Fat Tuesday – Mardi Gras is February 5th

Q: A reader asks, What’s the deal with Mardi Gras?

A: Mardi Gras or “Fat Tuesday” is the day before Ash Wednesday. It is the final day of Carnival, but incorrectly Mardi Gras has come to include the weeks proceeding Fat Tuesday as well. The most famous US Mardi Gras celebration is held in New Orleans with many others held around Louisiana, the Gulf States, Europe and Latin America with huge celebrations in Rio de … Read more

What’s the deal with Mardi Gras?

Q: What’s the deal with Mardi Gras?

A: Mardi Gras or “Fat Tuesday” is the day before Ash Wednesday. It is the final day of Carnival, but incorrectly Mardi Gras has come to include the weeks proceeding Fat Tuesday as well. The most famous US Mardi Gras celebration is held in New Orleans with many others held around Louisiana, the Gulf States, Europe and Latin America with huge celebrations in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and … Read more

Great White

This week we feature a new rum drink sent in by Jennifer. The mix of spiced rum, vanilla, coconut milk and nutmeg makes me think back to warm Caribbean afternoons siting on the beach and drinking one of these.

Ingredients

1 ½ oz spiced rum
¾ oz vanilla syrup (like the kind used in coffee drinks)
3 oz coconut milk
Dash of nutmeg (garnish)

Instructions

Combine the rum, vanilla syrup, and coconut milk in a … Read more

Super Drinks for the Super Bowl

The big game is coming up and, as always, that entails a great day of football, food, and fun. Oh, yeah, and that means cocktails as well! We have a bunch of new football related cocktails to help you get through the half time show.

Enjoy!

The Kentucky Draw

Three fingers of Knob Creek Bourbon on the rocks.

The Napoleon Sneak

1 ½ parts Courvoisier Classic Cognac
Ice filled to the brim

Even more super … Read more

Alcohol – An Ancient Medicine

Great article from Natalie Angier of the New York Times that discuses some of the scientific and sociological reasons for human-kinds love of alcohol.

Every human culture recorded has fermented some sort of beer, wine or spirit. According to Angier, even the first chocolate drinks were fermented, which certainly gives new meaning to the word “chocoholic.”

Back in the day sanitation wasn’t always so good, so people used booze to kill bacteria. It seems that … Read more

A Super Bowl Bourbon Feast

Our friends at Maker’s Mark sent us these Bourbon soaked recipes for the ultimate Super Bowl party. As the kick-off countdown commences, leave the boring chips and dip on the bench and add some serious flavor to the and, and with that we mean Bourbon Whisky!

It’s all here, Drinks, Appetizers and Main Dishes to get you through the pre-game, game and post-game fun.

 
 
Mark  Club
Ingredients

2 oz Maker’s Mark
Club Soda

Instructions

Fill … Read more

Spanish Coffee

DOTW reader Gini was wondering what the right ingredients were for a Spanish Coffee. We did a bit of
digging and found that Gini was on the right track with the recipe she sent us:

Ingredients

1 oz cognac or brandy
1 oz Kahlúa
Fill with strong coffee
Whipped cream on top (optional)

Instructions

Serve in a large espresso glass or footed mug.

We also found several variations on the theme including one that replaces … Read more

Fresh Juice – Bartending Tips

If you need a New Year’s resolution, we recommend vowing to use fresh juices in our cocktails whenever possible. This means buying fresh lemons, limes, and other citrus and hand squeezing the fruit for every libation. Although these is some elbow grease required, you guests and your tastebuds will thank you.

Of course, if you don’t have the resolve, most supermarkets these days carry a dizzying variety of fresh juice. So go crazy and experiment! … Read more

Canton Ginger & Cognac Liqueur Review

Recently introduced to the US, Canton – Indochine Originale, is a modern interpretation ginger-infused elixirs created in French Indochina during the 19th century. Canton is a super-premium ginger liqueur, handcrafted from an infusion of cognac with rare baby ginger, ginseng, vanilla beans, and a touch of honey.

The bottle, made to resemble a bamboo stalk, is one of the more creative we’ve seen.

The nose is unmistakably ginger. It does overpower, but I love it.… Read more

Eggs – Cocktail Food

Eggs are one of the best drinking foods around. They were common fare at most bars a hundred years ago. They were served hardboiled with salt or picked in a vinegar brine.

What makes the egg so special? An egg is packed full of protein in the whites, while the yolk contains fats (the OK ones) and other good-for-you nutrients. Eggs even contain the amino acid, cysteine, that helps to battle the effects of the … Read more