25 December 2021: Suzy's Hanky

This cocktail comes from David Lebovitz’s most recent book, Drinking French and was a perfect cocktail for our weather-impacted Christmas Day not-so-much-of-a-gathering. Deliciously orange-y, spicy, and (my personal favorite) based on a juniper forward gin from South Hollow Spirits in North Truro, MA (gifted to me by our son and daughter-in-law), it brought together a great blending of Suze, Cointreau, and sweet vermouth.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 oz. London-style gin

• 1 oz. sweet vermouth

• 1/2 oz. Suze

• 1/2 oz. Grand Marnier, Cointreau, or Triple Sec (we used Cointreau)

• Orange twist and spring of fresh thyme for garnish

Add the gin, vermouth, Suze and (in our case) Cointreau to a cocktail mixing glass. Fill with ice and stir until well-chilled. Strain into a chilled coupe glass. Hold the orange twist over the top of the drink and twist it to release the oils from the peel into the drink. Drop the orange twist into the glass and garnish with the thyme sprig floating on top.

23 December 2021: City of Light

I recently heard about David Lebovitz’s newest book, Drinking French, and immediately broke our no-purchases before Christmas rule in order to get my hands on a copy asap.

The cafe culture in Paris is one that I have admired and wish I knew more about. How insanely stylish and elegant to imagine sipping an aperitif ahead of dinner.

This aperitif, The City of Light, was developed by LA bartender Christiaan Röllich of Lucques. Cointreau, dry Vermouth, and Lillet blanc along with a topping of prosecco, makes it a very sippable pre-dinner drink as sparkly and beautiful as the City of Paris, La Ville-Lumière, is even in the dark of Winter.

City of Light

Ingredients:

• half a lemon wheel, half and orange wheel, and 2 thin slices of cucumber for garnish

• 1 1/2 oz. dry vermouth

• 1 oz Lillet blanc (or Vin d’Orange - see Drinking French for how to make this)

• 1 oz. Cointreau

• 1 oz dry prosecco (or crémant)

Place the garnishes in the bottom of a footed goblet or large wine glass. Add the vermouth, Lillet, and Cointreau. Fill the glass 2/3 full with ice, stir briefly and top off with the prosecco.

12 December 2021: A White Negroni

I admit it: I love Negroni cocktails. The lovely orange-bitterness of a Negroni makes me think of summer and outdoor dining. However, it’s neither outdoor dining weather nor summer here in New England, so we adjust.

This cocktail was a find because I was fascinated by a bottle of Suze, bought it, and needed to use it. Beside being a lovely, smooth take on Negroni, it is a beautifully electric golden color. Yum!

White Negroni (Bon Appetit)

Ingredients (one cocktail):

• 1½ ounces gin (I like juniper forward gins like Tanquery)

• 1½ ounces Lillet Blanc (accept no substitutes)

• ½ ounce Suze liqueur (some bar recipes up this to 3/4 oz)

• Lemon twist (for serving)

Preparation

Combine gin, Lillet, and Suze in an old-fashioned glass filled with ice and stir until very cold, about 30 seconds. Garnish with a lemon twist.

24 Aug 2021: Virgin Strawberry Mojito Mocktail

Sometimes we indulge in sprits. And sometimes we don’t.

Here’s a refreshing mocktail from Plant Based Jess that is sure to make you forget there’s no alcohol involved. Refreshing and perfect for warm summer nights!

Virgin Strawberry Mojito Mocktail

Ingredients

• ½ cup fresh strawberries (2-4) - sliced

• 10-12 fresh mint leaves

• 1 lime - juiced

• ½ tbsp sweetener to taste - optional

• ice cubes - for serving

• soda water or seltzer - I used about 1 - 1 ½ cup

How to:

In a glass (at least 16 oz), add the strawberries, mint, lime juice and sweetener, if using. Then, using a muddler, crush the ingredients to help them release their juice and oil (avoid crushing the mint so small so it is more pleasant to drink).

Then, fill the glass with ice cubes and top with seltzer. Stir and enjoy!

28 March 2021: Stanley Tucci's Negroni #2

Say what you will about Stanley Tucci and his famous Negroni video (yes, shaken!), in my opinion, it is perfetto - at least it was until this iteration was published. Campari, as Negroni drinkers will tell you, can be bitter and while it is the driving force of a good Negroni, sometimes it needs a bit of balancing. The trick for me has been moderating the bitterness of the Campari with a red, sweet Italian-style vermouth like Carpano Antico. And a bit of orange peel.

In this revision, Tucci adds a splash of Balsamic vinegar which, to my taste, rounds things out nicely. Don’t bother with cheap balsamic, buy some of the really good stuff (I used Guiseppe Giusti 2 Gold Medal Aceto Balsamico di Modena - pricey but worth it)..

