Cherry Bounce

Door County cherry season is here, so let's part course with the Around America Series for a recipe for sour cherry cordial, classically known since as far back as 1690s as cherry bounce. This fruit-filled concoction made its way to the United States, like many things in our history, through England. Originally this infusion was made from brandy and cherries, which I'm sure is the method of most of our Korbel-loving northerners, but since Cindy isn't a tremendous fan of cherries or brandy, we are going to use the sweet woodiness of bourbon. 

Strawberry Top Vodka

 Ah, it's almost strawberry season. Whether you pick your own or just buy from the local farmstands or grocery stores, most likely you'll take them home, wash them up, cut the tops off them and toss some sugar on them. Shortly thereafter, you'll throw the tops in the garbage.

Stop! Don't do it. Instead, why not do what any decent Lounge Lizard should do- chuck those tops into vodka to make strawberry top vodka! How do you do it? Here's how.

Grab yourself a large mason jar with a lid. Cut the tops off a pound of strawberries (about 1 cup). Throw the tops into the mason jar. Add 1 1/4 cups of vodka to the jar (we used French Vanilla Ciroc). Shake. Sit the jar in cool, dark place for two days. At the end of that time, strain the vodka and now toss the tops in the trash (any fruit parts of the top should be a zombified white color). Store final product for a week in the fridge. Don't forget to drink it, it will go off in time.

Here's a fun drink that you can try with strawberry top vodka-

Strawberry Blonde Russian (Holly's Original)

2 ounces strawberry top vodka (we used infused French Vanilla Ciroc)
1 1/2 ounces Kahlua (we alternate with Kamora Coffee Liqueur)
1 ounce Irish cream (we use Five Farms)

Build over ice in an old fashioned glass. Either stir all ingredients to combine or stir the vodka and Kahlua first and float the Irish cream on top. We like both preparations. 

Bigfork, Montana, Part 2

After having a Huckleberry Fizz at The Raven on the shores of Flathead Lake in northern Montana, it piqued our interest in the gin used in the drink: Whistling Andy’s Pink Peppercorn & Pear Gin. We found Whistling Andy’s in a small, mostly non-descript distillery storefront only five miles north of The Raven in Bigfork itself.

Whistling Andy’s look maybe be low-key, but its spirits are not. Big flavors abound in its generous four-glass flight of liquor. We snared two flights, one a piece, with seven different kinds of spirits: their typical whiskey, their bourbon, a harvest-select whiskey, their peppercorn & pear gin, their cucumber gin, their hibiscus coconut rum, and their Spirit of Sperry (which, of course, is their huckleberry vodka).

Their whiskeys were young, but very well-crafted; I found the harvest-select whiskey to be a grain flavor that wasn’t my favorite, but I could see how other people would enjoy it. The cucumber gin and coconut rum were fine examples of their kind; both with bold flavor. But the bottles we bought were the peppercorn & pear gin and the Sperry vodka!

I know what you’re thinking- Vodka in the Lounge? Well, this vodka was darn good, imparting a whisper of huckleberry love on each snip. In addition, the vodka’s electric pink color would be a welcome part of any Valentine’s Day couple’s aperitif.

I will leave you a cocktail from Whistling Andy’s distillery bar-

Drink: Bear Bait

Establishment: Whistling Andy

Location: Bigfork, Montana

1 ½ ounces of huckleberry vodka (or another berry vodka you have on hand)

2 bar spoons of huckleberry jam

½ ounce fresh-squeezed lime juice

Soda

Add vodka, jam and lime juice to a shaker with ice, shake until the tin frosts. Pour without straining into an iced Collins glass. Top with soda water. 

Cape Codder

In the midst of one of the coldest snaps to hit Wisconsin in a generation, we came across a tidbit of alcohol trivia on the internet. The claim was that 80 proof vodka freezes at -17 degrees. Sceptical as always, we thought that we might as well do an experiment ourselves, given that we still had a night left of -20-something temperatures.


So we poured Smirnoff into our round rubber molds and placed the tray outside for approximately twelve hours of temperatures well under -17. Verdict? Well, in the end we had four slushie one-inch diameter vodka ice balls. Not really what any Lounge Lizard would call frozen. Using a spoon, though, I could get them in their semi-round state into cranberry juice for a fun Cape Codder. I believe we would have greater success with much smaller cubes or by placing the vodka in a thin layer on a metal sheet pan, but, realistically, vodka frozen at -20 temperatures doesn’t have much practical cocktailing use. If you really need to freeze booze, liquid nitrogen is the way to go!

Cape Codder

Classic Pour

3 parts cranberry juice

2 parts vodka

Usually a Cape Codder is shaken on ice and garnished with a lime wedge. We just dropped our vodka slushie ice balls into cranberry juice and stirred!

