Campari Surprise - The Old Pal

This concoction seems far more suited to summer and ice (neither of which we have at the moment, more's the pity), but it turned out decently nonetheless. There were several variations, some of which I also mean to try and discuss in updates or comments, but this one does a good job of keeping the Campari's assertiveness while deepening it into something more interesting. The double recipe:

• 3 oz. rye whiskey
• 1-1/2 oz. Campari
• 1-1/2 oz. dry vermouth
• lemon twist

Pour the first three ingredients into an ice-filled cocktail shaker. Stir, then strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.

(FYI, Mass Effect 2 is on the TV, and the recipe for this drink is on the netbook screen.)

Comfort Drinks: The Hot Tea Toddy

I've been home sick the past couple of days and relying heavily on the Holy Trinity of cold sufferers: ginger, lemon and honey. The first I've gotten via a large pot of chicken tinola, which I've been eating over the past day and a half with garlic steamed rice. The last two have come via tea and this nighttime version, a riff on the usual hot toddy.

• 6 oz. water
• 1 teabag (I used camomile, like Peter Rabbit's mom, then switched to Sleepytime when I ran out)
• 1 oz. whiskey or bourbon (Evan Williams was fine)
• honey (1-1/2 to 2 tsp. for me)
• lemon juice (2 or so tsp. for me)

Boil water. Pour into mug and add teabag. Steep teabag for a few minutes.

Add spirits, honey and lemon juice; correct seasonings if necessary.

NOTE: Tip of the hat to John, who broke his too-long silence by posting the recipe to these wonderful bread-and-butter pickles we - well, strictly he, as I was still at work during the process - made.

Summer Drinking: Mint "Limonata"

First made these a couple of weeks ago, but kept forgetting to add the recipe (from CHOW). Substituted San Pellegrino for the soda water. Raves all around - a good combination of effervescence, sweetness and tartness (next time, I may add a squeeze or two of lemon juice to increase this).

• Crushed ice (we didn't have any, alas)
  
• 2 oz limoncello
• 1 oz. vodka
  
• 2 oz. soda water (used San Pellegrino mineral water instead)
  
• 2-3 medium mint leaves, torn in half

Put ice in a shaker-type container. Add limoncello and vodka; shake to combine.

Add soda water/sparkling mineral water to shaker and stir to combine. Pour into a rocks glass and serve topped with the torn mint leaves.

Rhubarb-Rosemary Daiquiri

I'm not normally a fan of sweet drinks, but this recipe seemed intriguing (and my last experiment with rhubarb turned out well). It was a perfect lounge-in-the-park drink for the July 4th weekend - sweet but not cloyingly so, with the woodsy taste of the rosemary and the sharp tang of the lemon adding levels of complexity. (Thanks, idogcow!)

• 2 1/4 cups water, divided
• 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp. sugar, divided
  
• 1/2 cup rosemary leaves
• 3 cups rhubarb, cut into 1/2 in. cubes
• 6 tbsp. lemon juice, divided
• 1 1/2 cups white rum

Bring 1 cup water and 2 tablespoons sugar to a simmer, stirring often. Remove from heat; add 1/2 cup rosemary leaves. Let steep 5 minutes. Strain, pressing on rosemary; discard rosemary. Let cool 1 hour.

Place rhubarb, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 1/4 cups water, and 1/2 cup sugar in blender. Process until coarse puree forms. Strain through fine-mesh sieve into medium bowl. Use your hands & squeeze rhubarb pulp to release as much liquid as possible through sieve; discard pulp. Cover and chill rosemary syrup and rhubarb juice separately at least 4 hours and up to 2 days. [Note: The longer steeping time really does help - the rhubarb mixture developed a deeper, more complex flavor.]

Mix rosemary syrup, rhubarb juice, remaining 5 tablespoons lemon juice, and rum in pitcher. Serve over ice, garnished with rosemary sprigs and lemon twists.

French 75

The weekend was warm and sunny, and so - though the ground was still damp - my thoughts turned immediately to summery cocktails. This one (via CHOW) sounded good, though expediency led me to use the recipe in the comments (reproduced below) instead of the main one. They turned out well, if rather undistinguished; I suspect they'll become more of a favorite as the weather warms and the garden patch needs additional tending. Next time, I'll probably try the bitters-and-sugar cube version, too - that might add a bit more character to it.

• 4 oz. champagne or sparkling wine
• 1/4 oz. gin (Tanqueray was fine)
• 1/4 0z. Cointreau
• 1/4 oz. freshly-squeezed lemon juice

Combine everything in a glass. Stir, and serve (orange rind garnish optional).

Wild Blossom

It's the first day of spring! That and the blooming cherry blossoms across the street put me in mind of this recipe, which won the New York Department of Consumer Affairs' third Sidewalk Cafe Drink Mix-Off (and which we drank a fair amount of last summer).

• 2 oz. Plymouth gin (I used Hendricks once and Tanqueray another time; both were fine)
• 3/4 oz. St. Germain elderflower liqueur
• 3/4 oz. grapefruit juice
• 1 oz. cranberry juice
• grapefruit twist or wedge, to garnish, optional

Combine all ingredients (save the optional garnish, of course) in an ice-filled cocktail shaker.

