Since those went over so well, I figured I'd add the rest of the recipes from the SoulShakers website. A little detective work reveals that four of these recipes - VELVET VOODOO, COLADA NUEVA, SOUL HAPPINESS, and SILVER ANGEL - are used at Trailer Happiness, also in London. (I'd be interested if anyone can match other recipes to other establishments.) There is also a collection of punches and such for large gatherings.
Bottoms up!
Individual Cocktails
BIG APPLEBERRY
A Match Classic from the forgotten mists of time. The best Cognac drink in the world in our humble opinion.
60ml Cognac
10ml simple syrup
60ml Clear Apple juice
1 string of redcurrants
3 grapes
1 blackberry
5 raspberries
Method
Muddle berries, add other ingredients, shake and strain over cubed ice in a Catalina glass and garnish
with berries.
A FINE PEAR
Buzz (Toby) is a god of absinthe mixology and here is one of his finest creations, we named it though (badly!!!!)
40ml Poire William eau de vie
25ml Hapsburg Red
50ml Pear puree
25ml lemon juice
25ml sugar syrup
15ml apple juice
Method
Shake all ingredients and strain over cubed ice in a Catalina glass, garnish with a pear and apple fan.
ORCHARD SMASH
A variation on Pete Kendall’s Space Gin Smash from Trailer Happiness, this drink is a healthy way to get drunk. Pete’s original recipe is with gin; feel free to try that instead.
50ml Zubrowka
15ml Elderflower
5 red grapes
5 mint leaves
3 small lemon wedges
30ml fresh apple juice
Method
Muddle the fruits carefully, add other ingredients and shake well, strain over cracked ice in a chilled highball, garnish with mint, grapes and an apple wedge.
menu
BAJAN PEACH SMASH
Great variant on Dale’s whisky peach smash that we feel tastes even better.
50ml Mount Gay XO
3 lemon wedges
20ml peach puree
25ml simple syrup
6 mint leaves
Method
Muddle lemons, add other ingredients, shake hard and strain over cracked ice in a double old-fashioned glass, garnish with a mint sprig and peach slice.
BLACK CHERRY ALEXANDER
A delicious alternative to a desert, boozy and moreish.
30ml Cognac
10ml Crème de cacao
10ml Crème de cerise
40ml Black cherry ice cream
10ml milk
Method
Shake all ingredients and strain into a chilled large martini glass. Garnish with shaved chocolate spirals.
PINOT PUNCH
A Drink to entice the unadventurous, soft flavours with a hint of acid combine to produce a perfect drink for a summers day.
30ml Gin
2 lemon wedges
20ml simple syrup
20ml Peach puree
6 mint leaves
Method
Muddle mint and lemons, add other ingredients and swizzle over crushed ice in a highball glass, garnish with a mint sprig.
SHELTER FROM THE STORM
A drink inspired by the Dark and Stormy and Dale’s Anejo Highball, the rum is vital, if you can get hold of some I can think of no finer use.
40ml English harbour 5yr old
15ml Creole schrubb
25ml lime juice
5ml Velvet Falernum
Dash Angostura
Top homemade ginger beer
Method
Shake and strain first five ingredients over cubed ice in a tall glass, top with homemade spicy ginger beer (although some available brands like Lion, or Luscombe Park will suffice), garnish with a pegged piece of candied ginger.
B AND B SOUR
Take the original PPS, and sour it. Hardly revolutionary, but still the drink that gets me out of more trouble behind the bar than any other, nearly every service.
35ml Cognac
20ml Benedictine
10ml simple syrup
25ml lemon juice
2 dash angostura
Method
Shake all ingredients and strain over cubed ice in a large rocks glass, garnish with a large orange twist.
MELON HONEY CRUSH
The perfect marriage of Manuka honey 42Below and fresh melon with chardonnay.
30ml Manuka Honey 42Below vodka
Eighth honeydew melon
10ml honey syrup
Dash lemon juice
60ml Chardonnay
Method
Muddle melon, shake with all other ingredients and strain over crushed ice in a tall glass, garnish with a thin melon slice.
menu
CABALLO LOCO
Arrete tequila is fantastic tipple, and this cocktail seems to work particularly well with it.
50ml Arrete Plata
20ml lemon juice
10ml maple syrup
10ml simple syrup
30ml Fresh Pressed Apple juice
Method
Shake and strain over cubed ice in a large rocks glass, garnish with an orange twist.
