A LEAP YEAR COCKTAIL

LEAP YEAR

2 measures gin

½ measure Grand Marnier

½ measure sweet red vermouth

Dash of lemon juice

Lemon rind garnish

Ahhh… Leap Day. The day that demonstrates how hard it is to squeeze 365 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes, and 16 seconds of a year – as measured by one trip around the sun – into a calendar with only 365 days. Leap Day was born around 46 BC when Julius Ceasar reformed the old Roman calendar. That messed up thing had been based on a lunar month. Ceasar changed the calendar to reflect a solar year, and without it we would have to add a whole month to the calendar every two or three years. How crazy would that be? 

Leap Day is also the day that put the 366 into Cocktail Connie’s 366. I had already hatched the plan for a cocktail-a-day blog when I figured out that the upcoming year was a Leap Year. That meant one extra day of drinking a cocktail. But it didn’t scare me off and I decided just to roll with it. It made my little project all that more unique.

It also allowed me to drink a cocktail called the LEAP YEAR — a great, if strong, drink. To make it, put the ingredients above into a shaker, fill it with ice, shake and strain into a martini glass. I then tried to add a twist of lemon using my new zester, but, as you can see by the picture, I need to work on my twisting.

Hubby really loved the LEAP YEAR and I did too, but it was a little too bold for my taste. It’s sweet and packs a wallop, but it still went down pretty easy. I couldn’t even taste the gin. The LEAP YEAR was my first cocktail with Grand Marnier, which is an orange liquor. It’s similar to Cointreau, but different enough that I couldn’t cheap out and use the Cointreau I already had on hand. Cocktailing is no time to be cheap. I have a feeling Mr. Ceasar would agree.

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie

APPLECART! APPLECART!

APPLECART

1 measure applejack

¾ measure Cointreau

½ measure lemon juice

Make room for the APPLECART! OK, that was really corny, but you should make room for the APPLECART cocktail in your life. It’s easy, good and cleansing. To make it, simply put all the ingredients listed above into a shaker, shake well with ice and strain into whatever cocktail glass is talking to you. Finish by garnishing with a half a slice of lemon.

The APPLECART is a great mix of apple, lemon and orange flavors. It is not too strong, despite having more than one alcohol in it. It’s more like a slice of citrus heaven. It would make a good aperitif or a good after dinner drink or a good companion to an afternoon of apple picking.

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Cocktail Connie

ELIZABETH TAYLOR COCKTAIL



Do you think this is the color of Elizabeth Taylor's eyes?

ELIZABETH TAYLOR
1 ½ ounces citron vodka
1 ounce cranberry juice
½ ounce triple sec
½ ounce blue Curacao
½ ounce lemon juice

Today would have been Elizabeth Taylor’s 80^th Birthday and to honor the famous actress who lived life to the fullest — any woman who got married eight times had a lot of passion, humor, and love — I enjoyed myself an ELIZABETH TAYLOR cocktail.

The ELIZABETH TAYLOR cocktail was created by Bar Chef Lu Brow at Café Adelaide in New Orleans and I found the recipe in a favorite cocktail of mine called In the Land of Cocktails. Lu invented the cocktail because she is a fan and because she was trying to re-create the unique color of Elizabeth Taylor’s eyes. To make it, start by putting ice into the martini glasses you’ll be using and let them chill. Then take the ingredients listed above and put them into a shaker. Fill the shaker with ice and shake. Then empty the ice from the glasses and strain the mixture in.

The citron vodka I used was a limited edition, crystal-encrusted Absolute bottle. Taylor famously loved diamonds and had a huge jewelry collection, so I couldn’t resist a bottle that would have made her happy. I have a feeling this cocktail would also have made her happy. Heck, have enough of them and you’ll be happy too.

