Metropolitan Cocktail

Metropolitan Cocktail

(from page 121 in Mr Boston Official Bartender's Guide)

1 1/4 Oz. Brandy (E&J XO)
1 1/4 Oz. Sweet Vermouth (Dolin)
1/2 Tsp Sugar Syrup
1 dash Bitters (Angostura)

Stir with ice and strain into cocktail glass.

The Metropolitan was an interesting drink. The vermouth was the predominant taste which, if you like vermouth, was very drinkable. It will not become my favorite cocktail, however.

East India cocktail No. 1

East India Cocktail No. 1

(page 76 of Mr Boston Official Bartender's Guide)

1 1/2 Oz. Brandy (E&J XO)
1/2 Tsp Pineapple Juice
1/2 Tsp. Triple Sec (LeRoux)
1 Tsp.  Rum (Myers's Dark)
1 dash Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass.  Add a twist of lemon peel and a cherry.

As you can see from the photo, I forgot the garnish!

The East India Cocktail No. 1 was a somewhat bland drink but drinkable. There was a "tingle" on the tongue, probably from the Bitters or rum, which made it somewhat pleasant, texturally. There are so many cocktails to choose from which are a lot tastier than this one, though, that I doubt I will repeat it.

Happy mixing!

Saronno Cocktail

Saronno Cocktail

1 oz Amaretto di Saronno

1 oz Brandy (E&J XO)

1 oz Light Cream

Shake well with cracked ice.

Stain and serve in cocktail glass

Page 154 in Mr Boston Official Bartender's Guide.

This was a dessert-type cocktail, somewhat sweet but very good. It was reminiscent of toasted almonds I used to enjoy.

I really like almonds and this drink is a great replacement for the Brandy Alexander I have on special occasions.

Try it; you'll like it!

Brandy Vermouth Cocktail

Brandy Vermouth Cocktail

1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
2 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
1 dash Bitters (Angostura)

Stir with ice and strain into cocktail glass.

The recipe is from page 50 of the "Official Bartender's Guide", 1985.

A very good, sipping cocktail, akin to a Manhattan. It was a good drink for a fairly cold day. This one is worth repeating.

Sir Walter Cocktail

Today's drink was a 'Sir Walter Cocktail'.  It was very good, reminiscent of a Rose Cocktail from a couple of days ago but with different ingredients. Definitely worth having again. The red drinks make for beautiful cocktails.

The recipe (page no. 160 in the Bartender's Guide):

3/4 oz Rum (Bacardi Gold)
3/4 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
1 teaspoon Grenadine
1 teaspoon Triple Sec (DeKuyper)
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange slice.



Salud!

Olympic Cocktail

Sunday night on the patio, and enjoying an 'Olympic Cocktail'. It was very good, tasty, with more flavor than expected from looking at the ingredients.

The recipe (page no. 131 from the Bartender's Guide):

3/4 oz Orange Juice
3/4 oz Triple Sec (DeKuyper)
3/4 oz Brandy (E&J XO)

Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass. I garnished with an orange slice.

Cheers!

Brandy Gump Cocktail

The cocktail of the day is a Brandy Gump Cocktail'. It was a very good choice and very tasty. It makes the cut for a redo cocktail!

The recipe (page no. 49 of the Bartender's Guide):

1 1/2 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
1/2 teaspoon Grenadine

Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass. I garnished with an orange slice (it was good also).

Presto Cocktail

Tonight we chose to mix a 'Presto Cocktail' (page 141 of the Bartender's Guide).  It was a very good drink, better than the one we had last night. A definite redo!

The recipe:

1 tablespoon Orange juice
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
1 1/2 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
1/4 teaspoon Absinthe Substitute (Pernod)


Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass. I garnished with an orange slice.

Japanese Cocktail

I picked a 'Japanese Cocktail' tonight from page 106 in the Bartender's Guide.

2 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
1 1/2 teaspoon Orgeat Syrup
1 tablespoon Lime Juice
1 dash Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass. Add twist of lime peel.

This drink was quite good, well worth a repeat.

Brandy Cassis Cocktail

We enjoy a Kir (Cassis with white wine) and so were looking forward to this cocktail.  It was
disappointing, too much lemon juice - even though I cut the recipe amount in half- and it was hard to find the Cassis taste. Not a "keeper", a rarity lately.

The recipe (page no. 47 in the Bartender's Guide):

1 1/2 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
1 oz Lemon Juice (actually used 1/2 oz)
1 dash Créme de Cassis (Mathilde)

Shake with cracked ice and strain into cocktail glass.
Add a twist of lemon peel.

In hindsight, an oz or so of simple syrup may have salvaged the drink?

Salud!

Weep No More Cocktail

Today we had a 'Weep No More Cocktail. It was pretty good although not one of our highest rated favorites.


The recipe (page no. 183 from Mr. Boston's Bartender's Guide):

Juice of 1/2 lime
3/4 oz Dubonnet
3/4 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
1/4 teaspoon Maraschino (Luxardo)

Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass.

