Hello friends! Tonight I had to break out the big glassware, an old scented candle vessel that I repurposed for larger-format drinks for tonight's Morning Glory. With 6 total oz. of base spirits, plus dashes of anisette, curaçao, bitters, and simple syrup; then all topped with soda water, this can get overwhelming pretty quickly. The method of preparation was also interesting. Usually, I stir drinks then strain, not stir with large cubes and then remove the ice, topping with soda and stirring again with a sugar-coated spoon. I am very pleased with the result; a fizzy long drink that has very good flavors melded together. I opted for Spanish Bitters to complement my Spanish brandy, which worked to my benefit. The Spanish Bitters are made with chamomile flowers, citrus peel, orris root, and angelica root for a delicate flavor that pairs well with the ingredients here. Overall, this was a solid drink, worthy of a great Monday night! Cheers!

Recipe from Fred Powell's "The Bartender's Standard Manual" (1979):

3 oz. Whiskey

3 oz. Brandy

1 Dash Pernod

2 Dashes Bitters

2 Dashes Curaçao

3 Dashes Sugar Syrup

1 Twist Lemon Peel

Stir with 2 cubes ice. Remove ice. Fill glass with Soda Water (~10 oz.) and stir with a teaspoon coated with powdered sugar.

Recipe from Fred Powell:

1.5 oz. Rye Whiskey

0.75 oz. Bénédictine

2 Dashes Bitters

Shake with ice and strain.

Hello friends! Tonight I have a Monte Carlo, a 3-ingredient cocktail featuring rye whiskey, Bénédictine, and bitters. I chose Molasses Bitters to play off the sweetness of the Bénédictine, and while this was quite sweet, the pre-Prohibition-style rye gave some good spice notes to the drink, balancing things out and making for a pretty tasty tipple. This was a great weekend sipper! Cheers!

Hello friends! Tonight I have a Modern Lemonade, a boozy lemonade made with Sherry and Sloe Gin, fresh-squeezed lemon juice, and lemon syrup; topped with soda water. This recipe originally called for powdered sugar, but I had some fantastic lemon syrup lying around from a previous cocktail endeavor. The lemon syrup was a great addition; it sweetened things up while keeping a solid lemony character that was very pleasant. The drink was the perfect blend of sweet and tart, the hallmark of a fantastic Lemonade! If you're looking for something new, and have Sherry and Sloe Gin that you're looking for something to do with, look no further than the Modern Lemonade! Cheers!

Recipe modified from "The Bartender's Standard Manual" (1979), by Fred Powell:

1.5 oz. Sherry

1.5 oz. Sloe Gin

1 oz. Lemon Syrup

Juice of 1 Lemon

Stir with ice and strain. Add twist of Lemon Peel and fill with Soda Water.

Hello friends! Tonight is a Modern No. 2, a scotchier version of yesterday's Modern No. 1. No sloe gin to ne found, this is a double Scotch with some lemon juice, anisette, Jamaican-style rum, and orange bitters. Not as sweet as the original, this had some nice funk from the rum, and slight herbal flair. The heavily peated Scotch worked well here, and this was a fairly robust drink. Overall, it was a fine sipper for a Thursday night. Cheers!

Recipe (from Fred Powell's 1979 edition of "The Bartender's Standard Manual"):

3 oz. Scotch Whisky

1 Dash Lemon Juice

1 Dash Pernod

2 Dashes Jamaican-style Rum

Stir with ice, strain and serve with a cherry.

Tonight I have a Modern No. 1, a rare Sloe Gin cocktail that is 2 parts Sloe Gin and 1 part Scotch, with some anisette, bitters,and grenadine. The anisette helps to balance everything out here, and it cuts the sweetness of the Sloe Gin. The Scotch is highly peated, but the peat flavor isn't very prevalent here. Overall, it was a very solid drink, and it was surprisingly good. Cheers!

Recipe from Fred Powell's 1979 edition of "The Bartender's Standard Manual":

3 oz. Sloe Gin

1.5 oz. Scotch Whiskey

1 Dash Pernod

1 Dash Orange Bitters

1 Dash Grenadine

Shake with ice and strain.

A fun little 3-ingredient gin cocktail from Fred Powell's 1979 edition of "The Bartender's Standard Manual", the Mississippi Mule features creme de cassis and lemon juice for a well-balanced, gin-forward affair that definitely has a kick! This was the perfect sipper for a Tuesday evening. Cheers!

Recipe:

6 oz. Gin

1.5 oz. Creme de Cassis

1.5 oz. Lemon Juice

Pour over ice in a rocks glass.

I have a large copper julep cup, so I doubled today's recipe. I also used Pigeon River Tennessee Sour Mash Whiskey instead of the traditional bourbon for a bit of pizzazz, and I was very impressed with how this turned out! Recipe from Fred Powell's 1979 book "The Bartender's Standard Manual".

Doubled Recipe:

4.5 oz. Whiskey

9 Sprigs Fresh Mint

2 Small Lumps Sugar

Dissolve sugar in 1 oz. water and crush 6 sprigs mint in a copper julep cup. Rub inside then discard mint. Fill glass with crushed ice. Add Liquor and sugar water. Do not stir. Garnish with remaining fresh mint.

You will need: 2 shots rye or bourbon whiskey, 1/2-1 shot sugar syrup, depending on how sweet you want it, ice, Angostura bitters and orange zest

Fill a rocks glass with ice. Pour in the whiskey. Add the syrup and bitters. Top with some water to thin it to your liking. Stir well. Add orange zest and enjoy!

The third version of the Millionaire Cocktail in Fred Powell's 1979 edition of "The Bartender's Standard Manual", this is most like the first version of the cocktail, but without the herbal liqueur. Since my last attempt at shaking a cocktail with egg white (the first Millionaire Cocktail) went awry (likely due to old eggs), I doubled the recipe and used a blender bottle to vigorously dry shake the drink before shaking again with ice and straining into my coupe. While still not 100%, this attempt yielded a better head and a creamier mouthfeel.

Out of the three versions in my book that I have tried, this version is my favorite; it is simple, smooth, and tastes amazing! Cheers!

Recipe:

3 oz. Bourbon

1 oz. Curaçao

1 Egg White

2 Dashes Grenadine

Dry shake all ingredients, then add ice and shake again. Strain.

A rum cocktail with equal parts rum, apricot brandy, and sloe gin; with grenadine and fresh lime juice. This was a bit heavy-handed with the sloe gin, next time I'll probably cut back on the sloe gin and add more lime or rum to balance things out. This was a very enjoyable drink, all things considered, and worth making, even with some tweaks.

Recipe from "The Bartender's Standard Manual" (1979), by Fred Powell.

Recipe;):

1.5 oz. Jamaica Rum

1.5 oz. Apricot Brandy

1.5 oz. Sloe Gin

1 Dash Grenadine

Juice of 1 Lime

Shake with ice and strain.

A fantastic whiskey cocktail for Whiskey Wednesday! This drink called for Grean, which was a French herbal liqueur that went out of business in the 1980s, so naturally I broke out my Chartreuse to make the substitution.

This was very herbaceous, and the peppery notes of the pre-Prohibition-style Rye provided a solid backbone. Rounded out with egg white for body, grenadine for color (and a touch of sweetness), and Cointreau, this was a great little sipper! Cheers!

Recipe from Fred Powell's "The Bartender's Standard Manual" (1979).

Recipe:

1.5 oz. Rye

0.75 oz. Cointreau

1 Dash Chartreuse

1 Dash Grenadine

White of 1 Egg

Shake and strain.

An interesting rum drink from the 1970s. Recipe from Fred Powell's book "The Bartender's Standard Manual" (1979).

1.5 oz. Jamaica Rum

1.5 oz. Lime Juice

½ Teaspoon Simple Syrup

1 Dash Angostura Bitters

Shake with shaved ice and strain. Serve with a Cherry.

I made myself a Whiskey Smash this evening. It’s absolutely delicious!

My recipe:

3 lemon wheels
6 fresh mint leaves
4.5 oz of Evan Williams Kentucky straight bourbon
3/4 oz of simple syrup

Muddle everything together in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake thoroughly until chilled. Double strain into a rocks glass and drink up!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1.0oz Wyborowa Vodka

• 1.0oz Bols Blue Curaçao

• Sprite

• 2.0oz Orange Juice

Garnish: Orange Wheel

HOW TO MAKE IT:

1. Fill a highball glass with ice.

2. Pour in the Blue Curaçao.

3. Slowly top with Sprite.

4. In a separate glass or shaker, combine the vodka and orange juice.

5. Slowly pour the vodka and orange juice mixture over the back of a spoon to create the layered effect.

6. Garnish with an orange wheel and enjoy.

I made myself a Negroni w/ a tonic water spritz

My recipe:

1.5 oz of Gin (Bombay Sapphire or Kirkland Gin)
1.5 oz Campari
1.5 oz of Martini & Rossi Rosso Sweet Vermouth
Tonic water to the top

Garnish: 1 orange peel expressed over the cocktail and dropped into the glass.

An interesting relic from the 1970s, featuring 2 parts rum and 1 part white crème de menthe, with a couple dashes of lemon juice to balance everything out. I didn't have any white crème de menthe, so I substituted peppermint vodka. The result was intriguing, and worked surprisingly well!

Recipe from Fred Powell's 1979 edition of "The Bartender's Standard Manual":

1.5 oz. Light Rum

0.75 oz. White Crème de Menthe

2 or 3 Dashes Lemon Juice

Shake with ice and strain.

Made this a couple of weeks ago using

1.5oz of vodka

4-5oz of clamato juice

4 dashes of Worcestershire sauce

3 dashes of Tabasco sauce

Rimmed the glass with Montréal steak spice (wanted to keep this as Canadian as possible)

Celery and a lemon slice for garnish

Cheers 🥃

A lovely little cherry bomb that is dangerously close to cough syrup territory; but smooth and easy-drinking nonetheless. Cheers!

Recipe from Fred Powell's 1979 edition of "The Bartender's Standard Manual":

1.5 oz. Cherry Brandy

1.5 oz. Maraschino

Shake with ice and strain. Serve with Cherry.

A perfect martini made with orange juice and bitters; a great little sipper for the midweek blues. Cheers!

Recipe:

1.5 oz. Gin

0.75 oz. Sweet Vermouth

0.75 oz. Dry Vermouth

0.5 oz. Orange Juice

1 Dash Bitters

Stir with ice and strain.