Kiki

KIKI

Oh boy are we into something good now! This is the first time I've created a flaming shooter but I had to give this one a try. I present you with the Kiki.

What you need:

• ⅓ shot of Kahlúa (coffee liquor)
• ⅓ shot of Amaretto
• ⅓ shot of Cointreau (triple sec)
• a source of fire

Layer the three ingredients in the given order (kahlúa, amaretto and finally the cointreau) but try to keep a steady hand, especially on the triple sec. I almost botched it but managed to keep the layers separated (as seen in the picture). Now carefully light the top on fire, enjoy the show then blow the fire out and shoot!

Personally, I liked this shot very much. I could clearly taste each ingredients. It's like a 3-in-1 shot. None did overwhelm another and the final coffee flavored taste was very pleasant. Also, this cocktail looks quite beautiful. I give Kiki a big thumps up!

N.B!

Always treat cocktails with fire with great caution. Fire is a good servant but a bad master. At least have something to extinguish the flames should things go awry.

French Connection

FRENCH CONNECTION

Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Tonight's savory cocktail is the perfect after dinner tipple. I kid you not. The French Connection. 

• 3.5 cl of cognac (prefer VSOP or XO if all possible)
• 3.5 cl of amaretto (Disaronno equals quality)

A kind reminder before we get started. As mentioned in the ingredients, only use quality cognac. No, don't use brandy. Also, for most of us, amaretto = Disaronno and I am completely fine with this. Quality matter in this case (like it does in any cocktail for that matter).

Take 3-5 ice cubes (larger > smaller) and fill a snifter or an old fashioned glass with them. Slowly pour the cognac first, then add the amaretto. Swirl the glass a few times so the alcohols mix and enjoy with time. This is not a shooter.

For me, wow...just wow! I couldn't believe at first how these ingredients make such a fine combination. The cognac's warmth and the amaretto's sweetness mixed in a chilled glass. I'll be damned, those French did get something right!

Sophisticated, elegant, stylish. I've yet to meet its match...

Sot Grass

Sot Grass

Tonight's shooter. The Sot Grass. Introducing:

• ½ a shot of Pisang Ambon (a banana flavored liquor)
• ½ a shot of Jägermeister

Layer in a shot glass, the pisang first followed by the Jäger.

First things first. This is a beautiful cocktail. The colors are pretty when layered...but that's about it then. This shot's flavor did not really please me at all. Jägermeister's flavor was so overwhelming I could barely taste any of the "banana" liquor. Given, the shot was from the sweeter side and the aftertaste did have notes of "banana". The reason I'm using quotation marks is that I can't really consider Pisang Ambon as a good banana flavored liquor. It tastes rather synthetic.

But should I rank this shot...2/5, and one point goes for the looks of this shot.

Bacardi Cocktail

BACARDI COCKTAIL

Today I'm presenting you with a classic cocktail called the Bacardi Cocktail. It is a simple cocktail to make and given, taste-wise this cocktail sure is simple as well. Trust me when I say it's not a good thing.

What you need:

• 4.5 cl Bacardi rum (white)
• 2.5 cl fresh lime juice (juice from ½ a lime)
• 0.5 cl grenadine (a splash)

Combine all of the ingredients in a cocktail shaker, add ice and shake. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Now, you could use either a cocktail cherry or a slice of lime to decorate, whatever suits your needs. I went for the lime (the green-red color combination is aesthetically pleasing).

As you might have noticed, this drink is basically a red hued lime-rum mixture and yeah, it didn't taste much differently either (figures). The grenadine did give a light sweetened taste to it but all in all this cocktail is only mediocre at best.

The next time I want a fancy red colored drink, I make myself a Cosmo instead. Now I felt like wasting good rum and lime juice...