POACHED PEAR COLLINS
Pear and anise are a fabulous combination, bolstered by the Miller’s to make a beguiling alternative to a basic Gin Tom Collins.
50ml Millers Westbourne
20ml simple syrup
3 poached pear pieces
22.5ml lemon juice
Top with soda
Method
Poach 500g of pears in simple syrup with one star anise flower for 20mins. Cool and muddle 3 slices of pear, add other ingredients, shake and strain, top with soda and garnish with a pear fin slide.
WAYSIDE FIZZ
A quintessential English drink, hopefully made with homemade redcurrant cordial although commercial ones are available.
30ml Millers Westbourne Strength
20ml Plymouth sloe gin
25ml lemon juice
10ml simple syrup
Top with soda
15ml redcurrant cordial
Method
Shake and strain over cubed ice in a Catalina glass, top with soda and drizzle the redcurrant cordial over the top. Garnish with mixed berries.
COASTAL KISS (serves 2)
A classic beachfront bar cocktail, soft and delicious.
100ml Light Rum
20ml Sailor Jerry's
Half a banana
3 pineapple chunks
30ml pineapple juice
30ml Coco Lopez
5ml lemon juice
Blue Curacao
Method
Blend all ingredients with crushed ice, serve in a large Tiki bowl with a spray of blue Curacao, garnish with a paper boat.
10CC
A vodka version of this drink won its’ category at the 2006 Finlandia World Finals
50ml Tanqueray 10 Gin
20ml Lemon Juice
25ml Camomile Tea Syrup
4 Pieces Cucumber
Top with soda
Method
Muddle the cucumber pieces (about 20mm of cucumber in total), add other ingredients, shake and strain over cubed ice, top with soda, and garnish with a cucumber slice.
VELVET VOODOO
One of the first drinks we ever created, still to be bettered in Tequila Tiki terms.
40ml Arrete Reposado Tequila
10ml Orange Curacao
15ml Apricot brandy
15ml lime juice
40ml Fresh pineapple juice
1 dash Angostura
Method
Shake and strain all ingredients over cubed ice in a hurricane glass, garnish with a pineapple leaf and slice.
DRY DAQUIRI
A fantastic drink by Kevin Armstrong, one of the best daiquiri variations I have ever tasted.
50ml Havana Club Silver Dry
20ml Lime Juice
5ml Passionfruit syrup
5ml Campari
15ml simple syrup
Method
Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a large martini glass, garnish with an orange twist.
THE WEEGIE
Weegie is a semi derogatory term for a Glaswegian, normally with Pikey undertones. This drink was created for Auchentoshan, which hails from a Glasgow estate.
40ml Auchentoshan Three Wood
20ml Orange Curacao
10ml Orgeat
25ml lemon juice
30ml Pineapple juice
1 dash Angostura
Method
Shake all ingredients with ice, strain into a tall glass over cubed ice and garnish with a pineapple leaf.
BITTER AND TWISTED
One of our all time favourite drinks, Kevin Armstrong (Bitter Summer), Tom Ward (St. Thomas), Dick Bradsell (Wibble) and Vincenzo Errico (Enzoni) have all had a hand in creating this fabulous recipe.
40ml Miller’s Westbourne Strength
15ml Campari
10ml Lime juice
15ml Passionfruit syrup
Quarter Pink Grapefruit
Method
Muddle pink grapefruit, shake all ingredients and strain over cracked ice in chilled highball glass. Garnish with a blackened grapefruit slice.
PORT AND CIDER COBBLER
A crazy concoction with its’ roots in Snakebite and Black with a (slightly) adult twist
35ml Grahams LBV port
3 pineapple pieces
100ml Henry Weston’s Vintage Cider
Method
Muddle pineapple wedges, shake with port and strain over crushed ice in a tall glass, top with cider, swizzle and serve. No garnish.
CLUB COCKTAIL
Just a Manhattan with rum, but the addition of a hint of maraschino syrup (not liqueur) works really well with the dryer styles of aged rum.
50ml Havana 7year old
12.5ml Sweet vermouth
10ml Dry vermouth
5ml maraschino syrup
2 dash Angostura
Method
Stir all ingredients over ice, strain into a martini glass, garnish with a discarded orange twist and a cherry.
HIBISCUS HIGHBALL
A blend of floral notes from Pisco and liqueur softened with homemade grenadine.
