pisco punch

Here is the recipe of the Pisco Punch I made for Tim & Jess's Fourth of July cookout last week. They requested a punch and I chose the Pisco despite the Patriot Punch being the most appropriate namewise. The recipe is a hybrid of a few classic recipes and one by Audrey Saunders. I went with pitcher format since I did not want to lug our punch bowl up and the thought of an open bowl outdoors did not seem too appealing to me. I brought enough to make two batches, and both were gone around the time Q showed up to make his drink concoction... Tim and Jess found ~5 oz plastic glasses which were perfect for the punch since it was 20% alcohol (it would otherwise be served in 3-4 oz punch cups).

• 25.6 oz Pisco (1 x 750 mL bottle)
• 8 oz Fresh Lemon Juice
• 8 oz Pineapple Juice
• 4 oz Simple Syrup (1:1 Sugar:Water)
• 4 oz Water
• 2 oz Homemade Citrus Bitters(*)

Pre-chill the ingredients(**). Mix in a pitcher or bowl. Serve.

(*) Homemade Citrus Bitters:
• 1 1/2 tsp Grated Lime Peel
• 1 1/2 tsp Grated Grapefruit Peel
• 1 1/2 tsp Grated Lemon Peel
• 2 1/4 oz Pisco/Vodka/Gin

Prepare in advance and strain. I used Bombay Gin and let it extract for a week at room temperature. The recipe I acquired the rind aspect from only used white grapefruit and lime rind, but I figured that the lemon rind which was otherwise going into the compost heap and would probably do well in the mix. Also, my grapefruit was pink (if that even matters rind-wise, I'm not sure).

(**) The Pisco was chilled in the freezer overnight and the rest of the ingredients in the fridge. An insulated bag kept everything cool on the hour ride and walk to their place. I was trying to avoid the use of ice which would dilute the punch and change the flavor over time.

summer of sureau

1 1/2oz St. Germain elderflower liqueur
1/2oz Batavia Arrack
1/2oz lemon juice
1/4oz pineapple syrup
3 dashes Bittermans Boston Summer Bittahs

Shake over ice and strain into a cocktail glass. *Pineapple syrup: pass fresh pineapple juice through a fine strainer lined with a cone filter (a coffee filter would work, too). Then take the pineapple water and make a syrup that's two parts pineapple water, one part sugar. Recipe: Misty Kalkofen via drinkboston.com.

A. wanted to visit Green Street to try this drink, as Misty had received very high marks with it at a recent St. Germain mixology competition in NYC (and Ben from no9 took the top prize, Boston represent!). I stole a sip and wow, I had to have my very own. This drink is incredibly delicious and well-balanced and light: I know it doesn't resemble my usual rye penchant in the slightest but it is just plain delicious and any serious cocktail-type (or hell, anyone really) would take away some pleasure from the experience of imbibing this drink. I won't even bother trying to describe my impression of the flavor; just go try one!

sloe gin fizz

1 1/2oz Plymouth sloe gin
1oz lemon juice
1 tsp simple syrup

Shake with ice, serve on rocks and top off with soda.

The scene: sitting at Green Street with A. Suddenly in mid-conversation her eyes widened and she exclaimed "oh my god!". A bottle of Plymouth's sloe gin was sitting behind the bar. I hadn't decided upon a drink yet but faced with this discovery, I had to order a Sloe Gin Fizz. I'd never had "sloe gin" as available in the US -- nor ever the real stuff -- before last night. And my, it is yummy: plummy, mouth-watering, and a gorgeous color. You wouldn't think of this as a drink I'd like what with the citrus, but it didn't bother me and was yummy and refreshing overall... great drink for such a humid evening.

You know what would be awesome? Sloe gin sorbet. Damn, now I need an ice-cream maker...

:: how it all began ::

When F and I had a neighbor over for drinks recently, we were asked what initially piqued our interest in craft cocktails. I gave the answer that we needed something to do in the evening on our flowerbox-filled balcony. The more I thought about it, the more I regretted my flip response. Fred certainly deserves a bit more credit. The initial plan (back in 2006) was to have a single (! ha ha!) cocktail on Sunday nights. We began the first few Sundays with vodka-based drinks, since we still had a giant bottle of Ketel One left over from our NYE 2004 party.

Then, at week nine, our lives were transformed. It was a very warm evening in mid-August. I believe I requested a gin drink. Fred had up until that point avoided gin, whereas it was my base alcohol of choice. Fred reluctantly searched the web for gin cocktails, and stumbled upon a site called vintagecocktails.com. The featured cocktail was the Pegu, and after the first sip, Fred was hooked. It tasted faintly like grapefruit to me, and was perfectly refreshing. Since then, Fred hasn't wavered in his devotion to gin, though I've discovered a few gin-based drinks that I simply can't stomach (including anything made with Citadelle).

We've added substantially to the NYE leftovers, even going to far as to scour dusty shelves in liquor stores in Indiana for unusual spirits (and a precious bottle of Peychaud's). I scored a 1980's-vintage bottle of Cordial Campari - it's a shame I detest anything raspberry-flavored. I even begged my boss to bring me back a bottle of kummel from Germany. Searching out ever-more-obscure alcohols has become just a little bit of an obsession for me (my current object of lust being: RinQuinQuin).