Boston Sour

BOSTON SOUR

Boston Sour, volume I

Boston Sour, volume II

Well met! I've had a rough day at work today so after I got home I thought of whipping myself a nice cocktail. Which I did. Hence, the Boston Sour. I've always thought that this was the Whiskey Sour but in fact the Whiskey Sour does not have egg white in it and this does. Otherwise the Sour is a very simple cocktail (yet extremely elegant) which can be made different with almost any spirit.

• 5 cl Whiskey (bourbon) (I used Jim Beam, I find it an extremely good whiskey for cocktails)
• 2,5 cl lemon juice (½ a lemon)
• 2,5 cl sugar syrup OR 2 tsp caster sugar
• 4 drops of Angostura bitters
• 1 egg white

First things first, separate the egg yolk from the white. In a cocktail glass, combine the egg white plus all of the other ingredients, add a lot of ice and remember to shake like you've never shaked before! (because of the egg white).

Take a old fashioned - glass (tumbler), fill it with ice cubes and strain the cocktail mixture in the glass. Now take a strip of lemon peel and twist the essential oils into the drink and use the peel as a decoration. The egg white creates a nice foam as shown in the picture. Also different from the non-egg version, this drink has much more build.

A perfect Boston Sour.

Post Edit:

I have been informed with crucial information regarding this cocktail. Remember boys and girls to dry shake all of the ingredients first, this is to ensure that the egg white incorporates with the other ingredientsand that it gets a nice frothy texture. Then add ice and shake again.

Lynchburg Lemonade

LYNCHBURG LEMONADE

Today I'll present you with a famous whiskey based cocktail. The name derives from Lynchburg, Tennessee, where the Jack Daniel's distillery is located. Without further ado, let's get down to business:

• 1 part Jack Daniel's whiskey
• 1 part Triple Sec
• 1 part lemon juice
• Sprite/ 7up / lemonade

Combine the first three ingredients in a cocktail shaker, fill it with ice and shake. Take a collins glass (or a highball like I did) filled with ice cubes and pour the shaker content in it. Top up with lemonade. Garnish with a lemon slice.

This cocktail really had its sweet&sour taste in it. Surprisingly well did the whiskey distinct itself in this otherwise lemonade - tasting cocktail. This cocktail's ingredients can be modified into a larger batch making it a good punch for parties and such.

Brandy Alexander

BRANDY ALEXANDER

Back in the days

Greetings again! It has been almost two months since my last update but there's a good explanation for that; moving to our new house + I haven't had internet for over month after we moved.

Anyhow, let's get back to business. I present you with one of the more classic cocktails, the Brandy Alexander. If used with gin, it's called an Alexander. What you need to create this superb cocktail:

• 3 cl cognac (I used Hennessy VSOP)
• 3 cl dark créme de cacao
• 3 cl fresh cream
• grated nutmeg to decorate

Combine all of the ingredients (except for the nutmeg) in a cocktail shaker, add ice and shake vigorously (due to the cream). Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and sprinkle some grated nutmeg to garnish. Serve.

I found this cocktail to be elegant, sweet-ish and rather heavy due to the cream's consistency. Taste-wise plain amazing. One could taste the different flavors from the cognac, cocoa liquor and cream. The nutmeg had a surprising taste, since I haven't tasted it before per se.

All in all, this cocktails deserves a solid 5/5. It's bulky consistency only prevents me from having more than one at a time.

Brandy Alexander vol. II, 2013

Sour Bison

SOUR BISON

Hello again! Today I made a rather sour-y cocktail from the ingredients (read: left overs) I had in my fridge. Also, at my disposal I had a new bottle of Zubrowka (thanks, sis!) so I wanted to try it out.

What ended up happening? I pressed the juices from 1 grapefruit and 1½ lemons, mixing them together. Then as follows:

• 4 cl Zubrowka
• 2 cl Peach schnapps
• a few dashes of angostura bitters
• 12 cl of the grapefruit-lemon juice mix

Added the bison grass vodka and peach schnapps in a cocktail mixer along with the few dashes of bitters and juice-mix. Give it some ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a high ball glass. Decorate as pleased.