40ml Pisco
20ml Luxardo Maraschino
10ml grenadine
25ml lemon juice
5ml sugar
10ml egg white
40ml soda water
Method
Shake and strain the first 6 ingredients over cubed ice in a tall Catalina glass, top with sparkling water and garnish with a hibiscus flower.
CALE COSMOPOLITAN
Our update on the cosmopolitan, served at Tom’s Kitchen. If you don’t want to spend time making Seville orange syrup, a good Triple Sec will suffice.
40ml Finlandia Grapefruit
15ml Seville orange syrup
12.5ml lime juice
Half a fresh Pomegranate
Method
Juice the pomegranate (a citrus press works well for this), shake and strain all ingredients into a large cocktail glass and garnish with a grapefruit twist.
LONDON FOG CUTTER
One of the few times we have made a drink with more than one base spirit, but this one really works, and is super strong to boot.
40ml Gin
15ml Dark Rum
20ml Cognac
10ml Passionfruit syrup
10ml Elderflower Cordial
10ml Camomile syrup
25ml lemon juice
40ml Apple juice
Method
Shake and strain all ingredients over cubed ice in a Catalina glass, garnish with an apple fan.
GOLDEN GIBSON
An update of the classic Gibson cocktail, showing the creative elements in any stirred up drink. We replaced the dry vermouth with sweet herbaceous liqueur, and produced our own marinated onions to pull all the flavours together. Cheers to the Jeveons for the basis for this recipe.
60ml Finlandia Vodka
9ml Benedictine
Method
A couple of days in advance take a jar of small silverskin onions in vinegar, add two teaspoons of brown sugar, 1 teaspoon of turmeric and a few saffron stamens, shake well and leave to marinate.
Stir vodka and Benedictine over ice and strain into a frozen martini glass, garnish with a pair of the onions on a cocktail stick. (You can tell if they have marinated enough when the tips of the onions are deep red.)
COLADA NUEVA
A great demonstration of the frivolity and fun to be had in Tiki drinks, relaxing the rules a little bit.
60ml Finlandia Mango
15ml Mango Puree
15ml Coconut cream
50ml Guava juice
Dash lime juice
Dash grenadine
Method
Blend all ingredients together, pour into a hurricane glass, garnish with a pineapple wedge and a cherry.
menu
WIBBLE
Possibly Dick Bradsell’s best ever recipe, a timeless classic. A Wibble will make you wobble, but you won’t fall over.
25ml gin
25ml sloe gin
25ml pink grapefruit juice
Dash lime juice
Dash lime juice
Dash simple syrup
Method
Shake and strain all ingredients into a chilled martini glass, garnish with a lemon twist.
AMBROSIA
Sacha Petraske has been serving his customers a pre-cursor to this drink made with illicit Havana Club for many years now in all his bars under the moniker of the Honeysuckle. This is a simple variation relying the extra age of Havana 7.
50ml Havana 7year old
20ml Honey Syrup
20ml lime juice
1 dash Angostura
Method
Shake and strain all ingredients into a chilled large martini glass, garnish with an orange twist.
GOOD TIME GIRL
Alcoholic Solero ice cream, nuff said.
40ml Finlandia Mango
15ml mango puree
5ml passion fruit puree
10ml passion fruit syrup
50ml vanilla ice cream
Method
Blend all ingredients with a little crushed ice and pour into a chilled large martini glass, pour a thin spiral of mango puree on the surface of the drink and carefully draw radial lines with a straw to produce a web shaped design for garnish.
JADE GARDEN
50ml Bombay Sapphire
15ml Jasmine tea syrup
10ml Elderflower cordial
20ml Lemon juice
30ml Apple juice
Method
Shake and strain over cubed ice a highball glass. Garnish with a lemon twist
The jasmine tea syrup is simple to make. Make half a litre of tea using double the quoted amount of tea for a short time (you don’t want to stew it). Strain off the tea debris and add 1/2 kg of caster sugar and stir until it is dissolved. Next squeeze the juice of 1lemon into the mix and allow to cool. Tea syrup lasts
1 week refrigerated.
SILVER ANGEL
25ml Vodka
10ml Apple juice
10ml Passionfruit syrup
5ml Peach liqueur
top champagne
Method
Shake and strain into a chilled large martini glass, then top with the champagne. Garnish with a star shaped lemon twist.
