The Yes, Yes, Yes, and Yes! Cocktail

Good Evening, Thirsty Ones! Tonight I have for you The Yes, Yes, Yes, and Yes! Cocktail, also known as the Pegu Club Cocktail.

You might be wondering why this cocktail has two names. Well, the latter name comes from the club in Burma - The Pegu Club - at which this fine libation originated. The recipe was shared in the classic The Savoy Cocktail Book, in 1930 by Harry Craddock. I learned of this delicious old-style drink from my lately favorite book, Bitters, by BT Parsons.

For the purpose of tonight's post, I took the liberty of naming the drink in honor the truly fine Diania Maisonneuve.  Diania, or "Mama Mais" as many know her, is an absolutely kick-ass Indo-Row coach at the Bloomington Body Bar. I am lucky to row with her a few times a week.  She motivates me (and probably every other lucky person else she coaches) to a level of performance a far piece beyond what I ever think is possible. She does this every single time I row with her. It is a rare and special person who can be a gifted coach. Diania is one of those people.

In addition to her prowess at coaching, Diania (the second "i" is silent) is the real deal. She's the good citizen, compassionate and loving, giving to the nth degree, and just plain fun to be around.  I admire her and adore her and am so glad to call her friend.

Why the name, "Yes, Yes, Yes, and Yes!"?  Because whenever we are about to increase our rowing output or start a new "wave", Diania asks if everyone is ready. Rather than waiting for an answer from her class, she exclaims,  "Yes, yes, yes, and yes!"  There were many things I could have called the drink, but to me the concept of YES is Diania.  She lives an enthusiastic YES kind of life.

This cocktail was one of my favorites, so far.  It has the rare quality of being both boozy and refreshing.   I love that in a drink.

Looks  a bit like Fresca, but is intensely flavorful.

The Yes, Yes, Yes, and Yes! is quick to put together. Well, it is if it isn't your first time at the rodeo using a Boston Shaker, that is. I purchased one today with a view toward being a hipper and more professional mixologist. I followed my beloved BT Parson's instructions on how to use it, but apparently, I slapped the thing together with a bit too much force. I was unable to separate the parts after I shook the drink and had to begin again with my tried and true, though amateur, cocktail shaker. I tweeted to Mr. Parsons for advice. He was very helpful. I did end up separating the two glasses, but only after my taster and I finished our drinks. We split the (very diluted) first cocktail that had been trapped in the Boston Shaker. I am happy to report that even the diluted version of this drink was incredibly tasty.  Not many drinks can boast that, eh?

I need much more practice at this.

Here is the recipe for this gorgeously delicious drink.  Do yourself a favor and add it to your summer repertoire of cocktails. You'll thank me.

The Yes, Yes, Yes, and Yes! 

(aka The Pegu Club Cocktail)

2 ounces London Dry Gin

3/4 ounces orange curaçao

1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice

1 dash Angostura Bitters

1 dash orange bitters (as always, I used Regans' No. 6)

Lime twist for garnish

Combine all ingredients except garnish in a cocktail shaker filled with ice.  Shake until chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish. Raise your glass to truly good coaches.  Enjoy.

Cheers!

The Emerald Cocktail

Tonight, for no reason other than my taster requested a drink with Irish Whiskey, I present to you, The Emerald. It is not green, nor is it a hokey St. Patrick's Day drink. The Emerald Cocktail is a variation on The Manhattan, but with Irish Whiskey instead of Rye, and orange bitters instead of Angostura bitters. And, there is no maraschino cherry.  

Aside - I was surprised to note that the Irish spell whiskey with an "e".  The Scotch don't use the e and neither do the Canadians.  I wish the Americans didn't either. I just prefer Whisky to Whiskey.
Less is more. Except when we are talking about really good French Fries. In that case, more is always best.

But, back to the drink. I have Tullamore Dew Irish Whiskey in what I am going to start calling my "BARder", so I used it. It's a lovely smooth whiskey. I don't find it nearly as interesting as Scotch Whisky or Bourbon, but it is quite nice.  I prefer it solo, either neat with a drop of water, or on ice. It turns out that most people do. There are very, very, few cocktails that call for Irish Whiskey. Apparently, it does not play well with others.

