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...