Zubrowka's unique taste blends well with this all-together refreshing cocktail. In addition, the peach schnapps + bitters give this drink roundness and smoothness it well deserves.

This drink would be best at a hot summer day.

Jäger & Coke

JÄGER & COKE

Note the small Jägers on the background left

"I got the moves like Jäger, I got the moves like Jäger, I got the moo-ooo-ooo-oo-ooves like Jäger!"

- Maroon 5

The Beast. One of my favorites. The Jäger & Coke. A simple mix that doesn't need explanations:

• 4 cl Jägermeister
• Coca cola

Add plenty of ice to a high ball glass. Pour in the Jäger (or Hirsch) and fill up with coca cola. Garnish, albeit optional, a slice of lemon.

I admit, I'm a great Jägermeister fan. I love the taste but I do say warm Jägermeister on its own is not the perfect "cocktail" per se (especially when I've had a few before). Ice cold with coke? Wonderful. 

I don't really have much to add to this exquisite drink. Everyone has tried it once (I assume) and if they haven't, they should! This is one of those "spirit and mixer" I will be posting more of later one, but...

Jäger & Coke really gets the best of me. Really.

The Screamer

THE SCREAMER

Ooooh boy did we scream! Not really, though, but this shot kicks you in the sacks even if you're female! (true story, my wife tested this shot along with me)

But let's get to the point. To make a screamer, do the following:

• 2 cl Sambuca (½ shot)
• 2 cl Jägermeister (½ shot)

Build the ingredients in a shot glass. Shoot.

I still had ice cold Jägermeister at my disposal so I used that. As I poured the Jäger in the shot glass and then added the Sambuca it surprised me that the anise liquor sank to the bottom. Later thinking of this, I had it all figured out; of course it did! Sambuca has a fudge load of sugar in it making it heavier in volume/consistency.

So how did it taste? Fiery, strong, fully anise-like but the after taste was extremely sweet and nice! Sambuca dominated this drink but I did get some herbal notes, alas only a few. 

Pro-tip: Don't take this as one of your last shots. You go down in flames...

Gin & Tonic (GT)

GIN & TONIC

2012

2016

Gin, ahoy! I present thee with a cocktail I have made short shrift of for many years. But I recognize the beauty of this drink now. I shall make haste and construe the formula of this savoury cocktail:

• 4 cl Gin (I used Bombay Sapphire)
• tonic water
• a wedge of lime

Supply a high ball glass with plenty of ice, add up the gin followed by a topping off with tonic water. Slice up a wedge of lime and do squeeze the juices of into the drink and use the rind to sweep on the rim of the glass. Finally, drop the wedge onto the drink and enjoy.

 

Surprised as thou might, I have used a proportion of 1:2. Not only did I manage to capture all of the exquisite and aromatic flavours of the Bombay Sapphire but created a marvellous symbiosis with the tonic water. Not forgetting the sweetness of the lime juice, this cocktail has reached new heights in my personal favourites list.

I shall go hunt some foxes now. 

"Tally Ho gents! And off after that fox!"

2016, editor's note

I've come a long way since my 2012 G&T. Not only have multiple producers brought their own gins for us to enjoy (there are seriously so many available at the moment), the sheer amount of different tonics has skyrocketed. As you can clearly see from the two pictures above, I would make my G&T now a tad different. But only a tad.

• 5 cl gin
• a small amount of tonic
• garnish, what is recommended for the gin in question

Using a small tumbler will make your G&T better since the relative proportion of tonic-water is less meaning the botanical flavors of the gin come out better. Thus I would and will recommend ordering a G&T "short" if you can! Taste the difference!

Kamikaze

KAMIKAZE

Oh my! Feels good to write again, after a loooong pause and what would be a better start than the famous Kamikaze (神風)? Made of equal parts of vodka, triple sec and lime juice, this cocktail sure reminded me of a Cosmo without cranberry (okay, given a Cosmo uses lemon flavored vodka, not just regular).

Equal parts? That means:

• 3 cl vodka
• 3 cl triple sec (Cointreau)
• 3 cl lime juice

Combine the ingredients in a cocktail shaker, fill it up with ice, shake it shake it shake it and strain into a (chilled) cocktail glass (as usual I double strained it to get rid of the excess ice flakes). Add a wedge or slice of lime on the side to garnish.

The divinity with this cocktail! Firstly the brisk sourness from the lime juice infused vodka and right afterwards the sweetness from the triple sec. Nice. Don't mind having another one...

The Iron Curtain

The Iron Curtain

Warning! An Iron Curtain has been detected!

  

- Real WWIII advisor

I finally got around doing the Iron Curtain, a "soviet" buddy for the Allies' Cronosphere. I actually made a little sketch of this drink before as shown here:

My initial idea was that I would use Stolichnaya vodka, crushed ice, either tonic, soda or such and pomegranate seeds to create a swindling/wavy effect. Of course the drink had to be red of some sort, so a red liquor was needed to achieve that.

The setup:

• 4 cl Stolichnaya
• 4 cl cranberry liquor
• Mineral water
• Pomegranate seeds (according to "taste") 
• crushed ice

First, I scraped the seeds off the fruit (which was a messy job) and put them on a small plate. In a high ball glass, add the stoli, crushed ice, top it off with the water then added the seeds on top. I finished the drink with the cranberry liquor, put a swizzle stick and gave it a good stir. Finally I included a largish straw.

The outcome:

Frankly, this drink didn't really cut it. In any aspect, really. Taste-wise very mild with only slight cranberry notes. As for the seeds, they weren't worth the time either. I had fun with the cocktail as a "concept" and brainstorm this cocktail on a sheet of paper but the end result was a disappointment. 

But I made it, nonetheless.

PS. It didn't turn me invulnerable.

The Chronosphere

The Chronosphere

"We have also earnt the right to be the first to test the newest addition to our arsenal, the Chronosphere."

-Gunter von Esling introducing the Chronosphere

Legends say, Albert Einstein built this phenomenal device in 1946 to help the Allies against Stalin's forces. In 2012, Celestino built this phenomenal shooter to help people chronoshift into bars or if used too rapidly, to the bathroom.

I introduce you to the Chronosphere!

To create this mind blowing (freezing) experience, you need to do some preparations. All ingredients, including the glass should be frozen cold. 

• 2 cl Sambuca
• 2 cl Blue curacao
• a small lime wedge

Fill a shot glass with crushed ice, half-way fill it with sambuca and carefully pour in the curacao. Remember that the curacao will freeze solid if held too long in the freezer. What I did was put it in the fridge first and in the freezer only for about 1½ hours so the liquod became thicker but wasn't completely frozen. Add a lime wedge (you can press the juices on top of the drink), stick a small straw in the glass and with one sip finish your drink!

Phoooie!

Sambuca's anise-flavors combined with the citrus from the curacao make an interesting combination. A few variations of the Chronosphere will be made, one with peppermint schnapps and one made in a tumbler, for a "longer" drink.

Red Corona

RED CORONA

"Opened up another vial, started drinking more beer
So I could wake up next to Heather Locklear"

 - Nine Coronas by Weird Al Yankovic

Today we're making a beer "cocktail"! Tuning up the original Corona to make a Red Corona you need:

• 1 bottle of Corona Extra
• a slice of lime
• 2.5 cl vodka (1 shot)
• a dash of grenadine

I used a British shot measure, 4 cl of vodka (using the Finnish standard) could be implied but I want to stay loyal to the original recipe so to speak.

What you need to do is the following. Open the corona and take a few sips until the beer level is around the bottle neck. Add the vodka, grenadine and squeeze in the lime wedge. Now using your thumb (or any finger that'll fit and make the bottle airtight), stick in inside the bottle and slowly turn the bottle upside down so the ingredients mix up properly.

