Black Velvet

BLACK VELVET

2013

Black velvet and that little boy's smile

Black velvet with that slow southern style

A new religion that'll bring her to your knees

Black velvet if you please

- Alannah Myles, Black Velvet

2016, three and a half years later

Introducing a beer cocktail, one of the few I personally know (along with the Snakebite), which proves to be a worthy drink indeed! Given, this drink's history goes back to the late 19th century, created to mourn the death of Prince Albert. Here's how to make one;

• Guinness (stout beer)
• Champagne

First pour the glass halfway with Guinness and then gently pour the Champagne (using the back of a [bar]spoon helps) along the side of the glass (or just tilt the glass enough) to create two separate layers, as shown in the picture.

For this cocktail I specifically wanted to by champagne, I had a small bottle of Baron-Fuenté Grande Reserve. To my surprise it had more sweetness to it than I had imagined. I enjoyed one of these with my good friend and given, as a layered cocktail this was very beautiful but having this mixed a little bit really gave this drink more taste.

I personally liked it. I did have some (negative) expectations how this would go down but yes, the combination did work well after all! I would say that  whether you want to have this with a good (chocolaty) dessert or just feeling fancy, trying one of these is definitely an experience you shouldn't miss.

Mah-jong

MAH-JONG

Greetings again! Tonight's cocktail has absolutely nothing to do with the Chinese game, but having one of these sure is (at least as much) fun!

Simple ingredients, only the decoration might take a little while to make:

• 4 cl gin
• 1 cl Cointreau
• 1 cl white rum
• a long orange peel

Combine the alcohols in a glass with plenty of ice and stir for about 20-30 seconds. Strain into a cocktail glass and here's the tricky part; the decoration.

Use a channel knife to cut a long strip of orange peel and swirl it into a spiral. Don't use a straw to twist the peel around it, it makes the peel look like a spring. Twisting it around itself e.g. on a cutting board gives better results; better looking.

But how did this taste? I'm not a huge fan of gin, but the cointreau gave just enough sweetness to it for me to enjoy it. The rum on the other hand, I couldn't really taste it at all.

Visually this is a very nice cocktail though! One of the most aesthetic cocktails I've made so far, no doubt about that!  

The Jägerbomb

JÄGERBOMB

Well, it's time for a Jägerdrink once again! One of the classic "drop a shot X in a glass of Y", the Jägerbomb is really one of the better ones out there. So what do you need for a perfect Jägerbomb?

• one shot of Jägermeister
• half a pint of energy drink

First fill a glass half way with energy drink as shown in the upper most left picture and ready yourself with a shot of Jägermeister. Now comes the bomb; drop the shot in the glass and drink!

A truly great party drink. You can also enjoy one these as a long drink, where you prepare a high ball glass full of ice, add the Jägermeister (I prefer ice cold) and top up with energy drink. No garnish necessary.

Prost!

Amaretto Sour

Amaretto Sour

In a perfect world, cocktails are perfect too. While I'm not a perfect cocktail mixologist, I strive to create cocktails that taste excellent, look amazing and leave a good impression to both the maker and the drinker. This is one of them...

The Amaretto Sour.

Inspired by Jeffrey Morgenthaler, I picked up the challenge and created an Amaretto Sour he perfected.

• 4.5 cl Amaretto
• 2.25 cl bourbon
• 3 cl fresh lemon juice
• 0.5 cl simple syrup
• 1.5 cl egg white (a tad less than one egg white whole, unless a small egg)

Combine everything in a cocktail shaker and dry shake first roughly for a little while. After this add plenty of ice and shake again. Double strain into a tumbler filled with ice. Decoration-wise, there are a few options proper for this cocktail; lemon/orange zest/wedge or a maraschino cherry.¨

As a big fan of Amaretto and a big fan of sours, this cocktail is almost as good as the Boston Sour, but still manages to plunge into my top cocktail list.

