ROB ROY FOR RICKY BOBBY

Rob and his buddy Rob Roy

ROB ROY

1 measure Scotch

1 measure sweet red vermouth

Angostura bitters

6263 is Hubby’s favorite number, because of the day of his birth, June 2, 1963. This year, June 2^nd fell on a Saturday. Weekend birthdays are the best and Hubby took full advantage of it — lounging on the couch, watching movies, and tinkering with his boat during the day. Come nighttime, we had plans to hit downtown Cleveland for dinner and a visit to Cleveland’s new casino. Ohio legalized gambling in 2010 and Cleveland is all abuzz about the Horseshoe Casino that opened downtown just a few weeks ago. Hubby is a craps player and he was hoping to make a withdraw from the Horseshoe, instead of a deposit.

But first a cocktail. Hubby’s name is Rob and he likes scotch, so I thought a ROB ROY cocktail would be perfect for the man whose friends call him “Ricky Bobby!” (gotta love that movie Talladega Nights.) To make the ROB ROY, I didn’t have to go to too much trouble. I just put scotch and sweet red vermouth into a shaker filled with lots of ice, gave it some shakes, then strained it into a cocktail glass. I also added a few dashes of Angostura bitters, but the recipe said they were completely optional.

Ricky Bobby’s first comment after taking a sip was that he liked Manhattans better . This is interesting because the ROB ROY is a modification of the Manhattan cocktail, but it is made with scotch instead of whiskey and it doesn’t contain any dry vermouth. So the ROB ROY is much sweeter and less appealing to Ricky Bobby, who likes sour better than sweet. Still, the birthday boy sucked it down, after adding some ice of course. He said he could taste the Scottish Highlands with each sip, though he’s never been there. I thought the cocktail was a strong one, but yet was entirely drinkable. I especially loved the look of the bitters on the frothy top layer. The ROB ROY cocktail may not have been as big of a hit with Hubby as I hoped it would be, but the casino sure was. He walked out $350 richer. Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie