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The Captain’s Leave

/ Dani DeLuna / Leave a comment

The Captain's Leave 1

Happy Friday to all you #IrishWhiskeyMonth party people! It’s finally spring in NYC and I’m so happy not to be wearing a million layers, and a jacket, and a hat, and gloves, and giant snow boots. To celebrate this change of season, I’ve made a Tiki Drink with Teeling Small Batch Whiskey.

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.

The Captain's Leave 2

Hello dreamy umbrella, cherry & piña. You make me wanna swoop off to a tropical beach!

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Here are your cast of characters:

  1. I wanted to put Teeling Small Batch with…
  2. Apricot Liqueur cause it’s warm and sunny out. #happiness
  3. I knew the Orange Flower and Almond notes in Orgeat Syrup would go well with Apricot.
  4. Lastly, Lemon Juice for acid, length, and to balance the sweetness.

This combination of flavors was also inspired by two classic cocktails: an Army & Navy and a Colonel Cocktail (1937 version: Whiskey, Apricot Liqueur, Grapefruit, Simple Syrup).

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The name of the drink is an homage to the two cocktails mentioned above, except that the commanding officer in question is on holiday. The Captain has left the ship, is headed to a deserted island, and is on leave. Don’t call, he won’t pick up the phone.

The Captain’s Leave

  • 1 3/4 oz Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey
  • 1/4 oz Rothman and Winter Apricot Liqueur
  • 1/2 oz Orgeat
  • 1/2 oz Lemon Juice
  • Garnish: Tiki Umbrella, Pineapple Chunk, Maraschino Cherry

Combine ingredients over ice and shakity-shake-shake. Strain into double rocks glass over crushed ice. Garnish. Tiki time.

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Suuuuuuper dreamy. Welcome to the weekend y’all! Have an excellent #IrishWhiskeyMonth!

Cali Surf Girl

/ Dani DeLuna / Leave a comment

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Y’ALL! I LITERALLY just realized that there’s only three days left of Tiki The Snow Away 2016! I have three Surf Girl variations, so we’re just gonna go on a lil marathon and I’ll post one for each day. We’ll start with Cali Surf Girl cause I’m a Cali gurrrrrrrrl.

If you want to share a tropical drink during the month of January, use the hashtag #TikiTheSnowAway on Instagram and Twitter, or tag u/homebargirl on reddit.

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“I’m in love, I’m in love with a Surf Gurrrrrrl.”

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Cast of Characters: Since this is a Cali Surf Girl, I decided to give it some Cali style ingredients like: Corralejo Tequila Blanco and Coconut Water. The Surf Girl trio of Denizen Aged White Rum, Blue Curaçao, and Coco Lopez remains intact and is joined by Lime Juice and a lil pink salt.

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I’m also keeping the garnishes the same so as to have continuity between all the Surf Girl drinks.

Oh and plug your blender in and grab a bunch of ice!

Cali Surf Girl

  • 1 1/2 oz Blanco Tequila
  • 1 oz Denizen Aged White Rum
  • 1/2 oz Blue Curaçao
  • 3/4 oz Lime Juice
  • 3/4 oz Coconut Water
  • 1/2 oz Coconut Cream
  • Pinch of Salt
  • * 1/4 oz Simple Syrup
  • ~8 oz Crushed Ice
  • Garnish: Tiki umbrella, Maraschino Cherry, Pineapple

Combine ingredients and blend for 7 seconds. Pour in a 10 oz Surf Girl Tiki Mug and garnish.

*You may or may not want this. You’re working with a lot of ice and typically have to make blended drinks sweeter than shaken or stirred drinks.

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Cheers to all y’all and all y’alls friends and all y’alls parties! Speaking of parties, we’re having a Tiki The Snow Away party in Brooklyn on Feb 4th! If you’re in town, stop by cause there will be a Surf Girl waiting for you!

Stolen Skiff

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Stolen Skiff 1

Friday! IMPENDING SNOW STORM FOR NYC! Bring it onnnnnnn y’all! Since all 8.5 million of us will be stuck in doors, we might as well Tiki The Snow Away!

If you want to share a tropical drink during the month of January, use the hashtag #TikiTheSnowAway on Instagram and Twitter, or tag u/homebargirl on reddit.

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Get yer striped sails, Pineapples, and Maraschino Cherries ready y’all! We’re stealing a boat and heading south for the winter!

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Here are the cast of characters for this complex and sultry Tiki drink:

  1. Morris Kitchen Grenadine: has a fair amount of vanilla and orange flower water in the syrup. Thick and viscious. HIGHLY RECOMMEND.
  2. Jägermeister: I’m constantly inspired by the ultimate spice machine that is Jäger. Seriously y’all, it goes so damn well in cocktails, especially with aged Rum.
  3. Denizen Aged White Rum: forever! (forever young / I wanna be / forever young)
  4. Lustau Amontillado Sherry: the nuttiness goes so well with Jäger and this particular Grenadine.
  5. Lime: I needed citrus and I like how Lime interacts with Jäger and Grenadine.

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Stolen Skiff

  • 2 oz Denizen Aged White Rum
  • 1/2 oz Jägermeister
  • 1/2 oz Lustau Amontillado Sherry
  • 1/2 oz Morris Kitchen Grenadine*
  • 1 oz Lime Juice
  • Garnish: Paper Sail cocktail pick, Pineapple chunk, Luxardo Maraschino Cherry

Combine ingredients over ice and short shake. Strain into double Rocks glass or short Tiki mug over crushed ice and garnish.

*Depending on the sweetness of your Grenadine, you may need to cut back to 1/4 oz.

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Wintry and complex right? It’s amazing to me how different Amari (and yes, I think of Jäger as a German Amaro) can evoke such different moods or seasons.

May all your Tiki The Snow Away flavor combinations and discoveries be eye-opening and your festivities be filled with cheer!

Tropicbird with Denizen Merchant’s Reserve

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Tropicbird-5

Woo! This Denizen Merchant’s Reserve Rum is giving me ALLLLLLL sorts of ideas. I’ve been rolling through the Beachbum Berry’s Total Tiki app and making a lil checklist of recipes I’d like to try with this most excellent of Rums. Needless to say, the list is getting quite long.

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If you guessed that Tropicbird is a variation on a Jungle Bird, you’re right! Congrats! You know your Tiki drinks!

The subbed ingredients in this cocktail are Merchant’s Reserve (subbed for Jamaican Rum), Aperol (subbed for Campari), and Cane Syrup (subbed for Simple Syrup). I also reduced the amount of Pineapple Juice because I didn’t have to cut the bitterness of Campari with extra juice.

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Pretty pretty Tropicbird. Won’t you sing to me?

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Tropicbird

  • 2 oz Denizen Merchant’s Reserve Rum
  • 3/4 oz Aperol
  • 2 oz Pineapple Juice
  • 1/2 oz Lime Juice
  • 1/4 oz Cane Syrup*
  • Garnishes: Pineapple Spear Bunny Ears, Luxardo Maraschino Cherry, Pineapple chunks

Combine ingredients over ice and short shake. Strain into double Rocks glass over cracked/crushed ice and garnish.

*1:1 Ratio of Cane Sugar and Water.

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My my, you’re the prettiest bird I’ve ever seen. Thanks to Denizen for creating this undeniably fabulous Rum!

La Petite Mort with Plantation Barbados Rum

/ Dani DeLuna / 2 Comments

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In the not too distant past, my girl Foodie Tails texted me saying, “Just got Plantation Barbados 5 and Angostura 7 Rums.” I replied with, “Oh shit!”

Seeing as I had just run out of Angostura 7, and had been meaning to get the Plantation Barbados 5 since I threw that 4th of July Daiquiri Party, I immediately ran to the liquor store. Luckily they had the very bottle I was looking for, so I bought it, ran back home and made the drink described below.

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Now, I LOVE Plantation Rums. They’re aged in used Cognac barrels and meticulously scrutinized for maximum flavour. Well y’all, the flavour is totally there. The Barbados 5 Year Rum has tropical fruits, grasses, a bit of caramel smoothness, leaves a pleasant long finish, and plays well with others.

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It REALLY plays well with the above ingredients.

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In fact, Plantation Barbados 5 Year Rum plays so well with these ingredients that it’s been my new favourite Rum cocktail for at least two weeks.

La Petite Mort

  • 2 oz Plantation Grande Réserve Barbados 5 Year Rum
  • 1 oz Lime Juice
  • 3/4 oz Honey Syrup*
  • rinse Pernod Pastis
  • Garnish: Pineapple Wedge

Rinse a double Rocks glass with Pernod and chill. Combine remaining ingredients over ice and short shake. Strain into rinsed glass over cracked or crushed ice and garnish.

