Cocktails O’Clock: 5 cocktails that use Monin’s Spicy Syrup…

Monin, the coffee/cocktail syrup experts, sent me some samples way back when and using those samples I got to try some of the cocktails I’ve always wanted to try but never had the chance.

The last post based around a Monin syrup was my 6 ways to use Monin’s Falernum. It is made up with predominantly tiki style cocktails and features some of my new tiki mugs (hurrah).

This post has a slightly different feel because unlike the falernum syrup used in my last one, Monin’s Spicy Syrup is less floral and has an earthier feel to the spice. With cinnamon flavours prominent, I tried to blend this syrup into a variety of already established cocktails, simply to see if the syrup was as versatile as I hoped. Whilst some experiments inevitably fail, below you will find 5 cocktail recipes that I believe make use of this Spicy syrup in a very versatile, yet remarkably subtle way.

Although this syrup is not spicy in the traditional [hot] sense, it does have a subtle aromatic spice to it. It comes across more as an autumn/winter seasonal spicy flavour. This works perfectly for me because this syrup’s subtle flavour is easier to blend seamlessly into a flavourful cocktail recipe. I also have a low tolerance for hot spice so I’m happy I can try all these recipes personally.

Life On The Beach

Recipe:

2 measures Vodka

1 measure pineapple juice

½ measure spicy syrup

½ measure lime juice

2 pineapple chunks

Garnish: pineapple chunk and lime wedge

Method:

• Muddle pineapple chunks with lime juice and syrup.
• Add crushed ice, then vodka.
• Stir well.
• Add pineapple juice and top with ice.
• Stir once more and garnish before serving.

Kickback Mule

Recipe:

2 measures rum

¾ measure lime juice

1 measure spicy syrup

Top up ginger ale

Garnish: mint and lime wedge.

Method:

• Build the first 3 ingredients over ice.
• Stir and top up with ginger ale.
• Garnish and serve with a straw.

Gin and Bear it…

Recipe:

2 measures Gin

½ measure blackcurrant liqueur

1 measure Lemon juice

¾ measure spicy syrup

Method:

• Combine the gin, lemon juice, and spicy syrup in a shaker with ice and shake well (for around 10 seconds).
• Strain into a well-chilled, crushed ice-filled, rocks glass.
• Layer the blackcurrant liqueur on top and garnish with a lemon wedge.
• Serve with a straw.

Algonquin Firehouse

Recipe:

1 ½ measures rye whisky

¾ measure vermouth

¾ measure pineapple (or orange juice)

½ measure spicy syrup

Method:

• Combine over ice in a shaker and shake well for about 10 seconds (until the tin ices over).
• Strain into a martini style glass.
• Garnish with a pineapple wedge or orange slice (match the juice used).

Fervent Shaker Top Tip:

This cocktail works well regardless of the juice used. The only difference in flavour comes through the tropical vibe of the pineapple. Using pineapple will refresh those hot, bothersome days; whereas orange juice is perfect for those cold evenings when you need a warming elixir.

Spicy Melon Balls (serves 2)

Recipe:

1 measure spicy syrup

4 measure Midori

2 measure vodka

Top up fresh pineapple juice

Garnish: Skewered melon balls

Method:

• Combine the Midori, vodka in a cocktail glass, over ice.
• Top up with the pineapple juice and garnish with the skewered melon balls.

So there you have 5 cocktail recipes that, I think, make good use of Monin’s Spicy Syrup. They are not original recipes; they are tweaks of cocktails that already exist. This was done to try and showcase the versatility of such a product, especially with the unconvincing stance held by many in response to the rise in popularity of spicy cocktails.

Monin has a vast array of flavoured syrups at their disposal and as a cocktail imbiber, I am always interested in trying out new and novel syrups! My favourite simply has to be this Falernum, although their Hibiscus syrup is a truly inspirational. You can purchase Monin syrups from a wide variety of outlets but click here for more information!

As always this post has been a culmination of cocktail recipes and my own opinions. Whilst the syrups were supplied by Monin themselves [as free samples], they hold no sway over my opinions.

