Drinks After Dark

November 21st, 2008

Deck the halls and Decorate your Cocktails

Anyone who knows me knows I have a bit of a bah-humbug streak in me, but this is one Christmas movement I can get behind!

Tim Laird, dubbed America’s Chief Entertaining Officer (CEO) has some tips to make your holiday cocktails as pretty and festive as your freaky-about-Christmas friend’s Christmas decor.

Tim recommends using Tequila and Vodka for your drink bases, because not only do they allow the greatest range of mixability, but they’re generally guaranteed crowd pleasers. You don’t need to stock a ton of mix in order to make a few different drinks which all bring the colors of the season into your glass.

First things first, mix up a pitcher of each of the following and store them in the fridge till well chilled:

The Perfect Margarita Base

1 1/2 oz Herradura Silver Tequila
1 oz fresh lime juice
1 oz simple syrup

Vodka Drink Base

1 1/2 oz Finlandia Vodka
1/2 oz. orange liqueur

Simply keep combining ingredients until you get a full pitcher.

When you’re ready to use the bases, give them a good stir and then pour them into a  rocks glass or a martini glass. There are several options you’ve got to add to your bases to give you some holiday flair. Try pomegranate juice for a pretty red drink, melon liqueur for a delicate green look, blue-raspberry liqueur or Blue Curacao for a blue concoction or add apple cider for gold drinks.

By using mixers which produce red, green, blue and gold drinks, you’ve pretty much covered the colors of the holidays, and you can likely please even the toughest cocktail critic at your next party!

(image source Brown-Foreman)

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By Colleen Coplick -- 1 comment

November 21st, 2008

Hellbent Wine Launches

I got an email from one of my favourite local PR girls, telling me to Go to Hell. My first thought was “uh, no, YOU go to hell!” and then I realized that a) she’s far too sweet to ever tell me that, and b) she was inviting me to a launch of the new Hellbent Wine.

Hellbent Wine is a new Australian Shiraz Cabernet created by Whitefish Group and winemaker Kevin O’Brien of Kangarilla Road Winery.

I have to say that for a $17 bottle of wine, Hellbent is damn good. The grapes are from the Southern Fleurieu region, and give it a rich red color and a signature blackberry and spice flavor. The nose is gorgeous and reminds me of a rich fruity jam.

I may have just found a new favourite red wine!  For more information on Hellbent wine, see the Whitefish Group (distributors and co-creators) site.

(image source: Whitefish Group)

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November 20th, 2008

Sweet Sweet Martinis

One of the bloggers I’ve been following for some time, and finally got to meet face to face at Blog World Expo, Average Jane, has two yummy sounding martini recipes, and they sounded too good not to share!

Tootsie Roll Martinis

1 cup creamy chocolate liqueur
1 cup Irish cream liqueur
1 cup vanilla vodka
1/2 cup clear chocolate liqueur (optional)
1/4 cup Grand Marnier

Mix together in a pitcher and add ice to chill and provide a little much-needed dilution of the alcohol.  Don’t skip the Grand Marnier - it’s the secret ingredient that makes these martinis taste like a Tootsie Roll instead of just chocolate alone.  Garnish martini glasses with actual Tootsie Rolls or chocolate syrup-coated rim.

Bomb Pop Martini

DeKuyper Island Blue Pucker
Bacardi Razz Rum
Sweet & sour mix
Grenadine

Mix equal parts of Island Blue Pucker, Bacardi Razz and sweet & sour mix.  Shake WELL with ice and pour into martini glass.  Then take 1 capful of grenadine and slowly pour down the inside of glass until it settles to the bottom.

(Image source: (CC) Gep, on Flickr)

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November 20th, 2008

Bourbon TV

The CBS Early Show stole my idea! They beat me to the Bourbon Trail by just one day.

While I’ll be telling you a whole lot about bourbon and how it’s made, and all about my trip to Kentucky and Tennessee, you can get a visual sneak peek on Sunday morning.

A crew from the CBS Early Show visited a bunch of distillers on the Bourbon Trail, including Maker’s Mark, to find out exactly what makes Kentucky bourbon so good and the rich history behind it.

Tune in Sunday (November 23rd). The piece should air at  9 AM (EST) but check local listings to make sure you catch it. I’ve got my DVR set for it!

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November 17th, 2008

Beer, that’s good for you?

I’m back from my whirlwind trip of the south (or the upper south as some referred to it as) with 100’s of pictures and more knowledge about the making of bourbon than I ever thought I’d need to know. Overall, it’s a pretty interesting process, and soon you’ll know all about it too!

While I’m getting my images processed and posts written, I came across something that I just had to share. There’s a team of (young) students at Rice University in Texas who are trying to create a beer that mimics some of the properties that make red wine the boon to health that it is.

They’re attempting to grow a yeast with the anti-aging chemical found in red wines, called resveratrol, during fermentation, and then use that to make their “BioBeer“.  Resveratrol is already found in low levels in hops, and the boys and girls (undergrads - some of them are not even legally allowed to try their creation!) are simply trying to magnify that.

Resveratrol is mainly found in red wine, (in the skins of grapes, which are left on to make red wine) and also in small quantities in some berries and peanuts.

The team has engineered yeasts to produce resveratrol, and they’re about to brew their first batch of BioBeer. This particular chemical in yeast is susceptible to oxygen and light, and so beer, the students reason, is one of the best carrier liquids for the chemical.

The BioBeer project is an entry in the International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition being held this weekend in Cambridge, MA. The event showcases student work in the field of synthetic biology.

