My normal whiskey sour is something like this:

2oz Bourbon (or Rye)
1oz fresh lemon juice
.75oz simple syrup

-Shaken, double strained and served up. If I give it a taste and the particular lemon I used is intensely sour, I’ll pour the drink over fresh ice in a rocks glass.

Ahhh . . . that hit the spot. But I couldn’t leave well enough alone. I am a big fan of Averna. If you attended the 2009 Repeal Day Ball, you probably already knew that. That’s all I’ll say because I have a constitutional right not to incriminate myself.

Moving on . . . I decided to play around with the basic whiskey sour and see if I could come up with something tasty using Averna. There were several attempts that just didn’t work – too sour, too sweet, strange finish, etc. etc. I soldiered on and after the kitchen drain was drunk from my toss-aways, I hit upon a formula that hit the spot. So I give you,

Whiskaverna Sour
1.25oz 100 proof Rye
.75oz Averna
.50oz fresh lemon juice
.50oz simple syrup
2 dashes orange bitters

-Shake, double strain, serve up with a lemon twist.

And I have the share my latest toy. While visiting my mother over the holidays, we went to several antique stores. Always on the look out for cocktail gear, I found some interesting items. There were some glasses, but compared to what I can get at Good Will, they were over-priced. There were a plethora of shakers. Most novelty shakers from the 80′s but a few from the 60′s and 70′s. Eh. They just didn’t catch my attention enough to buy any. But then! While walking through one store, I found IT!

Les Voûtes
1.5oz Rye
.50oz Sweet Vermouth
.50oz Yellow Chartreuse
1 barspoon of kirschwasser
2 dashes orange bitters

-Stir with cracked ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

I loved it.  It was funny, it showcased some really cool stuff, and most of all, it seemed real – he was actually getting wasted, versus some shows where the host is holier than thou.

I ended up buying the DVDs of it and was disappointed when it went off the air.  Well, it really didn’t – MOJO HD, the channel that carried it, did.

Fortunately, it got picked up elsewhere.  Fine Living Network, in fact, which I might get, but I don’t have a DVR and really don’t watch TV any more except for sports and the occasional run of History Channel, Discovery Channel, or Military History Channel.  Or some USA marathons, but I’m more embarrassed to admit that.

Then earlier this week I got an e-mail from a nice lady named Wendy saying that the Travel Channel was going to start airing Three Sheets on April 14th at 11 PM EDT, featuring back to back episodes.  I’m more likely to be playing Borderlands or wallowing in my own self-misery to actually remember to watch at that time, but there’s a great chance that someone else might, or that I might even get off my ass, pay the $16 and activate the DVR on my machine so I can watch it and play the Three Sheets drinking game.

(Don’t know how to play it?  Here’s how:  GO DRINK.  No, wait, there are more expansive rules but I’m too lazy to write them here.  Go here and read them.  They make more sense if you’ve seen the show.)

I feel weird posting without a drink, so without bothering to figure out what it’d taste like first, I’m going to make up a Three Sheets cocktail off the top of my head.  It seems like it should be strong.  Later, maybe, I’ll think up a Zane Lamprey one.

The Three Sheets
1.5 ounces gin
3/4 ounce green Chartreuse
1/2 ounce Benedictine
1/4 ounce Fernet Branca
Stir – though I’d shake it – and strain.

Bwahahahaha!  Now the ultimatum.

ZANE LAMPREY I’M CALLING YOU OUT!  You’re coming to DC on June 4th, right?  I don’t know if you’re filming Three Sheets around then, but let me say:  You need to come to the capital of the United States for Three Sheets and you need me, SeanMike, to take you around.  (And yes, Marshall to help.)  I am confident in my liver to stand up to you.

OR ARE YOU TOO CHICKEN?

We shall see!

EDIT 04/21/2010: it’s on tonight, too! Woo to the hoo. Tune in if you can. And Zane, I’m still waiting!

This weekend, DC got another blanket of snow.  They say we’re supposed to get 4-6 inches, but we’ll just have to see what the total is tomorrow morning.  As I sit on my couch and watch the wind swirl the snow about and the slow growing pile of the white stuff growing on the balcony, the urge to have a warm beverage strikes.

Now, I know I missed this past Mixology Monday which was hosted by Fred and Andrea of Cocktail Virgin Slut.  Their chosen theme was tea and that sounded like the perfect way to begin my warm beverage.

I didn’t do any research before throwing this recipe together, so it is quite possible it’s already been done.  Whatever, it’s warm, tasty, sweet, and funky.  And it contains one of my favorite teas and one of my favorite spirits.