I must confess that I had a sip of The Emerald this evening, but I didn't make one for myself. I opted for my go-to cocktail of late, The Negroni. I detest The Manhattan Cocktail (ironic seeing how much I adore Manhattan.) Since tonight's cocktail is a variation on one, I knew it would not be for me.  It might, however, be for you. My taster, a Manhattan Cocktail fan - but not at all a fan of Manhattan, go figure - really loved this drink. Very. Much.

While it did not appeal to my taste buds, it was quite appealing to my eyes.  It had a surprising and rather fetching amber color. I garnished with some orange peels and a freshly picked black raspberry from our garden. If you haven't eaten raspberries still warm from the sun, you haven't eaten raspberries. They are delicious and I will be featuring them in a libation in the next week or so.

Here is our Irish Beauty:

Apologies for the screen in the background. But still, it's a pretty drink, no?

The Emerald Cocktail

2 ounces Irish Whiskey

1 ounce Sweet Vermouth

2 goodly dashes orange bitters (as always, I use Regans' Orange Bitters No. 6)

Pour the ingredients into a shaker filled with ice. Shake whilst doing an Irish Jig. Strain into a cocktail glass or a coupe. Garnish as you like.  Raise your glass to St. Patrick. Enjoy.

Cheers and until next time -

May the road rise up to meet you,

May the wind be always at your back,

May the sun shine warm upon your face,

The rain fall soft upon your fields,

And until we meet again,

May God hold you in the palm of his hand.

The Friday Fusion Blue Ball Cocktail

I know, I know, Thirsty Readers. You missed me yesterday. I apologize for leaving you parched, but it was just one of those days on which many things conspired to keep me from my muddler and my shaker. Be comforted, though, because I'm back with a lovely new drink that you will enjoy. It is the Friday Fusion Blue Ball Cocktail, named in honor of a kick-ass class I took (from the super fit and lovely Jill Gengenbach Resnick) today at the Bloomington Body Bar. In this class, the other mighty women and I worked very hard with blue balls.  Here is a photo:

Still life of Mighty Women working very hard with Blue Balls

Fortunately, I had a quart of blueberries on hand, so making a blue cocktail without some hideous colorant was possible. I found several variations on the Blue Berry Smash (the more traditional and, if I may, boring name for this drink). I selected the one that included St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, because I think it is dreamy. 

Here is the cocktail. The picture doesn't do it justice.

The Friday Fusion Blue Ball Cocktail. So elegant, no?

You could mix this drink with gin or vodka; tonight, I chose white rum. Why? Because I haven't featured a rum drink so far and wanted to try it. I used more blueberries than most recipes called for and I'm glad that I did. I tried one with a half teaspoon of white sugar in place of  the St. Germain and found that the extra sweetness made the blueberry flavor pop. So, if you don't have St. Germain, use sugar. 

Without further delay, here's the recipe.  

The Friday Fusion Blue Ball Cocktail

1.5 ounces white rum 

0.5 ounces St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur

3 fresh mint leaves

1/4 lime

15 fresh blueberries (I suppose you could use frozen)

In a cocktail shaker, muddle together the mint leaves and blueberries. (If adding 1/2 tsp. sugar, add it with the mint leaves and berries for muddling.) Squeeze the juice from the quarter lime into the muddled mix.  Add white rum and St. Germain, and fill the shaker up with ice. Shake, shake, shake. Double strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a sprig of mint.  Raise your glass to the mighty woman in the picture above. Enjoy!

Until next time, Cheers to you!  And, please feel free to leave comments and requests below.

BloomingtonGirl's Beach Plum Sour

Salutations, Thirsty Readers.  Tonight, I set out to make a "Ruby's Sour." I saw a picture of it on the Twitter feed of a bar in Manhattan. The drink featured a spirit I really love: Greenhook Ginsmiths Beach Plum Gin Liqueur. (I cannot wait to tour their distillery when I am in NY over the summer. I am a fan, as you probably have guessed.)  The bar in question posted the ingredients of the cocktail, but not the recipe. So, I rang them up and requested it. I explained, in my adopted very-pleasant-and-polite midwestern manner, that I lived in Indiana and couldn't very well pop over and have them make one for me.  The man on the other end of the line was entirely unsympathetic.  He advised me to email the beverage director and see if "he would be willing to part with the secret recipe."   

Bah! As if I have the time or patience for that nonsense. Undeterred, I set out to make up a recipe of my own.  I looked up the classic whiskey sour recipe - one that used an egg white to make it foamy - and adapted my drink from that. The result?  Success! And, bonus!  I don't even have to name it after Ruby, because I made it up. Take that, Ruby...whoever you are.

Now, this was my first trip to the rodeo...the rodeo of making a drink with an egg white, that is. I didn't have to worry about getting sick because we are practically on a first name basis with the chickens who lay our eggs. 

I couldn't find my go-to cocktail book to advise me on technique. I did remember that it one should do a "dry shake" for drinks containing egg whites, which is to say that one shakes the drink ingredients first, then adds ice and shakes again. It worked like a charm, though the pressure that built up in the shaker during the dry shake did cause the shaker to pop a bit when I opened it. Lucky for me, I don't mind a little mess in the name of making a good cocktail.

Here is a photo of the lovely libation. The darker red swirls on top of the foamy surface are actually Peychaud's Bitters.  I carefully placed a couple of drops on  the top of the drink and then attempted - in vain  - to bend said drops to my creative will. Clearly, I need some practice in drink-top styling. But, no matter. It tasted pretty great. It is a keeper.

And finally, I garnished with still-hot-from-the-sun red and black raspberries picked moments before from our berry patch. Pretty sweet, no?

Isn't this a fancy-pants little cocktail? 

Here is the recipe, for those of you lucky enough to get your hot little hands on Beach Plum Gin Liqueur. 

BloomingtonGirl's Beach Plum Sour

1 egg white (preferably from a hen that you know)

2 ounces Greenhook Ginsmiths Beach Plum Liqueur

1 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 dashes Fee Brothers Rhubarb Bitters (or orange if that's what you have)

Peychaud's Bitters (or other red bitters...optional)

Garnish - whatever you have on hand that is pretty

Place egg white, liqueur, lemon juice and rhubarb bitters in a shaker without ice. Shake for about ten seconds to blend well. Add ice. Shake again until chilled. Strain into a pretty cocktail glass or coupe. If desired, place a few drops of bitters on the foamy surface and attempt to make a pretty design. Garnish nicely.  Toast your BloomingtonGirl and enjoy.

Cheers!

The Southside Margaret Jones Cocktail

Hello once again, my Thirsty Ones. Tonight, I am serving up the Southside Margaret Jones Cocktail. Margaret earned this honor by crushing every one of her 200 meters rows at the Bloomington Body Bar "Shockwave" class today.  There were seven of us in the class. We were each pretty fierce and amazing - just saying - but Margaret just plain bested us on the rower. And, she did it with her customary grace and style. Here's to you, Margaret Jones!

The Southside is an old classic cocktail and there are more than a few ways to make one. I took a basic recipe that called for lemon juice. Some call for lime.  I altered the recipe so that the mint flavor would really come through. I also made one drink  with the sugar reduced by half. These modifications were nods to Ms. Jones, who requested a minty, not-too-sweet, cocktail for tonight's post. And, last but certainly not least, I added some bitters to the recipe: A few dashes of Peychaud's. I chose Peychaud's because I thought its floral flavor would compliment the drink. I also hoped that its beautiful red color would give The Southside Margaret Jones a bit of a blush. (Margaret is the kind of woman who would blush. She is a real lady.)

A couple of notes on the sugar content. The reduced sugar version (1 tsp. instead of 2) was very refreshing and had a strong lemon edge. The version with 2 tsp. was still refreshing and light, but it was smoother. It also had a stronger mint note, which I preferred.  

Here is the lovely Southside Margaret Jones photographed on our patio. In this photo, Margaret is double strained. Had she been single strained, she would have had minty green flecks throughout. Next time, I might add a few more dashes of bitters to make her blush more.

Our first Hydrangea of the season looks on, probably with envy.

The Southside Margaret Jones Cocktail

2 ounces Gin (I used Beefeater Gin tonight with good results)

1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice

6 or more fresh mint leaves

3 dashes Peychaud's Bitters

1-2 tsp. of sugar, depending on how sweet you like your Margaret

Mint for garnish

In a cocktail shaker, muddle together the mint, sugar, and bitters making sure you really crush up the mint leaves for flavor. Add the lemon juice and muddle a bit more. Add the gin and ice. Shake until chilled. Single strain if you want little green minty specs in the drink, or double strain if you don't. 

Cheers, Thirsty Readers! Until tomorrow.

