The AMARETTO SOUR Cocktail Recipe

Back before the cocktail Revolution of the 90s, we were often subjected to less than stellar bar drinks. The Amaretto Sour, actually quite a decent cocktail when not subjected to inferior spirits and sad pre-bottled sour mix, was one of the recipes that lost its luster as a result.
Thanks to Jeffrey Morgenthaler, who added bourbon and egg white, the Amaretto Sour is now a drink that deserves respect and a second try. Here is his recipe and I simply do not mess with because it's perfect as is. The only thing I'll do is add a garnish of a fresh slice of apricot and my own homemade Bourbon Cherries.

The AMARETTO SOUR
INGREDIENTS 1-1/2 Oz. Amaretto 3/4 Oz. Bourbon 1 Oz. Lemon Juice 1 Teaspoon Simple Syrup* 1/2 Oz. Pasteurized Egg White
Garnish: Apricot Slice and Bourbon Cherry
DIRECTIONS Add ingredients to a cocktail shaker and dry shake for a good 60 seconds. Add ice and shake until chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass, garnish and serve.

* Jeff has 2 versions floating around online, one with and one without the simple syrup. I like the syrup but you can leave it out if you prefer a cocktail with more tartness. 
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The Authentic IRISH COFFEE COCKTAIL Recipe

Invented by Irish chef Joe Sheridan in 1942 at the now defunct Foynes airbase outside of Limerick, Ireland, Irish Coffee is the granddaddy of coffee cocktails. Stanton Delaplane, a Pulitzer Prize-winning San Francisco Chronicle columnist, brought the recipe to the attention of Jack Koeppler at the Buena Vista Hotel (now the Buena Vista Cafe) in San Francisco in 1952, where it's been served exactly the same way ever since.

I can't even begin to count the number of Buena Vista Irish Coffees I imbibed in the 40 years I lived in the Bay Area or the number of guests I took there over those years. It's also always on my itinerary for every visit to my old stomping grounds. Though I can make an Irish Coffee the proper way, it doesn't taste quite the same without the background sounds of cable cars and the smell of San Francisco Bay.
Buena Vista Cafe's Irish Coffee Recipe
Fill glass with very hot water to warm, then empty. Fill glass 3/4 full with hot black coffee. Add two sugar cubes, stirring until dissolved. Add 1-1/3 oz Tullamore Dew Irish whiskey. Top with a collar of whipped heavy whipping cream, pouring over with a spoon. Serve and enjoy hot.
I also have a chilled version: The IRISH COFFEE MARTINI
The Buena Vista Cafe is located just to the left of the Powell-Hyde Cable Car's last stop in Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco.

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HOT TODDIES & WARM WINTER COCKTAILS

Smack dab in the middle of winter it is always nice to have a hot toddy and pour a little warm comfort into your chilled body. Below are some of my favorite hot cocktail recipes. Believe it or not, even those of us in the desert Southwest need to heat up our frozen spirits at this time of year.
Don't limit yourself to drinks that call themselves toddies either, because many cold cocktails can easily be served warm. I have often served my Lemon Drop Martini hot in winter, and many Sangrias (like this Fresh Berry Sangria), and wine punches can also be served heated for a warming hot cocktail. I've also been known to heat up several of my Bloody Marys and serve those as hot soups and toddies.
TheCLASSICHOT TODDY1 Tbsp. Honey1 Shot Whiskey1 Oz. Fresh Lemon JuiceTopped off with Hot Water & garnished with a Cinnamon Stick
MOREHOT TODDIES &WARM COCKTAILS
APPLE PIE COCKTAIL BOURBON HIBISCUS & ROSEWATER TEA CITRUS SPICED HOT TODDY GOLD RUSH COCKTAIL HOT BUTTERED RUM HOT BUTTERED WHISKEY HOT CHOCOLATE TODDYHOT LEMONADE RECIPESHOT! SPICED! SPIKED! CRANBERRY ORANGE TEA PUNCH IRISH COFFEE IRISH COFFEE MARTINI (Chilled) MULLED APPLE CIDER PUNCH NIGHT'S WATCH COFFEE TODDY PEPPERMINT LATTE COCKTAIL PEPPERMINT PATTY TURKEY DINNER BULLSHOT WILDLING WASSAIL YOU NEED A HUG COCKTAIL

NATIONAL HOT TODDY DAY IS

JANUARY 11TH!

