Let the St. Patrick’s Day celebrations begin!

It seems that St. Patrick’s Day celebrations are not limited to March 17^th anymore. As soon as the calendar reads March 1, the green, white and orange flags and posters take over the inside of bars and restaurants, and pub crawls and parades take over city streets. Being half Irish, I have no problem making St. Paddy’s a month long celebration, because let’s face it; the Irish know how to have a good time. From now until March 17 I want to help spread the word that there are other festive Irish drinks out there beside green beer (although I do have to admit that I have had my fair share of green colored concoctions).

Most St. Paddy’s parades and pub crawls start during the morning hours or early afternoon, so drinks incorporating coffee or coffee flavors are always a great choice for the first cocktail of the day. With the coffee theme in mind the first St. Patrick’s cocktail to be featured is:

The Irish Coffee Cooler- photo courtesy of the Pernod Ricard USA Recipe Database

Irish Coffee Cooler

• 1.25 parts Jameson Irish Whiskey
• 1 part Espresso Syrup
• 2 parts Half & Half

Shake vigorously and strain into glass with ice.

If (or when) you attend these pub crawls, parties and parades always remember to drink responsibly! St. Patrick’s Day celebrations are always MUCH more enjoyable when celebrated in moderation 🙂

-KJ

Friday Feature Cocktail: Hot Toddy

Hiram Walker Hot Cinn Apple Toddy

It is now 2013 and so far all the New Year has brought me is a new pesky cold that does not want to leave me alone. Luckily, it’s Friday and I plan to enjoy some rest and relaxation all weekend long. I also plan to enjoy a nice Hot Toddy to soothe my throat from the lovely coughing that won’t seem to stop. My grandmother always suggested drinking a Hot Toddy as a cure for the cold, and right now I’m willing to try anything, especially if it’s a cocktail!

For a traditional Hot Toddy here is a Jameson Hot Toddy recipe, courtesy of JamesonWhisky.com

• 3 parts Jameson
• 2 parts lemon juice
• 1 part honey
• 4 parts hot water
• 2-3 cloves
• Lemon slice

Method: Pour all ingredients into a mug or glass with a handle, stir until the honey is dissolved, drop in the cloves and garnish with a thin slice of lemon.

For a sweeter spin on the classic Hot Toddy you can try out a Hot Cinn Apple Toddy:

• 1 ½ parts Bourbon
• 1 ½ parts Hiram Walker Original Cinn Schnapps
• 1.2 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tsp agave nectar
• Hot apple cider
• Green apple slice dipped in hot caramel or cinnamon stick for garnish

Pour the bourbon, schnapps and lemon juice into an Irish coffee glass or mug. Stir well. Fill with hot apple cider. Garnish with the green apple or a cinnamon stick.  

As a disclaimer I would like to point out to you all that I am not doctor (nor am I even close to being a doctor) and if you really are sick I always recommend seeking professional advice. Also, if you are already taking any cold medicine to remedy your cold, I do not recommend mixing those cold medicines with alcohol!!!

Hope you have a happy and healthy weekend!

Enjoy 🙂

-KJ

St. Patrick’s Day Cocktails – The Shooters!

If you’ve lasted this long into St. Patrick’s Day and are still looking for recipes, well, congratulations to you! In honor of your commitment to celebrating the holiday with a delicious cocktail or two, here are a few last recipes for finishing off  the day. These shooter recipes are great to share among friends, so be sure to multiply the recipe ratio to have enough to go around.

Peach Toast:

• 1 part Jameson® Irish Whiskey
• 1 1/2 parts Hiram Walker® Peach Schnapps
• 5 parts Cranberry Juice

Combine all ingredients in a shaker. Shake and strain into shot glasses. Serve each with a lime wedge.

Irish Spy:

• 2 Parts Jameson
• 1 Part Becherovka

 Stir with ice and serve as a shot.

Here’s to one more “Slainte”!
SJ

St. Patrick’s Day cocktails – Round 2

Nobody said it was easy being green. So why resort to food coloring to accessorize your St. Patrick’s Day cocktails? Here are a few other suggestions for St. Paddy’s drinks of a different color. Enjoy!

Jameson Irish Apple (pictured):
1 part Jameson® Irish Whiskey
1 part Hiram Walker® Sour Apple Schnapps
3 parts Cranberry Juice

Combine ingredients in a glass with ice. Garnish with an apple slice.

 

Red Dawn:
1 ½ oz. Jameson® Irish Whiskey
1 ¼ oz. fresh strawberry puree
½ oz. fresh lemon juice
¼ oz. Agave nectar
3 mint leaves

In a tall mixing glass place two mint leaves.  Add Jameson, strawberry puree, lemon juice and agave nectar.  Add ice and shake vigorously.  Strain into a pre-chilled martini glass and garnish with a single mint leaf.

Slainte!
SJ

St. Patrick’s Day cocktails – Round 1

Set the green beer aside! The Irish Apple Sour is a great St. Patrick's Day cocktail, complete with Jameson Irish Whiskey, Hiram Walker Sour Apple and Ginger Ale.

The old adage goes that everybody is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day. I say that is even more when a Jameson beverage is in hand! Here are some great recipes from Jameson and Hiram Walker that will help swing your St. Paddy’s celebration into full motion. I’d love for you to share your favorite St. Patrick’s Day cocktail recipes with me, too, by leaving a message in the comments below.

Irish Apple Sour (pictured above)

1 part Jameson® Irish Whisky
1½ parts Hiram Walker® Sour Apple Schnapps
5 parts Ginger Ale

Serve over ice in tall glass, garnish with lemon wedge.

Irish Applesauce
1 1/2 parts Jameson® Irish Whiskey
1/2 part Hiram Walker® Caramel Apple Liqueur
1/2 part Ginger Liqueur
Squeeze fresh lemon juice

Build over ice in a rocks glass. Squeeze lemon and drop fruit into the drink.

Irish Rover

1 ½ oz. Jameson®

1 ½ oz. POMWonderful® Pomegranate Juice

½ oz. fresh grapefruit juice

¼ oz. fresh lime juice

1/8 oz. honey syrup

Grapefruit twist

In a tall mixing glass combine Jameson with POM, grapefruit juice, lime juice and honey.  Add ice and shake vigorously.  Strain into a pre-chilled martini glass.  Garnish with a wide grapefruit twist.

Look back to Cocktail Culture for more recipes as we continue the countdown to St. Patrick’s Day 2012!

Slainte!
SJ

Today, everyone’s a bit Irish

Top o’ the morning on this finest of national holidays! Though if you are in the serious spirit of celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, you maybe have been up for a few hours already chowing down on corned beef hash and eggs and, dare I say it, even throwing back a pint or two.

But for those of you who are not fans of Green Beer, there are many cocktail options incorporating Ireland’s beloved brown spirit.

While the Irish Coffee (I like this recipe from Imbibe) and other highballs may be more go-to drinks, I plan to incorporate my Jameson today into this cocktail recipe from Hiram Walker, the Irish Appletini.

Irish Appletini

• 2 parts Jameson Irish Whiskey
• 1 part Hiram Walker Sour Apple Schnapps
• Top with Ginger Ale

Shake whiskey and schnapps in a shaker with ice and strain into a martini glass. Top with ginger ale and garnish with a green apple slice.

Slainte!
SJ

Whiskey Sour Variations

Labor Day and – dare I speak its name – autumn are right around the corner. My past weekend of SUN, SUN, and SUN has shifted to gloom and rain and took a major temperature dip in my corner of New England.

However, I’m not quitting on you yet, summer. And the celebration of National Whiskey Sour Day is the perfect cocktail to keep me in the spirit. The Sour in general has been my go-to drink this summer, perfect for patio drinks and dining. I’ve explored mixing it in a multitude of base spirits: brandies, orange liqueurs, and bourbons have been among the major players.

Today, with a company end-of-summer picnic as the backdrop, I’m feeling the mood has been set to try a Jameson Whiskey Sour.

Jameson Whiskey Sour (recipe from Bar None Drinks)
2 parts Jameson Irish Whiskey
1 dash Bitters
1 part Egg White
1/2 part Lemon Juice
1/3 part Simple Syrup

Pour ingredients into a cocktail shaker and shake over ice. Strain into a rocks glass and garnish with an orange twist. (I personally enjoy a cherry or two thrown in as well)

What other whisk(e)y varieties and/or recipe ratios do you use when making the perfect Whiskey Sour? I’d love to hear your feedback!

Cheers!

SJ

If these walls could talk…

If you’ve been to New York (or, for that matter, any other major U.S. city) anytime recently, you’ve probably noticed that ads are everywhere! Much more than before, ads are popping up in truly unconventional spaces across the city, as brands try to get their message heard above all the noise. So, it’s no huge surprise then that Jameson Whiskey has started to advertise by projecting images on the sides of large buildings. Impressive ads, several stories high are showing up across New York and Los Angeles this month as Jameson begins this innovative campaign. What’s so innovative about it? Well…the walls are talking…

 

Ok, maybe they’re not “talking” per se, but they are communicating—with passers-by in real time. Imagine approaching a huge ad on the side of a building with a message that says “Hey you! Yes you, in the blue shirt.” It might just grab your attention, huh?

 

Copy-writers will be engaging people, whom they can see via camera, by communicating to them in real time—very cool. Wouldn’t you love to be behind that camera, watching people’s faces contort with confusion as they realize the ad is talking to them? I can imagine the stages in this process.

 

1. The unenthused passer-by quickly glances at yet another ad on the busy New York City streets.
2. Passer-by slows to a stop to contemplate why the ad’s text “Hey You” is so random. “How’s that supposed to sell Jameson?” passer-by will think to self.
3. After ad types “Yes, you,” passer-by will point to self and look around to see if anyone else is noticing.
4. After ad types something more detailed like “you, in the blue shirt,” passer-by will look at his/her shirt to confirm that it is, indeed, blue.
5. A look of shock followed by goofy smiling and unbelievable laughter will follow, while the passer-by attempts to tell everyone around about what is going on.
6. A crowd gathers to join in the fun and everyone is late for work. It’s ok, it was worth it.