SOUL HAPPINESS
40ml good silver or reposado tequila
25ml Watermelon syrup
20ml lemon juice
2 dashes Orange bitters
Method
Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail or sours glass. Garnish with an umbrella
The watermelon syrup, again simple to make. Take _ small watermelon and put the flesh through a sieve until you have extracted all the juice. Take the resulting juice and mix it with _ kg caster sugar and taste. The syrup should be thick and sweet, stir in the juice of one lemon and it is ready to use. Watermelon syrup keeps for one week in the fridge.
menu
ENZONI
Created by the fabulous Enzo, M+HNYC 2001
30 ml Gin
30ml sloe gin
10ml Campari
10ml lemon juice
10ml gomme
3 red grapes
1 string redcurrants
Method
Muddle fruit, add ingredients and shake. Strain over Cubed ice a large rocks glass, garnish with an orange slice.
ST LAWRENCE
50ml Woodford reserve
20ml light maple syrup
25ml lemon juice
5ml gomme
2 dash Angostura bitters
Method
Shake and strain all ingredients over cubed ice in a large rocks glass, garnish with an orange twist.
Party cocktails
THE BIG CHILL PUNCH
Made famous as the fastest selling cocktail of all time over the last 2 years at the Big Chill, this is another great party drink that can easily be pre-prepared just like the spring punch above. With advancements in the London bar scene this cocktail can now be prepared with pre bought ingredients. For those not venturing to Selfridges though I have included a fresh fruit based one as well.
Makes 24
1btl Finlandia Vodka
500ml Peach Puree (or blended flesh of 8 ripe peaches)
500ml Passion fruit Puree (or the contents 12 passion fruit
The juice of 15 lemons
2btl D’Arbo Peach and Passion fruit syrup
100g caster sugar
2btl champagne or sparkling wine
Method
Mix all ingredients in a large punch bowl. Stir the purees first in with the syrups to amalgamate correctly. This can then be refrigerated until required. This mixture should be shaken over ice and strained into the tallest glass you have, then top with champagne.
Garnish with a peach slice.
SUMMER OF LOVE
The best new summer idea in ages, wine and spirits in the same glass!! We wanted a drink that would have the appeal of a Pimms cup or a spritzer with a bit of a stealth kick. The drink uses red grapes as a sweetener cutting down on the quantity of refined simple sugars that are the health hazard of most cocktails. Any wine can be used but we find that a typical NZ Sauvignon Blanc is the best for its zingy character. Hope the fun is experimenting to find other similar drinks with ingredients to suit a particular bottle. Go on play!
Makes 18
1btl Finlandia Mango
Juice of 9 lemons
400g Red grapes
300ml passion fruit syrup (elderflower makes a different but still tasty drink if no passionfruit is available)
1ltr pressed apple juice
2btl Sav. Blanc
Method
Take all ingredients apart from the wine and crush them up in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate for as long as possible. This allows the colour and tannins to make their way from the skins bringing a beautiful colour and more complex flavour. Just before service either shake a cupful of the mixture and pour over cubed ice and top with wine or add all ingredients to a cup of cubed ice and pour this more agricultural version into glasses. Both taste great, just depends on your time and shaking inclination.
SOULSHAKERS RUM PUNCH
This is one of the easiest party drinks; people can serve themselves with a ladle allowing you to spend more time hosting. Any rum can be used but it is great to have a blend of quality products.
Makes approx 50 drinks:
Ingredients:
1 bottle of quality light rum eg Havana Club
1 bottle of quality golden rum eg Mount Gay
1 bottle of quality dark rum eg Myers
1 bottle of quality over proof rum eg Woods 100
2 litres pressed pineapple juice
2 litres freshly squeezed orange juice
1 litre limejuice
1 litre of Guava juice (Rubicon)
1 bottle Cointreau
1/2 litre Simple Syrup
1/5 Bottle Angostura Bitters
Method
Throw all the ingredients into a big bowl and add any tropical fruits that are in season eg mango and passion fruit
Add 1/2 kilo of ice and stir, keep in the fridge until the party kicks off and serve with glasses and an ice bucket full of ice, and a large ladle.
If you fancy you can lay out cut fruits so your guests can imaginatively garnish their own cocktails.
HARVEST MOON PUNCH
This is a great winter cocktail for Halloween parties and carol singers. Easy to make and a great talking point we have gently adapted this recipe from Dale DeGroff.