Yes, the ELIZABETH TAYLOR is a fine sipping cocktail. It’s sweet and easy, with good balance despite a slight sourness to it. The ingredients list is a little longer than I like, and I don’t think the ice in the martini-glass thing actually made any difference, but I would definitely drink it again. It might even become a yearly February 27^th tradition in my house. I know, I know…. any excuse to drink.

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Cocktail Connie

GIN & TONIC: HAPPY BIRTHDAY SCOTT!

GIN & TONIC

1 ½ measure gin
Tonic water

I survived a long weekend in Vegas, where we were celebrating friend Valoree’s big 4-0 birthday, but just barely. The lack of sleep, excessive walking, continual cocktailing, sporadic gambling, people gawking, and overall sensory overload has worn me down and I may be in bed by 8 pm, which is 5 pm Vegas time.

Yet, the cocktailing must go on. Thank goodness I never said the cocktails always had to be fancy, because today’s cocktail is anything but. It’s a straightforward GIN & TONIC and I drank it in honor of my good friend Scott Gibson’s birthday. Scott loves GIN & TONICS almost as much as he loves his lovely wife and three boys. And, just like Scott, this cocktail is not too demanding, which is a good thing. Demanding cocktail concoctions and just getting back from Vegas do not mix.

 To make it, I simply added 1 ½ measures of gin to a rocks glass with ice. I then filled up the rest of the glass with tonic and gave it a stir before adding a slice of lime for garnish. The result is a refreshing drink that is easy on the stomach. I’m not a big tonic fan, but I could see getting use to regularly sipping GIN & TONICS.

And unlike yesterday’s GIN & TONIC, which my husband drank from a large plastic tube, the amount of today’s cocktail is just right for settling in to watch the Oscars. And though tasty, this cocktail will not make me ill. (Just in case you’re wondering — hubby passed on the cocktail and is already in bed.)

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Cocktail Connie

COCKTAILS IN VEGAS: GUMDROP MARTINI



The Hubby's cocktail of the day

My cocktail of the day

GUMDROP MARTINI

Grey Goose L’Orange

Chambord

Lemonchello

Jumbo Gumdrops

Decisions, decisions… I had so many great cocktails in Vegas today that I can’t decide which one to use for this blog. The mimosa with breakfast? The mojito by the pool? The raspberry lemonade concoction I drank in between dances at the outdoor Harrah’s carnival bar? Or maybe even the $46, ridiculously huge gin and tonic that my husband drank at the carnival bar? It was served in one of those crazy, purple plastic tubes that are taller than a 10 year old. Hubby’s supposed friend George bought it for him and it contained almost a whole bottle of gin. After he sucked it down, I thought hubby was not going to make it to our planned dinner and a show that night. But —and this is why I love him — he rallied, showered and stumbled back out into the crowded Vegas night. And though he doesn’t remember dinner, he, like the rest of us, loved the show we saw at Caesars, appropriately called Absinthe.

No, none of those qualified for the cocktail of the day. As you can see by the picture, the GUMDROP MARTINI was by far the most impressive and delicious cocktail I had today. Full disclosure — it cost an outrageous $20 at Fix Restaurant in the Bellagio Casino. I do not know the measurements of the ingredients above, but at least I had the where with all to write them down and I’m sure with some experimentation, it could easily be figured out.

With orange-flavored vodka, Chambord and Lemonchello, I knew as soon as I ordered it that the GUMDROP MARTINI would be a hit with me. Of course, I love gumdrops and I love martinis, so it was kinda a no-brainer. It was a sweet drink, but not overly sugary and I loved dipping in the gumdrop garnish and taking a bit or two. I ended up eating every gumdrop, except the black one, of course. Does anyone really like those? The frosting on the glass was a treat as well and something I would have had a hard time creating at home.

The show Absinthe was a perfect mixture of comedy, acrobatic acts and sex, and the GUMDROP MARTINI was the perfect mixture of sweet and fun. If you are in Vegas, I highly recommend them both. Cocktails that are served in long purple, plastic tubes — not so much. Unless you want to go to bed by 6 pm, then by all means….

