lemon peel

Lapel Piece

/ Dani DeLuna / Leave a comment

Lapel-Piece-1

Ladies and Gents, I’ve had a great time making cocktails for Irish Whiskey Month with all of you! As we roll through the last week of March, I’ve got a really killer cocktail with Teeling Single Grain that is both smooth and floral. Let’s step to it!

Oh but first, if you wanna join the party, use the hashtag #IrishWhiskeyMonth on Instagram and I’ll repost your photo! The only rule is that you have to include Irish Whiskey in your cocktail.

Lapel-Piece-2

What do we say here at Home Bar Girl? “Don’t forget to stirrrrrr, stirring is zen y’all.” Yeaaaah man. Stir til you gaze out the window and grab yer prettiest coupe.

Lapel-Piece-3

Cast of Characters:

  1. My intention for this cocktail was to create a Manhattan variation to go with Teeling Single Grain Irish Whiskey. This Whiskey has berry & honey notes which definitely made me think of…
  2. Montenegro! What goes better with honey than flowers? Amaro Montenegro is the perfect spring Amari and I felt like its floral notes were apropos.
  3. Initially, I made this drink with Italian Vermouth but switched it because Dolin Rouge is lighter in body than its Italian counterparts. Manhattan variations can be really tricky because you are working with so few ingredients and I didn’t want the Vermouth to overpower the other two ingredients in the drink.

Lapel-Piece-4

What do gentlemen frequently put in the lapel of their suit in the spring? A flower.

Lapel Piece 

  • 2 oz Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey
  • 1/2 oz Amaro Montenegro
  • 1/2 oz Dolin Rouge Vermouth
  • Garnish: Lemon peel

Combine ingredients over ice and stirrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Strain into chilled coupe, express Lemon peel and garnish.

Lapel-Piece-5

Cheers y’all!

Advertisement

Brigid’s Miracle

/ Dani DeLuna / Leave a comment

Brigid's-Miracle-5

Happy Pi Day everyone! Spring has sprung in North America during this glorious Irish Whiskey Month! All the new green grass and freshly budding leaves have inspired me to create an herbaceous cocktail with Teeling Single Grain Whiskey.

If you wanna join the party, use the hashtag #IrishWhiskeyMonth on Instagram and I’ll repost your photo! The only rule is that you have to include Irish Whiskey in your cocktail.

Brigid's-Miracle-4

Basking in the sunlight, she reached for her stirring glass and copper tools. She poured the ingredients in, added ice, and began to stir. She gazed thoughfully out the window, “Why has that man decided to wear flip-flops? This is New York City. You can’t wear flip-flops on the streets in this town!” 

Suddenly, she remembered that she was stirring a cocktail and stopped the motion of her right hand with a flick of the wrist. She grabbed the julep strainer, poured the cocktail into a coupe, and said to herself, “Gurrrl, it’s ok. He must be from out of town and has no idea that flip-flops are the most dangerous footwear he could have chosen.”

She took a sip and smiled. Her thoughts drifted far away.

Brigid's-Miracle-3

Here are the glorious ingredients for this springiest of spring libations. What posessed me to put these flavors together? Well…

I had one goal: I really wanted to have St. George Absinthe (anise, lemon grass, grassiness, herbaceous glory), Chartreuse Jaune (flowers, honey, flowers, saffron, flowers, etc), and Teeling Single Grain (berries, grains, honey, wonderfulness) hang out in the same glass. The Dolin Dry was for length and for awesomeness. Dolin Dry is always awesome.

Brigid's-Miracle-6

I’ve decided to put some of my St. George Absinthe in a small bottle so I can use it by drops from a pipette. I considered using an Absinthe rinse, but didn’t want to waste any of it and wanted to control how much flavor it contributed to the drink. Accuracy is key when using small amounts of Absinthe.

Brigid's-Miracle-2

I wanted the presentation for this drink to be as simple and inviting as possible and so have chosen to discard the peel. If you’d like to keep the peel in the drink, go for it!

