Winter Cocktails: French 75 in New Orleans

It is with great appreciation and honour that I present a whopping total of four Christmas cocktails from the historic New Orleans bar, the French 75. The bar itself was built in the late 1800's, but was renovated in the 1970's, and reinvented in 2003 with an emphasis on premium spirits and cigars, and of course the new renaissance in cocktails. This award-winning bar is the first in New Orleans to grace this site, and they have graciously contributed a handful of recipes.

"The Winter Waltz," a rye, amaro, and Christmas spice mix, is named after head bartender Chris Hannah's favourite Frank Sinatra Christmas Carol. "The Contessa" is a nod to the character in Tennesse Williams' novel, "The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone." Contessa was the swindler in the book who introduced the Negroni to the characters in tho novel.

Winter Waltz
2 oz Rye Whiskey
1/2 oz Averna Amaro
1/4 oz St. Elizabeth's Allspice dram
2 dashes Angostura bitters
 
Shake with ice, strain into cocktail glass, garnish with star anise.

Dicken's Toddy
2 oz Wild Turkey bourbon
1/2 oz Maple Syrup
3 dashes Angostura Bitters
 
Build like and Old-Fashioned in a rocks glass with ice, garnish with an orange peel and a cherry.

Contessa
3/4 oz London Dry Gin or Plymouth Gin
3/4 oz Aperol
3/4 oz Ruby Red Grapefruit juice
1/2 oz Cranberry Cordial
2 dashes Orange Bitters

Shake with ice, strain into chilled cocktail glass, garnish with an orange peel.

(We make the Cranberry cordial similar to making Cranberry Sauce)

A fairly simple alternative to making a cordial is making an infused simple syrup. By adding equal parts water to sugar (usually 1 cup) and adding fresh cranberries to the mix once the sugar dissolves over low heat, you can make a cranberry syrup to use in this and other similar Christmas cocktails).  

Charante Hessian
1 1/2 oz Cognac
1 1/2 oz Pumpkin Butter
1/4 oz St. Elizabeth's Allspice dram
4 oz boiling hot water
 
Build in a tempered glass or mug, stir and garnish with grated cinnamon and nutmeg.

Pumpkin butter is a compound butter with added pumpkin puree.

Cheers to the French 75 team and their amazing bar in such a historically exciting city.
Merry Christmas everyone!

Fall Cocktails: "Death & Oranges" by Donnie Wheeler

To kick things off for this fall series we are heading to Vancouver for a delicious pumpkin cocktail from Mr. Donnie Wheeler. He brings over fifteen years of experience in hospitality, bartending, and consulting for the likes of Cin Cin, Legacy Liquor, Corner Suite Bistro, and Donnelly Group bars Killjoy and Clough Club. Known to many in Vancouver as Donnie Bahama or Mr. Tiki, he runs Tiki Tuesdays at Clough Club (where each week they feature new drinks from Jeff "Beachbum" Berry's books), as well as giving seminars on Tiki history and culture at Legacy and festivals like The Art of the Cocktail.

Donnie is sharing a perfect example of a seasonal and themed cocktail that is both tasteful and tasty. (Apologies for the lateness on the Thanksgiving theme). I will let him introduce it himself:

"As it is Thanksgiving, [the drink] should be about family... in this case the Corleone family from the Godfather films. In the films every major death is preceded by an appearance of an orange in one way or another. [SPOILER ALERT]
Don Corleone buys oranges right before he is shot and falls into an orange cart. Sonny drives past an advertisement for Florida Oranges before he is assassinated. At the Mafioso summit, bowls of oranges are placed on the tables - specifically in front of those Dons who will be assassinated. Michael eats an orange while discussing his plans with Tom. Before Don Corleone dies he puts an orange peel in his mouth to playfully scare his grandson. The list goes on. So, the cocktail is a little morbid, a little seasonal, and about family."

Death & Oranges

1oz Carpano Antica Formula Italian Vermouth
1oz Campari
1.5oz fresh squeezed blood orange juice (seasonal)
1-2 tablespoons pumpkin puree-infused honey syrup
2 dashes Fernet Branca
Combine ingredients with ice and shake. Strain over crushed ice.
Top with soda water (optional).

Pumpkin/Honey Syrup: 
Add 2 parts honey and 2 parts water and bring to a boil. Add 1 part of pumpkin puree and stir until mixed.

[[ Photo by Donnie Wheeler ]]

The Fall Cocktail Series
 You can see the series introduction here
and more terrible Halloween cocktails here
"Jones' Bitter Aperitif" by Evelyn Chick
"The Satchmo" by Simon Ogden  
"Dark City" by Jay Jones
Classic Halloween Cocktails
"The Giant Huntsman" by Lauren Mote
"The Bay Harbour Butcher" by Shaun Layton  
"A Nightmare On Juniper Street" by Shea Hogan