Caipirinha

CAIPIRINHA

Caipirinha in 2013

Caipirinha in 2016, pretty much exactly three years later

It all started in the summer, 2009, when I made this drink. Well, not per se, back then I made a Caipiroska where I substituted the Pitú needed to make this for vodka.

Almost four years after I now made the "original" version, the Caipirinha. Still as simple as ever, all you need is (love):

• 5 cl of Pitú (cachacha) (2016 version was Ypioca)
• ½ a lime, quartered + a wedge for garnish
• 2 - 2½ tea spoons of granulated cane sugar

Muddle the sugar, half a lime (which has been quartered) and the cachaca in a tumbler. Add some ice and in a churning kind-of-motion mix the ingredients. Add more ice if needed. Finally, stick a few straws and if you want to decorate your drink, a lime wedge will do the trick.

That's it! I really enjoyed the sweet-sour taste this cocktail has and the Pitú's distinctive flavor gives quite the edge to it! This is a good summer drink or better yet a small party drink, if you mind the work.

Editor's Note 2016:

This cocktail is the shit! After a proper Caipirinha a vodka-based -roska will never substitute this beauty! The perfect summer time's drink!

The Lemon Drop

The Lemon Drop

After a day break from cocktails (I was donating blood today so I can't have any alcohol the previous day) I  continue my work of cocktails with a drink that (supposedly) is rather (in)famous in the States. At least this is the picture I had when I first read about it. The recipe I used now could probably be tweaked into perfection; I found this cocktail to be mediocre...It...just didn't cut my top cocktail's list.

• 5 cl (Citron) flavored vodka
• 2 cl lemon juice
• 1 tea spoon granulated sugar

Combine these ingredients in a shaker, add ice and shake this cocktail longer than usually (because of the sugar that needs to be dissolved). (double)strain into a chilled cocktail glass and decorate with a lemon twist.

As said earlier, I can't really tell what's the "big deal" (if any) about this cocktail. Apparently this is supposed to taste like lemon drop candies, but...this wasn't really that good of a drink overall.

Classic Champange Cocktail

Classic Champagne Cocktail

It is time for a Monday after-work cocktail! The Classic Champagne Cocktail (CCC...okay I made that one up).

I admit I especially bought two champagne flutes in order to create this cocktail. Although I'm bigger fan of those "old fashioned champagne saucers", these kind of flutes are good for champagne cocktail making (and others too, as far as I know). Moreover, a tall flute is better at keeping the bubbles in the drink whereas the saucer's wideness releases those bubbles quicker.

But what is a classic champagne cocktail then? How does it differ from a "regular" champagne cocktail? One thing, for that matter. The cognac. A champagne cocktail consists of angostura bitters, one sugar cube and champagne (sparkling wine), a classic is made as follows:

• 30 ml cognac
• 1 sugar cube
• angostura bitters
• champagne to top off (or sparking wine like I did, preferrably brut [dry])
• a lemon twist for garnish

First pour in the cognac in the flute. Then add your champagne but leave some space for the sugar cube (it will make the cocktail foam a bit). Now here have some options how to soak our sugar cube in angostura. Some like to use a napkin and put the cube on it, add the angostura, wait a while and then drop it in the cocktail but you can also use this:

Hold the cube tightly on top of the angostura bottle and turn it once or twice to fully soak it. Remember to have a large enough cube to cover the whole bottle! (mine spilled a little bit). Then take the cube and drop it in the drink. The cocktail will foam but as you can see from the picture it looks very beautiful! Use a long lemon twist to garnish your master piece (cut the zest near the glass so the essential oils will spray to your drink) and there you have it, the 

Classic Champagne Cocktail. For any special occasion.

I liked this cocktail very much. The cognac rounded the sparking wine's taste perfectly + I especially liked how the dissolving sugar cube made the cocktail sweeter to the end!