Brigid’s Miracle

  • 1 1/2 oz Teeling Single Grain Irish Whiskey
  • 1/2 oz Dolin Dry
  • 1/4 oz Chartreuse Jaune
  • 15 drops St. George Absinthe Verte (1. 5 dashes)
  • Garnish: Lemon peel expressed and discarded

Combine ingredients over ice and stirrrrrrr (until you gaze out the window and lose yourself in the moment. Remember stirring is Zen.). Strain into chilled coupe. Express Lemon peel and discard.

Brigid's-Miracle-1

The name of this drink is a nod to one of the patron saints of Ireland and a symbol of spring: Brigid of Kildare. May all your cocktails be marvelous and your #IrishWhiskeyMonth be sensational!

Revivalist Punch

/ Dani DeLuna / Leave a comment

Revivalist-Punch-1

Alright, alright, alright. We’re rolling deep with this Irish Whiskey Month party, deep into the late 19th Century! I’ve got another take on a Classic Cocktail for y’all, so let’s dive right in.

If you wanna join the fun, use the hashtag #IrishWhiskeyMonth on Instagram and I’ll repost your photo! The only rule is that you have to include Irish Whiskey in your cocktail. I’ll be using Teeling Small Batch and Single Grain Whiskies cause I am waaaay into them.

Revivalist-Punch-4

To prep for all these Irish Whiskey drinks, I’ve been reading through the Whiskey recipes on Martin’s Index of Cocktails and Mixed Drinks. (iOS only) If you don’t have this app, I STRONGLY RECOMMEND it! Over 2,000 drinks from the mid 19th-early 20th centuries! It’s like a historical index of cocktails!

At some point I stumbled across a recipe for a “Genuine Whiskey Punch” from 1891 with Whiskey, Lemon Juice, Gum Syrup, and Jamaican Rum as a float. INTERESTING! Then I found another recipe called “Whiskey Punch” from 1917 with Whiskey, Pineapple Gum Syrup, Red Vermouth, and Lemon Juice.

Revivalist-Punch-3

Cast of Characters:

  1. I decided to riff on the 1917 recipe considering that I have Pineapple Gum Syrup…
  2. and the Teeling Single Grain has a lot of berry notes which go well with
  3. Quinta Infantado Ruby Port. I decided to swap Red Vermouth for this Port cause it’s both a bit sweet and dry at the same time. It also has mad berry notes that reinforce the berry notes in Teeling Single Grain.

Revivalist-Punch-2

Y’all know I’m obsessed with Punches, so if you wanna make this into a large format Punch: scale up, add water to taste, and chill before serving.

Revivalist Punch

  • 1 1/2 oz Teeling Single Grain Irish Whiskey
  • 1/2 oz Quinta Infantado Ruby Port (dry Ruby Port)
  • 1/2 oz Pineapple Gomme Syrup
  • 1/2 oz Lemon Juice
  • Garnish: Lemon peel Rose, Luxardo Maraschino Cherry

Combine ingredients over ice and shake hard. Strain into a fancy tumbler with ice and garnish.

Revivalist-Punch-5

Hope y’all enjoy Revivalist Punch! Have an excellent #IrishWhiskeyMonth!

Sukkah Hill Spirits: Etrog Cocktail

/ Dani DeLuna / 1 Comment

Etrog-Cocktail-1

Last week, I reviewed and created a recipe for the fabulously spiced Besamim Liqueur from Sukkah Hill Spirits. Today, I am just as excited to talk about their Etrog Liqueur. For Besamim, I was like, “Oh my god you need to get this right now!” For Etrog I’m like, “NO SERIOUSLY, YOU HAVE TO GET THIS RIGHT NOW!”

You may be thinking, “gurrrrrl, that’s a lot of enthusiasm for a Monday morning.” Whatever man, once you try these two liqueurs, you’ll understand.

Etrog-Liqueur

Sukkah Hill Spirits were started by the Witkins, a couple who live in Los Angeles. They were making batches of Liqueurs for friends and family, when a store put in a request for their amazing products. Now they have a 5000 sq ft facility and the rest is history.

