15 June 2009’s libations.
Jun/097
Rather than go through any sort of rigamarole about starting a new blog, I’m simply going to kick off with a post in a format I plan to maintain whenever I feel like it, but probably frequently. Here, then, are the drinks I had tonight, down to the brands used, in the order consumed:
The Attention
(See also. Thanks to Plymouth Gin, Apothecary, and Nicholas Jarrett for introducing me to this wonderful waypoint between the Martini and the Aviation.)
2½ oz Plymouth Gin
½ oz Crème de Violette (Rothman & Winter)
½ Noilly Prat dry vermouth
½ barspoon Philly Distilling Vieux Carré
2 dashes Fee’s orange bitters
Stir on ice, strain into a cocktail glass, garnish with either a lemon or orange twist (to taste).
The Chaplin
(For introduction to which, thanks Rodolphe.)
¾ oz Eagle Rare bourbon
¾ oz Williams & Humbert Dry Sack sherry
¾ oz Ramazzotti Amaro
⅛ oz Cointreau
2 dashes orange bitters
Stir on ice, strain into a cocktail glass, garnish with a (flamed, in this case) orange twist.
La Louisiane
(See also.)
¾ oz Old Overholt Rye
¾ oz Punt e Mes rosso vermouth
¾ oz Benedictine
1 barspoon Pernod
3 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
Stir on ice, strain into a cocktail glass, garnish with a (again flamed: I’m using it up and practicing) orange twist.
Blood & Sand
1½ oz Ardbeg 10 Scotch
¾ oz Cherry Heering
½ oz Cinzano rosso vermouth
½ oz fresh orange juice
Shake all ingredients on ice, strain into a cocktail glass. What the hell, flame an orange peel on it.
Dark & Stormy
2 oz Gosling’s Black Seal dark rum
~3 oz home-made ginger “beer” (no fermentation, just CO2 charging)
Build in a Collins glass over ice, top with ginger beer.
Moscow Mule
(You may notice something of a pattern here. I was on the phone with my parents.)
2 oz Svedka vodka (Yeah, really. I’m trying to kill it.)
~3 oz ginger beer (as above)
Build in a Collins glass over ice, top with ginger beer.
an interlude
A glass of wine with dinner. It was opened during a cocktail party I threw a couple of days ago, so it needs to be used up.
Trinidad Sour
1 oz Angostura Bitters
1 oz Fiume Sciroppa di Orzata (If you’ve only had Fee’s Orgeat before, you’re missing out)
1 oz fresh lemon juice
½ oz Rittenhouse 100
Shake on ice, strain into a cocktail glass.
Lagavulin 16 year
1 shot. Neat.
2:19 am on June 16th, 2009
good god man; @ this rate you’ll beat the North Australians. oh, but the Trinidad Sour… if i wasn’t out of orgeat, i’d be drinking one now.
subscribed, btw.
2:24 am on June 16th, 2009
That reminds me that you didn’t taste the Orzata any of the three times you were in my house in the past five days. You really should. (Don’t worry, I won’t go through it all THAT quickly.)
11:53 pm on July 8th, 2009
So, when I make a Trini Sour at home, it comes out a little harsh. It’s still pretty good, but it’s not… sublime like when I had it at Drink. (Yours was up there too.) I’ve had to substitute Fee’s for the orgeat and Old Overholt for the rye. I’m pretty careful with the proportions. So is it the inferior ingredients? My crappy shaking technique? The lack of atmosphere in our little apartment?
12:59 am on August 4th, 2009
Jeff… I thought I’d already responded to this! It’s probably the Fee’s. That’s not, well, it’s not really Orgeat. What I used on the fourth was Orzata that Rodolphe tracked down, but your best bet with both Orgeat and Falernum is to fish around for a few recipes in books and online, think about the ingredients, and make your own. The Velvet Falernum that Rodolphe had up in Millbrook is really good stuff, but a friend of mine’s is better (probably in the same way that the coffee I roast at home is better: it’s more fresh).
1:01 am on August 4th, 2009
Oh, one other point: it’s easy to use too much Angostura. I don’t go above 1 oz these days, and some times tip the other ingredients a bit higher depending on who’s receiving the drink. Also, fresh citrus is key.