GERMAN CHERRY BOMB

GERMAN CHERRY BOMB

½ ounce Godiva Chocolate liqueur

½ ounce cream

½ ounce grenadine

The GERMAN CHERRY BOMB is the bomb — easy to make and so yummy! One of my favorite discoveries this year is the fun of layered shots. To make the layered GERMAN CHERRY BOMB SHOT you will need the three ingredients listed above, including Godiva Chocolate liqueur, something you will always be glad you have around the house. It’s price is comparable to Baileys and it will just as good, or even better, in coffee, hot chocolate, on the rocks, etc.

With layered shots, it is important that you pour the ingredients in the order they are listed and that you pour them in very slowly. Many recipes for layered shots talk about pouring them over the back of a spoon, but I’ve found that to be hogwash. Just pour slow. For the GERMAN CHERRY BOMB, start by pouring the Godiva liqueur into an aperitif or shot glass, then slowly pour in the cream. Lastly, slowly add the grenadine. It will magically float to the bottom of the glass and, whalla! — you will have your cool looking shot.

You may be tempted to sip, but don’t, just shoot it down. You’ll enjoy it I swear. Unlike many other shots, the GERMAN CHERRY BOMB is neither too sweet, nor too strong. It’s just luxurious, decadent, chocolaty, creamy and oh so good. Like I said. The bomb.

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie

CHURCHILL

CHURCHILL

3 parts scotch whiskey

1 part vermouth

1 part triple sec

1 part lime juice

Bulldog Winston Churchill’s B-day is tomorrow. You may find it odd that I have an interest in the ex-Prime Minister from Britain whose most famous for taking a stand against Hitler and stopping him from controlling all of Europe in the 1930s. When I’m not drinking cocktails, I’m working on a book proposal for a book about difficult children who grew up to become wildly successful adults. Churchill fits that description, so I’ve been researching his life. I find him to be a very interesting character, so of course I had to try one of his favorite cocktails. I say one because Churchill loved his booze and had several favorite cocktails. The CHURCHILL cocktail is made primarily of scotch, one of his favorites. The recipe was created by American bartender Joe Gilmore at the Savoy Hotel in London.

To make a CHURCHILL, put the best scotch you have into a cocktail shaker, then add smaller amounts of vermouth, triple sec and lime juice. Add ice to the shaker, shake it well and strain it into a cocktail glass. Garnish as you please. The original recipe calls for a straight cocktail — no ice, but I decided anything with scotch would benefit from ice.

I found the CHURCHILL cocktail to be surprisingly delicious. It was scotch “sweetened,” which is the only way I really like scotch. I used a cheaper scotch and I would like to try this cocktail sometime with a better quality one. The vermouth and lime flavors weren’t very strong, and the triple sec ratio was spot on. Hubby said the CHURCHILL smelled like old women in church, but he loved it. On the side car meter — Hubby's rating of every cocktail in comparison to a sidecar — he gave the CHURCHILL a 9 out of 10. He thought it would better with Cointreau, but considering that Cointreau is from France, the selection of triple sec by Gilmore was probably the most appropriate at the time. And that Gilmore knew what he was doing. No matter what your tastes, definitely give this cocktail a try.

 

Drink Up^ (Winston Did!)

Cocktail Connie

THE KINGSTON COCKTAIL MON'

THE KINGSTON

1 ½ measure dark Jamaica rum

¾ measure gin

Juice from half a lime (or  ¼  measure lime juice)

¼ measure grenadine

Someday I would like to go to Kingston Town, Mon, where the temperature is perfect and reggae fills the air.

Like everything else in existence, Kingston, Jamaica, has a cocktail named after it. To make a KINGSTON cocktail, simply put the ingredients listed above (be sure to use Jamaican rum!) into a tall cocktail glass that has been filled with ice, stir well and garnish with a slice of lime, if you have one. Clearly, I didn't have a lime. I have discovered that finding a good lime in the grocery stores around me is anything but "no problem." 

Four interesting facts about Kingston the town:

1- the largest city in Jamaica 

2- the capital of Jamaica

3- the largest English-speaking city south of the U.S. 

4- founded in 1692 by earthquake refugees 

Four interesting facts about Kingston the cocktail:

1- too sweet

2- not very good

3- a waste of gin

4- would only be good on a Jamaican beach as your third or fourth cocktail

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie

ST. GERMAIN COCKTAIL

ST. GERMAIN COCKTAIL

2 parts Champagne or Dry Sparkling Wine

1½ parts St. Germain

2 parts club soda

Lemon garnish

I said goodbye tonight to probably the third bottle of St. Germain that I’ve bought this year. I won’t be buying another bottle, at least not until after January, and I was sad to see it go. I’ve really grown fond of the elderberry liqueur from France, but I have only about a month left and lots of other liquors to try.

