https://homebars.barinacraft.com/

The Chilling Truth Behind Big Round Ice Balls In Your Cocktail

Mon, 29 Sep 2025 15:15:41 -0400

Why Do You Want To Mold A Big Frozen Ice Ball For Your Cocktail?

Because its cool !!!

Well, cold actually, but cool because your drink doesn’t get as watered down and its visually stunning as you can see in the glass above. No longer on the rocks, its just one massive stone cold boulder of frozen H₂O.

How To Freeze Your Ice Balls Off

These jumbo two inch diameter ice balls put the big chill on your cocktail without diluting the drink with water as fast as other shapes and sizes. The key is having the minimum surface area for the maximum volume of ice which the round sphere or ball shape does. We won’t bore you death with the science behind all of this, but if you split this same amount of ice into smaller cubes or chips, the broken up frozen pieces will have a lot more surfaces or outside area exposed to the warmer liquid in your drink and they will melt a lot faster.

A Chip Off The Cold Ice Block Doesn’t Cool Your Drink As Well

Another way to accomplish similar chilling results is to use huge square frozen blocks of water instead of large round spherical balls with these king cube ice trays. Not shaped quite mathematically perfect but much better than a bunch of separate smaller cubes as far as minimizing dilution is concerned. These giant chunks take up less space in the freezer too, if that’s a problem, since their flat sides allow butting up next to each other for a more compact tray.

A Frozen Planet From A Galaxy Far, Far Away

Do you like science fiction?

If so, you can also get a big round ice ball molded into the Death Star planet from Star Wars to splash land into your cocktail. How cool is that?

Its a must have galactic glacial gadget for any sci-fi fan celebrating Star Wars Day. May the 4th be with you!

Started in Japan and becoming mainstream in trendy bars and upscale restaurants, these cool bartending accessories will have a chilling effect on your home bar too.

Ampersand Cocktail - Drink Slurs And Per Se And Into Tasty Recipe

Mon, 08 Sep 2025 20:56:00 -0400

History Of The Ampersand Cocktail

The Ampersand cocktail is a classic mixed drink recipe with brandy, gin, sweet vermouth, orange liqueur & orange bitters which was first published in the Old Waldorf Bar Days book by Albert Stevens Crockett in 1931. Little else is known about the history of the Ampersand cocktail. However, some speculate the name may be derived from the ampersand in between Martini & Rossi, a popular brand of vermouth which is one of the cocktail’s ingredients. There appears to be nothing to support that theory as of yet though.

The Ampersand Cocktail Is A Slurry Of Spirits

Made entirely from distilled spirits & fortified wine with no sweet or sour mixers, its a sneaky sip that doesn’t seem that strong, but is. One too many Ampersand cocktails and you may end up slurring your words, much like this drink’s name* which garbles “and per se and” all together into the once slang and now commonplace single word, ampersand. Would make a good joke lead in for a sober punchline.

Behind The Bar - How To Mix An Ampersand Cocktail At Home

Ampersand Drink Recipe:

1 oz Old Tom Gin
1 oz Cognac
1 oz sweet vermouth
2 dashes orange bitters
2 dashes orange curacao

Combine the Old Tom Gin (or London dry with a dash or two of simple syrup if substituting), Cognac or other favorite brandy, sweet Italian vermouth and the orange bitters together in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled martini, coupe or other cocktail glass. Top off with a couple dashes orange curacao. Optionally, garnish with an orange twist as shown.

How To Make An Ampersand Cocktail Garnish Shape

If you want to get really creative, form your garnish twist into the shape of an ampersand symbol. Start by cutting an extra long continuous strip of orange peel with your channel knife, four to five inches plus. Then mold the orange peel to look like an ampersand by using a toothpick skewer or cocktail sword as the straight part in a classic font style securing the loops as you wrap around. Finally, trim the ends to complete your ‘ampersand’ cocktail garnish and decorate your drink with a 27th letter of the alphabet adornment (see below).

Ampersand Fonts For The Drink Menu At Your Bar - Home & Otherwise

If you’re looking for some unusual or elegant fonts for your at home bar menu, special occasion or party, both type set and mimicking handwritten script, 17 different ampersands are shown along with the cocktail above. Baskerville is the font style of the large ampersand and the sixteen fonts of the smaller row of ampersands at the bottom are from left to right:

Wisdom Script Al
Vivaldi
Trebuchet MS
Tempus Sans ITC
Pristina
Papyrus
Mistral
Matisse ITC
Juice ITC
French Script MT
Eurostile
Curlz MT
Monotype Corsiva
Caslon Antique
Bradley Hand ITC
Blackadder ITC

Having an alternating drinks menu for your at home bar is a great way to mix things up for your core group of friends and family as well as exposing infrequent guests to new recipes too. Its a common tactic for nightclubs and restaurants to keep things from becoming boring and always having the usual. Great method to keep parties fun at home too.

Variations & Similar Recipe Ingredients To The Ampersand Cocktail

More Drinks Mixed With Gin And Brandy:

Anesthetic Cocktail - Cognac, French (dry) & Italian (sweet) Vermouth, Gin, Orange Bitters & Sugar.
Boston Cocktail - adds grenadine to a Resolute cocktail.
Resolute Cocktail / Resolution Martini - apricot brandy, gin & lemon juice.
(English & French) Rose Cocktails - gin, dry vermouth and apricot / cherry brandy respectively. The English Rose drink recipe adds lemon juice & grenadine. Both are garnished with maraschino cherries.
Thanksgiving Cocktail - adds dry vermouth to a Resolution martini.

Other cocktail and drink names that start with the letter ‘A.’

References

* - Ampersand slurs the words in the expression “and per se and” into a single word. Old school alphabet recital used the Latin phrase “per se” (meaning “by itself”) before letters which could also be used as words, like ‘a’, ‘i’ and sometimes ‘o’ as well. Also, the symbol ‘&’ used to be appended on to the end of the other 26 letters as a 27th and since it was used for the word and, it to was recited with a “per se” in front.

So, using this format, the alphabet was recited as: Per se a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, per se i… x, y, z and per se and. People started to slur the ending “and per se and” into a mumbled sounding ‘ampersand’ and the rest is etymological history. Makes a nice story to tell behind your bar at home as your mixing up some Ampersand cocktails for your guests. You might want to see if they would like to buy a Vowel to drink per se too. Cheers!

Alaskan Polar Bear Heater - Drink Will Grow Hair On Your Chest

Wed, 04 Jun 2025 08:57:00 -0400

Prodigious Potation Part Of Professor’s Potions

The Alaskan Polar Bear Heater is a fictional cocktail ordered by Buddy Love in the 1963 film The Nutty Professor.* Except for the vinegar, its five different liquors plus vermouth might remind you of a Long Island Iced Tea with its 4 liquors and a liqueur in its recipe.

It truly is one of those signature drinks in the movies that you automatically associate with the film. And that’s where the Alaskan Polar Bear Heater should stay too. There’s no place at your home bar for this bucket of booze. Besides, you’re probably still trying to get the vinegar taste out of your mouth from the Pickle Back you had on St. Patrick’s Day anyway.

Jerry Lewis Is Nutty In Dr. Jekyl And Mr. Hyde Parody

The Nutty Professor is a pretty funny movie though, so you can always play this clip at your party for a few laughs. Jerry Lewis plays nerdy, nutty Professor Julius Kelp (Dr. Jekyl) whose failure to bulk up in the gym inspires him to create a potent potion which turns him into the nonchalant, nightclub singer Buddy Love (Mr. Hyde).

His transformation bears an uncanny resemblance, although unintentional, to real life comedy partner, actual ladies man and member of the rat pack, Dean Martin. Pretty good bet that Frank would have grilled Deano if he ever wore a royal blue polyester suit though.

This temporary tonic wears off at the worst possible times causing the handsome, hipster to revert back to being a clumsy clown and out of character in several awkward situations. The plot parodies Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1886 short novel The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde.

Buddy Love Orders An Alaskan Polar Bear Heater At The Purple Pit

In between sets singing at a campus area nightclub called the Purple Pit, Buddy Love orders a drink at the bar. “Make me an Alaskan Polar Bear Heater on the double. Come on, come on.”

As the bartender walks away to round up the ingredients, a man walks over and says, “Say, why don’t you pick on somebody your own disposition?”