Shake well, then pour into a glass. Garnish, if you like.

The Bitter Heiress

While I am neither bitter nor an heiress, this recipe (NY Times) sounded intriguing. Plus I got to set something on fire. Alas, when we tried these out last weekend, all I managed to do was produce some citrusy-smelling charred bits. Both Kate (who I first made it for on Friday night) and John (who tried it on Saturday) were much better at successfully getting some of the oil to spatter. The drink itself is quite good - the sharp, bitter Campari contrasts nicely with the vaguely herbal smoothness of the Lillet and the sweet tang of the orange juice. The recipe, with my annotations, follows.

• 3 oz. Lillet
• 1 oz. orange juice (they ask for fresh-squeezed, but I've only tried this with oj-from-a-carton so far)
• a good splash of Campari (anywhere from 1/2 to 1 tbsp. )
• 2 pieces of orange peel

Put all the liquids in an ice-filled shaker and mix till the shaker's surface begins to frost over. Pour into a chilled glass. (Our prep work wasn't nearly as fancy, but the drinks turned out well nonetheless.)

Hold a piece of orange peel about 3 in. from the surface of the drink, with the orange bit facing it. Strike a match or a lighter flint and hold the flame between the peel and the drink. Squeeze the peel towards the flame in order to send a spray of citrus oil along the drink's surface.

Garnish with the other orange peel.

Benedictine Qui Venit: The Frisco

I've a taste for whiskey- and bourbon-based drinks, and I like trying new liqueurs, so this recipe (courtesy of Serious Eats) was an excuse to acquire a new bottle of straight Kentucky rye (the cheap and serviceable Old Overholt) and to purchase my first-ever bottle of Benedictine. After I got the proportions right (one taster referred to my first attempt as a "lemony snickett"), the resulting concoction was something like a tangier, less sweet hot toddy. Quite a bit more complex, thanks to the Benedictine, but more like a mood drink than a regular presence at the table. Perhaps some judicious jiggering with proportions will produce something even better. And now that I have most of a bottle of Benedictine, I can start experimenting with more drinks that feature it.

Recipe reproduced below, with my approximations:

• 2 oz. whiskey
• 3/4 oz. Benedictine (1 tbsp. and a bit)
  
• 3/4 oz. lemon juice (when lazy, which is pretty much always, I just call this the squeezings from 1/4 of a lemon)

If you're being all fancy, combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake for about 10 seconds, then pour into a chilled glass. Or you can just throw everything in and stir, the way the iceless needs must.

Dreaming of Summer - Le Petit Hiboux

I first read about Lillet in Thomas Harris' Hannibal; the title character serves it with a slice of orange after dinner. It does make a nice aperitif - even when you haven't been dining on the brains of your beloved's enemy beforehand. This cocktail (via CHOW), the product of The Little Owl restaurant in Brooklyn, is a simple, easy but lovely drink. It was - and will probably be, once the weather warms up again - one of the staples of our weekend "lawn" lounging.

• 2 ounces Pinot Blanc or New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc
• 2 ounces Lillet Blanc
• 2 ounces apple juice

Pour all ingredients into an ice-filled glass and stir.

Touch of Evil

I came across this recipe (the work of San Francisco mixologist Jacqueline Patterson) at CHOW; it inspired my first foray into simple syrups. The result is a wicked, complex, deceptively innocent-tasting drink - a femme fatale disguised as a cheery Southern coed.

Incidentally, rhubarb is one of the recommended substitutes for tamarind in some sinegang recipes.

• 3 parts Bulleit bourbon
• 2 parts rhubarb syrup (recipe follows below)
  
• 1 part freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 dash absinthe (they recommend St. George, but note that Kubler is acceptable)
  
• ice
• 1 lemon twist
• mint leaf, crushed

Combine bourbon, syrup, lemon juice and absinthe in an ice-filled shaker. Shake, then strain into a glass.

Garnish with lemon twist and mint leaf. (Alternately, you can muddle another mint leaf in the glass.)

Rhubarb Syrup (makes 1 and 1/2 cups)

• 5 ounces rhubarb, washed and cut into 1/2-inch chunks (about 1 cup)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 cups water

Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan and stir. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to low. Simmer until rhubarb is falling apart and color has bled into the syrup, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Remove from heat. Strain and discard rhubarb solids. Let syrup cool to room temperature, then transfer to a resealable container and store in the refrigerator.

Dreaming of Summer - Poste's Basil Lemontini

After I discovered this drink while having oysters with John at Poste, it promptly became a mainstay of our weekend "lawn" (i.e., the park across from our apartment building) layabouts. I first found the recipe here (PDF warning!), but am reproducing it below for ease of reference.

• 3 oz. vodka (the original recipe calls for Absolut Citron, but Svedka Citron works just as well)
• 3 oz. lemonade
• 1 oz. sparkling wine
• 3 basil leaves

Muddle two basil leaves in the bottom of a cocktail shaker (or in the glass itself, if you're being low-ren efficient).

Add vodka and lemonade.

Strain into a glass (or not, if you're already there).

Top with sparkling wine and garnish with a basil leaf.