Leavin’ on a Jet Plane

Hello Kind Readers!

 

Just wanted to drop a little note in here and say I’ll be away for the next couple days—I’m flying out to Seattle for a Beefeater-sponsored Thursday Drink Night & it’s my first time visiting the West Coast! Very exciting! Lucky me, I’m going to be joining Paul Clarke of Cocktail Chronicles, Stevi Deter of Two at the Most, Robert Hess of Drinkboy, and Jamie Boudreau of Spirits & Cocktails at Vessel to try out some TDN cocktails live.

 

What’s that? You’ve not heard of Thursday Drink Night? Where were you when Sandeman Port sponsored? Rick over at Kaiser Penguin does a pretty good job of describing it.

 

I’ll be taking off with this super-swanky Beefeater spy kit. Actually, it’s a botanicals briefcase and holds the ingredients used in Beefeater gin including juniper, lemon peel, and Seville orange peel. Now all I need is a handcuff for this puppy and I’ll really be turning heads.

 

Join in on the fun tomorrow night, starting at 7pm EST in the Mixoloseum Bar. Just click through, create a username and password, enter the chat room and introduce yourself! We’d love to see you there!

 

 

 

 

Drink O’ The Irish

Top o’ the mornin’ to ya & Happy St. Patrick’s Day, readers. With a last name like Harrigan, you can bet I like to enjoy a few St. Patty’s Day cocktails with my corned beef & cabbage on March 17^th.

 

Ok, so I’m not really Irish—the name’s Armenian actually, and was changed from Harrigian to Harrigan when my family arrived in America. But I feel, since I was taunted and tortured with the following song for the majority of my childhood, I should get to reap the benefits of an Irish-sounding last name:

 

 

After all, everybody’s got a little Irish in them on St. Patty’s Day. Get in touch with your Celtic roots with a few tasty (and green, of course) cocktails this eve. Cheers!   

 

The Ugly Leprechaun

 

1 ½ oz. Vodka

½ oz. Jameson Irish Whiskey

½ oz. Hiram Walker Melon Liqueur

¼ oz. Fresh Lime Juice

½ oz. Simple Syrup

2 oz. Kiwi Puree

Lime wheel for garnish

 

Chill a large cocktail glass. Shake ingredients with ice in a shaker. Strain into chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a lime wheel.

 

Grasshopper

 

¾ oz. Cream

¾ oz. Hiram Walker Crème de Cacao, white

¾ oz. Hiram Walker Crème de Menthe, green

 

Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with chocolate cookie crumbs.

 

Irish Cooler

 

1 ½ oz. Absinthe

½ oz. Peppermint Schnapps

½ oz. Cream

 

Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Stir. Serve over ice in a rocks glass.

Triple Sec Makes the World Go Round

It’s true—triple sec is vital to any respectable home bar and is required to make many a wonderful cocktail. I bought my first bottle of triple sec to use in margaritas but soon after found there are so many more uses for this wonderful ingredient—that citrus punch and touch of sweetness can really help to balance a good drink out.

 

One question I’ve gotten quite often is—what’s the difference between Triple Sec and Curacao? Good question, as the two are similar in many ways and can be used interchangeably in some cocktails (well…at least I think so). Triple Sec is an orange-flavored liqueur, while Curacao is “flavored with the dried peels of the laraha citrus fruit on the island of Curacao.” I don’t find much of a difference in taste myself, but tend to lean toward Triple Sec, since more of the recipes I’m interested in call for it.

 

Another common question—what is the difference between Triple Sec, Cointreau, and Grand Marnier? Grand Marnier and Cointreau are both brands of Triple Sec (some people will debate this). The difference you’ll find with Grand Marnier is that it’s cognac-based. So while they are certainly not the same, they fall within the category of orange-flavored liqueur.

 

One major difference is price. Grand Marnier will usually set you back about $40 (at least around these parts) and Cointreau costs about $30 for a 750ml bottle. I have a bottle of Grand Marnier at home that I use on occasion but find Hiram Walker’s Triple Sec to work just fine in most cocktails—it’s still a good quality product and usually only costs about $10, which is nice since we’re all watching our wallets closely these days.

 

Now, of course, I must leave you with a wonderful cocktail recipe to use your triple sec in. Cheers!

 

Acapulco (Thank you, CocktailDB)

 

1 ½ oz. Light Rum

½ oz. Fresh Lime Juice

¼ oz. Triple Sec (I used Hiram Walker)

½ egg white

½ tsp sugar

 

Shake ingredients thoroughly in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a mint sprig.