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Cocktail Connie

VIVA RAZZ-JITO

The Razz-Jito

One course of a four course feast

RAZZ-JITO
Cruzan
Raspberry Rum
Raspberry Soda
Fresh Muddled Mint

Our tour of pleasures today included a drive to the Valley of Fire in the desert outside of Las Vegas; sightseeing and gambling in old Las Vegas; some wins on the slots; half-naked women everywhere; and a superb dinner at the Top of the World restaurant at the Stratosphere.

The Valley of Fire

The dinner began with a fabulous cocktail- the RAZZ-JITO. Not sure how you make it, but the list of ingredients is above. I’m not a big mojito fan, but I now think that raspberry is the way to go. The RAZZ-JITO was a delicious, muddled-to-perfection cocktail. My husband doesn’t like sweet drinks, but he loved his sip of my cocktail, and friend Val said she could suck 10 down in 10 minutes — it’s that good.

There are a lot of great cocktails here in Vegas and I would love nothing more than to stay here and try more of them. But alas, I have only one more day in sin city and tomorrow will be a 75 degree, sunny pool day. Can’t wait to see what cocktail I’ll find as the Vegas adventure continues.

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Cocktail Connie

LOST BIKINI IN LOST WAGES

LOST BIKINI

¾ measure Galliano

¾ measure amaretto

½ measure white rum

½ measure lime juice

2 measures unsweetened mandarin juice from a can

We made it safely to Las Vegas and, though it was midnight in Ohio by the time we checked in, we had to wander and explore, and gamble a bit. We had just wandered into the Flamingo Casino when I realized that I’d had many drinks so far, but I still needed my official cocktail of the day. I happened to have the recipe for the LOST BIKINI cocktail in my purse, (yes, that’s how I travel these days) so I sat at the video poker bar and handed it to the nice gentleman bartender.

To make the LOST BIKINI cocktail, Mr. Nice Gentleman Bartender took the ingredients above, put them into a shaker, added ice, gave it shake and strained it into martini glasses for me and my partners in crime. He handed them to us with these words of warning, “Watch out. That is a strong drink.”

Mr. Nice Gentleman Bartender was right. The LOST BIKINI is a strong drink and a dangerous drink, because it is also a very good drink. It was tangy, sweet and entirely sippable while playing video poker. Partner Valoree said it made her wish she was in a hot pink bikini sipping it by the pool and Partner George said it tasted like a tequila sunrise, minus the tequila. If you’re looking for a whopper of a drink, try the LOST BIKINI. Just be careful getting off the barstool.

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Cocktail Connie

BLACK COSSACK

BLACK COSSACK

1 measure vodka

½ pint Guinness

Today being Ash Wednesday and all, I thought a BLACK COSSACK cocktail seemed fitting. But in reality, the BLACK COSSACK was just stupid.

To make it, take a bottle of Guinness, pour it into a glass and add one measure of vodka. At least it’s simple. It’s not horrible. I was never a big fan of heavy beer like Guinness and the vodka cuts that heaviness down, but it doesn’t add to it either. Fans of either vodka or Guinness won’t like it and neither will most of you.

I’m heading to Vegas tomorrow where I will be challenging bartenders to make some unique cocktails, and will likely be drinking more than one a day, so the next few posts should contain some interesting concoctions. Wish me luck and…

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie

A HURRICANE FOR MARDI GRAS

HURRICANE

Drink Me

1½ measure dark rum 1 measure white rum
1 measure lime juice
2 measures passion fruit juice
1 measure pineapple juice
1 measure orange juice
½ measure blackcurrant syrup

Happy Mardi Gras! It’s Fat Tuesday and New Orleans is just one of the many places around the U.S. with parades and parties celebrating the last night before Lent, when all that fun gives way to Ash Wednesday promises of what will be given up until Easter. I’m giving up bad cocktails for Lent, so stay tuned.

