The Friday Tipple: Sequestration Sour

Tighten your belts, Boozers. The much-anticipated Sequester seems to be on its way, unless some eleventh hour deal is inked in the cozy confines of a Capitol Hill cloakroom. Our expectations are low, however, so we’ve decided that it’s time to cull 10% of the liquor cabinet. And, because such a sequester calls for neither rhyme nor reason, we’ve decided to throw any old thing into a cocktail shaker and make what we like to call a Sequestration Sour.

A basic Sour cocktail calls for liquor, simple syrup, citrus juice, and an egg white. To give it South American flair, add a few drops of bitters. Shake it with ice, strain it into a glass, and drink up. Sounds simple, right? Ah, if only those Congressional sourpusses sucked down some Sours and embraced bipartisan camaraderie, we might not be wondering if the air traffic controllers will be at work tonight. We think we’ll stay home in the meantime.

Sequestration Sour

Some people may be afraid of putting a raw egg white in a cocktail, conjuring images of Rocky in training. However, there’s little evidence to suggest that it’s not perfectly safe to drink a small amount, especially if you have reasonably fresh eggs that haven’t been sitting in your refrigerator for three months. You can make a sour without the egg white, but it simply won’t have the same creamy mouthfeel and that luscious foam that makes a simple cocktail seem decadent, even in the midst of a budgetary meltdown.

2 ounces of whatever alcohol needs to get the axe (we used Catoctin Creek Mosby’s Spirit, but, honestly, use whatever you like — vodka, tequila, whiskey, Pisco, grappa, and Amaretto are all good candidates)

1 ounce simple syrup or agave nectar (even honey would work nicely for a bourbon-based sour)

1 ounce fresh citrus juice (we used a combination of lime and grapefruit juice, as that’s what we had on hand)

1 teaspoon egg white (basically, about half of an egg white — so we suggest doubling the above ingredients and using the whole egg white, allowing you to make a drink for a friend now rendered obsolete by the Sequester. Misery loves company.)

a few dashes of bitters

Place all ingredients except bitters in a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously. Add a few ice cubes, shake again until well-chilled, and strain into a rocks glass. Add a few drops of bitters and serve immediately.

The Friday Tipple: Mexican Cocoa Martini with Drunken Fluff

Yeah, you read that right, Boozers. We are in full holiday mode and nothing will do but a warm chocolate cup of cheer when we get home from a weary day of fighting the crowds of shoppers. Believe us, one sip of our Mexican Cocoa Martini and you’ll forget that tug-of-war you had with some pimply-faced teenager over a discounted Snuggie.

And, as if that weren’t enough, we had to top the whole thing off with a dollop of our Drunken Fluff, which, admittedly, is a bit over the top, but we know you’ll agree that it’s as necessary as a shiny red bow on a beautifully-wrapped box. In fact, we predict that you’ll be looking for excuses to add it to waffles, ice cream sundaes, and your morning cup o’ joe.

Mexican Cocoa Martini with Drunken Fluff

This little cocktail packs a powerful punch, so eat a snack before you suck it down. The Drunken Fluff can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container in the freezer — it won’t freeze solid, and can be scooped out whenever you need a little boozy puff of happiness.

2 ounces vodka (we like Boyd & Blair, but please support your own local distillery)

1 ounce Kahlua

Splash of Creme de Cacao

1 teaspoon cocoa powder mixed with  1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 large spoonful Drunken Fluff (recipe below)

Put vodka, Kahlua, and Creme de Cacao in a small saucepan over low heat. Whisk in the cocoa powder and cinnamon until it is thoroughly blended and the liquid is hot but not boiling. Warm the martini glass slightly and pour in the Mexican Cocoa; top with the Drunken Fluff.

to make the Drunken Fluff:

3 egg whites at room temperature

1 cup castor sugar

1 cup corn syrup

1 vanilla bean, split

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup whiskey (we used Catoctin Creek Roundstone Rye — you could also use bourbon, rum, or whatever strikes your fancy)

First, make the whiskey sugar syrup. Put the sugar, corn syrup, water, whiskey, and vanilla bean into a saucepan and heat slowly over low heat, stirring constantly for a few minutes. Bring to a low simmer and check the temperature with a candy thermometer — you want to heat it to 220 degrees Fahrenheit, but not any higher than that. Remove the vanilla bean.

