Cocktail of the week #53: Pousse Café

At long last (too long, I am sure many of you are thinking) we come to the final card of the deck that started it all. Ladies & Gentlemen, the Pousse Café.

Like a black and tan, the key to this drink is delicately pouring a liquid of lesser density over one of greater density. I was more than a little unsure about making this concoction, as I have never succeeded in making a black and tan. Fortunately, liqueur is far more forgiving than beer in these sorts of operations. I created a flawless drink on my second try.

And what did we think?

It looks far better than it tastes.

A Pousse Café is gorgeous to look at, without a doubt, but the damn thing tastes utterly disgusting. This combination of liqueurs should be the basis of a science fiction horror movie:

Things were quite in the sleepy midwest town of Centersburg, until a busload of Spring Break-bound raving partying nuclear physics PhD candidates shattered a canister of radioactive Root Beer Schnapps isotopes in the cordial isle of the local LiquorMart... and thus was born the Limoncello Leviathan, and life would never be the same again. (dun-dun-DUNNNNN!)

Another down side: the two bottles of Chartreuse were quite expensive. So much so I balked at buying them... but I did, for you, Gentle Reader, and I’m sure they will outlast me (the stuff is harsh - imagine celery macerated in Everclear with a stiff dose of sulphur thrown in, for good measure).

And so, we make this a “miss.” Great for presentation value, but not so hot for your Friendly Neighborhood Tastebuds.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 40
Misses: 19

[Regular cocktail tasting to resume shortly. (Along with entries explaining what the Hell has been going on with me.)]

Cocktail of the week #52: Boxcar

After an overly long hiatus (self-imposed, and I promise to explain, later), I am back. Here's Cocktail of the Week!

"You're taking it back up?" Mrs. WIt asked.

"Yeah." I replied, "It's time."

Only two cards remain in the deck my father gave me some time back. So I held a card in each hand, hid them behind my back, and asked my wife to chose a hand.

And so, we find ourselves with the Boxcar. A drink we worried was for pirates, but turned out only slightly tart, fairly creamy (thanks to the egg white) and - unlike the picture on the card - quite pink, thanks to the grenadine. While we're sure the 1/2 ounce of lime juice will help with your scurvy, we highly recommend this drink. Particularly for hot days by the pool....

Scoreboard.
Hits: 40
Misses: 18

Cocktail of the Week #51: Cuba Libre

When we drew this one from the deck, a faint nostalgic smile played on my lips.

Rum, without question, is my older sister's liquor of choice. Has been since she was in high school a few decades back. Rum and Coke (another appellation for this venerable cocktail) was her drink of choice until she discovered other applications for rum. In fact, she was no enamored of cuba libres she had "Rum'N'Coke" emblazoned on her powder puff jersey when she was a high school senior (I'm surprised to this day the school let her do that, actually).

Mrs. Wit and I had no small amount of trepidation when we saw the amount of lime juice called for in this recipe. Were we in for another pirate drink?

No. Surprisingly, the lime juice really offsets the sweetness of the rum and cola. It is an improvement!

Scoreboard.
Hits: 39
Misses: 18

Cocktail of the Week #50: White Russian

(To the tune of Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit")
Oh, Brezhnev liked his vodka
And Andropov, single malts
While Chernenko liked martinis
With a lemon twist really small
But at drinking games
Khrushchev could bury them all

Sorry. Couldn't help myself. [Smirk!]

It's funny, but I had always heard of White Russian cocktails growing up, but it seemed to me that a vodka drink containing a coffee liqueur such as Kahlua would be a Black Russian, but what do I know...

A lovely after dinner drink on a cool weekend evening. A bit heavy for the warmer weather we have been experiencing of late, however.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 38
Misses: 18

Cocktail of the Week #49: Zombie

I'm of the opinion it's the 151 proof rum that makes this drink so dangerous. Why? Because you could, in theory, run an internal combustion engine on the stuff.

Seriously: how many liquors are out there warning they are flammable?

It's tasty and it will f---- you up. Just remember to keep away from open flame while preparing the thing.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 37
Misses: 18

Cocktail of the Week #48: Whiskey Sour

Arrrr, matey!

If you be a scallywag pirate adrift at sea and suffering from the scurvy, this here be a drink fer you!

Otherwise, stick to mixing your whiskey with soda.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 36
Misses: 18

Cocktail of the Week #47: Rusty Nail

I've complained before about scotch-based cocktails, but the Rusty Nail is something different. If you are fond of Drambuie (and people either love it or hate it, it seems) then you will certainly enjoy a Rusty Nail using a decent blended scotch like Dewar's or Johnnie Walker Red.