You may be wondering, “what does the word Etrog mean?” Well, Etrog is actually a highly prized type of citrus from Israel. They are traditionally used during the holiday of Sukkot, a hebrew word meaning “Tabernacles”. If you think Sukkot sounds like Sukkah, you’re right, the first is the plural of the second.

Etrog Liqueur is made from a blend of Etrog citrus grown in the Sequoia foothills of California and pure cane sugar Spirit in small batches. It is gluten free, vegan, and Kosher for Passover.

Etrog Tasting Notes:

  • Nose: Something like a magical Meyer Lemon hits you first, with supporting notes of lemon verbena, citrine herbs, and floral notes.
  • Taste: Firstly candied Lemon, then loads of wonderfully complex herbal notes. Flowers, honey, and pepper all make entrances.
  • Finish: Excellent viscosity, really warming finish.
  • Overall: HOT DAMN. Etrog is so exciting! It is sweet but there is so much going on here that it’s not boring at all. For cocktails, my first thought was “GIN!” though I know it will go very well with Blanco Tequila. I would also drink this as an aperitif over ice or long with club soda.

Etrog-Cocktail-2

As with the Besamim post, I am going to feature one cocktail for the introductory Etrog post. This drink really lets the Etrog showcase all of its beautiful flavors in a stirred format.

Etrog-Cocktail-4

Here are your cast of characters: Etrog Liqueur, Plymouth Gin, dry Junmai Ginjo Saké.

Etrog-Cocktail-3

Ladies and gentlemen, get ready to taste something truly divine.

Etrog Cocktail

  • 3/4 oz Sukkah Hill Spirits Etrog Liqueur
  • 1 1/4 oz Plymouth Gin
  • 1 1/4 oz Junmai Ginjo Saké (sub: dry, floral Saké)
  • Garnish: Lemon peel

Combine ingredients over ice and stirrrrrrrrr. Strain into chilled coupe, express Lemon peel and garnish.

Etrog-Cocktail-5

Cheers. Sunny, floral, lemony, fabulous Cheers to you all! Thanks to Sukkah Hill Spirits for the bottle of Etrog Liqueur!

 

Citrus Oleo Saccharum & Sherbet #1

/ Dani DeLuna / 4 Comments

Citrus Sherbet 1

Punch. Punch is what’s happening and so my brain has been itching for a different kind of Sherbet to use in the Punches I’ll be making during the cold months. Lemon Sherbet is clearly the most useful and delightful thing ever, but there are more types of citrus in the world than just Lemon.

Hence, I have begun a quest to create a totally useful Citrus Sherbet. Today, I present Citrus Sherbet #1. Please bare with these iPhone photos, I wasn’t sure that this would turn out properly and didn’t photograph with my real camera. FORGIVE ME!

Processed with VSCOcam with kk1 preset

To start, I grabbed a few Lemons, an Orange, a Red Grapefruit and made an Oleo Saccharum with Cane Sugar.

Citrus Oleo Saccharum #1:

  • the peels of 3 Lemons
  • the peel of 1 Orange
  • the peel of 1 Red Grapefruit
  • 12 oz Cane Sugar
  1. Combine ingredients in a jar or other sealable container and muddle so that the oil is released from the peels.
  2. Let sit in the jar for several hours or overnight, shaking occasionally. You want a syrup to form from the Citrus oil and Sugar.

Citrus Sherbet 3

Then it’s time to make Citrus Sherbet #1.

To the Oleo Saccharum you will add:

  • 5 oz Lemon Juice
  • 4 oz Red Grapefruit Juice*
  • 3 oz Orange Juice

Add juices to jar with the Oleo Saccharum, cover, and shake until sugars have dissolved in juice. Remove peels from jar and strain Sherbet into an airtight container. Will keep for approx 2 weeks in the fridge.

*Not Ruby Red Grapefruit, just Red Grapefruit. The juice was still really tart which is important for Sherbet cause if your Sherbet is too sweet, your Punch is nasty.