While the syrup is coming up to temperature, whip the egg whites for about 5 minutes in an electric mixer, until they form soft peaks. Add the hot syrup slowly in a continuous stream with the mixer running at a medium speed, then increase the speed to high for several minutes until the mixture has a consistent creamy and fluffy texture. Allow to cool and then store in an airtight container in the freezer.

The Friday Tipple: Nutella Whiskey Dream

We’ve found the new Dream Team, Boozers. Forget sports, we’re talking about a creamy liquid confection that will knock your socks off, and we’re wasting no time on flowery language or poetic musings. We call it a Nutella Whiskey Dream — but don’t pinch yourself, because it’s real and ready for imbibing.

Nutella, that lovely Italian hazelnut spread that French bébés love to slurp off their toasted baguettes before trooping off to school, has been in the news lately because of a newly-approved French tax on products that contain palm oil, thereby increasing the cost of Nutella to the French populace. Sacre bleu! Our advice to French senators: beware of renewed interest in the guillotine.

Luckily for Americans, our own senators don’t mind a bit if we want to liberally slather palm oil all over every morsel, so we feel compelled to enjoy Nutella at any moment. A hipster coffee bistro in the Good Booze ‘hood specializes in a tasty Nutella latté, so naturally we wondered how we might riff off of this in the comfort of our own home. Say hello to the Nutella Whiskey Dream, a tasty little slice of heaven on those long winter evenings by the fire watching old Jerry Lewis movies. A votre santé!

Nutella Whiskey Dream

Now this is what we call a nightcap. Drink up.

4 ounces hot milk (cow, soy, coconut, whatever you like)

1.5 ounces whiskey (we prefer the spicy goodness of Catoctin Creek Roundstone Rye)

1 heaping tablespoon Nutella

Freshly whipped cream spiked with Frangelico liqueur (optional… no, really it isn’t. You need this.)

Put the Nutella in the bottom of a mug or heat-safe glass; add 1/4 cup hot milk and mix thoroughly, then add the rest of the milk and the whisky. Stir well, then top with whipped cream. Serve immediately.

The Friday Tipple: Stormchaser

Frankenstorm is bearing down upon us, Boozers. The aisles of the grocery stores are being stripped bare while the lines at the liquor stores are stretching around the block. Because there’s no way to survive a behemoth of a hurricane-meets-nor’easter without Pop-Tarts and whiskey.

We say, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. Batten down the hatches and hunker down while the wind howls down the chimney to the drip-drip-drip of rain falling into strategically-placed buckets. Fire up the flashlights and play Scrabble with the kiddies. And warm your bones with a Stormchaser, the perfect toddy for those of us who prefer to experience the weather from inside a snug home.

And if the predictions of Frankenstorm are grossly exaggerated, what of it? You’ve stocked up and settled in — just rake the leaves next weekend.

Stormchaser

“Waste not, want not” is our motto, and if you tried our Occupy Whiskey cocktail a few weeks ago, then you may still have some apple-beer syrup in the fridge. Today’s tipple uses that luscious syrup in a warming tea, which is then chased by a shot of whiskey. Simplicity can be delicious.

6 ounces hot tea of your choice (we used a fruity Darjeeling)

2 teaspoons apple-beer syrup (recipe below)

2 ounces whiskey (we like the spicy taste of Catoctin Creek’s Roundstone Rye)

1 fresh twist of grapefruit

To make the apple-beer syrup: Put 1/2 cup of sugar, one cup of beer (choose a seasonal fall variety — we used Port City Brewing Company’s Oktoberfest), and 1/2 cup of freshly grated Granny Smith apple in a small saucepan and combine well. Simmer over low heat for 30 minutes or until the syrup has thickened. Strain well and set aside to cool. Will keep refrigerated for two weeks.

Pour the tea into a heat-safe mug or glass and stir in the apple-beer syrup. Pour the whiskey into a shot glass and let the grapefruit twist soak in it while you enjoy your tea. Then sip (or shoot, if you must) the whiskey while the storm passes by.

