Some wonderful winter cocktails

I've been horribly, unforgivably remiss in updating this, my poor forgotten blog. I intend to make it up to you this holiday season, dear reader. My penance will begin with this brief post.

Here's an inspired article from The New York Times on seasonal cocktails, all of which I am eager to sample. When I do, I'll be sharing my comments and notes with you here.

The French "75" Cocktail

"Hits with remarkable precision."  

-Harry Craddock, The Savoy Cocktail Book

We concede that this is truly the best way to make a French 75.  Slightly adapted from The Savoy Cocktail Book:

The French "75" Cocktail

2 ounces Dry Gin 

1 ounce Fresh Lemon Juice

1 teaspoon Sugar or Simple Syrup

Shake the above ingredients together with ice in a cocktail shaker; strain into an appropriate glass and fill with Champagne.

If you make these for guests, expect to spend the evening making them over and over again.

Sucré

While we were in New Orleans, we came across Sucré, a sweet shop located at 3025 Magazine Street.  Self-described as an "emporium of 'artisan' sweets," Sucré has an amazing range of delectable treats.  We had coffee and this gorgeous chocolate raspberry confection that I cannot remember the name of:

 

The name of it, obviously, does not matter.  It's difficult to see in the photograph, but it actually sparkles.  For those traveling in New Orleans who have any sort of sweet tooth, a visit to Sucré is mandatory.  For everyone else at home, you can order beautiful treats, like chocolates and macaroons, from Sucré online at their website.

Sazerac

Arguably the world's first cocktail, born in New Orleans in 1838, the Sazerac has an interesting history which you can peruse at the official Sazerac Company site.  In mixing ours at Mardi Gras we strictly followed the official Sazerac recipe, which you can find here, and the only adaptation made was we doubled the recipe.  I am interested in experimenting with the more historic versions that they mention in passing, especially where they involve employing true absinthe instead of Herbsaint.  As it was, we were delighted with the official version.  We used Buffalo Trace Bourbon, as you can see below.  You can also use Sazerac Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey.  Interestingly enough, the original version was made with brandy, so feel free to try that too.

 

One of the most characteristic ingredients in the Sazerac cocktail is the Peychaud's bitters.  Antoine Peychaud, the Creole pharmacist (from Saint-Domingue, now Haiti) who invented the Sazerac, created his concoction of aromatic cocktail bitters in the early 1830s, which are still named after him.  In New Orleans, you can easily find Peychaud's bitters in grocery stores, as we did:

Peychaud's bitters are also available on the internet, of course, and you can purchase them online at Bowery & Vine.

The disappearance of February.

February departed so suddenly!  My negligence is truly unforgivable, and to make it up to you, I'll be posting now everything I had intended to post during the latter part of February.  I'd like to make the excuse that Mardi Gras had a tremendous effect on me and the hangover lasted two weeks, but that isn't even remotely close to the truth.  In fact, my general sobriety during the occasion was fairly disconcerting.  I did sample a Sazerac, and we also came across a very lovely dessert boutique on Magazine Street called Sucré, all of which you can read about in the very near future.

The Aesthete Abroad

Off to New Orleans for Mardi Gras; when I return, I will be exploring cocktails specific to that city.  The following is a photograph of the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum.  I'd really love to have one of these to decorate my home someday.

 

On my list of cocktails to explore is the Sazerac (perhaps the first cocktail of all cocktails), the Hurricane, and Absinthe Frappé.  If you have any suggestions, please feel free to mention them in the comments.

Sidecars

The sidecar is a straightforward concoction, consisting of equal parts cognac or brandy, lemon juice, and Cointreau.  Like most cocktails, it has an obscure history, but it is one of the many cocktails to emerge after the first world war.  It can also be prepared with two parts cognac, one part lemon juice, and one part Cointreau; this is how it's done in the 1930 Savoy cocktail book.  It's usually served with a lemon twist or a sugared rim.  I recommend adapting the Sidecar to suit your tastes, because it is a such a lovely, simple drink.  That said, this is how we prepare them:

Sidecars, for Two Aesthetes 

2 ounces brandy
(or cognac)
 

2 ounces Cointreau

2 ounces fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon sugar
(optional)

 Combine lemon juice and sugar, if desired, and pour into a cocktail shaker. Add the brandy or cognac and Cointreau. Shake vigorously with ice, and pour into cocktail glasses. Serve with a lemon twist.

Grapefruit Au Cointreau

It is my intention to not only post cocktails I'm exploring, but comestibles as well. When those two categories are combined, better and better.  The following is an example of both and makes for a marvelous breakfast dish.

 

Slice one cocktail grapefruit in half. Pour 1 Tablespoon Cointreau over each side and adorn with maraschino cherries, if desired. The grapefruit halves can be refrigerated for several hours, or overnight. Serves two.

Adapted from The Gourmet's Guide to Dining and Drinking, a Cointreau advertisement recipe booklet from the 1950s.

Blood Orange French 75s

Blood Orange French 75s are an exquisite, temporal concoction, as blood oranges are only available in the winter months (as in, January and February). To make them: extract the juice from one or several blood oranges, and create a mixture that is half blood orange juice, half dry gin. Shake with ice in a cocktail shaker. Pour into champagne flutes, filling one-third to half full. Top off glasses with champagne. Imbibe and enjoy.

This is a wonderful solution for all sorts of social gatherings, from dinners to improvised birthday parties.

Corpse Reviver No. 2

Whenever you feel lifeless and find your corpse in need of revival, I highly recommend trying out the following concoction: the Corpse Reviver No.2 from the 1930 Savoy cocktail book.

1/4 Wine Glass Lemon Juice

1/4 Wine Glass Kina Lillet (lillet blanc, for those mixing in the 21st century)

1/4 Wine Glass Cointreau

1/4 Wine Glass Dry Gin

1 Dash Absinthe

Place in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake vigorously; strain into a cocktail glass.

According to Harry Craddock, compiler of the Savoy Hotel Cocktail Book, "Four of these taken in swift succession will unrevive the corpse again." From experience, I would also like to note that the reviving effects wear off after one hour.

Champagne Cocktail

I first became aware of the existence of the Champagne Cocktail when I first became aware of the film Casablanca.  Set in French Morocco during the second World War, it's a gorgeous melodrama with everyone in it, from Bogart and Bergman to Lorre and Veidt.  The subject of the film is the refugee trail that the war brought about, so upon reflection, it takes a stretch of the imagination to believe that these people have time to sit around Rick's Café Américain and drink champagne cocktails, but they do. Paul Henreid's character orders one at the bar as a cover for the fact that he's meeting with a member of the Free French.

Place a sugar cube in a champagne glass and saturate with Angostura bitters. Crush the sugar cube and make sure it is well combined with the bitters. Fill glass with chilled champagne, and imbibe. Pairs well with celebrations of all kinds and the film Casablanca.


It's also worthwhile to quote The Savoy Cocktail Book from 1930 with recipes compiled by Harry Craddock:


Put into a wine glass one lump of Sugar, and saturate it with Angostura Bitters. Having added to this 1 lump of Ice, fill the glass with Champagne, squeeze on top a piece of lemon peel, and serve with a slice of orange.