Citrus Sherbet 4

Pretty, pretty peels. Luv u lil peelies.

Citrus Sherbet 2

Congrats! You’re done! You’ve got a tart, yet complex Citrus Sherbet and some delicious peels to use as garnishes in your Punches!

Punch for Two: Liberties Punch

/ Dani DeLuna / Leave a comment

The-Liberties-Punch-4

Yeahhhhhhhh, now that it’s Punch for Two season, I’m just gonna keep rocking and rolling with these tasty recipes. Today’s Punch features the undeniably delicious Teeling Single Grain Irish Whiskey in a classic format. I’m drooling just looking at the photos.

The-Liberties-Punch-6

As we discussed in the last Punch for Two post, I’ve been reading the totally hilarious and immensely practical book Punch by David Wondrich. Therefore, I’m trying to keep things classic, keeping the garnishes to a minimum, and perhaps most importantly, adding WATER.

It also means that I worked up the courage to tweet David Wondrich and ask if he’d ever used Teeling Small Batch Whiskey in a Punch. (Cause y’all, that shit is aged in RUM CASKS! Perfect for Punch!)

He replied that he had not and wanted to know how it turned it out. Teeling also weighed in and wanted to know the results of a Small Batch Punch. HOWEVER, I don’t have the Small Batch right now, I have the Single Grain, and while I don’t YET have a recipe for that, I do have a recipe for this!

The-Liberties-Punch-3

Here are our cast of characters for this most libertarian of Punches: Teeling Single Grain Irish Whiskey, Ruby Port, Lemon Sherbet (if you haven’t made this by now, I’m not sure if we can still be friends…), and Bittermen’s utterly fantastic Elemakule Tiki Bitters.

The-Liberties-Punch-1

Liberties Punch for Two (yields 2-3 servings per person)

  • 4 1/2 oz Teeling Single Grain Irish Whiskey
  • 1 1/2 oz Ruby Port
  • 1 1/2 oz Lemon Sherbet
  • 2 dashes Tiki Bitters
  • 3 oz Cold Water
  • Garnish: Lemon peels from the Oleo Saccharum

Combine ingredients in container and stir. Place in refrigerator for around an hour, til liquids have chilled. Serve in Punch cups with ice, garnish with Lemon peels from the Oleo Saccharum.

Yummmmmm. 🙂

The-Liberties-Punch-5

*I would like to point out that these three supporting elements make one of the best Punch bases I’ve tried.

Cheers to Teeling for their supremely delicious Whiskey and the Baddish Group for sending it to me.

Lemon Oleo Saccharum & Sherbet

/ Dani DeLuna / 9 Comments

Lemon Sherbet

Since Lemon Sherbet is my new fave cocktail ingredient, I thought I’d give it it’s own post. I configured this recipe based on instructions in Punch by David Wondrich, which holy shit, so many fabulous things in that book. GET IT NOWWWWW. It will change your liiiiife.

In order to make Lemon Sherbet, we must first make Lemon Oleo Saccharum, an old skool syrup made from Lemon peels and sugar.

Lemon Oleo Saccharum

  • The peels of 4 lemons
  • 8 oz superfine Sugar

Combine Lemon peels and Sugar in a jar and muddle. Let sit for several hours or overnight, shaking occasionally. You want a syrup to form from the Lemon Oil and sugar. Remove peels from jar. Save the peels for garnishes if you like.

Taste the jaw-dropping fabulousness. Your Cocktails will never be the same again.

Lemon Sherbet

  • Lemon Oleo Saccharum
  • 8 oz fresh, strained Lemon juice

Combine Oleo Saccharum and Lemon juice together and shake until all of the Sugar has dissolved and everything is swimming together nicely. Keep for around 2 weeks in the fridge.

Lemon Sherbet

Use Lemon Sherbet as often as possible, obvi, I have. You’ll never want to use Lemon Juice & Simple Syrup again. I swear to the stars! The concentrated flavor from the Lemon oil makes everything so much more rich.

Cheeeeeeers!

