What AreYou Drinking- Right Now?

a Fancy Free cocktail, said to be a classic cocktail, dunno its date/origins, basically a variation of an Old Fashioned:

2 oz bourbon
1/2 oz maraschino liqueur
dash of Angostura, of orange bitters.

think i'll have another

Nui Nui from earlier

Yesterday evening

A Tasman Sea in The Below Decks!

the Pussers version of a dark-n-stormy: the Ginger Sea Dog

A Communist in The Below Decks!

...Not sure what this was, but it was served up in a clear glass skull with water, a glow stick and dry ice. The awesome and very lovely bartender we had at Three Dots and a Dash presented it to us on the house because she thought it was awesome that my wife and I were doing a Tiki tour through Chicago and Milwaukee...tasted like a Zombie to me, but she wouldn't say what it was. But I'm okay with that...

That is how they normally serve Zombies there.

On 2015-07-28 13:37, Kahiki Guy wrote:
...Not sure what this was, but it was served up in a clear glass skull with water, a glow stick and dry ice. The awesome and very lovely bartender we had at Three Dots and a Dash presented it to us on the house because she thought it was awesome that my wife and I were doing a Tiki tour through Chicago and Milwaukee...tasted like a Zombie to me, but she wouldn't say what it was. But I'm okay with that...

Yep, that was a zombie. They do the "full" serving version straight out of the skull "bowl", but you can request the "half" portion and this is what they do. What I see in the photo and you described is exactly how we had ours.
And it was damn tasty. :wink:
Cheers!
:drink:

Pieces of eight.

My wife and I did a head to head comparison- Blue Moon cocktail .and an Aviation. The aviation is sweeter ( lemon juice, Creme de Violette, Luxardo Maraschino Syrup and dry gin. The moon omits the syrup and uses creme de Yvette. Both call for two ounces of gin.
Both were excellent but if forced to choose I would go for the Moon.
My contrary wife preferred the Aviation.
Cheers

More sculpin

One more

nice, i have 1 sculpin left, wish i could find it on tap around here. also have just 1 bottle of hennepin left. for now- pussers ginger sea dog, then a pussers and coke

Cool! Thanks for the confirmation! Yes...it was damn tasty.

Cheers all!

A Sawyer in The Below Decks!

A Stone Fruit Sour in The Below Decks!

On 2015-07-29 09:25, The Below Decks wrote:
A Sawyer in The Below Decks!

I dig the photo, Below Decks.
Never heard of a Sawyer, but found this recipe online. Sounds like something I need to try myself.
Serving: 1
2 ounces gin (preferably Beefeater)
1/2 ounce lime juice
1/2 ounce simple syrup (1:1, sugar:water)
14 dashes Angostura bitters
7 dashes Peychaud's bitters
7 dashes orange bitters (preferably equal parts Fee Brothers West Indian Orange Bitters and Regans’ Orange Bitters No. 6)

Cheers!
:drink:

That's the one! Let me know what you think of this very bitter-forward cocktail. I love it, but I'd guess it may not be for everybody.

a traditional-style Planter's Punch:

pot still Antiguan rum, lemon, simple syrup, angostura bitters, peychauds bitters.

most excellent

Spicy Navy Grog. Recipe posted on Raning and Pouring's Instagram yesterday.

Drank a whole bunch of these Cold Smoke Scotch Ales while on vacay in Montana last week. I'm kicking myself now for only bringing a 4-pack back to Wisconsin with me, as it's totally unavailable outside Missoula.

After a long hot day at a childs birthday we chilled with a couple of Mojitos. Then it was time for a drink that was new to me. A “Piece’s of Eight” was easy to make and easy to drink. Gonna have to mess with this drink some more.
Cheers

I've been messing around with the pieces of eight A LOT lately. First time I made it every sip was like heaven and every attempt since has failed miserably. I think I just had magical lemons that first time cuz every which way I make it now is far too tart and tastes like spiked lemonade and is never as balanced and refreshing as that first time. Even when making it the identical way. So I started changing measurements, rums, passion fruit syrups, and whatever I try I just can't quite nail it like that first time. Even bringing lemon down to 3/4 and lime up to 3/4, it tastes like fucking lemonade. Help me Nui!

maybe you omitted the lemon or the lime before without realizing it? fwiw i saw a version of this in google search results that had no lemon. i made a planters punch last night that was way too sour (called for lemon) and realized after i had used lemon and had also out of habit squeezed in a bunch of lime by mistake.

