The ROB ROY - A Classic Scotch Cocktail

Named in honor of the operetta Rob Roy, based on the life of Robert Roy MacGregor, the Rob Roy Cocktail was created in 1894 at the Waldorf Astoria New York.

A Rob Roy is much like a Manhattan but made with Scotch instead of Rye Whiskey or Bourbon. Like the Manhattan, the Rob Roy can be made sweet, dry, or perfect. A standard Rob Roy is sweet, made with sweet vermouth, a Dry Rob Roy is made with dry vermouth and a Perfect Rob Roy is made with equal parts sweet and dry vermouth.

And, yes, that is the Rob Roy MacGregor tartan in the image!

THE ROB ROY

1-1/2 Oz. Scotch

1/4 Oz. Sweet Vermouth

Dash of Angostura bitters

Maraschino Cherry Garnish

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with the cherry.

Here's to the heath, the hill and the heather,

The bonnet, the plaid, the kilt and the feather!

PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY Updated 2-2017

A KOSHER COCKTAIL for Hanukkah

HAPPY HANUKKAH!

Every holiday season I am reminded of my very first experience with wine.  The holidays, of course, were a big meal deal in my house which called for the "good" tablescape, including Mom's full set of crystal.

As one of these glasses was for wine, wine had to be served. Since my mother was not a wine drinker, the wine on our Christmas and Thanksgiving table was always Manischewitz Concord Grape, a very sweet, low proof version of grape juice. It might seem odd that a family would have a Christmas tree and a bottle of kosher wine but it wasn't the kosher my mom was after, it was the sweetness.

Because it was the holidays, even the children were allowed a small glass of the Manischewitz. As a kid I loved it, what's not to love? After all, it was booze and it tasted like grape juice.

The start of the holiday season made me a little nostalgic and I went out and bought a bottle of Manischewitz. I skipped over the Concord grape and bought the blackberry, a flavor not available when I was a child, at least as far as I know.

Yup, still very sweet, but not beyond redemption if I skipped a few years ahead in my booze memoirs and applied the 70's spritzer fad to the recipe.

Ladies & Germs, I present you with a cocktail inspired by the holiday season, disco bars, Mom's crystal and a trip back to my youth:

KOSHER SPRITZER-TINI

3 Oz. Manischewitz Blackberry Wine, Chilled

1/3 Cup Fresh Blackberries

Juice of 1/2 Lemon

1 Tsp. Honey

1 Oz. Club Soda, Chilled

5 Fresh Blackberries

Lemon Twist

Chill your cocktail glass in the freezer.

Muddle the 1/3 cup of fresh blackberries, lemon juice, and honey in the bottom of a cocktail shaker.

Add a cup of ice then pour in the blackberry wine and shake until well chilled.

Strain into your chilled martini glass, top off with the club soda and garnish with the five fresh blackberries and the lemon twist.

Mazel Tov, L'Chaim & Boogie Down!

Updated 12-2018 PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY

CAKE FLAVORED COCKTAILS

November 26th is National Cake Day and who doesn't like cake? Especially if you add booze and put it in a martini glass? I did just that with a few of my favorite cakes below.

Enjoy but don't blame me if your jeans don't fit tomorrow.

CAKE COCKTAILS

Apple Sauce Cake Martini
Black Forest Caketail

 Black Forest Cake Martini
Carrot Cake Cocktail, Part Deux

Carrot Cake Martini

Chocolate (Birthday) Cake Martini

 Devil's Food Cake Martini Fruitcake Martini   German Chocolate Cake Martini King Cake Cocktail Lemon Chiffon Cake Martini Pineapple Drunk Side Down Cake Smash  Pineapple Upside Down Cake Martini Plum Pudding Cocktail
  Pound Cake Martini Raspberry Cake Cocktail Wedding Cake Martini  Yellow Cake Martini
And for good measure, just in case you want to downsize:
CUPCAKE MARTINIS
National Cake Day is November 26th.