Buddy responds, “Oh please mister barroom brawler, don’t hurt me or anything like that.”^† While putting out his cigarette in the ashtray, he turns around and throws the guy up against the back wall giving him a couple fake punches and wins the made for movie slapstick comedy fight.

Pleased with his performance he pulls up a stool and sits back down at the bar. The bartender comes over with an armload full of liquor bottles and asks, “Did you say a polar bear heater?”

Indignant, Buddy belts out, “No, you said it. I said an Alaskan Polar Bear Heater.” The bartender has never heard of this drink so Buddy tells him to pay attention. One by one, he calls out how much of each ingredient to add as the bartender echoes his recipe instructions until something strange is required.

Alaskan Polar Bear Heater Cocktail:

2 shots of vodka
A little rum
Some bitters
Smidgen of vinegar

Are you going to drink this here, or are you going to take it home and rub it on your chest?
~ bartender

Buddy mocks him, “Hey, that was terrific. Did you hear that folks? A regular George Bernard Shaw. Good boy and he did it all by himself. You did all by yourself and nobody helped you. That’s terrific, and with your very own big mouth. Now if you don’t want this cocktail shaker to become a part of your gums, mix the drink, shut your mouth and pay attention. Is that clear? Repeat after me. I’ll pay attention .. alright, let’s continue.”

Shot of vermouth
Shot of gin
A little brandy
Lemon peel
Orange peel
Cherry
Some more scotch

Now, mix it nice. Then pour it into a tall glass.

“Hey, I’ve never tried an Alaskan Polar Bear Heater. Do you mind if I take a sip?” ~ bartender.

Buddy tells him to go ahead. After he takes a sip, the bar tender pours the drink and then freezes still like a statue just as he finishes. Buddy drinks up. Then as the last ice cube in the Boston Shaker mixing glass slowly slides out and drops down on the bar top, Buddy pushes the bartender over with his fingers.

References

* - Not to be confused with the Polar Bear cocktail or any of its many variations.

† - See Christopher Walken’s SNL joke on the difference between barroom and ba-room!

Corpse Reviver Cocktails - Hair Of The Dog Hangover Cure

Sat, 12 Apr 2025 10:32:00 -0400

Corpse Reviver Cocktails Have A History As Hangover Cures

The Corpse Reviver is a timeless tipple meant to heal that self inflicted wound known as the hangover by having some of the hair of the dog that bit you. First published in The Gentleman’s Table Guide by E. Ricket & C. Thomas in 1871, it truly became a classic cocktail when arguably its most famous recipe formulation, Corpse Reviver #2, was included in the 1930 Savoy Cocktail Book.*

While the Corpse Reviver #2 deserves a place on your drinks menu for taste alone, it may be the notes author and bartender Harry Craddock added to the bottom of each these two hangover remedies that helped extend their notoriety decades later. Although neither could be considered popular by any means, they have lived a librating life-cycle in the limelight, where the cocktail has become a corpse as a crowd pleaser only to be revived back from the dead a time or two.

Cocktail Revives Corpse As Halloween Zombie

After all this time it seems pretty doubtful the Corpse Reviver will ever achieve widespread acceptance as a brunch drink like the Mimosa or Bloody Mary. However, that’s really not reason enough to banish this cocktail to only to be prepared in case of a hangover either.

With a macabre moniker like Corpse Reviver, the obvious choice may be as a Halloween themed drink to pair up with a Zombie Cocktail. After all, a Zombie is an animated corpse revived back to life using mystical powers such as witchcraft. You’ll think of other more festive occasions as well.

Careful though. These are both strong drinks and too many will have you haunted with a hangover they both were meant to remedy. Its a vicious cycle that only moderation will cure.

How To Make A Corpse Reviver Drink For The Living Dead

Original Corpse Reviver Recipe (No. 92, Gentleman’s Table Guide):

2 oz brandy
2 oz maraschino liqueur
2 dashes Boker’s bitters

Listed under American Drinks, the Gentleman’s Table Guide specifies using a wineglass with half brandy and half maraschino along with two dashes of Boker’s bitters and no further instructions. Would suggest stirring in a chilled glass.

Corpse Reviver Drink Recipe (No. 1, Savoy):

1 oz sweet vermouth
1 oz apple brandy
2 oz brandy

Shake well and strain into a cocktail glass. “To be taken before 11 a.m., or whenever steam and energy are needed.”

Clearly from a different era as this would be severely frowned upon today.

The Corpse Reviver Cocktail (No. 2, Savoy):

1 oz gin
1 oz orange liqueur
1 oz Lillet Blanc
1 oz lemon juice
1 dash absinthe

Shake well and strain into a cocktail glass. A stemless cherry and / or lemon twist have been adapted as fairly standard garnishes. “Four of these taken in swift succession will unrevive the corpse again.”

Words to live by and usually much less than four, especially with a stiff drink like this. Some like to substitute Cocchi Aperitivo Americano instead of Lillet Blanc as a closer replacement to the original Kina Lillet which was slightly more bitter and is no longer manufactured.

Hey Hey! What Do You Say To All Those Corpse Reviver Cocktail Cousins?

Want to make a Corpse Reviver #2 but you haven’t stocked your home bar with any absinthe or gin? Not a problem.

Meet the Walken (dead) in-laws. Frank Sullivan, Hey Hey, Hoop-La and Odd McIntyre are Corpse Reviver Number Two’s identical twin cocktail cousins.

That’s right! They are all the same drink recipe and they were all included in the Savoy Cocktail Book along with the Corpse Reviver(s).^† Each contains 1 oz of brandy, orange liqueur, Lillet Blanc and lemon juice. Hold the absinthe.

Sort of the reverse of all of heavyweight boxing champion George Foreman’s kids with the same name as his or that scene from Newhart, “Hi, I’m Larry, this is my brother Darryl, and this is my other brother Darryl.”

With Harry Craddock largely credited with inventing the Corpse Reviver #2, these four relatives create a strange family reunion of sorts. Must be some inappropriate humor in there somewhere. Will leave the drinking jokes and one liners up to you.

References

* - You can find a more comprehensive historical time-line of the different Corpse Reviver cocktails which highlights the dates and drink ingredients in this Bitters & Twisted article detailing all the known recipe resurrections from the dead so far.

† - The Frank Sullivan, Hoop-La and Odd McIntyre drink recipes have all been revived in the 2011 Savoy Cocktail Book reprint. CocktailQuest lists the Hey Hey Cocktail as part of the original compendium as well and documents the history of all four of these identical drinks that are a variation of the Corpse Reviver #2 recipe.

The Godfather Cocktail - A Drink Offer You Can't Refuse

Mon, 24 Mar 2025 05:04:37 -0400

Scotch The Godfather Cocktail Onto Your List Of After Dinner Drinks

The Godfather is an official International Bartender’s Association cocktail. Its a simple two part drink composed of scotch whisky and almond flavored liqueur that the IBA lists in the sweet after-dinner category along with the Brandy Alexander, the Golden Cadillac and the Porto Flip among others.

Cocktail’s History Connected To Ties With The Mob?

Some sources credit Donato ‘Duke’ Antone with creating the Godfather cocktail along with a host of other of drinks.* While the origin of the cocktail’s name (and other details) are unclear, Disaronno’s website claims the drink was “created during the 1970s in the USA and the Godfather was the favored cocktail of Marlon Brando,” who starred as Don Corleone in the film’s title role.

You take Scotland’s whisky combined with Italy’s national liqueur and maybe end up with an Italian gangster on your father’s side with ties to Mario Puzo’s Godfather novel (1969) and the first movie in the trilogy (1972) all directed by Francis Ford Coppola. By the way, the French Connection^† is a book (1969), a movie (1971) and a drink mixed with Amaretto and France’s cognac. You make the connection [sic].

Behind Your Bar - How To Make The Godfather Cocktail At Home

The Godfather Drink Recipe:

1 ½ oz Scotch whisky
¾ oz Amaretto almond liqueur

Combine on the rocks in an old fashioned glass. Or, just use one large round ice ball as shown above to minimize diluting the drink from melting water.

Godparents, Godchildren And Related Drinks

A Godmother^† drink recipe replaces the scotch with vodka and the Godchild cocktails add cream to the parent drinks while matching genders e.g. the Goddaughter recipe contains vodka, almond liqueur and cream, the Godson uses scotch like the father.

Brutus Buckeye belts down scotch whisky while roasting chestnut liqueur on an open Christmas fire along with his own brood of beverages.

