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What am I Drinking Tonight? Berry Vodka Smash!
Top Shelf

What am I Drinking Tonight? Berry Vodka Smash!

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Boy, was this a week for a drink!  With the COVID-19/coronavirus stressing out and scaring the bejeezus out of everyone, I say it’s high time for us to gather our bearings, gain some perspective, count our blessings and take a moment to exhale.

Most of us are on coronalock-down and some of us are beginning to go a little stir-crazy. By now many of us know someone that has been touched by this horrible pandemic in some way. And for those that have lost a friend or loved one, I am deeply sorry. My prayers are with you.

Although an adult beverage won’t solve the ills COVID-19 is wrecking on the entire world, it may momentarily help put a bit of mental distance between us and the insanity that has been upon visited us.  Let’s just call it a temporary respite to kind of even out recent unsettling times.

Raise a Glass in Thanks

Also while we are reflecting, let’s raise a glass and express our sincere gratitude for those essential workers that, day in and day out, continue to serve and protect us. Workers that provide critical healthcare services, food to the needy and hungry, and deliver our mail deserve our thanks. Along with every one of the workers who, unlike many of us, are employed in jobs where they cannot just walk inside and safely close the door against the virus until it goes away. We appreciate you. Thank you and sip slow (just not on the job).

If you like a fruity, slightly sweet drink, this one is for you.  It pairs well with a savory dish like crab cake beignets. It is so deliciously refreshing, if you’re not careful, it can sneak up on you!

Ingredients:

3 large strawberries
4 large mint leaves
1 TBSP simple syrup
2-½ jiggers of vodka
⅛ lemon
4 ice cubes

Slice and place strawberries, lemon, and lemon in a cocktail shaker.  Using a muddler, muddle fruit and mint being careful not to mash the mint to a pulp. If you don’t have a muddler, you can use the handle of a wooden spoon. 

Add vodka, simple syrup and ice cubes. Shake until cocktail shaker is cold.  Strain into a glass pouring over a couple of ice cubes or crushed ice, if desired. Garnish with a lemon wheel, strawberry and or mint sprig.

What I’m Drinking Tonight – New York Sour
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What I’m Drinking Tonight – New York Sour

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I thought I was setting myself up for disappointment with this drink but then, I thought it’s got bourbon in it how bad can it be?  So, I adventured on and pulled out the cocktail shaker.

A little bit about the New York Sour (which I highly recommend, by the way).  According to Whiskey Tango Globetrot, www.whiskeytangoglobtrot.com. The New York Sour dates back to at least the mid-1800s.

The original recipe called for:

1 table-spoon (1 tsp) of sugar
¼ of  lemon (juice of)
½ a wine glass (1 tbsp) of water
1 wine glass (2 oz.) of spirits

The standard spirit then was brandy, rum, gin or whiskey, though whiskey was added on much later.  Somehow the sour cocktail became America’s cocktail. The sour cocktail was actually originated in Chicago and was called a Continental Sour or Southern Whiskey Sour with a claret snap.The snap was red wine that floated on top of the drink.

No one really knows how a drink originating and popularized in Chicago inherited the name New York Sour or how it stuck.  It’s got a cool, sophisticated look and it is refreshing although I got a little carried away with the rocks. And you can try it, but the egg white was a hard pass for me. The cool part was floating the wine on top.  I thought I was going to ruin it and create a disaster. Turns out I’m a pro!

There are a number of variations of course, but this is the one I thought I would like best and it comes from liquor.com

Here is the modern day recipe:

2 oz. Rye whiskey or bourbon
1 oz. lemon juice
¾ oz. simple syrup
1 egg white (optional)
½ oz. dry red wine

Add all ingredients except the wine into a cocktail shaker with ice and shake until the shaker is cold.  Strain into a rocks glass over a few cubes of fresh ice.

Slowly pour the wine over the back of a bar spoon so that it floats on top of the drink.

Sip slow and enjoy!


What I’m Drinking Tonight – A Toast to New Orleans! Frozen Bourbon Milk Punch
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What I’m Drinking Tonight – A Toast to New Orleans! Frozen Bourbon Milk Punch

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Milk punch is a New Orleans favorite. It’s a brunch staple and while it’s served during holidays it also takes center stage during Carnival as a Mardi Gras cocktail favorite. Simple, sinfully rich and delicious, it can pack a serious punch (no pun!). Frozen milk punch is a slight twist on this smooth and boozy drink.  Replace the milk with vanilla ice cream and, voila!

By the penny or by the pound, you can mix up a batch or serve up a single cocktail.I couldn’t find one recipe that totally satisfied my taste buds so, I freestyled it. I didn’t measure by the way, and I recommend adding ingredients to taste.

Ingredients:

Premium vanilla bean ice cream
Half and half
Bourbon
Sugar or simple syrup
Vanilla extract
Nutmeg for garnish

Combine and mix in a cocktail shaker or in a blender. Freeze for about 3 hours or until slushy.

Sip slow and enjoy!

Top 10 Smoking Hot Cocktails for Valentine’s Night (or Any Other Night)
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Top 10 Smoking Hot Cocktails for Valentine’s Night (or Any Other Night)

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Valentine’s Day falls on Friday this year, yay! Do it big! Go ahead and slip into that sexy arm candy dress or side piece skinny suit and make the evening sparkle and turn it up with a fun night out. Or, wind it down with a romantic evening at home and a scrumptious meal.

And then, what’s Valentine’s night without a sexy cocktail or two, or a few? Why not spice it up and give your partner a reason to Put a Ring On It, no?  Can’t go wrong.

Whatever your thing is, do you, and end the night with a Kiss on the Lips or maybe Sex in the Driveway?

I’ve curated a list of sensual sips that’s fun for 50 people or just for two.  Whether you end your evening with a Goodnight Kiss or a Kinky Hookup, any one of these 10 cocktails has the power to make things happen.

1. Kiss on the Lips

1 1/2 ounces peach schnapps
5 ounces frozen mango mix (or mango chunks, if you can’t find mango mix)
1 tablespoon grenadine
2 cups crushed ice

Put the peach schnapps, frozen mango and crushed ice into a blender and pulse until smooth. Pour the grenadine into the bottom of a cocktail glass and then pour the blended mixture in over the top of it. Garnish with a pineapple slice and a cherry.

2. Quickie on the Beach

1 part vodka
1 part peach schnapps

Pour over ice and enjoy.

3. Good Night Kiss

1 oz. Campari
4 oz. champagne
1 sugar cube
1 dash angostura

Add 1 dash angostura bitters onto 1 sugar cube and drop it into a champagne flute. Add 4 oz. champagne and top with 1 oz. Campari.
Recipe excerpted from Romantic Cocktails by Clair McLafferty

4. Very Sexy Martini

3 Raspberries
5 Mint leaves
1 oz. Simple syrup
1-½ Citrus vodka
1 1⁄2 oz Moët & Chandon Rosé Imperial Champagne

In a shaker, muddle the raspberries and mint. Add the remaining ingredients except the Champagne and fill with ice.  Shake, and strain into a Martini glass. Top with champagne and garnish with a mint spring and a raspberry.

5. Pink Silk Panties

1 oz. Absolut Vodka
1 oz. Svedka Raspberry vodka
1-½ Peach schnapps
2 oz. Cranberry juice

Garnish with: choice of o lemon wheel, strawberry or cherry
Add all ingredients into a mixing glass and fill with ice.  Stir for 30 seconds. Double strain.

6. Punch Drunk Love

JIMMY at James Hotel’s Punch Drunk Love by mixologist/partner Johnny Swet

Punch Drunk Love
[Photo courtesy of JIMMY]

1 oz. Jim Beam bourbon 
1 oz. Blackwell Rum
.75 oz. Carpano Antica Formula
.5oz.  Amaretto
1 oz. Orange juice 
3 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters 

Mix in a wine glass: Stir with cubed ice. Grate fresh nutmeg on top. Garnish with ½ an orange slice.

7. Put A Ring On It

1 oz. Hpnotiq
1 oz. Whipped Cream Vodka
Splash of Peach Schnapps
Splash of Lemon-Lime Soda

Add all ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Shake well and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with a blinking ring.

8. Kinky Hookup

2 oz. KINKY Pink Liqueur
2 oz. KINKY Blue Liqueur
Lemon-lime soda or club soda

Pour KINKY Pink Liqueur and KINKY Blue Liqueur into low-ball glass and top with lemon-lime soda or club soda.

9. Tie Me To The Bedpost

1/2 oz. each of: Midori, Absolut Citron, Malibu Rum. Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

10. Sex in the Driveway

1 oz. Blue curacao
1 oz. Peach schnapps
2 oz. citrus vodka
6 oz. Sprite or 7 Up

Pour ingredients over ice and garnish with a lemon wheel.

Sip slow! Happy Valentine’s Day and you’re welcome!

What I’m Drinking Tonight
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What I’m Drinking Tonight

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Cute mixed drinks have their place, but tonight it’s rye on the rocks, baby!
If you’re a whiskey drinker, I recommend giving rye whiskey a shot. I’m far from an expert in rye whiskeys, I’m only an expert in what I like and the rye I like is Corsair Ryemagedden. According to them, it’s booze for badasses. It’s 92-proof, very smooth and on my palate, kind of nutty and buttery. This is not a paid endorsement or a product review.

It’s said that rye is bourbon’s spicy cousin and for sure there is a spiciness to rye. Oh, I also love bourbon, Tennessee straight whiskey, single malt scotch…

Booze for Badasses

Tonight, we’re not getting all connoisseur-ish talking about mouth feel, top or bottom notes. I’m just working on getting to the bottom of my glass.

A bit about the distillery, Corsair is a new American distillery located in Nashville, Tennessee. They have a respectable line of small batch, artesian whiskeys that includes a white rye, pumpkin spice moonshine, gin and a cat named Pizza. If you happen to be down around the Tennessee area, look them up, take a tour of the distillery, and pick up a bottle or two if you can. Corsair’s distribution is pretty wide but, it’s damn near impossible to find in Detroit.