I love N’awlins and hope to someday experience the craziness of Mardi Gras, but not this year. I’m stuck at home with the kid while the husband is at the Schvitz (that’s a topic for another blog.) So to conjure up the memory of wandering Bourbon Street in a fog, I made myself the classic New Orleans cocktail, the HURRICANE.

 There are many versions of the HURRICANE cocktail, but this one came highly recommended in 750 Cocktails, and it sounded easy, so I went for. Shopping for the ingredients wasn’t so easy though. It calls for passion fruit juice, which I could not find, so I used mango juice instead. I also couldn’t find blackcurrant syrup, but I had some blackcurrant liquor handy, which sounded close enough to me. So, I put the four kinds of juices and the two kinds of rum listed above, along with a touch of blackcurrant liquor, into a shaker. I added ice and shook it well before straining it into a glass that was half-full of ice. I topped it off with an improvised garnish.

 The mango juice and blackcurrant liquor worked just fine, and so did the dried pineapple piece I used for the garnish, since a slice of real pineapple did not magically appear in my fridge. The HURRICANE cocktail was damn tasty. It was fruity, sweet and very strong. Rum and juice is a classic combo, and this cocktail doubles the combo and takes it to new heights of delicious —excessively delicious. Too many of these and I’d be in danger of flashing my headlights, drowning in beads, and waking up to a hangover. Drinkers beware.

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Cocktail Connie

THE MILLIONAIRE

MILLIONAIRE

1½ measure bourbon
¾ measure Cointreau
½ egg white
Dash of grenadine
Lemon garnish

I thought a cocktail named the MILLIONAIRE would be a good one for President’s Day, since you can’t even think of running for Commander-in-Chief unless you are filthy rich. I’m sure not looking forward to listening to those awful commercials they spend much of those millions on in the coming months. Thank God for DVR!

MILLIONAIRE the cocktail was also a lot like a president in that it sounded good, but when it came down to it, I was disappointed. To make the cocktail, I added the ingredients in the measurements above to a shaker, added plenty of ice, and gave it a shake. I then strained the mixture into glasses and garnished with lemon slices. After the first taste, I defied the recipe and added ice.

Yes, the MILLIONAIRE was strong. I didn’t taste the egg white at all and it was a little sweet, but not sweet enough for me. It was like bad spiked punch, though it did get better with the addition of ice. All in all, bourbon and Cointreau are not a good mix. I may also be prejudiced against the MILLIONAIRE cocktail, because I got a huge squirt of lemon in my eye when I sliced one for the garnish- ouch! Still, it doesn’t taste like a million bucks to me.

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Cocktail Connie

WHITE CHOCOLATE COCKTAIL

The Yummy White Hot Chocolate

WHITE HOT CHOCOLATE

3 pints milk (1.75 liters)

6 oz. white chocolate broken into small pieces

½ measure coffee powder

4 measures Cointreau

Whipped cream and ground cinnamon for garnish

SERVES FOUR

OMG — If you are a fan of hot chocolate, you have to try the WHITE HOT CHOCOLATE. It’s different, but just as delicious as traditional hot chocolate and will warm from the inside out. Though the WHITE HOT CHOCOLATE is a bit of a pain to make, I found it to be the perfect drink to sip while taking a break from a day of skiing with the family at Holimont in New York.

To start with, you’ll need a lot of milk. Three pints or 1.75 liters is just a tad shy of a full half-gallon container, which is 1.89 liters. So pour most of a half-gallon of milk, I used 2%, into a large pan and heat it on the stove until is it almost boiling. Then take the pan off the heat and add lots of white chocolate (I used Dove white chocolate Bliss), a little bit of coffee powder or instant coffee, and some Cointreau orange liquor. Stir the ingredients while you add them to the pan to melt the chocolate and dissolve the coffee. Then pour it into mugs, and top with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

When you make it you’ll find that the WHITE HOT CHOCOLATE is sweet and a bit heavy, but also a bit of heaven. The orange liquor and white chocolate make for a great pair. The flavor reminded me of an orange creamsicle, but warmer and smoother. The WHITE HOT CHOCOLATE would be a hit at a holiday party, especially if you added a cinnamon stick or crushed peppermint as garnish. I think I’ll be having dreams about this cocktail for the rest of my life.