*This drink is also awesome with Vanilla Bean Syrup subbed for Honey Syrup.

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Damn, so dreamy, so fulfilling, I would die one thousand of these Little Deaths.

National Hazelnut Month with Frangelico

/ Dani DeLuna / 1 Comment

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Did y’all know that September is National Hazelnut month? Neither did I, but I’m so happy I found out about it! What delicious Liqueur is made with Hazelnuts and comes in a bottle shaped like a monk? Frangelico!

Frangelico has been leading the charge to get the mighty hazelnut on our collective consciousness. This liqueur hails from the Piedmont region of Italy, using inspiration from centuries old recipes. It has warm, sweet prominent Hazelnut notes, followed by Vanilla, and Cocoa.

Let’s get to the cocktails!

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I decided to start with a Rum sour cause to me, Nuttiness + Rum = hell yes! I didn’t want to go full Tiki, but the Pineapple wedge gives a little island feel to the drink.

Angelica in the West Indies

  • 2 oz Plantation Barbados 5 Year Rum
  • 3/4 oz Frangelico
  • 1/2 oz Honey Syrup
  • 3/4 oz Lemon Juice
  • 2 dashes Angostura
  • Garnish: Pineapple wedge

Combine ingredients over ice and short shake. Strain into double Rocks glass with ice. Garnish with Pineapple wedge.

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Next I decided to get spice-y and desert-y, cause I had a feeling that Frangelico + Jägermeister + Carpano Antica would be a great flavour set. It was. It was such a great flavour set that I keep thinking about it. To dry things out, I added Hine H Cognac as the base and topped it off with a couple dashes of Scrappy’s Chocolate Bitters. DESSERT!

The Road to Turin

  • 1 3/4 oz Hine H Cognac
  • 1/4 oz Frangelico
  • 1/2 oz Jägermeister
  • 1/2 oz Carpano Antica
  • 2 dashes Scrappy’s Chocolate Bitters

Combine ingredients over ice and stirrrrrrr. Strain into chilled coupe and serve.

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Cheers to MBooth for including me in National Hazelnut Month!

The Pineapple Plymouth Gin is back!

/ Dani DeLuna / 2 Comments

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Just whipped up a fresh batch of Pineapple infused Plymouth Gin! Seriously though, “whipped up” might be stretching the truth a bit. This is literally the easiest recipe ever:

  1. Cut up a Pineapple. If it isn’t fresh, it isn’t going to work. No canned fruit allowed!
  2. Throw some of the Pineapple in a jar.
  3. Add some Plymouth Gin. You want to get about equal parts of each ingredient by volume.
  4. Let it sit for a few days, shaking several times per day.
  5. Taste it. Does it need more Pineapple? Add more Pineapple.
  6. When it tastes magnificently, Strain and keep it in the fridge.

I use this one in lots of Tropical cocktails such as:

Happy infusing to you all!

#TequilaSeason: Rothko 1961

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The heat has officially hit NYC and I am now drenched in sweat every time I leave my apt. We’re fully into #TequilaSeason and all of the refreshing cocktails that go along with it. Give me shaken fruity drinks on the rocks and give them to me fast!

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Allow me to say a few words about this garnish: Several months ago, I thought the hallowed out lime half was sort of a lame garnish but then I realized something. People aren’t usually going to eat a Lime Wedge and whenever you’ve got a Lime half, you’ve already added Lime juice to the drink. Therefore, the Lime half is actually the best garnish cause it’s like a little bowl! A little bowl that delivers things you really want to eat with your drink! GIVE THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT! They want fruit!

Rothko orange red yellow

Oh and as far as the name of this Cocktail goes, perhaps the most famous (or at least the most expensive) Rothko painting is called Orange, Red, Yellow and was painted in 1961. The thing about that painting though, the Yellow looks Green. So I was either going to name the drink Orange, Green, Yellow or Rothko 1961. The latter sounds better.

Bonus: This is the second drink that I’ve named after a Rothko painting. The first drink is Rothko 1957 with Bourbon, Fino Sherry and 18.21 Saffron Bitters.