Celestial Warmer
5oz Mandarin Orange Spiced Herbal Tea
1oz Yellow Chartreuse
.5oz Batavia Arrack
2 tsp wildflower honey
Garnish with orange peel.

And wow, this hit the spot!  The orange and spice from the tea mixes with the yellow chartreuse to create layers of herbal citrus flavor bombs.  The honey adds an extra complexity of flavor and helps to heighten the flavors of the other ingredients.  Finally, the batavia arrack provides a little backbone and a heady aroma that wafts up with the steam.

One thing I love about warm drinks such as this is the almost infinite ways you can modify it.  Afraid it’s going to be too sweet?  Leave out the honey.  Don’t have batavia arrack?  Use rum (Smith and Cross Jamaican rum would be fantastic!), brandy, or even whisky!  Think yellow chartreuse is for pu . . . wimps?  Use green!  As a matter of fact, my next drink is going to be black tea, green chartreuse, Smith & Cross, and honey.  Or maybe a little vanilla sugar.  Or a splash of Trader Tiki Vanilla Syrup!

So what’s your favorite winter warmer?

Last night in TDN was “Bad Names” and Rachel Sergi had pointed out the names of two drinks she and Ted had come up with – the Canker Sour and Tuna Colada.  Now, I ain’t even gonna THINK about a damn tuna colada because just the thought of it makes me nauseated.  But we brainstormed on the Canker Sour and came up with what ended up being a very delicious beverage.

And thanks to his help with the name, and the fact that cocktail bloggers haven’t seen this level of excitement since the last time a new bitter came out thanks to his upcoming 2nd edition of Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails (hope you’re bringing a ton of ‘em to Tales!) I thought we should make the Canker Sour the official Dr. “Ted Haigh” Cocktail.

And lookee at this:

yummy yummy yummy I've got Chartreuse in my tummy

The Canker Sour
1 1/2 ounces mezcal (Ilegal)
3/4 ounce lemon juice
1/2 ounce agave syrup
1 whole egg (minus shell, of course)
Dry shake the first four ingredients to incorporate, then add ice and shake for at least 2 minutes.  Strain into a green Chartreuse-rinsed unchilled coupe glass and top with a drizzle of green Chartreuse.

Admittedly we invented it last night – but we thought it was GOSHDARN DELICIOUS HECK YEAH.

[Nineteenth in a series of drinks named after bloggers, mixologists, and random others who'll hopefully be at Tales. The first post in the series is here.]

With that said, Mixology Monday is again upon us and the lovely ladies of LUPEC Boston are hosting.   The chosen theme this month is “First Time.”  The theme is inspired by a past experience Ms. Pink Lady had with a cocktail newbie.  She states,

“What drink do you suggest for the delicate palate of the cocktail neophyte? Something boozy and balanced, sure – but one wrong suggestion could relegate the newbie to a beer-drinker’s life. To which go-to cocktails do you turn to when faced with the challenge?”

It is a very interesting conundrum.  I have a few friends who definitely fall into the “cocktail neophyte” category.  Either they “don’t like gin” or are strictly beer or wine drinkers, and one, amazingly, “can’t drink brown spirits.”  To be honest, it is very difficult to make drinks for these folks.  It seems they have preconcieved biases towards certain spirits that is seemingly all mental.  The trick for me is making cocktails that are flavorful, complex, balanced and uses the ingredient they supposedly don’t like.  I’m completely up front with what I’m serving them, and in most instances they have enjoyed the drinks.

One of my favorite cocktails, which is also one I like to give people new to gin or new to cocktails is the Shanghai Gin.

Shanghai Gin
Gin
Yellow Chartreuse
Benedictine
Lemon Juice

Shake equal measures of the four ingredients until ice cold.  Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a lemon twist.  For a small extra kick, flame the peel.

The Shanghai Gin combines a sweet, savory, tart profile all in one little gin cocktail.   Everyone I’ve made the cocktail for has enjoyed it.

On the other hand, in order to introduce a neophyte to the wonderful world of cocktails, I think a well made highball can be just what the scofflaw ordered.  A gin and tonic, rum and coke, ginger beer and anything, all are good examples as long they are well made and balanced.  In each highball you can vary the type of spirit (london dry v. old tom; silver rum v. gold v. demerarra v. crap-there-are-a-lot-of-rum-types; etc.) or add modifiers such as a splash of lime, a flavored syrup or a muddle of herbs.  Many different variations can teach the new imbiber the importance of balance, creativity and variety.  Just the tools someone needs when walking down the path of potent potables.

Thanks again to Pink Lady and the women of LUPEC – Boston for hosting this installment of MxMo.

Cheers!