No, I know I used lemon. Two nights earlier I had squeezed a ton of lemon cuz we were doing a passion fruit syrup challenge and made a few Trader Vic Grog's and Hurricanes to test my homemade syrup against Monin. Guess which won? I had an extra 3 oz of squeezed lemon juice so I put it in the fridge. That's the lemon I used to make the drink two nights later. In fact, I made the drink twice in a row to make sure my senses weren't playing tricks on me cuz I loved it so much and was thrilled to have discovered this recipe. I had exactly the amount of lemon juice needed for two drinks when following the Don recipe which calls for 1.5 oz. I gave it a 8.5 in my log that night which ranks up with my favorite Mai Tai's (yes, I have my own personal grog log that I rate everything I make along with notes of what ingredients and proportions were used plus notes so I know which drinks to return to and which need improvement and which shouldn't be bothered with. Anything 8 and above is a real winner.). The next night I made it with fresh squeezed lemon and it was way off. Used the same rum and my home made passion fruit like the first time. So I thought maybe the lemons had lost some of their bite that first time from sitting in the fridge two days, like maybe that toned down the tartness? So I squeezed another three oz and put it in the fridge a couple days before trying again. No good. Then I started messing with proportions, changing the rums and passion fruit syrup (Aunty Lilikoi) and I've still been unsuccessful. It's driving me mad. What made it so good that night???

[ Edited by: mikehooker 2015-08-02 06:02 ]

I tried a couple of new drinks out last night. First, the verdict on the long-awaited Jungle Bird was unanimously negative. Nobody finished theirs, except me, which also meant I finished my wife's. I enjoyed the three distinct flavors you get in that drink but the Cruzan Blackstrap just seemed to take the drink over. I found it passable while my guests found it undrinkable. Maybe we'd prefer it with Goslings or Coruba or El Dorado 12?

Another failed experiment was the Ankle Breaker. Somehow I got it into my head that I should buy some Cherry Heering (along with the Campari, couple of spirits I don't usually have around) and that was the only recipe offhand I could find with it. It sort of reminded me of that stuff that rappers in the south drink with the codeine cough syrup...sizzrup? "Purple drank?" Only red :)

Luckily I also served a Fogg Cutter and Painkillers that everybody enjoyed. Tonight its Don the Beachcomber to erase the unpleasant memories from my taste buds.

A Father's Office Word!

On 2015-08-02 13:17, wupput wrote:
I tried a couple of new drinks out last night. First, the verdict on the long-awaited Jungle Bird was unanimously negative. Nobody finished theirs, except me, which also meant I finished my wife's. I enjoyed the three distinct flavors you get in that drink but the Cruzan Blackstrap just seemed to take the drink over. I found it passable while my guests found it undrinkable. Maybe we'd prefer it with Goslings or Coruba or El Dorado 12?

So my first experience was pretty much the same - I made two versions between the wife and I: one with blackstrap ala Hale Pele and the other w/Coruba. Coruba was pretty awful, but nothing compared to the blackstrap. Only drink i've made where we had to toss them out completely. I don't think I put too much Campari in there, but maybe we weren't used to the taste. I'm more accustomed to it now, but the last one I made was with passionfruit syrup instead of simple syrup, and Plantation Pineapple over a dark rum. This was based off the recommendation of Jason Alexander from Tacoma Cabana and made all the difference in the world. I think the passionfruit over simple is the biggest difference maker. Try it again, with both those ingredients if you have them, and you'll change your mind.

Besides those changes, I don't see what the big deal is about this drink. Maybe it's for Campari lovers or people who don't typically like exotic cocktails.

On 2015-08-03 10:14, kkocka wrote:

So my first experience was pretty much the same - I made two versions between the wife and I: one with blackstrap ala Hale Pele and the other w/Coruba. Coruba was pretty awful, but nothing compared to the blackstrap. Only drink i've made where we had to toss them out completely. I don't think I put too much Campari in there, but maybe we weren't used to the taste. I'm more accustomed to it now, but the last one I made was with passionfruit syrup instead of simple syrup, and Plantation Pineapple over a dark rum. This was based off the recommendation of Jason Alexander from Tacoma Cabana and made all the difference in the world. I think the passionfruit over simple is the biggest difference maker. Try it again, with both those ingredients if you have them, and you'll change your mind.

Besides those changes, I don't see what the big deal is about this drink. Maybe it's for Campari lovers or people who don't typically like exotic cocktails.

That sounds great. But with the pineapple rum and passion fruit, why not just skip the Campari entirely? :wink:

On 2015-08-01 23:32, mikehooker wrote:
I've been messing around with the pieces of eight A LOT lately. First time I made it every sip was like heaven and every attempt since has failed miserably. I think I just had magical lemons that first time cuz every which way I make it now is far too tart and tastes like spiked lemonade and is never as balanced and refreshing as that first time. Even when making it the identical way. So I started changing measurements, rums, passion fruit syrups, and whatever I try I just can't quite nail it like that first time. Even bringing lemon down to 3/4 and lime up to 3/4, it tastes like fucking lemonade. Help me Nui!

Hey Mike,
This drink, imho, demands bright yellow firm lemons. Not just fresh squeezed but just barely ripe lemons. S0 tasty.
I made a Piece's of Eight using soft, slightly off color lemons and it was awful.
Funny, seems to me that limes are far juicier and flavorful when a little soft.
Keep us posted,Cheers

Just back from Trader Sam's Grog Grotto, got to work immediately on a Shrunken Zombie Head tribute ...

An Upper West Smoky Chihuahua!

A South Slope in The Below Decks!

Navy Grog

A Pineapple Express in The Below Decks!

Found this in the local craft beer store:

Tastes like a chocolate-coffee curry milkshake...!? Good, but I sure wouldn't want to drink two in a row. Definitely gonna put the bottle on the back-bar though.

A peppered gin & tonic to celebrate my first lime harvest of 2015. That's Uncle Val's Peppered Gin there. It's got a bit of spice from the pepper infusion. While I'm a huge fan of Uncle Val's Botanical gin, this peppered gin did not do it for me until today with tree-fresh lime juice. I intentionally included little bits of pulp thanks to using a small lime with a citrus hand reamer instead of with a lime press. This made for a helluva balanced G&T.

2 oz "new world" gin like Uncle Val's (Botanical, Restorative, Peppered) or St. Augustine
4 oz tonic water
juice of one small lime, hand-reamed instead of pressed

Pour over ice, drop in spent one half lime shell, stir & serve. You're gonna be in heaven!

I'm not an alcoholic, I'm a drunk. And, my dear sir, there is a difference!

Port Light.

On 2015-08-09 17:35, mikehooker wrote:
Port Light.

Mike, Whats inna Port light?
Mahalo

On 2015-08-09 21:55, nui 'umi 'umi wrote:

On 2015-08-09 17:35, mikehooker wrote:
Port Light.

Mike, Whats inna Port light?
Mahalo

Sort of a Hurricane with bourbon. I used Woodford Reserve.

A Shangri La Hotel Gimlet!

Yummy zombie in my new Grog Grotto mug I received today thanks to a Good Samaritan down Florida way.

Sippin Papa’s Pilar Dark. One of my 3 fav sippers. Up there with Zaya and Appleton 21.

Finally found a bottle of Senior Curaçao of Curaçao. Many Mai Tais planned in my future.

Mike, how does it compare to the Pierre Ferrand?

Yesterday at Tiki Ti:
-Ray's
-Bayanihan
-Anting Anting
-Ray's

On 2015-08-13 09:17, thePorpoise wrote:
Mike, how does it compare to the Pierre Ferrand?

I've been using Creole Shrubb for the past several months and before that shitty Dekyper. I was actually on the verge of picking up Ferrand to try and change it up when I finally spotted the Senior at the Austin Wine Merchant.

It's very fragrant and added an interesting complexity. Bitter, but not in a bad way. I'm looking forward to playing with this and will definitely bring Ferrand into the mix at some point. Getting a spreadsheet ready to keep track of all my findings.

Mike, the spreadsheet is how it starts. Then you move into a full freakin' database.

Turn... back... now!