That's it!

I couldn't taste the vodka at all! Then again it is no big surprise since as I have stated many previous times, grenadine has a nasty habit of overwhelming most flavors with great ease. In this case too, it tasted slightly like beer, more like fizzy grenadine with a little bite. I could imagine having a bunch of these with good friends. Actually, a Red Corona would be perfect with friends. Since this drink still has that deviously  hidden vodka kick, just watch not to have too many. Drink responsibly!

Blood and Sand

BLOOD AND SAND

This cocktail's history goes all the way back to the 1920's. It was named for Rudolph Valentino's 1922 bullfighter movie Blood and Sand (wiki'ed it, deal with it). I've heard some wild rumors of this cocktail and according to different sources the ingredients/measures vary a bit too. Maybe it's one of those "find the best proportions yourself" - kind of things, but this is how I rolled this cocktail:

• 3 cl Scotch
• 3 cl Blood orange juice
• 2 cl Sweet Red Vermouth
• 2 cl Cherry brandy (the original recipe calls for Cherry Heering, which I don't have, so I used De Kuyper Cherry brandy instead)
• a flamed orange zest

Add all ingredients in a cocktail shaker, fill it with ice and shake it! Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and flame up an orange zest, go around the glass's rims with it (having released the essential oils in the drink) and drop it in the drink. 

 This drink was...okay. Using scotch in a mixed drink wasn't really something I've used to do, and the cherry brandy's taste did overwhelm this cocktail a little bit. Also, the blood orange juice was well hidden. Overall, a slight disappointment as far as I am concerned. Next time I definitely have to use Cherry Heering or as some recipes mention, orange juice instead of blood orange juice. Go figure.

Americano

AMERICANO

Americano, 2012

Americano, 2013

Unlike Yolanda Be Cool and producer DCUP, today we do speak Americano! This is one of the more famous aperitifs so I had to give it a go. As I have mentioned earlier that I am not a big fan of bitter cocktails, especially those with Campari, but I just had to try this one and see if it lived up to its name.

First of all, what you need is:

• 3 cl Campari
• 3 cl Sweet Red Vermouth (Martini Rosso)
• Club soda
• An orange slice for garnish

Fill a tumbler (on-the-rocks-glass) with ice, pour both the campari and vermouth in the glass and top it off with club soda. Add a slice of orange for garnish.

That's it! As for the taste, I was a bit on the fence on this one. The club soda took most of the campari's edge off so it wasn't too bitter for my taste. The vermouth's sweetness gave this definite pre-dinner cocktail a nice touch, I admit. Just like the Campari Orange Passion I made a little while back, this cocktail had that sweetness which in my opinion helped a lot in making me like this drink. They're also super easy to make for a larger group of people, say as a beginning of an evening meal so I give the Americano a big thumbs up!

Some say Campari at its finest, I say close, but no cigar.

Sidecar

SIDECAR

In the course of my cocktail endeavours I have stumbled upon many different types of drinks. But in the end I can clearly see why some are just...better than the others. It goes without saying (although I am going to say it now) that those labelled as "traditional" truly live up to their names!

I present you with the Sidecar:

• 2 cl cognac (I used Meukow VSOP)
• 2 cl triple sec (Cointreau)
• 2 cl lemon juice

Or simply, 1 part each. There are several variations of the measures given but I used the ones mentioned above. I also used double measures because of my largish cocktail glass. This drink also reminded me of the Japanese Slipper cocktail I made some time ago, given the melon liquor is now replaced with cognac.

Firstly, use a lemon wedge to coat the rim of the glass and cover it in sugar. Put the glass in the fridge some time before you prepare your cocktail; add all ingredients in a cocktail shaker, add plenty of ice, shake vigorously and strain in your now chilled cocktail glass. Add an orange wedge on the side of the drink. Enjoy.