Makes 100 drinks
Ingredients
1 bottle Quality Bourbon eg Woodford Reserve
2.5 litres of any cider eg Ye Olde English
3 star anise heads
3 cinnamon sticks
3 cloves
The zest of one large navel orange (in large pieces)
150g Brown Sugar
2 green apples sliced
Method
Place all ingredients in your largest saucepan and simmer for 40 minutes. Don’t BOIL! Strain through sieve, replace the apple slices and serve in a hollowed out pumpkin, which acts like a thermos keeping the drink warm. Warms the heart and the fingers and is surprisingly alcoholic.
SPRING PUNCH
A party favourite designed to use up some of the dodgy sparkling wine that some people always bring to parties. Make the base in advance and top up with bubbly. Easy to make and a showstopper.
Makes 24 drinks:
Ingredients:
1 bottle of Vodka
0.8 litres fresh lemon juice
1/2 litre of simple syrup
0.4 litres cassis
1 punnett of fresh raspberries
2 bottles champagne
Method
Push raspberries through a sieve to obtain a coulis. Add all other ingredients apart from the champagne into the large punch bowl and stir with 1/2 a kilo of ice. When serving ladle over ice in your tallest glass and top with champagne. For full effect garnish with a lemon slice and a raspberry.
SOULSHAKERS SANGRIA
A twist on the classic sangria, using English mulled wine spices to make an all year round party winner, also gets rid of any excess red wine.
Serves 20:
Ingredients:
2 bottles of red wine, ideally big mellow merlots or Zinfandel
1 litre of freshly squeezed orange juice.
Juice and zest of two lemons
Zest of one orange
1/2 bottle of Cointreau
1 stick of cinnamon
3 cloves
Method
Cut up some oranges and lemons and stir with the other ingredients adding the spices in a spice bag. The longer you leave this the better it tastes. It can be made in the morning and kept in the fridge. Serve with a ladle and wine glasses.
BLOODY BUFFET
A great brunch idea or when recovering from an excess filled evening. Let your guests make their own bloody marys from a range of ingredients. You provide freshly made tomato juice and they do the rest.
Serves 20
You should have:
8 Litres of tomato juice
This is easy to make. In a food processor juice grape or plum tomatoes with their skins on but de seed them first. We like the texture the skins give but if you slightly blanche them first they can be easily skinned for a smoother juice.
3 bottles of good quality vodka eg Finlandia (some gin and tequila might also be useful)
1 bottle of Worcestershire sauce
1 bottle of Tabasco
200g fresh red ripe chillis deseeded and chopped
100g freshly grated horseradish
100g celery stalks
500ml lemon juice
500ml limejuice
Freshly ground seas salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 bottle red wine
1/2 Fino Sherry
1 litre V8 juice
If your budget stretches 1 litre Clam juice
50ml Wasabi
100ml Soya Sauce
100ml Balsamic Vinegar
Fresh Basil
Method
Provide ice and mixing apparatus (a jug and spoon will be fine) Have celery and lemon or lime wedges to garnish and if possible a couple of dozen oysters for the ultimate hedonistic hangover cure.
Simple syrup is easy to make take one empty bottle fill it half full with caster sugar and the another half with water, shake until dissolved that’s it….SIMPLE!
THE TAPASTINIS
As suggested by my great friend and associate Dr. J.C. we presented a series of ‘canapé cocktails’ to various clients and guests and they went down a storm. While polishing glassware I noted that some of our miniature coupettes looked a similar shape to the eponymous bowl and lid combo that is tapas. We wanted to make a selection of drinks that fulfilled both the eating and drinking requirements of a partygoer. What we came up with were the tapastinis, a selection of sherry washed vodka martinis featuring the most outlandishly delicious garnishes all made from Spanish produce.
To recreate the effect chill the smallest martini glass you have, or buy some coupettes, a set of 12 is recommended.
Makes 12 drinks
2/3 bottle vodka
1/2 bottle of a nice Manzanilla sherry (feel free to try your favourite even if is a different style)
Olives, caper berries, sun dried tomatoes, Serrano ham, Chorizo, baby gherkins, almonds, and almost anything else nice.
Method
Build your garnishes first on cocktail sticks. Take the vodka and place it in the fridge with loads of ice cubes in a large pitcher, stir to dilute and set aside. Then wash the glasses in the sherry (no need to waste too much!) Place the garnish inside and then pour the cooled vodka mixture over the garnish.
The coolest host in town. You bet.
