Broken Spring

A spring drink! Made on an unexpectedly nice spring afternoon! I'm being appropriately seasonal, for once.

2 oz cucumber vodka (homemade)
3/4 oz gin & tonic syrup
4 lime wedges
1 dash maraschino liqueur (Luxardo)

Squeeze the lime wedges into a shaker tin and drop in (which should produce about 3/4 oz of juice, but you want the oils from the peel as well). Shake like mad and double-strain over fresh ice in an old-fashioned glass. Garnish with a large mint leaf (or a smallish bunch) slapped to express the oils.

Hey, I said it was appropriately seasonal, not that it was easy. I'll break another one of my habits by calling the garnish non-optional on this one; it really does transform and lighten the drink.

Mocktail Month: Short Shrift

Well, we're off to a slow start with Mocktail Month. Like my stretches of hiatus, there has been plenty of effort but nothing I quite dig enough to share.

This, however, I cranked out because after wrestling with some cod in a very not-nonstick pan, I really wanted a concentrated, potent drink. However, I also didn't want to provide my wife with any ammunition (and, you know, let's at least pretend that I have some god-damn willpower) so we had a concentrated, potent mocktail instead.

2 oz cryo-cucumber juice
3/4 oz blackberry shrub
1/2 oz gin & tonic syrup
2 dashes Bitter Truth Celery Bitters
2 dashes Bitter Truth Tonic Bitters

Shake like a madman and strain over fresh ice in a short glass. Top with a (short) splash of soda and stir.

This one would have worked very well with a bit of ginger beer instead of soda, maybe with a little extra acid for balance. But it was pretty damn satisfying as-is.

Fairweather Friend

Random days off taken on a whim are pretty much the best kind. Perhaps the only thing better, as I discovered today, is knuckling down and plowing through the to-do list that you expected to take pretty much all day. Suddenly you've a free couple of hours, the sun's come out, and you have nothing better to do than hang out on the porch with a book and the very first proper drink you've had for four full days. God damn - can things get any better? I doubt it.

Given the circumstance, I figured I'd better ease back into things a bit. I've been building up some ideas, though, so rest assured - you'll probably see a couple pop up here later tonight.

1 3/4 oz cucumber vodka (homemade, preferably, but you could cheat and buy one)
3/4 oz gin & tonic syrup (this was a slightly tweaked and simplified version)
3 dashes Bitter Truth Tonic Bitters

Build over large ice cubes in a large collins glass and fill with soda. Stir gently to combine and garnish with a cucumber wheel if you've got one.

Ice Blue

Winter is normally a time for brown spirits, rich spices, and warm drinks. But sometimes I paradoxically find that I need a tall, cool, refreshing beverage right when it's coldest. It's like I have to fool my body into thinking that it's high summer based on my cocktail choice, nevermind the thick sweater and blankets everywhere.

Then again, maybe I'm weird (hah - maybe?!?) or perhaps I just wanted an excuse to test-drive this blueberry syrup. In any case, we'll revisit this one in six months or so.

1 1/2 oz gin (Tanqueray, naturally)
1/2 oz blueberry syrup*
1/2 oz cryo-cucumber juice
1/2 oz lime juice (lemon would easily do)

Combine over ice in a tall glass; top with 3-4 oz soda water to taste. Garnish with a couple of fresh blueberries, as though you can get fresh god-damned blueberries in the middle of fucking winter; maybe in a few months' time. Keep drinking until then.

* You could juice your own blueberries, although it'd be a mess; instead we found a pure blueberry juice (from concentrate, but at least it's all blueberry) on sale down at our local "hippie grocery place", as my sister dubbed it recently after a couple cocktails. I added 12 ounces of this stuff to a saucepan, added 8 ounces of natural sugar, brought the whole thing to a simmer, and reduced it back down to 12 ounces. I then added 1/2 teaspoon citric acid and about ten drops of rose water, just to get some of that perfume-y essence back. You can probably tell by the fact I'm recording it that the result was pretty fucking tasty. I expect to use it in more appropriate winter cocktails very soon.

