Strawberry Julep Punch

Strawberry Julep Punch

There really isn’t anything better than sharing seasonal delights with your friends and guests — we’ve waited through a long, hard winter for ripe fruits, fresh herbs and the warm weather to enjoy them. For summer deck parties, putting everything in a bowl and allowing participants to serve themselves is the best way to go. With all this in mind, the Cocktail Vultures have a new summer punch for you. You can take care of several steps in the process earlier in the day or the night before.

Amounts for this recipe depend solely upon how big a bowl of punch you want to make. We formulated it using equal amounts of the three major ingredients. If you and your guests are lightweights, you can cut back on the bourbon a tad, but not by more than half.

Prep: Minted Bourbon

To a large glass container (a big Mason jar works great), add a few handfuls of fresh mint. Add bourbon and muddle — don’t go crazy, just press it. If you’re using a Mason jar, you can seal and shake it a bit.

Prep: Strawberry Purée

To a large saucepan, add 2 pints of hulled strawberries, 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar. Heat gently to dissolve the sugar. Muddle the strawberries lightly, then let cool and place in a blender. Blenderize until smooth. Chill in an airtight container.

Prep: Tea

Brew a quart or two (depending upon your plans) of strong, black tea, such as Irish Breakfast. Chill.

To a punch bowl, add equal amounts of minted bourbon, strawberry purée and cold tea. Toss in a few scoops of crushed ice to get the chilling started. Stir to combine. Now add a mountain of crushed ice to the center of the bowl and garnish with fresh mint and whole strawberries.

Let frosty, fruity fun prevail!

Always drink responsibly; always drink well.

Parlor Pistol

 

Parlor Pistol

We love working with new ingredients, and we love it even more when those ingredients are local to the Northeast. Recently, we stumbled across Greenhook Ginsmiths‘ new gin-based liqueur made in Brooklyn with beach plums that grow in nearby Long Island, and organic wheat from the Great State of New York. http://greenhookgin.com It has an astringent flavor with notes of hibiscus and an echo of the sloe gins that inspired its creation, as well as a higher-than-average alcohol content for a liqueur.

We put this potent little number to the test and named it the Parlor Pistol.

Parlor pistols were small, one- or two-shot guns that the Victorians used for target shooting… AT HOME! They sometimes had long rooms built into their mansions just for this purpose, hence, shooting galleries. After cocktails, dinner and wine, standing around the drawing room and taking potshots was a totally-acceptable activity for fancy society.

Oh, well. We’ll take our Parlor Pistol in a glass, please.

To an iced shaker, add:

2 ounces Greenhook Ginsmiths beach plum liqueur
1 ounce bourbon (we prefer Bulleit http://m.bulleit.com/)
.25 ounce peach liqueur (we prefer Stirrings – http://www.stirrings.com)
1 ounce freshly-squeezed orange juice

Shake vigorously and strain into a cocktail glass. Add a sprig of fresh mint, as fancy as you can find — we must be civilized when brandishing our Parlor Pistols!

Always drink responsibly; always drink well.

Old Fashioned in ChinaTown

We were comparing youthful experiences with alcohol and discovered that it was not uncommon to have your first mixed drink in a Chinese restaurant. Not a sleek, spare sushi bar or even a Szechuan café — no, it was a quasi-Polynesian Chop Suey Palace with tired décor and waiters in threadbare red jackets who didn’t ask for ID.

If we could walk back into that dark and dreamy place in the Chinatown of our youth and get behind the bar, this is the drink we’d put together. Serve it with a pu-pu platter or your next bag of take-out. Try ordering one in a good cocktail bar — we think your bartender will be intrigued when you ask for “an Old-Fashioned in Chinatown.”

To an empty shaker, add:

1 heaping teaspoon canned Mandarin Oranges
2-3 chunks canned Pineapple
2 Maraschino Cherries
1 barspoon maraschino cherry syrup
3 ounces Bourbon
1 ounce homemade ginger syrup (recipe to follow)
1 heavy dash Angostura Orange Bitters
Pinch 5 Spice Powder

Muddle well. Add ice.

