Writing Challenge Day 30: Monitoring Mixology - Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying & Love the Bourbon

I hope this post finds you and your family happy, healthy, and warm during the holiday season.

For those who imbibe, I wanted to share a couple of recipes with you. One for the warmer months, and one for the colder. Why both? Well, I don’t want to alarm you, but March is only 61 days away, making it a full year since lockdown started. Soon it will be warm again, and we’ll still be at home.

Before I get started, I want to mention that alcohol sales have increased significantly during the pandemic. If you or someone you know is showing signs of alcohol abuse, please search for help here.

OK, first up, let’s start with my current favorite drink for cold weather, a bourbon Manhattan.  

Luxury Manhattan

Ingredients (makes two drinks)

  • 4 ounces bourbon (I use Larceny, because Costco sells a handle at a decent price)
  • 2 ounces sweet vermouth (remember to refrigerate your sweet vermouth after opening)
  • 4 dashes Angostura bitters (I sometimes use Peychaud's)
  • 1 teaspoon Luxardo cherry syrup (only Luxardo cherries allowed at my bar)
  • 1 or 3 Luxardo cherries (or none, if you prefer)

I pour everything into a glass shaker with ounces clearly marked; this saves time as opposed to measuring everything by hand. I also add a small amount of the syrup from the Luxardo cherry jar, and either 1 or 3 cherries. Never add 2 of anything to a drink (ice cubes, olives, etc.), it’s bad luck (as if 2020 needed more bad luck, right?).

After a quick stir, I pour into a double rocks glass and then add one round ice sphere. I use a mold to make the ice spheres, so I guess you could say this drink requires some advanced prep.

Remember, this recipe makes two drinks, so either share with a friend or cut the ingredients in half.

Next is my current favorite warm weather drink, a variant of a bourbon sour smash.

Rosemary Maple Bourbon Sour

Ingredients (makes two drinks)

  • 4 ounces bourbon (again, I use Larceny because reasons)
  • 2 ounces lemon/lime juice (I do one once of each)
  • 1 ounce maple syrup (not the cheap stuff you get at the pancake house, a step above that)
  • Seltzer water (I use Polar Seltzer Ginger Lime Mule flavored)
  • 2 sprigs rosemary (optional)

The rosemary sprigs are optional. Should you decide to use them, crush one sprig in the bottom of the shaker and use the other sprig as a garnish. I then add the juice, then the syrup, then the bourbon. I top the shaker with the seltzer, but this is optional. After a quick stir, I pour into Mason jars and add ice to fill. You can use whatever glass you want, as choice of glass depends on the amount of seltzer and ice you use. Add the remaining sprig of rosemary and take a photo to show your hipster drink to the world, like this:

day30_pic1.jpg

Oh, I guess I added a lemon wedge to that batch. Look, it’s called a smash for a reason. Feel free to experiment to your own taste.

I hope you enjoy these recipes, and please drink responsibly.

  • As the offspring of an alcoholic father, who dealt with work stress through drink & abuse, I'll say "Drink, but choose wisely."  I made a New Years Resolution back in 1980 to never drink alcohol as a result of its impact on my childhood through my father.  The rationale was "He's such a good & strong man.  If alcohol could turn him into the violent & uncaring fiend that haunted my evenings at home, and if there's a chance such tendencies could be hereditary, I don't want to take a chance."

    So I don't.  

    But I also don't condemn those who occasionally have a drink of alcohol, provided they limit their intake, and they don't drive vehicles.

    Instead, for the holidays, I choose to have about three ounces of plain Egg Nog (non-alcoholic variety) with about 9 ounces of 2% milk.  Mix with a spoon & sip a little bit at a time while reading a good book in front of the fireplace.  That's all I choose to make an annual holiday tradition.

    Never think you have to drink alcohol to drink.  It's OK to be the sober guy in a crowd.  Try it a few times and you might even see why avoiding alcohol can be more fun than having a few shots or beers in a night--especially if the people around you continue to drink normally.

    Alcohol puts a hazy curtain between me and reality, when I've tried it under controlled situations with a trusted friend watching out for me.  I'd rather see things as they are.

    But don't let my behavior be a wet blanket for you.  Drinking responsibly might sometimes mean a little diluted eggnog, or even some water.

  • By itself, arak (also known as "raki") is not most people's cup of tea. Or scotch. Or even beer. Unless you or a close family member hails from that  region of the world (looking at you, ) it's an acquired taste that most of us don't choose to acquire.It's a licorice-flavored drink similar to sambuca, ouzo, or pastis. 

    Like 2020 itself, it's overpowering, with a flavor many people find objectionable even in small amounts.But like 2020, I think that's largely because folks often try to drink it as-is, like you might a shot of vodka. Like 2020, taken straight, it's too much.

    But also like 2020, that overlooks the very important reality that arak doesn't exist in a vacuum. It's merely one drink among many - one ingredient among many. Taken alone, many ingredients (as with many years) are bitter, harsh, and objectionable. If you take it as part of the larger whole, however, it gains relevance and adds meaning.

    So here is my offering - a way of taking my ancestral heritage and blending it with the modern into something more palateable:

    "Blushed Anise"

    • add ice to a tumbler
    • pour 2oz Arak over the ice
    • add a squirt of agave syrup
    • add a squeeze of lemon
    • pour in pink grapefruit juice to fill the glass
    • stir once

    If you took everything but the Arak, this drink would be too tart and too sweet to enjoy. The arak gives it just a bit of an edge. It adds just a bit of depth to the whole.

    May we all be blessed to be able to look back upon this year in the same way. Understanding it within the context of our lives as a point in time that added depth, meaning, urgency, and relevance, while taking nothing (or nothing of great importance) in return.

  • I have found 2 cranberry wines that I absolutely love.  CranCab and Ben Lear both from Lake Nokomis Cranberries Winery in Eagle River Wisconsin.  They ship and orders come quickly.  No mixing required, just pour and enjoy.

  • What would be the virgin variation of these recipes? 

Thwack - Symbolize TM, R, and C