Sunday Cocktail

The highly underrated Vieux Carre

Published by admin on Wed, 02/28/2018 - 9:00am

    Mardi Gras 2018 is in the books and surely by now the French Quarter is free of plastic Hurricane glasses, beads, masks and who knows what else.
    At midnight sharp on Fat Tuesday the local mounted patrol ceremoniously clears the streets of the French Quarter marking the official end to Mardi Gras and the beginning of the Lenten season.
    I would estimate that by volume the most consumed cocktails of the Mardi Gras season are the Hurricane, followed by the Pimm's Cup, and coming in third is the Sazerac.

The Grasshopper, a guilty pleasure

Published by admin on Wed, 02/21/2018 - 9:00am

    The Grasshopper is back. This minty dessert in a glass never officially went away, but it has a new lease on life thanks to an ice cream sundae makeover courtesy of America's Dairyland.
    Early versions of the Grasshopper began to take shape around the turn of the 20th century, but the first cream-based version is credited to New Orleans bartender Philibert Guichet circa 1919.

Hot Buttered Rum to warm your bones on a cold day

Published by admin on Wed, 02/14/2018 - 9:00am

    The holidays may be behind us, but officially we have over one full month of winter remaining. Unofficially, we could have closer to two months of winter remaining.
    There is no time like the present to whip up some warming drinks, and there is nothing quite as warming as a good Hot Buttered Rum to warm your bones on a cold winter day.
    What exactly is Hot Buttered Rum? It's exactly what the name implies. It's hot, contains rum and achieves a wonderful smooth texture when melted butter is added.

The Electric Shark - a spiced rum cocktail

Published by admin on Wed, 02/07/2018 - 9:00am

    Spiced rum is here to stay, much to the chagrin of rum purists everywhere. Leading spiced rum brands, Captain Morgan, Sailor Jerry and Kraken, make up a large percentage of both U.S. rum sales and overall U.S. liquor sales both in the retail setting and in bar service.
    After a 30-plus year audition, the American cocktail community has finally embraced spiced rum to the point that even high-end bar menus now include cocktails made from Captain Morgan and Sailor Jerry.

The Rosita, a little known tequila cocktail

Published by admin on Wed, 01/31/2018 - 9:00am

    What do you get when you cross a Margarita with a Negroni? At some unknown date in an undetermined location someone added tequila to Campari and vermouth launching one of the great cult classic cocktails, the Rosita.
    Little is known about the origin of the Rosita, but kudos to Greg Boehm for keeping the recipe alive in the various printings of his cocktail guide, “Mr. Boston Official Bartender's Guide.”
    Outside of the Margarita, Paloma and Tequila Sunrise there are very few mainstream tequila cocktails. There are a few reasons for this.

Spice up your life with a Bloody Mary

Published by admin on Wed, 01/24/2018 - 9:00am

    What is your favorite Bloody Mary mix? That is a question that I receive perhaps more than any other cocktail-related question.
    While there are plenty of quality mixes on the market I cannot answer the question because I do not use a prepared mix in my Bloody Mary. A Bloody Mary mix is more or less tomato juice, spice and preservatives.
    In a sense, we make our own mix when we make a Bloody Mary from scratch by adding spice to the tomato juice.

The Old Fashion, Wisconsin's “unofficial-official” state cocktail

Published by admin on Wed, 01/17/2018 - 9:00am

    When Don Draper poured an Old Fashioned during an early episode of Mad Men, he may as well have poured one for the entire country.
    The series set in mid-century America almost single handedly reignited our thirst for the forgotten favorite.  As the food and wine press began a love affair with the forgotten cocktail, the State of Wisconsin was laughing at the rest of us.

A new spin on the Piña Colada

Published by admin on Wed, 01/10/2018 - 9:00am

    The beginning of the year is typically not the time that many of us make any sizeable purchases, minus a few after Christmas sales. The cruise industry knows this and will make every effort to get you onto a cruise between now and spring break.
    The early part of the year is known as “wave season” and dollar for dollar is perhaps the best time of year to book a cruise. Incentives include reduced fares, cabin upgrades, and if you're lucky, drink vouchers.

Hot Whiskey for a cold winter night

Published by admin on Wed, 01/03/2018 - 9:00am

    Happy New Year. The year 2017 may be gone, but winter is far from over. There is still plenty of time for you to enjoy winter cocktails while relaxing by an evening fire, or perhaps looking through a foggy window wondering if you had promised to shovel the sidewalk “next time.”
    This time of year social media newsfeeds are full of Hot Toddy recipes ranging from less is more to full-blown Clark Griswold Christmas.

Ring in the new year with a champagne cocktail

Published by admin on Wed, 12/27/2017 - 9:00am

    Happy National Champagne Day, everyone. According to research done by WalletHub, approximately 360 million glasses of champagne will be consumed on  National Champagne Day, also known as New Year's Eve. Odds are that you plan to take a sip of bubbly as you watch the ball drop in Times Square.