Got Grapefruit?

I love the humble white grapefruit and the wonderful nectar it produces. The bitterness/ sweetness balance is exactly what I appreciate in a citrus fruit. It works great in simple cocktails - both gin and tequila are natural companions with their inherent citrus notes.

If you're in possession of white grapefruit juice, either fresh squeezed (preferred, obviously) or from a bottle (I prefer Ocean Spray white grapefruit juice, which is surprisingly good for a bottled product and has no added sugar) and are wondering what to do with it, here are my two favorite recent grapefruit juice-based beverages for your consideration:

The first is a mash-up of a gin (the "english") greyhound and a pink gin. The second is essentially a Paloma made with grapefruit juice instead of soda (thus the "still")

They're both super easy to make. Try mixing up the ratios a bit for your optimal drink.

Pink English Greyhound
~2 oz. Gin (Beefeater (regular or 24))
~2 oz. white grapefruit juice.
2-3 dashes Angostura bitters
Fill a double old fashioned glass with ice cubes. Fill 1/3 to 1/2 with gin. Top with grapefruit juice. Stir. Float 2-3 dashes of Angostura bitters.

Still Paloma
~2 oz. blanco Tequila (El Jimador)
~2 oz. white grapefruit juice
1/4 lime
Fill a double old fashioned glass with ice cubes. Fill 1/3 to 1/2 with Tequila. Top with grapefruit juice. Squeeze lime into glass. Stir.

Plymouth Sloe Gin

The recent spate of of cold weather here in Southern California has left me searching for a nice "winter warmer". Sure there's the typical wintry standby, single malt scotch, but I was looking to broaden my horizons a bit. This led me to sloe gin.

Plymouth, maker of a fine "Plymouth Gin" which is the only of its kind, as opposed to "London Dry" recently launched its own version of sloe gin which one-ups the sweet, sticky anduninteresting sloe gins usually sitting on the shelf.

According to Plymouth's website:

The making of fruit gins is a long tradition in the British countryside and Plymouth gin keeps true to a unique 1883 recipe. Sloe berries are slowly and gently steeped in Plymouth Gin, soft pure Dartmoor water and a small amount of sugar for approximately 4 months. The sugar levels are kept low to allow the full flavour of the berries to shine and allow the dry acidity of the fruit to be an important part of the taste. The result is an entirely natural product with no added flavourings or colourings. Sloe Gin has long been enjoyed as a "winter warmer" in the countryside.

On its own, Sloe Gin is quite delicious. I took the following tasting notes:

Color: Burgundy with a brick-colored edge
Nose: Evokes cherries, tart plums, black tea, almonds
Taste: tart acidity with bright fruit flavors (cherry, plum skin) followed by a round sweetness and then a bit of alcoholic bite
Finish: Long, more black tea

While it's great on its own, I thought I'd peruse a few cocktail recipes and try a few that caught my eye (yes, even mostly icy concoctions which are far from the "winter warmer" archetype)

Plymouth's website lists a few interesting cocktails; the one that sparked my interest the most was the "Wibble", a recent creation:

The Wibble
1 oz. grapefruit juice (Ocean Spray white grapefruit)
1/2 oz. lemon juice
1 dash simple syrup
1 oz. Plymouth Sloe Gin
1 oz. Plymouth Gin (used Beefeater)

Shake ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Strain into a cocktail glass. Invented at the Player, London 1999 for Plymouth Gin's managing director by Dick Bradsell

Notes ****/***** Really nice cocktail, which gets better as you drink it. I love grapefruit and it works well in this. The gin is surprisingly in the background here relative to the sloe flavors, but it still asserts its presence. Also tried this without the simple syrup and it was still great, just used the slightest bit less lemon juice.

Cocktail DB had a staggering array of drinks using sloe gin. I really had to focus on culling down the list to a reasonable size. Here's what I ended up with:

Black Hawk
1.5 oz. rye whisky (WT 101)
1.5 oz. sloe gin
Stir with ice and strain. Serve in a cocktail glass with a cherry.

Notes: ***/***** This is a sort of Sloe-ey variant on a Manhattan. The Wild Turkey 101 Rye pretty much overwhelms the Sloe flavors which I was surprised to find.

Blackthorn
1 oz sloe gin
1 oz gin
1/2 oz sweet vermouth (Martini & Rossi)
1 dash orange bitters (Regan's)

Stir in mixing glass with ice & strain. Serve in a cocktail glass with a cherry.

Notes: ***1/2/***** Nice play of sweet and bitter, but the sloe character is a little lost with the vermouth and bitters. Still, a complex and agreeable cocktail.

Diki Cocktail #2
2 oz sloe gin
1/4 oz applejack
1/4 oz grapefruit juice

Stir in mixing glass with ice & strain. Serve in a cocktail glass

Notes: ***/***** This is nice with the apple bond and grapefruit (I used closer to 1/2 oz. of each as 1/4 oz. seemed too inconsequential. A little on the sweet side for an "up" cocktail. Also tried 1.5/1/1 with even better results (at least ***1/2/*****).

Ninety Miles or Savoy Tango (same)
1 1/4 oz sloe gin
1 1/4 oz applejack

Shake in iced cocktail shaker & strain. Serve in a cocktail glass.

Notes: ***1/2/***** Surprisingly good given there's only two ingredients in this, but then again why should I be surprised when Laird's apple bond seems to marry so well in many cocktails. The apple flavors really come through nicely.

Rosy Deacon Cocktail
3/4 oz gin
3/4 oz sloe gin
1 oz grapefruit juice

Shake in iced cocktail shaker & strain. Serve in a cocktail glass.

Notes: ****/***** Whoever decided that grapefruit and Sloe gin is a good combination is a genius. This is surprisingly fruity, complex and way too easy to drink. Watch out, this one will sneak up on you...

Ruby Cocktail
1 3/4 oz sloe gin
1/2 oz sweet vermouth
1/4 oz cherry liqueur
1 dash orange bitters

Shake in iced cocktail shaker & strain. Serve in a cocktail glass

Notes **1/2/***** I like the flavor here but this is a dessert. Simply too sweet for a cocktail, as I might have expected looking at the ingredients. Needs some more "punch" for balance. Beautiful color though. I can see where it gets its name.

Final Notes: I've seen and heard about sloe gin for the longest time, but never really had any interest until this bottling from Plymouth arrived on the market. I really enjoy sloe gin on its own - it's tart, sweet and warming for those chilly winter nights. But it also works very well in cocktails and seems to be a natural partner with gin, grapefruit and apple brandy. My favorite of the cocktails was the Wibble, with the Rosy Deacon as runner up. Anything with 3 stars or more is definitely worth a try.

Thanksgiving Cranapple Punch

Here's a recipe for a mixed drink that I put together for Thanksgiving this year. I focused on a drink that would showcase some seasonal ingredients and provide some level of refreshment, allowing everyone to avoid getting too tipsy prior to a nice dinner with some good wines.

No fruit says Thanksgiving more than cranberries and I selected a 100% cranberry juice from L&A for this. It is super concentrated/unsweetened and is quite tangy and bitter - the true essence of the cranberry. It needed some dilution and sweetening to work in a punch.

As for the liquor in the punch, I don't need much arm-twisting to use Laird's bonded apple brandy. Superior to their Applejack due to the higher apple content (it is 100% apple brandy vs. Applejack which is grain spirits mixed with apple brandy), it works wonders in cocktails where the intense apple flavors really come through.

Finally some fresh squeezed orange juice and a slice as garnish add some dimension and further balance the tartness of the cranberry. I would have used blood oranges were they available, but they don't come into season until December-January. Instead I used CA navel oranges.

Cranapple Punch (single serving)
1.5 oz. Laird's Apple Bond
2 oz. L&A Cranberry Juice (concentrated, unsweetened)
2 oz. Water
1T Superfine sugar
1/4 oz. fresh squeezed orange juice

Dissolve sugar in water. Build ingredients in a double old fashioned glass over ice cubes. Stir. Garnish with an orange slice.

Cranapple Punch (group)
1 750 ml bottle Laird's Apple Bond
1 32 oz. bottle L&A Cranberry Juice (concentrated, unsweetened)
32 oz. Water
1 cup superfine sugar
4 oz. fresh squeezed orange juice

Dissolve sugar in water. Mix ingredients in a large (>>92 oz.) punch bowl. Stir. Garnish with orange slices (half rounds). Add ice block. Serve in individual glasses over ice. Serves 16.