Taproot

Bourbon review is still coming, I promise. In the meantime, here's a drink born from sheer,  intense laziness. I'm almost embarrassed to be posting this, as it's one of the simplest drinks I've ever assembled.

3 oz Averna
3 oz carbonated cucumber water

Combine over ice.

Yeah, that's seriously it. Totally worth trying, though. Tastes like an absurdly good root beer, according to my wife.

Mocktail Week #6: Magic Mix

Here's something of a bonus - a bit shy of an actual drink, but a sufficiently impressive discovery to merit posting.  Think of it as a sort of super-mixer; drink straight if you like, or just add booze for an awesome highball.

Another advantage is that this is completely scalable - make as much or as little as you like.

4 parts carbonated cucumber water
4 parts Q Tonic water
4 parts passionfruit juice
1 part lime juice

Combine and serve immediately, or bottle in a sealed container and store in the fridge.

Mocktail Week #3: Pineapple Fauxito

After my early break yesterday, I figured I'd probably be able to turn out another success, but nothing much stood above the rest.  Today was a much luckier day!  I didn't do much experimentation at all, really (for one thing, I'm running out of citrus) but I did manage to turn out multiple winners.  All of which is to say: you get two today.

Full disclosure, this one is fairly similar to a non-alcoholic beverage that was featured for years on my old restaurant's menu - similar mix of flavors, distinctly different construction.

1 1/2 oz pineapple-lime syrup
1/2 oz lime juice
8-10 mint leaves
3-4 dashes Bitter Truth celery bitters

Muddle the mint in the syrup, add the juice and bitters, then shake and strain over large ice cubes in a large tumbler.  Top with about 1 oz ginger beer (deviating from my usual Reed's here - I found instead a much spicier version called Regatta) and about 3 oz carbonated cucumber water, then stir gently to combine and top with a sprig of mint or a lime wheel.

Overall a very tropical feel - somewhere between a Mojito and a Mai Tai with none of the booze.  I'd go so far as to say that this exceeds the original (though to be fair, it could use a better name).

Mocktail Week #2: Wondermelon

This is only my first attempt for the evening, but I tried it and went full stop - this is fantastic, it's getting posted.  It's a little more complicated than some of my attempts from last night, but it works marvelously together - a little sweet, a little sour, a bit bitter, expressive of watermelon and summer, and very refreshing.

1 1/2 oz cryo-watermelon juice (a great way to use up all your leftover watermelon)
1 oz strawberry-saffron syrup (the saffron adds a certain deep, herbal quality that is entirely worth the expense, believe me)
1/2 oz lime juice
3 dashes rhubarb bitters

Shake well and strain over large cubes in a Collins-style glass.  Top with about 2 oz each tonic (Q Tonic for me) and carbonated cucumber water (don't use regular soda, the cucumber really brings out the watermelon flavor).

I'm gonna go have another.

Mocktail Week #1: Clover Field

As it turns out, I can't drink old-fashioned cocktails forever - or, indeed, cocktails forever.  I think yesterday's Briny Deep put me over the edge.  My poor, overloaded liver needs a (brief) break, and so this week I'm beefing up my repertoire of non-alcoholic beverages and sharing the best of the evening here.

Even though in terms of ingredients this one doesn't share much with the Clover Club, but its pretty color and foamy cap reminded me so much of one that I wanted to capture that in the name.  Oddly enough, it achieves this without any egg white at all; it turns out that cryo-cucumber juice retains an exceptional foaming power.

2 oz cryo-cucumber juice
1 oz rhubarb syrup (accented with lemon peel and peppercorn; raspberry syrup would work too)
3/4 oz fresh lemon juice
5 dashes celery bitters (Bitter Truth's version is the best I've found)
4-5 drops white balsamic vinegar

Shake and strain over large cubes in a Collins-style glass; top with 4-5 oz soda water, stir gently, and garnish with a small bunch of mint, slapped between your palms to express the oil.

That's a damn good way to start this mini-series!

Cool Cucumber

Here's a random, tasty, and simple highball.  You're welcome.