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Cocktail Connie

DRINK A COSMO FOR HGB

COSMO

1 part vodka

2 parts cosmo mixer

Today’s cocktail was a toast to HGB, also known as Helen Gurley Brown. She was born this day in 1922 and is celebrating her 90^th birthday. She is a personal idol and an inspiration to women everywhere. HGB, for the uninitiated, is a famous feminist author, publisher, and businesswoman. In 1962, at the age of 40, her bestselling book Sex and the Single Girl helped to spur the sexual revolution and was way ahead of its time. In 1965, she became editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine, and young women finally had a place where they could learn about what their mothers would never tell them — sex. HGB was Cosmo’s editor-in-chief for 32 years and still works, at 90 years old, as an international editor for all 59 international editions of Cosmo.

To make a COSMO cocktail, I took the easy route and used a mix. I used Stirrings Simple Cosmopolitan and it served the purpose well. It’s a blend of cranberry and lime juice. It you are looking for quality over convenience, use real cranberry and lime juice. But in either case, put them in a shaker with ice and plenty of vodka — depending on how far you want your own little revolution to go. Shake and strain into martini glasses, unlike me who had to make due with wine glasses since I’m enjoying a weekend away.

The COSMO is a classic. It’s sweet and fruity and strong, but is not too much of either of those things. It’s kinda perfect, just like HGB’s claim that said women could have it all, "love, sex, and money." I couldn’t agree more and I think no woman should settle for less.

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Cocktail Connie

HONOLULU BABY

HONOLULU

1 measure gin
¼ measure pineapple juice
¼ measure orange juice
¼ measure lemon juice
¼ measure pineapple syrup (from a can)
1 drop Angostura bitters

We took a trip to Holiday Valley Honolulu via the HONOLULU shot tonight. It was pretty good, but not spectacular, and I was never transported to the Big Island through my taste buds. Still, for a shot, I’d do it again.

Worcestershire sauce and soap were words used by my fellow shot drinkers. But the soap comment came from Kristy, who never drinks anything that is not sweet. She said she likes the effects of alcohol, but not the taste.

To make the HONOLULU, take the gin, juices and syrup listed above, put them into a shaker, fill it with ice and shake away. Put the cold concoction into shot glasses, then STOP. I know you are tempted to drink it already, but don’t. The pista’ resistance (probably spelled that wrong) is the Angostura bitters. Put a few drops in, thennn take shot.

I liked it better than my friends, but it’s not high on the list. The real Honolulu would be much better. But I guess I’ll have to settle for Holiday Valley.

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Cocktail Connie

STRAWBERRY SLING BEATS A DAIQUIRI ANY DAY

STRAWBERRY SLING

½ cup strawberries, pureed in a blender

1 ounce fresh lemon juice

1 ounce simple syrup

1 ounce soda water

1 ¼ ounces of gin

If you like strawberry daiquiris, I found a cocktail I think you will like even better. It’s called the STRAWBERRY SLING and it comes from In the Land of Cocktails, which was written two New Orleans Cocktail Chicks, Ti Adelaide Martin and Lally Brennan.

To make their STRAWBERRY SLING cocktail, start with a half of a cup of strawberries. Put them in a blender and puree away. The smell that will waif from the blender is a good way to start any project. Next, take the pureed strawberries and put them into a shaker, then add the lemon juice, simple syrup (easy to make), soda water and gin. Fill the shaker with lots of ice, shake it a while to get it nice and cold, then strain it into a glass of your choosing and garnish with a strawberry.

