Sweet Blog O'Mine

Tag: cocktails

  • Booze You Can Use: Tequila & Cocktails Workshop

    I just returned from a weekend in Mexico to celebrate Lauren & Jorge's wedding. There was certainly no shortage of tequila; in fact, we officially toasted their nuptials with a delicious Clase Azul reposado.  It was the perfect mid-winter getaway.

    If you can't make it to Mexico, take a shorter trip to Lani Kai, where Liquor.com is holding a Tequila and Cocktails workshop this Saturday, March 10th from 2-4 pm. Proprietress Julie Reiner will be joined by Herradura ambassador Mark Drew for an afternoon of tasting, education, and snacks. $50 tickets also include a goodie bag for the road.

  • Booze You Can Use: Whisky and Women Unite!

    Lupecwhisky

    Mark your calendars! On March 8th, Compass Box and the New York Chapter of LUPEC (Ladies United for the Preservation of Endangered Cocktails) are joining forces for the third annual Whisky and Women Unite, a cocktail party benefitting Bottomless Closet. The first one started as a piggyback on the tweetups I had been doing, and it was such a great success that they did a second event last year.

    This year, Lani Kai hosts the fête, and LUPEC members Meaghan Dorman, Lynnette Marrero, Abigail Gullo, Eryn Reece Karin Stanley, and hostess Julie Reiner will create cocktails for the event featuring the newest relase from Compass Box, Great King Street – Artist’s Blend.  The cocktails will be $8, and a portion of the proceeds will go to Bottomless Closet, which helps disadvantaged NYC women become self-sufficient through comprehensive programming and support.

    March 8th, 6-8 p.m., Lani Kai, 525 Broome Street between Thompson and Sullivan. See you there!!

  • Booze You Can Use: Broad Appeal

    Broadappeal

    It's always fun to drink for a cause! Join LUPEC NYC (that's the NYC chapter of Ladies United for the Preservation of Endangered Cocktails) as we raise money the Wounded Warrior Project at our premiere of Broad Appeal, a monthly event where one of the city's best female bartenders will recruit a celebrity male barback and join forces to raise money for their charity of choice. First up, Meaghan Dorman and Michael McIlroy this coming Tuesday from 8-12 at Macao Trading Company.

  • Booze You Can Use: Have a Hot Toddy

    So first it’s cold, then it’s hot, then it’s cold again. Regardless, make yourself a hot toddy the next time you feel cold or the next time you have a cold — either way it’ll make you feel better.

    Hot Toddy
    1 1/2 – 2 oz bourbon (or whisk(e)y of your choosing, or brandy, or rum, or really whatever booze floats your boat)
    1 tablespoon mild honey (or experiment with other sweetners, like agave or maple syrup)
    2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (or just muddle a nicely sized lemon wedge with the honey)
    boiling-hot water
    Mix bourbon, honey, and lemon juice in a mug, then top with hot water and stir. Garnish with a lemon. If you’d like, add some whole cloves and/or a cinnamon stick.
     

  • Zoom

    IMAG0109

    A bit of badassery from Booker and Dax. There were also chicharone jacks, FTW.

  • And By the Way

    I'm writing for CBS New York these days, too, for their Best of New York Food & Drink section! Stay tuned for more food/cocktail posts.

  • Booze You Can Use: Have an Aviation

    AviationPhoto courtesy of The Dizzy Fizz

    This is another gin cocktail that I've served to many guests much to their delight. The only trick here is to have a few key, somewhat nonstandard ingredients on hand — namely maraschino liqueur and crème de violette (or crème Yvette) — but once you've got them you're good to go.  Happy Friday!  PS — @daisy17 and I are bartending tonight (yes, our second bartending gig) at FLICFest. Come laugh at us!

    Aviation
    2 oz. gin
    1/2 oz. lemon juice
    1/2 oz. maraschino liqueur
    1/4 oz. crème de violette or crème Yvette

    Add all ingredients into cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well and strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with a cherry.

  • Booze You Can Use: Have a Negroni

    Negroni

    It's Friday. You (we) deserve a cocktail. I am going to try to post about a cocktail every Friday, so that you can be inspired to order or make something new each week. One of my favorite go-to cocktails is the Negroni, and several friends I've introduced to them are now hooked (I'm looking at you, Lauren & Kim). You can serve a Negroni either straight up or on the rocks, but either way it's an elegant, albeit potent, way to kick off your weekend. You can play with the ratios or the ingredients a bit, but here's the basic recipe.

    Negroni
    Equal parts:
    Gin
    Campari
    Sweet Vermouth

    Stir with ice and strain into either a cocktail glass or a rocks glass with fresh ice. Garnish with an orange twist.

  • For Your Enjoyment

    shot_1321056017868

    A pretty fall cocktail from The Beagle — the North Atlantic: Calvados, Madeira, Benedictine, Angostura, nutmeg.

  • Cooking Up A Storm

    Lobsters 
    I was supposed to go to Maine this past weekend, but was foiled by Hurricane Tropical Storm Irene. That said, I had serious lobster on the brain, and between that and Mark Bittman's timely piece on lobster in the Sunday NYT magazine, I decided that lobster bisque was just what I needed to make it through the storm. I stockpiled everything I needed, but as Saturday morning arrived, I realized I needed a tomato, so headed to my local natural foods market, where I picked up a bunch of tomatoes, corn, and an artichoke. As of about 2 p.m. on Saturday, after a workout, I hunkered down and started to cook, thinking that friends within walking distance might come over that night. After brunch (egg, Flying Pigs Farm bacon, skim latte), I made lobster stock from some shells I had in the freezer, cooked the two lobsters I had bought the night before, then proceeded to make bisque, corn and tomato salad, and a steamed artichoke. As I was taking out the garbage, I ran into my next door neighbors, and we arranged for an impromptu dinner party later that evening. In addition to the bisque, I whipped up some brownies (using my favorite recipe, but substituting some espresso-laced chocolate), and we feasted — Arturo's pizza;  tomato, corn, shallot & arugula salad; bisque and brownies.

    Day two of the storm seemed a little calmer, and true to our nature, my fellow New Yorkers were ansty from being inside all day and night on Saturday. Roopa, Karen, Enzo, Noel, Caroline & Kevin came over and we feasted on a hodgepodge of canned goods (pickled herring, anyone?), made Ramos Gin Fizzes and Bloody Marys/Red Snappers and a killer batch of fried rice, spearheaded by Noel. We followed that up with A Fish Called Wanda and truffle-parmesan popcorn. 

    Almost everyone I talked to ate and drank their way through the storm. Wonder if that's just a reflection of my friends and family or if people generally find it comforting?