Cocktail Hacker

I’ve been making a lot of cocktails out of Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails of late, but my library runs much deeper. So, in an effort to break out of my routine a bit I perused Anvil’s drink list this morning for inspiration and made a quick list of a few I haven’t tried. If you haven’t taken a careful read of Anvil’s drink list you definitely should. It’s a who’s who (pardon the bad euphemism) of classic cocktails. In fact, most of the drinks I’ve featured here are on that list. So, it’s a good bet that if a drink is on the list, it’s good. Now for less rambling and more drinking.

From the short list of cocktails I picked the Champs Elysées to mix up. Interestingly the recipes I found for this drink are all over the board in terms of ratios. Should be very interesting sampling them all. To get us rolling I’m going to start with Robert Hess’ recipe from The Essential Bartender’s Guide.

Champs Elysées (Essential Bartender's Guide)

1 oz Brandy

1/4 oz Green Chartreuse

1 oz Lemon Juice

1 Dash Angostura Bitters

1) Combine in a shaker with ice

2) Shake and strain into chilled cocktail glass

Fellow blogger Michael Dietsch of A Dash of Bitters has a great post over at Serious Eats, Cocktail 101: How to Conduct a Spirits Tasting. This post is part of Michael’s ongoing Cocktail 101 series that introduces readers to some the fundamentals of cocktail making. They’re all worth a read, but this one is particularly timely for me.

Spirits tasting is something I do often, both alone and with friends, to sample the spirits I get for review. But, it’s also something I’d like to get a lot better at. After having attended a few guided tastings from the pros I realize that some of my practices need more rigor and I need to expand my palate. So, to get my head around tasting and fill you all in I’m going to be working up my own post in the coming weeks that talks about the process I follow and how to guide friends through a tasting. If you haven’t hosted a tasting of your own you definitely should. They’re a ton of fun and can be really eye opening. Especially if you do the tasting blind. You’ll be amazed of the effects preconceptions can have.

I can’t say that the Lucien Gaudin Cocktail really took me by surprise. Its recipe shares striking similarities with a Negroni and the flavor follows suit. All the books I checked had the same recipe and my fellow bloggers have all stuck with the same. So, not a lot to go on there. And, quite honestly, the recipe doesn’t need changing. It’s very good just the way it is. The Campari and Cointreau combine to give you a solid punch of orange flavors while the vermouth and gin bring an herbal base layer. Finally you get hit with the bitter notes Campari is most known for which round everything out. A tasty tipple to be sure.

So, the recipe is solid, let’s focus on the ingredients. I’ll start with the simple choice, Campari. Get it, drink it, be well. Moving on, let’s talk triple sec. The recipe calls for Cointreau, but all Cointreau is is a premium triple sec and, for a drink that only uses a scant 1/2 oz and lots of bold flavors you should use a good, but less expensive triple sec. My go to is Hiram Walker Triple Sec. It’s under $10 a bottle and the flavor is great.

Vemouth is also a minor player, but it’s important. Don’t go with crap, get the same dry vermouth you’d use in a Martini and you’ll be set. Finally, let’s get to my favorite topic, gin. This is a drink with super bold Campari, complex, herbal vermouth and bright orange flavors, you need a gin that can stand up. Go with something bold and juniper forward. Anything citrus forward or light is going to get stomped on. I used one of my all time favorites, Junipero. The flavor is bold but nuanced. Tanqueray or Beefeater would also work great in this recipe.

If you’re a Negroni fan and you’re looking to change things up a bit, try the Lucien Gaudin. The flavors are very similar but switched up enough to make it interesting.

Friends, Cinco de Mayo is upon us again and, while I know you don’t need help celebrating, I thought you might like some ideas on what to drink to help you celebrate. Naturally the spirit of choice that comes to mind when thinking of Mexico is tequila, so I’m going to focus this post on that. Let’s get you started with a high-level overview of the production of tequila. Now that you’ve got some background information, here are some reviews of tequilas I’ve sampled.

• Olmeca Altos
• Avion Silver
• Partida
• Espolon

The cocktails you make are going to be good so long as you choose a tequila that you like. And speaking of the cocktails, here are the two classics that I really love, the Paloma and the Margarita.

Margarita

• Classic – This is the classic recipe. Always tasty and very simple to make.
• Noon Day Sun – This is my spicy hot Margarita. Though the recipe is also great without the bitters.
• Blood Orange – Jalapeno – This recipe comes from Spice and Ice by Kara Newman. It’s a great spicy margarita that can be made up quickly.

Paloma

• Classic – Two recipes here. One with Squirt, which is traditional, and the other from all fresh ingredients. I go simple and use the soda.
• Tequila por mi Amante – Try this infused tequila in a Paloma. You’ll be happy, I swear.
• Jarritos Toronja – This version uses Mexican grapefruit soda. It’s good, but honestly, I prefer Squirt.

So those are my two standby tequila cocktails. But there is oh so much more you can do with it. I haven’t explored the many facets of crafting new cocktail recipes much, but my fellow bloggers have. In depth. Here are some links to sate your thirst.

• Rosita – Cocktail Enthusiast
• Dragon Fire – Spice and Ice
• Fresh Fruit Margaritas – The Intoxicologist
• Caballada – Trader Tiki
• Sonora Sour – Two at the Most
• Anejo Manhattan – Science of Drink
• Pinky Gonzales – The Pegu Blog
• Ruirita – A Dash of Bitters
• Blood and Gold – A Mountain of Crushed Ice
• Mexico on Fire – Dr. Bamboo
• Tequila Old Fashioned – Oh Gosh!
• Flor de Jalisco – The Cocktail Chronicles
• Acapulco – Kaiser Penguin
• Litigious Bastard – Cocktailians

And finally, should you need tequila shots, here is a good Sangrita recipe to chase them with.

• Sangrita – Jeffrey Morgenthaler

Drink up, friends. Salud!

A few years back a friend took a vacation to Mexico. Naturally, I asked that he bring back native booze. The tequila that came back was a bottle of Espolon. At that point the tequila wasn’t particularly flashy, but it was tasty. I’ve spent the last years meting it out to worthy guests and savoring each sip. Quite exciting, recently I’ve seen bottles of El Espolon appearing on the shelves here. The new bottles have a very cool Day of the Dead motif and I’ve been promised that the recipe I enjoyed has stayed the same. Here’s to hoping that’s true.

Blanco – The crystal clear blanco expression of Espolon has a bright, clean agave aroma. The flavor has elements of roasted, vegetal agave and very light smokiness. I got a light sweetness with just a touch of acidity and flavors reminiscent of stone fruits, cherry in particular. Very light hints of spice round out the flavor and the finish is short and clean.

Reposado – The reposado is a light honey color and the aroma is exceedingly subtle. It was hard for me to pick out individual aromas but I did get a bit of agave and some citrus coming through. In addition there is an interesting dry, earthiness to the aroma. The acidity remains balanced by the light sweetness. The spice flavors have intensified a bit with the addition of vanilla and caramel. Finally, the agave is still present but mellowed and blended harmoniously with the other flavors. The finish on this one is equally clean and short.

The reposado is what my friend brought back for me and I can say it’s the same delightful tequila that I’ve enjoyed these past years. Both of these tequilas have a subtler agave flavor than some others so I’d suggest you pair them simply with some lime juice and triple sec for a classic Margarita. That will let the tequila flavors shine without overpowering their delicate nature.

† The product reviewed here was provided to me as a free sample. If you’re wondering what that means check out my sample policy.