Summer Morning

If there is a neglected liquor on the shelves of the Firewater Lounge, it’s vodka. Since most Wisconsin vodkas have consisted of artificial fruit flavor, synthetic dyes, and isopropyl alcohol (take your dad’s dusty bottle of Mohawk lime vodka, for instance). Since we solely use vodka to drink straight (like Zubrowka) or heighten the alcohol percentage in a drink here, we tend to only sparingly use high-quality vodkas that taste as clean as possible.

This summer season, however, started with a flavored vodka kick. We had been drinking grapefruit crema in the spring, but since we don’t have a ready supply of Tattersall liquors in southern Wisconsin yet, we switched to Deep Eddy grapefruit vodka. Combining 7up with Deep Eddy grapefuit makes for fine, quick 1-to-1 summer fare. If you are up for experimenting with Deep Eddy for bunch or tiki, let us suggest the following recipe:

Summer Morning Cocktail
Holly’s Original

2 ounces dark rum (we used Plantation)
1 ½ ounces triple sec
1 ounce Deep Eddy grapefruit vodka
3 ounces orange-mango juice
1 ounce pineapple juice
Splash freshly-squeezed lime juice
3 heavy dashes Angostura bitters

Shake all ingredients well in an iced shaker. Strain into summer stemware. Garnish with lime twist or spanked mint leaves or both.

Dallas, Part III

The next day always comes too quickly when you are on vacation, drinking or not. But since we still had a day (and night) to be in Dallas, we sure as hell weren’t going to waste it. So we added M.R. to the venerable gentleman mix (he was our host, by the way) and headed to the beer garden/honky-tonk/cheesesteak stand/tree house known as the Truck Yard. From the aforementioned odd combination of destinations might suggest, the Truck Yard has a little something for everyone’s inner child and a lot of charismatic low-brow awesomeness. And the steak rocks. Let’s just say, at the Truck Yard, you are not going to be served diet food. Given the amounts of ribeye and cheese I was about to ingest in the Texas heat, water seemed like a good choice before booze. The wait staff, who had been slaving over hot flat top grills all day, kept their spirits by their rapid-fire good-natured chiding of each customer in line. Lord knows I should have never dropped the obviously ‘you-ain’t-from-here-are-ya-boy’ phrase, “I could stand some water.” The cashier is probably still shaking her head, laughing.

Boston, Part 3

After spending the better part of the day wandering Boston’s Freedom Trail in the hot sun, we ventured back to Quincy Market for some late night chow.  Lucky for us, most of the market’s restaurants were open, which still granted us a wide variety of fare. Sated, we went back to the hotel to freshen up a bit and contemplate whether we should hit the town once more before going back to Wisconsin. Obviously (since I’m writing Part III), that contemplation ended in a willing but measured affirmative.

Boston, Part 2

At the end of our last post, we had just left Drink, the warehouse cellar of mixology, and was immediately assaulted by the coarse Atlantic air, now a brisk 50-something degrees and whipping. Cindy had a lead on a bar and bartender at the Ritz-Carlton; luckily, the bar is known for its blazing eye-level fireplace, unluckily, it was still a mile walk away! Comforted by the fact that we are Wisconsinites still acclimated to continental old-man-winter, we sauntered down Altantic Avenue and up Essex to the Ritz’s bar, the Avery.

Russell Edgington Cocktail

After seven seasons, they finally stuck a stake through the heart of True Blood. It probably went on three season too long, but the last season was well worth watching as the vamp-laden southern soap returned to its blood-soaked and sexy roots. Since it was an admirable summertime time-waster for so long, we wouldn't let it leave the Domain without a night cap at the Firewater Lounge. I happened to have some spicy purple jalapenos that had turned red on the tips, so I grabbed a muddler and a glass and I made something hot and bloody, just like Russell Edgington would have loved.

Russell Edgington Cocktail
Holly's Original

2 ounces of chilled vodka (try V1)
3 ounces of chilled Efferve blood orange energy water
2 dashes Peychaud's bitters
Jalapeno peppers

In a rocks glass or square coupe, muddle a couple of seeded jalapenos in a half ounce of chilled vodka to taste. Add ice if desired. Pour in remaining vodka and Efferve; stir gently. Add two dashes of New Orleans Peychaud's bitters to float. Do not stir. Enjoy.

Black-Eyed Susan

Unfortunately, the Preakness is somewhat the ugly step-sister of the Triple Crown races- its in the middle, doesn’t have the tradition of the Kentucky Derby, and doesn’t have the million eyes on it if there is a possible Triple Crown winner like New York’s Belmont Stakes does. However, Maryland does have one thing going for it- they know how to drink. The only state whose college students routinely top Wisconsin college students in binge drinking, Maryland has the liver for the Preakness to live up to. Hence, the Preakness offers the Black-Eyed Susan.

