Cocktail of the Month - May: Bourbon Smash

Last May we featured a somewhat complicated, delicate to make, spring classic- the Mint Julep. While we had a great time figuring out the science behind the perfect julep, and it’s a great occasion drink, it was something that we wouldn’t make as a daily cocktail - too much careful attention and planning. (You can read about our julep exploits here ... )

While we were looking for classic cocktails to feature this year, we found the perfect answer - the Bourbon Smash. Much easier to make, with the same fresh flavor profile as a julep. Dating back to at least 1862, the Smash is listed as a more casual variant of the Mint Julep. Historically it’s unclear which came first- whether the Smash is a dressed down Julep or whether the Julep was a more fancy follower of the Smash. Either way, both are fabulous in their own right, and in their own situation.  A Smash is literally "smashing" the ingredients/fruits and adding spirits and ice.  So, fun to note, all Julep's are Smashes, however, all Smashes are not Juleps.

Although there have been countless variations on the Smash, with some recipes being as vague as "a spirit base, seasonal fruit, sweetener and ice", we used the most original recipe that we could locate, and ended up with the perfect sipping drink for summer nights on the porch.

RECIPE

Half a lemon, cut into 4 wedges

6-8 mint leaves

1 oz simple syrup or 1T. sugar

2 oz of your favorite bourbon

In a shaker, muddle and smash the lemon, mint, and sugar

Add bourbon

shake

Strain into a rocks glass with crushed ice or one to two large cubes

Garnish with fruit and/or mint 

Enjoy!

We hope that you enjoy this classic as much as we have - it's sure to become a summer staple for both of us! 

Cheers!

Christine and Stacy 

Egg Nog- Cocktail of the Month: December

Egg Nog has a long and storied history.  It can be traced to medieval times, when monks drank a milky ale with eggs. Over time the recipe transitioned to what we would consider a traditional egg nog, and then transitioned again to what you buy in the store - which has no “nog” and minimal egg. After researching (we just can’t help it!) and reassuring ourselves that the salmonella risk was minimal to non-existent, we set out to find a “traditional” egg nog recipe to try.

We discovered an authentic recipe "written by George Washington's own hand” (https://www.almanac.com/content/george-washingtons-christmas-eggnog), and decided out of the plethora of options, this was one we had to try!  We reduced the recipe from the crowd sized portion of Mount Vernon’s heyday, to a manageable family or small get together size, and then got started! Our helpful hints and lessons learned are included in parentheses!

Our Recipe

2 eggs

2/3 cups heavy cream

2/3 cups milk

2Tbs sugar

1/3 cup brandy

1.5 oz bourbon

1.5 oz rum (we used Goslings Black Seal, use any dark Caribbean Rum)

0.5 oz sherry

Mix egg yolks and sugar with a hand mixer until frothy.

Mix in dairy to egg yolk mixture.

Add mixed liquors slowly while beating so that they do not cook eggs (if you add the alcohol too quickly, the eggs will literally cook- this is why the salmonella risk is minimal- a slow, steady pour will work fine).

Over-beaten whites, Oops!

Beat egg whites (after they have sat and reached room temperature) just until stiff peaks form - do not overbeat! (If you put them in a KitchenAid and walk away or work on something else they WILL overbeat.  They will be very stiff, and it will be much harder to fold them in without lumping). 

Fold into yolk mixture.

Refrigerate to set a few min, hours, days (We chilled for about an hour- mixture will start to separate, but you can shake the container to remix it).

It will mellow with time, (our research indicates that people keep egg nog for a year or longer; we kept it for about a month, the flavors did mellow and mix more over time)

This made 3.5 measuring cups full.

Overall, it was much easier to make egg nog than we anticipated, and it was delicious! The mix of liquors created a blended flavor that did not overfocus on any particular flavor , and the final drink was not nearly as sweet or heavy as the commercially available options. If you love egg nog, definitely give this a try, if you have never really liked it, mix some up and see if it changes your mind!  Note: We found this drink goes quite nicely with a roaring fire in the fireplace!



Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
Cheers!

Stacy and Christine

Cocktail of the Month-November: Hot Toddy

Continuing our Fall trend, we are featuring another heated cocktail- perfect for an evening drink when the night air turns cold! When the Hot Toddy first came to our attention on a vintage cocktail list we nearly discounted it all together.  Our first thoughts, even our second and third thoughts, tended to be something like "how good can this be, people used it as medicine?!" Even as we prepared it we were cautious- not expecting too much, hoping it was "OK".

We could not have been more wrong! The Hot Toddy will definitely become a part of our cold weather repertoire.  It was crazy easy to make, only needed ingredients we already had on hand, AND was both tasty and warming.  In fact, we have continued making these at home since trying them out for this blog!  Yummy Cozy!

The drink's origins can be traced back to the late 1700's India (although other variations attribute it to an Irish doctor, prescribing it medicinally), where it was made with liquor, hot water, sugar and spice. It is no surprise that it quickly spread to colder and wetter climates in the UK and American colonies, as British influence spanned more of the globe. As the drink spread, local spices and regional liquor preferences created a number of variations. By the 1830's it had become a common cold remedy used by everyone from grandma down to young children.

