Friday Feature: The Golden Delicious

So I’m sure you’re thinking, “It’s only the first week of September, slow down with the fall recipes!” and normally I would agree, but it definitely felt like an autumn afternoon here in New England so I feel inclined to imbibe accordingly. What says fall more than a nice golden delicious apple? That’s right, nothing. So this week’s featured cocktail is the Golden Delicious.

Golden Delicious:

• 1 part Hiram Walker® Caramel Apple Liqueur
• 1 part ABSOLUT® Citron
• 1 part Sour Mix

Shake well with ice and serve up.

This recipe will also be Sunday’s feature cocktail and will serve as a toast to the Big Apple and the New York Giants! Go GMen!

Enjoy your weekend everyone!

-KJ

Friday Feature Cocktail: Fluffy Pumpkin Pie Shooters

Experimenting in the office kitchen to create the perfect seasonal Hiram Walker Cocktail

This Friday I am back in New England and back in the fall mindset. In a couple of weekends I will be getting together with some friends from college for our annual pre-Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving  Feast, and this year  I was put in charge of making “festive cocktails”. While I am much more qualified to play bartender than Iron Chef, there is still a lot of pressure that comes with providing party refreshments. To ensure I don’t ruin the whole fun of the evening, I have forced my co-workers to be my guinea pigs for the next few weeks while I test out a variety of “festive” cocktails to prepare at pre-Thanksgiving.

This first creation was inspired by one of my college roommates who is an avid baker. We all have her to thank for the wonderful desserts at pre-Thanksgiving (and for those last 5 pounds I could never shed at school).  One of her most beloved baked goods is her secret family recipe for “Fluffy Pumpkin Pie”. I am told that a Fluffy Pumpkin Pie becomes “fluffy” when some sort of whipping takes place (like I said, I’m not the baker) and this inspired me to do some “whipping” of my own to create a “Fluffy Pumpkin Pie Cocktail”.  After playing around with some recipes, I decided that this creation was better off as a shooter (it’s a little too sweet to be served as a martini), and with my co-workers’ approval I will be serving these shooters at pre-Thanksgiving.

Fluffy Pumpkin Pie Shooter (created by KJ)

• ¾ Part Hiram Walker Pumpkin Spice
• 1 Part Absolut Vanilia Vodka
• ½ Part Hiram Walker Whipped

Shake ingredients with ice. Strain into shot glass.

Enjoy and Happy Friday 🙂

-KJ

Kahlua Coffee Cream in New York

It’s just been one event after another here at Cocktail Culture—last week I had the pleasure of attending the official NY launch for the brand new Kahlua Coffee Cream. The after-work cocktail party was held at Saturdays Surf down in SoHo and featured a Calexico cart dishing out Mexican fare and a few barmen slinging Kahlua cocktails.

Mixologist Julio de Los Santos created a few signature drinks for the evening:

Kahlua Cognaccino

1 part Kahlua Coffee Cream

½ part Amaretto

1 part Martell V.S. Cognac

Combine all ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Shake and strain into a flute dusted with nutmeg.

Kahlua Mexicano

1 part Kahlua Coffee Cream

1 part Kahlua Coffee Liqueur

½ part Sambuca

Combine all ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Serve over ice in a coffee mug.

The Curious Russian

1 part Kahlua Coffee Cream

1 part Kahlua Coffee Liqueur

1 part Absolut Vanilia

Lightly shake and strain over ice in a rocks glass. Garnish with a vanilla bean.

I also tried a different take on the Curious Russian (sub Absolut Rasberi in for Vanilia) which was excellent & really enjoyed the product when added to a tall iced coffee.

Make sure and check out the wrap-up from our recent Kahlua Coffee Cream-sponsored Thursday Drink Night for more fun recipes. And remember, this product is limited edition, so get your bottle before the end of the year or you’ll be missing out. Cheers!