegranate molasses 1.5 lime juice (fresh) 2 water

At least a 10 oz glass with salted rim 3-4 ice cubes All ingredients in a shaker cup Stir for 30 seconds Strain into glass

Serve

I ran out of Amaro Nonino but wanted a paper plane so made a substitute:

2oz bourbon

1 oz Aperol

1 oz Heirloom Pineapple Amaro

1 tsp Campari

1 oz lemon super juice

Shaken. Delicious.

This was an experiment but I took a sip and literally exclaimed "oh my God, this is so good!". It's almost savory somehow.

A weekday level drink, not a heavy hitter.

1 oz bourbon 94 proof Elijah Craig

1/2 oz mezcal, the good one - Del Maguey

1/2 oz Cherry Heering

2 oz fizzy lemonade (I mixed one part simple syrup one part lemon super juice two parts Topo Chico)

Shake (it was all in the shaker before I remembered the fizz but it was fine)

Might fuss with the proportions but yum, not much.

Who knew the ABC website let you just search avaibility! Do you guys think a better gin should be used than Bombay?

Anyways:

An ounce each of gin, chartreuse, Luxardo cherry liqueur, and lime juice. Garnished with a store bought cherry.

I'm not really a sour or citrus juice guy (can hurt my gums) but this drink is very good. Very refreshing. Fruity and herbal. Will be trying the Naked and Famous as well as a chartreuse Manhattan soon.

This is Eva's Spritz, mixed with orange juice, lime juice, Topo Chico, and a little of my fermented frankensoda (I mixed the end of ginger beer, tepache, and pineapple juice and let it keep going - it's slightly alcoholic at this point but more importantly for this drink, very dry and bitter, the spritz was too sweet for my taste.)

Wow Lemmy doesn't like pictures today, here it is on imgur

Here’s a nice winter warmer that I had at a restaurant and recreated at home. The falernum and allspice lend great spice flavors, and both take some of the edge off the burn of the aquavit. If you’re making this I’d suggest going light on the agave and adding to taste. The recipe below is very drinkable but ever-so-slightly on the sweet side.

• 2 oz aquavit
• ¾ oz lemon juice
• ¼ oz agave (or honey)
• ¼ oz John. D. Taylor's Velvet Falernum
• ¼ oz St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram

Shake with ice, strain into a coupe, and garnish with a lemon twist.

For 2024 we will have a monthly original cocktail challenge, I will try to announce the ingredients one month ahead to give everyone time to play with them and create something.

Rules are few:

Cocktail must be novel in some way, can be completely original or a variation on a standard. Unless one of the challenge ingredients is alcoholic, the cocktail can be non alcoholic, it just needs to be a drink you create that includes the ingredients.

Entries must include a picture, a description of your impressions (tasting notes, smell, mouth feel) and a recipe clear enough that a beginner could follow it.

Winner is most upvoted, because there is no other way to measure. (As a clarification - upvotes not net votes. A controversial but popular drink will win over a crowd pleaser in this challenge) Winner each month gets nothing but glory.

January Challenge is Kiwi and Mezcal!

Untitled mid-week drink. And, finally, a picture!

1.5oz bourbon

3/4 oz Tuaca

1 oz pear juice

1/2 oz lemon juice

Shaken. It's quite good just as it is. Very compatible flavors, balanced acidity, booziness, sweet, hint of bitter. The pear is a little lost, if I was trying to perfect it might make a pear syrup.

This is one I had at an Italian restaurant once and was delighted by. It’s basically a more herbaceous take on a French 75, what’s not to like?

• ¾ oz Dampfwerk Crane gin
• ¾ oz sage syrup
• ½ oz lemon juice
• 1 splash Prosecco
• 1 dried thyme sprig

Shake the gin, syrup, and lemon juice with ice and strain into the glass. Top with Prosecco. Garnish with a sprig of thyme.

I still can't load pictures for some reason but it is a mulled wine.

2 bottles of fruity red 1 star anise 10 pepper corns 1/4 cup runny honey 1 lime peel

Mix and heat, no boiling until the honey dissolves in. Then simmer on cold for 30 minutes. Before you serve, add lime juice to taste. Great for a cold day

Hey everyone. As promised, here's what I did for the holiday. It's a classic mojito mix, made with freshly picked key limes. This is actually the 3rd pitcher, so pardon the lack of visual flair.

And before anyone asks, I don't use a specific recipe or ratio. I built to taste based on the palate of the people I'm with. Some of my family like it weak and mild sweetness, so I have the bottle of rum for floating and made a simple syrup for the family who are speedrunning diabetes.

I've been making these since I was 6, feel free to ask me about any of it!

Happy Turkey Day!

This is my cocktail for Thanksgiving this year. The N~2~ gives the drink a nice rich and creamy texture.

• 16oz fresh cold brew concentrate
• 16oz vodka
• 12oz pumpkin spice cream liquor
• 4oz kahlua

Combine in a Royal Brew 64oz Keg with 2 N~2~ cartridges

Got a new package of cocktail cherries and haven't had any bourbon in a while so felt like that called for a classic to occupy me while I bake a pumpkin pie

Bourbon is Knob Creek and the cherries are Peninsula Premium

What are you drinking this week?

I'm having some homemade ginger beer with some Chartreuse and rum, a little lime.

I am absolutely sure my palate could not appreciate this enough to pay for it. I assume people are buying these to sell, not to drink but in the end someone must drink it for it to make any sense!

My more well off relatives will buy a case of good wine sometimes and hold it until it's best year to open. I don't like wine enough to do that, although because they are enthusiasts they are the people who can help me find wines I do like.

The only food or drink I can even imagine wanting to do this with is cheese. Cocktails I think of more as a puzzle, what can I put together to create synergy, not so dependent on an individual element. Wine I just don't like enough.

Do you collect, store any wine or liquor or other consumable food or drink to hold until it's perfect?

First time doing a dry shake/wet shake. I am happy with the results and the mouth feels of the egg whites. I will make it again

So, for the USians here, what drinks are you serving at Thanksgiving? I always end up with a crowd as we are centrally located and have a big family. I will get a great Cabernet, a sweet white wine for my ex mother out-law who always asks for white wine then says it's too dry, beer of course, still working on the house cocktail and non alcoholic drinks.

Always start with a spritz of some sort, mimosa or similar.

Tried a really good pineapple drink (it's in another post) and it's great but I don't want to juice pineapple, andthe tepache will be too dry or gone by then.

Still thinking about this. I do have time to make more ginger beer by then. But I'm thinking to make that one of the non-intoxicating drinks.

In previous recent big gatherings I've made a pineapple drink, a pear and ginger, a ginger and Chartreuse. I am cooking and not willing to also be a bartender so need a pitcher of something for sure. Not many of my guests like wine, the beer drinkers are all set, they bring more than enough. I can get just about anything in terms of ingredients.

We have vegans so besides turkey the food slants toward mushrooms/potatoes/lentils.

Sorry, this got long, just looking for ideas, will put my trials in this thread and also please ask here if you are also looking for ideas.

Named after the tallest single-drop waterfall in the world, in Guyana, this drink is my favorite tiki-style cocktail of all time. I got the recipe from Smuggler’s Cove. It’s easy drinking and super flavorful. Give it a shot!

• ½ oz Maple Syrup
• ¾ oz lime juice
• ½ oz John. D. Taylor's Velvet Falernum liqueur
• 2 oz blended aged rum
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• 1 mint sprig

Add the liquid ingredients to the glass and fill three-quarters with ice. Swizzle, then top with more ice. Garnish with a mint sprig and swizzle stick.

This is a thanksgiving test drink. Very nice. This made two, I am having both of them!

2 oz Angel's Envy

2oz fresh pineapple juice

A little less than 1 oz lemon

1/2 oz full proof coconut rum

1/2 oz Ancho Reyes

Scant 1/2 oz orgeat

Shake

Add 2 oz pineapple tepache, stir, pour over new ice or I think dirty pour would also work beautifully.

So far just coffee for me but made the avocado pit orgeat, and have tepache and ginger beer (both house fermented) so thinking to make something with tepache & the orgeat. There's still pineapple juice too. Alternatively, I also rinsed out a jar of guava jam with the end of the vodka and cachaca so might use that for something.

Anyway - something resourceful and made of scraps tonight. Along with tacos of leftover pulled pork.

After quite a few months of loving amaro and making cocktails with some, I finally got a bottle of averna. I'd been really enjoying the Vieux Carre, the Sazerac, the Boulevardier... And this drink is very very good.

Its very subtle in its spiciness, bitterness, sweetness and some anise/herbal notes.

2oz rye 1oz averna amaro Dash ango/dash orange bitters

Orange twist or a cherry or whatever.

Its what a college student hopes Jager tastes like.

I counted 10 I can make on the fly, so 14 I couldn't. But in my private life, the drinks that have been specifically requested of me when I ask "would you like a drink?" and got an answer other than yes have almost all been Margarita. Paper Plane second place, not even on their list, but it's a distant second.

I would say if you can make a margarita without a recipe (I do this with proportions, 2 parts tequila, one of orange liqueur, one of lime, shake with ice) and it gets seal of approval from Mexican girl-or-boyfriends of my kids. If you can make that, an old fashioned, martini and a Negroni I think you are going to cover most guests at parties but in my experience most of those will be margaritas.