Just...wow. I can understand the popularity of this cocktail! I blew my mind away! The lemon juice's sourness and Cointreau's sweetness combined with the cognac's mellowness...It was a trip I didn't want to end.

This is a 5/5 cocktail hands down.

Campari Orange Passion

CAMPARI ORANGE PASSION

Beauty in a glass! This is a variation of the basic Campari & OJ I found from their site. For my taste, Campari & oj is a bit too bitter, given it works as a nice aperatif. This recipe has a sweetness in it and I did like this so much more, although creating it takes more time. But it is worth it:

• 2 slices of orange (or wedges)
• 1 tsp of brown sugar
• 4 cl Campari
• 12 cl orange juice
• crushed ice
• a maraschino cherry to garnish

Take the orange slices and drop them in the high ball glass. Add the sugar and muddle gently. Then add the crushed ice, campari and orange juice and give it a gentle stir. Top it off with a bit more ice and top this cocktail with a cherry and a straw.

Now that summer is close(r) by, having one of these babies outside...wonderful.

Screwdriver

THE SCREWDRIVER

Probably the most well-known cocktail ever made, I happened to have a bunch of oranges at my disposal so of course I wanted to create this simpe but ah, such a nice cocktail:

• 4 cl vodka
• 12 cl orange juice
• 1 orange slice to garnish

Or simplified, 1 part vodka and 3 parts orange juice. The trick is to use only premium orange juice if made a true "cocktail". Of course anyone can pour vodka and oj in a high ball glass but I was feeling fancy so what I did was the following:

Pressed the juice out of the oranges, measured the ingredients into a cocktail shaker, added plenty of ice and shook it briskly. Strained the drink (to get rid of the excess pulp) into a high ball filled with ice, added the swizzle stick and garnished it. Avot!

The beauty of this drink becomes more apparent depending on the oj used! Many don't seem to understand this. They undermine this cocktail completely because their experience has been with cheap-ojs found from any grocery store...Spend some time with this and I assure you the taste is so much different...and better.

Blue Lagoon

BLUE LAGOON

Inspired by the far most greatest movie of all time, here's one of the summer hit cocktails everybody knows!

Just look how awfully I've made these Blue Lagoons in the past. Oh gosh!

Now here's a properly made cocktail, at least visual-wise!

This cocktail does not need much of an effort to make but hot damn it sure does look fine!

• 2 cl vodka
• 2 cl blue curacao
• lemonade (sprite/7Up)

Build this drink in a highball glass filled with ice cubes. Garnish with a lemon, lime or even add a sprig of mint like I did (*edit* when I was young and didn't know better)!

Taste-wise, it's hardy mentionable. I believe the visual effect gives more than it actually tastes like. Not being a strong cocktail either, you can have a couple of these with great ease. And if you haven't had one before...I feel sorry for you. Not a true "classic", but a famous drink nonetheless.

(unlike the movie, it sucked)

Post-edit 2013

So I made this cocktail once again, third time's the charm. Having learnt the art of...cocktail making (and perhaps a little bit of photography [given with the equipment I have at my disposal]) you can really see how the earlier pictures are quite horrible compared to my newest one; kind of like when I made three Mojitos in six years. You can really see the difference.

Still didn't make the cocktail any better. Better looking, yes. Better tasting? Absolutely not.

Firebird

FIREBIRD

Continuing our cocktail experiences, I present you with the Firebird:

•  2 cl tequila (white)
•  2 cl créme de bananes
•  2 cl lemon juice
•  4 cl lemonade (sprite/7up)

Shake the first three ingredients with plenty of ice, strain into a tumbler filled with a few ice cubes and add the lemonade. No garnish needed!

All in all, this cocktail tasted kind of funky. The combination of banana liquor and tequila does work! The fizzyness of the lemonade gave this drink a nice mouth-feel as well.

If you haven't had one of these birds before, go ahead and try one! NOW!