The delicious ST. GERMAIN COCKTAIL was a perfect send off. To make it, I just put some champagne, St. Germain, and club soda into a tall cocktail glass that I had filled half-way with ice, gave it a good stir, and garnished with a slice of lemon. Dry sparkling wine can be used instead of champagne, just make sure you have some bubbles going. They make any cocktail seem festive, even on a Tuesday.

“That's good Connie,” said Hubby after taking one sip of the ST. GERMAIN COCKTAIL. He and I both easily succumbed to the pleasure of this cocktail. It was a light cocktail in the truest sense of the word, but also full of flavor. Both the champagne and the St. Germaine were enhanced by the other, and the club soda ensured that neither taste was overwhelming. It’s a cocktail guaranteed to lift your spirits.

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie

BOURBON TASTE TEST

BOURBON TASTE TEST

Ahh Bourbon! My new friend. Bourbon is America's contribution to the world of whiskey. It is a barrel-aged spirit made primarily of corn, which makes it one of the sweetest kinds of whiskeys and therefore the most "sippable". By law, in order for something to be called Bourbon, it has to be produced in the USA, can't include any additives except water, and has to have been aged for a minimum of two years. In 1964, Congress declared it America's Native Spirit. 

Someday, I'd like to travel the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. Until then, I'll have be satisfied with a BOURBON TASTE TEST. Sometime, when you are bored, not driving, and at the home of a Bourbon lover, I suggest you try it yourself. Line up all the bourbons with a full shot glass in the front and take turns sipping delicately, swirling the bourbon in your mouth a little, just to be sure you have taken in the full flavor. We lined up seven bourbons in order of alcohol proof. The bourbons ranged from 80 proof Red Stag to 114 proof Old Grand Dad. The crowd favorite was the Fighting Cock, a sweet bourbon. At 103 proof, it's a bourbon with a hint of vanilla that can be sipped all night. It's not available everywhere, so if you find it, pick one up. It costs about $23 a liter.  

And remember, if you're bored, break out the Bourbon!

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie

DEW BOOZE

DEW BOOZE
Mountain Dew
Booze of your choosing (I used Jim Beam Honey)

Before there was Red Bull and vodka, there was DEW BOOZE. The concoction was invented by Hubby and his buddies in the late 1970s on a fateful trip to Florida one spring break. We weren't in Florida today, but we were in the sunshine in a parking lot in downtown Cleveland, prepping for a Browns game against our number one enemy, the Pittsburgh Steelers.

DEW BOOZE was on the tailgating menu and it was the perfect cocktail to wake me up and get me barking. To make it, I just combined some good ol' Mountain Dew with some booze. Hubby says it has to be brown liquor and we used a delicious honey whiskey by Jim Beam. Other brandd of whiskey could be used, but JB is the original.

As far as tailgating goes, the DEW BOOZE ruled. It quenched my thirst and gave me the buzz I needed to save money on expensive stadium beer. It went down pretty easy, but I wouldn't call it easy on the stomach. Like an RBV, more than two is too much. But for a different, classic cocktail, pull on the bell bottoms, comb your fro and enjoy a DEW BOOZE.

Drink Up^
Cocktail Connie

KARMEL MACCHIATO ICED COFFEE

KARMEL MACCHIATO ICED COFFEE

Stoli Salted Karmel Vodka

Coffee

Simple Syrup

Splash of Milk

A gal whose favorite order at Starbucks is a sugar-free, skim Carmel Macchiato, has to try a KARMEL MACCHIATO ICED COFFEE when the option is put in front of her. Especially when said gal is in need of some caffeine to keep her cheering for the Ohio State Buckeyes.

The KARMEL MACCHIATO ICED COFFEE was made for me by a team of bartenders at Panini’s in Chardon, Ohio. The cocktail uses a new flavored vodka from Stoli’s called Salted Karmel. It came out this summer and is based on the popular salted carmel candy. I was intrigued by the vodka when I first heard about it, but I also thought that the number of flavored vodkas is getting out of hand. Do we really need another one? After tasting the KARMEL MACCHIATO ICED COFFEE, I’d say, yes, life will be better with this kind of vodka in the world.

The cocktail tasted a lot like the Starbucks version, but even better. The vodka gave the coffee a sweet and savory taste that reminded me of English toffee. The cocktail was so good, I could have sucked it down it a minute and practically did. First, I had to send it around the table. The KARMEL MACCHIATO ICED COFFEE looked so good that no one could resist taking a sip and everyone loved it. It was called, “smooth,” “rich” and “tastes like perfectly toasted sugar.”

My future definitely includes a bottle of Stoli Salted Karmel Vodka. It will make a great shot or can be mixed with crème de cacao and orange juice for a cocktail that tastes like a tootsie roll — yum!

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie