Essential Liquor #10

#10) Benedictine- This herbal liqueur is a relative newcomer to the Firewater Lounge, but an old Wisconsin favorite. Given that the other monastic liqueurs like Izarra, Claristine, and the immortal Chartreuse are notably absent from Sconnie shelves, why is Benedictine so popular in the rural supper clubs?

Essential Liquor #9

9) Parfait Amour- Parfait what? Our second headscratcher of the list. Seriously though, if you have partied at our pad in the last three years, this sweet concoction of oranges, flower blossoms, and Madagascar vanilla goes down like water. In addition to its taste, its royal purple hue is beyond compare. Parfait Amour is the main player in such Lounge inventions as the Midnight Cherry Popper and the Savannah Night. To stock Winterfest, we are buying three bottles at a time!

Essential Liquor #8

#8) Disaronno Amaretto- If you plan to entertain women, Disaronno needs to be in the bar. The sweet palate of almond lends itself to all kinds of wonderful concoctions- including the Firewater Lounge classic Pineapple Bomb. Disaronno might be a bit pricey for Joe, but the ladies are worth it. If you Mohawk it, you’ll taste nothing but simple sugar, which you can make from sugar and water for pennies.

Essential Liquor #7

#7) Triple Sec- Historically, its name meant ‘triple dry,’ this orange liqueur was less sweet than regular curacao. At the bar of the common Joe, cost-effective triple sec is simply blue curacao without the color. Why is it important?

Essential Liquor #6

#6) Blue Curacao - Pronounced cure-a-so, this sugary orange flavored liqueur should be chosen, not by brand, but by color.

Essential Liquor #5

#5) Herbsaint- Never heard of it? Well, it’s got to be in your bar. Louisiana in the 1800s was the U.S. king of absinthe. Then the government decided to ban absinthe for nearly 100 years from 1915-2007. So, in 1934, an enterprising tag team of J.M. Legendre and Reginald Parker of New Orleans created absinthe without its offending ingredient- wormwood. Of course, the government stormed back in to stop this absinthe too. So they simply changed the name to Herbsaint. In my opinion, it’s tastier that anything the French have.

Essential Liquor #4

#4) A single malt scotch- Everyone is going to have a favorite here. Smokiness, sweetness, and varying amounts of peat drive the myriad of favors of single malt scotch. My favorites tend to be sweeter, Dalwhinnie and The Glenrothes being among them, by virtue of my predilection of Rusty Nails. The one I would recommend here is The Glenlivet 12 year. It is a solid scotch for most scotch drinkers and, for $35, it is cheap enough to mix.