If you’ve tried Monin’s Spicy syrup in a cocktail you liked (or disliked), why not share it in the comments below? Or let me know what your favourite flavour syrup is!

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10 COCKTAILS YOU SHOULD BE DRINKING THIS SUMMER… PART 2, 6-10

Carrying on from last weeks Summer themed post, this post supplies you with 5 more delicious summer themed (and inspired) cocktails… Whilst they are all based on a different liqueur or spirit they are all refreshing, relatively simple and perfect for BBQ’s or Beaches. Whatever your fancy…

Recipe #6: Midori – Midori La Pomme

20ml Midori

30ml Cognac (Brandy)

15ml Lemon Juice

Top up – Apple Cider

Garnish: Apple wedge

Method:

• Fill a tall glass with ice cubes.
• Build the ingredients as listed in the glass.
• Stir well and serve with a straw and garnish with an apple wedge.

This is one of the stranger cocktails on the list, as it combines Midori, Cognac and Cider… Whilst most people would assume Calvados would be a better fit, I find it to be too sickly combined with the Midori & apple cider. Using Cognac helped balance the cocktail and results in a crisper more refreshing cocktail…

Recipe #7: Cointreau – Cointreau Fizz

50ml Cointreau

25ml Lime Juice

Top up Club Soda

Method:

• Fill a glass with ice and squeeze in (and drop in) 4 lime wedges.
• Pour in the Cointreau and stir very gently so as to mix the ingredients with the ice.
• Top with the Club Soda and garnish with a wheel of lime and a straw.

This cocktail is a new classic just waiting for the official nod. This became Cointreau’s signiture cocktail a few years back when they wanted to show off how versatile their spirit was, and that you could use it as a standalone spirit. “Much more than just a Triple Sec…”

As simple as can be, it just uses 3 ingredients, this cocktail delivers a crisp slice of summer in a glass. Whilst this particular blend might not seem very adventurous, check out the following link to see what other tweaks on this base cocktail Cointreau have created (I particularly like the Cucumber & Mint version)…

Cointreau Fizz Variations

Recipe #8: Whisky – Hard Water Presbyterian

This cocktail is a tweaked recipe from the Presbyterian, a classic whisky cocktails…

2 measures scotch whisky

¾ measures Lemon Juice

½ measure ginger syrup

2 measures Club Soda

Method:

• Fill a Collins glass with ice cubes and add the club soda – leave to one side.
• Combine the remaining ingredients in an ice filled cocktail shaker.
• Shake well for around 5-10 seconds* and then double strain into the tall glass.
• Garnish with a piece of candied ginger on a skewer and serve with a straw.

Recipe #9: Southern Comfort –Blackout Special

A Southern Comfort special, this cocktail is perfect for long summer evenings and keeping you sane during a genuine blackout…

50ml Southern Comfort

12.5ml Fresh Lime Juice

25ml Sprite/7up

25ml Cranberry Juice

Method:

• Build in a tall glass over ice, start with the SoCo.
• Then add in the lime, Sprite and cranberry juice.
• Garnish with a sprig of cranberries and a wedge of lime.

This refreshing cocktail is a little simpler than most, but it has that refreshing fizz to it that also has a little sugary hit. The Blackout Special is perfect for those long summer evenings and BBQ’s with neighbours.  Hell it’s even a fitting perk up if a blackout actually hits…

Recipe #10: Passoa – Passoa Rosa Fizz

This Passionfruit based cocktail is a perfect refresher for BBQ’s and summer parties in the city.

50ml Passoa

100ml Grapefruit Juice

Top up club soda

Method:

• Combine the first 2 ingredients one at a time over ice in a tall glass.
• Top up with the soda and garnish with a passionfruit husk float*.

This is another build-it-yourself cocktail and that means it’s brilliant for gatherings. You can make them in bulk and relatively quickly so it’s a perfect drink for BBQ’s, Parties etc… However if this drink is your own and you want to make it a little more special why not turn the garnish into a ‘bomb’ float?

