May Drink of the Month - Mrs. Rita

Every so often, I trade texts with my old boss, Brad Sytsma. We both have a love for music, playlists, and challenges. So we'll offer each other a category and gift each other a CD with gems from our favorite eras (Brad is an 80's guy, whereas I love 90's power pop). Brad has introduced me to a number of bands that I now love, like the Indigo Girls and the BoDeans, and he's deepened my appreciation for U2 and R.E.M. I like to think I've given him some gems as well (Carbon Leaf, Shawn Mullins, the Alternate Routes), so we continue to send each other challenges periodically.

This month, I was in a rut, trying to come up with a name for a new drink I'd created. I had leftover sage leaf from making stuffed Cornish game hens (they were a Christmas present from work, and I finally got around to making them as we participated in the great quarantine freezer clean-out), so of course I made a batch of sage simple syrup. After some testing (the applejack/sage syrup/lemon cocktail was not as much of a home run as I had hoped), I found an excellent application in an Old Fashioned riff with mezcal and orange bitters. But the drink needed a name.

I spent a good hour ruminating, and then sent off a text to friend of the blog Zack with a picture and a name - "Once Upon a Thyme in Oaxaca." It's a well worn pun, but whatever! The only problem, as Zack reminded me, was that I used sage instead of thyme in my syrup - I had brain-farted on my ingredients in the name of making a pun fit. I still needed a name.

I put on some music while I cleaned up the bar. The Gin Blossoms have been in heavy rotation ever since I found The Great Albums Podcast and listened to their review of New Miserable Experience. I've always loved the Blossoms (I've seen them live more than any other band except Carbon Leaf), and their new album (Mixed Reality) is excellent. But it was when I was listening to the anniversary re-issue of New Miserable Experience that the name came to me. The third track (and third single) off the album is called Mrs. Rita, named for a billboard psychic from the 900-number, Mrs. Cleo boom. She was prominent in the American Southwest, where Mexican food and the mezcal boom started. A "sage" from the southwest? I found my winner!

Of course, this naming convention sent me down a rabbit hole, and I had to text Brad. Instead of coming up with a top ten list of break-up songs, or side 1, track 1s, my new challenge was to make a 5 drink tasting menu using a single artist. Brad enjoys good whiskey and margaritas, but he's not a full-fledged bartender. So the concept didn't require fully formed drinks - just concepts to match the song names. Following the recipe, I'll give you my Gin Blossoms themed menu. I may try to build these other drinks out over the coming months, so keep an eye back on this space for the rest of my top 5 (or maybe 7, I couldn't pick between some songs).

For now, here is the recipe for the Mrs. Rita - a simple, smoky drink with a savory backbone that sips
easy over a big block of ice:

Ingredients: 2 oz mezcal (Del Maguey Vida if you have it) , 0.5 oz sage simple syrup (recipe follows), 3 dashes orange bitters (Regan's Orange Bitters No. 6 preferred), sage leaf to garnish.

Preparation: In a mixing glass, combine mezcal, sage syrup, and bitters. Add 5 medium-sized ice cubes, and stir for 10 seconds. Strain into an old fashioned glass. Using a bar spoon, slowly add one large ice cube, and garnish with a sage leaf on top of the ice cube.

Notes: To make the sage syrup, combine 0.5 cups of water and 0.5 cups of sugar in a sauce pot. Stir to combine, and bring to a gentle boil. Add 10 sage leaves, allow to boil for one minute, and then remove from heat. Allow to cool for 30 minutes, then strain off sage leaves and bottle for up to three weeks.