Shake vigorously. Strain into an ice-filled glass. Top with club soda and stir. Garnish with a cherry and pineapple spear. Another tiny whisper of 5 Spice Powder over the top of the drink adds fragrance.

Homemade Ginger Syrup

Take a generous “hand” of unpeeled fresh ginger and chop it thoroughly — alternately, hack it up and throw it in a food processor. Measure the result and add it to a saucepan along with 1.5 times the same amount of water (for example: if you wind up with 1 cup of ginger, use 1.5 cups of water). Bring to a boil then simmer for 30 minutes.

Let cool for a minute or two, then strain and measure the remaining water (I strain mine into a large heat-worthy measuring bowl). Add an equal amount of sugar (1 cup water gets 1 cup sugar) to the warm ginger-water and keep stirring until all the sugar is dissolved. If you’re not going to use it right away, add a jot of white rum or vodka as a preservative and refrigerate. Keeps for about a week.

(Quickie-Cheat: substitute  ginger ale for the club soda in the cocktail above and leave out the ginger syrup.)

Always drink responsibly; always drink well.

The Ghosts of Manhattan

Ghosts of Manhattan

What to do with those interesting, un-oaked whiskeys hitting the market? They need taming if their flavors are to be enjoyed and not eliminated with an overabundance of sweet mixers. We took some Coppersea Raw Rye http://www.coppersea.com/blog/ and fashioned it into a dry, transparent Manhattan of sorts — cool and astringent, with an almost papery aftertaste. A couple of cocktail cherries won’t go amiss, as they add a touch of sweetness.

To an iced shaker, add:

2 ounces Coppersea Raw Rye
1 ounce Lillet Blanc
2 dashes lemon bitters

Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a few cocktail cherries.

The Haunted Orchard

Haunted Orchard

A flavorful cocktail that combines those seasonal elements — apples and cinnamon — and makes a perfect accompaniment to an evening of ghost stories and crackling logs.  Enjoy your stroll through the Haunted Orchard…

To an iced shaker, add:

2 ounces bourbon
1 ounce Fireball Whisky http://www.fireballwhisky.com
2 ounces apple cider
1/2 ounce freshly-squeezed lemon juice
2 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters

Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a twisted strip of apple peel.

The Hudson Witch, a Strega based cocktail

Hudson Witch

Strega, that sweet, herbal liqueur from Italy, was an under-utilized ingredient until the Cocktail Vultures came along. We enjoy it not only for its witchy name and origins, but for the breath of spring meadows it lends to a drink, without the bitterness of other aperitifs and amaros. This is one of the first recipes the Cocktail Vultures concocted together, and so we gave it the name of the mighty river near our homes. It was a hit at a local charity event here in Poughkeepsie, and cast its spell over a hundred costumed revelers.

To an iced shaker, add:

2 ounces bourbon
3/4 ounce Strega
3/4 ounce lime juice
1-2 dashes bitters — we prefer aged, whisky-flavored varieties

Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish with some maraschino cherries speared on a contorted twig from a spooky hollow, or just a nice plastic sword pic.

A Drink With Something In It

A DRINK WITH SOMETHING IN IT
by Ogden Nash

There is something about a Martini,
A tingle remarkably pleasant;
A yellow, a mellow Martini;
I wish that I had one at present.
There is something about a Martini,
Ere the dining and dancing begin,
And to tell you the truth,
It is not the vermouth-
I think that perhaps it’s the gin.

There is something about an old-fashioned
That kindles a cardiac glow;
It is soothing and soft and impassioned
As a lyric by Swinburne or Poe.
There is something about an old-fashioned
When dusk has enveloped the sky,
And it may the ice,
Or the pineapple slice,
But I strong suspect it’s the rye.

There is something about a mint julep.
It is nectar imbibed in a dream,
As fresh as the bud of the tulip,
As cool as the bed of the stream.
There is something about a mint julep,
A fragrance beloved by the lucky.
And perhaps it’s the tint
Of the frost and the mint,
But I think it was born in Kentucky.