My husband drank his cocktail in less than three minutes and I wasn’t that far behind. The STRAWBERRY SLING is absolutely luscious. It’s like a daiquiri as far as the strawberry taste goes, but it is less thick and more yummy. I couldn’t even taste the gin that I know was in there. I especially liked taking bites of my garnish, then sipping delicately, then smiling and finishing it off with a sigh.

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Cocktail Connie

THE SIDECAR: CONTROLLED SWEETNESS

SIDECAR

1½ measures cognac

¾ measure Cointreau

¾ measure lemon juice

Ahh… Conitreau — smooth and delicious orange liquor from France — you are becoming a new favorite liquor of mine. Too bad you are so expensive. Figures, doesn’t it? Anything high quality is also high priced.

What also figures is the combination of Cointreau with cognac and lemon juice in the SIDECAR cocktail. To make the cocktail with the cute name, simply put the three elements listed above into a shaker, fill it with ice, give it a shake and strain the mixture into a glass with ice. Top it off with a slice of lemon, and enjoy the cocktail named for the preferred method of transportation for French army officers (which explains the Cointreau.)

I was a little afraid of the cognac being too strong in the SIDECAR, but it wasn’t. It blended well with the other two ingredients, and the result was a smooth, sipping cocktail that contained the controlled sweetness of lemons and oranges. The husband liked it a lot and said it is going to become a new standard drink for his foreseeable future. As you can see in the picture, the SIDECAR killed my bottle of cognac right before the cognac taste was killed by the Cointreau. And yet, I take another sip and, it’s all… good…..

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Cocktail Connie

LOVE

LOVE

4 measures gin

1 measure lemon juice

1 egg white

1 tsp grenadine

Intertwined cherries for garnish

RECIPE IS FOR TWO

OK, it’s Valentine’s Day and, though I never fall into the commercial hype that is Sweetest Day, I can’t help but do a little something to celebrate Valentine’s Day with the hubby every year. This year was really special — we went for pedicures. Yep, Rob and I shared some wine as our feet were rubbed, scrapped, pampered and, in my case, polished. I loved it (what woman doesn’t.) Rob, he liked it, but didn’t love it. I’ll take an appreciative girlfriend next time, but I’m still glad we shared a pedi and we had a lot of fun doing it. You gotta shake things up once in a while.

We then came home and enjoyed the cocktail of the day, aptly named LOVE. To make it, I combined the ingredients above into a shaker, and, yes, it includes an egg white. I then added ice to the shaker, shook it all up and strained it into the cutest glasses I could find.

As the grand finale, I took some maraschino cherries and tied the stems before plopping them into the glasses. LOVE the cocktail is strong, sweet, unique and cool looking. I loved LOVE’s pink color and, as I sipped, I became a little more in love with cocktails containing grenadine and egg white. And I must say, this cocktail tastes especially good with well manicured feet. Tonight, both the LOVE cocktail and couples pedicures come highly recommended.

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Cocktail Connie

OPERATOR MARGO

OPERATOR

2 measures dry white wine

2 measures sparkling ginger ale

¼ measure lime juice

An operator is someone who is always in action and brings about change. It is fitting then that today’s cocktail is the OPERATOR, because it is my niece Margo’s 19^th birthday and she’s definitely a smooth operator. She doesn’t hesitate to take action and brings positive changes into the lives of everyone she meets.

The OPERATOR cocktail brought some positive change to a formerly boring Chardonnay. To make the OPERATOR, I took chilled dry white wine, poured it over a glass of ice, and added ginger ale and lime juice in the measurements above. I then gave it all a stir and added a slice of lime — just because.

I really liked the result. The OPERATOR is a light, easy sipping cocktail. It has a low alcohol content perfect for a Monday night, yet it easily satisfied my cocktail craving. It is similar to a white wine spritzer, but using ginger ale instead of soda water was a lot more flavorful. White wine and ginger ale- who knew?