Smiley Face

SMILEY FACE

Another amazing shot! You have probably noticed how many of the shots I have shown are layered. That is because I like making ones! I get many good flavors in one glass, what's there not to like?!

Anyhow, here's how it's done:

• 2 cl of Kahlúa
• 2 cl créme de bananes
• 1-2 cl of fresh cream

Layer the ingredients and shoot! Tastes just as it should; a creamy coffee-banana mix at your service! The Kahlúa is a tad dominating but in my opinion it doesn't hurt the cocktail per se. I liked it.

Jafar

JAFAR

Inspired vaguely from the Disney cocktail Esmeralda my friend challenged me with, I present you with Jafar, a shot I invented.

Jafar being all bad-ass

This shot consists of three parts:

• 2 cl Jägermeister
• 2 cl Strawberry liquor
• 1 cl fresh cream

I used ice-cold Jäger, poured it first, layered the strawberry liquor and topped it off with a layer of fresh cream. What I had in mind that the Jäger would've been much darker and layered with the liquor make a more distinctive "black-red" shot, but this'll do just fine. 

Tasted surprisingly good! Sweet and creamy, the Jäger didn't give its usual edge to this shot at all, that was the "surprisingly" part. I give it a solid 4/5. I can imagine changing the liquor to any "flavored" one, blueberry, apple, you name it...

Pineapple Tequila

PINEAPPLE TEQUILA

As promised, the Pineapple Tequila! I had a little "accident" with my first bottle, that is when I put it (=forgot) in the oven for a disinfection I ended up with a melt cap as seen in the picture:

Yeah, that sucked majorly and to add insult to injury, this happened during Easter so I couldn't even get myself another bottle! After the holidays I got TWO bottles and instead of using the oven I just washed them in hot water and let to cool off.

After this procedure I used a coffee filter to strain the excess vanilla seeds off the liquid...

...and double strained it afterwards to get a clearer product.

What do you know, it turned out OKAY!

Here I let my inspiration flow freely; silver tequila is usually drunk with lemon + salt, golden tequila with orange + cinnamon so how could one have this? I got an idea...

...a slice of grapefruit + vanilla sugar!

It was awesome. Scent was extremely pineapple-y and taste-wise I could clearly taste the flavors of this fruit. Combined with the sweet/sourness from the grapefruit and sugar...

'Nuff said.

Coming of Age

COMING OF AGE

Esmeralda has come of age. It has come time for her to face the brave new world! Don't be afraid, young child! Seize the moment and you will be successful!

This is an exact copy of my friend's earlier recipe of Esmeralda with the following exception:

• added a tea spoon of Parfait Amour after straining the cocktail
• decorated with a maraschino cherry

To add the parfait amour gave this cocktail not only a vibrant color but a sense of grown-up among its peers. The extremely red cherry as a garnish shows passion in this drink. We truly have a lady drink here.

Taste-wise, I give it a solid 4 out of 5. Martini bianco's vanilla flavors work extremely well with parfait amour's flavors as if in total harmony. Highly recommended and better yet, easy to make!

Esmeralda / Friend challenge #1

ESMERALDA

I present you with the very first cocktail introduced by a friend of mine on this blog! As a co-worker I made me a drink which he calls Esmeralda. It is made of:

• 5cl vodka
• 2cl Martini bianco (vermouth)
• grapefruit juice (I used 8cl in this one) 

Shake with plenty of ice, (double)strain into a chilled cocktail glass. As a garnish I used a cape gooseberry fruit. You could also consider either a twist of lemon if you're feeling fancy. Overall,

an excellent cocktail this is! The vermouth's sweetness combined with the grapefruit bitterness...nice. I am honored to make this cocktail! 

In addition, I will be creating a more...adult version of this cocktail later on. Brace yourselves... 

PS. Keep challenging me! I'm up for it!