Victor Cocktail

The drink today was a 'Victor' cocktail. It was an excellent drink with some very complex flavors, somewhat surprising given the recipe. It was one of our favorites.

The recipe (page no. 178 from the Bartender's Guide):

1 1/2 oz Gin (Booth's)
1/2 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth (Noilly Prat)

Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass. I garnished with a slice of orange.

Enjoy!

Fantasio Cocktail

Our forsythia is blooming on the lake bank which means ... spring must be here?

Tonight's cocktail is from page 79 in the Bartender's Guide,
a 'Fantasio Cocktail'.  It only has a teaspoon of Créme de Menthe in it - but it sure dominates the flavor. I think it would have been better with half the creme de menthe. At least it was drinkable although sweet and minty.

The recipe:

1 teaspoon White Créme de Menthe(LeRoux)
1 teaspoon Maraschino Luxardo)
1 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
3/4 oz Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)

Stir with ice and strain into cocktail glass. I garnished with an orange slice.


Enjoy!

Vanderbilt Cocktail

Today I selected a 'Vanderbilt Cocktail' (from page no. 177 from Mr. Boston's Bartender's Guide, 1985).

The drink was pretty good, on the sweet side but good, overall. It is a "keeper", if you like a sweeter rather than a tart drink (I think both Olga and I prefer a touch of sweet).

The recipe:

3/4 oz Cherry Brandy (LeRoux)
1 1/2 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
1 teaspoon sugar syrup
2 dashes bitters

Stir with ice and strain into cocktail glass. I garnished with a cherry.

Ante Cocktail

Winter in south Louisiana is really here; it was 27 degrees last night and is supposed to be below freezing for the next 3 nights with a chance of a "wintry mix" precipitation tomorrow. Plus, most schools have cancelled classes for tomorrow already.

I guess temps in the 30's means I should forego golf!

The cocktail for this cold evening is an 'Ante Cocktail'.  It turned out to be an improbably good drink (at least for what I was expecting). I'm not a fan of Dubonnet but it melded very well with the other ingredients in the drink and produced a very tasty concoction.

I recommend it and will repeat it in the future!

The recipe (page no. 32 in the Bartender's Guide):

1 oz Apple Brandy (Laird's)
1/2 oz Triple Sec (LeRoux)
1 oz Dubonnet

Stir well with cracked ice and strain into cocktail glass.

I garnished with an orange slice and a twist of orange peel (had to use my new channel knife!).

Cheers and stay warm.

Thunderclap Cocktail

A stormy day and a very cold night...

I found this 'Thunderclap Cocktail' on page 172 of my bartender's guide.

It was quite a good drink.



Recipe:
3/4 oz Gin
3/4 oz Whiskey
3/4 oz Brandy
Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass.

Delmonico No. 1 Cocktail

Today was a prelude to spring. Unfortunately, winter makes its return tomorrow night; temperatures go from a balmy mid-70's to a forecasted 28 degrees. Yuch!

The drink for this Monday is a 'Delmonico No. 1 Cocktail' on page 71 of the Bartender's Guide.

(I mixed the Delmonico No. 2 back in August- it was made with Orange Bitters, Dry Vermouth and Gin.)

The recipe:

3/4 oz Gin (Booth's)
1/2 oz Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth (Dolin)
1/2 oz Brandy (E&J XO)

Stir with ice and strain into cocktail glass.  Add a twist of lemon peel.

The drink was good, worthy of a repeat.

Dream Cocktail

The drink for tonight was a 'Dream Cocktail' (from page 75 in the Bartender's Guide).

 The recipe:

3/4 oz Triple Sec (LeRoux)
1 1/2 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
1/4 teaspoon Anisette (LeRoux)

Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass. I used an orange slice for a garnish.

The drink was good; just a touch of the anisette flavor but not overpowering. Although not one of our all-time favorites, it was good enough to repeat.

The stuff simmering in the pot is a Louisiana dish; red beans and rice. Actually the rice is in another pot. It was good, too.

Cold Deck Cocktail

High temperature was about 50 degrees F today with a low predicted to be 28 tonight; winter is here, darn it!

I found a 'Cold Deck Cocktail'  on page 66 in my Bartender's Guide and it seemed an appropriate drink to try looking at the temperatures!

Recipe:

1/2 teaspoon clear Créme de Menthe (LeRoux)
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth (Dolin)
1 oz Brandy (E&J XO)

Stir with ice and strain into cocktail glass. I garnished with an orange slice.

The Créme de Menthe, although in the drink in small quantity, was a dominant taste. Probably could have used a little less.

Otherwise, we enjoyed the drink, recognizing that it was not as tasty nor as interesting as many we've tried.

Cheers!

Fontainebleau Special Cocktail

The drink selection tonight was a 'Fontainebleau Special' cocktail.

The recipe (page no. 82 in our Bartender's Guide):

1 oz Brandy (E&J XO)
1 oz Anisette (LeRoux)
1/2 oz Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)

Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass.

I did garnish with a tangerine twist (honey tangerines are in season!).

The drink was actually pretty good. I was expecting to be overwhelmed by the anise but the overall taste was very pleasant. It is a drink I would have again.

Salud.