I guess I could have healthier hobbies. My teetotaling mother would hardly have approved. But this one has encouraged me to meet a good number of fascinating people (and given how pathologically shy I am, that's pretty amazing). I'll drink to that.

green ghost

2 oz gin
1/2 oz green Chartreuse
1/2 oz lime juice

Shake with ice and pour into a cocktail glass (or at Green Street, a champagne coupe). Recipe from CocktailDB.com and I assume Green Street does not vary greatly from this recipe.

For my second and last drink last night, I followed up the Avery's Arrack-ari with a lime drink of similar complexity, an old favorite called the Green Ghost. For some reason, Andrea does not care for the combination of gin with either Chartreuse (despite the fact that she loves both ingredients separately), so often I will choose these cocktails when I am out and not mixing for two at home. Andy was more than happy to make it for me, although his super-excitement shows through when Andrea asks for a suggestion on a glass of bourbon like she did last night.

While googling for a drink history of this cocktail, the first entry was by Lauren Clark of DrinkBoston.com, which is interesting in that she walked into Green Street after attending the craft beer fest and sat down next to us to chat as I ordered and drank my Green Ghost. The history of the cocktail is pretty slim save for CocktailDB citing "J. B. Hurrell" as the creator.

avery's arrack-ari

1 1/2 oz Batavia Arrack
1/2 oz lime juice
1/2 oz simple syrup
Talisker 10 year rinse

Shaken with ice and strained into a cocktail coupe rinsed with scotch and garnished with a lime wedge.

Last night, Andrea and I went to Green Street after getting Tibetan Food at Rangzen. My first cocktail of the night was a return to the arrack cocktail I had last time (yet only blogged about the Lion's Tail). This new cocktail on Green Street's recently redone small cocktail menu was created by the Avery's of Bittermens Bitters. And surprisingly, they skipped the use of their bitters in this drink.

The smokiness and spiciness of the Batavia arrack were complimented rather well by the Talisker 10 year old rinse. Last time the rinse was a bit more prevalent in the taste, and this time was sorely missed. The lime juice and simple syrup do serve to smooth over the rough edges a bit and add some sweetness to an otherwise super dry cocktail.

Obviously I rather enjoyed this one if I had it the last two visits at Green Street. It is good to see arrack making a comeback in the cocktail world.

aviation (1916 variant)

3 oz gin
1 oz fresh lemon juice
3/4 oz maraschino liqueur
1/4 oz creme de violette

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a cherry or lemon twist.

Another Aviation variant appears in this blog here.

Last night, Andrea and I went to the Forest Hills Educational Trust's summer solstice event. Besides guided walking and trolley tours, there was also food and drink. Some of the drink was provided by the lovely ladies of LUPEC. Both Fancy Brandy and Pinky Gonzales were on hand to mix up Aviations for the guests.

The description of the cocktail they had was, "The first recipe for the Aviation to be found in print was in 1916, in Recipes for Mixed Drinks by Hugo Ensslin. This original Aviation calls for the addition of violet flower liqueur. The drink today is widely made without the violet and is sometimes referred to as Aviation No. 2. Both are nice, but we find the original to be superior and most heavenly."

It did feel rather decadent to step on to the trolley with a cocktail in hand as well as take the walking tour with yet another Aviation in tow. The freedom of walking around in the outdoors or in what seems like a public space with certain beverages is such a rarity, and having a cocktail named after freedom from restraint of the ground was an interesting parallel.

The LUPEC rationale for this cocktail was based on one of the people buried in the cemetery. We were re-introduced to his grave marker during the walking tour and our tour guide gave a bit of the history. The flier that the ladies provided gave their reasons for being fascinated in the person and the site, "We've selected the Aviation for our vintage cocktail tonight in memory of Edward (Teddy) Thaw, Jr., a dashing aviator who is memorialized at Forest Hills with a splendid Art Deco-style portrait by sculptor Jerome Brush. Thaw is depicted with a silk scarf around his neck, holding his helmet and gogles. The winged Archangel Michael stands at his side." Their description also includes the scandal revolving around Teddy's uncle who killed his wife's (ex- ?)lover; the lover a famous architect and she a famous showgirl of the day.

[long drawn-out sex in a rocks glass]

2oz Thomas Handy Sazerac Rye
3/4oz Fernet-Branca
1/2oz vanilla simple syrup
2 dashes Fee's whiskey barrel-aged bitters

Bring down the lights slightly and serve in a rocks glass. Another John Gertsen original...

I wanted a last drink before we braved the growing mobs outside (go, local sports team!). I wanted rye, I wanted Fernet, and I wanted warm and fuzzy. And I got exactly all that in the above recipe (John: you have excellent bartender-ESP!). The vanilla simple syrup added this wonderful roundness and created an awesome, full mouthfeel and it resulted in a drink of the most gorgeous mahogany color. It was definately the sort of thing one could linger over. YUMMY.

[a facinating too-tasty flip]

long pepper-infused gin
averna
honey
egg

Shake the hell out of it, garnish with a tiny bit of ground nutmeg. A John Gertsen original.

F&A brought me out to no9 Park -- finally, we made this happen! -- for my birthday last night, and what a lovely night it was. For my second drink A suggested to John that he make me a flip of some kind. He brought out this amazing house infusion of gin and Indonesian long peppers (which of course I had to try straight. Just a tiny sip! Potent stuff, my lips were wonderfully pepper-burned for a few minutes), and tempered it with honey. The result? Wonderfully creamy concoction, with a pepper tingle that was neutered of its pain by the sweet sticky honey. The color was a rich coffee brown, suggesting that this drink's name should have something to do with coffee despite its absence: all the better to confuse people!