The Friday Tipple: Occupy Whiskey

Remember rebellion, Boozers? This week brought the one-year anniversary of the Occupy Wall Street movement and we found ourselves yearning for days gone by, when Occupiers took over the parks of America and Tea Partiers stormed the Capitol. In a society marred by apathy, there is something refreshing about the lunatic fringe, no matter what side they are on. Moderation in everything, including moderation, that’s our motto.

And that deserves a drink. What we wanted was something quintessentially American — which, in our opinion, must include baseball, apple pie, and whiskey. America, some would say, was built on whiskey, and so it naturally becomes the basis for any truly patriotic cocktail. As whiskey often has what are called “grassy undertones”, we thought, obviously, of baseball, now heading into the last few exciting days of pushing for pennants. Luckily, we recently read about an alfalfa-based cocktail that was purported to have a certain “vegetal” quality. Alfalfa in whiskey? That’s what we call American ingenuity at its finest.

Occupy Whiskey

You’ll know by now, dear Boozers, that we adore flavor profiles that provide interesting contrasts, so that each sip is uniquely different, leading the taste buds through a subtle progression of flavors. This a true sipping drink, perfect for after dinner on the front porch on a cool autumn evening: the alfalfa-infused whiskey provides a certain quality of a freshly-mowed outfield, leading to a tart apple finish laced with beer.

1 large tablespoon fresh apple-beer simple syrup (so delicious — maybe two tablespoons; recipe below)

2 generous ounces whiskey (we use our local Catoctin Creek Roundstone Rye for this, but use your local favorite, as always)

1/2 cup packed fresh alfalfa sprouts

To make the apple-beer syrup: Put 1/2 cup of sugar, one cup of beer (choose a seasonal fall variety — we used Port City Brewing Company’s Oktoberfest), and 1/2 cup of freshly grated Granny Smith apple in a small saucepan and combine well. Simmer over low heat for 30 minutes or until the syrup has thickened. Strain well and set aside to cool. Will keep refrigerated for two weeks.

To infuse the whiskey: Put four ounces of whiskey and the sprouts in a cocktail shaker. Muddle the sprouts lightly and set aside for at least 30 minutes and up to two hours. Strain completely before using.

To assemble the drink: Put 1 – 2 tablespoons of the apple-beer syrup in the bottom of a rocks glass. Pour the infused whiskey into a cocktail shaker with ice and shake vigorously. Strain over the apple-beer syrup and garnish with a slice of apple.

The Friday Tipple: Celebration Shot

Celebrate good times, Boozers. June is a month often jam-packed with family celebrations — graduations, weddings, anniversaries — and the parties can seem non-stop. We don’t mind, as we enjoy a good reunion, and the options for tasty beverages tend to explode as early summer produce starts to hit the streets. A charming little piece of fruit called a champagne mango made its way into our bar recently and it just seemed to cry out for some special treatment. Hence, the Celebration Shot.

There’s nothing more fun than toasting good times with a brimming shot glass, but slugging down straight whiskey or tequila in the warm June sunshine seems like a family brawl just waiting to happen. We chose instead to temper such firewater with seasonal flavors that also create a nice palate cleanser for barbecued ribs and Grandma’s famous potato salad. So treat the relatives to a special toast of good times and remember that today’s not the day to remind your brother-in-law that he still owes you fifty bucks. Alla famiglia!

Celebration Shot

The trick to making this shot refreshing is to pour some of the whiskey-mint infusion into the bottom of the shot glasses and then place them in the freezer for about 30 minutes — just long enough to make it very cold and create a light frost across the surface. Once you add the mango-tequila mixture on top, it will melt the frost so that it can all be swallowed down quickly, or even sipped. The recipe below should yield about 4 shots.

1/2 cup white or clear unaged whiskey (we like Catoctin Creek Mosby’s Spirit)

1/2 cup packed clean fresh mint leaves

scant teaspoon light agave nectar

2 mangos, peeled and cut into chunks (yes, you can use defrosted frozen mango if you can’t find fresh)

1/2 cup silver tequila

Place the whiskey, mint leaves, and agave nectar in a blender and blend on high until the leaves are completely broken down and the liquid is a fresh green color. Set aside. Then place the mango chunks and tequila in a clean blender and blend on high until liquefied. Pour through a strainer to remove any chunks and set aside.