 

The Cherry Bourbon Fizz

Good Evening, Thirsty Readers. Tonight's delightful libation was inspired by a two pound bag of Bing Cherries I picked up today at Bloomingfoods. As is my custom with cherries, I make myself into a complete pig immediately upon the getting the cherries home.  I'm not terribly proud of my gluttony, but I will continue to eat cherries in season until my stomach hurts. After I pitted and ate a rather large bowl at a rapid pace (fear not - I wouldn't do this in public), I began to ponder what kind of drink I could make using these beautiful red cherries. I also began to wonder whether I would need to eat dinner, so full was I of cherries.

To find a recipe, I went, of course, to the Oracle, otherwise known as Google. After perusing several seemingly worthy options, I came upon a promising looking recipe for The Cherry Bourbon Fizz on a really groovy food blog called Bowen Appetit.  If I lived in Madison like Bowen does,  I would make her be friends with me.  I'd  show up at her house all the time to eat and drink what she makes. When time allows, I'm going to try out a few more of her recipes.

But, back to the drink. I made a couple of minor changes to the recipe to punch up the cherry flavor. I also added my beloved Regans' Orange Bitters No. 6  to the mix, because just about every drink benefits from at least a dash or two of bitters . If you do not have a bottle of this particular one in your pantry, procure it immediately. I am not kidding. Do. It. Now. Big Red near Kroger on the east side carries it (if you live in Bloomington.) Otherwise, you can find it on a number of different sites on line. It makes most drinks sing.  You'll wonder how you ever lived without bitters. You're Welcome.

The Cherry Bourbon Fizz is a deliciously flavorful, easy-to-drink summer cocktail. And bonus, it is pretty simple to make. If you prefer a boozier cocktail, go ahead and bump up the Bourbon to 1 3/4 to 2 ounces. My taster did this and was quite pleased with the result.

A must have. (Did I mention this is a must have?)

Here is a picture of the beautiful cocktail. Who needs artificial colors when nature is this good to us?

What the camera didn't capture was a lovely transparent quality to the drink. Gorgeous!

The Cherry Bourbon Fizz

5  juicy Bing Cherries (Bowen says you can use other kinds if you want)

1-2 tsp. granulated sugar (I used 1.5 and thought it was perfect)

1 1/2 ounces Bourbon (I used Wild Turkey Bourbon)

1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice

1-2 dashes of Regans' Orange Bitters No. 6

Splash of soda (I used soda in my taster's drink and Q Tonic in my own. Both were very good)

In a cocktail shaker, muddle 4 cherries with the sugar and the bitters. (Marvel at the stunning color while you do.) Fill the shaker half way with ice. Add Bourbon and lime juice and shake until chilled. Double strain into a cocktail glass. Gently splash in a little soda or tonic and give it a little stir. Garnish with the remaining cherry and a lime wedge or twist. 

OR, you can strain it into an old-fashioned glass with a few ice cubes. 

Until next time, Thirsty Ones, Cheers!

The Countess

I think if I got to choose my royal title, I would choose Countess. I don't know why exactly, but the title has always appealed to me much more than Queen, Princess, or Duchess. I don't even know exactly what a real Countess is or does, but I am pretty certain I would enjoy being one. As a Countess, I  would throw a lovely party for the more fun-loving lesser royals and at such party, I would feature a terrific signature drink. A terrific signature drink such as The Countess.

The Countess Cocktail is a simple little drink that tastes refreshing, light and a bit mysterious. It's a Gin and Tonic with a little extra something special. I made the recipe as suggested on the Q Tonic website (still working on using up the $7 bottle, Thirsty Readers). Next time I make it - and there will probably be a next time, because this is a delightful beverage - I'll use more St. Germain and garnish with mint AND a little purple flower. Why purple? Because it is the color of royalty, of course.

Here is The Countess, ready for her close up:

The mint is from my own mint plant.  (Be very impressed by this, Thirsty Readers. I have a very black thumb.) 

Here is the recipe. You can start out with these proportions, but I'm going to amp up the St. Germain by at least 50% next time. If you don't feel like springing for an entire bottle of the stuff, they sell little bottles for about $4. It's pretty yummy. Click HERE to go to the St. Germain website and learn more about this fancy and elegant cordial.  

The Countess

Fill a highball glass with ice

Add 2 oz of your favorite gin

Add a little less than .5 oz St-Germain Elderflower Cordial

Top with 3 to 4 oz Q Tonic 

Garnish with a mint sprig (and a violet, if you have one handy)

Cheers!