A God Father’s Day Toast To Dad

The Godfather cocktail was not the signature drink associated with the movie, wine was.^‡ However, what better way to spend Father’s Day than having a couple Godfather drinks and watching all or part of the movie trilogy with dad at your own home bar.

Similar Cocktails

Amaretto Sour - almond liqueur and lemon juice.
Boccie Ball - OJ and amaretto.
Boss - a bourbon Godfather cocktail.
Italian Martini - gin and amaretto.
Karetto - a vodka Godfather drink.
La Dolce Prima - almond liqueur and cream.
White Swan - amaretto and milk.
Zorba - Greek brandy wine and amaretto.

More cocktail and drink recipes starting with 'G.’

References

* - along with the Godfather cocktail, other drink creations sometimes credited to the world champion mixologist include the White Russian^†, the Rusty Nail^†, the Harvey Wallbanger and its tequila cousin Freddie Fudpucker, the Italian Fascination and the Kamikaze.

† - these drinks are also designated as one of the eleven sweet after-dinner cocktails by the IBA as of this writing.

‡ - the Godfather film premiered at Loew’s State Theatre in New York City on March 14, 1972 and was widely released throughout the United States on March 24, 1972.

What's A Barspoon and Why Do I Need One To Mix Drinks?

Mon, 10 Mar 2025 04:44:31 -0400

Barspoons Are Right At Home Behind Your Bar

Bar spoons are the most basic of bartending tools and essential starting equipment for your home bar. They’re typically just a teaspoon attached to a long twisted handle, although some are fairly ornate and may have handle ends designed for additional uses.

Measure, Stir, Scoop, Bruise, Muddle and Layer

The 11" stainless steel bar mixing spoon is one of the simplest gadgets behind the bar and has a number of uses. Measuring ingredients, stirring cocktails, scooping out fruits and vegetables, gently muddling components and layering drinks are all made easy with this handy piece of specialized silverware.

Bar Spoon Stirs Long Handled Twist Into Tall Drinks and Much More

A long handle is required to reach down in the bottom of drinks served in tall glassware like Collins, Mojitos, etc. and also does a pretty good job fishing bottled garnishes out of the jar. The twisting spiral shape is meant to aid stirring.

The working end of the bar spoon is of course what stirs the drink although you can flip it around and use the handle as a stir rod of sorts. You can also generally measure out a teaspoon, cut out fruit and vegetable sections as well as using as a muddler for bruising mint and other botanicals.

Finally, the spoon can be used to create layers in cocktails or cordials containing liqueurs of different specific gravities as shown in the red white & blue pousse-cafe chart for 4th of July drinks. Overall, its a very versatile bartending utensil which you will constantly be using.

Get one for your bar here.

Duck Fart Cocktail - Alaskan Drink Toasts U Of Oregon & Anaheim

Wed, 01 Jan 2025 16:22:31 -0500

Let’s Give A Bronx Cheer To The Duck Fart Cocktail

Drinking a Duck Fart cocktail made with three equal parts coffee liqueur, Irish cream and a blended Canadian whisky layered on top of each other doesn’t usually cause you to want to blow a raspberry, make a Bronx cheer or let out a fart noise. Butt [sic] apparently the first person ever served one feigned flatulence and its been repeated, repeatedly, ever since.

History Of The Duck Fart Cocktail

A 70 year old woman, name unknown, walks into a bar* in Anchorage, Alaska in December, 1987 and asks bartender Dave Schmidt for a shot of tequila, followed by a B-52 and then a Grasshopper.* It was a snowy weekday night and the place was deserted, recalls Schmidt, so the two decided to test try some trial tiered tipples.^†

In one experiment, he had just layered Bailey’s over Kahlua in the bottom of a shot glass when she tells him to top it off with a little Crown Royal. After slamming the sample sip she simulated a sphincter siren that apparently sounded like she stepped on a duck and the Duck Fart cocktail was born.

That’s one explanation for how the drink was named the Duck Fart. Another has him wearing a rubber ducky style duck bill that night while tending bar. He couldn’t remember what motivated the moniker for sure.

Behind The Bar - How To Make A Duck Fart Drink At Home

Duck Fart Cocktail Shot Recipe:

¾ oz coffee liqueur
¾ oz Irish cream liqueur
¾ oz Canadian whisky

The Duck Fart cocktail is a pousse-cafe style layered drink with each of the three ingredients above forming its own layer (listed from bottom to top in the order you pour). Start by adding the coffee liqueur to the bottom of an oversized or double shot glass. Then, very slowly pour in the Irish cream over a bar spoon to help prevent the layers from mixing together. Repeat the process with the Canadian whiskey which forms the final of three layers to finish the drink. Quaff, then quack.

Prrrrt. How do you write out the spelling of the sound of a fart anyway?

University Of Oregon And Anaheim Ducks Themed Drink

It may have originated north in Alaska, but the Duck Fart cocktail makes a great University of Oregon themed drink if you’re not offended by the under thunder in your sports teams duck call. There’s another connection conjecture to the college besides the word play association in the name as well. The drink’s co-creator was from The Beaver State, who later moved back there from Alaska, and may have been a University of Oregon Ducks fan.

The air hockey humor of the mighty Duck Fart cocktail would be a barn burner of a beverage to sport for the Anaheim Ducks of the NHL too.

More Alaskan And Related Drinks

Alaska Cocktail - mixed with gin, yellow Chartreuse, orange bitters and a twist of lemon.
Alaskan Polar Bear Heater - Jerry Lewis as Buddy Love in the comedy Nutty Professor orders this drink at the bar in the Purple Pit.
Dog Sled - Canadian whisky with grenadine plus orange and lemon juice.
Eskimo - vanilla ice cream, curacao, maraschino liqueur and brandy.

Similar Drinks Mixed With Coffee Liqueur & Irish Cream

After Five or Girl Scout Cookie Shot - add peppermint schnapps to the pair.
After Eight - green creme de minthe tops this dessert cocktail.
Blind Russian, Mudslide, et al - a Black Russian plus Irish cream.
Carbomb - combines Guinness stout beer and Jameson Irish whiskey with the liqueurs.
River Boat Float - decked out with Captain Morgan’s spiced rum, cola and cream.
Orgasm - almond liqueur is the third layer in this drink.

A Shot Of Humor

Two guys are walking down the street.

One walks into a bar. The other one ducks!

Click here for more jokes.

References

* - The Duck Fart drink recipe was created at the Peanut Farm in Anchorage. Image via.

† - Alaska Dispatch News, formerly the Anchorage Daily News, ran a story called “Tracking Alaska’s Duck Fart” which was posted at dwb.adn. com/news/alaska/story/7321378p-7233339c.html, now invalid.

Will Rogers Cocktail - Funny Cowboy Ropes A Signature Drink

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 17:39:27 -0500

Will Rogers Cocktail Toasts A Man Who “Never Met A Man He Dident [sic] Like”

The Will Rogers cocktail is a namesake drink with gin, vermouth, orange juice and curacao. Once voted America’s most popular actor, the Will Rogers drink recipe had already been published in the 1930 Savoy cocktail book before his tragic 1935 death in an airplane crash at the age of 55.

In addition to acting in 48 silent films and 21 movies with sound, the cowboy philosopher started in show business performing twirling rope tricks along with a pony act in Texas Jack’s Wild West Circus. This led to extended stints in Vaudeville and the Ziegfeld Follies where he introduced satire into the mix and Will Rogers transformed himself from the “Ropin’ Fool” to the “Talkin’ Fool”.

“Our Constitution Protects Aliens, Drunks, and U. S. Senators.” ~ Will Rogers

While the “end of my rope” is where Will Rogers would say he drinks up early success, political cocktails and talkies propelled him to worldwide fame. His humorous anecdotes and commentary on politics, news of the day and matters of the heart onstage turned into books and a syndicated column for the New York Times and frequent postings in other major newspapers and magazines like the Saturday Evening Post.

“Prohibition Is Better Than No Liquor At All.” ~ Will Rogers

Now it is not so terribly serious, this Prohibition… We are trying to settle something here that has been going on since way back in Bible times… Right in the start of Genesis, the ninth chapter and twentieth verse, it says, ‘And Noah became a husbandman and planted a vineyard.’

The minute he became a husband he started in raising the ingredients that goes with married life. So you can trace all drink to marriage, see.

What we got to prohibit is marriage.
~ Will Rogers - In Our Own Words: Extraordinary Speeches of the American Century.

