Italian Sunset

ITALIAN SUNSET

Hey everyone! If Tequila Sunrises are getting boring (like 15 years ago :D), here's a fun little twist on it. I introduce you to the Italian Sunset. Based on the Italian almond liqueur (DiSaronno), this cocktail is to the sweeter side. Let's take a look:

• 6 cl amaretto
• pulp-free quality orange juice
• club soda
• grenadine
• (garnish)

I actually made two versions of it, in one using OJ that had pulp in it just to see why it was originally mentioned that specifically pulp-free should be used. Fair enough, the result looks better, with no chips of fruit sticking on the side of the glass after you've drunk some of it.

Anyhow, using a bit larger glass than normally, fill it with crushed ice. Add in the amaretto, carefully pour in the OJ and then top it with slub soda. Drizzle some grenadine to create the sunset effect, add a straw but don't stir it! Garnish if you please (I used a twist) and enjoy.

Since the amaretto lays at the bottom, it is sweet. Using the straw and going the up-down motion will help enjoy this cocktail way more better, getting all layers of flavors (since the cocktail should layer in three separate...layers :D)

Zombie

ZOMBIE

Here's where's the rums gone!

Do you have many different styles of rums in your cabinet waiting to be used? Well say no more, here's a cocktail you can well spend those rums of yours! I introduce you with the Zombie cocktail. Probably one of the most famous tiki styled drink (among with the Mai Tai), the Zombie is just a bunch of rums mixed with fruit juices and made delicious as fudge!

So first things first. This is a modified recipe made by my friend and truth to be told, there are numerous different recipes out there. We didn't find it appealing to even try with the original but instead wanted to make a version easily made at home! So use rums you have at home, twist it as you please and hopefully you will find the one that suits you the best!

• 5 X 2 cl different styles of rums
• fruits (orange, lime, citrus)
• 1-2 ds bitters
• 1-2 ds grenadine

Muddle the fruit, add the rum and rest, shake with ice and single strain into a bigger glass roughly ~70% filled with crushed ice. Garnish with fruits and add a straw. Enjoy.

Results? Rum-based, fruity, strong. I would recommend mixing spiced rums with aged rums and just fly with it. Worth the try? Definitely.

Vanilla Daisy

VANILLA DAISY

Heeeyoo! Roughly a week back I made a bourbon based cocktail called Vanilla Daisy. The recipe was found from the "Classic Cocktail Bible" I own. In all fairness, when looking at the ingredients list, I can't help but think it's a twist to a "Whisky Sour". Nonetheless, it's a twist well worth making! Or is it...? Let's give it a look.

• 5 cl bourbon
• 2.5 cl lemon juice
• 2.5 cl vanilla syrup
• 1 tsp grenadine
• 2-3 maraschino cherries as garnish

Shake the first three ingredients with ice, strain into a tumbler, "drizzle" the grenadine over the drink and finally garnish the cocktail with the maraschino cherries. 

How was the drink then? My initial fear was that it would turn out waaaay to sweet (coffee flavoring syrups tend to be overly sweet in themselves), but luckily the lemon juice cut the sugariness just enough. As I used Buffalo Trace bourbon for this, overall the drink was decent-ok but didn't quite manage to stand out at any point. I would even go as far and claim that the choice of bourbon makes this drink in the end. With a good mouthfeel to it (double strain for the win!), I rate this cocktail 3½+ out of five (the + for visual).

Reader's Challenge: Sangreal Cocktail

THE SANGREAL COCKTAIL

A wannabe Sangria drink!

Let's keep up posting like there's no tomorrow! I recently received a Reader's Challenge (!!!) I was asked to make a Sangreal Cocktail and quote:

Have you ever tried the Sangreal cocktail? I first tested it at a cocktail bar three years ago and attempted it on my own. Here's how I did it: "Pour 4 cl Licor 43 in a highball glass, add two chunks of grapefruit and two chunks of lemon. Muddle most juice from out the chunks. Add two-three ice cubes and the red grenadine. Pour roughly half of the Ginger Ale and stir from the bottom so that the chunks won't stick there. Add still one or two ice cubes and fill up with Ginger Ale." This drink is a long one, somewhat mild, nicely reddish and exceptionally refreshing on hot summer evenings. Sang Real, or sangreal, comes from both French and Spanish and means the words Holy and Grail or Holy Royal. Thus, the name relates to something very old. Additionally the name relates to its colour, which should be close to what is known as "veriappelsiinivehnäolut" in Finnish. And as I first got the hint for this cocktail fr om a Swedish person, this challenge includes four nationalities :-)

I had no Licor 43 at home so I bought a sample bottle of it, also got pretty much everything else from the store except for the grenadine, which I already had.

I read the challenge a few times to get the jist. I realized I would need a large enough glass to make it and as I soon found out how large the grapefruit chunks were, I'm glad I picked up the bigger highball glass in the first place:

• 4 cl Licor 43
• two chunks grapefruit
• two chunks lemon
• 2 bs grenadine (I figured 2 bs would suffice)
• ginger ale, to top

Everything worked out fine until I added the grenadine. A few times now I've witnessed bad quality syrups and as you can see from the picture, the grenadine didn't give as much deep color as I was hoping for. Also, the camera didn't really give justice to the drink; with added orange slices (for the heck of it) it was a nice looking drink overall; its taste was just too sweet for me. I blame the grenadine; one didn't give enough color and two went overboard especially since Licor 43 itself is a sweet liqueur as well!

Let's be honest here (as if I weren't normally :D). This cocktail wasn't a top-tier one. But what really warmed my heart was indeed how I got to make this cocktail, by a random dude's challenge on my blog! Cheers to that!

Clover Club Cocktail

CLOVER CLUB COCKTAIL

A wonderful evening to each and every one!

Tonight I present you with a classic cocktail; The Clover Club Cocktail. Fair enough, I made the most common variation of this, explained later. Moreover, here's a perfect example how egg whites work in cocktails and what an outstanding looks they give to the final product! Let's take a look, shall we?

• 4.5 cl gin
• 1.5 cl lemon juice
• 1.5 cl raspberry syrup or grenadine
• 1 egg white

The original recipe calls for raspberry syrup. The most used variation of this (how I made it, too) substitutes the syrup with grenadine. I won't get a bottle (if I even find one) for this one particular drink. But anyhow, combine everything in a shaker and dry shake first. The egg white emulsifies the drink. Then add the ice, shake again and double strain into your chilled cocktail glass. Raspberry garnish optional (should you have any at your disposal).

I even wrote down notes regarding this cocktail, since my wife was watching a TV-series from the laptop.

First things first. Beautiful color and texture! Velvety smooth and the layers stay in the drink for a long, long time. Even the mouth-feel was exquisite! Taste-wise, the gin was definitely present, albeit "smooth". The Club Clover isn't too bitter and has a definite after-sweetness to it.

I give this cocktail a 4½/ 5 for the outlooks (seriously this is one good looking cocktail) and a 3/5 for taste. Given, using the "proper" ingredient (raspberry syrup) would probably make a big difference.

*EDIT*

using raspberry syrup now

So I made the same drink...almost two years later, now using proper raspberry syrup instead of grenadine. The drink is otherwise exactly the same. My thoughts? Was better, definitely. Some recipes call for some dry French vermouth for that little oompf and "yay I'm an adult" :D, I can't see anything wrong with that. That said, this drink is easily modified and in my sincerest opinion making a twist to this IBA cocktail does not hurt at all!

Pink Polar Bear

PINK POLAR BEAR

(to see how the drink looks like under "different" lighting)

Well met again. It's...3am and I'm posting a blog regarding a new cocktail! Given, I made this a few days ago (sober :D), recommended by a member of a gaming community I am currently in. It is called the Pink Polar Bear. As I see it (having tasted it as well), it's a semi-variant of the (in)famous Finnish White Russian:

• 5 cl vodka
• 2.5 cl Tia Maria (coffee liqueur, I used Kahluá)
• 2.5 cl grenadina
• milk

In a high ball glass, fill it with ice, pour in the alcohols, grenadine and top it off with milk! One site even said quote "Tastes like chocolate milkshake looks like strawberry milkshake very nice!" but let's be honest, it didn't quite. In their defence, Tia Maria probably gives a more intense chocolately taste to the cocktail where as the Kahluá is more espresso/coffee bean - flavored. It does look like strawberry milkshake I give you that. I give it 2½ visual points but only 2 taste points. Should I ever have Tia Maria, I would try this again and see if (when) it's different. At the moment I'd rather just make regular White Russians and be satisfied with them.

Brain Hemorrhage

BRAIN HEMORRHAGE

Well met once again! It's been quite the pause since my last update (okay, two weeks) so I thought "now it's time to make a cocktail again!" 

Fair enough, this is more of a shooter and if you look closely, you might note the similarities with a shooter I made back in the days (or this)! Instead of going all "alien", I present the Brain Hemorrhage. (the US Halloween is knocking at our doors so I found this fit for any Halloween party whatsoever)

It's very simple to make. All you need is (love):

• ½ shot peach schnapps
• ½ shot Irish cream (or any cream liqueur)
• ~a tsp of grenadine

First pour in the peach schnapps, then carefully layer the Irish cream on top and finally with a tea spoon drop the grenadine the in the middle. The effect should look somewhat as in the picture above.

Taste-wise semi-good. During the middle part, where the Irish cream has "curdled" a bit has a rather yucky feel in the mouth but that's a diminutive detail.

Happy capitalistic Halloween everyone!

San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO

♫ For those who come to San Francisco

Summer will be a love-in there ♪

- Scott McKenzie, San Francisco,  1967

Summertime is here meaning only one thing. Summery, colorful and fruity cocktails! A true classic from a few decades past here is the San Francisco. Easily made and enjoyed with sheer happiness!

• 2 cl vodka
• 2 cl cremé de bananes
• orange juice
• 1 cl grenadine

In a high ball glass, build up the ingredients in the given order and finally pour the grenadine (slowly) on the drink creating given effect. Garnish with e.g. a strawberry, orange slice/wedge, lemon, cherry or any combination of those mentioned. Pop a straw in that drink and avot!

Looks pretty much like the Tequila Sunrise but tastes completely different. A solid good fruity combo this is! Easily picked up the banana flavors. I must admit though, I used orange-mango juice but that didn't slow me down! Tasted still excellent.

El Presidente

EL PRESIDENTE

Today we're going presidential style! Straight from Cuba, I introduce you the El Presidente! I realized a while back that "hey, I actually have the ingredients to make this!" so I gave it a try. But unlike the "original" recipe, I slightly modified it making it an excellent cocktail:

• 4.5 cl white rum (I used aged rum)
• 1.5 cl triple sec
• 2 cl dry vermouth
• dash of grenadine
• orange/lemon twist for decoration

Stir the ingredients in a mixing glass with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Decorate and serve.

Two points. One, a beautiful amber-ish color in this one. Really impressive. Secondly, the taste. Since I didn't use white rum (even aged one) but instead I used a rum a good bro brought me, Aniversario Pampero, an aged dark rum. This combined with the others gave this cocktail its much deserved complexity. Its first taste has a tad of super sweetness but quickly evolves into spices and a pleasant orangy zang. The rum compliments the overall taste. The cocktail finishes slightly bitter strong. 

In its essence, the Presidente does not fail me. It's a complex cocktail. It's a good cocktail.

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...

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!

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.

Squashed Frog

SQUASHED FROG

Another easily made and good tasting shot, this drink makes a good party starter! 

What you need:

• 1.5cl Grenadine
• 1.5cl Midori
• 1.5cl Advocaat (an egg based liqueur, but any cream liqueur would do the trick)

In the given order, layer all of the ingredients into a shot glass, let it settle and go! If you want to make a "hemorrhage" version, add the Midori and Advocaat first, then add the grenadine which will sink to the bottom to create the effect given just like in the Alien Brain Hemorrhage drink.

Tequila Sunrise

TEQUILA SUNRISE

Here is one of my all time favorite cocktails (made at home), the Tequila Sunrise! Easy to make yet and tastes amazing!

• 4cl silver tequila
• 12cl orange juice
• lemon juice from a wedge
• a few dashes of grenadine

Of course, prefer only the highest quality orange juice wherever possible. This way you get the best result. So here it is done. In a cocktail shaker pour in the tequila, orange juice and squeeze in the lemon juice from the wedge. Shake vigorously with plenty of ice and strain in a high ball glass filled with (crushed) ice. Then gently pour a few dashes of grenadine to create the sunrise-y effect as shown in the picture. You can garnish with a slice of lemon if you like. Add a straw and enjoy.

I don't usually order these at bars since they can't make them right (mainly because the orange juice I've seen at bars are not of great quality read the cheapest stock kind).

 A magnificent drink at any occasion...okay, during summer.

Alien Brain Hemorrhage

ALIEN BRAIN HEMORRHAGE

This is the alien brain hemorrhage. I bumped into this shot from a couple of web sites and decided to give it a go. The shot itself has easy-to-get ingredients and doesn't take too much effort to make either.

What you need is 

• ½ a shot of peach schnapps
• ⅓ a shot of cream liquor (Baileys)
• a small amount of blue curaçao liqueur
• small amount of grenadine  

First fill the shot glass with the peach schnapps. Then carefully pour the cream liquor on top using a small (bar) spoon. After the two ingredients have settled, add a small amount (I used a tea spoon amount) of curaçao in the middle of the drink. Finally, add the grenadine (approximately the same amount as with the curaçao). The grenadine will sink to the bottom and create this very nice effect.

As for the taste, this is something everyone should try at least once. The grenadine dominates the taste quite a lot for being so sweet but I really enjoyed it.

Singapore Sling

THE SINGAPORE SLING 

This is the Singapore Sling. One of the "legendary" cocktails, which according to history books, was invented  at the Long Bar in Raffles Hotel in Singapore around 1915.

Personally, I had many expectations regarding this drink. Not only did this cocktail have many ingredients to work with but just figuring out how it would taste like...was totally worth it.

Ingredients as follows:

• 40ml (8 parts) Gin
• 20ml (4 parts) Heering Cherry Liqueur (cherry brandy)
• 5ml (1 part) Cointreau
• 5ml (1 part) DOM Bénédictine
• 10ml (2 parts) Grenadine
• 80ml (16 parts) Pineapple juice
• 30ml (6 parts) Fresh lemon juice
• 1 dash Angostura bitters

I slipped a few times. I used De Kuyper Cherry Liquer instead of Heering's. Also, I didn't have a hurricane glass at my disposal (I don't feel I need them for a long time; there are only a few drinks that employ it, otherwise they're just more (useless) glassware at home) so I used one of my bigger high ball glasses and I must admit it fit just perfectly. Thirdly, I didn't want to buy a whole pineapple so I decorated the drink with a good slice of lemon and of course the maraschino cherry.

Tastewise, it was amazing. Extremely fruity, a bit cherry candy-ish; I could hardly taste the alcohol in this one. Would I make this one again? Totally. Would I order this at a bar? No. Mainly because the price would be so horribly expensive in places they know how to actually make one of these.