If you have a good single malt, however, don't bother dusting off the liqueur bottle. Savor the liquor, instead.

I'll make this a hit, regardless; because when it's good, it's really really good.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 36
Misses: 17

Cocktail of the Week #46: Brandy Alexander

Growing up, I'd only been familiar with the ice cream version of this drink. That, and a now-retired porn star bearing the same name.


I actually prefer this half and half-based version over the ice cream one. But don't drink it on a hot summer day... it'll make you feel a little funny in the tummy (if you know what I mean).


Enjoy!


Scoreboard.
Hits: 35
Misses: 17

Cocktail of the Week #45: Bellini

Champagne drinks can be a fickle thing. If it's good champagne, it seems a waste to adulterate it with orange juice or liqueur.

Cheap champagne, on the other hand, is fertile ground for additives and mixers.

We expected good things of the Billini, and were not disappointed. We recommend enjoying this over a good Sunday brunch.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 34
Misses: 17

Cocktail of the Week #44: Pimm's Cup

I've already commented on my preferred cocktail, but after manhattans, Pimm's Cup is my favorite drink (third after beer, actually). Pimm's is a seasonal drink - while it's available year round, it tastes best on a hot summer day, especially if the weather is humid. This summer, with all the rain and flooding throughout the Midwest, the weather is more than perfect for Pimm's.

Just not this recipe.

A Pimm's Cup should only contain Pimm's No. 1, lemon-lime soda and a lemon wedge... although there are many variations on what one may use for a garnish. (One friend of ours practically builds a fruit salad into the darn thing.) The flavor should be light, refreshing, and startlingly complex. As one writer whose name escapes me once put it, a Pimm's Cup tastes like an English garden on a fine sunny afternoon.

But I ramble on.

The recipe in this deck calls for adding gin and club soda to Pimm's No. 1 in place of the lemon-lime soda! We found this concept of adding more alcohol to an otherwise perfectly balanced drink distressing, but in the interest of exploration we sallied forth and made the drink per the recipe on the card.

It sucked.

We're rating this one a miss, but we must implore you: buy a bottle of Pimm's No. 1 and follow the recipe on the bottle on a hot - preferably humid - summer's day. You will not be disappointed.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 33
Misses: 17

Whew! We're finally caught up!

We're all caught up, people.

You won't be subjected to near-daily update with cocktail assessments. Cocktail of the Week will now go back to being a Monday-only feature.

Enjoy, goodnight, and prepare for more infrequent posts.

ZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...........

Cocktail of the Week #43: Mai Tai

The classic South Seas-themed rum cocktail.

We've had this several times already: as a cocktail on our honeymoon in Maui (eh) to several variations of the recipe we have found online and in various drink guides.

Overall, we prefer the "tart" recipes for this drink over their "sweet" variations.

This recipe took our notice, however, because is called for something called "orgeat," which I had the damnedest time finding. Three liquor stores and I only found the stuff... today!

Anyway, we made it, and while it was tasty it was still too sweet for our liking. While we enjoy the venerable mai tai, this particular incarnation did not suit our fancy; and so we declare it a "miss."

But Mrs. Wit and I are in agreement that we should certainly visit it again, one day.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 33
Misses: 16

Cocktail of the Week #42: Golden Cadillac

I simply was not expecting to enjoy the Golden Cadillac.

Think about it: cocoa and cream (good enough so far) and... licorice?

But it works! In spite of itself, it works remarkably well! As long as you like licorice.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 33
Misses: 15

Cocktail of the Week #41: Gin and Tonic

Somebody. Please. Tell me. How can you go wrong with this one?

Vodka and tonic is also in this category (which used to be my exclusive drink in my latter college years).

But I won't count it as two hits...

Scoreboard.
Hits: 32
Misses: 15

Cocktail of the Week #40: Long Island Iced Tea

I will forever associate this drink with Markie Post when she was in her prime on "Night Court" (and I mean bad Eighties hair and everything).

I've had them in my early twenties and was duly unimpressed. It seemed a needlessly complicated mix of liquors and... it didn't even taste like an iced tea! But it was deceptive in that it did not taste much of alchohol and could pack a punch. This is a another "get lucky" drink probably devised by frat boys desperate to get laid.

It's a miss because it's... well.. IMHO... stupid.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 31
Misses: 15

Cocktail of the Week #39: Depth Charge

Beer and whiskey! Whiskey and beer! A classic combination!

Growing up this was a standard bar combo known by suburbanites as a "shot and a beer" and native Chicagoans as a "boilermaker." The term "depth charge" for this drink was born out of World War II for reasons that should be obvious.

