Brandy Alexander

It has been too long between Cocktail drinks, posts and this is way overdue.  Winter is now officially here and although it is tempting to reach out for an aged Shiraz there are many cocktails that can warm you up from the inside and they are what I want to explore for the next 3 months.  First up is the Brandy Alexander which I do believe was my first ever cocktail that I had at a Chinese Restaurant not long after my 18th birthday (I was and still am a nerd, I did wait till I was 18 to drink, except on a few occasions.....).  This would have to be one of the best cocktails to try if you are new to cocktails or are yet to find one you like.  Not too sweet, and rich and creamy with the brandy giving it just the right amount of kick to have your tummy buzzing with warmth.  This is what I will always order when I cannot decide because I know I will like it and it is near impossible to get wrong.  The only problem being some places always seem to be out of cream.....

1 shot Brandy

1 shot Brown Creme de Cacao
2 shots Cream

Shake all the ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass, garnish with grated nutmeg

Hubby: Too easy to drink, 4/5

Me: Rich and creamy, just enough alcohol to take the edge off but also to keep you standing up for the night, 5/5

Perfect for: Early evenings when you have some time to just sit and reflect (or first dates with Peggy Olson if you are a Mad Men fan)

Try it: Anytime the temperature drops below 20°C

Perfect Manhattan

On one of our Hunter Valley Weekends, we stumbled upon a bar with a cocktail list bigger than the wine list.  I thought I would venture away from what I was familiar with, and Hubby, well, he had no idea what to order, he chatted to the bartender who convinced him to try a Perfect Manhattan.  We sat and watched as the drink was made and nervously Hubby raised the glass to his mouth and with one sip he was won.  He declared it his favourite cocktail of all time (although truth be told I think he has only ever had 'Bourbon and coke' before this) and we enjoyed a night of cocktail-ing and devouring a plate of tapas listening to old school music and planning which vineyards we would squeeze in the next day.  During the week as I was back in Sydney I found a Deli and saw the maraschino cherries, freshly made, I bought some and knew that for this week I would have to relive our Hunter Valley Weekend, much to my Husband's delight.  Naturally this is our first ever time we have both agreed on 5/5

3 shots Rye Whiskey

1/2 shot Dry Vermouth
1/2 shot Sweet Vermouth

Shake all the ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass, garnish with a maraschino cherry
Note: can substitute Rye Whiskey for Bourbon, but for authenticity I made this drink drink with 100% Rye Whiskey 

Hubby: Perfection, extra smooth, no harsh after taste, pure pleasure, 5/5

Me: Smooth with a clean finish, a perfect balance between sweet and dry, light and heavy, stick with 100% Rye to ensure the perfect balance, 5/5

Perfect for: The changing of the seasons from warm to cool, enjoy at the end of the night with special someone after a long day.

Try it: At home, I know many bartenders who cannot pull this off.

Cosmopolitan

It's raining, it's pouring

My husband isn't yet snoring

We are in bed watching tv instead

And we will be staying here until the morning

I love the rain.  Love it, in fact I even downloaded a few apps on my phone that plays rain and storms for as long as you want to listen to it.  But this is week 3 now?  And I am a little over bumming around on the couch and rearranging the house (I am also over The Boys bringing dirt into the house from a un-turfed yard but that is a different story).  What is a girl to do with this kind of weather?  She stays in her PJ's all day, brings the TV into the bedroom, sends her Husband out to play computer/xbox/guitar/whatever and sets herself up for some serious girl time.  I have pulled out my Sex and the City DVDs which I have not watched in a long time.  I remember when SATC first came out, I was in school, now, I am about a year off their age in season 1.  It's scary.  And I know I really shouldn't say this, but I will, I am glad I am not single and 30-something.  But then I do live on the Central Coast NSW, Australia.  I think if I was 30-something and single in NYC, it would be a very different story.  Of course tonight I must make the SATC signature cocktail, the Cosmopolitan.

1 1/2 shot Vodka

1 shot Cointreau
1 shot Cranberry Juice
1/2 shot lime juice

Shake all the ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass

Hubby: Finally, a classic cocktail, slightly sweet and very refreshing, 4/5

Me: Strong citrus flavour, very refreshing and easily sip-able the way a cocktail should be, 4/5

Perfect for: Spending an evening in with The Girls and watching soppy rom-coms, also ideal as an apéritif.

Try it: On a night on the town and you want to be assured of a cocktail you know you will enjoy.

Blue Hawaiian

Summer is fading.  This week has just been rain, rain and more rain (good for the garden, not so good for finishing off the garden) and of course it is meant to rain all weekend long.  Summer is my least favourite season, I don't like the heat and retreat indoors as much as I can.  However all that said it has not stopped raining for so long that right now I could do with some of that summer sun.  Tonight as the rain beats down and Hubby and I snuggle up on the lounge with The Boys, I thought I would make something that should remind me of summer.  I wanted to go with a cocktail that screamed Tropical Island.  Tonight I will be dreaming of my favourite place in the world, Ellis Beach, Tropical North Queensland, sitting in the sun, soaking up the rays, looking out at the glistening ocean and in the far distance watching the storm clouds gather for the evening thunderstorm.  "How's the serenity?"  Tragically with this cocktail it is ruined, but I have to talk about the bad as well as the good, but as Hubby just said to me, "Can't you stick to the classics's?"  Yes Baby, I will.

1 shot Blue Curacao

1 shot White Rum
1 shot Coconut Cream
2 shots Pineapple Juice

Place all ingredientss into a blender with 1 cup of ice and blend until smooth.  Pour into a highball glass.  

Hubby: Coconutty but the coconut cream isn't working, not a nice consistency, 1/5

Me: Looks how a cocktail should but it lacked the full flavour I was expecting, also didn't like the consistency, I prefer my cocktails smoother, 2/5

Perfect for: Trying for it's good looks at a cocktail party once you have passed the point of being tispy and not caring too much about the taste and texture.

Try it: At a cocktail party cos it looks good, that really is all it is good for.

Mint Julep

My whole life I have only ever wanted to travel to two countries, England (which I achieved if only for a week) and America.  I don't know where this came from but I always had a thing for going to the US and seeing all the things you don't see on the Movies or the TV.  But I didn't want to just travel there for a few weeks and cram in as much as I could, I wanted to live over there for several years and experience all there was.  Of course I could never live anywhere in the world permanently, I would always have to come back Home to Australia.  But after I finished uni, I applied for a Green Card.  I had a vision of going over there, meeting a big burly NFL player and falling madly in love (I was single at the time).  Now things have changed but I would still love to go over there.  Don't tell our parents but we are trying our luck again with the Green Card and hopefully one year we will be lucky enough.  Until then, with Summer starting to slide away and disappear in the next few weeks, I felt this American Classic was just the thing.

2 1/2 shots Bourbon

2 tsp Water
1 tsp Caster Sugar
4 springs Mint

Muddle mint leaves with water and sugar in an old-fashioned glass.  Fill with ice and add Bourbon, mix for a minute or two to dilute and finish with more ice.  

Hubby: Too strong for me, just keep this at one, 2/5

Me: Refreshing, I was surprised how much mint I could taste but I enjoyed the flavour, it mixed well, just sip slowly, 4/5

Perfect for: Summer afternoons sitting outside soaking it up, ideal for horse racing.

Try it: Now, before Summer ends and also in November for the Racing Season.

Between The Sheets

Well Valentines Day is coming up.  Of course I never celebrate it because it is so commercial.  At least that is what I always said when I was single.  Now that I have Hubby I think why not jump right on in.  Naturally you should show the one you love that you love them everyday, and I do as does my Hubby, but for one day every year we get to bask in the cheesiness of it all and find each other the most ridiculous and cheeky cards we can.  And lets face it, you can turn your back on February 14 all you like but when a dozen red roses turn up at the office in front of all the girls you suddenly feel like a Princess who has always celebrated the day.  So for today I thought I would find something that had a little romance in the name of the drink without sounding too.....direct.  Of course I knew this day would eventually come, it had too, trying new ingredients and combinations and for this week, it was a total flop.

1 shot Cointreau

1 shot White Rum
1 shot Brandy
1/2 shot lemon juice

Shake with ice and pour into a Martini glass.  

Hubby: Yuck this just doesn't work, 1/5

Me: Um, just don't think citrus and brandy really go together, 3 sips and I am done 1/5

Perfect for: Maybe as a hangover cure.

Try it: Perhaps don't.

Frozen Grasshopper

Summer.  Remember the ice cream man?  You would hear that music and immediately I was running around the house trying to find mum and asking for money.  She could give me and my brother a few dollars and it was off down the driveway hoping we had not missed him.  Most of the time I ordered choc mint ice cream.  It was my favourite flavour.  Green was my favourite colour and I loved the crunchy choc bits in it.  We would get our ice creams and sit on the steps outside the front of the house, absorbed in the sugary goodness, watching the afternoon pass by.  As school goes back this week I thought it was fitting to take myself back to those Summer Dayz.  

1 shot white creme de cacao

1 shot green creme de menthe
3 scoops of vanilla ice cream

Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until combined.  Pour into a Martini glass.  

Hubby: Just like choc mint ice cream only boozy, 4.5/5

Me: Heaven!  A naughty version of choc mint ice cream, what more is there to say, 5/5

Perfect for: Anytime during Summer, serve as dessert after a classic summer meal.

Try it: When you hear the sound of the ice cream man, because you know you won't be running after that truck.

Waltzing Matilda

Happy Australia Day (for tomorrow) it was only appropriate that I make an Aussie cocktail. However, when you think of Australia and booze you think of a bloke with a beer and 'shrimps on the barbie' or you think of wine with the highest alcohol content around.  The closest we come to having a cocktail would be 'Bundy and coke'. But after some searching around I stumbled upon the Waltzing Matilda.  Not only is this the perfect drink to serve tomorrow but I have added it to my list of things to make again.

4 shots dry white wine
1 shot gin
1 1/2 shots passion fruit juice
1/2 shot orange curaçao
Sparkling ginger ale

Put all ingredients except the ginger ale into a cocktail shaker with ice.  Strain into a Highball glass and top with sparkling ginger ale.
(Note: I tried very hard but was unable to find straight passion fruit juice so I used an orange and passion fruit mix)

Hubby: Not too bad, mild flavour essentially wine with ginger, 3/5

Me: Perfect! Mild, refreshing, easy drinking, does not taste like a true cocktail, reminds me very much of punch, but I love it, 5/5

Perfect for: Australia Day! Any BBQ would be ideal, I would serve as a punch and sip away while soaking up the sun and enjoying a serve of lamb.

Try it: When you cannot decide between wine or a cocktail, also handy for making a bad wine drinkable.

Snickers

Yes there is a heatwave going on.  I know this because at noon today we lost power at work which equals no air con.  I remember back when I was a kid at school and going through the yearly heatwaves.  My uniforms (100% synthetic materials) would stick to me and I would be on the train with a red face all hot and sweaty (nothing has changed much now really).  Of course as soon as I arrived home, mum would treat us with an ice cream.  Tonight I thought it was time to make something with cream, something sweet, something to cool off with:

1 shot Butterscotch Schnapps

1 shot Kahlua

3 shots Cream  

Put everything into a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake, serve in a Martini Glass 

Hubby: Wow that's good, creamy and tastes just like it sounds, 5/5

Me: Liquid dessert, just like the chocolate bar great for a sweet craving, 5/5

Perfect for: Summer afternoons with the girls reliving all things 80s (or whatever childhood decade is appropriate for you)

Try it: When you have a little bit of cream left in the fridge and you just don't know what to do with it, also when you need a sweet hit.

The Real Midori Illusion

Ahh Midori, you bring back so many memories.  All of them from my uni days, that was a while ago now, and then of course you did make an appearance at a few 18th Birthday Parties in my final year of school, that funny shaped green bottle really takes me back.  The most popular was the classic Midori and Lemonade, but it was almost always premixed as the student budget didn't stretch to buying the actual Midori.  Hot summers, being stuck in rooms without air conditioning.... I might have some memories but there is no way I would go back. 

 

1 shot Bacardi Rum 
1 shot Cointreau
1 shot Midori
1 shot Vodka
1/2 shot Blue Curacao
Pineapple Juice
Lemonade   

In a highball glass mix over ice and top up with half pineapple juice and half lemonade.  

Hubby: Very nice, perfect for a hot day, is a strong alcohol taste, 4.5/5

Me: Whoa!  High on the alcohol, very fruity and refreshing, great tropical taste but definitely leave it at one, 4.5/5

Perfect for: Sitting by the pool late in the afternoon and sipping slowly while watching the sun go down.

Try it: On a hot day when you need something refreshing, just make sure you don't need the car afterwards.

Scotch Fizz

Welcome to this year's blog project, Friday Night Cocktails.  I am not much of a cocktail drinker as I never had much on hand to make them with and I thought this would be a great excuse to get mixing.  Friday night is when we come home, have a glass or two of wine and chillax on the couch after a long week at work, this will be the same, except we will have a cocktail in hand, which may mean we have to rethink the couch/tv thing as cocktails usually call for a little more glamour.

Are you wondering what to do with all that left over sparkling from New Years?  How about trying a Scotch Fizz:

1 shot Single Malt Scotch Whisky

1/2 shot Cointreau

Sparkling

Shake Scotch and Cointreau with ice, serve into champagne flute and top with sparkling.

Hubby:  Gives champers a kick with a slight after burn thanks to the Scotch.  4/5

Me: Refreshing and ideal for a little something extra, enhances the dryness of the sparkling and leaves a little orange aftertaste in your mouth.  4.5/5

Perfect for: A pre dinner drink or sitting at a bar sipping slowly, not one to share with the girls.

Try it: When your Hubby wants Scotch and when you are over all the sweetness of most cocktails.