Margo is probably studying hard at Ohio University right now, where she is a freshman. But when she’s 21, she should definitely try an OPERATOR. I know that’s how it was when I went to O.U. anyways. Happy Birthday Margo!

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Cocktail Connie

YA MON IT'S A JAMAICA SUNDAY

JAMAICA SUNDAY

2 measures dark rum
¼ measure acacia honey
½ measure lime juice
2 measures sparkling lemonade

Today’s high temperature in my town was a chilly, high-wind 27 degrees. Escaping to the island of Jamaica via the JAMAICA SUNDAY cocktail sounded pretty good about 4 pm. I started by measuring the rum into a glass pitcher and adding the honey. The directions said to stir until the honey dissolved. I was having trouble with this, so I heated the rum up in the microwave for about 20 seconds and had a much easier time dissolving the honey.

I then filled some glasses with ice, and added the rum and honey mixture, and lime juice, to them. I then gave it a stir, and topped it off with lemonade and a slice of lime. The taste of the resulting JAMAICA SUNDAY cocktail brought a little of the sunny Jamaican shores, where there are “no problems mon,” back to mind.

To make this cocktail right, be sure to use dark Jamaican rum. The darker the better. Dark rum is white rum that’s been aged in oak barrels, giving it a richer, sweeter flavor. I used Myer’s Original Dark Rum, but a higher quality rum would have definitely elevated the taste of the cocktail. In any case, the dark rum gives the JAMAICA SUNDAY an exotic taste; a bit sour, but definitely a keeper. I just hope the next time I drink it, I’m actually on a beach.

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Cocktail Connie

THE YUMMY KRISTY CREAM



The Kristy Cream Creator

Kristen hard at work

KRISTY CREAM

1 measure Woodford Reserve Bourbon

1 measure Frangelico

2 oz Cream.

Pinch of Cinnamon

I already knew that my niece, Kristen Sievers, was fun, smart and pretty. What I didn’t know was what a kick-ass bartender she is. If the KRISTY CREAM cocktail is any indication of the talent she wields behind the bar at CaVa in Manhattan, she should be living the NYC high life on good tips for a while.

The KRISTY CREAM is her creation and she was kind enough to not only share the recipe with me, but some pictures too. To make the KRISTY CREAM, you’ll need Woodford Reserve Bourbon. Kristen says it is the smoothest and I was a little scared that it would be expensive. But at $25 for 50 ml bottle, it actually wasn’t too bad. Anyhoo, get the Woodford and mix it in a shaker with the Frangelico, heavy whipping cream and a dash of cinnamon. Fill the shaker with ice, shake and strain into a martini glass.

My attempt

I thought the KRISTY CREAM was a great brown liquor cocktail fancied up so that it tastes good. It was creamy, thick and tasty. My friend Val’s first reaction was, “It makes my nostrils flare,” and the males in the room who drank it thought it tasted like a rice pudding milkshake. The KRISTY CREAM will warm you up and put a smile on your face. Thanks for a good one Kristen!

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Cocktail Connie

THE MELON PATCH



The Melon Patch

MELON PATCH

1 measure Midori
½ measure Cointreau
½ measure vodka
4 measures soda water
Orange garnish

It was girls’ night out and five friends and I started the night with a walk through the MELON PATCH. This was a great cocktail — refreshing, light, and more dry than sweet. This cocktail also confirmed my theory that soda water is the key to ensuring that alcoholic concoctions aren’t so strong that you can’t drink them.

To make the MELON PATCH cocktail, I put the first three ingredients into a shaker with ice. I then gave it some shakes and, after I got done admiring the cool green color, stained it into glasses full of ice. I then topped off the glasses with soda water and garnished them with slices of orange. I later squeezed some juice from an orange slice into my cocktail and the MELON PATCH tasted even better.