Gin Blossoms Tasting Menu:
Lost Horizons (dry Manhattan with absinthe rinse) - New Miserable Experience (track 1)
Hey Jealousy (chartreuse/Last Word riff) - New Miserable Experience (track 2)
Mrs. Rita (Mezcal Old Fashioned) - New Miserable Experience (track 3)
Pieces of the Night (cobbler) - New Miserable Experience (track 11)
Follow You Down (beer with shot chaser) - Congratulations, I'm Sorry (track 3)
Learning the Hard Way (whiskey/hard cider tall drink) - Major Lodge Victory (track 1)
Idiot Summer (lemonade sipper) - Rarity/Bonus Track

April Drink of the Month - Boughs of the Supernatural

Happy quarantine month two everyone! I've been very envious of my friends without kids during this time - friend of the blog Zack has been incredibly industrious during his time apart, testing out different shrubs, citrus-cellos, bitters, and oleos. I've had time to make... one batch of juniper syrup, using dried juniper berries that I bought back in November. Our little person has decided to push back his bed time, so our adult time has been slightly curtailed (and we're still working during the day, thankfully). However, our new normal doesn't leave a lot of time for bar exploration (and my normal drinking partner is pregnant, so I'm drinking for one).

I did make juniper syrup though! And I've enjoyed playing around with it, even making a few virgin G&T-like mocktails for Ann. I've only used it with gin drinks so far, but the extra punch of juniper makes the drinks even more fresh and floral. Juniper plays well with lime (hence G&Ts), and grapefruit is another good friend. I named the drink after a nickname of juniper, "boughs of the supernatural." The recipe follows - enjoy!

Ingredients: 1.5 oz gin (I used St. George Botanivore), 0.75 oz juniper syrup*, 0.75 lime juice, 0.5 oz Deep Eddy Ruby Red grapefruit vodka, 1.5 oz soda

Preparation: Combine the first four ingredients in a Boston shaker, shake over ice and strain into an ice-filled collins glass. Top with soda water and garnish with a lime disc.

Notes: To prepare the juniper syrup, combine 1.5 cups of water and 1.5 cups of sugar in a small pot. Bring to a boil, then add 3 tbsp dried juniper berries. Boil for 1 minute, then reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes. Turn off heat and allow to cool for 30 minutes. Strain liquid through cheese cloth to remove particles, and bottle for up to three weeks.

March Drink of the Month - Lynchburg Lemonade

The last restaurant that Ann and I were able to visit before COVID-19 shut down the world was a tiny spot just over the border in Michigan called Fat Cam's. We love Fat Cam's for their Cajun dishes (particularly the Orleans Shrimp, covered in Worcestershire sauce and butter), and we were grateful that we had a chance to visit on a Friday in Lent and eat spicy seafood to our hearts' content. At the time of writing, we're now over a week and a half into our brave new world of coronavirus-related isolation, and thinking back to that night at Fat Cam's is making me a little emotional. I miss being about to go out, to see people, and to experience joy through new food and drink.

We've self-isolated pretty hard with Ann being pregnant. That means I'm drinking alone, if I choose to visit the bar. I'm sure I'll get more playful as our isolation stretches out, finding weird or unique ingredients on Amazon or Cocktail Kingdom. But for now, I wanted something simple and comforting. My drink this month was the last cocktail I had out in the wide world - a Lynchburg Lemonade. Fat Cam's called it something different (so that they didn't have to use Jack Daniel's), but the simple combination of lemon-lime soda, lemon, triple sec, and whiskey is easy to make and incredibly refreshing - until I ran out of lemons (I caved and bought shelf-stable lemon juice late last week). And even my pregnant, whiskey-hating wife took a (small) sip and admitted she didn't hate it. High praise from Ann!

Here is my recipe for a modified Lynchburg Lemonade. Like Fat Cam's, I should probably call it something else (since I'm not using Jack either). But why cause confusion? I'll just own that my recipe is not 100% standard... its better!

Ingredients: 2 oz bourbon (high rye content preferred), .75 oz lemon juice, .75 oz triple sec, 4-6 oz lemon lime soda (to taste).

Preparation: In a highball glass (or a mason jar if you need to feel folksy), combine the whiskey, lemon juice, and triple sec. Add ice to the top of the glass, and then top with soda. Stir to combine, and garnish with a lemon wheel.

February Drink of the Month - Sober Curious

For any loyal readers who thought I may have fallen off the edge of the Earth... you made a reasonable assumption, based on my lack of posting! My radio silence for the past few month is easy to explain, however: Ann and I are expecting baby #2 in July, so I've lost my #1 drinking buddy and taste tester. Who knows what this means for my blog output going forward (child #1 put me several months behind last time), but I will continue to post as much as I'm able!

In order to allow Ann to still join in on the fun, my cocktail club spent the month of February playing with shrubs and other low/no ABV options. According to the various publications that I read, the "sober curious" movement is growing. One way to get interesting flavors without using alcohol is with shrubs, sometimes know as "drinking vinegars." There is also a whole range of new "alcohol substitutes" available on the market, the granddaddy of which is Seedlip. For this month's concoction, we combined both of these alcohol-free options to make a pretty tasty little drink that even the pregnant ladies can get behind. This is definitely a case of a drink that is "greater than the sum of its parts." One of our club members described my bottle of Seelip Grove as "herbal hint water," but when combined with the kiwi shrub, it made something magical (we tried swapping Seedlip for gin later, and somehow the "herbal hint water" version was better!).

Ingredients: 2 oz Seedlip Grove, 3 oz kiwi ginger shrub*, 0.5 oz lime juice, 3 dash citrus bitters

Preparation: Combine seeldip, shrub, lime juice, and bitters in a boston shaker. Shake over ice, and strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a kiwi wheel.

Notes: *To make the kiwi-ginger shrub, combine 3 cups sugar, 3 cups cold water, 2 tsp ground ginger, 0.75 cups white wine vinegar, and 0.75 cups white wine. Bring to a boil, and remove from heat. Add the fruit of 6-8 kiwi, and allow to cool. Blend to incorporate ingredients, and then strain into a sterile container.

December Drink of the Month - Bitter Passion

Ann and I rent our house out every fall during Notre Dame home football weekends. Our renters almost always leave behind something after departing. Sometimes the items are odd, like a single novelty sock, or a horribly smelly cooler that went straight into the trash can. But sometimes the leavings are truly gifts, like the cans of champagne left in our refrigerator by Ann's old student workers. Single serve CANS of champagne. This was a life changer for me, as I NEVER go through enough champagne while mixing drinks to justify a whole bottle. Mini bottles have been around for a bit, and they are nice... but cans are even easier to store, and the serving size is excellent for four-ish drinks. Somehow, I missed out on this innovation until it was deposited in my refrigerator. And yes, naysayers, the can of champagne isn't of the finest vintage, but it is cheap and convenient. I'm going to mix it with lots of tasty booze and juices - so I'm not going to be overly focused on the label here. I'm just here for the bubbles.

Our renters' gift allowed me to play down in the bar one night, and the result was a pretty tasty bubbly drink - just in time for New Years! It is a mix of sweet (passion fruit & simple syrup), sour (lime and passion fruit again), bitter (grapefruit), and dry (champagne). It's a lot all in one glass, but the tropical flavors all pair well, and champagne bubbles keep it light, and there is a strong backbone of vodka to keep it boozy enough. This is what I'll be drinking on NYE if I have my way!

Ingredients: 1.5 oz vodka, 0.5 oz grapefruit vodka, 0.5 oz passion fruit syrup, 0.5 oz simple syrup, 1 oz lime juice, 2 oz brut champagne to top.

Preparation: Pour all of the ingredients except for the champagne into a Boston shaker. Shake over ice, and strain into a chilled champagne flute. Top with brut champagne, and finish with lime zest.

Notes: I use Deep Eddy grapefruit vodka and Small Hands Foods passion fruit syrup. I can't remember what brand of champagne in a can we had, but I'd buy it again. What a concept!

November Drink of the Month - The Autumnal Equinox

If you haven't read last "month's" post yet, go check out the Granny Sour, one of the best original drinks that Zack and I have created. It's up there with Smoke on the Water... Melon and our first original drink for the blog, the Opera Glove. Also, as a side note, Zack and I have been mixing drinks together for a while - the Opera Glove goes back to 2013. Wow!