Updated January 2022

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BACON COCKTAILS

Come on. You know you want 'em!
BACON COCKTAILS 
BLT MARTINI BACON & VODKA INFUSED TAPAS BACON VODKA RECIPE CHEESY DOODLE-TINI TURKEY MARTINI WHEN PIGS FLY

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The SCREWDRIVER, A classic highball drink

A timeless highball classic, the Screwdriver is a drink that, like many of our cocktails, has a murky, debatable history. Most stories range back to the early 20th century with mentions of Turkish intelligence agents and engineers in clandestine bar meetings, World War II soldiers adding vodka to their reconstituted o.j., and even oil workers in the Persian Gulf mixing their vodka into their juice with a screwdriver because they lacked another convenient stir tool. 
Personally, I think it was invented by a overworked, under appreciated, bored and hungover mid-twentieth century housewife who spied a nearly empty bottle of vodka on the kitchen counter the morning after she and her hubby had thrown a cocktail party. "Waste not, want not" and that dribble of vodka went into her morning o.j. before the bottle went into the trash can. From that point on a little vodka in the juice was as accepted an accessory to her breakfast as her pearl choker was to her shirtdress.
The I.B.A recipe calls for 10 parts orange juice to 5 parts vodka. I like my Screwdriver a little less like diesel fuel and fresh juice is a must.

The SCREWDRIVER
8 Oz. Fresh Orange Juice 1-1/2 Oz. Vodka
Glass: Highball
DIRECTIONS Fill a chilled highball glass with ice cubes. Add the vodka, add the orange juice, stir. Garnish with an orange slice, serve. 
My Variations SONIC SCREWDRIVER DEATH BY SCREWDRIVER
Other Variations HARVEY WALLBANGER Fuzzy Navel: Peach Schnapps and orange juice. Hairy Navel: Vodka, Peach Schnapps and orange juice. Brass Monkey: Vodka, Dark Rum and orange juice. Cordless Screwdriver: Shot of vodka, shot of orange juice. Tang Banger: Vodka and Tang. Poor Man's Screwdriver: Vodka and Sunny Delight. Electric Screwdriver: Vodka, Tequila, energy drink and orange juice. Slow Screw: Slow gin and orange juice. Slow Comfortable Screw: Southern Comfort and orange juice. Slow Comfortable Screw Up Against the Wall: Slow Gin, Southern Comfort, Galliano and orange juice. Slow Comfortable Screw Up Against The Wall Mexican Style: Slow Gin, Southern Comfort, Galliano, Tequila and orange juice. Slow Comfortable Screw Up Against a Fuzzy Wall: Slow Gin, Southern Comfort, Galliano, Peach Schnapps and orange juice. Slow Comfortable Screw Up Against a Fuzzy Pink Wall: Slow Gin, Southern Comfort, Galliano, Peach Schnapps, Sparkling Rosè and orange juice. (I know ... but I didn't name them!)
National Screwdriver Day is December 14th.
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GAZPACHO MARTINI COCKTAIL

This cocktail was inspired by leftovers from a Mexican dinner. I had homemade pico de gallo and after sitting for a day I noticed there was quite a bit of juice from the tomatoes and cucumbers in the bottom of the pico de gallo container. I suddenly wondered how that would taste as the mixer for a cocktail and, boom, this gazpacho martini was born.
The GAZPACHO MARTINI
INGREDIENTS 2 Oz. Tomato Vodka 1 Oz. Pico de Gallo "Juice"* 1/2 Oz. Fresh Lime Juice 5 Drops Chohula Lime Hot Sauce
GARNISHCilantro SprigLime Slice
DIRECTIONS * Make some homemade Pico de Gallo. After it sits for several hours or overnight there will be some lovely juices you can strain out. How much juice will determine how many cocktails you can make.Chill your glass.Add the ingredients to an ice filled cocktail shaker, shake until chilled then strain into your chilled glass.Garnish and serve.

VOICEOVER VIDEO WITH INGREDIENTS AND DIRECTIONS:

National Gazpacho Day is December 6th.

Updated 12-2021

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The BABY GROOT COCKTAIL - I AM GROOT!

I have a very close friend who is madly in love with Baby Groot, the miniature but growing incarnation of Groot from Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy series. She collects anything Baby Groot and, for fun, is placing hers in a variety of locales and scenarios.
I decided she needed a special cocktail for those moments.
Merry Christmas, Melodieann! (Don't worry,  you will get a package too 😘.)
The BABY GROOT COCKTAIL
INGREDIENTS 1 Oz. Seagram's Whiskey 1/2 Oz. Dark Crème de Cacao 1/2 Oz. White Crème de Menthe 3 Oz. Warm Cocoa
Garnish: Dollop of whipped cream, drizzle of Green Crème de Menthe, chocolate sprinkles, mint leaves
Glass: Old Fashioned (Rocks)
DIRECTIONS Add the Whiskey, Dark Crème de Cacao, White Crème de Menthe to your old fashioned glass. Pour in the warm cocoa. Spoon on a large dollop of whipped cream.  Drizzle with some Green Crème de Menthe. Top off with a few mint leaves and some chocolate sprinkles.
I am Groot. I am GROOT! (Groot is buzzed.)

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