2 oz Genever [Bols]
1/2 oz Green Chartreuse
1/4 oz Drambuie
1/4 oz Averna
Few dashes Charred Cedar Bitters [Black Cloud Bitters]
Stir with ice in a mixing glass, strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
A few months ago I picked up the Black Cloud Bitters sampler from Muddle & Stir. There are five kinds in there, all wonderfully odd. Simply based on the labels, the Charred Cedar bitters excited and intrigued me the most. Continue reading
3/4 oz Mezcal [Del Maguey Vida]
3/4 oz Drambuie
3/4 oz Cocchi Americano
3/4 oz Grapefruite Juice
Few dashes Hopped Grapefruit Bitters [Bittermens]
Combine ingredients in a shaker, shake with ice, strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with grapefruit twist.
It’s winter, which means citrus season. And while lemons and limes are essentially year round items for us, we definitely go all in on oranges and grapefruits during the colder months. I love grapefruits on their own. In fact, I’ll often just peel and eat them just like an orange (a move I learned from my dad) instead of the more traditional cut-in-half-eat-with-spoon method. So obviously I’ll take full advantage and throw them in some cocktails. Continue reading
1 1/2 oz White Rum <Lawley’s Light New England Spirti>
1/2 oz Drambuie
1/2 oz Aperol
1/2 oz Lime Juice
Combine in a shaker and shake with ice, strain into a chilled cocktail glass
When I was younger we spent some holidays at my aunt and uncle’s house. They lived in a split level, so the family room was on the lower level. That’s where the tv was, so I spent plenty of hours down there. Three things are imprinted on my brain from all that time. 1) My uncle had 6 or 7 cacti near the sliding glass door to the backyard. One was the size of a basketball 2) The walls were this weird grayish textured wood paneling. 3) There was a trap door in a section of those panels that opened up and turned into a shelf suspended by chains. Behind it was a compartment that contained a bunch of bottles, basically a semi-hidden bar (even though I didn’t see many drinks made there). The only bottle I remember from their bar was Drambuie. I have no idea why.
1 1/4 oz Mezcal <Sacrificio>
1 oz Drambuie
1/2 oz Coffee Liqueur <Galliano Ristretto>
1/2 oz lemon juice
Shake with ice, strain into chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.
There are a few guarantees in life: seasons change, you pay your taxes, and if there is a mezcal drink on the menu, Mrs. Muddle will order it. Ever since she discovered the”other” agave based spirit, she can not resist its powers.
Tequila and mezcal are distilled from the agave plant, but they have very different flavor profiles. Tequila tends to be more vegetal and bright, while mezcal has a strong smokiness supported by earthy flavors. Fans of Islay single malts and rich, woody bourbons will have no trouble making friends with this spirit.
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