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Y’all know I have a love affair with Casa Noble Crystal Blanco Tequila cause of the Banana and Grassy notes. In this cocktail, those notes play so very well with the Orange Curaçao flavour & Grassy notes in CioCiaro and bitter Orange from Aperol. Let’s get crackin!

Rothko 1961

  • 1 1/2 oz Casa Noble Blanco Tequila
  • 1/2 oz Amaro CioCiaro
  • 1/2 oz Aperol
  • 1 oz Pineapple Juice
  • 1/4 oz Lime Juice
  • Garnish: hallowed out Lime half, two salted Pineapple chunks

Combine ingredients over ice and short shake. Strain into double Rocks glass over ice and garnish. For the salted Pineapple, just sprinkle a few grains of salt onto each Pineapple chunk.

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Refrescando, a bit bitter, grassy and totally fruity. Salud! Feel free to tag all of your #TequilaSeason drinks on Instagram!

Thanks to the Baddish Group for the Casa Noble Tequila and MBooth for the Aperol.

It’s Pimm’s Season

/ Dani DeLuna / 2 Comments

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Well here we are, together in the bright cheer of spring. And what do we drink in this most thrilling of seasons? We drink Pimm’s No. 1!

For those of you who haven’t had the supreme pleasure of sipping a Pimm’s Cup yet, it’s divine. Pimm’s No. 1 is a Gin based Liqueur which was originally envisioned as a “bottled cocktail”. There used to be six different Pimm’s Cups each with their own base spirit. Today there are the orginal Pimm’s No. 1, Pimm’s Blackberry & Elderflower, Pimm’s No. 3 Winter Cup, and Pimm’s No. 6 with a Vodka base. In the NYC area, I’ve only seen the No. 1 and Blackberry & Elderflower.

Pimm’s No. 1 tasting notes:

  • Nose: Ginny & juniper, coriander, delightfully fruity and herbaceous bouquet, Orange, Strawberry, spices
  • Taste: Gin, vegetal, citrus
  • Finish: short and wide

So essentially, we’re talking the greatest spring/summer Liqueur for anyone who loves Gin!

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Pimm’s No. 1 Cup (official recipe)

  • 60 ml / 2 oz  Pimm’s No. 1
  • 150 ml / 5 oz  Lemon Soda (the dry British sort)
  • Garnishes: Mint, Strawberry, Orange Slice, Cucumber

Combine ingredients in a Collins glass over ice and stir. Serve with a straw and fabulous garnishes.

Now, you know this wouldn’t be a Home Bar Girl post without some variations, so here we go!

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Pimm’s Collins

  • 2 oz Pimm’s No. 1
  • 1 oz Hayman’s Old Tom Gin
  • 1/2 oz Lemon Juice
  • 1/2 oz Simple Syrup
  • Top with Soda Water
  • Garnishes: Mint, Cucumber, Strawberry, Orange Wheel

Combine Pimm’s, Gin, Lemon Juice and Simple syrup and stir. Strain into Collin’s glass with ice and garnishes. Top with soda water and serve with a straw.

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Caribbean Pimm’s Cup

  • 2 oz Pimm’s No. 1
  • 1/2 oz Denizen Aged White Rum
  • 1/2 oz Flor de Caña 7 Aged Rum
  • 1/2 oz Velvet Falernum
  • 3/4 oz Lime Juice
  • Top with Ginger Ale
  • Garnishes: Mint, Pineapple, Cucumber, Strawberry, Orange slice

Combine Pimm’s No. 1, Rums, Falernum, Lime Juice and stir. Strain into Collins glass with ice and garnishes. Top with Ginger Ale and serve with a straw.

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Mexican Pimm’s Cup

  • 2 oz Pimm’s No 1
  • 3/4 oz Casa Noble Blanco Tequila
  • 3/4 oz Cointreau
  • 3/4 oz Lime Juice
  • Soda Water
  • Garnishes: Cucumber, Orange Wheel, “Mexican Flag” of Lime Wedge, Banana Slice and Strawberry

Combine Pimm’s, Blanco Tequila, Cointreau, Lime Juice and stir. Strain into Collins glass with ice and garnishes. Top with Soda.

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Let’s just look at this again cause this “Mexican Flag” garnish is my fave thing ever. Also, yummmm.

Cheers to you and yours during Pimm’s Season! Thanks again to the Baddish Group for the Casa Noble Tequila!