Dark 'n Stormy

The Dark 'n Stormy - Bermuda's national drink - is a refreshingly different drink worth checking out. Made exclusively with dark rum and ginger beer (and garnished with a lime wheel only as an option), it is a simple highball which is easy to put together and enjoy.

Trademarked by the Gosling's brand, their website lists the following recipe for the drink:

Dark 'n Stormy®
2 oz Gosling's Black Seal Rum
Gosling's Stormy Ginger Beer
In a tall glass filled with ice add 2 oz Gosling's Black Seal Rum and top with Gosling's Stormy Ginger Beer. Garnish with lemon or lime wedge (optional).

The drink is indeed very good with Gosling's Black Seal rum as required by the trademark, which the company takes seriously. In fact, Gosling's has apparently been pursuing legal action against Zaya rum which ran an ad in Imbibe magazine recommending their 12 year old rum as the preferred ingredient for a top notch Dark n' Stormy.

While Black Seal rum is good, I have found that there is an even better rum for a Dark n' Stormy. And if using this rum causes the drink to be called something else, then so be it - I'm willing to pay that price. That rum, incidentally, is El Dorado 5 year old Demerara rum from Guyana. Not designed to be a sipping rum (unlike the fantastically complex, otherworldly El Dorado 15 year) it has a spirity, youthful nature which makes it perfect for mixing and it has much more flavor going on than Black Seal. Specifically, it has the classic Demerara burnt sugar, caramely, smoky notes that really play well with a topper of a good quality ginger beer.

This discovery came after trying the drink with a number of different rums that I had on hand for mixing. Coruba, a dark rum from Jamaica, was a little too dark and sweet and lent the drink too much of a molasses note. Mt. Gay Sugar Cane Rum (an excellent rum) was pretty good, but not quite as convincing a performer in the mixed drink as the El Dorado. Its lighter flavors just didn't stand out enough for my taste.

Another great thing about the El Dorado 5 year old rum is that its price is on par or even less than Gosling's Black Seal at around $17.

So how about the ginger beer? Barritt's, a Bermuda brand, was the mixer of choice (officially, that is) prior to Gosling's recent launch of their own Stormy Ginger Beer. It appears to remain the ginger beer that Dark n' Stormy connoisseurs prefer based on some limited web browsing. Another fairly well-known Bermuda brand is Regatta.

The Bermuda ginger beers tend to be fairly light in color, cloudy and to have a medium-strong ginger flavor, but without the lingering burn which characterizes the stronger Jamaican-style ginger beers.

Barritts is my clear favorite. Next to it, the Goslings is slightly harsh with a more musty flavor. Regatta is very good, but it is lighter in style, more like a ginger ale and for that reason does not perform as well as a mixer.

A non-Bermuda replacement that I have found works well is Bundaberg from Australia. It's lighter in ginger bite than Barritts but has a round, sweet flavor. And it is reasonably priced and readily available at your local Bevmo unlike all of the others, which can be difficult to find.

As far as a recipe goes, I tend to use approximately 2:1 ginger beer to rum. And regarding the optional lime garnish - I omit it altogether.

Give a Dark n' Stormy a try and let me know what you think. Feel free to experiment with the ingredients, but just remember that if you're not using Black Seal, you'll have to call it something else.

Blood and Sand

If you've ever been to the Tiki Ti in LA, it's unlikely that you ever made it through an evening without witnessing the awesome spectacle that accompanies any order of a Blood and Sand cocktail. The drink is mixed and poured into a glass, then the bartender breaks out a tequila bottle with a bull's head pouring spout and the entire (admittedly small, but surprisingly loud) bar yells "TORO TORO TORO..." while the floater is poured. It's great fun.

Classically made from equal parts Scotch, cherry brandy, sweet vermouth and OJ, the cocktail is named after a bullfighting movie of the same name. There were many versions of the film including an original 1916 version filmed by the author of the book Vicente Blasco Ibáñez but perhaps the most famous is the 1922 silent version starring Rudolph Valentino (poster, right). It is likely that this movie formed the impetus for the cocktail's creation, as others have indicated the recipe first showed up around 1930.

The Blood and Sand emerges from an interesting melange of ingredients which, I have to admit, doesn't quite sound that great on paper. Scotch is difficult to mix in cocktails because of its tendency to dominate with its strong peat smoke flavors, but somehow it manages to play nicely in this one. I used Johnnie Walker green label (a vatted pure malt), which is probably a little high end for cocktail mixing, but it worked fine. A blended Scotch would work well - I'd probably recommend Teacher's which claims Ardmore single malt as one of its components - an excellent peaty Highlander.

This is my first experience with Cherry Heering which is a fantastic cherry liqueur and is the star of the cocktail despite playing a supporting role. Made in Denmark from a local cherry, the Stevens variety, the liqueur is very flavorful with a complex palate of cherries and subtle spices as well as some of the bitter almond-like character of the pits. Cherry Marnier is also recommended by many, but it is not widely available in the US from what I've seen.

I used fresh squeezed OJ, which I always recommend if you have oranges on hand. Also I used Martini & Rossi sweet vermouth, my recommended go-to for a "daily" vermouth.

I'm using the Cocktail db version which reduces the amount of cherry brandy and sweet vermouth. This variant is attributed to "Dr. Cocktail" Ted Haigh in one of the articles below. This version retains a strong cherry flavor, offers a better overall balance and is still sufficiently sweet.

A couple of articles that I came across while working on this post are worth noting:

SFGate article
Cocktail Chronicles Post

Blood and Sand Cocktail
1 oz. Scotch whiskey (blended is fine, used JW Green Label)
1 oz. Orange Juice (fresh squeezed)
3/4 oz. Sweet Vermouth (Martini & Rossi)
3/4 oz. Cherry Brandy (Cherry Heering)
Mix in a cocktail shaker with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

I have yet to try the Tiki Ti version (there are just too many good drinks there!). I understand that it is made not from Scotch, but rather bourbon as its base and includes the addition of the tequila which is definitely not in the classic variant. Judging by the frequency this drink is ordered in the bar though, it must be delicious indeed. It'll probably be my first drink ordered on my next visit

Tootin' Root's Horn

Blog friend Mikey sent me a note asking if I had heard of a new liqueur called Root. I hadn't, so I did a little research and discovered that it is an exciting liquid project from the folks at Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction. I first heard about this company after receiving a cool T-shirt as a gift from Rachel and Jeremy, but did not fully appreciate how eclectic their product range was at the time.

According to the company: Art In The Age of Mechanical Reproduction firmly believes in empowering artists producing high quality work marked by fine craft and intellectual rigor. We do so by applying the fruits of such labors to the cultural forms of everyday life, granting those who wish to engage the opportunity to do so in his/her own environment. Rather than exist at a distance in the white cube of the gallery space, we weave our offerings into the collective surface of myriad personal contexts. In this troubling epoch of industrial commodification, standardization of reproduction, and fomentation of a society of shallow spectacle, Art In The Age issues a challenge and rally cry. We fight fire with fire, subsuming the onslaught of watered down facsimiles and inaccessible displays with thought-provoking products of real cultural capital.

As far as Root is concerned, the company offers an interesting history of root-based beverages in the US. They don't really go into any detail as to who was the creative force behind the launch of this interesting new product which I, for one, would have found interesting.

The website as well as the bottle tag describe the history as follows:

In the 1700’s, it was called “Root Tea.” An herbal remedy made with sassafras, sarsaparilla, birch bark and other wild roots and herbs. Native Americans taught the recipe to colonial settlers. As it was passed it down from generation to generation, it grew in potency and complexity. Particularly in the Pennsylvania hinterlands, where the ingredients naturally grow in abundance.

At the close of the 19th century, as the Temperance movement conspired to take the fun out of everything, a Philadelphia pharmacist removed the alcohol from Root Tea and rechristened it (ironically) “Root Beer”. He did this so that hard drinking Pennsylvania coal miners and steelworkers could enjoy it in place of true alcoholic refreshment. He introduced his “Root Beer” in a big way at the still legendary 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. The rest, as you know, is flaccid history.

Here at Art in the Age, we thought it would be interesting and fun to turn back the clock and recreate a true pre-temperance alcoholic Root Tea. We’ve even made it certified organic, since back then, everything was organic. This is the opposite of corporate culture. It’s a genuine experience rooted in history and our own landscape. It is a truly interesting and contemplative quaff. Certainly like nothing else we have ever tasted before. It is NOT Root Beer flavored vodka or a sickly sweet liqueur.