Rapid City, South Dakota

Drink: Roosevelt's Rough Rider
Establishment: Murphy's Pub & Grill
Location: Rapid City, South Dakota
First Connoisseur: Holly

2 1/2 ounces of Patron Café (we used Cabo Diablo)
1 1/2 ounces Absolut Vanilla Vodka
Tallgrass Buffalo Sweat Sweet Stout
Splash of cream
Splash of soda water

Fill a pint glass with ice. Build, starting with the Patron, vodka, and cream. Stir well with a bar spoon. Add a splash of soda water. Top with refrigerated Buffalo Sweat. Stir a couple of gentle revolution. Since this drink contains cream, don't let it sit for long - it will curdle.

South Dakota is not really a drinking mecca; drinking in the tourist trap that is downtown Rapid City means drinking domestic and Colorado craft beers. And although Murphy's Pub & Grill's idea of cocktails are mostly just large versions of shooters, the Rough Rider is a bit different in that its cousin is the classic Colorado Bulldog - only with tequila and beer. Yeah, it's that down-home, but for only $6 a pint, who's complaining?

Don's Mix, part 2

We introduced you to Don the Beachcomber in September last year, but actually this is the season for his Tiki sensations like the Zombie and Mai Tai. We absolutely love to pour Zombies at the Lounge; we even go so far as to make virgin Zombies for the kids. There is a problem, however. You need Don's mix for a perfect Zombie (see our recipe for the Zombie and Don's Mix here).

Harvey Wallbanger

If you hang around the Lounge long enough, you notice that not that much vodka is drank. It's not that vodka sucks, it's that good vodka doesn't add much to cocktails in terms of taste or alcohol. Beside our variations on the Russian, the Lance Romance, the Crash Cart Cocktail, and Harvey Wallbanger, vodka gathers dust here. So does Galliano, as I mentioned in the 30 Essentials Series. Why not bring them together for a classic. Mix master Donato 'Duke' Antone invented the Harvey Wallbanger in the 1950s when vodka began its reign as king of base spirits (a reign that was to last about forty years). Antone is also credited with one of my top 10 favorite drinks, the Rusty Nail, and one of Cindy's top drinks (and the Dude's), the almighty White Russian. Well, if you've never drank one, here's the pour...

Essential Liquor #27

#27) Irish Cream - Every Wisconsin Winterfest, approximately 15 winters, has had Baileys in the fridge (or two). Core to the cement mixer tradition at Winterfest III, Baileys continued to be integral in party feature drinks from the Abortion to the Slippery Nipple to the immortal Jedi Mind Trick. Joe might wince at the $20 price tag for Baileys, but really the other Irish creams are not as consistent in mixing as Baileys. Carolans is close, but doesn't quite deliver the honey thickness. O'Darby's is nice, but adds a hint of chocolate that clashes with some recipes. Just buy Bailey's and be done.

Essential Liquor #24

#24) Frangelico - Here Joe is looking at a $20 or so bottle of liqueur. But, hey, coffee has been very popular through the 1990s-2000s, especially with women and few liqueurs love coffee like Frangelico.

Essential Liquor #18

#18 Coffee Liqueur - Like vodka (and unlike other liqueurs), coffee liqueur comes in a variety of brands, sweetness, and textures. The Firewater Lounge has stocked several tasty ones including the smooth-textured Kahlua, the affordable Kamora, the bitter Starbucks, the lighter Tia Maria, and the overproof Sabra. Obviously, Joe's choice would have to be the sweet and versatile Kamora, a mainstay at the Lounge since 1995.

Essential Liquor #17

#17) Stoli Vodka - Of course we have a grand selection of vodka brands to chose from for our common Joe, from Smirnoff to Vox to Skyy to Absolut to Grey Goose to Belvedere and countless others, we picked Stolichnaya for its clean taste and affordable price. Tastes and price vary, of course, so find your favorite and buy it.

Essential Liquor #16

#16) Peach Schnapps - Our first true schnapps on the list is a ladies' staple. It is absolutely necessary for the classic girl intoxicators such as the Fuzzy Navel, Sex on the Beach,and the Red Headed Slut. Unlike many of its ilk, peach is a versatile schnapps, just remember that a little goes a long way.

Essential Liquor #6

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

Welcome to The Firewater Lounge

In a response to our bar book, Stiff had made a request that I simply couldn’t refuse- list the top 30 essential liquors you need to have in your bar. Believe it or not, it actually was easier than I thought. I stuck to three rules: 1) The average Joe should be able to purchase the booze without taking a second mortgage out on the house, 2) Beer, wine, and champagne are not liquors, 3) Versatility matters.

Now, in teaser style, we are going to give you the first three liquors in this post and then unveil them a liquor at a time until we get to thirty! Each post we’ll give you a new drink that can be made from the growing list of liquors. So empty the change from your couch cushions, get to Woodman’s, and buy…