This drink can be drunk in two ways:

1. Downing the shot and then quaffing the entire beer as a chaser (the "shot & a beer" but also known as a "boilermaker" because guzzling the beer makes one burp tremendously afterwards).
2. Dropping the full shot - glass and all - into the beer before drinking it. The shot glass striking the bottom of the beer glass typically causes a great deal of carbonation to release, generating a huge head of foam... hence the names "boilermaker" and "depth charge."

Not surprisingly, Mrs. Wit showed no interest in this drink due to its whiskey content. I just smiled and had two - one for each of us.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 31
Misses: 14

Cocktail of the Week #38: B and B

I love Benedictine. It's like drinking a delicately herbed pastry, and it gives you a nice buzz to boot.

When combined with brandy, you get nothing but good things.

No need to wax eloquent or give anecdotes, this time. Just make one for yourself and enjoy.

Scoreboard.

Hits: 30

Misses: 14

Cocktail of the Week #37: Sloe Gin Fizz

I remember the sloe gin fizz as one of the few alcoholic things my mother would drink. And even then on great rare occasion (my mother does not like the taste of alcohol, nor is she all that fond of the effects it has on people). I also remember it being referred to snidely as a "kiddie drink." It is sweet in character, but to some it taste like cough syrup. That would be because sloe gin is not a flavored gin so much as it is a liqueur made from buckthorn plums.

I bought a bottle of sloe gin, once to make a sloe gin fizz as well as a cocktail called the "shriner." Using the fizz recipe o the bottle, the drink did not taste as good as I remember.  Mrs. Wit veritably gagged on it and claimed it tasted like Nyquil's black sheep cousin.

As for the shriner cocktail? The less said the better. Maybe for snits and giggles I'll make on for Cocktail of the Week once we finish working through the deck (which won't be long now, actually).

Mrs. Wit and I, scarred from our last bought with sloe gin, approached this drink with some trepidation. However, following the recipe on the card we found the drink this time around to be delicious! Mrs. Wit even had seconds!

To our surprise, a hit!

Scoreboard.

Hits: 29

Misses: 14

Cocktail of the Week #36: Cape Codder

Mrs. Wit has been drinking cranberry juice cocktail laced with vodka for years, so we already knew this was going to be a hit. So there's nothing much to report here.

Except for a quick anecdote! Mrs. Wit and I were always curious to try straight cranberry juice, just to see what it is like. Well, imagine our surprise when we found it was carried by Trader Joe's! We bought a bottle and anticipated opening it up when we got home.

Oops.

The stuff was so unbelievably tart we took to diluting it heavily with lemon-lime soda in order to be able to drink the stuff. It was that tart!

A hit nonetheless.

Scoreboard.
Hits: 28
Misses: 14

Cocktail of the Week #35: Dry Martini

Hands down, this is my wife’s favorite cocktail. She’s particularly fond of stuffing blue cheese into the olives used to garnish this drink. It’s also a drink with more variations to it than any other - especially if you want to include “martinis” considered martinis only because they are served in the ubiquitous glass. I’m talking about the variations like the “lemon drop” the “chocolate martini” and even Mrs. Wit’s beloved “cosmopolitan.”

A simple recipe: some gin, some dry vermouth, and a garnish - typically an olive, but a twist of lemon is preferred by some (or the “Oliver Twist” incorporating both). There is also my favorite recipe for this drink in terms of humor value: the World’s Driest Martini.

1. Add 1 & 2/3 oz. dry gin to shaker/glass.
2. Pick up the bottle of dry vermouth.
3. Put the bottle back down.
4. Shake or stir with ice, pour into glass and garnish.
5. Enjoy!

The truth is, I’ve always had a tempestuous relationships with martinis. A lot of it, I always suspected, had to do with the use of olives. I’m not overly fond of the fruit. I love cooking with the olive oil. I even enjoy drizzling it on bread at Italian, Greek or Middle Eastern restaurants. But the fruit itself? Ugh! I know, call me strange… I’ve tried using a twist of lemon, instead, but I did not find it improved things all that much for me.

Then we drew this card from the deck. It mentions adding a pickled onion as garnish in place of the olive makes this drink a “gibson” instead of a martini. Mrs. Wit tried the martini, I tried the gibson.

Verdict?

Much to my surprise, I loved it! The vinegar from the onion did something almost alchemical in nature to the gin and vermouth, for me. I even had another, that night, right after the first - not something I often do on our “Cocktail of the Week” night!

We’re counting this as two drinks, because the olive versus the onion in this classic mix make all the difference in the world in terms of overall flavor and character. These are truly two different drinks.

Two hits!

Scoreboard.
Hits: 27
Misses: 14