He was a beloved cowboy turned humorist, actor, and writer whose popularity earned him membership in a small club of famous people who have drinks named for themselves. Some even share the same last name with him as listed below.

Will Rogers Cocktail:

1 oz Orange Juice
1 oz French Vermouth
2 oz Plymouth Gin
4 dashes Curacao

Measure ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.

“Always Drink Upstream From The Herd.” ~ Will Rogers

Will Is One Of Three Rogers To Have A Signature Drink:

Ginger Rogers cocktail - contains gin, ginger syrup and ginger ale with a splash of lime juice and muddled mint.
Roy Rogers mocktail - adds a little grenadine to cola with a maraschino cherry garnish.

Cowboy Themed Home Bars With Will Rogers Cocktails On The Drinks Menu:

Bar Stool Seats Saddled - with leather rigging, stirrups and strap holders.
Standing Room Only Saloon - has no bar stools.

More cocktail and drink names that start with the letter ‘W.’

“Never miss a good chance to shut up.” ~ Will Rogers

Seabreeze Cocktails - Punches Coolers And Classic Drink Recipes

Mon, 12 Aug 2024 16:04:57 -0400

Lots Of Sea Breeze Recipes Blowing In The Wind

The Seabreeze cocktail is a three ingredient drink made with vodka, cranberry juice and grapefruit juice. At least the modern version is and its that mixture that is used in today’s International Bartender’s Association Official cocktail recipe.

History

This cocktail originated in the 1920s and has gone through significant changes along the way to become a completely different drink. Starting out as a gin based punch in a 1922 citation, the Savoy Cocktail Book then lists their Sea Breeze Cooler as gin, apricot brandy, grenadine and lemon juice in 1930.

In Classic Summer Cocktails (2001), Salvatore Calabreze describes a Seabreeze recipe which came later containing vodka, dry vermouth, Galliano and blue Curacao. We have been unable to find any other references to that version as of this writing.

However, both the Titanic and the Gale At Sea are prepared using those same four ingredients and the recipes are identical as well. Origins unknown. Several others were found too with different names and different recipes, but the information was inconsistent, seemed questionable and couldn’t be corroborated so they have been omitted. Used a combination name for the recipe since there seems to be no agreed upon standard.

Cranberries In The Breeze Brings About A Sea Change

At least you can see a progression with Planter’s Punch as its recipe evolves that sort of makes some sense. Not so here, until you know a little bit more history about the Seabreeze and cranberries in particular.

In 1959, the U.S. Department of Health warned that parts of the cranberry crop had been tainted with dangerous herbicides which caused the industry to collapse as consumer demand plummeted among the fears. Seeking to recover and diversify the uses for cranberries, Ocean Spray, which started as the grower’s cooperative, launched a blend of cranberry juice and vodka they bottled and sold as “Sea Breeze.” This eventually became the modern classic most people know and love once grapefruit juice was added to the mix as a cocktail recipe.

Timeline - The Evolution Of Seabreeze Cocktail Drinks

Sea Breeze Punch (1922*):

1 ½ oz gin
1 ½ oz pineapple syrup
1 oz grape juice
1 oz orange juice
1 - 2 oz soda water

Fill soda glass 1/3 full of fine ice. Add ingredients and mix. Decorate with a slice of pineapple and a cherry.

Sea Breeze Cooler Drink Recipe (1930):

1 ⅜ oz Dry Gin
1 ⅜ oz Apricot Brandy
¾ oz lemon juice
2 dashes Grenadine
1 lump of ice

Use a long tumbler and fill with soda water. Garnish with 2 sprigs of fresh mint on top.

Seagram Seabreeze Drink (1953^†):

1 jigger Seagram’s Ancient Bottle Gin

Pour gin into cocktail glass filled with ice. Add tonic water.

Titanic - Gale At Sea (breeze) - ???:

1 ½ oz vodka
½ oz dry vermouth
½ oz blue Curacao liqueur
½ oz Galliano herbal liqueur

Fill a shaker half full with ice cubes. Pour in all the ingredients and shake well. Strain into a cocktail glass and serve.

Tropico Sea Breeze (1963¹):

3 - 4 oz bottled Ocean Spray cranberry juice & Don Cossack vodka mixture

Add to cocktail glass and enjoy on the rocks.

Seabreeze Cocktail Drink Recipe (modern & IBA Official):

1 ⅓ oz vodka
4 oz cranberry juice
1 oz grapefruit juice

Build all ingredients in a highball glass filled with ice. Garnish with a lime wedge.

So, Its Official Then, Right?

Well, not quite and maybe not ever.

There are also at least two rum based seabreezes blowing in the wind. Both are completely different recipes from those listed above and from each other for than matter. Guess the name stirs up fond memories that drink creators want to associate with.

Behind The Bar

The modern Seabreeze cocktail is an easy recipe every home bar owner should have in their arsenal. Its a great summer time drink to add on to your menu from time to time and perfect for brunch year round.

Drinks Similar To The Seabreeze Official Recipe:

Bay Breeze - vodka, cranberry and pineapple juice
Cape Cod - vodka and cranberry juice; Codder adds lime juice; Cooler adds club soda.
Greyhound - vodka and grapefruit juice.
Sex On The Beach - Cape Cod plus peach schnapps & orange juice.

References

* - Practical druggist and pharmaceutical review of reviews - Page 54 by Benjamin Lillard in 1922^‡
† - Look Magazine: Volume 21, Part 2 in 1953^‡
‡ - Seabreeze by David Herpin
1 - Shaken Not Stirred: A Celebration of the Martini by Anistatia R. Miller & Jared Brown

Valencia Martini & Brandy Champagne Agua de Valencia Cocktails

Thu, 01 Aug 2024 06:18:20 -0400

Valencia Cocktails Twist A Tale Of Oranges and Origins

The Agua de Valencia drink calls for Spanish Cava, a sparkling wine which can’t be called Champagne because its produced outside of that region in France and the Valencia martini calls for a fortified wine which can only be called sherry if produced in that region of Spain. Finally, the Valencia orange is named for the city in Spain but was actually hybridized in Santa Ana, California and its successful production in that region along with efforts to promote a semi-tropical paradise to encourage immigration led to the naming of Orange County near Los Angeles which was officially incorporated on August 1, 1889.

Hmmm. Let’s try to sort that out over a snort.

Behind The Bar - How To Make Valencia Drink Recipes At Home

Agua de Valencia (Valencian Water):

6 oz orange juice
1 ½ oz gin
1 ½ oz vodka
25 oz Cava (Spanish sparkling wine)
pinch sugar

Batch recipe for parties prepared in and served from a pitcher which starts with a standard 750ml bottle of Cava sparkling wine (or champagne if unavailable). Add freshly squeezed orange juice along with the gin and vodka. Stir in sugar to taste and refrigerate before serving or use a cold cavity pitcher.

Valencia Cocktail Recipe #1:

2 oz apricot brandy
1 oz orange juice, fresh squeezed
4 dashes orange bitters
orange twist for garnish

Measure the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake thoroughly and strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with an orange twist or wedge.

Valencia Champagne Cocktail Recipe #2 (Valencia Royale):

2 oz apricot brandy
1 oz orange juice
4 dashes orange bitters
2 - 3 oz champagne
orange twist for garnish

Prepare a Valencia cocktail #1 drink recipe and strain into a chilled flute. Top off with champagne and garnish with orange.

Valencia Martini (Spanish Martini):

2 ½ oz gin
½ oz fino sherry
twist of orange for garnish

A Spanish version of the dry martini which substitutes the type of fortified wine used, fino sherry for vermouth. As with classic Martinis, some recipes also call for vodka instead of gin (which makes the drink something other than classic .. not going there). Stir the ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled vee glass. Garnish with a twist of orange peel.

Need More Cocktail Recipes Using Oranges?

These same ingredients will allow you to mix up Screwdrivers and Buck’s Fizzes for breakfast as well. Plus, stock your bar with some orange liqueur and you can also serve Mimosas at home for Sunday brunch too.

Belmont Park Cocktail - Stakes Original Official Drink?

Sat, 08 Jun 2024 06:14:12 -0400

Belmont Park’s Long Forgotten Cocktail

The stakes to crown a winning drink for Belmont Park have been almost as high as the thoroughbreds running the third leg of the Triple Crown over the years. Long before the White Carnation, the Belmont Breeze and the Belmont Jewel were the signature cocktails of the Belmont Stakes another drink reigned supreme.

The 1920s Belmont Park Cocktail with Bacardi, egg, port and sugar is a twist on the Coffee Cocktail with rum instead of brandy. Its the horse race’s namesake nip from yesteryear, but was it the first to stake this claim?

Behind The Bar - How To Make The Belmont Park Cocktail At Home

Belmont Park Cocktail Recipe:

1 oz rum
1 fresh egg
1 tsp powdered sugar
2 oz port wine

Break the egg and add sugar, port wine, rum and ice. Shake well and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

History Of The Belmont Park Cocktail

First Published

The Belmont Park Cocktail was a piece of Americana circa 1925 whose publishers found a way around the Volstead Act of 1920.* They added a shot of humor to the drink recipes.

Let’s Get Serious

Dedicated to serious drinkers everywhere, Americana was a rare prohibition era book that poked fun at the Eighteenth Amendment. Non-alcoholic liquors and ‘flavorings’ were used as ingredients in the eight cocktails which included the Alabama, Barbary Coast, Belmont Park, Blue Blazer, Deadwood Dick, Manhattan, New Orleans Drip and the Rip Van Winkle Sleeper.

Original Belmont Park Cocktail Recipe:

½ Bacardi (non-alcoholic)
1 Egg
1 Teaspoonful Powdered Sugar
⅔ Port (non-alcoholic)

Add ice, shake well and strain into cocktail glasses.

First Created

A note with the recipe includes an illegible date that appears to say:

The halcyon days of 1890 saw the birth of this well known drink. It was invented at the famous Jockey Club of Belmont Park.

This timeline doesn’t seem accurate though. While the horses first ran the Belmont Stakes in 1867 at Jerome Park Racetrack in the Bronx until the race was moved to nearby Morris Park Racecourse in 1890, Belmont Park in Elmont, New York didn’t actually open until 1905.^† You’ll have to judge the writing for yourself.

Steeped In The Steeplechase

But, don’t fence them in. There’s more at stake than the Stakes.

Steeplechasing, which grew from the sport of hunting where horses carried riders over fence, field and stream, has a rich tradition at Belmont Park.^‡ In fact, the original complex had an additional track near the Long Island Railroad extension called Belmont Park Terminal which featured the steeplechase and it was jump racing that was used as the cocktail napkin illustration for Americana’s Belmont Park drink recipe (modified inset shown above).

Win, Place Or Show

The uncertainty surrounding the exact chronology of the Belmont Park cocktail opens the gate for another horse to win the race for the Belmont Stakes first official signature drink. And that horse was of course the Belmont Cocktail with gin, raspberry syrup and cream from 1916.

That’s a bevy of Belmont beverages which raises the stakes to five trademark tipples and counting for those of you tending bar at home. To be continued…

Similar Drinks

Chicago Fizz - dark rum, ruby port, lemon juice, superfine sugar, egg whites and seltzer water.
Coffee Flip - brandy, port wine, powdered sugar, whole egg, light cream and nutmeg.
Elk’s Own - rye whiskey, ruby port, lemon juice, simple syrup and egg whites.
Lil Naue - apricot brandy, Cognac, port, egg yolk, sugar, lemon twist and cinnamon.
Sevilla Cocktail No. 2 - a Belmont Park drink recipe that’s easy on the sugar and wine.
White Notes - light rum, white port, honey, egg, simple syrup, almonds and nutmeg.

Triple Crown Cocktails

Black Eyed Susan - presently poured as the Preakness Stakes proper potation.
Mint Julep - Churchill Downs designated drink for the Kentucky Derby.
Preakness Cocktail - the original drink of Pimlico.

References

* - Americana: Eight Cocktail Napkins, Hand Blocked, with Recipes and the Histories of Eight Famous Drinks. (France: publisher unknown, circa 1925). Print.

† - Belmont Park, 1905-1968. (Jamaica, NY: New York Racing Association, 1968). Print.

‡ - “History Of Jump Racing.” NSA. National Steeplechase Association.

Turtle Burgers - They Have The Meat

Tue, 28 May 2024 15:56:35 -0400

Bacon, Ground Beef & Hot Dog Turtle Burgers

Nothing says man cave like bacon, hamburgers & hot dogs. But why waste valuable time cooking your heart healthy bar snacks separately when you could be watching the game and entertaining your friends? This ingenious culinary masterpiece solves that common pub food preparation problem by combining all your favorite meats into a single burger that looks like a turtle.

And, these pond sliders have all the four major food groups: beef, pork, poultry and cheese.*

Although, you might want to grill some bacon wrapped shrimp on the side to add a little seafood to the menu as well.

How To Make A Turtle and Eat It Too

Individual Turtle Burger Recipe:

¼ - ⅓ lb fresh ground beef patty
4 - 5 slices bacon
2 slices sharp cheddar cheese
3 whole hot dogs

Start each of these artery clogging turtle shaped burgers by forming fresh ground beef patties (the meat can’t be frozen as you’ll see later). Add a layer of cheddar cheese slices. Then make the “turtle shell” by weaving bacon strips as an outer wrapping similar to the way some pie crust tops are weaved together.

Next, cut the hot dogs in half leaving six sections of your favorite beef / pork / poultry combination mystery meat to use in adding some realistic gastro artistic touches. Using your finger, poke round openings into the bacon shell turtle burgers and insert the hot dog pieces sausaged into the holes to act as a head, tail and legs. Then cut small slits into the ends of each leg to look like toes (that’s the really creative part sure to impress your party guests).

Bake on a rack for 20 - 30 minutes in a 400 degree oven or on the upper level of your grill covered loosely in aluminum foil. Then grab some ice cold beers for you and your friends from your home bar (craft cocktails wouldn’t pair well, may distract from the business at hand) and wait for the southern cooking to complete.

Once they’re done, sit down and enjoy the feast.

Turtle Team Tailgate Parties

Turtle burgers can be cooked indoors or out and are great for holiday cookouts, backyard barbeques and gameday tailgating. Especially if you’re a sports fan of the University of Maryland Terrapins, Daytona Tortugas, Beloit Snappers, Memphis / Mississippi River Kings, Santa Cruz Warriors, the Fighting Turtles of Corbais, Belgium and others.

Then they are tortoise team themed party food.

References

* - Not to be confused with White Castle Sliders which are 2 inch square, perforated, all beef patties that are steam grilled over a bed of onions.

Turtle Burgers! aka, something from the South via sarah-ball post 1322120467.

Horse's Neck Cocktail Celebrates Cinco de Mayo Kentucky Derby

Tue, 30 Apr 2024 13:11:32 -0400

O Me, O My O - Horse’s Neck Cocktail Toasts Kentucky Derby and Cinco de Mayo

Since the Kentucky Derby is always the first Saturday in May and Cinco de Mayo is Spanish for the “fifth of May” it stands to reason these two events would fall on the same day every seven years. If you include the years where they fall on the same weekend as Friday/Saturday or Saturday/Sunday combos its nearly half the time. How are you going celebrate them both?

If your home is host to a Kentucky Derby party you can’t go wrong mixing up some Mint Juleps to drink along with the chocolate bourbon balls a.k.a. southern truffles you set on the bar top for snacks. Paying homage to Cinco de Mayo with a themed combination might include a spicy Margarita paired with some roasted pumpkin seeds a.k.a. pepitas.

But, is there a common bond between the social soiree and the folk festival that could be used to tie everything together? What kind of party animal would enjoy both occasions?

Horses Neck And Neck In Louisville & Puebla

With the Run for the Roses a race for three year old thoroughbreds, the Kentucky Derby animal is obviously a horse of course. What is less apparent is how this relates to Cinco de Mayo.

This holiday is not Mexican Independence Day ( which is actually September 16th ), Cinco de Mayo commemorates Mexico’s victory over France in the battle of Puebla in 1862. The tie in hinges around the important role of the Mexican cavalry who decimated the French horsemen which helped the army to achieve a nearly impossible triumph overall while being outnumbered over 3 to 2.

If that seems like a stretch, don’t worry about it. The horse’s neck cocktail certainly honors the spirit of Derby Day and since Cinco de Mayo has evolved into just an excuse to drink, cheers to the thoroughbred tipple and their jockeys.

Behind The Bar - How To Make The Horse’s Neck Cocktail At Home

This libation has the bartender take artistic liberty with the lemon peel garnish and gives the drink its name. Done correctly, a long twist of the yellow citrus is shaped to resemble a horse head & neck looking over the rim into the glass.

Horse’s Neck Cocktail Recipe & Garnishing Instructions:

1 ½ oz bourbon whiskey
5 oz ginger ale
1 lemon peel spiral garnish

Start preparing this drink by using a channel knife to cut an extra long spiral of lemon peel and an empty highball or collins glass. Place the garnish in the bottom curling up and around the sides of the glass while leaving enough to hang over the rim. Shape into a horse’s neck and head and fill with ice down the middle of the spiral citrus twist. Add the bourbon and top with ginger ale to complete the cocktail.

So, let your home bar set the stage for a combination celebration by serving up Horse’s Neck cocktails when the Kentucky Derby runs alongside Cinco de Mayo coupled with some southern food with roots even farther south.

Similar Drinks

Irish Cocktail No. 1 - Irish whiskey, ginger ale and Boker’s bitters.
New England Highball - brandy, rum and ginger ale.

Other drinks that start with ‘h.’

Peter Piper Picks Pickleback Whiskey Shots On Saint Patricks Day

Thu, 14 Mar 2024 19:41:10 -0400

What’s A PickleBack?

A pickleback is a shot of whiskey followed by a chaser shot of pickle juice brine. Yes, you read that right. You take a perfectly good shot of whiskey and wash it down with that yellowish green liquid leftover in the pickle jar. Hopefully with the floaters strained out.

Its No Surprise - A Pickleback Is Not Surprisingly Refreshing

You might think its kind of like eating a pickle, but its not. The tsunami of sour taste from the wave of salt water rushing down your throat chases away any umami* or other flavors from your palate leaving you puckered up with a strange, sickly feeling and wondering why you just did that. Unless its Saint Patrick’s Day, then that explains it^†.

People are trying to propel this pickled potation’s popularity though. The perception of a perfect pickleback pairing is being perpetrated by pubs on their patrons, and not just for St. Paddy’s Day either.

Peter Piper is behind the bar picking pecks of pickles out of the jar of many pub’s own secret recipes so they can pour a pickleback with the brine left behind. Preposterous?

Many pubs profess pickleback perfection only when their peculiar potion & poteen pairing is poured. So, is this progression of pickleback popularity purely personal or prodded from public promotion by a poteen producer as proclaimed in a presumed press release?

How Do I Get This Taste Out Of My Mouth?

If there is such a thing as the perfect pickle juice and whiskey combination, then why do you need a beer to wash it down. Pretty good question considering there are plenty of recommendations for the perfect pickleback and beer pairings out there, which seems to suggest that you do. Puzzled?

While this piece paints a putrid picture of the pickleback, some things you just need to find out for yourself. In many ways, the pickleback shot is to a St. Patricks Day party what the bloody brain shot is to Halloween parties. Neither is recommended, period, especially for your at home bar, but …

If you subscribe to the “I’ll try anything once” theory, then throw back a pickleback and judge for yourself. Its unofficially the official shot of Saint Patrick’s Day and you can say you were initiated and move along to something delicious to drink.

Like a Black Velvet, Irish Coffee, Rory O'More cocktail or even a green beer for example. Here’s a toast to no more picklebacks.

May the leprechauns be near you,
To spread luck along your way.
And may all the Irish angels,
Smile upon you St. Patrick’s Day.

References

* - Umami is a savory flavor and along with sweet, sour, bitter & salty is one of the five basic tastes.

† - Drinking pickle juice is rumored to prevent seasickness in sailors and frequent pit stops by truck drivers. Apparently from the vinegar in the first case and the salt in the other. If true, you’ll have to look elsewhere to support those claims, they at least have a reason other than thinking its tasty.

NFL Football Team Cocktails - Drinks For Every Roster

Thu, 25 Jan 2024 13:59:19 -0500

Game Day Drinks And Cocktails For All 32 NFL Football Teams

Football season means great tailgate parties away at the stadium for home games and at your in home bar for away games when your team is on road. These NFL football team inspired cocktails* will give you lots of game day party ideas for themed drinks for all 32 NFL teams out on the gridiron.

The cocktails were chosen based on a number of factors including team names, colors, mascots, player and squad nicknames as well as city, regional and state monikers, landmarks, festivals and more. A few were created as signature drinks for specific football teams, but most were added to the roster because they were a good fit for that club.

Whether its pre-season scrimmages, regular season games or the playoffs; Wild Card, Divisional, Conference and the Superbowl, there’s a drink listed here that’s perfect for your pigskin party. Some of the squads have several symbolic sips which lets you substitute your drink line-up based on the schedule.

So, with one hand waving your favorite team’s foam finger shouting you’re #1 and the other hand free for a refreshment, the only question is:

Are You Ready For Some NFL Football Team Cocktails?

American Football Conference Team Themed Drinks

AFC East

Buffalo Bills:

Buffalo Bill - equal parts apple cider or juice and bourbon or rye whiskey.
Niagara Falls - a fancy drink named after the natural attraction nearby the city along the Canadian border.

Miami Dolphins:

Mojito - the national drink of Cuba is a favorite in Little Havana as well as one of the most popular cocktails in Florida and throughout the rest of the states.

New England Patriots:

New England Highball - when it comes to cocktails, what’s better than a highball while watching football?
Red, White and Blue - a pousse-cafe drink layered in patriotic colors.

New York Jets:

Manhattan - along with Brooklyn has the highest concentration of fans according to a 2013 Facebook study.
Bronx - followed by Queens borough, the former home of Shea stadium, also love the J-E-T-S. This drink is basically an Income Tax cocktail minus the bitters.

AFC North

Baltimore Ravens:

Purple Hooter - black raspberry liqueur colors these tailgate party potations plum perfect.

Cincinnati Bengals:

Bengal Tiger - the namesake is a tawny, red brandy drink while an original recipe adds black licorice stripes to an orange vodka cocktail that could be a spooky sip on Halloween too.
Cincinnati Cocktail - fill your favorite beer glass half full with a bold brew and top off with soda water.

Cleveland Browns:

Brown Cocktail - equal parts gin, light or dark rum and dry vermouth.
Brown Derby Drink - legendary football coach Paul Brown who the NFL team is named after was known for wearing his iconic hat on the gridiron sidelines. It was a fedora, but the (brown) derby is de rigueur.
Brown University Cocktail - their namesake college football team drink would love to be drafted by pros for game day. The “Brunonian” is equal parts bourbon and dry vermouth with a couple dashes of orange bitters.

Pittsburgh Steelers:

Black & Gold - refining iron ore put this steel town on the grid. Their NFL football team inspired gridiron drink adds a precious metal to the mix. Combine black vodka with gold flaked cinnamon schnapps two to one.
Monongahela Cobbler - named for one of the waterways which flows past Heinz Field (formerly Three Rivers Stadium) that’s known for its rye whiskey.

AFC South

Houston Texans:

Black Gold - a nod to the city’s former franchise, the Houston Oilers.
Longhorn - another college sports team themed cocktail that would like to be drafted by the NFL, especially from the same great state and mascot. The burnt orange color of the University of Texas at Austin inspired this recipe with lemon rum, orange rum, vodka, orange vodka, orange soda, ice and oranges.

Indianapolis Colts:

Horse’s Neck - this drink is named after its garnish.

Jacksonville Jaguars:

Jaguar - a Barina Craft original drink recipe that is spotted with southern sipping favorites.

Tennessee Titans:

Lynchburg Lemonade - Tennessee whiskey, sweet & sour mix, orange liqueur and lemon-lime soda makes a southern sip worth suing the distillery over.
Tennessee Tea - same as above, just substitute cola for lemon-lime soda.

AFC West

Denver Broncos:

Orange Crush - this NFL football team inspired drink celebrates the nickname given to Denver’s opponent crushing 3-4 defense and the Broncos bright colored home uniform jerseys in the 1970s.

Kansas City Chiefs:

Arrowhead Cocktails - the Chiefs’ logo is carved in stone and one of these drinks is cherry.
Kansas City Ice Water - flows thru the fountains at Arrowhead stadium and in the veins of the players and fans who as of this writing boast the loudest sports crowd roar.

Las Vegas Raiders:

Casino Cocktails - now that the team is located in the Entertainment Capital of the World, famous for gambling and other activities throughout all the city’s mega casino-hotels, these drinks are a sure bet for Raiders fans.
Oakland Raider Cocktail - a black rum and cola mixed with a shot of silver tequila over ice. This silver and black drink symbolizes Raider Nation whether they’re playing in Oakland, Los Angeles or Las Vegas.