Ingredients:

• 2 oz gin (I prefer Juniper forward ones)

• 1 oz Campari

• 1 oz Red Sweet Vermouth

• “About” a tsp of Aceto Balsamic di Modena

Add all to an ice filled shaker, give it a shake and pour into a coupe. Add an orange peel - which is essential to making this work.

10 January 2021: Negroni Sbagliato

In looking for new ideas for our two-person cooking escapades, I happened on a great website hosted by Sonja and Alex Overhiser, A Couple Cooks. Not only do they cook, they have some terrific ideas for cocktails and this - a Negroni Sbagliato - is one of them. The difference is the trade off of champagne (or sparkling wine) for gin. Make no mistake (sbaglio) - this is delicious!

Don’t skip the importance of a bit of orange peel to counteract the Campari.

Negroni Sbagliato

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) sweet or semi-sweet red vermouth

• 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) Campari

• 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) Prosecco, champagne or other sparkling wine

• Ice

• Orange peel (garnish - but in my experience essential)

HOW TO MAKE IT:

Using a rocks glass, add the vermouth and Campari. Top off with the sparkling wine (Prosecco or champagne), add ice and the orange peel.

29 August: Evangelos Bagias Charites Rose of Pinot Noir 2019

One of the adaptations we made during our Coronavirus isolation was to order wine by mail. Until a few years ago, that very activity would have not been allowed here in Massachusetts. We just recently were able to order from a Washington State vintner we had visited. However restrictive our Commonwealth’s former alcohol shipping laws were, we now can receive wines from several vendors, so with that in mind, we became subscribers to Naked Wines last Spring.

Naked Wines, through their Angels subscription program, connects start-up winemakers with funders - think crowd source funding for small wineries. It’s been a lot of fun to discover some new wines that, based on our flavor profile, were recommended to us. So far, it’s all been spot on. So if anything good can come out of the pandemic, it is that we have discovered a really cool way to support start-up winemakers and taste some incredibly well-made wines.

This weekend, we opened this bottle of rose from Evangelos Bagias from Lodi and, well-chilled, it was a terrific warm summer night wine. Not sweet at all, and on the dry side, it is easy to taste the strong strawberry and raspberry notes, this one was a winner!

22 August: AOÛT

August or AOÛT - It’s hot and hazy and, in our family, a big Birthday Month. Tonight’s cocktail, the AOÛT, comes from Rebekah Peppler’s Aperitif: Cocktail House the French Way. This is a cocktail that is on the lighter side which means it is perfect for hot and humid August nights.

One note about the ingredients: this cocktails calls for ginger beer - not ginger ale. I liked the intense spiciness of Q Ginger Beer, but if you are not a fan of intense ginger flavor, you may want to sub in a good quality ginger ale.

The AOÛT

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 ounces Dubonnet Rouge

• 1/2 ounce orange liqueur

• Ginger Beer

• Orange Wedge

How To Make It

Pour the Dubonnet and orange liqueur (I used Cointreau - Grand Marnier or dry Curacao also recommended) into an ice-filled Collins glass. Top with Ginger and finish with the orange wedge.

15 August The Marguerite

We have a bottle of the decidedly less juniper-y Plymouth Gin in our liquor cabinet and, while it is a pleasant, well-rounded smooth spirit, it doesn’t always work with cocktails that rely on juniper forward gins such as Tanquery. The Plymouth Gin website has several interesting sounded cocktails and this gem from 1904’s Stuart’s Fancy Drinks and How to Mix Them, The Maguerite was one that fascintated me. Basically, in this iteration, it is a martini with orange bitters. There are other concoctions out there with these same basic ingredients adding orange liquor to the mix. Tonight, I stuck with the basics.

Ingredients:

The Margurite

Ingredients

• 2 parts Plymouth gin

• 1 part dry vermouth

• 2 shakes orange bitters

Method

1. The gin and vermouth should be chilled ahead of time. Also doesn’t hurt to mix in a glass and STIR (not shaken)

2. Strain if you used ice and then serve with a twist of orange peel.

08 August: Tabernacle Crush

When a drink gets a five-star rating in Food & Wine Magazine, well, that’s a drink you definitely want to try. Tonight’s cocktail was light, refreshing, and peachy, which of course fits this time of year when fresh peaches are readily available here in Massachusetts. A muddled blend of peaches and basil give this drink, developed by Linton Hopkins, an end-of-summer freshness. Great for hot August evenings!

