Category Archives: Brandy

  • Mixology Monday XCII Cocktail: Persephone

    December 15, 2014

    7 Comments

    perp5Wow, its been a while since our last post. And we have some good reasons for that…we will fill everyone in over the next few months. Let’s just say that our interest in cocktails is going to a whole new level, and a larger audience than our ever-patient family and friends.

    mxmologoRegardless, we never tire of experimenting with cocktails, so it is good to get back into the swing with Mixology Monday. We are big fans of this month’s theme of “apples” from Fred Yarm of the grandaddy of all cocktail blogs, Cocktail Virgin Slut. (Fred, it looks like we are following in your footsteps a bit). So here is the breakdown of the theme:

    Apples have been an American booze staple with Johnny Appleseed as its symbolic hero. John Chapman became that legend by planting apple tree nurseries across the northern Appalachia and the Midwest. He did not choose grafting techniques to reproduce sweet edible ones, but bred them to make sour apples perfect for cider and applejack. Michael Pollan inThe Botany of Desire proclaimed, “Really, what Johnny Appleseed was doing and the reason he was welcome in every cabin in Ohio and Indiana was he was bringing the gift of alcohol to the frontier. He was our American Dionysus.” Apple products began to enter into the mixed drink literature in the 19th century with the Stone Fence appearing in Jerry Thomas’ Bartender Guide and got quite refined by the end of the century such as the Widow’s Kiss in George Kappeler’s Modern American Drinks. Indeed, apples have found their way into modern cocktails via Calvados, applejack, sparkling and still cider, apple butter, and muddled apple.

    perpGreat theme, and we immediately knew that we would be doing an applejack cocktail. Applejack (American apple brandy) was once a staple booze in American mixology and is one of our favorite classic cocktail ingredients. Laird’s Bonded is always in our bar and the basis for our favorite riff on the Old Fashioned (applejack, rye, sugar, tiki bitters or allspice dram). But since this is Mixology Monday, we looked for something new to try.

    perp2We immediately went to the PDT Cocktail Book, as it features a number of applejack cocktails, and quickly found the Persephone. Besides our enjoyment of the mythological name (we are geeks for mythology here at the Farm), the Persephone cocktail uses vermouth along with the basic ingredients of a sour. One of our all-time favorite cocktails, the Scofflaw, uses this construct (albeit with dry, rather than sweet vermouth)- so we decided to give Persephone a try.perp1

    perp3Persephone didn’t disappoint. A combination of applejack, sloe gin, sweet vermouth, lemon and simple syrup, Persephone had a dry start from the applejack before you get to the sweet sloe gin, lemon and sugar, but finishes with a delightful herbal and almost sarsaparilla note from the vermouth. The original recipe suggests Dolin vermouth, but we used Carpano Antica for extra depth and that “rooty” flavor. We have since tried this cocktail with the Dolin- it is smoother and a bit sweeter, but also excellent. Your choice, we think you will be happy either way. Continue reading →

  • Mixology Monday XC Cocktail: The Barrel-Aged Vieux Carre’

    October 17, 2014

    2 Comments

    carre6Wow, time flies. Between a delightful trip back east and going to Giants playoff games, it has been a month since our last post (yes, we are slacking). Giants baseball seems to do this to us every even year. And while we are a bit tired of ballpark food and beer, we are ecstatic about the games themselves. Our boys were at the game when Travis Ishikawa hit a walk-off home run to win the pennant. A memory we can all share for the rest of our lives. Simply Awesome!

    mxmologoMeanwhile, we are happy that Mixology Monday is getting us back to the blog. This month we are hosted by Joel of the Southern Ash blog. We are fans of Southern Ash, and the theme of “Balance” doesn’t disappoint. Here are the details:

    Perfect symmetry is your theme this month!  A “perfect” drink splits the liquor or liqueur evenly between two related ingredients.  The most common “perfect” drink is a Perfect Manhattan where the vermouth is split between sweet and dry to create an altogether different experience.  A perfect Old Fashioned splits the bourbon and rye are both used to create a singularly distinct experience. When done well, splitting the liquor lets each of the unique flavors and components of the shine through.  Because they share a background, they don’t war with each other but instead you get both the mellow sweetness of the bourbon with the spicy backbone of the rye in that Old Fashioned… Why make a choice when you can have it all?! Your challenge is to create a new cocktail or explore an existing cocktail that splits the liquor or liqueur evenly in a “perfect” manner…  Can you challenge yourself with gin and vodka in a light summer appropriate beverage?  Perhaps you’ll delve deep into splitting Sambuca and ouzo in an anise-flavored digestive? Getting bored with tequila, maybe a perfect margarita with the backbone of mezcal will reawaken your appreciation? Campari too assertive for you?  Maybe make a Perfect Negroni with Aperol lightening the weight. Let you imagination run wild!

    carreNow, normally, we aren’t fans of the term “balance” when discussing cocktails (and wine). All too often it just means “what I like”. But in this case, the idea of balanced ingredients and ratios is excellent. It also happens that we already had a very “balanced” cocktail in the works, the Vieux Carre’….even better, a barrel-aged Vieux Carre’ (that’s why we were already working on it).

    carre1carre2For those of you unfamiliar with the Vieux Carre’ it’s essentially New Orleans’ version of the Manhattan. But like many riffs on the Manhattan, this is might be better than the original. The Vieux Carre’ includes equal parts Cognac (or Armagnac, if you are cheap like us), rye whiskey and sweet vermouth along with equal parts of Angostura and Peychaud’s bitters, a welcome splash of Benedictine and a lemon twist. What you get is something that tastes like a Manhattan but with much more spice from the rye, vermouth and bitters yet smoother flavor from the brandy and Benedictine. And smooth is the word here. When you hear New Orleans called “The Big Easy”, we think that description fits the Vieux Carre’ even more than the Sazerac. Continue reading →