Root is packaged in an attractive bottle and includes a nice label on the back with an artist's rendition of the major consituents in the brew. See image, right.

In terms of flavors, it is definitely reminiscent of root beer - think of a craft brew like Virgil's, but not as sweet. It does have some sweetness, but it is not syrupy or cloying at all. Those who enjoy a good birch beer such as Boylan's will recognize the strong birch bark character. There is also wintergreen which forms another of the primary flavors. In the background and not individually distinguishable, are a bevy of spices such as allspice, nutmeg and anise.

I tried Root on its own, sipped from a shot glass for the first few experiences. It's good and this just may be my primary form of consumption in the future. On the other hand, a number of very creative Root-based cocktails are listed on the Art in the Age website. A few which caught my attention, whether sampled or not, are listed below:

Dr. Hadley's Root Restorative
0.5 oz. Demerara simple syrup
6 large mint leaves
1.25 oz. Lairds Bonded (100 proof) Applejack
1.0 oz. Root Liqueur
.5 oz. Benedictine
.5 oz. fresh lime juice
2 dashes Fee Brother’s Aztec Chocolate bitters
2 dashes Angostura bitters

Garnish: Mint sprig Muddle mint in simple syrup. Add ice and other ingredients. Shake vigorously and strain into a cocktail glass. Top with a spanked mint sprig.
Created by Katie Loeb of Oyster House.

The Root cocktail competition winner, Dr. Hadley's Root Restorative sounds interesting and includes a lot of ingredients I like (Apple Bond, Benedictine, Demerara simple syrup) but I don't have the chocolate bitters (yet!) so I didn't make it and therefore cannot vouch for it. May be reason to order some bitters in the future though.

The Medicine Lodge Cocktail
1/2 oz. simple syrup (used turbinado)
1 1/2 oz. ROOT
2 oz.. Laird’s 71/2 Aged Apple Brandy (used 1.5 oz. Apple Bond)
1-2 dashes of Angostura Bitters
splash of ginger beer (used Bundaberg)

Stir ingredients and garnish with fresh ginger.
Created Christian Gaal of Noble American Cookery

This is pretty good. The ginger beer and Root is a nice combination. The Apple Bond is a little lost in this, though.

Dr. Root
2 oz ROOT
4 oz. Dr. Pepper (used Dublin Dr. Pepper with Imperial Cane sugar in a bottle)
A Splash of cream
Pour ROOT into a tall glass of chilled Dr. Pepper. Add a splash of cream & enjoy.

OK, I enjoyed... Definitely a dessert type of experience - creamy and rich.

Root 'n Ginger
2 oz ROOT
4 oz. ginger beer (used Bundaberg)
ginger slice (omitted)

Pour ROOT into a tall glass of chilled ginger beer. Garnish with sliced ginger.

This is GOOD. It delivers exactly what it says - it's Root and Ginger beer. No nonsense - nice combination.

Forbidden Root
3/4 oz. ROOT
3/4 oz. TRU vodka (used SKYY)
1 oz. fresh squeezed white grapefruit juice
1/2 oz. simple syrup
1/4 oz. fresh squeezed lime juice
1/4 oz. Luxardo Maraschino liqueur
dash of Angostura

Shaken and strained into a cocktail glass.
Created by Nic Jarrett

This drink gets props for being a play on the obscure and now defunct liqueur, Forbidden Fruit, which came in a bottle similar to Chambord (from the same company) and was based on grapefruit - see image to the right. I can't say that I'm surprised to find this interesting. I really like the Root flavors next to the grapefruit and Maraschino. I ususally find Maraschino overpowering - but it works here at the level the recipe specifies. This cocktail does justice to its ingredients - each plays a distinct and pivotal role - the hallmark of a successful drink. Definitely worth a try.

To buy Root, which I'd recommend, you either need to live in Philadelphia where it is distributed locally or purchase online through Hi-Time. When Rachel called Hi-Time, they mentioned that there was a lot of interest in Root and was out of stock at that time. But we got on the list for a few bottles which we were fortunate to be able to get a few days later.

Final Notes: I'd definitely recommend Root to anyone looking to expand their liqueur horizons. Excellent on its own, it also makes for an interesting mixed drink - my favorites being the Root n' Ginger and Forbidden Root.

When Summer Sizzles, It's Time for Swizzles!

Swizzles are fast becoming a favorite drink of mine. Refreshing, with lots of crushed ice, swizzles are notable for being fairly simple mixtures of rum or other spirits, juices and sweeteners, which are then "swizzled" (stirred) until frost forms on the outside of the glass or pitcher.

Traditionally, swizzles are mixed by using a branch of the Swizzlestick tree, Quararibea turbinata, which is spun between the palms of one's hands (picture to the left). Swizzle sticks like this are generally not found in the US, so unless you or a good friend have a trip to Martinique planned in the near future, you'll have to settle for a bar spoon (which works fine, but is certainly less "authentic" feeling)

A good swizzle has a high-ish proof rum/spirit balanced by a nice citrus tang. The use of lots of cracked ice makes it refreshing and makes the drink last a long time. OK, so "a long time" may be an exaggeration, but it certainly lasts longer and delivers substantially more hydration than your typical "up" cocktail.

Swizzling gave me a good opportunity to sample some interesting rums from around the world. It seems as if each Carribbean destination has their own signature brand of swizzle and at least one excellent rum to go along with it. The Rhum Agricole of Martinique, in particular, have piqued my interest and will no doubt be the subject of further exploration in the future.

For this post I'm using Scarlet Ibis (Trinidad) for the Swedizzle, Mount Gay Sugar Cane Rum (Barbados) for the Barbados Red Rum Swizzle, Gosling's Black Seal (Bermuda) for the Bermuda Rum Swizzle, Lemon Hart (Guyana) for the Queen's Park Swizzle and Clément VSOP (Martinique) for the Martinique Swizzle.



Below are recipes for some favorite swizzled tipples including a rare drink of my own invention, the Swedizzle.

Swedizzle
1.5 oz rum (used Scarlet Ibis, Appleton V/X would be second choice)
3/4 oz Swedish Punsch
1/2 oz lemon juice
Swizzle with crushed ice (stir until frost forms) in a tall glass.

Chartreuse Swizzle
1¼ oz green Chartreuse
½ oz falernum (Taylor's Velvet)
1 oz pineapple juice
¾ oz lime juice
Swizzle with crushed ice (stir until frost forms) in a tall glass. Garnish with a spring of mint. As an option, add 1/2 oz. Bacardi or J Wray Overproof white rum to kick things up a notch (or two with the J Wray)

Barbados Red Rum Swizzle
2 ounces Barbados rum
1/2 lime
1 dash Angostura bitters
1/4 ounce simple syrup
Swizzle with crushed ice (stir until frost forms) in a tall glass. Recipe from Trader Vic's Bartender's Guide.

Bermuda Rum Swizzle
2 ounce dark rum (Gosling's Black Seal)
1 ounce lime juice
1 ounce pineapple juice
1 ounce orange juice
1/4 ounce falernum
Swizzle with crushed ice (stir until frost forms) in a tall glass. Recipe from Robert Hess.

Queen's Park Swizzle
3 oz Demerara rum (Lemon Hart)
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1/2 oz rich sugar syrup (demerara or turbinado sugar)
juice of 1/2 lime
8-10 mint leaves
Muddle mint leaves in the bottom of the glass. Add remaining ingredients and swizzle with crushed ice (stir until frost forms) in a tall glass. Recipe from Imbibe Magazine.

Apple Swizzle
1.5 oz. Apple Brandy (Laird's Bonded)
0.75 oz. white rum
1 oz. lime juice
1 tsp sugar
5 dashes Angostura bitters
Swizzle with crushed ice (stir until frost forms) in a tall glass. Recipe from CocktailDB.

Martinique Swizzle
2 oz. Martinique rum
1/2 lime
1 dash Angostura bitters
1/2 oz. simple syrup
scant tsp pastis or Herbsaint
Swizzle with crushed ice (stir until frost forms) in a tall glass. Recipe adapted from Trader Vic's Bartender's Guide.

Notes: My favorite of the Carribbean swizzles has to be the Queen's Park Swizzle. While it originated in Trinidad, Demerara rum is traditional as Trinidad did not really ramp up rum production until after WWII (according to cocktail guru Dale Wondrich).

