Drinks (21)
Mastika/Ouzo:
These are respectively the Bulgarian and Greek version of a
40% liquor made of mastic, a Mediterranean tree. These drinks are served as a
digestif and have a very distinctive liquorice sweet smell and taste. The best part
is that they turn milky white when you mix them with ice or water because they
“crystallize”. In Bulgaria, we love Mastika mixed with Menta, a mint liquor
(this cocktail is called Cloud) as well as taken with watermelon
(or together with girls with watermelon bras)!
In Greece, they have Ouzo with mezze such as octopus, zucchini, and calamari.
I’m sure that men can tell you the difference between the two, but I’m not that good!
Planter's Punch
3 ounce(s) Myers's Original Dark Rum
3 ounce(s) Captain Morgan Silver Spiced Rum
1 1/2 ounce(s) Grand Marnier
6 ounce(s) orange juice
6 ounce(s) pineapple juice
1 1/2 ounce(s) lime juice
1 1/2 ounce(s) simple syrup
4 dash(es) bitters
2 ounce(s) grenadine
1 orange wheel
Directions
Add in a pitcher Myers's Original Dark Rum, Captain Morgan Silver Spiced Rum, Grand Marnier, orange juice, pineapple juice, lime juice, simple syrup, bitters, and grenadine.
Pour into shaker and add ice.
Shake and strain into an ice-filled highball glass.
Garnish with orange wheel.
Watermelon Margarita
1 1/2 ounce(s) Don Julio Blanco Tequila
1/2 ounce(s) lime juice
1/4 ounce(s) agave syrup
1 slice(s) watermelon
Directions
Muddle watermelon and agave syrup, add rest of ingredients, and shake well.
Double strain into a frozen martini glass.
Garnish with a watermelon slice.
Okanagan
This drink pays homage to the orchards and vineyards of British Columbia's
fertile Okanagan Valley.
Ice
2 ounces Blueberry Cabernet Sauvignon
1 ounce Calvados
1/2 ounce apricot liqueur
5 blueberries skewered on a pick, for garnish
Fill a pint glass with ice. Add all of the remaining ingredients
except the skewered blueberries and stir well. Strain into a chilled coupe
and garnish with the skewered blueberries.
Sophie Dahl's Iced Tea
8 and 1/4 cups boiling water
6 Earl Grey tea bags
1 teaspoon dried lavender flowers (or 6 lavender Earl Grey tea bags)
1/4 cup sugar
Lavender or mint sprigs, for garnish
In a very large heatproof measuring cup,
combine 8 cups boiling water with the tea bags and dried lavender flowers;
let steep for 10 minutes. Strain the tea and let cool. In a heatproof bowl,
combine the sugar with the remaining 1/4 cup boiling water and stir until the
sugar dissolves. Add the sugar syrup to the tea and let cool. Serve the tea in tall
ice-filled glasses, garnished with lavender or mint sprigs.
Indian Summer Cup
Master bartender Wayne Collins prefers using premium, naturally
sweetened tonic water (sometimes called Indian tonic water) in this punch.
Q Tonic, made with agave nectar, and Fever-Tree, sweetened with cane sugar,
are both excellent brands.
One 1-liter bottle gin, preferably London dry
One 1-liter bottle Carpano Antica Formula (sweet Italian vermouth)
8 ounces St-Germain elderflower liqueur
8 ounces crème de pêche (peach liqueur)
24 ounces Lemon Syrup
16 ounces unfiltered apple juice
32 ounces chilled tonic water
16 ounces chilled sparkling water
Ice
1 sliced green apple, 2 sliced peaches, 6 long, thin cucumber slices
and 1/4 cup torn mint leaves (optional), for garnish
In a punch bowl, combine the gin, vermouth, elderflower and peach liqueurs,
Lemon Syrup and apple juice. Refrigerate until chilled, about 4 hours.
Stir in the tonic water and sparkling water. Add ice and garnish with the apple, peaches,
cucumber and mint leaves.
Tuscan Fresco
"A lot of restaurants treat virgin cocktails like vegetarian dishes:
They just make a drink from the regular menu and leave out the alcohol,"
says Boka Kitchen & Bar's executive chef Seis Kamimura. "I love the challenge
of creating original nonalcoholic drinks that are special in their own right."
Ice
2 rosemary sprigs
1 ounce peach nectar
1 ounce white cranberry juice
1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
1/2 ounce Simple Syrup
1 ounce chilled club soda
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice.
Add 1 rosemary sprig and the peach nectar, white cranberry juice,
lemon juice and Simple Syrup. Shake well and strain into an ice-filled rocks glass.
Stir in the club soda and garnish with the remaining rosemary sprig.
Sangria Flora
Lynnette Marrero of Freemans created this delicate
sangria with St-Germain, an aromatic elderflower liqueur that's
delicious with a tropical-fruit-inflected Sauvignon Blanc
One 750-milliliter bottle Sauvignon Blanc
1 1/2 cups St-Germain elderflower liqueur (or elderflower cordial)
1/4 cup Cointreau
6 strawberries, sliced 1/4 inch thick
6 raspberries
2 peaches, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 orange, thinly sliced crosswise
1 pound green and red grapes
Ice
Combine all of the ingredients in a pitcher and let stand at room temperature
for 3 hours, or cover and refrigerate overnight. Serve in wineglasses over ice.
Puente Punch
A fantastic dessert drink, this creamy cocktail is named after the late
timbale-banging band leader Tito Puente, who popularized Latin music around the world.
Cyrus Keyhari uses aged Dominican rum to give depth to what he calls "a grown-up Orange Julius."
1 lime wedge
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Granulated sugar
Ice
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk, at room temperature
1/8 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup amber rum, preferably Brugal Anejo Dominican Rum
Moisten the outer rim of a highball glass with the lime wedge
and coat with sugar. Fill the glass and cocktail shaker with ice.
Add the 1/2 teaspoon of sugar, the orange juice, condensed milk,
vanilla extract and amber rum; shake well. Strain into the prepared glass.
Tangy Hibiscus-Lime Iced Tea
F&W's Melissa Rubel Jacobson created this refreshing, sweet-tart iced tea.
1 cup each of sugar and warm water
Zest of 4 limes, removed in strips
8 cups cold water
3/4 cup dried hibiscus flowers (see Note)
Ice cubes
In a small saucepan, bring the sugar, warm water and lime zest to a boil.
Remove from the heat and let steep for 30 minutes. Strain into a measuring cup.
In a large saucepan, bring the cold water and hibiscus flowers to a boil.
Remove from the heat; let steep for 20 minutes. Refrigerate until chilled.
Strain the tea into a pitcher. Stir in 1/2 cup of the lime syrup, or more to taste.
Serve the tea in tall glasses over ice.
NOTES Dried hibiscus is available at health food stores, Latin markets and tea shops.
If you can't find hibiscus flowers, you can substitute dried rose hips or
Celestial Seasonings Red Zinger tea (which contains hibiscus, rose hips and other herbs).
