Green With Envy
Happy Valentine’s Day! I’m sure your feed is filled with Red, Cliches, and references to fat, matchmaking little angels. This post goes out to anyone not feeling all the Love…or maybe even feeling a bit jealous of all the warm fuzzies Hallmark would make you believe you should be feeling. [Full disclosure: I am a Big Softie and I happily married to my forever Valentine🥰].
The Double Doink
In football, the infamous Double Doink refers to a (partially blocked) missed field goal attempt by the Chicago Bears that tragically hit the goal post twice before bouncing out. This hilarious event resonates with me today because of the way that this drink played out. Since this post is for the Super Bowl I was very excited to use my football ice mold. I wanted to make the ice football-colored, so I came up with a (surprise) overly complicated recipe that would impart lovely flavors and color.
Get A Move On
I don’t like waste. Old fruit? Shrub. Stale bread? Croutons. Several cans of prune juice about to expire (#parenthood)? Sounds like a syrup-itunity to me. The best part is that the syrup is, like, really good— raisiny, rich, a little funky. I can only assume it’s great for my digestive health, too.
Do You Yuzu?
I realized that vodka has been noticeably absent from my feed for awhile. I have nothing against vodka, and its neutral canvas is quite useful for infusions, etc. But it’s also great for cocktails where the main flavor might get bullied by other spirits. In the case of this drink, I wanted to go for a really clean, refreshing cocktail that allowed the star flavor, yuzu, to shine.
Bubbles and Brew
January is (finally) over, so for some of you that means a return to imbibing; for many, it never stopped. But others may choose not to drink for a variety of reasons, regardless of the month, so it is important to have some good mocktail options. Needless to say, I was excited when @drinkjoyus offered to send me a bottle of their alcohol-removed sparkling wine to try.
Diamond in the Rough
Seriously though, I love that scene in Aladdin where the Giant Sand Tiger rumbles on after he gets rudely woken up for nefarious reasons—almost as much as I love these gorgeous glasses from @thewinesavant that I got for Christmas. I wanted to stir up something dark and handsome to show these bad boys off, so here we are. And it’s February so love and diamonds and stuff❤️
The Cavallino
Today I’m sharing with you my second of two entries for the @homebarawards finals (includes Fernet; no juice or homemade ingredients; stirred). My first post was Fernet-forward, smooth, dark, and handsome. This one is less Fernet-centric but much louder and bolder and has tiki running through its veins.
Hidden Vallet
I am excited to share with you my first entry to the @homebarawards finals. This year features stirred cocktails that include a Fernet-style amaro (and no homemade ingredients or juice). This drink features a Mexican Fernet that is by far my favorite. It’s a bit sweeter and less…intense than some others, while still sporting a firm herbal/minty backbone with notes of cinnamon, cloves, and especially (for my palate), cardamom.
Shrub | Tonic
To those of you participating in Dry January in some way, good for you. I’m all for mindful eating and drinking, whether that’s initiated by a certain time of year or just a periodic look inside. In any case, as someone who enjoys entertaining guests and pretending to be a bartender, it’s important to have interesting and delicious options for those who aren’t drinking alcohol.
Mai Ti-erra
Cold weather hits and sure, the flips and toddies come out in full force, but right around this time of year I switch to Tiki Mode. The vacation/beach vibes are especially welcome now that the holidays are well behind us.