There is something they put in a highball
That awakens the torpidest brain,
That kindles a spark in the eyeball,
Gliding singing through vein after vein.
There is something they put in a highball
Which you’ll notice one day, if you watch;
And it may be the soda,
But judged by the odor,
I rather believe it’s the Scotch

Then here’s to the heartening wassail,
Wherever good fellows are found;
Be its master instead of its vassal,
And order the glasses around.
For there’s something they put in the wassail
That prevents it from tasting like wicker;
Since it’s not tapioca,
Or mustard, or mocha,
I’m forced to conclude it’s the liquor.

Jumbo Julep

Jumbo Julep

When the Cocktail Vultures decide to throw a deck party, we have to ramp up those batches of booze. How do you craft a delicious Mint Julep and keep all those thirsty guests at bay?

Forget that muddler for now and put away the granulated sugar. Instead, whip up a batch of our Brown Sugar Syrup (two parts dark brown sugar to one part water http://cocktailvultures.com/2013/04/24/mint-julep-meets-brown-sugar-syrup/)
and get out your biggest shaker. Better yet a 2 quart Mason Jar.

Prep five glasses or Julep cups by packing them with crushed ice but leaving a space to insert a straw and some mint leaves as garnish.

To that great big shaker, add:

Ice cubes
A healthy handful of fresh mint leaves (Chocolate mint is our favorite variety)
10 ounces bourbon (we like the over-proof Fighting Cock http://www.heavenhill.com/brand/18 for juleps
2-3 ounces Brown Sugar Syrup
2 ounces cold water

Shake it like you mean it. You are “Ice-muddling” (a term of our creation) that mint. You’ll achieve a fresh mint flavor without any blackened, slimy chlorophyll at the bottom of your glasses.

Strain into the prepared glasses. Top with a little straight Bourbon if you want a stronger flavor.

Now fan yourself, Scarlett, because this one packs a wallop!

Always drink responsibly; always drink well.

 

 

 

The Switchblade

The Switchblade

At the end of a busy day, or when a flock of thirsty vultures descends suddenly upon your roost, it’s nice to be able to serve up a sophisticated yet two-fisted drink without ruffling your feathers. You can accomplish this easily by always keeping a supply of your own homemade sweet-and-sour mix on hand.

Sweet-and-sour is quick to prepare and can be put together while you’re prepping for other cocktails or even making a meal — hey, you’re messing up the kitchen anyway. To a clean bottle or jar, add:

One part freshly-squeezed lemon juice
One part freshly-squeezed lime juice
One part simple syrup

Shake vigorously and refrigerate. If you don’t know how long you may keep it, add a jot of vodka or white rum as a preservative. Throw it away after a week and make more. If you have more lemons than limes in hand, or vice versa, don’t sweat it — sweet-and-sour can stand a little fudging in its preparation and eventually you can adjust it to your own tastes.

Now, on to our manly cocktail!

The Cocktail Vultures love both bourbon and amaretto and have now put them together in this very American take on the Stiletto. It will nonetheless stand you in good stead when contemplating your next vendetta.

To an ice-filled shaker, add:

1.5 ounces Bourbon
1.5 ounces Amaretto
1.5 ounces sweet-and-sour
A hearty dash of Peychaud bitters

Shake vigorously and pour into a rocks glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with lemon and lime peels and add a straw.

Mint Julep meets Brown Sugar Syrup

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mint Julep season is about to begin. The Kentucky Derby coming up sooner than you think and mint growing season is about to start blooming.

We have come up with an improved sweetener for the classic Mint Julep using a staple of Southern cooking: Dark Brown Sugar.

This methodology provides for another level of depth of flavor as well as a surefire guarantee against undissolved sugar in the bottom of the cup.

Dark Brown Sugar Syrup

1 1/2 cups Dark Brown Sugar

1 cup water

5-6 good dashes of Whiskey Barrel Aged Bitters

Place sugar and water in a non-reactive saucepan and simmer until sugar is almost completely dissolved.

Remove from heat and stir until completely dissolved.

Add the bitters and when cooled to room temperature, bottle it up and keep refrigerated.