Simply fill half a passionfruit husk with Triple Sec, or another similar liqueur (to be fair most liqueurs work here) and sink it just before drinking…

So there you go! 10 fabulous cocktails for your summer Party/BBQ/Evening… What’s more why don’t you try infusing some Vodka and try out a few tweaks on these classic recipes:

Vodka Summer Cocktails

Please remember to drink responsibly as you’ll want to be sober enough to try the cocktails on the next post!

Sweet & Sour: A tale of two liqueurs

This post is all about the ultimate sweet vs sour battle: Melon vs Almond, aka Midori vs Amaretto.

Of course there is ultimately only ever 1 winner this post will share 2 fantastic cocktails for you to decide. However for the sake of the battle I shall declare my winner at the end of the post…

So here are two refreshingly simple cocktail recipes you can make at home, recipes that when made correctly will freshen up this belated winter chill gripping us all.

So let’s get started with the Sweet in out Sweet & Sour battle:

SWEET: The Midori & Pineapple

Recipe:

50ml Midori

150ml Pineapple Juice

Garnish: Cherry

As exotic as the colour and name infers…

Method:

• Build the ingredients in a tall ice-filled glass.
• Stir well and garnish with a maraschino cherry.

This cocktail is so simple you can make it whilst half cut; which, if we’re honest with ourselves, are the best type of cocktails. Blending the super sweet liqueur that is Midori (Melon flavour liqueur) with the ever-tropical flavour of fresh pineapple juice results in instant smiles all around. Make this for your friends and they’ll all be laughing off that rain-drenching they just suffered. Did I mention how easy it is to make?!

So drink up, and settle yourselves for the onslaught that is round 2…

SOUR: The Disaronno Sour

Recipe:

45ml Disaronno Liqueur

30ml Fresh Lemon Juice

1 teaspoon sugar

Garnish: Cherry

Amaretto Sour: a truly magnificent cocktail

Method:

• Combine all of the ingredients in a cocktail shaker and drop in 3-5 ice cubes.
• Shake well and for around 5-10 seconds.
• Strain the mixture into a small rocks glass. Think western whisky glass.
• Garnish by dropping in a maraschino cherry on a cocktail stick.

And here is an old favourite: the amaretto sour. This cocktail has made the round over the last couple of years and gained extra exposure with Disaronno making it their flagship cocktail. Blending sweet almond flavoured liqueur with bitter lemon juice results in something a little tangy and rather sour. That’s not a bad thing though as this cocktail is surprisingly moreish and will have you addicted in no time. Best thing about them is how quick and easy they are to make. You can batch them too, just make sure you share out the contents equally, you may have trouble on your hands if not…

This cocktail is a wonderful favourite of mine and yes I have used it in posts before but it really comes into its own when used in battle like this. Make a fresh batch of them up for you and your friends and you’ll be wondering why you disliked the rain in the first place. Rain is wonderful.

Ok so there it is your second and rather strong contender for the winner…

But it doesn’t stop there because there is a twist in this tale of two… In true soap-opera style these spirits find it hard to stay faithful to their own mixers and something terrible (or amazing) has happened… Disaronno has decided to cheat on its lemon/sugar mixer with its counterpart’s pineapple juice. But in a twist of fate Midori has also cheated but with the sugar lemon combination amaretto had come to love. I explain with these two bonus cocktails below:

The Midori Sour

Recipe:

45ml Midori

30ml Fresh Lemon Juice

1 teaspoon sugar

Garnish: cherry

Midori Sour – a classic twist on a classic cocktail

Method:

• Like the Amaretto sour, combine the ingredients in a cocktail shaker and add 3-5 ice cubes.
• Shake well and for around 5-10 seconds.
• Strain into a small rocks glass and garnish with a cherry on a toothpick.

This version of a classic liqueur based sour retains more of its sweet taste than the amaretto sour, but not so much that it overpowers the drinks base. A perfect blend of sweet and sour this drink is a little harder to knock back due to its sweet/sour complexity (it’s rather rich) but is worth just as much attention as its previous form.