Los Angeles Chargers:

Charger Cocktail - toast the team’s moniker to ‘charge’ when the bugle call sounds with this cherry brandy and rum sour.
San Diego Seabreeze - this legacy drink preserves team history. 1 oz vodka, ½ oz each blackberry brandy and blueberry & raspberry schnapps, plus 2 oz each orange and pineapple juice in a tall collins glass over ice.

National Football Conference Team Themed Drinks

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys:

Cowboy Cocktail - throw the cream away and drink the shot of whiskey straight up.
Fedora Cocktail - in honor of their legendary head coach Tom Landry who wore his heralded headgear on the sidelines for 29 seasons.
Thanksgiving Cocktails - dubbed America’s team, they always play football on this holiday.

New York Giants:

The New York Cocktail - the entire state loves the NY Football Giants, except for parts of the city per Facebook 2013. This is an interesting whiskey sour style drink with rye, lime juice, grenadine and an old fashioned sugar cube.

Philadelphia Eagles:

Eagle Cocktail - Philly is the perfect roosting place for this classic drink.
Eagle’s Dream - sugar and egg whites substitute for maraschino liqueur in this variation of the Aviation drink recipe.

Washington Commanders:

Cherry Blossom - this national flowering festival held locally is closely associated with the area as is a rumored story of a namesake founding father chopping down a certain tree.
Gin Rickey - “air conditioning in a glass” is the unofficial official drink of D.C.
Political Cocktails - any number of these drinks could be served at a game day party in this city if you want to mix politics with religion, er, football that is.

NFC North (Black and Blue Division)

Chicago Bears:

The Chicago Cocktail - pretty fancy for football but it is the city’s namesake drink.

Detroit Lions:

Lion’s Tail - Detroit is one of two NFL teams along with Dallas to always play a game on Thanksgiving to start the Xmas holidays so the use of an allspice liqueur, dubbed “Christmas in a glass” by Murray Stenson, in combination with the drink’s name make this cocktail a perfect match. 2 oz bourbon, ½ oz each pimento dram and lime juice, ½ tsp simple syrup and 1 dash aromatic bitters.

Green Bay Packers:

Blood and Sand - Johnny ‘Blood’ McNally, who took his nickname from the movie and loved to sing Galway Bay while standing up on bar table tops, was a star player for four championship Packer teams in Green Bay and one of the original members inducted into the Pro Football Hall Of Fame.
Brandy Old Fashioned - to wet your whistle in Wisconsin, just replace the bourbon or rye you normally use in the recipe.

Minnesota Vikings:

Purple People Eater Elixir - raise your Viking drinking horn and toast possibly the best defensive line of any football team in NFL history.
Scandinavian Glogg - this Nordic mulled wine really packs a punch.

NFC South

Atlanta Falcons:

Georgia Peach Cocktails - did you know some suggested the Falcons be christened after the official state fruit?
Scarlett O'Hara & Rhett Butler - these two drinks are both named after characters in Gone With The Wind which was set in and around Atlanta.

Carolina Panthers:

Carolina Iced Tea - spiced rum, vodka and both peach liqueur & schnapps along with some southern style sweet tea in a tall glass or mason jar.

New Orleans Saints:

Sazerac - the official drink of New Orleans often referred to as America’s oldest cocktail.
Vieux Carré - the signature drink of the French Quarter named after the “old square” at the center of the Crescent City.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers:

Bumbo - a pirate’s poison.
Filibuster - although its more closely associated with politics these days, the word originally derives from the Dutch term vrijbuiter for pirate, which means “to plunder,” where vrij means “free” and buiter means “booty.”

NFC West

Arizona Cardinals:

Cardinal Cocktail - a Kir drink variation also known as Communard which substitutes red wine for white.

Los Angeles Rams:

Greatest Show On Turf - a nickname for the team’s record breaking offense during the 1999 through 2001 National Football League seasons when they were the Saint Louis Rams.
Ram Cocktail - seems appropriate that the helmet battering Rams namesake drink is a variation of a Harvey Wallbanger.

San Francisco 49ers:

Barbary Coast Cocktails - a pair of pigskin party picks named after the city’s seedy, crime ridden, red-light district during the California gold rush and beyond. One drink has equal parts gin, scotch whisky, white chocolate creme de cacao and light cream or half and half. The other is mixed with dry gin, cherry brandy, lemon juice and grenadine.
Frisco Sour - the tasteless moniker given to this gold drink garnished with a red cherry which matches the football team colors.

Seattle Seahawks:

Emerald City - a signature drink for this city with the blue green nickname whose major league football, baseball and soccer teams all sport these colors.

Share & Compare This List Of NFL Team Drinks For More Ideas

This list of libations is a work in progress. Be sure to check back for updated ideas, more NFL football team inspired cocktails and links to additional information.

Have a suggestion for a game day drink recipe for your favorite NFL team? Contact us or post on our Facebook wall.

Want a generic gridiron geared gulp instead? Check out these pigskin potations penned for plays, points and positions like the Block & Fall, Quarterback and Touchdown.

Please, always drink responsibly.

* - DISCLAIMER: NFL related images, logos, etc. are shown only as a point of reference / commentary for names, mascots, colors and so on as potential drink inspirations and do not represent an affiliation, sponsorship or endorsement by the league, any individual team or associated person or group.

Happy New Year Cocktail - Party Like Its Nineteen Ninety Now

Sun, 31 Dec 2023 21:59:03 -0500

The Happy New Year Cocktail - An Eve(ning) Of Fun Toasts

The Happy New Year cocktail is a drink mixed with brandy, ruby port wine, orange juice and champagne. Yes, it is named after the annual greeting and well wishing phrase uttered when the calendar cycle starts all over again, Happy New Year. However, it does get a little confusing.

Sort of similar to how The Classic Cocktail is an actual drink recipe but sounds like it is describing another one altogether as in; “The Resolution Martini would be a great Happy New Year cocktail.” You could have some fun with that at your party.

The Daily Cocktail book actually listed the Happy New Year cocktail recipe as their drink of the day recommendation for December 31st back in 2006.* Although made for celebrating New Year’s Eve, this would be a great recipe any time of the year and works really well for using up leftover champagne after a party as well.

Behind The Bar - How To Make A Happy New Year Cocktail

Note: You may want to have your toast prepared and ready to ring in the New Year before you begin mixing drinks for the celebration so you’re not caught off guard. Then you can party like there’s no a tomorrow.

The Happy New Year Cocktail Drink Recipe:

¼ oz brandy
¾ oz ruby port
¾ oz orange juice
3 - 4 oz Champagne

Mixing Instructions: Measure the brandy, port wine and orange juice into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well and strain into a Champagne flute. Top off with Champagne.

Variations Similar To The Happy New Year Cocktail

Drinks That Share At Least Two Ingredients In Common:

American Beauty - brandy, dry vermouth, white creme de menthe, orange juice, grenadine and tawny port.
American Rose - brandy, licorice liqueur, grenadine syrup and champagne.
Classic Champagne Cocktail - sugar cube, aromatic bitters and Champagne with optional brandy for an IBA official drink.
Chicago Cocktail - brandy, orange liqueur, aromatic bitters and Champagne.
Coffee Cocktail - Cognac, ruby port, egg and sugar.
Montana - Cognac, dry vermouth and port wine.
Monte Carlo Sling - add peach brandy, lemon juice and orange bitters to a Happy New Year cocktail.
Nelson’s Blood - Spanish port and French Champagne.
Peach Sangaree - peach brandy, port and club soda.
Poop Deck - brandy, blackberry brandy and port wine.
Port Wine Cocktail - brandy and port. Use apricot brandy instead for a Tempter.
Presto - brandy, sweet vermouth, orange juice and absinthe.
Quintet Cocktail / Punch - brandy and OJ along with dark rum, white wine and lemon juice form the five flavors in this drink.
St. Charles Punch - Cognac, ruby port, lemon juice, orange curacao and simple syrup.
Soyer-Au-Champagne - brandy, ice cream, maraschino liqueur, curacao and champagne.

Happy New Year! (cocktail)

References

* - Dalyn A. Miller and Larry Donovan, The Daily Cocktail: 365 Intoxicating Drinks and the Outrageous Events That Inspired Them (Gloucester, MA: Fair Winds Press, 2006), 380. Print.