RECIPE 

1 Tbsp honey 

1 Tbsp lemon
2 shots Bourbon

boiling water (about 1/2 cup) 

Add first 3 ingredients to Irish coffee glass (or other mug). Pour in boiling water and stir! 

** NOTE the original recipe had 2 Tbsp honey, but we felt it was sweet enough with one!

Cheers and Stay Warm!
Christine and Stacy

Cocktail of the Month-September: Old Fashioned

Labor Day- summer is coming to an end, but it's not quite fall. As we thought about a drink that captured this feeling, we decided to feature the classic Old Fashioned with a few variations.

The Old Fashioned is among the most classic of cocktails.  References to this classic bourbon (or whiskey) drink date back to 1806; it may in fact have been THE original cocktail. What we do know: in the 1800's a cocktail was comprised of bitters, a sugar cube, a dash of water and your spirit of choice- you could order one with most any alcohol as the base. Sometime in the late 1800's the bourbon variety picked up the Old Fashioned moniker- leading to the idea that it may have been the original, or just the one that best stood the test of time.

What we love most about this drink is it's simplicity. Free from the over sweetness of many modern cocktails, you can really enjoy the bourbon you are paying for - which incidentally means you should start with a bourbon you enjoy straight.

Traditional Old Fashioned recipes call for a sugar cube muddled with a few dashes of bitters and a splash of water. Although this is ideal, most agree that a rich simple sugar (2:1 ration sugar to water) is a reasonable replacement. (Use about 1\3 oz of rich simple syrup/drink).

We also tried a few variations on the Old Fashioned- although they are not traditional. We found that using a fruit bourbon- cherry and peach specifically- brought us a flavor profile that reminded us of the summer to fall transition. We omitted the sugar cube, using just a few dashes of bitters and the bourbon - plus ice. as the fruit bourbons are sweeter on their own, Purists would gasp, I am sure, but if you are just experimenting give it a try!


Cheers and Happy Fall!
Christine and Stacy

Mint Julep: A Year of Cocktails - May

This month's cocktail is inspired by a little horse race coming up at the end of this week... 

When we began brainstorming our Year of Cocktails, May was one of the months that we instantly had a plan for - and the same plan no less (which is saying something for the two of us).  When you live in the south, there are few things as iconic as the Kentucky Derby and the connected pageantry.  Everyone pictures the fabulously dressed women, Derby hats perched atop their heads, and of course they have mint juleps in their hands.  If you ever wondered why juleps are served in little silver cups, if you are hosting a Derby Party and are unsure of intricacies of this classic drink, or if you are a history and science nerd like me - this is the blog post for you! 

Although written references to juleps exist prior to the 1875 advent of the Derby, due to excellent marketing and branding the two are forever linked in the minds of most Americans.  The first references to juleps at the Derby appear in 1938, which makes sense as Prohibition ended in 1933 and America was emerging from the throes of the Great Depression in the late 1930's.  Americans were ready to get out and have a good time, forget about their problems for a while, and enjoy an drink that symbolized wealth and stature.  The julep's history made it a perfect fit - in the days before home refrigerators, even having the available ice to make the drink was a sign of wealth. Combining that with the requisite silver cup, and the staff to make such a labor intensive drink was surely a sign of a very affluent family; and the additional bonus of being made with local Kentucky bourbon made it the perfect signature drink for an event that was fast becoming a symbol of wealth, history and class in the American South. 

We had our silver cup, we had ice, bourbon, sugar and mint - we thought we were ready to whip up the perfect mint julep.  I am here to tell you - the recipe for a julep looks deceptively simple! We even had an official mint muddling stick! We muddled our mint (basically smashing the mint leaves to release the flavors), we put in the ice and the other ingredients and we stirred... then waited for that classic super-frosted cup. Nothing! A little bit of condensation perhaps, but no super cool frosted julep glass. We went back to the trusty internet, pulled up all the recipes we could find and looked for something we had missed. Some recipes called for a splash of water, in addition to the standard ingredients - surely this little splash of water couldn't make the difference we thought? 

But we had nothing to lose, so we gave it a try.  Amazingly, we added the water, stirred vigorously, and behold - the glass iced, instantly and dramatically! If you are just interested in having the perfect julep, you can stop reading here, skip to the recipe at the bottom, and enjoy your fabulously iced silver cup (you're welcome....).  However, if you are like Christine and I and need to know WHY this works, read the next paragraph.  We were fascinated.... 