Death by Chocolate

I would recommend this cocktail for by the pool on a sunny summer day or whenever you want to feel like you are by a pool. Us girls went from the MELON PATCH to red wine and chocolate overkill at a cooking demonstration, where we watched a chef cook dishes such as chocolate balsamic soup, chocolate crème brulee, and chocolate amaretto truffles. The class was ably named “Death by Chocolate,” and death it was. I love chocolate, but this was overload. Good thing we danced it all off later to Disco Inferno. Now if I could only stop the inferno of a headache I have. Maybe I should have gone no further than the patch.

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Cocktail Connie

HAMMOR HORROR: THE POORLY-NAMED COCKTAIL

HAMMER HORROR

1 measure vodka

1 measure Kahlua

4 tbsp. vanilla ice cream (about half a scoop)

Grated dark chocolate

I do not know why this cocktail is called the HAMMER HORROR, because it tastes anything but horrible. In fact, if you are craving tiramisu, this is the cocktail for you.

To make the HAMMER HORROR, you need a blender, ice, vodka, Kahlua and premium vanilla ice cream. The grated dark chocolate on top is a nice touch, but the HAMMER HORROR will be good with or without it. Put the vodka, Kahlua and ice cream into a blender with about one scoop of ice — crushed if can get it. Blend away, then strain the shake-like mixture into a martini glass and garnish with grated dark chocolate.

The HAMMER HORROR is a creamy, delisciouso concoction. I like three-ingredient cocktails and this one tops the list. It also tastes like a high-quality martini that would cost you at least $8, and that’s in downtown Cleveland! Enjoy one yourself this weekend.

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Cocktail Connie

GIN RICKEY- THE LOBBYIST COCKTAIL

GIN RICKEY
Juice and rind of half a lime
2 measures gin
Soda water

Gotta love the simple, refreshing GIN RICKEY cocktail. To make it, you only need the three ingredients above. Start by cutting a lime in half, then squeeze the juice directly into a glass half-filled with ice. Then plop that rind right into the glass. You then add the gin and stir robustly before filling the rest of the glass up with soda water.

The GIN RICKEY was created in the last decade of the 19^th century. It’s named after Joe Rickey, who was a lobbyist in Washington D.C. at the time. He often ordered the cocktail while tossing a few back with members of Congress. He ordered so many that the bartender named the drink the GIN RICKEY. I don’t think it is a coincidence that Rickey later became the first major U.S. importer of limes.

Apparently there are a lot of Rickey drinks out there, with bourbon, vodka, whiskey — you name it. But I’ll stick to the GIN RICKEY. It is one of the few gin drinks that I could stick with for a night. It’s dry, with not a bit of sweet. I love the floating lime. It’s also light and low-calorie.

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Drink Up^
Cocktail Connie

TOOTING MY HORN FOR THE FRENCH HORN

FRENCH HORN

1 measure vodka

¾ measure Chambord

½ measure lemon juice

Raspberries for garnish

I’ve never really known what that pretty Chambord bottle I’ve seen behind a bar was until tonight. Now I not only know that Chambord is a raspberry liqueur from France, I also know that it is delicious, especially when paired with vodka and lemon juice.

To make the FRENCH HORN cocktail — the drink that I will forever remember as the reason I meet Chambord — I first added the ingredients above into a glass pitcher. I then added plenty of ice, stirred the ingredients briskly, and strained them into a martini glass. I finished it off by garnishing my FRENCH HORN with a raspberry.

By the third FRENCH HORN, I had a couple of raspberries floating around my glass and I was feeling no pain. The FRENCH HORN is a must if you like raspberries. It’s sweet, but not too sweet, and the vodka and lemon are a perfect complement to the berry flavor.

“Wow, I really like it,” was my husband’s reaction and I’ll toot my horn for the FRENCH HORN too. I highly recommend that you procure some Chambord: It’s not as expensive as it looks or tastes. Then you can have your own horn to toot.

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie