Sugar & Spice Makes Everything Nice – None but the Brave

Full disclosure, I made three of these to get it right and I didn’t just throw the other attempts out when they weren’t perfect.  I was pretty happy with my previous attempts.  I just knew I could make it better and get a better balance and find the right recipe to make this drink amazing.  This drink is like taking a deep inhale in a cabinet full of fresh spices.  It’s challenging and entertaining and will leave you sneezing… but maybe that’s just the congestion that I can’t seem to shake.

The original recipe for this cocktail shows up in a 1956 book called the “Official Mixers Manual” and it bounces around into a few different books before landing on the one I liked from Stan Jones’ Bar Guide.  The recipes vary widely from the original which included something called Jamaican Ginger, a highly alcoholic ginger extract, which I couldn’t seem to locate anywhere in Seattle.  Other recipes turn the drink into a highball with a float of ginger beer on the rocks.  For tonight though, I wanted a cocktail.  I tried out the Stan Jones recipe but added a garnish to return the drink to something closer to the original recipe.

None but the Brave

1.5oz Brandy

0.5oz Allspice Dram

0.25oz Simple Syrup

0.25oz Dark Rum

0.25oz Fresh Lemon Juice

Garnish with lemon peel & crystallized ginger

—

Mix ingredients over ice in a shaker.  Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass or coupe.  Garnish with lemon peel and small piece of crystallized ginger.

The resulting drink is quite good.  It’s spicy with cinnamon, allspice, and ginger at the forefront.  But it’s also sweet with a little bit of citrus kick to it.  Another variation was a little overpowering as there was just a touch too much allspice dram.  It’s a powerful ingredient and balance is key to this drink.  I like this drink a lot in this proportion.

Just a note on the garnish– The lemon twist should be peeled from the lemon over the glass to make sure that the oils being released when you peel land on the rim and in the drink.  I also twist the lemon over the already made drink.  After you’re done, you just drop it right in.  The crystallized, or candied (whatever you call it), ginger is available at my local QFC and fairly cheap.  To be honest, it didn’t make an appreciable difference in the drink.  It just made me feel classy and like I was doing justice to the original drink.

Stay classy Seattle.

Cheers!

Cocktail Christmas Day 24: Brandy Alexander

As my Cocktail Christmas experiment comes to a close on this beautiful Seattle Christmas Eve, I am left with only one cocktail that truly signals the coming of Christmas.  This drink has the classic holiday drink staples of dairy, sweet, and spice.  It’s also an elegant drink that screams both class and grace.  It tastes great and my version has a lot of work involved so it feels extra special when I finally get to drink one.

The Brandy Alexander has been around for quite a while and the origins are disputed.  It was either created for the wedding of Princess Mary in 1922, named for a drama critic named Alexander Woolcott or the Russian Tzar Alexander II.  No matter the origins, I like to make this drink for my Princess Mary whenever the holidays come around.

Here’s how I make them…

Brandy Alexander

The Brandy Alexander

1 part Christmas Spirit (or Brandy, or Cognac)

1 part Dark Creme de Cacao

1 part fresh cream

Mix the ingredients in a shaker of ice cubes.  Shake until cold and frothy and strain into a cocktail glass.

When the drink is made with brandy or cognac, go for mid-range quality.  This spirit is the backbone of the drink.

I make the Brandy Alexander with a very special blend that I like to call Christmas Spirit.  It’s a Brandy based spirit that I make myself that is infused with fresh ginger, clove, cinnamon and nutmeg.  It’s sweetened with a special sugar syrup and infused for around a month.  I usually start this around Thanksgiving and it’s ready around Christmas.  The filtering and bottling process is very intensive but the result is a beautiful, warming spirit that is a great base for may cocktails.  It’s great with Coke, in a drink like this, or served plain on a cold day.

This is by far the best nightcap type drink that I have ever had… maybe the best drink with cream in it for that matter.  It’s sweet and delicious without being too heavy and spicy without being overpowering.  It’s the perfect way to end a night with friends.  Make one today!

On a personal note, thank you all for reading and I wish you all a merry Christmas and Happy New Year!  I am catching a flight in a few hours to a tropical island where I’ll report on the very best Rums and rum punches in the world.  Rough way to spend a holiday, yeah?

As for this blog, I am not nearly done yet!  I have big plans for Never Dry In Seattle and hope you’ll continue to read.  I’ll be writing about my favorite drinks, the best cocktail bars in Seattle, their creations and how you can bring what they do in the bar into your very own home.  I’ll be hosting events here in Seattle to share my favorite drinks and experience with you.  Stay tuned, and remember that it’s Never Dry in Seattle.

Cheers!

Cocktail Christmas Day 22: Averneggnog

This is the best Egg Nog that I have ever experienced.  Hands down.  The best.  Ever.

Obviously, I cannot take credit for this drink recipe because I am not a genius.  This recipe comes from the wonderful event that I attended called “Holiday Drinks that Don’t Suck” at one of my new favorite bars Rob Roy and hosted by one who would qualify as a cocktail genius, Paul Clarke of Cocktail Chronicles.  If you aren’t following that blog, do it and thank me later.

I’ve always liked egg nog and it has been part of my holiday tradition since I was little.  In fact, the Musson family tradition is actual to cut the grocery store egg nog with 7-Up.  It’s not nearly as gross as it sounds and is still something that my crazy palate LOVES, but when I think about it, I shudder a little bit and hang my head in shame.

This recipe has ruined me for other egg nogs.  The pre-packaged supermarket stuff cut with 7-Up is just not going to cut it anymore… here’s how to make this delicious new holiday tradition.

Finished Product

The Averneggnog

5 large eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1.25 tsp freshly-grated nutmeg
5 oz brandy
5 oz rum
3.3 oz Averna
20 oz whole milk
13.3 oz heavy cream

The original recipe is 4x this large and calls for the largest blender known to man.  I don’t have a clue how a blender could hold 100 oz of milk and cream, along with about 50 oz of alcohol.  I’m a fan of large scale drinks but this is just a huge portion.  Probably great for bars and people who have blenders the size of a kitchen sink… but not for me.

My small scale recipe makes about a 64oz pitcher of the egg nog, which is good for a group that might fit in my tiny apartment.

Anyway, grab your blender and put the eggs in it and start blending on a medium setting for about one minute.  Slowly add the other ingredients and blend for another minute or so until it’s frothy and delicious.  Drink a little bit.  Good huh?

Now we exercise self-control and put it in the fridge and chill the nog… the recipe says it’s to allow the flavors to mingle and mix.  I believe it is there to make you want the nog more than you’ve ever wanted anything in the world.  It’s just a tease to make you enjoy it more when you can finally drink it.  Sorry, my inner fat kid is coming out.  Speaking of fat, this drink isn’t exactly “low cal” or “fat free.”  You’ve been warned.

When it’s thoroughly chilled (~2 hours in the fridge), pour into a chilled coupe glass, grate some fresh nutmeg over the drink and enjoy.

What makes this recipe special is A) fresh ingredients, B) a balance between cream and milk which makes the drink a little lighter, and C) AVERNA.  Delicious, delicious Averna.

For those readers who have never heard of Averna, it is an Italian liqueur in the Amaro category (Amaro = Italian for “herbal”) that is a classic digestif, or after-dinner drink.  It’s a blend of herbs, roots and citrus rinds that soak in alcohol before some amazing people add caramel to the mix.  It’s sweet, thick and contains just enough herbal notes to be absolutely delicious.  The addition of a small amount of Averna adds depth to this egg nog that has never been there before.  It adds herbal notes and a lingering finish of espresso.  I can’t wait to play around with this ingredient.

Anyway, I can’t recommend this drink enough.  It’s the best thing I’ve had so far this month.  Make it.  Tonight.

Cheers!