Tabernacle Crush

Ingredients

• 1/2 large peach, sliced (I also peeled, but that’s definitely not necessary)

• 6 small basil leaves, plus more for garnish

• 1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice

• 1-1/2 ounces gin

• 1 ounce Lillet (blanc)

• 1/2 ounce simple syrup

• Ice

• Club Soda

How to make it

In a tall glass, muddle the peach with 6 basil leaves and the lemon guice. Add the gin, Lillet, and simple syrup. Add ice cubes and top with club soda. Garnish with basil.

25 July: Pink Sabagliato

Rebekah Keppler’s book, Apertif, divides cocktails by season of the year. This one, Pink Sbagliato, is a variation on the Negroni minus the gin. Sbagliato, meaning “mistaken”, also has a more direct meaning: f’ck’ed up - which somehow seemed appropriate for this time period.

A tasty, warm weather drink that is not only simple to make, but perfect for a summer night.

Pink Sbagliato

(serves 1)

• 1 ounce Campari

• 1 ounce sweet vermouth

• 3 ounces sparkling rose

In a lowball glass, combine the Campari and sweet vermouth. Add ice and top with sparkling wine (simple!).

19 July: Basil Gimlet

Be Your Own Bartender by Carey Jones and John McCarthy is a lot like following a flowchart. Start with a base spirit (gin, whiskey, vodka), and from that starting point, one can build lots of variations on a theme. Tonight’s cocktail, the Basil Gimlet, is a play on fresh basil which is plentiful at this time of year; however, one could also make the same cocktail with mint or rosemary and achieve different results.

Basil Gimlet

Ingredients (1 drink)

• 2 ounces gin (suggestion was Beefeater I used Tanguery)

• 1 ounce FRESH lime juice

• 3/4 ounce simple syrup (I like things that are less sweet, so I reduced this to 1/2 ounce)

• 1 dash orange bitters

• 5 basil leaves torn in half as they are added to the shaker, plus 1 additional leaf for garnish

Method

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously, then double strain into a chilled coupe glass. Garnish with a basil leaf, lightly clapped between your hands before being added to the drink.

July 15: It's Tax Day - Let's Have an Income Tax Cocktail

Today, July 15, 2020, is the Covid-19 adjusted Income Tax day. We noted our contribution to the IRS occurred shortly after midnight, and to mark this momentus occasion for all of us who owed a little something to the Federal - and State - government, I present the Income Tax Cocktail.

Tonight’s cocktail is a mix of gin, sweet vermouth, dry vermouth, orange juice and a dash of bitters. Accoring to cocktail expert Ted Haigh, this one is based upon a Bronx cocktail, also an unknown to me.

So if you, like us, feel a little lighter in the wallet today, console yourself with The Income Tax Cocktail.

The Income Tax Cocktail

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 ounces dry gin

• 3/4 ounce dry vermouth

• 3/4 ounce sweet vermouth

• juice of 1/4 of a fresh orange (note - fresh is important)

• 2 dash Angostura bitters

Method:

• Squeeze the orange directly into the shaker filled with ice.

• Add the gin, sweet vermouth, dry vermouth and dashes of bitters.

• Shake and pour into a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange circle.

09 July Lillet Rose Reverse Martini

We keep 3 bottles of the aperitif, Lillet, in our refrigerator - Blanc, Rouge, and Rose. While each has subtle individual differences that are pleasing, my favorite has always been Lillet Rouge. That is, until tonight.

The Lillet website has some great ideas for using the three aperitif either on their own or in a mixed cocktail. This one appealed to us and maybe it will to you as well. For more on how to use Lillet, visit their website.

As a French company, Lillet uses the metric system. Mathematicians and purists may wish to convert metrics to US standard; I however just used the ratio of 4 Lillet Rose to 1 Gin and added a dash of Orange bitters.

Lillet Rose Reverse Martini

In a shaker filled with ice, pour

• 8cl of Lillet Rosé

• 2cl of Gin

• 2 dashes of Orange Bitters

Place all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker full of ice. Shake vigorously for 8 to 10 seconds. Pour into the glass (suggested: Coupe) using a cocktail strainer. Squeeze the orange peel to release the flavour and place in the glass.

04 July: French 75

In place of picnics and parades this year, we are staying within our bubble, so it made sense that tonight’s cocktail would include bubbles. We’ve both had several variations on The French 75, but this one I believe may be the last word. It comes from Ted Haigh’s Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails. If you want to learn the history of a cocktail, this is the book to own. Along with some terrific drinks from bygone eras (by-the-way, what exactly is a “gill”?), one can learn about the history of long lost ingredients,

So, here is our homage to the French who helped turn the tides on the Revolution - the French 75!

Ingredients:

• 2 oz gin

• 1 oz lemon juice (fresh is best)

• 1 tsp simple syrup

• champagne (we used a brut rose which gives this a nice salmon hue)

Method:

• Put a cocktail shaker in the freezer and also ice the champagne flute

• Pour gin, lemon juice and simple syrup into the shaker filled with ice. Shake for a good 30 seconds.

• Pour into an iced flute and top with champagne

• Stir gently and garnish with a long, thin lemon spiral (and a cocktail cherry if you like)

20 June: Bebbo

If you get in to the history of mixed drinks (Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails by Ted Haigh is a good start), the Bebbo is a descendent of the Bee’s Knees - a honey-infused gin drink from a hundred years ago. I like the citrus-y flavor of this gin-based cocktail, and served in a chilled coupe, it is perfect for summer evenings.

Bebbo (based on this recipe from liquor.com)

Ingredients

•  1/2 ounces London dry gin (used Tangueray, but find one you like and use it)

• 1 ounce honey syrup which is equal parts honey and water (I pre-mixed this in a shot; suggested from other sources: use orange-blossom honey)

• 3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice (no, don’t use the bottled stuff)

• 1/4 ounce fresh blood orange juice

• Garnish: lemon twist

What to do:

Fill a shaker half-way with ice. Add all of the ingredients. Shake for 30 seconds. Pour into a frosted pre-chilled coupe, add a twist of lemon for garnish.

13 June: Aperol Spritz

Has this cocktail really fallen out of favor? For me, an Aperol Spritz signals the start of summer. By definition a spritz is 3 parts bubbles to 1 part something else - in this case Aperol. With warm weather finally coming to New England, last night seemed a good time to break out the spritz.

A classic Aperol Spritz goes like this:

• Fill a glass halfway with ice cube

• Add about 3 oz. of Prosecco (or, in my case, a decent Brut Rose)

• Add 1 oz. Aperol

• Stir gently

• Top with Soda water and add an orange wheel.

That’s it. Enjoy!

07 June: The Pavan Aviation

I’ll admit it, I bought Pavan because of the cool bottle. Well, that and that champagne cocktail that included Pavan on a visit to Ma Maison in Boston.

Armed with a fairly large quantity of Pavan in our liquor cabinet, it seemed to me that I needed to figure out how to use it for more than the occasional champagne cocktail. From the resulting internet search, I discovered the Pavan Aviation, a variation on the Creme de Violette-laced original, on First Order Gin’s website. Serve in a well-chilled coupe, a perfectly easy cocktail to assemble.

Ingredients

• 1.5 oz. Gin

• 0.75 oz. Lemon Juice (fresh)

• 0.50 oz Maraschino liquor

• 0.50 oz Pavan

• Garnishes: Lemon and/or Luxardo cherry

Instruction

1. Chill the coupe glass a bit

2. Combine Pavan, Gin, Maraschino Liquor and Lemon juice in an ice-filled shaker

3. Shake for about 30 seconds

4. Strain into chilled coupe

5. Garnish

05 June: A Variation on the Queen's Cocktail

Ever since we discovered Queen Elizabeth’s fondness for a pick-me-up Dubonnet Cocktail, it’s been added into our cocktail rotation. The Queen’s cocktail is a 2 to 1 ratio, Dubonnet Rouge to a dry gin, served over ice with a twist of lemon. The Bisson version is more like a 1 to 1 ratio. We are fans of gins on the more juniper-y side, so while we have some artisanal favorite spirits, when anticipating a quarantine, we managed to buy a gigantic bottle of Tanqueray which is pretty darn good.

To change things up, last night we opened the Lillet Rose (pink) and substituted that for the Dubonnet Rouge in the Queen’s Cocktail.

It was a winner with which that I believe Her Highness would be on board.

30 May F. Stephen Millier Zinfandel 2018

Sometime around the start of the lockdowns we realized that our usual runs to get wine were going to be quite different, so we started looking into joining a wine club as one way to try new things. We had a coupon for something called Naked Wines and after researching this “club” on the Internet, decided it would be a good fit. Naked Wines has a couple of purchase levels, but the one we settled on was to sign up as an “Angel” which is a kind of crowd sourcing for small up and coming winemakers. We liked the idea of supporting new, small businesses and we also wanted to try new things.

To find out more about Naked Wines, visit their website here.

The Millier 2018 Zinfandel from Calaveras County in California (Mark Twain anyone?) is one of the most beautful deep red-purple colors I’ve seen. It starts off with the taste of a perfectly ripe juicy plum and finishes with a clove/pepper comgination. It’s a big, bold red which is exactly what I enjoy. I wouldn’t say I have a well-developed wine palate, but I know what I like when I taste , and this was a definite like.