After testing a number of apple varieties to create the Granny Sour, Zack and I found ourselves with a surplus of apples on hand, and no great need for cobbler. Luckily, we had Cocktail Club the following Tuesday, so more experimentation was on tap. Attendance at Cocktail Club was low this past month (I suppose having a new baby is an acceptable excuse for missing a club meeting), but that meant we had a little more freedom to sit and experiment. Our goal was to riff on the classic Żubrówka and apple juice, and maybe play around with some sour and/or sweet flavors (grapefruit? apple caramel? aperol? mint syrup?). The only requirement for the drink was that it feature fresh apple juice, and be served in a hollowed out apple.

Showstopper!

After a few rounds of bar "scientific method," we had a base drink we liked - Żubrówka, jonagold apple juice, lemon, ginger liqueur, and (eventually) rosemary. That drink was fine, but it needed one final touch. Would we go sweet, and add apple caramel? Bitter and dash in some grapefruit juice? Or do both?

It turns out that doing both was a terrible idea. So lets get that out of the way first. Ick.

Adding grapefruit did give some pleasant tartness and bitter finish to the drink, but it was nothing outstanding. However, slowly adding apple caramel made this into a semi-tart, spiced dulce de leche (in liquid form), and that was absolutely worth writing home about. We named the drink the Autumnal Equinox, because it uses fresh fall flavors, and is half sweet and half tart. I hope you enjoy it, and the photo, which made use of the portrait mode on my new phone camera.

Ingredients: 2 oz jonagold juice, 1 oz Żubrówka, 0.5 oz lemon juice, 0.5 oz ginger liqueur, 1 tsp apple caramel, 1 sprig rosemary

Preparation: Juice the jonagold, and strain out any pulp using a mesh strainer. Combine juice with Żubrówka, lemon and ginger liqueur in a Boston shaker. Slowly stir in apple caramel using a bar spoon until it is well dissolved. Remove rosemary needles from stalk, and add to shaker. Shake over ice, double strain into a hallowed out apple. Garnish with a half caramel rim and a rosemary sprig.

October Drink of the Month - The Granny Sour

Photo Credit: Ann Kiley

I'm going to keep this month's post short and sweet. Zack and I created the Granny Sour over a Friday afternoon, another product of our newfound love for the drink creation "scientific method." Because it is the fall, we actually purchased a number of locally sourced apple varieties and juiced them all, searching for nuance in the different cultivars (fuji, johnagold, courtland, granny smith, and honeycrisp were the ones we toyed with). Our experimentation began as a riff on the classic Stone Fence (rye and cider, although there are many variations - the Stone Fence from Dead Rabbit is immensely more complicated!), partially because Zack picked up some decent rye on clearance while we were apple shopping. The rest is history, as we played with independent variables on the way to discovering a drink we both consider one of our finest original creations. This was a really fun experiment, because it made us consider where the flavor for commercial apple juice comes from, and how we can tweak and play with that formula by using fresh ingredients. When you recreate this drink at home, you absolutely must juice your own granny smith apples - store shelf apple juice will not have the same tart/crisp notes that are essential for this drink. You can buy granny smith year round, but the harvest is still fresh now, so go get some local apples if you live in orchard-friendly states!

Ingredients: 2 oz rye, 2 oz granny smith juice, 0.5 oz lemon juice, 0.5 oz mint syrup, 2 dashes cranberry bitters

Preparation: Juice the granny smith apples, and strain out any pulp using a mesh strainer. Combine juice with remaining ingredients in a Boston shaker. Shake over ice, double strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with skewered cranberries.

Notes: Peeling the granny smith apples before juicing helps the drink's color - juicing with the skin on results in a darker juice, so the cranberry hues get washed out. Also, the juice oxidizes quickly, so don't allow it to sit for long before mixing.