Sounds complicated to me, but hey - if anyone can make beer good for you, sounds like it’ll be these guys. (Image Source: (CC) Rice University BioBeer Project)

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November 10th, 2008

Headed South

On Wednesday morning, I’ll be winging my way down to Louisville and Lynchburg for distillery tours, talk to master distillers, and basically, as it was put to me, swim in bourbon.

I’m so looking forward to this trip, it’s not even funny! Maker’s Mark, Heaven Hill and Jim Beam on the Thursday, and Jack Daniels on Saturday.

If you were on the trip, is there anything you’d ask the master distillers?  I’ll make sure to ask your question if you leave one in the comments. I’ll be taking a ton of pictures, and will report back with my findings.  (image source, Maker’s Mark)

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November 8th, 2008

Cornucopia: Day 1

I’m sitting in my gorgeous room at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler, on the absolutely comfortable, completely squishy bed, drying off from a serious downpour! It didn’t ever cross my mind that I would have to bring an umbrella to Whistler, the land of skiing and snowboarding!

Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Image source: Fairmont

I got into the Village in the early afternoon, and was pampered and treated like a queen by the Fairmont staff, and after grabbing a bite to eat, I headed down to the main Cornucopia site for my first session, “White Rhones” with Thomas Perrin from Chateau Beaucastel (and I got his personal email address, so I will be contacting him for an interview!)

I learned a ton, tasted some gorgeous white wines (yes, the Rhone Valley does indeed grow white wine grapes and they make some beautiful wines with them!), and took copious amounts of notes.

I’ll be posting about the seminar particularly, but I wanted to get the first Cornucopia post up and then go grab food before the Crush Gala Grand Tasting tonight. More to come!

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November 7th, 2008

Old-School Cuban Beer Returns

The Bacardi Family and Company “grew up” on the island of Cuba. Bacardi Rum was made on the island, but it wasn’t considered a refined drink at the time. In 1920, the family had started distilleries in other cities, and introduced a new beer: Hatuey.

Hatuey was a chief from Hispaniola, who lived in the early 16th century. He is celebrated as Cuba’s First National Hero, and the Bacardi family named their beer after this hero. When Castro moved towards his pledges for change and in particular, nationalizing and banning all private property and bank accounts on the island. The  Bacardi family, and therefore the entire company, who had already started foreign branches years before the revolution, moved all the important international trademarks out to the Bahamas and started to build a distillery in Puerto Rico. (Image source: Wikipedia. CC Michal Zalewski)

Today, Cuban refugees in Miami and along the  Southern States can enjoy the traditional brew their parents drank.  Hatuey beer has returned.

Bacardi is promoting the beer through Miami at the moment, and proclaiming it “cerveza con el sabor original de Cuba” (the beer with the original taste of Cuba). Hatuey was the main beer in Cuba from 1927 until the 60’s when Castro incited revolution.

“There’s a folklore to it. They know it might not be the same, but they can at least relate to it through the logo,” said George Hoyos, general sales manager at Eagle Brand Sales in Miami.  “They recognize it from when they were there or when their parents spoke about it. The goal should be to try to get that old consumer and second- or third-generation American to associate with it.” [source]

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November 5th, 2008

Vancouver’s HopScotch Festival returns!

Hopscotch, Canada’s largest beer and whisky and scotch festival, returns beginning November 11. The event brings brand industry experts and brand ambassadors together with connoisseurs to celebrate all the good things that scotch, whisky and beer are! (image courtesy Hopscotch)

Events during the festival include more than 50 exhibitors and 200 products to sip, swirl and compare. The Grand Tasting is the best time to do that, although it’s already sold out on Friday night, so if you want to be a sipper, swirler and comparer, you’ve gotta act fast.

There’s two Whiskey pairing dinners:

Highland Whisky gives guests a chance to indulge in a delicious 4-course meal paired with 4 different and exclusive Highland Park Malts. Marc Lavadiere, Highland Park’s Brand Ambassador will be on location to educate guests about whisky.

The other pairing dinner is a Morrison-Bowmore Whisky Pairing. Learn about the 4 different types of Bowmore whisky with James MacKenzie, the North American Regional Manager for the distillery.

Finally, Michael Nicolson, an ex-master distiller from some of the world’s largest distilleries will be on location to sample some of the most exclusive and rare whiskies the local Liquor Distribution Board has ever offered.

More information, and tickets, (what’s left) are available online at the Hopscotch site.

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By Colleen Coplick -- 1 comment

November 1st, 2008

Hot Apple Pie Cocktail

As the weather (here at least) turns cooler, I start to turn to warmer drinks and red wines. The stuff that makes me feel all toasty.

Drinks After Dark’s exclusive cocktail Guru, Steve Kemble has created me something yummy and warm for the cold November nights.

To make:

1 oz 10 Cane Rum
Hot water
1 tbsp apple butter
1 cinnamon stick for garnish

Despite this looking easy, it’s a little tricky to put together. First, put the hot water (almost as much as you want for the drink) into a highball glass. Stir in the apple butter until it’s melted and mixed in. Add the rum and give it a stir with your cinnamon stick and serve.

I haven’t tried this one yet, but as it seems pretty easy to build, I’ll give it a shot. It’s a grown up version of hot apple cider!  I’d also add a dash of cinnamon syrup* to sweeten it up a touch.

*Cinnamon Syrup

• 3 cinnamon sticks
• 1c sugar
• 1c water

Bash the hell out of the cinnamon sticks until they look a bit coarser than ground coffee (1/8″ pieces). Use a mortar and pestle or rolling pin in a ziplock. Add everything to a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cover and simmer for two minutes. Remove from the heat and let the mixture steep for 2 hours. Strain through a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth. Bottle and keep in the refrigerator for a month or so. [source]

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