Shamrock Yo Face!

Dia duit Team!

Well St. Patrick's day is here and I thought that a great way to celebrate would be with a whiskey based cocktail.

I used the classic Emerald cocktail recipe for this drink; if you are a big fan of whiskey defiantly give this one a try

2 oz of premium Irish whiskey
1/2 oz of sweet vermouth
1/2 oz of sweetened lime juice

Shake all ingredients and serve up or on the rocks!

Slainte!

PS: Notice those wine cork coasters? A friend of mine is handcrafting them; let me know if you are interested!

The Arrogant Mule

This weeks post is a take on the classic Moscow Mule.

My brother in law Jason gave me a set of mule mugs for the holidays. Of course that meant making a nice custom cocktail that matched up with the season and style of these mugs! The traditional Moscow Mule is made with vodka. Vodka is not Jay's favorite spirit, so he challenged me to create a cocktail that still has the flair of a Moscow Mule with a different base liquor. And so the Arrogant Mule was born.

2 ounces of bathtub gin (any higher quality gin will work as well)
1 ounce of ginger liqueur
4 ounces of ginger beer
garnish with rosemary

Simply shake the gin and ginger liqueur with ice then pour in ginger beer to finish.

Cheers!

Spiked Hot Cocoa

There is nothing better on a cold snowy day then a nice mug of hot chocolate. 

I like to add in a little bit of extra "flavor" to spice things up a bit. 

Try these two recipes out for yourself; also here is a neat trick to make froth milk in the microwave.

His Hot Cocoa: 

1 ounce of Peppermint Schnapps 

8 ounces of hot cocoa

Garnished with shaved chocolate 

Her Hot Cocoa:

1 ounce of Chambord 

8 ounces of hot cocoa 

Garnished with crushed frozen raspberries 

Also check out Colleen's blog for some great dessert recipes! 

Warm Mulled Wine

Hello Everyone,

Well fall is officially here and that means it's time for some mulled wine. This recipe is dedicated to a great couple who recently celebrated their wedding. Nick and Kristina this one is for you!

Recipe:

6 cups of Apple Cider

3 cups of Red wine (I used a Shiraz)

2 ounces of Vanilla Vodka

2 ounces of Apricot Brandy

2 ounces of Spiced Rum

2 ounces of Apple Brandy

Spices: Stick Cinnamon, Whole Star Anise, Whole Clove, Whole All Spice and Sugar.

1/2 navel orange cut into wedges

Start by lightly toasting your spices in a pot or slow cooker. Then slowly pour in you apple cider, red wine, liquors and orange wedges. Allow everything to marry over a very low flame or the lowest setting on your slow cooker. The secret of this recipe is to not allow the temperature to get too high; doing so will "break" the cider souring the flavor. Once everything is going for 10 minuets add in your sugar to taste. Add wedges of orange and apple to the glasses before serving if desired.

More warming drink recipes on the way; stay tuned!

The Black Russian

Heya Team,

I am back with another great cocktail. For years I've heard this whenever I go out to dinner with my parents, "Sir would you like to order a cocktail?" "Yes a Black Russian." This is my father's drink so much so I think they should rename it the John Russian! For this version I decided to make a few changes to the classic recipe.

2 ounces of Kahlua
1 ounce of Vanilla Vodka
1 ounce of Cake or Whipped Vodka

The great thing with this drink is that you can play with the amount of vodka to change the drink from sweet to dry. Also have fun with your presentation; I made this with some amaretto infused cherries and served it up instead of on the rocks!

Until next week!

Lindsay's Fall Classic

Hi Everyone,

A few weeks ago I asked a few friends and family members for ideas for a new cocktail. Here is the result! Evan's sister Lindsay asked for the ideal fall drink. During our conversation (with some help from Lindsay's older sister Jen) we decided on something with apples and pears; here is the result.

1 ounce pear vodka
1 ounce apple brandy
splash of spiced rum
splash of caramel vodka
2 ounces of apple juice
2 ounces of pear nectar

Shake everything and pour into a rocks glass over ice; garnish with a cinnamon stick.

The idea with this cocktail is to ring in the fall with something that will have you thinking about the changing leaves and flavors of the season. The rum and cinnamon stick will bring in the spicy essence of fall, while the pear, apple and caramel evoke your favorite fall memories.  To capture the spicy essence of the fall make sure to use spiced rum rather than light or dark rum in this cocktail.

Evan's KCCO Bomb

Hi Team,

Alright so we all know that guy; the one who will always get everyone to do an Irish Car Bomb. For our group that great guy is my wife's cousin Evan. Once again this drink was issued as a challenge so here we go: Evan this one is for you!

I wanted to make something that held a close relationship to the original drink, but added something more to change up the flavor profile. The first thing that I changed was the beer. Normally you would use Guinness but for this I decided on the new KCCO black lager (if you can't find you can use another stout or black lager) which really has a great flavor profile on it's own. Check out the recipe below:

Shot #1
Kahlua 1/2 ounce
Godiva Chocolate Liqueur 1/2 ounce

Shot #2
Jameson 1/2 ounce
Bailey's 1/2 ounce

I knew that I didn't want to change the great Jameson/Bailey's combo so I added a pre shot that uses chocolate liqueur and Kahlua.

So here is how you take this shot; first take the pre-shot with the Kahlua and chocolate. This shot sets up the experience; the flavor isn't overly sweet but smooth. Next drop your bomb and chug. Remember to drink fast as it will curdle like any Bailey's and beer combo.