Full disclosure, as I write this, I am a science/ math nerd, but I tend much more towards the life sciences - thermodynamics was never my strong suit, so this is totally my lay person's understanding of the information... We figured that there must have been some sort of chemical reaction going on, so we started by hitting up the research chemists and engineers in our immediate social circle. Despite the fact that they all thought that we were crazy - because who really calls someone out of the blue to ask about drink glasses that "magically" frost - we hit on the phrase "heat of enthalpy".  Then we were off to the races, so to speak.  A google search and some reading later, we had it figured out (sort of)! The simple syrup (sugar supersaturated in hot water), the bourbon and the ice are a closed system with a defined amount of energy. When you add a splash of water and stir, as I understand it, several things happen simultaneously. The freezing point of the ice/water combination is lowered, due to the alcohol in the bourbon, this results in a melting of some quantity of the ice in order to reach a state of equilibrium,  In addition, the dropping temperature changes the solubility of the sugar in the simple syrup - just as you had to heat the water in order to dissolve that much sugar, the cooling of the solution causes some of the sugar to recrystallize.  Both of these things - the melting and the recrystallizing - use energy that removes heat from the closed system.  As the system loses heat, it chills the glass so severely that any moisture in the air (that would normally form condensation on the glass) actually freezes.  To create the ideal situation for a perfectly frosted julep cup, you need the following....

 1. A good recipe

 2. A full cup of ice so that the temperature balance works correctly 

 3. A vigorous stir

 4. A real silver cup - as silver is the best substance for conducting heat and cold

5, A good dose of Southern humidity in the air to provide enough water vapor to freeze

Because we are a bit artsy and creative (and have young daughters), in addition to being nerds, we took our new-found knowledge one step further.... If the freezing effect of the julep cup is caused by agitation in the system drawing the heat, it's the only natural explanation for the mysterious powers of everyone's current favorite Disney princess! If you have "Frozen" fans in your house, and have seen the movie as many times as we have, you will remember that Princess Elsa's ice "powers" grow and spin out of control whenever she is becomes overly upset/angry/scared etc. As her emotions swirl and her feelings build in intensity they seem to draw the energy from the environment - setting off an eternal winter in Arendelle. So as an added bonus to our cool drink experiment, we solved a Disney mystery as well! 

We hope that you have enjoyed learning from our experiences and that you will drink a fabulous julep as you cheer your favorite horse to victory in the Derby this weekend!

RECIPE

1. Place the leaves from 4-5 springs of  mint and 1/2 oz  simple syrup into a julep cup
2. Muddle well to release the oil and aroma of the mint.
3. Add 2.5 oz of your favorite bourbon.
4. Fill with crushed ice, add a splash of water,  and stir well until the glass becomes frosty.
5. Garnish with the mint sprig.

Cheers!

Stacy and Christine 

Cherry Almond Cream - A Year of Cocktails (February)

February, such a chilly month in the middle of the winter, calls for a cozy drink that pairs well with chocolate! We discovered Cherry Almond Cream - which was delicious with some easy homemade chocolates. This drink is perfect for a Valentine's Day Celebration with your significant other, or a girls night in.

Cherry brandy drinks have been popular since the colonial era, the Mount Vernon website even shares the Washington family recipe for Cherry Bounce (very similar to this drink).  Cherry Heering, the quintessential Cherry liqueur, has been produced in Europe since 1818 and was even the signature drink on some European airlines in the mid-century. As American cocktail parties reached their peak during the post-war boom of the 1950's; it's no surprise that they included drinks influenced by European liquors. Many servicemen had the opportunity to try such drinks while deployed, and some- no doubt- brought them home as souvenirs.

 While the original recipe (found below) that we used called for a Cherry Brandy, we discovered that they are no longer widely available in the United States. We could not locate a distributor in a several state area, in the southeast region. If you can buy it in your area, grab some and consider yourself lucky! If not, you have one of two options... pre plan and make your own (soaking cherries in brandy for several weeks -recipes readily available online), or substitute. We took the later option, substituting an easily available Cherry Bourbon. We had to slightly reduce the amount of bourbon, as it was a bit too sweet for our tastes. You can play with the ingredients to suite your preferences as well.

Cherry Almond Cream Cocktail

3/4 ounces Cherry Brandy

3/4 ounces Amaretto

half and half

ice

Chocolate for garnish

Add liqueurs to a tumbler filled with ice, and add half and half to fill up glass. Stir to mix, and enjoy!

We created our chocolate garnish with leftovers from the chocolates we made to accompany the drinks- simply put a glob of chocolate on parchment paper to cool. Then carefully shave off a curl with a sharp knife and place the curl around the glass lip!

To make the chocolates...

Start with a silicone mold- we used a slim ice mold that we had available, but you could use any shape or style that you like. If you use a deeper mold, don't fill it more than about 3/4"

Adding the craisins and salt to the mold

deep with chocolate. 

Sprinkle crasins and sea salt in the bottom of your mold

Melt semi-sweet chocolate chips on the stove top or in the microwave. If you use the microwave, initially do one minute at 50% power. Stir and continue at 30 sec intervals, 50% power until the chips are melted. With a spoon, put the melted chocolate into your mold. After the mold is full, tap it gently on the counter several times to remove air bubbles. You will see them come to the surface and pop! 

Refrigerate the mold until the chocolate it set, then carefully pop it out. 

We found that the tartness of the crasins was the perfect foil to the sweetness of the drink. It might be even better with a dark chocolate! If you try any variations, share them with us in the comments!! 

Finished Chocolates

Bon Apetite!

Stacy