Ed Note: I’ve updated the recipe to say 1 cup of sugar for 4 Lemon peels, equaling 2 oz of Sugar per Lemon. This is a more favourable ratio. 

Fernet Francisco: the Great American Amaro

/ Dani DeLuna / 1 Comment

Fernet-Francisco-1

I am really pumped to write about this superb bottle of Fernet Francisco! I have been waiting to get my hands on this stuff for months y’all!

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I just went to the San Francisco Bay Area to visit my dad and have a nice, relaxing holiday. While I was there I took a lot of Dramatic Landscape Photos, drank ALL of the Wine, and got the incredible bottle of Fernet Francisco that you will have the privilege of looking at in the following photos.

Isn’t the label great? Totally dig it.

Fernet-Francisco-3

Fernet Francisco is made with 12 plants native to the San Francisco Bay Area in California. This makes me truly excited because: 1. I am from the Bay Area (duh, we get it gurl), 2. Using plants from a specific area will give a strong sense of Terroir, 3. I knew it had to be super complicated and tasty!

Fernet-Francisco-2

Due to the fact that I was taking my bottle on an airplane, I wasn’t able to taste it until I got back to Brooklyn. When I cracked it open, I was totally expecting to have a similar experience to that time I first smelled a bottle of St. George Spirits Terroir Gin (also made with botanicals from where I grew up. I cried.)…

…I didn’t cry but I was instantly transported back to the Bay Area through the wonderful aroma of Fernet Francisco!

Tasting Notes:

  • Nose: Mint hits you in the face with a really fresh and pleasant aroma, not like menthol, but more like you just spanked a Mint bouquet. Super duper fresh! This awesome Mint experience is followed by Eucalyptus, Bay Laurel, grasses and spices.
  • Taste: Chamomile, dryness, more Mint, Wild Fennel, Eucalyptus, Cinnamon, some other spices I can’t figure out.
  • Finish: very dry, very wide, woody somehow. I LOVE THE FINISH. Why do I love this dry-wide finish? Because I am always looking for a way to dry out Cocktails and Fernet Francisco is really going to do that.

Fernet-Francisco-&-Ginger

On the back, the recommended cocktail is The Francisco with 2 parts Fernet Francisco, 1 part Ginger Beer, and a squeeze of Citrus on the rocks.

The-Full-Winona-4

The first Cocktail I made with Fernet Francisco was what I like to call an “Amor y Amargo” type drink, where the only ingredients are Amari, Liqueurs, Vermouths, Bitters, etc. I knew I wanted to use Dolin Dry as the second ingredient, and from the back of my brain the word “CYNAR!” came shooting forth like a lightening bolt!

The Full Winona

  • 1 1/2 oz Fernet Francisco
  • 1 oz Dolin Dry
  • 1 oz Cynar
  • 2 dashes Regans’ Orange Bitters
  • Garnish: Lemon Peel

Combine ingredients over ice and stirrrrrrrr. Strain into double Rocks glass over ice. Express Lemon peel and garnish. Dark and complicated just like Winona Ryder and everyone’s relationship to her. Luv u gurl.

Russian-Hill-2

Next I knew that I wanted to make a Black Manhattan variation, swapping out the Averna for Fernet Francisco and adding some of those super complicated Hella Bitter Citrus Bitters. Y’all, this drink is MAGNIFICENT! It’s truly one of the greatest Manhattan variations I’ve ever tasted because the flavor arcs keep going and changing and oh my god! You take a sip and just sort of sit there for awhile, so your brain can process all the stuff that just happened.

Russian Hill

  • 1 1/2 oz Rittenhouse Rye
  • 3/4 oz Carpano Antica
  • 1/2 oz Fernet Francisco
  • 1 dash Hella Bitters Citrus Bitters
  • Garnish: Lemon twist

Combine ingredients over ice and stirrrrrrrr. Strain into coupe. Express Lemon peel and garnish. Why Russian Hill? Manhattan variations are usually named after a neighborhood/boro and Russian Hill is a San Francisco neighborhood where Fernet Francisco comes from.
The-Full-Winona-3

You can’t wait to get your hands on this Fernet Francisco, right? I can’t wait to drink another Russian Hill! Cheers to Fernet Francisco for creating a truly great American Amaro!

#NegroniWeek 2015 – Negroni Blanc

/ Dani DeLuna / 1 Comment

Negroni-Blanc-3

Welcome to #NegroniWeek 2015! Negroni Week is put on by Campari and Imbibe Magazine as a charity drive for bars and restaurants to participate in. You can find out all about it here.

We’ve done it! We’ve reached the end of Negroni Week! Did you have a good time? Make any good Negroni Variations? Did you totally run out of that Bottled Negroni that we made in a post from May 31st? I totally did.

Negroni-Blanc-1

If you’ve read this blog for awhile, then you know I love the Negroni Bianco in all its forms. I love sipping them on a sunny Sunday afternoon, while reading a good book, or sneaking one into the park. I love having one in place of a Martini when I want something a little less boozy and a little more flavourful. It seems only fitting that we end #NegroniWeek with this nice soothing variation.

Negroni-Blanc-4

The Negroni Blanc uses two white Vermouths instead of a Vermouth and a Gentian Liqueur (like Suze or Salers), a bit of Pernod Pastis, and one of my new favourite Gins, Berkshire Mountain Distillers Ethereal Gin Batch 11. I got this fabulous Gin whilst I was on vacation in the Berkshires a couple of weeks ago because it’s a totally awesome Modern American Gin. With notes of cinnamon & allspice in addition to the regular set of Gin botanicals and a viscosity that you can almost sink your teeth into, the BMD Ethereal Gin Batch 11 is perfect for the Negroni Blanc.

Negroni Blanc

  • 1 oz BMD Ethereal Gin Batch 11 (sub Greenhook Dry, Dorothy Parker, Hayman’s Old Tom)
  • 1 oz Dolin Blanc (sub Lillet Blanc)
  • 1 oz Carpano Dry (sub Dolin Dry)
  • 1 dash Pernod Pastis (sub Herbsaint, Pernod Absinthe)
  • Garnish: Lemon Peel

Combine ingredients over ice and stir. Strain into coupe. Express Lemon Peel and garnish.

Negroni-Blanc-2

Oh, and last night I got new vintage coupes! Beautiful eh? The wonderful people at Adaptations NY are now responsible for around half of my vintage glassware collection. Thanks y’all!

#NegroniWeek 2015 – Negroniac

/ Dani DeLuna / 1 Comment

Negroniac-2015-2

Welcome to #NegroniWeek 2015! The week where all we talk about, drink, and post recipes of are the infamous Negroni! Negroni Week is put on by Campari and Imbibe Magazine as a charity drive for bars and restaurants to participate in. You can read all about it here.

Now, if you haven’t read my post from May 31st about how I like to make and Bottle my Negroni, you best do that first, mmmk? Did you read it? Fabulous Did you not? wellllllll…

Negroniac-2015-3

The Negroniac is one of my all time favourite recipes that I’ve ever come up with. It is literally a Sazerac + a Negroni and hoooo boy, does it pack a punch. Essentially, instead of Peychaud’s Bitters, you use a hefty amount of Bottled Negroni and keep the rest of the Sazerac formula intact. (Rye, Absinthe and a Lemon peel.)

Are you ready for this? The Negroniac is high octane madness.

Negroniac-2015-4

Keep in mind that this is a very exact recipe. Too much of anything and the drink is thrown way off.

Negroniac

  • 1 3/4 oz Negroni
  • 1 1/4 oz Rye
  • 2 Dashes of Regans’ Orange Bitters
  • St. George Absinthe Verte Rinse
  • Garnish: expressed and discarded Lemon Peel

Rinse a double Rocks glass with Absinthe and chill. Combine Negroni, Rye and Orange Bitters over cracked ice and give it a very looooooooong stir. Strain into chilled glass. Express and discard Lemon Peel. Santé!

Negroniac-2015-1

Hello powerful and tasty Negroniac! I will sip you slowly and relish every drop.