Aviation Cocktail

An adult lemon drop.

2 ½ oz gin
½ oz maraschino liqueur
½ oz lemon juice
Shake and strain into a cocktail glass.

Sbagliato

This is a nice and refreshing variation on a Negroni. The name means "wrong" in Italian and supposedly was created by mistake by a hurried barista in Milan.

1 oz sweet vermouth
1 oz Campari (I used Gran Classico Bitter, an excellent Swiss alternative)
2 oz prosecco
1 orange slice (or lemon twist)

Somewhere I have this recipe written down on a bar napkin from a trip to Genoa. I thought it might be a regional recipe or a bartender's secret recipe. Turns out it's fairly common, at least in Italy.

The Negroni calls for equal parts gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth and some recipes for the Sbagliato use equal parts as well but I prefer more prosecco to lighten it up.

Enjoy before your meal to stimulate the appetite.

Chartreuse Swizzle

"The only liqueur so good they named a color after it!"
Quentin Tarantino as "Warren" in Death Proof

I've heard about this drink for quite a while but rarely have Chartreuse in the house. Recently at Barkeeper in Silverlake (http://www.barkeepersilverlake.com/) I saw a small bottle for a decent price and picked it up.
I think it's a bit odd to use something as distinctive and bold as Chartreuse as the base in a cocktail. I've used it mostly as a modifier in the past. Usually with gin.
This is my kind of Tiki drink!

2 oz green Chartreuse
1 ½ oz pineapple juice
1 oz fresh lime juice
¼ oz falernum
Build in a Collins glass. (Or in this case an empty jam jar from a couple of blueberry seasons past)
Add crushed ice.
Swizzle until outside of glass frosts.

Caprioska

... 11pm After a bunch of food and wine

Armen: What do you have that's a traditional spanish after dinner drink?
Waiter: hmmmm, a lot of people like gin and coke
Armen: No, anything more traditional like sherry or some liqueur made in Spain?
Waiter: The Caprioska is pretty traditional here I think it's originally from Brazil
Armen: No, I don't want that, how about some grappa or anything from Spain
Waiter: Some draft beer?
Armen: hmmmm, no that sounds pretty filling after all of that food
Waiter: you should try the Caprioska I think you'll really like it it's very refreshing it's got vodka and lime...
Armen: I don't really want... Ok I'll take the Caprioska

Caprioska:
Vodka
Lime Juice and lime wedges for garnish
Sugar
Soda water and crushed ice

Build in glass and enjoy after some delicious spanish food for a traditional end to your meal.

Attention Cocktail

This one is from Jamie Boudreau. It's not bad. A little wimpy though. I think it needed a little bite. Maybe a bar spoon of the modifiers instead of 1/4 oz.

2 oz gin
¼ oz absinthe
¼ oz dry vermouth
¼ oz creme de violette
2 dashes Regan's orange bitters
Stir with ice.
Strain into an iced cocktail glass.
Garnish with a lemon twist.

Brooklyn vs. Manhattan

It's the season premiere of Gossip Girl so I decided to recreate the battle of Blair Waldorf and the other socialites of Manhattan against the Humphrey's of Brooklyn.

OK, I'm a little embarrassed that I know that much about GG. (That's what I call it.) However I am excited about doing some comparative tasting between two classic cocktails.

I thought for sure I was going to prefer the Manhattan, and I "knew" Wendy would. Oddly enough we were torn.

Here are the recipes:

Brooklyn
2 oz rye whiskey (Wild Turkey)
3/4 oz dry vermouth (Martini & Rossi)
1/3 oz Torani Amer
1/3 oz maraschino liqueur
Stir and strain and garnish with a cherry.

Manhattan
2 oz rye whiskey
1 oz sweet vermouth (Carpano Antica)
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Stir and strain and garnish with a cherry.

Montego Bay

• 1½ oz Smith & Cross Jamaican rum
  
• 1 oz 1:1 honey syrup
• ½ oz grapefruit juice
• ½ oz lime juice
• ¼ oz pimento dram
• 4 dashes absinthe
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• Shake well with ice and strain in to a glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with an grapefruit zest twist.

I'm stepping up my garnish game. I received a bottle of Smith and Cross as a gift and have been experimenting with tiki and other rum drinks. This one was great! This rum is crazy. Really strong. 114 proof! Not a sipper but it has some great flavor. It stands up to the pimento dram which can really overpower a drink.

The crushed ice is key. The glass is all frosty and slippery. Great on a hot SF Valley evening.