The Tropical Almond

Recipe:

50ml Disaronno

150ml Pineapple Juice

Garnish: cherry

The Tropical Almond: When Amaretto met Pineapple Juice…

Method:

• Build in a tall ice-filled glass.
• Stir well and garnish with a maraschino cherry and a straw.

This cocktail looks and sounds like it shouldn’t work, but for some reason the flavours blend considerably well. The refreshing taste of pineapple hits your first but then swiftly makes way for the subtle almond flavours of the Disaronno. ‘Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it’ is the tag line I’d hit you with after the looks you’ve almost certainly hit your computer screens with…

!!! SUPER BOWL XLIX (49th) COCKTAIL RECIPE !!!

A new year, a new original Fervent Shaker cocktail recipe.

So then, The Super bowl ‘XLIXJNEH’ (or #49 as it’s more commonly known) is on this weekend (don’t pretend like you don’t know) and let’s face it: You Americans, when it comes to sport at least, do not need much of an excuse to drink. But the super bowl is like the British FA Cup Final, or like when Andy Murray finally won Wimbledon for us.

So I get it; it’s a pretty big deal.

But I’m not here to insult, undermine nor take away from the glory of several handfuls of hardened men battering each other for a proverbial pig-skin football (yes I know it’s not actually made from pig skin anymore) and the huge-ass trophy at the end.

I am, in actual fact, here to ask all of you NFL fans out there for help. Yes that’s right I a lonely cocktail maker, require you sports fans to make, try, enjoy, and then eventually, when the hangover of your teams loss/win wears off, feedback your thoughts to me on this page…

Are you up for it? Well I hope so as this is one of my very own cocktails, that’s right: a recipe created by the one and only Fervent Shaker that you can all share and enjoy…

The big thing to tell you is that it involves Tequila that wonderful spirit from Mexico. Alongside that is the Midori, a melon liqueur that literally oozes sweetness and then simply some triple sec and pineapple juice. The idea is that this cocktail will help brighten up the obvious dodgy weather that is currently plaguing both the USA and UK and help you think about all the fun to be had this coming summer…

So without further ado I reveal to you the first Fervent Shaker original cocktail of 2015:

El Martillo (The Hammer in English).

The green colour is as stunning as its taste…

Recipe:

2 measures Silver Tequila (100% Agave only)

1 measure Midori Melon Liqueur

½ measure Triple Sec Liqueur (try to use a clear triple sec)

2 ½ measures Pineapple Juice (fresher the better)

Method:

• Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker and then add ice.
• Shake well, until the tin ices over (around 10-15 seconds usually).
• Strain into a small coupe cocktail glass and garnish with a lime peel*.

For an added zing squeeze the lime peel, releasing the oils, over the drink, and then wipe the outside of the glass with it, before putting it in the drink. This will add a little crisp finish to an already very delightful drink.

Personally I quite like this drink and when you use good quality tequila you really get its balanced taste shine through.  This cocktail was inspired by my local cocktail bars’ Melon Ball recipe which can also be found here.

So whether you’re going tailgating, spending the afternoon on the couch or just down the local watering hole; give this cocktail a try and please do report back. If you like it: Great, please share with everyone why and whether you’ll drink it again soon. If you don’t like it: Even better, please share why and how you think it can be improved…

I really want to get some great feedback on this cocktail recipe so my dear readers (old and new): Get drinking and experiment away!

Cocktails O’ Clock: The Naked Pretzel

Everyone loves a naked pretzel… No? Just me then!

Pretzels can be sweet or savoury… Versatility at its best…
Picture courtesy of: http://www.ourbestbites.com

This cocktail is another relatively unknown concoction taken from Brian Lucas’ book: 365 cocktails.

Combining liqueurs most would shy away from is what really sets this cocktail apart from the horde. It’s a rather appealing colour which, considering pineapple juice is involved, in my mind is no small miracle.

The flavours are well balanced, with the Midori really holding its own against both the Cassis and Pineapple. The vodka is literally there for moral support, supplying a bit of an alcoholic kick to a cocktail otherwise weak in alcohol content.

There is no hiding the fact that this cocktail is a small cocktail, by volume, but by using crushed ice in a tumbler it can be stretched out a little freshening it up and there is even a precedence for the use of a flavoured soda just to lengthen the drink a little should it be too alcoholy for you…

Naked Pretzel Recipe:

2 measures Pineapple Juice

1 measure Midori

¾ measures Vodka

½ measure Crème De Cassis

Pineapple and Midori: A tropical match made in heaven…
Picture courtesy of: http://www.nochelatina.com

Method:

1)      Pour into an ice filled glass and stir.

2)      Garnish with a pineapple leaf and slice.

As you can tell there’s really not much to this drink, simply built over ice and enjoyed with a straw, but what it lacks in complexity it makes up with in flavour… The depth is surprising and with each mouthful you can taste a little bit of each flavour which is, again, a small miracle considering the flavours used are rather powerful.

Invented by a friend of Brian Lucas (writer of 365 cocktails), although he never found out where the name actually came from…

The Naked Pretzel’s a refreshing and tropical cocktail perfect for the beach. Like a strong but fresh fruit punch. To make this drink longer, try adding some ginger ale to lengthen and crisp the drink up a bit (Making it into a kind of Pretzel Mule)…

Fervent Shaker Funny fact: Pretzels are baked bread foods, originating in Europe, that have the potential to be sweet or savoury, and this is the same with a cocktails. You can have a varied scale of all the flavours available to you and cocktails can blend both genres together (such as the Basil & Strawberry Cointreau Fizz).

Cocktails O’clock: The Shady Lady

No need to find the shade, she’ll come to you…

There are only so many ‘new’ cocktails available online, before they start becoming similar to cocktails I’ve already posted about. To try and dilute this pool of great flavours I have called upon the aid of two (2) of my most treasured cocktail books.

One of which, New Classic Cocktails (by Gary Regan & Mardee Haidin Regan) a great book I bought after it was recommended on an episode of Robert Hess’ The Cocktail Spirit. It’s a great little book, filled with some of the more obscure cocktails from around the world.

New classic cocktails, by Gray & Mardee Regan…

The other, is a book extremely close to my heart: ‘365 cocktails by Brian Lucas’ – the first ever cocktail book I ever bought. Ever since I bought it, it’s been an essential part of my library and is a go to book in when I’m looking for inspiration.

365 Cocktails: a genuinely superb cocktail bible by Brian Lucas…

So I’ll be sharing the wealth, and supplying some of the cocktails from my first cocktail book, intermingled with some from the other book (and of course I’ll also be using those from the internet and my own brain).

Let’s start with one of my favourites…

The Shady Lady

1 measure Tequila Blanco

1 measure Midori

4 measures Grapefruit Juice

The Shady Lady cocktail: simply one of the best Tequila cocktails I’ve ever had the pleasure of enjoying…

Method:

1)      Build the ingredients over ice in a sling glass.

2)      Garnish with a lime wheel and maraschino cherry.

3)      Serve with straws.

This cocktail is a slightly refreshing tequila cocktail, more so because of the melon liqueur. If melon is not your thing then try out different liqueurs, but try to keep away from citrus flavours if you can help it (the grapefruit juice supplies all the citrus you’ll need).

For an added melon kick, in the above recipe at least, muddle 2-5 chunks of honeydew melon in a shaker tin. Then shake the ingredients over ice with the melon and strain into the glass. Garnish the same way.

If you like your drink a little more bubbly; then replace 1.5measures of the grapefruit juice with grapefruit soda. It will lighten the drink some more and also spritz it up a little.

This truly is one of my favourite Tequila cocktails, and one that will go down a storm at any party or BBQ you plan on having in the next few weeks. Quick whilst the sun is still high!

Remember Tequila is a wonderful spirit, but like all free spirits the minute you disrespect it, it will punish you, so do drink responsibly…