Creating Pineapple Tequila part 2

THE PRODUCT

Here it is, the product in its making! It's been three days now since I bottled up my pineapple tequila! Next weekend (at least when I have a day off) I'll strain the tequila into a sterilized glass bottle and use the pineapples in a dessert with bourbon vanilla ice cream. I might even heat up the fruit just to show I care.

I'll report more when the "product" is bottled and ready to serve!

Creating Pineapple Tequila part 1

THE PLAN

The title might give away the fact that today I'm making my own Pineapple tequila! I got the recipe from a cocktail book I own but as for getting the ingredients it was rather iffy for a long time;

• 1 liter of silver tequila (I'm using 0.7 liters)
• 50g brown sugar
• 1 large pineapple
• 1 vanilla pod

 Sterilise a big jar by rinsing it first and then putting it in the over (about 100ᴼ celsius/~212F) for some 20 minutes. Let it cool off completely. Meanwhile, prepare the pineapple (cut into chunks and so on). 

In a jug mix the tequila with the brown sugar until it has dissolved. Pour it in the jar with the vanilla pod (which you have cut in half and scraped the vanilla seeds), add the pineapple chunks and let it agitate for about a week. Later on you can use the pineapple chunks for a warm dessert or so!

Keep in mind I need about a week before I can give you any results how I succeeded with this task. Don't worry, I'll post pictures and describe you with all of the valuable information you need as soon as possible!

Stay strong!

¡Ándele!

Jellyfish shot

JELLYFISH SHOT

Another shot at your disposal! I present you with the Jellyfish shot! I got this recipe from TipsyBartender and thought "why the heck not?" Looking kind of like the Alien Brain Hemorrhage, layered shots like these are

1. fun to make

2. beautiful

3. good in taste, in a weird way

What you need is:

• 2 cl creme de cacao
• 1 cl of amaretto
• 2 cl of baileys
• a few drops of grenadine

Add about half a shot glass with the creme de cacao. The gently pour the amaretto on top of it to create a layer. After that make another layer of baileys on top of those. Create the jellyfish by adding a few drops of grenadine on the shot. The amount I used was roughly a tea spoon.

Taste-wise...well kind of a mish-mash. Baileys was very dominant as well as the end grenadine. But want to impress your friends (again) with layered shot? Totally worth it.

Fallen Angel

FALLEN ANGEL

Every now and then there comes a cocktail that just doesn't cut it. The Fallen Angel is one of those cocktails. I could guess the cocktail truly lives up to its name. Okay let's go through the ingredients first:

• 1 dash of angostura bitters
• the juice of 1 lemon
• 4cl gin
• few dashes of creme de menthe

In a shaker, combine the lemon juice, gin and angostura bitters. Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Finally, add a few dashes of creme de menthe which will sink to the bottom.

For my taste, this cocktail's sourness level made me grinch with the power of over 1000 lemons. Pretty much like drinking lemon juice in general. The grande finale, lemon flavored peppermint liquor...no. Didn't work then and it will not work later either. This cocktail I wouldn't do again, so horrible it was! Esthetic-wise, looked fancy enough. But don't let the looks fool you!

Japanese Slipper

JAPANESE SLIPPER

Back in the days

A totally better picture, 2013

Greetings from the Far East! This cocktail is also one of my all time favorites. I present you with the Japanese Slipper. Invented in 1984, here we have a drink that has a strong melon-y taste powered up with flavors of lemon and triple sec.

• 1 shot of Midori
• 1 shot of lemon juice
• 1 shot of Cointreau 

Since standard measures differ depending on the country, I will not put exact measures, just remember that 1 shot of everything, let it be 25ml, 30ml or even 40ml. Moreover, if you have a smaller cocktail glass, of course it is better to use less of the ingredients. 

Just add all of the ingredients into a cocktail shaker, add plenty of ice, shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Drop a maraschino cherry to the bottom of the glass or alternatively, a slice of honeydew melon on the rim works fine as well. Go big, go Japan!