Updated 4-2019 PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY

The Doctor Who SONIC SCREWDRIVER Cocktail

THE DOCTOR WHO

SONIC SCREWDRIVER 

For all my fellow Whovians!

This ought to reverse the polarity of your neutron flow!

"Somewhere there’s danger, somewhere there’s injustice, somewhere else, the vodka has run out."

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Homemade ESPRESSO VODKA & ESPRESSO COCKTAILS

Updated November 2015

Since today is National Espresso Day I thought it was the perfect time to share my secret Espresso Vodka Recipe with you. Why is it secret? Because I cheated and used a French coffee press!

Quick & Easy

HOMEMADE ESPRESSO VODKA

INGREDIENTS:

750 ml Medium Grade Vodka

1/2 Cup Espresso, Course Medium

SPECIAL TOOLS

12 Cup French Coffee Press
1 Quart Size Measuring Cup with pour spout

Cheesecloth

Decorative Bottle

Fun Labels

DIRECTIONS:

Add 1/2 cup of ground espresso to your coffee press.

Pour in 3 cups (nearly the whole bottle) of vodka. DON'T plunge at this point. 

Allow this to infuse for 15 minutes, no more or your vodka will become too bitter, THEN plunge.

Strain through a cheesecloth lined strainer into the measuring cup.

Transfer your Espresso Vodka into a decorative bottle, label and enjoy in some of the Espresso Cocktails below.

ESPRESSO COCKTAILS

BTW, you can easily turn this Espresso Vodka into Espresso Liqueur! Simply add in some simple syrup to your preferred level of sweetness. You can even add fun, flavored syrups like chocolate, caramel or hazelnut. The addition of chocolate syrup is almost like a homemade Kahlua!

Cheers and Happy National Espresso Day!

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CRANBERRY COCKTAILS

It's the perfect time of year to enjoy cranberries and what better way to enjoy them than in a cocktail. Below you will find my martinis where cranberry is in play in one way or another, whether it be cranberry juice, cranberry vodka or cranberry liqueur.

Cranberry

Cocktails

SPARKLING CRANBERRY CRUSH
SAUCY CHRISTMAS CRANTINI
SPARKLING VALENTINE PUNCH
SPARKLING HIBISCUS MARTINI
FROSTY MARTINI
A DR. SEUSS INSPIRED MARTINI
FALL APPLE JACK MARTINI
CRANAPPLE PUNCH
CRANBERRY POMEGRANATE MARTINI
CRANBERRY A-GO-GO COCKTAIL
CRANBERRY MARGARITA
CHRISTMAS CRANAPPLE MARTINI
COSMOPOLITAN
PINK FLIRTINI
CHRISTMAS COSMO
THYME CUCUMBER MARTINI
GANGSTA OF LOVE MARTINI
FRUITCAKE MARTINI
THAT TRAMP STOLE MY MAN TARTINI
MONDAY BLUES MARTINI
SEX ON THE BEACH MARTINI
ORANGE POMEGRANATE MARTINI
WEDDING CAKE MARTINI

And let's not forget my recipe for
HOMEMADE CRANBERRY LIQUEUR
to put in all your Cranberry libations!

National Cranberry Day is November 23rd.



Updated 11-2018
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PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE MARTINI RECIPE

Today is

NATIONAL PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE DAY

and you know I'm not letting that go by without a special martini! Right? Right!

PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE MARTINI

1 Oz. Chocolate Vodka

1.5 Oz. Castries Peanut Rum Crème

1/2 Oz. Chocolate liqueur
Tiny Pinch of Fleur de Sel (sea salt)

1/2 Oz Whipping Cream

Peanut Butter

Chocolate Sprinkles

Peanut Butter Fudge

Rub some peanut butter on the rim of your glass, then dip in the chocolate sprinkles. Chill your glass in the freezer.