2 oz pisco (Capel)
2 oz cryo-cucumber juice
1/2 oz cilontrastic syrup (yum)
1/2 oz lime juice (fresh, duh)

Shake with plentiful ice, then pour unstrained into a pint glass.  Top with 3-4 oz soda water to taste.  Top with a dash of your favorite bitters (I used a homemade spiced-apple bitters).

I love spring!

Gin & Juice, Fancy Style

Are you familiar with the Minnesota State Fair?  I went along today at the family's behest, and it was only a flask of Few Standard Issue Gin that kept me alive through the experience.  Turns out that it serves as a wonderful spike for all manner of mixers.  Here is a drink that I made afterward to carry forward the trend.

1 1/2 oz navy strength gin (most brands should work in this)

1/2 oz pomegranate-blueberry syrup

1/2 oz lemon juice

Shake and strain over fresh ice.  Top with 2-3 oz carbonated cucumber water to taste.  Stir and spritz a quick blast of absinthe over the top using an atomizer.

Notebook Cocktail #6

This one actually comes with a proper name ("The Greenway Sour") but it's in the same notepad as the others, so it counts as a Notebook Cocktail.  It may be one of my favorites.

1 oz white rum (Plantation 3 Star, duh)
1 oz London Dry gin (Beefeater in this case, but my love of Boodles is well known)
3/4 oz rhubarb syrup (a slightly spiced version with nutmeg and lemon peel)
3/4 oz lime juice

Shake briefly and strain over ice, then top with about 1 1/2 oz charged cucumber water (an excellent mixer and a fine use for those left-over cucumber solids).

Notebook Cocktail #5

This one should look like a recombination of some of the ingredients from the last few Notebook Cocktails, mostly because it's exactly that.

2 oz white rum (Plantation 3 Star again)
1 1/4 oz cryo-cucumber juice (for which see N.C. #4)
3/4 oz mango shrub (nearly identical to the cranberry version from N.C. #1)
1 large dash Bittercube Bolivar bitters*

Stir well over ice and top with about 1 oz soda water.

*Troublesome brand specifications again, I know.  The problem in this case is that I really don't know anything that is quite like these particular bitters.  You could maybe try a dash each of Peychaud's and orange, but it won't be nearly the same thing.

Notebook Cocktail #4

This one surprised me enough to write down.  I don't usually care much for coconut water; nor apparently does my wife, who bought a small carton only to take a small sip and immediately declare her disgust.  Using the remainder immediately became my challenge of the evening.

2 oz Bak's Bison Grass vodka (other brands would presumably be fine)
3/4 oz thyme syrup (fairly rich with a small touch of honey in my version)
1 1/2 oz coconut water
1 1/2 oz "cryo-juiced" cucumber juice*
1 oz lemon juice

Stir vigorously over ice and add a quick charge of soda water.  Alternatively, combine the above in the appropriate proportions and charge the whole thing in your soda siphon.

*This stuff is amazing.  I found the recipe (or method, really) in Kevin Liu's excellent new book (the companion blog reprints occasional sections for those of you who want a representative sample) and have been making it every week since then.  It's delicious and couldn't be easier.  Just slice a cucumber or two into very thin wheels (a mandolin is nice for this) then pop them into a resealable plastic bag and chuck into the freezer.  Once frozen, pull the bag out, let the cucumbers thaw completely (I recommend a drip tray from personal experience) and then return to the freezer for a second go.  Once fully frozen and thawed again, pop the bag's top and pour off the resulting juice, squeezing the cucumbers through the bag to extract every drop you can.  One reasonably sized cucumber seems to yield about 4-5 oz of bright green juice.  Don't toss the drained wheels, either - you can drop them back into a pitcher to make cucumber water.

Hend'Rix

1 750-ml bottle dry gin

1 medium cucumber, sliced

1 medium lemon, zested

3 oz strawberry-thyme syrup (made using the standard method)

3 tbsp dried rose petals

Combine in a mason jar and store in a cool place for 7-10 days, agitating daily.  Strain through a fine sieve and keep chilled.

I created this one mostly out of a jealous dislike of Hendrick's gin, which although tasty is both over-advertised and over-priced.  It's definitely sweeter than its namesake, but it makes one hell of a gin-and-tonic...