Libation Lab » cocktail http://www.libationlab.com The online guide to booze education and cocktail experimentation Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:09:47 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Holiday Cocktail Party in Vermont (with Hot Punch Recipe) http://www.libationlab.com/holiday-cocktail-party-in-vermont-with-hot-punch-recipe/ http://www.libationlab.com/holiday-cocktail-party-in-vermont-with-hot-punch-recipe/#comments Fri, 04 Dec 2009 01:57:28 +0000 Quinn http://www.libationlab.com/?p=3924 I’ve been tasked with bringing my cocktail knowledge back to Vermont this month, where I can attest, a good drink is scarcer than hen’s teeth, as they say in the Northeast, and finding a bottle of Fernet Branca is harder ]]> I’ve been tasked with bringing my cocktail knowledge back to Vermont this month, where I can attest, a good drink is scarcer than hen’s teeth, as they say in the Northeast, and finding a bottle of Fernet Branca is harder than Chinese algebra (another favorite Vermont colloquialism).  My parents have asked me to play bartender at their holiday party, because their friends recently decided they all need a libation education. I’m up to the challenge, but they just made it tougher than boiled owl (I’ll just start putting these gems in italics) by letting the guest list soar into the 30s.  So, while they all stand around chewing the rag (making smalltalk), I’ll be pouring a full spectrum of classic and contemporary cocktails. Making each by hand would be pretty rough sledding, but I think I’ll make a warm rum punch and batch a set of five or six great drinks with a menu on the bar.  I reckon most will order off the menu and save me a frog hair more time to mingle and chat.

I wish I could transmit what a surreal experience I expect this to be, but you flatlanders (people from anywhere outside Vermont, regardless of topography) just wouldn’t understand.

Fireplace Punch

This punch recipe is for my mother, who is sweet as apple cider, as they say.

10 clementines
1/3 cup whole cloves
1 750-ml bottle Puerto Rican rum
1/3 cup sugar
4  cinnamon sticks
1/2 gallon Cold Hollow apple cider

Stud the clementines with cloves and bake at 350 until they get soft. In a large stock pot over the low heat, stir to combine the rum and sugar, then add the cinnamon and clementines. Set it aflame (this is not a backhanded tribute to my mother’s cooking) and very slowly pour in the cider, which will eventually put out the fire.  Serve in a mug with a dollop of Ben and Jerry’s vanilla ice cream and a dusting of freshly grated nutmeg.

]]> http://www.libationlab.com/holiday-cocktail-party-in-vermont-with-hot-punch-recipe/feed/ 4 BLTini: Bestialized Little Tipple http://www.libationlab.com/bltini/ http://www.libationlab.com/bltini/#comments Thu, 27 Aug 2009 22:51:56 +0000 Quinn http://blog.nermo.com/?p=2893 Inspired by the Carnivorous Cocktails seminar at Tales of the Cocktail, I started Sunday brunch with the BLTini, a sandwich in a glass.

I like my BLTs on potato bread, so I opted for vodka over gin, squeezed the bejeezus ]]> Inspired by the Carnivorous Cocktails seminar at Tales of the Cocktail, I started Sunday brunch with the BLTini, a sandwich in a glass.

I like my BLTs on potato bread, so I opted for vodka over gin, squeezed the bejeezus out of a gorgeous heirloom tomato, then decided that lettuce was lame and so opted for basil as an aromatic garnish.

makinbaconTip: bacon is best for this purpose when crispy, flat and most of the fat has been rendered off, so I devised this little trick.  Lay raw bacon in a hot pan and then put a Pyrex baking dish on top, pressing the bacon flat while it cooks. Creates perfect cocktail bacon.

bltini

BLTini

  • 2 ounces vodka (plain or citrus)
  • 2 ounces tomato water (see note)
  • 1 dash dry vermouth
  • 1 piece crispy bacon
  • 1 basil leaf

Shake vodka, tomato water and vermouth with ice to chill and strain into a chilled martini glass.  Stir with bacon, and literally clap once with the basil leaf on your palm to release the aromatic oils before floating it in the glass.

Note: to make tomato water I diced the tomato, wrapped it in cheese cloth and squeezed out as much liquid as I could.  When my hand got tired, I put the whole pulpy package into a citrus squeezer, extracted the rest and filtered the tomato water through a fine mesh strainer.  A medium-large heirloom yields about 2 ounces of juice, less than you will get with a roma of comparable size.

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