Pour the chocolate vodka, Castries Peanut Rum Crème, liqueur, salt and the whipping cream over a cup of ice in a cocktail shaker and shake until well chilled.

Pour into your martini glass and garnish with a piece of peanut butter fudge.

HAPPY PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE DAY!

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Happy National Sundae Day

What Is A Sundae?

A sundae is an ice cream based dessert that consists of one or more scoops of ice cream topped with sauce or syrup and may also include other toppings like crushed nuts, sprinkles, candies and other edible garnishes.

Where Did The Idea Come From?
The sundae was invented when, in the late 19th century, many cities on the East Coast passed "blue" laws making it illegal to sell ice-cream sodas on a Sunday. To circumvent this law savvy vendors replaced the soda with syrup and originally  called these confections "Ice Cream Sundays." After protests over he use of the word Sunday, they replaced the "y" with an "e" to avoid further upsetting the religious zealots of the era.

Why Were Ice Cream Sodas Included In The "Blue Laws"?
It had nothing to do with the ice cream and everything to do with the soda. Back in the late 1800's, soda was marketed as a miracle cure and was, therefore, viewed as a controlled substance. It was included in the list of controlled substances in many cities and townships and banned from sale on Sundays along with alcohol and other medications.

Who Invented The Sundae And Where Did It Originate?
There are many cities back east that claim to be the home of the original ice cream sundae and much ado about which city has the right to this claim. There's no definitive information that gives full credit to any particular locale or individual. As far as I can see, the blue laws mentioned above were solely responsible for the invention of the ice cream sundae, so I'd give credit to the religious zeal of the era and just be thankful some genius came up with the idea to use syrup instead of soda.

Who doesn't like an ice cream sundae - with booze?

THE

SUNDAE COCKTAILS

The Hot Fudge Sundae Martini

The Strawberry Sundae Martini

The Peachberry Sundae Cocktail

The Toasted Walnut Maple Bourbon Sundae

Happy National Sundae Day!

Updated 11-2021 PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY

VANILLA CUPCAKE MARTINI

It's National Vanilla Cupcake Day!

So, here you go, the Vanilla Cupcake Martini in all it's rainbow sprinkled, sweet and creamy glory!

The

VANILLA CUPCAKE

MARTINI

INGREDIENTS 
1 Oz. Vanilla Vodka
1 Oz. White Chocolate Liqueur
2 Oz. Half & Half
Splash of Irish Cream Liqueur

GARNISH
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting on Rim with
Rainbow Sprinkles

DIRECTIONS
Rim your glass with the vanilla frosting then dip in the rainbow sprinkles and place in the freezer to chill. Add the vanilla vodka, white chocolate liqueur, dash of Irish Cream and half & half to a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake until chilled. Strain into your glass and enjoy!

Voiceover Video with Ingredients and Directions:

P.S. For you Chocoholics, October 18th is National Chocolate Cupcake Day

Updated 11-2021

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CHOCOLATE CUPCAKE MARTINI

Today is National Chocolate Cupcake Day so I had to put that in a cocktail, right?
This little crafted culinary chocolate gem is the result:

The

CHOCOLATE CUPCAKE

MARTINI

INGREDIENTS 
1 Oz. Cake Vodka
2 Oz. Chocolate Liqueur
1/4 Oz. Coffee Liqueur
Dash of Chocolate Bitters

Garnish

Chocolate Frosting
Rainbow Sprinkles

DIRECTIONS 
Rim your glass with some of the chocolate frosting then dip in the rainbow sprinkles and place your glass in the freezer to chill. 

Add the cake vodka, chocolate liquor, coffee liqueur and the chocolate bitters to a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake until chilled. Garnish and serve.

VOICEOVER VIDEO WITH INGREDIENTS AND DIRECTIONS:

Enjoy and share with another chocoholic!

P.S. For you non chocoholics, try my Vanilla Cupcake Martini or my other Cupcake Cocktails.

Updated 10-2021 

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