All of these swizzles make a damn fine drink. I had to tweak the Martinique swizzle a bit to downplay the pastis, balance the sweetness and allow the rum flavor to be noticed. The Bermuda rum swizzle is the fruitiest of the bunch, but definitely a worthwile pursuit. The Swedizzle, Chartreuse Swizzle and Apple Swizzle are all variations on the Carribbean theme, using interesting, if non-standard ingredients, that come together well.

But don't just take my word for it, get to swizzling!

Applejack and Apple Brandy

Applejack is an original American spirit, dating back to the times of Washington. The Laird family, producers of Applejack and several versions of an aged Apple Brandy started commercial production in 1780 and apparently received the first US distillery license in the small community of Scobeyville, NJ.

Applejack was popular with the early colonists, who were leery of drinking water; they believed it to carry disease and were convinced that the strong spririts promoted good health.

According to Laird's website, Robert Laird was a Revolutionary War soldier serving under George Washington, and the Laird family supplied the troops with Applejack. Historical records show that, prior to 1760, George Washington wrote to the Laird family requesting their recipe for producing Applejack, which the Laird family gladly supplied. Entries appear in Washington’s diary in the 1760’s regarding his production of "cyder spirits".

Today, Laird’s AppleJack is not straight apple brandy, but a 35% apple brandy base which is combined with neutral grain spirits along with a "hint of apple flavor and aroma" which is conspicuously obfuscatory.

According to the company a 750 ML bottle of Lairds AppleJack contains 6 lbs of apples and a bottle of Lairds Apple Bond contains 20 lbs of apples. I picked up a bottle of both recently for the purposes of experimentation - first on their own, then in some cocktails.

The AppleJack has a distinct fresh apple aroma and flavor, as advertised. Due to the 40 proof, it is fairly light, somewhat smooth with a nice appley finish. The Apple Bond has less of the fresh apple flavor, but has a lot more distilled apple character along with more heat. Definitely not a sipping brandy. When mixed in a cocktail, the Apple Bond really comes alive with an effusion of complex apple flavors and slightly more heat. I highly recommend it as the first choice in all of the cocktails below.

The cocktails choices were taken mostly from CocktailDB and were a small sampling based on drinks that sounded particularly tasty or made use of ingredients of current interest.

A.J Cocktail
1 1/2 oz grapefruit juice
1 1/2 oz applejack
1/2 oz grenadine
Shake ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating*** (out of 5) A good cocktail with a nice grapefruit zing.

Devil's Leap
1 oz light rum
1 oz swedish punch
1 oz applejack
Stir ingredients with ice in a mixing glass and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating* Not enough tanginess to go with the Swedish Punsch.

Diki Cocktail #2
2 oz sloe gin (used Plymouth)
1/4 oz applejack
1/4 oz grapefruit juice
Shake ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating*** More of a showcase of sloe gin, the subject of a future post, no doubt.

Jack Rose
1 1/2 oz applejack or bonded apple brandy
1/2 oz fresh lime juice
1/2 oz grenadine
Stir ingredients with ice in a mixing glass and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating ***** An amazing cocktail sprang forth from these basic, but quality ingredients. The ultimate demonstration of how apple brandy can come alive in a cocktail.

Jinx Cocktail
1/2 oz. passion fruit nectar
1 oz. gin
1boz. applejack
1 dash Angostura
Stir ingredients with ice in a mixing glass and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating***1/2 On the sweeter side, but everything in check.

Marconi Wireless
1 3/4 oz applejack (used Apple bond)
3/4 oz sweet vermouth (Carpano Antica)
2 dashes orange bitters (Regan's)
Stir ingredients with ice in a mixing glass and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating **** An excellent appley variant on the Manhattan. And it has a cool name and interesting historic link. More here.

Diamondback (from Cocktail Chronicles, link here)
1 1/2 ounces rye whiskey (Rittenhouse bonded strongly recommended)
3/4 ounce applejack (Laird’s bonded apple brandy strongly recommended)
3/4 ounce Chartreuse (yellow works, but green works better)
Stir ingredients with ice in a mixing glass and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating**1/2 This didn't do too much for me. Mostly Chartreuse dominated and I think there are better Chartreuse cocktails out there (or here).

Apple Swizzle
1 oz fresh lime juice
1 oz apple brandy
3/4 oz light rum
5 dashes Angostura bitters
1 tsp sugar (4 dashes)
Pour ingredients in a highball glass filled with cracked ice. Swizzle (stir) until glass frosts.
Rating**** Nice addition to the growing Swizzle armory.

C.f.h Cocktail
1 oz gin
1/2 oz apple brandy
1/2 oz swedish punch (used Saturnus Arracks-Punsch extract 50/50 with Van Oosten Batavia Arrack)
1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
1/2 oz grenadine (used Ferrara)
Stir ingredients with ice in a mixing glass and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating *** Very Swedish Punsch-y. Pretty sweet, even with half the grenadine. Good, not great. Apple Brandy is in the background without a significant role.

Diki Diki Cocktail
2 oz Calvados or apple brandy
1/4 oz swedish punch
1/4 oz grapefruit juice
Stir ingredients with ice in a mixing glass and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating *** Very good with the Apple brandy showing through, but the grapefruit/swedish punsch blend is a little flat.

Hugo Bracer
1 oz fresh lime juice
1 oz apple brandy
1/2 oz Amer Picon (used Torani Amer)
1/2 oz grenadine (used Ferrara - a new and interesting grenadine)
Stir ingredients with ice in a mixing glass and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating**** A little on the sweet side (will use closer to 1/4 oz. grenadine next time), but a great combination of the tartness of the lime and the apple with the sweetness of the grenadine and the complex bitter-oranginess of the Amer Picon. All in all, a very nice cocktail.

Warday's (War Days)
3/4 oz gin
3/4 oz sweet vermouth
3/4 oz apple brandy
1/4 oz green Chartreuse or Yellow Chartreuse
Stir ingredients with ice in a mixing glass and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Rating*** Interesting mix of flavors. Not really a showcase of apple brandy per se, but the ingredients are pretty well balanced in the overall impression.

Final Notes - The Apple brandies tasted as part of this post are excellent spirits, which best express themselves mixed in cocktails. The Jack Rose cocktail was a revelation, especially when made with the Laird's Apple Bond Brandy. The apple character really shines through and blends well with the lime and pomegranate flavors. Recipes usually specify lemon or lime - I've found lime to produce a superior drink. Also homemade grenadine is key here (I opt for 1:1 pomegranate juice to sugar).

In addition, the Marconi Wireless, Apple Swizzle and Hugo Bracer are excellent cocktails and showcase the mixability and complexity of Apple Brandy.

Amer Picon, Torani Amer and Amer Boudreau

Amer Picon is yet another of the "lost" ingredients popular among the cocktail crowd these days. Originally invented by Gaetan Picon in the mid-1800's, it was used to combat malaria, first by himself, then by the French Army during his time in Algeria. It contains orange peels, gentian root and quinine among other things.

The formulation changed forever in the 1970's when it went from 78 proof down to 39 proof, making it difficult to recreate the flavor profile and potency of the original version in cocktails. The new formulation is only widely available in France and is not sold in the U.S.

A number of people have set out to recreate this classic ingredient, most notably the Torani company, maker of all of those flavored syrups (their orgeat is my favorite), who market a product known simply as Torani Amer. At 79 proof, many enthusiasts proclaim this to be close replica of the original Amer Picon. And apparently things improved recently when people started noticing a distinct lack of an undesirable vegetal, celery-like flavor element, which they believed pagued this product for a long time. (I have not tried the pre-reformulated version). The reformulated version is very good with a distinct orangey nose, is fairly high alcohol, and has a nice bitter finish. It is very popular in San Francisco and anywhere with a large Basque community (e.g. San Bernardino, Fresno) where Picon Punch seems to be a cultural phenomenon.

Recently, well known bartender and cocktail enthusiast Jamie Boudreau developed an Amer Picon replica known widely as "Amer Boudreau" (recipe here) which makes use of a homemade orange tincture (dried orange peel soaked in high-proof vodka or grain alcohol), Ramazzotti Amaro (which I originally discovered while in Italy - fabulous on its own) and Stirrings Blood Orange bitters. The version I made is a little sweeter than the Torani Amer, but part of that is due to the fact that I used 80 proof vodka so the overall proof level is lower. I'll use a higher proof vodka or Everclear for my next batch.

As far as cocktail recipes, three that I really like are provided below. I discovered the recipe for the Brooklyn Cocktail in an article in Imbibe magazine titled "Gone but not Forgotten" about defunct and lost ingredients.

The Picon Punch recipe is adapted from the recipe in the book aperitif by Georgeanne Brennan. There are a lot of variations on the Picon Punch recipe - many do not use lemon juice at all, but only the peel as the garnish. Some omit the soda. I like both in there. It is an amazingly refreshing cocktail and you can increase or decrease the amount of soda quite a bit without diminishing the enjoyment of this beverage.

The Liberal cocktail recipe is from CocktailDB and makes use of rye and orange bitters. It's similar to a Manhattan but with an extra orangey flavor profile in the background. I'm increasingly becoming a fan of the Rittenhouse Bottled in Bond (BIB) rye whiskey, which I recommend in this cocktail. While I gave it low marks on its own during a recent rye tasting, I've found that it brings out an extra dimension in mixed drinks (especially when paired with Carpano Antica Formula vermouth) and is fast establishing itself as a standard for me in the Manhattan.

Brooklyn cocktail
2 oz rye or bourbon (Sazerac Rye)
3/4 oz dry vermouth
1/4 oz Amer Picon (or substitute)
1/4 oz maraschino liqueur (Luxardo)
Add ingredients to a mixing glass with ice, stir and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a marasca cherry.

Picon Punch
1 1/2 oz Amer Picon (or substitute)
1.5 tsp grenadine (homemade)
3/4 oz fresh lemon juice
1 tsp brandy
soda water (~2-4 oz. depending on level of refreshment desired)
Add ingredients except brandy to a large-ish wine goblet, top off with soda, add lemon twist and float the brandy.

Liberal Cocktail
1 1/2 oz rye or Bourbon whiskey (Rittenhouse BIB)
1/2 oz sweet vermouth (Carpano Antica Formula)
1/4 oz Amer Picon (or substitute)
1 dash orange bitters (Regan's)
Add ingredients to a mixing glass with ice, stir and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a marasca cherry.

Final Notes - The currently available forms of Amer Picon - Torani Amer and homemade "Amer Boudreau" are enjoyable base ingredients for a number of interesting cocktails. The Torani Amer is inexpensive and readily available ($10.99 at BevMo) and makes a delicious Picon Punch among other things. For those of you enamored with the idea of making your own spirits, the "Amer Boudreau" is fairly easily made and delicious as well - similar but slightly sweeter. So pick up or make a bottle of Amer and find out what it's all about for yourself.

Green Chartreuse

I finally hit a critical mass of interesting looking mixed drink recipes using green Chartreuse and had to get myself a bottle. My first experience with green Chartreuse was many years back; after reading a rave review of the spirit in Wine Enthusiast by the spirits editor F. Paul Pacult, I bought a bottle for my brother as a Christmas gift. I tried it at least a couple of times and was fascinated by its complex herbal flavors.

Chartreuse is made by Carthusian monks, who apparently got the recipe for the stuff back in 1605 at the Chartreuse Monastery located in the Chartreuse Mountains. Chartreuse comes in many forms. Yellow, which is lower in alcohol and sweeter, the aforementioned green, which clocks in at 110 proof, VEP (Vieillissement Exceptionnellement Prolongé) versions of both yellow and green which are aged extensively in oak casks and are very expensive, and finally the Elixir Végétal, supposedly the original form of the spirit which comes in a handsome lathe turned wooden case, is 142 proof, and is not available in the U.S. (and is thus very interesting to me).

Green Chartreuse is excellent on its own, ice cold. It is high in alcohol, but has a light sweetness and an overwhelmingly complex herbal flavor. It is made with 130 herbal extracts. Think of an herb and you'll probably find it evoked in this liqueur.

A number of cocktail recipes can be found which make use of green Chartreuse. Just search CocktailDB and you'll find over 50 recipes. I picked a few from CocktailDB and other sites which seemed especially interesting.

Of note is the Chartreuse Swizzle which is excellent and makes use of Falernum and swizzling - some recent favorites of mine. This recipe came from Marco Dionysos (of Harry Denton's Starlite Room in San Francisco) and won a Bay Area Chartreuse drink recipe contest in 2003. A recipe I found on the internet calls for a garnish of mint and nutmeg. The mint is key, but I am eschewing the nutmeg as I have a strong association with it in rich creamy winter concoctions such as the egg nog and brandy Alexander - which makes it out of place in this drink for me. As for the Falernum, I used Taylor's Velvet as the Fee's would be too sweet in this with the pineapple juice. Also this drink is great with 1/2 to 1 oz. of white rum added if you find it too sweet.

The Swamp Water is also delicious and can be found on the menu at Los Angeles's preeminent Tropical Bar, the Tiki Ti.

The Last Word cocktail is an old-timer, dating from at least before the 1930's, but not widely known. The original recipe calls for equal parts of the ingredients, but as usual I find the Maraschino overpowering and reduced it a bit, while upping the gin a hair.

The St. Germain and the Green Ghost looked the most interesting among the CocktaiDB recipes. The St. Germain is a bit odd, but I like that it's not too sweet, nicely tart and has a nice rich egg white foam. It appears I'm becoming a big egg-white-in-cocktails fan. The Green Ghost is likewise very dry with the Chartreuse more in the background of the gin.

The Last Word
1 oz. green Chartreuse
1.25 oz. gin
0.5 oz. Maraschino liqueur
1 oz. lime juice
Shake ingredients with ice cubes in a cocktail shaker and strain into a cocktail glass.

Swamp Water
1.5 oz. green Chartreuse
5 oz. pineapple juice
lime wedge
Combine in a highball glass with cracked ice. Squeeze lime wedge and stir.

Chartreuse Swizzle
1¼ oz green Chartreuse
½ oz falernum (Taylor's Velvet)
1 oz pineapple juice
¾ oz lime juice
Swizzle with crushed ice (stir until frost forms) in a tall glass. Garnish with a spring of mint.

St. Germain
1 oz. lemon juice
0.5 oz. grapefruit juice
1 egg white
1.5 oz. green Chartreuse
Add ingredients to a cocktail shaker and dry shake (i.e. without ice for 10 seconds). Add ice cubes and shake like the dickens for about a minute. Strain into a cocktail glass.

Green Ghost
2 oz. gin
1/2 oz. green Chartreuse
1/2 oz. lime juice
Shake ingredients with ice cubes in a cocktail shaker and strain into a cocktail glass.

Final notes - Green Chartreuse is a complex and tasty herbal liquor. It is excellent on its own - in fact many believe it to be a waste to use it in mixed drinks at all. I do like Chartreuse on its own, well chilled, but also find it can make an excellent cocktail when paired with the right ingredients. Among the cocktails listed above, my faves are the "long drinks", the Chartreuse Swizzle and the Swamp Water, in that order. They're on the sweet side, but the flavors combinations are amazing. All are definitely worth a try.

Happy National Pisco Sour Day, Chile!

According to Wikipedia, today is national Pisco sour day in Chile. In celebration, I've made a few of this venerable cocktail using various recipes. I really like this drink.

Pisco is a south American spirit that is produced from grape juice, namely Muscat, Torontel and Pedro Jiménez varieties in Chile, and a long list of varieties in Peru. It is similar in flavor profile to grape brandies that I tasted while in Italy. Also according to Wikipedia: In modern times, it continues to be produced in winemaking regions of Peru and Chile. The drink is a widely consumed spirit in the nations of Bolivia, Chile and Peru. The right to produce and promote pisco has been the matter of legal disputes between Chile and Peru, both of which hold their most iconic cocktail to be the pisco sour. Apparently Peru already celebrated their national Pisco sour day in February.

I've chosen the Chilean version of this drink in deference to my good friend Marcos whose family hails from Chile and provided me with the critical element to this drink - the Chilean Pisco. (Capel brand). I can remember being at his house in junior high or high school and his parents mixing up a batch of pisco sours for guests at a midday party in their backyard. Too young to drink at the time, I can still remember the festive atmosphere that accompanied the preparation, serving and consumption of this beverage.

A number of recipes abound. Some use egg whites, some don't. Peruvian pisco sours usually come with bitters (Peru native Amargo Chuncho brand preferred, but Angostura will do), but Chilean sours mostly do not. I've gathered from some reading that the Chilean version tends toward the simpler side, with the egg white and bitters being considered unnecessary adornments for this delicious cocktail. Marcos's mom uses egg whites in her recipe and I really like the silky texture that results, so I'm including them in mine, but the drink is still delicious without them. Also, she does not use bitters so I'm leaving them out despite my current predilection to use Angostura bitters in everything (beverage-related and otherwise). She recommends rimming the glass with sugar.

Also, citrus selections also vary by locale. In Peru, it is traditional to use limón de pica (thorny lemon), which is apparently similar to Key lime or West Indian lime in the U.S. The typical citrus used in the Chilean Pisco sour is lemon.

Ratios vary. The formulation that I present below is the result of some experimentation - I like a strong citrus character balanced by sweetness. The recipe included on the bottle of Pisco wasn't my favorite (3:1:1/6 Pisco:lemon: sugar) My base recipe uses lemon exclusively, but I've also found that a little lime works very well. Try it and decide which best suits your taste.

Finally, regarding the preparation method, either a blender or shaker will do the job and give you a nice texture with a lot of dense foam. The shaker method works better for a small batch (one or two cocktails) but definitely requires a good deal of elbow grease in order to generate a meringue-like foam. The blender is better for larger batches. Either method, when done properly, yields a good result. I've added a scant pinch of salt to bring out some additional flavor (yes it makes a subtle difference).

The result is a smooth and tangy drink with the nice grape flavors of the Pisco. So head to your local liquor store, buy yourself some Chilean Pisco and celebrate national pisco sour day! Discover what a delicious drink this is if you haven't already.

Pisco Sour (Chile)
3 oz. Pisco (Chilean brand such as Capel or Alto del Carmen)
1 1/2 oz. lemon juice (or 1 oz. lemon, 1/4 oz. lime)
2-3 tsp. sugar (scant Tablespoon, Baker's superfine)
1 egg white (or not)
scant pinch salt
8-9 ice cubes (shaker) or 1/4 cup cracked ice (blender)

Shaker Method) Add ingredients except ice to shaker and dry shake (i.e. sans ice) vigorously for about 10 seconds to emulsify. Add ice cubes and shake vigorously for about 1 minute or until your arms give out (resting every 20-30 seconds is ok). Strain with a Hawthorn strainer into a sour glass or footed goblet rimmed with sugar (I used a Riedel Vinum Port glass)

Blender Method) Add ingredients to blender except ice and dry blend (i.e. blend sans ice) for a few seconds to emulsify. Add ice and blend for 10 seconds pulsing, if required, to blend ice. Strain with a Hawthorn strainer into a sour glass or footed goblet rimmed with sugar.

Batavia Arrak and Swedish Punsch

For my birthday, I got a bottle of Van Oosten Batavia Arrack among other interesting Haus Alpenz products. I've been wanting to try this sugarcane and fermented red rice-based spirit due to its long history of use in punches such as the famous Swedish Punsch.

According to Wikipedia,

It is the "rum" of Indonesia, because--like rum--it is distilled from sugar cane. It is a pot still distillation, a type of still which was influenced by the Chinese, who brought the distillation process to Indonesia.

To start the fermentation, local fermented red rice is combined with local yeast to give a unique flavour and smell of the distillate. It is distilled to approx. 70% alc. vol. Like rum, Batavia Arrack is often a blend of different original parcels.

It should be noted that "Arrack" is a generic term for eau-de-vie in parts of the world, and Batavia Arrack bears no relation to Sri Lankan Arrack or Lebanese Arrack. Also of interest, Batavia Arrack is stored in teak vats, which undoubtedly provide some of the unusual flavors found in this spirit.

On its own, Batavia Arrack smells like rum, but with a distinct woodsy smoky note along with a distinct floweriness. It's not exactly something that I would want to drink straight, but it's quite interesting - unlike anything I've tasted, so comparisons are difficult. As previously mentioned, it's most commonly used in cocktails, most notably punches, with the most famous being Swedish Punsch.

The history of Arrack in Sweden dates back to 1733, per Wikipedia, when the Swedish East India Company starting importing it to Gothenburg. Since that time, it has held a prominent place in Sweden's drink heritage, mostly as a base for punsch. Originally served warm, once commercial versions starting appearing in around 1840, it became more common to serve it chilled.

Swedish punsch combines Batavia Arrack with lemon, tea, sugar and sometimes other spices such as vanilla, cardamom and nutmeg. A number of commercial versions are available, but none in the US at this time. The brand Facile has been planning a launch of their punsch in the US this Spring, but their website is out-of-date and it is uncertain when it will arrive. Also, there has been some word that Haus Alpenz will be introducing a Punsch to the US this summer. Cocktail bloggers everywhere are trembling in anticipation.

For my first punsch, I've chosen a recipe that I found posted on the TikiCentral Forum by Eric Seed of Haus Alpenz.

According to Eric, this is an adaptation of a commercial recipe for Swedish Punsch, and quite close to the Facile Punsch (I haven't tried the Facile punsch yet, but am eager to try).

Punsch "Josephine" Liqueur, 375ml @ ~24%
180ml Batavia Arrack
100ml Water
135g Sugar (Bakers)
3/4 tsp Natural Vanilla Extract (Trader Joe's)
6g Tea Leaves (Assam; equiv to 2 typical teabags)
Peel from one lemon, fresh ground cardamom (I used nutmeg)
Prepare the cardamom: open the pods and crush the seeds. Either add to loose tea leaves or, if you want minimal sediment, place into a tea bag/sachet. Prepare the tea with the cardamom and lemon peel - by this amount it should brew to twice normal service strength. After 4 minutes, remove the cardamom, tea leaves/bags and peel and mix together with the sugar, stir until syrup-like, then add the Batavia Arrack and vanilla. Give a quick stir to further dilute then immediately bottle.

Another recipe that I will most definitely try in the future is from Erik Ellestad's Underhill Lounge blog here.

The Swedish Punsch is intriguing. Despite the fairly heavy use of lemon peel, tea and vanilla, none of these elements are really conspicuous in the punsch. The Arrack is noticeable, but it has been significantly softened by the other ingredients. There is a little bit of a wet-dog smell thing going on here, but I'm not finding it offensive (really). This is good, but again, I'm not sure if I would really drink this on its own. Searching CocktailDB, I came across a number of recipes that sounded good and served as a starting point for experimentation:

Bombay Cocktail (Swedish Punsch, lemon juice)
Boomerang Cocktail (dry vermouth, Swedish Punsch, Bourbon or rye whiskey, lemon juice, Angostura bitters)
Diki Diki (apple brandy or Calvados, grapefruit juice, Swedish Punsch)
Doctor Cocktail (Swedish Punsch, Jamaican rum, lime juice)
Havana (apricot flavored brandy, Swedish Punsch, London dry gin, lemon juice)
Pooh Bah Cocktail (Swedish Punsch, white rum, gin, apricot flavored brandy)
Waldorf (Swedish Punsch, London dry gin, lime or lemon juice)

Tasting Notes -
Bombay Cocktail - wonderful combination of the punsch with the lemon. Could even use a little more lemon for tartness.
Boomerang Cocktail - Bourbon sort of covers up the flavors of the Swedish Punsch resulting in a sweet and fairly uninteresting beverage.
Diki Diki - did not make due to lack of Calvados at this time.
Doctor Cocktail - excellent with the dark rum (used Lemon Hart) still shows a lot of Swedish punsch flavors with nice tartness from the lime.
Havana Cocktail - way too sweet. Not what I want in a cocktail
Pooh Bah Cocktail - I love the name and the feeling of being a Grand Poobah, but the cocktail is merely ok. Better than the Havana but still a little sweet and lacking tartness for balance
Waldorf Cocktail - still on the sweet side, but with the extra lemon/lime juice (used 1 oz lemon, 0.5 oz. lime) a much better balanced drink. Very nice.

Final Verdict -
I like Batavia Arrack - mostly as an ingredient to Swedish Punsch - which I like mostly as an ingredient in cocktails. I can't really see drinking the Arrack or the Punsch on their own. As far as the cocktails, my top recommendations among the ones I've tried so far are the Doctor Cocktail, the Waldorf Cocktail and the Bombay Cocktail. A nice and interesting new addition to my cocktail arsenal.

**Update** - After a trip to Penzey's for some vanilla and cardamom pods, I repeated the recipe above but this time I soaked the lemon peel in the Batavia Arrack for about 6 hours instead of brewing it along with the tea. This drew a lot more of the oils from the peel and resulted in much more lemon zest character in the punsch - an improvement, IMO.

Damiana

After reading about Damiana - the interesting herbal liquor from Mexico - in David Rosengarten's book Taste many years ago, I made a mental note to find some of this stuff and give it a try. Well it has taken several years for me to finally come around to procuring a bottle and I've done a little bit of experimenting with it over the past couple of days.

In his book, Rosengarten recommends adding "a few drops" to a margarita (made with 1/1/1 lime juice, Cointreau and blanco Tequila -my house standard, FYI) for "an authentic Mexican touch"

According to Damiana's website:

Damiana Liqueur is a light herbal-based liqueur from Mexico. It's made with the damiana herb that grows in Baha California, Mexico. It has great mixability and tastes great as a shooter. The bottle is uniquely shaped and is modeled after an Incan Goddess. The Damiana Margarita is very popular in the Los Cabos area of Mexico and Mexican margarita folklore says that the very first margarita ever made was made with Damiana Liqueur (not that silly French liqueur).

Given the wealth of information on the Damiana shrub available elsewhere, the website is fairly disappointing in its cursory depth on the subject.

According to the Wikipedia entry, Damiana (Turnera diffusa, syn. Turnera aphrodisiaca) is a shrub native to Central America, Mexico, South America, and the Caribbean. It is a relatively small shrub that produces fruits that are similar in taste to figs. The leaves have traditionally been made into a tea which was used by native people of Central and South America for its aphrodisiac effects. Damiana today is conventionally made into a tea and is used to treat conditions ranging from coughs to constipation to depression. The herbal supplement is reputed to help with Fibromyalgia, energy, emphysema, low estrogen, frigidity, hot flashes, impotency, infertility, menopause, Parkinson's disease, PMS, inflammation of prostate, and Lou Gehrig's disease.

Interesting enough, but to quote a famous Monty Python tagline, what's it like? On its own, the liqueur is a bright yellow, and gives off an interesting aroma of herbs. It's hard to distinguish exactly what's going on here, as I really have no reference. On the palate, I get some interesting bitter herbs, notions of Galliano (although it does not have an overt licorice or anise flavor), but with a lot more spice - some curried-fruit flavors and I want to say mesquite bean candy, although I only have faint recollections of what that tastes like. It is a very complex and dynamic liqueur.

The liqueur is apparently very popular in Los Cabos where it is used in place of the Triple Sec. I have tried that version, and find it to be a little too far of a departure from a classic margarita. I really do need that "silly French liqueur" Cointreau in my margaritas. (I'll go on and on about Cointreau in another post later) I've also tried Rosengarten's "few drops" version and really find that the Damiana flavors get lost.

The optimal use of Damiana in a Damiana margarita, per my experimentation so far, is to simply add about 1/4 oz. to a standard margarita. My friend Jeremy uses a slightly different recipe, making use of Trader Joe's margarita mix instead of the lime juice, which I'll have to try in the future as well.

Damiana Margarita
1.5 oz. good blanco Tequila
1.5 oz. Cointreau
1.5 oz. fresh lime juice (add simple syrup to taste, if desired. I ususally omit)
1/4 oz. Damiana
Shake ingredients with cracked ice and pour unstrained into an old-fashioned glass. Salted rim optional.

Pimento Dram

Pimento Dram - a Jamaican allspice-flavored liqueur is getting a lot of attention these days for its delicious spice flavors and versatility in cocktails. Interesting articles can be found in SF Gate's "Hot Dram..." and in Imbibe magazine's "Gone but not Forgotten" article, both by Paul Clarke.

Allspice, a dried unripe berry from the Pimenta dioica plant is very complex in flavor and combines the taste profiles of cinnamon, nutmeg and clove.

Previously Wray and Nephew produced a rum-based Pimento Dram in Jamaica - now labeled "Berry Hill" and made with neutral grain spirits instead and sold online through Reggae Treats. Some cool vintage and contemporary images from CocktailDB can be seen here.

Haus Alpenz recently launched an "Allspice Dram" (I think the marketers eschewed the term "Pimento") made from a young pot still Jamaican rum and Jamaican allspice, and produced by an Austrian distiller.

A number of home-made Pimento Dram recipes abound on the web. I have a batch of Chuck Taggert's Pimento Dram #3 (scroll down to Feb 17) aging in the house right now (tasting notes will be provided in the future).

As far as Pimento Dram-related cocktails go, below are a few of what I've found to be some excellent representations of the versatility of this liqueur. The Navy Grog and the Nui Nui are Tiki-style mixed drinks with lots of ingredients and specific rums and are served with lots of cracked ice. The Lion's Tail and Jasper's Jamaican are more traditional style cocktails, served straight-up in a cocktail glass

Navy Grog
1/2 oz. Lime juice
1/2 oz. grapefruit juice
3/4 oz. honey mix (1:1 honey and water - used Trader Joe's Mesquite honey)
1/4 oz. Pimento Dram (used St. Elizabeth)
dash Grand Marnier (1/4 tsp)
1 oz. gold Jamaican rum (Appleton V/X)
1 oz. dark Jamaican rum (Coruba)
1 oz. Demerara rum (Lemon Hart)
Shake well with cracked ice and pour, unstrained, into a double old fashioned glass.

The Navy Grog is akin to a spicy version of the Mai Tai, but with more rum as well as some of the other obvious differences (no Orgeat, etc). The Grand Marnier is totally optional and not really traditional, but I've started making them with it and like the results. Also, I've tried simple syrup and the honey mix provides a better cocktail, with richer flavor and smoother flavor integration. Some reference Navy Grog links here, here, here, and here.

Nui Nui
4oz Cruzan Estate dark rum (used 3.5 oz. Bacardi Gold, 0.5 oz. Coruba)
1/4oz pimento liqueur
1/4oz vanilla syrup
1/2oz cinnamon syrup
1oz lime juice
1oz orange juice
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Shake well with crushed ice and pour into a fun cup (used a highball glass)

This recipe was taken from Kaiser Penguin's blog. It's classic Tiki and requires the use of vanilla syrup and cinnamon syrup. I used homemade versions of both. This is a larger drink with a lot of rum. Lots of complex flavors coming together on this to great effect.

Lion's Tail
2 oz. Bourbon (Maker's Mark or Knob Creek)
1/2 oz. pimento liqueur (used St. Elizabeth)
1/2 oz. fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon 1:1 sugar syrup (turbinado sugar)
1 dash Angostura bitters
Shake ingredients in a cocktail shaker and strain into a cocktail glass.

Recipe from CocktailDB

Jasper's Jamaican
1.5 oz. gold Jamaican rum (used Appleton V/X)
1/2 oz. pimento liqueur (used St. Elizabeth)
1/2 oz. fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon 1:1 sugar syrup (turbinado sugar)
Shake ingredients in a cocktail shaker and strain into a cocktail glass.

Recipe adapted from Dr. Bamboo.

Final Notes - I am really enjoying the flavors of the St. Elizabeth allspice liqueur - the only version that I have tried to-date - and look forward to some further cocktail experimentation. I'm also anxious to try my homemade version after its requisite month or so of aging. Although I don't really drink this liqueur on its own, I do find myself sneaking sniffs of the bottle whenever I pass by the cabinet, taking in the intoxicating aromas of rum, sugar and allspice.

As far as the drink recipes go, both the Navy Grog and Nui Nui Tiki-style drinks above are enjoyable, and definitely offer different experiences worth trying. Of the two straight-up cocktails, I was expecting to like the bourbon-based Lion's Tail more (tried both Makers and Knob Creek), but ultimately felt that the rum in the Jasper's Jamaican, really blended better with the other flavors in the drink and was a slightly more enjoyable beverage.

Demerara Dry Float

A week after stocking up on various rums from Beverage Warehouse in Marina Del Rey (or is it Culver City), I settled on trying a recipe comparison for a Demerara Dry float. Demerara (Guyana) rums are noted for their dark smoky burnt sugar aromas. I have previously had bottles of Lemon Hart 80 proof rum, but this was a first time for buying the 151 proof version (the impetus was to make a Jet Pilot).

In Kaiser Penguin "recipe comparison" fashion, I've selected two famous recipes to make, compare, rank and tweak.

For passion fruit syrup, I'm using the Trader Vic's brand (pre-artificial ingredients version - a collector's item now). For maraschino liqueur, I'm using Luxardo. Juices are fresh squeezed. Demerara rum is Lemon Hart (both proofs). For Trader Vic recipe, 1 dash = 1/4 oz. (which is per Vic Bergeron's "measures") 10 cubes of ice were used and drinks were shaken for 20 seconds before being double strained into a double old fashioned glass.

Recipe#1: Beachbum Berry - Created by Don the Beachcomber
1 ounce Demerara rum
1/4 ounce 151 Demerara rum
2 1/2 ounces Fresh Lime Juice
1 teaspoon Fresh Lemon Juice
1 1/2 ounces passion fruit syrup
1/4 ounce sugar syrup
1/4 ounce Maraschino
Shake everything except the 151 rum with ice, strain into double old-fashioned glass filled with crushed ice, and carefully float the 151. Do not stir.

Recipe #2 Trader Vic's Bartender's Guide
Juice of 1 lime
1/2 oz. passion fruit nectar
1 dash sugar syrup
1 dash lemon juice
1 dash maraschino liqueur
1 oz. Demerara rum (86 proof)
1/4 oz. Demerara rum (151 proof)
Shake all ingredients except 151-proof rum well with ice cubes. Strain into a footed iced-tea or 10-ounce glass. Float the 151-proof Demerara.

Tasting notes:

Recipe #1: This is definitely the larger of the two drinks with 5.75+ oz. and wow, is it citrusy! This is a Guyanese margarita. I'm finding that the constituents are really getting lost amongst the heavy use of lime juice here. Very tangy and refreshing, but just a bit too one-dimensional.

Recipe #2: About 3 oz. total in this drink. I like the balance of this one - I feel that the ingredients are playing well together, but I'm getting a little too much of the maraschino (which I'm not a huge fan of on its own - at least yet). Overall, I feel that this is a better drink, but next time I will cut the maraschino to 1/8 oz (less than a teaspoon).

Final Notes: Trader Vic's recipe is definitely closer to what I would want out of this drink, although I think it does warrant some minor tweaking. It should be noted that the alcohol is more conspicuous in the Trader Vic's version as there is far less juice and syrup, but this was not an issue for me. The only issue is that being such a small drink, it goes down quickly. This drink does a nice job of demonstrating the mixability of the Lemon Hart Demerara rums and really showcases the rich, caramelly Demerara character. Subsequent to the tasting above, I've tried upping the passion fruit syrup, lowering the maraschino, and have generally settled (for now, at least) on my final recommendation being Trader Vic's recipe, but modified with half the maraschino and a slightly thicker float.

Demerara Dry Float (Adjusted Recipe)
Juice of 1 lime
1/2 oz. passion fruit nectar (Trader Vic's old formula or homemade)
1/4 oz. 1:1 sugar syrup
1/4 oz. lemon juice
(<)1/6 oz. (scant tsp) maraschino liqueur (Luxardo)
1 oz. Demerara rum (80 proof)
1/3 oz. Demerara rum (151 proof)
Shake all ingredients except 151-proof rum well with ice cubes. Strain into a double old fashioned glass (double strain for an ice-free surface). Float the 151-proof Demerara.

Falernum etc.

Falernum seems to be today's "it" ingredient among Tikiphiles. A lot of debates are being waged about the quality of commercially available Falernums and how to properly use them. Looking through a number of my favorite cocktail blogs, it would seem that anybody worth their salt as a mixologist is making their own Falernum (and not necessarily just one version, either).

Ok, so what is this stuff?, you ask. Predominantly flavored with lime juice/zest, clove, ginger and almond, Falernum is used in a broad number of Tropical drinks and provides a citrus tang along with sweetness and spices. It is available as both a liqueur as well as a syrup. There is a prevailing wisdom that the liqueur version is better in simpler cocktails in which the Falernum features prominently; and that the syrup, is better for Tiki drinks, where it plays more of a supporting role, accenting the flavor of the rums and other ingredients.

Today, for the first time, I bought a bottle of each of the two most widely available versions: Fee Brother's Falernum syrup (non-alcoholic) as well as the John D. Talyor's Velvet Falernum (11% vol.). I sampled each and made a couple of the more famous of the Falernum-based cocktails.

As for the flavors of the basic products, both have similar impressions upon first nosing - primarily clove with some lime and other spices in the background. On the palate, the Taylor's is smoother and better balanced. The Fee Brothers' is significantly more tangy and citrusy and also very sweet, with a slightly processed character. I like the tanginess of the Fees', but overall there is more going on with the Taylor's.

First up in cocktails is the Corn n' Oil, a simple drink made only from rum, Falernum and a dash or two of Angostura bitters. Some will add a lime squeeze. Forget the recipe on the back of the Taylor's bottle - that is way too self-serving an amount of Falernum. Better is one of the links on the Wikipedia site (the drinkdogma site - and don't fail to follow all the embedded links). Cruzan Black Strap rum with its strong molasses flavors is getting rave reviews by many and is where I have decided to start this journey.

Corn n' Oil
2 oz. Cruzan Black Strap or Lemon Hart 80 proof Demerara rum
1/2-1 oz. Taylor's Velvet Falernum
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Pour into a cocktail shaker half filled with cracked ice. Shake and pour, unstrained, into a double old fashioned glass. Garnish with a lime wedge.

Ok, I have absolutely no idea why this is called corn n' oil. Clearly there is no corn in it, nor oil and I don't really think that it tastes of either. But what I will tell you is this. Corn n' Oil = pretty damn good. With the Cruzan Black Strap rum, there is a STRONG molasses flavor to this. The falernum is in the background, even with 1 oz., but definitely provides some sweetness and an extra flavor dimension to the drink. A very interesting tipple - one worth exploring in the future, maybe with a lighter rum.

- So just after typing this, I've decided to move on to another one made with Lemon Hart Demerara 80 proof, a great mixing rum. It's definitely showing more falernum character (again using 1 oz. of Taylor's) along with the classic Lemon Hart burnt demerara sugar flavors, and now even the Angostura bitters are showing through. Clearly different beasts, both versions are eminently enjoyable, but I'd say the Lemon Hart version creates the better overall drink with each of the ingredients playing a noticable supporting role, resulting in a better overall balance. The back of the bottle recommends Doorly's rum - a Barbados brand possibly worth trying in the future.

Next up is the Jet Pilot. The inspiration for making this cocktail came from the Kaiser Penguin blog, where he lists this as one of his favorite Tiki drinks (How could he neglect the Mai Tai? - well, I left my comment...). Yes, it involves a dizzying array of ingredients, including a few which he painfully makes himself, including the Falernum (KP loves Thomas Kelleresque recipes - see his pearl diver's punch cocktail - yikes). I forewent the home-made Falernum, but I did make the cinnamon syrup per his recipe using cinnamon from Penzey's and plain white cane sugar. The Jet Pilot recipe on KP is the same as on Wikipedia and originally comes from Jeff "Beachbum" Berry's Sippin' Safari Tiki tome.

Jet Pilot
1/2 oz lime juice (used fresh squeezed)
1/2 oz grapefruit juice (used fresh squeezed)
1/2 oz cinnamon syrup (I made KP recipe, link above)
1/2 oz falernum (Taylor's Velvet or Fee Brothers)
1 dash Angostura bitters
1 oz dark Jamaican rum (I used Coruba)
3/4 oz gold Puerto Rican rum (I used Bacardi)
3/4 oz 151-Proof Lemon Hart Demerara Rum (I used LH 151)
6 drops Pernod (I used Herbsaint)
4 oz crushed ice
Put everything into a blender, adding crushed ice last, and blend at high speed for five seconds. Pour into an old-fashioned glass and add cracked ice to your preference.

Wow - now this is a tropical drink that I can't believe I've been missing all these years. A bevy of flavors going on in this - quite a different brew than my typical tropical drink with the cinnamon syrup and falernum, but awesome balance of sweet and tart with some nice spices going on. I love grapefruit, and it fits in to this drink nicely.

I made two versions, one with the Taylor's falernum and one with the Fee Brothers' falernum. My first impression was that both of these made a fine drink. The drink with Fees' was slightly brighter with more tangy citrus notes (like the individual product) . Julie preferred the Fees' favoring its citrusy, fruity profile over the slightly more bitter Taylor's. I felt that the drink with Taylor's Velvet Falernum was more even-keel with better overall balance and complexity. Edge to Taylor's Velvet Falernum for me.

Final Notes - Falernum is an interesting and different mixer. Anyone with an interest in tiki cocktailology(?) owes it to themselves to try this and make a few cocktails with it. This was my first time having both the Corn n' Oil and the Jet Pilot. The Jet Pilot epitomizes all that is great about tropical drinks - depth of flavors and complexity, along with refreshing and fruity qualities. It deserves its place among the top tier of tropical drinks. The Corn n' Oil is really a showcase of rum and falernum. While I don't necessarily think that this will become my favorite drink, it is an interesting beverage which certainly merits an occasional visit.