To assemble the shot: put about 1 ounce of the whiskey-mint infusion in the bottom of a shot glass and put in the freezer for 30 minutes. Then add 1.5 ounces of the mango-tequila infusion on top and drink up.

The Friday Tipple: Tall, Dark, and Handsome

Faith and begorrah, Boozers — St. Patrick’s Day is looming large. Ireland has brought us some lovely things: Guinness, Bono, Enya, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Guinness, Baileys… did we mention Guinness? The good people of Ireland will tell you that St. Patrick’s Day is not a day to spend in drinking and carousing, but rather in attending religious services and communing with family. We’re not buying it.

Normally, we’d sink ourselves into a pint or two of creamy Beamish, perhaps accompanied by a dram of whiskey, but the groundhog seems to have made a mighty mistake this year on his weather predictions. Spring sprang some weeks back and we have moved onto summer at a pretty fast clip. Which made us long for a classic Dark & Stormy, that harbinger of warm weather fun.

Today’s Tipple is the best of all worlds, we think — a bit of a Shandy crossed with a Stormy, perfect for an unseasonably warm St. Patrick’s Day. Go ahead, get your green on. Beannachtam na Femle Padraig!

Tall, Dark, and Handsome

We tend to think of the Irish as being magically beautiful with lilting accents that will charm the socks off us. Of course, that could just be the alcohol talking, but why quibble? You could substitute a shot of Irish whiskey for the black rum, but we think it adds a splash of warm sunshine to the richness of the stout.

3 ounces chilled ginger beer (we prefer a Bermuda-style like Barritts)

3 ounces chilled stout (we do love the aforementioned Irish brands, but also enjoy local varieties, such as Dogfish Head Chicory Stout)

1 ounce Gosling’s Black Seal Rum (150 proof)

Pour the ginger beer into a tall glass. Layer the stout over the top to maintain a little golden glow at the bottom of the glass. Pour rum over the top. Take a cab when you go out to hit the pubs.

 

The Friday Tipple: Hair o’ the Dog

We’re in a bit of a pickle, Boozers. Last weekend, we noticed droves of you already filling up the pubs to get your Irish on, even though it was still a full fortnight until that most hallowed holiday for boozers, St. Patrick’s Day. At first we turned up our noses at the premature shamrocks and green beer and the endless shots of whiskey, but eventually we succumbed. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.

Which is why Thirsty Thursday left us with a bit of an aching head this fine morning. Recognizing that we still have another week of Celtic carousing to go, a sure-fire hangover cure was a necessity. Pickle juice has long been touted as a perfect remedy for alcoholic excesses, chock full of the salt and minerals that your body craves after a night of debauchery. We were inspired to create our own Hair o’ the Dog by a jar of spicy Whiskey Sour Pickles from Brooklyn Brine Co. — with Finger Lakes Distilling McKenzie Rye Whiskey incorporated into the brine, it seemed a shame to waste a drop.

Try slamming this with the greasy eggs and bacon that you hope will coat your stomach before you stumble off to the morning staff meeting. Then you might want to lay low in the cubicle for the rest of the day.

And you’re not even Irish, are you? Sláinte, you drunk poseur.

Hair o’ the Dog

Love Potion Number Brine is a local hangover cure popular in our ‘hood at Peregrine Espresso, featuring seriously strong coffee and pickle juice from our local pickle purveyor, Gordy’s Pickle Jar. We’ve taken that notion to the next level by adding a smidge of Catoctin Creek’s Roundstone Rye and our own Wicked Pickled Ginger Syrup, which, we believe, helps soothe a queasy tum.

2 ounces really strong black coffee, cooled to room temperature

3/4 ounce whiskey (we like to go local, but go Irish if you prefer)

1 ounce sour pickle juice

1/2 teaspoon Wicked Pickled Ginger Syrup (or simple syrup will do)

A few drops of hot sauce (we like Uncle Brutha’s No. 9)

pickle wedge, for garnish

Mix pickle juice, ginger syrup, and hot sauce together and pour into the bottom of a lowball glass. Pour coffee and whiskey in a cocktail shaker, add an ice cube, and shake well. Strain over the pickle juice and down it in one shot, then eat the pickle wedge.

