Amaro is a very loose category of liqueurs. It’s spirits and/or wine infused with a variety of herbs and other flavors. It’s bitter and often very sweet at the same time, with a complex mix of other flavors. There really is so much variety it’s hard to narrow down, but a couple personal favorites are Cynar (very bitter), Montenegro (kind of sweet), and Amaro Nonino (well balanced).
If you like egg nog and want to try something kind of similar, try Coquito. It’s spiced coconut cream and rum. It’s got a similar texture without any eggs and a lot of those holiday spices. Here’s a recipe. It can be batched up and stored for a week or two in the fridge.
The other one I like is Amaro Caldo. It’s just hot water and your favorite amaro. I prefer to use tea instead of plain water. A black tea plus an ounce or two of Montenegro is really tasty.
Do you want to taste it or just use it up?
If you just want to use it, I’d turn it into modified Paloma’s. Mix up grapefruit juice, grapefruit vodka, rosemary infused vodka, and some Angostura bitters in a pitcher and refrigerate. Then to serve, pour the mix into a highball with ice and top with a little grapefruit soda (I strongly prefer San Pellegrino), garnish with a small sprig of rosemary. You might add some sweetener or something to tone it down. You can also make it a little showy by smashing the rosemary sprig with a big flourish and handclap.
I left off portions since I really don’t know what the vodka tastes like. I’d sample it first with mostly vodka and then up the other measures as needed to get something palatable.
At a bar I don’t know, I’ll usually order off their menu or go for beer. I’ll try whatever they are saying is their specialty, or I’ll just pass on the whole mixed drinks affair. If I’m at some new bar I’m probably not trying it out as my new favorite spot, I’m probably visiting someplace and will never be back. I just want something tasty and easy.
Over the course of this summer I went against my better judgement and I tried to order boulvardiers at two different bars. Both times it was at a nice bar that appeared to have a modern cocktail program and both times led to lengthy discussions about what I was asking for.
That looks pretty good. I’ve always seen it made with some variety or combination of aged rum, usually demerara. My personal favorite for this (and most tiki drinks) is Hamilton Jamaican Black Rum. Using white rum might be the right call for serving it with dinner.
I think you could turn just about any Jungle Bird recipe into a decent batch cocktail. Most of the ingredients are pretty stable. The juices would go off first, but not likely over the course of a few days. If you need them to sit for more than a week, then you probably want to look at something with spirits only.
The Jungle Bird could fit that bill pretty well. It’s one of my absolute favorite drinks, and the only tiki drink my wife likes. It’s fruity, sweet, and sour and most of all it’s a lot. My fear would be that it might be too much to pair with dinner.
I had a clarified jungle bird once, and that was a kind of muted version. That may have been a function of their recipe or the process. It wasn’t a bar I go to regularly, so I can’t really say why it was mellowed out.
Dead Man’ Handle
1.5 oz White Tequila
.5 oz Aperol
.5 oz Lime Juice
.5 oz Orgeat
Shake vigoursly over ice and serve in a tall glass over crushed ice. Sprinkle some Tajin on top.
I tried coming up with my own take on this and none of the changes I tried made it better. There’s a bar near me that makes their own sesame orgeat and I bet that would be good.
My first thought is to look for something kind of mild to not overpower the food, but still has some earthy/roasted flavors. Maybe a Montenegro spritz?
What time of year will the event be? If it’s fall/winter I’d not do a spritz and maybe try something coffee flavored.
Do you also have a link to a good recipe for making syrups from peels? I’ve had mixed results and it’s been awhile since I tried.
I made a couple Ford’s for myself over the weekend.
1.5 Ounces Gin 1 Ounce Dry Vermouth 0.5 Ounce Benedictine Few dashes orange bitters Measurements are loose estimates. Garnish with a bit of lemon peel.
I really like these. They’re a little more herbaceous and slightly sweeter compared to a classic martini.
I totally agree. This sounds really good, but it barely resembles a Paloma.
Too late to make the July cut off, but my favorite pineapple juice cocktail is the Jungle Bird.
Tropical and bitter. It’s the only tiki drink my wife likes. The classic recipe wants a little bit of banana liquor, I never have that at home and it’s just fine without it.
Nothing to submit this time. I tried a couple of things with Ancho Reyes, but nothing came together. I’ve had that bottle for almost two years and haven’t ever found any recipe with it that really works.
Had a couple of mocktails at a friend’s place over the holiday. The fake Campari is really good, everything else is pretty meh.
They did make a good NA bicycle thief spritz. With grapefruit seltzer and NA versions of gin and Campari.
That’s a good idea. Or maybe a fresh chili pepper and sub in mole bitters? I wasn’t planning on working any more on this, but maybe I’ll try play around with it this weekend.
This is a tough one. I tried subbing rum into a perfect Manhattan and didn’t care for it. I make a tiki old fashioned that’s been a big hit and it’s not too sweet, but it’s definitely not dry. That’s still the best “dry” rum cocktail in my repertoire, so I stuck with the old fashioned format and worked on a different variation. Here’s a rum/coffee old fashioned.
1.5 oz Plantation 5-year, 0.5 oz Wray and Nephew 151 0.75 oz Perc, 2 dashes Angostura bitters. Serve on ice with a wide orange peel.
Smells of coffee, alcohol, and orange. Tastes of a strong earthy coffee sweetened with molasses. A little bit of banana, and a little bit of warming spice. Not too bitter and not too sweet.
Notes and other thoughts: There’s probably a better rum or rum blend. Also, the 1/2 ounce Wray and Nephew is an estimate. I tried it with just Plantation and thought it needed more punch, so I put in a splash of the 151 and it helped. It’s probably less than that amount. Perc is a regional coffee liquor, I don’t know if it’s available outside of New England. Kahlua would not make an acceptable substitute, but I think Mr. Black would. The orange peel isn’t a great garnish for this. It doesn’t mesh well with the other flavors. Not sure what would be.
I did try a couple of other additions and substitutions. Subbing an allspice dram for the dry curacao was interesting, and adding simple syrup was pretty bad.
Here’s the final: Stirred, served on ice in an old fashioned glass, garnish with an orange peel. 1 oz bourbon, 1 oz Cynar, 1/4 oz dry curacao, barspoon of maraschino liquor, 2 dashes angostura bitters.
This worked out really well. It’s still bittersweet, but it’s much better balanced. The orange is still present, but more subdued, and the earthy herbaceous notes becomes the most forward flavor.
I didn’t try this final version with rye, I switched to bourbon because I was trying to smooth out some of the sharp edges. It would probably still be good with rye, but I liked this a lot. I’m not sure about serving over ice. It’s definitely good cold and I don’t think the dilution hurt, but if I was more committed to perfecting the recipe I would definitely try serving it in a chilled Nick & Nora.
Doing this was fun. I already like riffing and making up drinks, and having some rules to work within made me more thoughtful. I just need someone to drink more of these drinks for me so I can try out more variations. I’ve got a picture, but I keep getting a JSON error when I try to upload it. Picture an old fashioned, but more brown and you’ve got the idea.
I was cleaning out my refrigerator last week and came across a ginger ale. I thought it would be nice to have a little whiskey ginger would be a nice treat while I was cleaning and getting ready to move. I added in a generous pour of Cynar and it was good, like really good. I think there’s some real potential for some kind of Cynar Mule.
I didn’t measure anything, so no recipe or entry.
I’ve never made clear ice before, mostly because I didn’t want to devote the space to it. Just moved into a new place and it already has a standup freezer in the basement. I’m planning on trying out making clear ice sometime this summer after I finish unpacking.
What I’d really like are some tools for making something like pebble ice without an expensive contraption.
Lots of good recommendations already.
I’ve only made Coquito with Appleton Estates, but that’s mostly because I have Appleton around during the holidays to make hot buttered rum for my wife’s family. The white rums that I’ve had and liked have been the Plantation and Rhum Barbancourt. Like others said, you probably won’t taste much of the rum.
I’ve never had a Godfather, but that sounds like a perfectly fine drink. I like Old Fashioneds and other drinks that follow the same bourbon plus a dash of something interesting format. I would bet that the drink will still mostly taste like whatever whiskey you use. Don’t bother chasing down something special or expensive, but I would go with something good. Also, you’ll still have the rest of the bottle to finish, so buy something you’ll drink. If you already have a preferred bourbon or whiskey, you’ll probably still like it in this drink. I would try something like Old Forester (100 proof), Four Roses, or Wild Turkey 101.
I have not had any amaretto apart from DiSorano, which I do not like.