What Time To Start Drinking On Thanksgiving & Christmas Holidays

Thu, 23 Nov 2023 15:24:00 -0500

“What time did you say you want me to start drinking?”

The holiday feast is still being prepared and the chaos of family and friends sitting down to turkey dinner hasn’t even gotten comical yet.

However, when it is finally time to relax, you can see if there’s any wine left over after cooking or try one of these Thanksgiving or Christmas themed cocktails and remember to follow the rules for holiday drinking.

Right On Schedule

Football fuels the holidays too. The pros battle for a playoff spot on Thanksgiving, sometimes with an extra gridiron gift on Xmas, and college bowl games decide championships on New Years Day.

Funny You Should Ask

And then there’s vaudeville. W.C. Fields once said,

Christmas at my house is always at least six or seven times more pleasant than anywhere else. We start drinking early. And while everyone else is seeing only one Santa Claus, we’ll be seeing six or seven.

Although, he may have been confusing Jolly Old Saint Nicholas with the raindeer on the roof on that matter.

holiday cartoon via New Yorker

Ghoulish Gothic Gibsons Eyeball Black Martini Glasses on Halloween

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 12:53:48 -0400

Are You Eyeballing Me?

Want your home bar to host a Gothic black tie event for the ghosts and goblins of Halloween? These ghoulish Gibsons are pretty gruesome looking Martinis and should do a great job grossing out your guests with their gory eyeballs.

A Gibson is a Martini which substitutes a cocktail onion instead of an olive as the garnish. In this case, two onions per drink. Listed below are dry and extra dry recipes from classic gin & vodka Martinis and Thanksgiving Martini cocktails with slightly different portion sizes from each other.

Behind The Bar - How To Make Ghoulish Gibsons For Halloween

Classic Dry Gibson Martini Recipe:

1 ⅔ oz&nbsp: gin
⅓ oz&nbsp: dry vermouth
2 cocktail onions

Extra Dry Gibson Martini Ingredients:

2 oz&nbsp: gin
¼ oz&nbsp: vermouth
2 cocktail onions

Add the gin and dry vermouth into a mixing glass filled with ice. Stir for 10-15 seconds and strain into a chilled vee shaped black Martini glass. Recipe amounts are given for normal drink sizes, however to get the effect you want the liquor just below the rim so the onion eyeballs appear to float. You may need to mix a batch of several drinks so you can fill the glasses to just the right height.

DIY Cocktail Onion Eyeballs

Hollow out a small pocket in each onion and stuff with black olive pieces or caviar to simulate eyeball pupils. Thread them both on a long toothpick or skewer so both eyeballs point in the same direction. Arrange on the bar top so they appear to stare down the party.

Abby Sciuto Loves Halloween Costume Parties Too

You know, Abby Sciuto, the forensic specialist on NCIS would enjoy one of these ghoulish Gothic black Martinis as she tries to figure out how special agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs gets those boats out of his basement of his home. May have to invite her over to your Halloween party and have her bring her casket too.

Get some black Martini glasses for your bar here.

(photo via the now defunct Halloween Madness, post 10957812447)

French Connection Cocktail - A Pork Pie Hats Off To Cognac

Sat, 07 Oct 2023 06:14:25 -0400

Two French Connection Cocktails Brandy About

The French Connection cocktail pairs amaretto with brandy and drink recipes call for Cognac rather than Armagnac. Even though both of these brandies are connected to regions in France, Armagnac is rarely specified in cocktails (the D'Artagnan is an example of one that does).

Does Cocktail’s History Have Connections To The Book And Movie

The Godfather has strong ties to the French Connection as a book / movie and as a cocktail. In literature and film, both books were published in 1969 and became movies shortly afterwards, The French Connection* in 1971 and the first of the Godfather trilogy in 1972. Their storylines involving the criminal activities of gangsters in mob syndicates as a central theme is something they have in common with each other as well.

As cocktails, both are two part amaretto drink recipes and each is officially listed in the sweet after-dinner category by the IBA. Others include the Golden Dream and the Grasshopper.

So what’s the final tie that binds their histories together. The Godfather cocktail (Scotch instead of Cognac) was “created during the 1970s in the USA” according to the Disaronno website, makers of the Originale brand of Amaretto. Since both of these drink creations needed a name around that same time and shared so many other similarities, you make the connection.

Behind The Bar - How To Make The French Connection Cocktail At Home

French Connection Cocktail:

1 ½ oz Cognac
¾ oz amaretto almond flavored liqueur

Mix over cubes in an old fashioned glass. Or, just use one big ball of ice as pictured to delay drink dilution. Note: the International Bartender Association’s official formula is equal parts Cognac and amaretto.

French Connection #2 Drink Recipe:

1 ½ oz Cognac
¾ oz Grand Marnier orange flavored brandy liqueur

Same preparation as the classic cocktail above. Just replace Italy in the original recipe with another shot of France.

This is one themed party your home bar could host with you as the hipster barback wearing your pork pie hat.

References

* - The French Connection movie starred Gene Hackman as detective Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle who never went anywhere without his hipster styled pork pie hat (like a Fedora with a narrower brim and flat top that’s dished in a circle). The film had one of the greatest car chases in movie history and was the first R-rated Academy Award winner for best picture after the rating system was introduced. The French Connection definitely deserves to have a hip drink named after it. Maybe even two.

Manhattan Drink Recipe - King of Classic Cocktails - Maybe

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 13:42:06 -0400

King of the Cocktails Dispute

The Manhattan cocktail is a drink that competes head to head with the Martini for the title of king of the cocktails. A true martini ( not the pretend to add some vermouth but give it to me straight-tini ) generally dominates, but the Manhattan contends as a close second if not the victor to some and will probably never be knocked off the list of the top 10 most popular cocktails. Definitely a required drink recipe for home bar owners.

History of the Manhattan Drink

“The origin of the Manhattan is almost undisputed. There are two widely held versions of its creation, both tied to New York’s Manhattan Club. The earliest tale of this drink’s nativity dates back to William J. Tilden’s election as New York’s governor in 1874. Winston Churchill’s American mother hosted the victory celebration, and a forgotten bartender invented the Manhattan there, naming the drink after the club.

The other story credits Supreme Court judge Charles Henry Truax with instigating the drink’s invention several years later. According to The Dictionary of American Food and Drink, Mr. Truax asked a Manhattan Club bartender to mix him up a new drink, his doctor having instructed him to lay off the Martinis to lose weight.” ~ Cocktail: Drinks Bible for 21st Century

Wait, there’s one more twist (see almost undisputed above):

“There are a few theories surrounding the birth of the Manhattan … but the one that has a ring of truth to it, to my ears at least, can be found in ‘Valentine’s Manual of New York.’ The 1923 book contains a story written by a certain William F. Mulhall, a bartender who plied his trade at New York’s Hoffman House in the 1880s. ‘The Manhattan cocktail was invented by a man named Black who kept a place 10 doors below Houston Street on Broadway in the (eighteen) sixties - probably the most famous drink in the world in its time,’ wrote Mulhall. I know of no other citation that carries as much weight, and it was written by a bartender, so …” ~ SF Gate

So, there you have it. The Manhattan is potentially a cocktail rooted in politics and was either named after the club or the island by one of three different bartenders. Let’s drink to that!

How To Make A Classic Manhattan Cocktail

Manhattan Recipe Ingredients:

1 ½ oz rye whiskey
½ oz sweet vermouth
1 dash aromatic bitters
1 stemmed cherry

Combine with ice in mixing glass or tin and stir. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with a cherry.

Drink Deviations

Rye whiskey is considered the classic for the cocktail. However, bourbon has ebbed and flowed in popularity as the base spirit due to both availability and preferences.

Note that bourbon makes the Manhattan a much sweeter drink than when mixing with rye whiskey. Another popular recipe option is using a Canadian blended whiskey which contains some rye and splits the difference in terms of sweetness.

A dry Manhattan mixes the drink with dry vermouth instead of sweet and a perfect Manhattan uses equal amounts of both dry and sweet vermouth.

Cocktails Similar To The Manhattan

The Affinity cocktail is a perfect Scotch Manhattan which substitutes Scotch whisky for rye or bourbon.
A Rob Roy is a Scotch Manhattan named after the Scottish Robin Hood, Robert Roy MacGregor.

Man, in case you hattan, be sure to try all of the different drink variations at home behind your own bar :)