Tipple d’Amour: Valentine Wine

Cupid’s arrow is aiming at you, Boozers. We all search for love on Valentine’s Day, whether we choose to admit it or not; some of us find it in the arms of a significant other, or in a cuddly mutt, or in a well-endowed cupcake and an evening spent watching the Millionaire Matchmaker marathon. Love is in the eye of the beholder.

If you’re a bit of a Valentine’s Day cheapskate still looking to sweep that Special Someone off his or her feet, then our Valentine Wine is for you. It combines inexpensive red wine with a high-quality whiskey for a loving cup that packs a bit of a punch — a perfect libation for spending the night in, perhaps with a gourmet selection of Chinese take-away. Add a Whitman’s Sampler and the double Snuggie: the rest is up to you.

Valentine Wine

As our loyal Boozers know, we’ve been having a bit of a love affair with Catoctin Creek’s Roundstone Rye and have found many uses for it — perhaps too many uses… There are several wine cocktails that incorporate rum, brandy, and whiskey, and we love the spicy flavor of rye with a rich red wine. You really can go for a $6.99 bottle of wine here if you like — read the label and pick the one that promises a hint of berries and chocolate.

Red wine (get what you like: a table red is good, as is a pinot noir or even a merlot)

Rye whiskey (yes, we like Catoctin Creek, but you knew that)

Fresh raspberries

Sugar

Place 3 or 4 raspberries in the bottom of a wine glass and sprinkle with a 1/2 teaspoon sugar. Top with 3/4 ounce rye whiskey (a single-malt whiskey like Wasmund’s is nice too, or a small-batch bourbon like Basil Hayden’s) and very lightly muddle the raspberries, but don’t mash them to pieces. Allow to macerate for 15 minutes, then top with red wine. Float an additional raspberry on top if you want to impress. Bon chance!

 

The Friday Tipple: The Boxcar

We’re lucky bastards, Boozers. The nice folks at Catoctin Creek Distilling Company blessed us with an early sample of their 1757 Virginia Brandy — still young and not quite ready for prime time — and we’ve been contemplating it for several weeks.  Richly mellow and lightly fruity, brandy can truly elevate winter cocktails to a new level of warm delight.

There are several cocktails that feature brandy, such as the Brandy Alexander and the Vieux Carré, but we weren’t inspired until we decided to check out the Boxcar Tavern, a new establishment in our area. As always, we eagerly examined the signature cocktail menu, and, while we were intrigued by the nutmeg syrup used in the whiskey-based Warm Winter Night, we were surprised that a place called the Boxcar wouldn’t have a signature Sidecar. Just seems like a natural fit.

So we’ve created it ourselves: the Boxcar. A classic Sidecar features brandy (or cognac, and we’re sure you know that all cognac is brandy but not all brandy is cognac), Cointreau, and lemon juice. But that nutmeg syrup just begs for brandy, and, with images of boxcars trundling north through the swamps of central Florida piled high with citrus, we felt that fresh oranges were a natural complement. The result is a gorgeous little burst of winter spice with subtle notes of spring break sunshine. Santé!

Boxcar

As you know, we hate to see dusty bottles of so-called “seasonal” liquors languish in the cupboard, so we eschewed the Cointreau, generally used in a traditional Sidecar, in favor of triple sec. You may only think of triple sec as used in summer margaritas, but its softly bitter orange flavor works just as well as Cointreau in this application.

3/4 ounce freshly-squeezed orange juice (we used a couple of clementines; mandarins and tangerines would also work quite well)

3/4 ounce triple sec

1.5 ounces brandy or cognac

Scant teaspoon nutmeg syrup (basically, just add a 1/4 teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg to 1/4 cup of simple syrup)

Sugar and lemon, for coating the rim of the glass

Run a slice of lemon around the edge of a martini or cosmopolitan glass and dip in sugar. Put the orange juice, triple sec, brandy, and nutmeg syrup into a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into glass and enjoy.