The Passionate Benedict

THE PASSIONATE BENEDICT

Hello again! Here is a cocktail requested by my wife I personally ended up liking a lot. I call it the Passionate Benedict. I had to make her something new and on the sweeter side. Thanks to my good friend, who brought me a bottle of Passoã, I realized now was my chance. This version seen in the picture was my first try and with a small tweak here are the ingredients:

• 4 cl Passoa
• 1 cl D.O.M Benedictine herbal liquor
• 1 cl peach schnapps
• 6 cl orange/mango/passion juice
• lime wedge for garnish

The first time I had the ingredient amounts as follows: 4/2/2/8 but it ended up being a bit too much for the glass.

Simply fantastic. Even with only 1 cl of D.O.M, the herbal notes are still clearly tastable. The peach schnapps and Passoã give a nice exotic taste and the orange juice (in the picture it was a mix of orange/mango juice) lengthens the cocktail well. Not to mention how beautiful this cocktail is!

Although I say this from a cocktail I created on the spur of the moment, this was an excellent cocktail indeed!

Benton's Old Fashioned

BENTON'S OLD FASHIONED

(Molecular Mixology!)

This cocktail has been inspired by Jamie Boudreau and the PDT Cocktail Book (2011). What I did:

I fried a lot of bacon on the pan, collected the fat from it (picture 1) (I had to use clarified butter, I explain this later) and mixed it with a cup of Jim Beam bourbon. I let it sit in room temperature for an hour while mixing the concoction a few times (picture 2). After this I put the jar in the freezer for an hour freezing the fat part solid (picture 3). I removed the fat and used coffee filters to strain the now bacon fat - infused bourbon into a clean, sterile bottle (picture 4 and 5)

This bourbon I then used to make a Benton's Old Fashioned!

• 5 cl fat-infused bourbon
• 1 cl maple syrup
• dash angostura bitters
• orange zest/twist for garnish

Stir the ingredients well in the mixing glass. Strain into a tumbler filled with ice and garnish with a (flamed) orange zest.

I really liked this cocktail! I'm a big fan of Old Fashioneds and this cocktail really convinced me. I could clearly taste the bacon from the bourbon and the maple syrup's sweetness combined with the essential oils from the orange...nice.

Summa summarum, I had fun making a rather different kind of cocktail. If I ever were to do this again, I would use different kind of bacon and most likely an oven instead of a frying pan.

Manhattan

MANHATTAN

Another classic cocktail originating from the 19th century! The Manhattan! Similar to the Rob Roy, a Manhattan is a mix of whiskey, sweet vermouth and bitters. I used Jim Beam bourbon in this one.

• 5 cl bourbon (Jim Beam)
• 2 cl sweet vermouth
• dash angostura bitters
• a cocktail cherry for garnish

In a glass, stir all of the ingredients with plenty of ice. Strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with a cocktail cherry. 

A perfect mix. I really enjoyed this cocktail. The vermouth really compliments the bourbon! I personally think the Manhattan is a wonderful pre-dinner cocktail. In addition, like its Scottish cousin the Rob Roy, this cocktail can easily modified with dry vermouth or using both dry and sweet vermouth making it a Perfect Manhattan.

Aviation

AVIATION

Yet another classic cocktail in front of your eyes! I've actually made one of these earlier, like a long time ago but alas, never took a picture of it. But here it is, the Aviation:

5 cl gin

1.5 cl maraschino liquor

1.5 cl lemon juice

~1 cl crème de violette, but I used Parfait amour instead, does the trick too. (+ crème de violette is very hard to come by these days)

1 cocktail cherry for decoration

Except for the cherry, add all of the ingredients in a cocktail shaker, add ice and shake vigorously. Double strain into a well chilled cocktail glass and drop the cherry in the middle of the glass! Done!

What I did in addition to this, I added a dash of parfait amour afterwards in the middle of this cocktail to create that pink hue color. As you can see, this cocktail is really beautiful in its essence.

Taste-wise, amazing! I could easily distinct all of the different flavors and at the same time this cocktail was sweet, sour and bitter. How can you go wrong with this? You can't!

No wonder this cocktail made it to the classics. Aviation, I salute you!

Tropical Captain

TROPICAL CAPTAIN

Hello once again! So I did a little cocktail experimenting of my own the other day (yesterday), inspired by the hotel bar I visited a few times during my honeymoon. Since the hotel was located next to the marina, I did a little brainstorming and came up with an idea I really wanted to try. I call it the Tropical Captain.

Since I only had the ingredients in mind, I actually did this cocktail twice, as shown below.

The left is the first version, the right the final version

With the first one I used the following ingredients and measures:

• 4 cl white rum
• 4 cl mango puré (was about three to four small tea spoons)
• 2 cl mango liquor
• lemon juice from two wedges
• lemonade
• a dash of midori (melon liquor)

Combined the four first ingredients in a cocktail shaker, shook them with ice, strained in a highball glass and topped off with lemonade. Added the dash of midori on top.

These measures were clearly too much. At the time I strained the mixture in the highball glass, it was almost full. I could only add so little lemonade to top it. Taste-wise it was very good, the combination of mango/lemon/rum worked fine. The midori I could barely taste.

After my first version I started tweaking the amounts of liquor I would use. So I came up with my next (and final) version, which ended up working like a charm:

• 2 cl white rum
• 2 cl mango puré (1½ tea spoons)
• 2 cl mango liquor
• lemon juice from one wedge
• lemonade

This time I left the midori out and roughly cut everything else in half. After straining this I still have enough space to top it with lemonade. Also, now the cocktail had a more fizzy feel to it, which was nice.

All in all, my experiment was a success. Not that the flavor combination is somewhat specially unique, but I sure had fun creating this cocktail! (+ it tasted excellent!)

Obsession

OBSESSION

Continuing with the Amarula theme, on the same evening I created another Amarula - based cocktail. This was very good but does not match with the  White Nile Martini I created before. But here goes:

• 25 ml Amarula
• 25 ml Disaronno
• 25 ml Creme dé cacao (white)
• 25 ml milk

I dipped the rim of the glass in water and then with powdered cocoa and put it in the fridge while preparing the drink. Add everything in the shaker, fill it with ice and shake it brotha!

(double) strain in a cocktail glass and add grated chocolate on top. Serve.

This cocktail was good, as mentioned before. The almondy-chocolate taste wasn't too strong thanks to the milk plus the amarula gave this cocktail a nice fruity touch. 

White Nile Martini

WHITE NILE MARTINI

Greetings again, dear friends! It has been over a month since my last update but do excuse me for this. I was in South Africa from mid-December to New Year's 2013, seeing much and experiencing more. Many of the people I talked to said I should definitely get a bottle of Amarula when I leave. And so I did. Better yet, Amarula has proven its worthiness in almost every aspect.

I said "almost" because from what I've learned, 90% of the cocktails associated with Amarula have something to do with either fresh cream or vanilla ice cream. Fair enough, this stuff tastes great with them, but it also makes it vulnerable for not being as versatile as other liquors. To really put Amarula to the test, I've made two cocktails, this one being the first. I present you with the White Nile Martini.

• 50 ml Amarula
• 25 ml Cointreau
• 25 ml Creme dé cacao (white)

For a smaller cocktail, just cut the measures in half.

I started by coating the rim of the cocktail glass first with water, then with powdered cocoa and putting it in the fridge to cool. Add the ingredients in a cocktail shaker, add plenty of ice and shake shake shake! Strain into a cocktail glass. You can leave the cocktail without decoration, use grated chocolate or like in this version use a wafer.

Wow. Just wow. This really hit the spot! This drink had a great orange-chocolaty taste and reminded me of a chocolate we have in Finland! An excellent cocktail and a superb taste!

I tip my hat to you, Amarula.

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.