We were eating a spicy, smoky chipotle dish the other night for dinner and I wanted to pair it with something light and simple. I didn't feel like a regular martini but didn't want anything too complicated either. The Astoria fit the bill perfectly.
This is the classic Mai Tai recipe, the one Trader Vic created right here in Oakland in 1944. It should not be confused with the "Hawaiian" or "Island" Mai Tai, nor any of the fruit and flower-laden monstrosities that have become somewhat synonymous with the name of this cocktail over the years.
This cocktail has what looks like an odd combination of ingredients, but it actually works pretty well, creating a nice, easy to sip drink.
This was my first experiment with creating a drink based around the ginger simple syrup I made recently.
The flavors used here -- mint and ginger, gin and ginger ale -- combine together perfectly, making this a favorite of the drinks I've made recently. It's light, fresh, and delicious.
Shortly after making a batch of cucumber-infused gin, our CSA delivered a nice big cantaloupe, giving me the idea for this cocktail.
This drink was first published in The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book, which gives it a creation date of some time prior to 1917, and was later updated by Gary Regan in 2003 for his Joy of Mixology.
This is the first drink I made with my recent batch of homemade cucumber-infused gin. Cucumber has a subtle flavor, so it's best used in drinks like this that don't contain other overpowering ingredients.
This is an interesting variant of the classic Old Fashioned cocktail, but with a peach base.
This is Gary Regan's adaptation of the Pegu Club Cocktail which originally appeared in Harry Craddock's
Savoy Cocktail Book, circa 1930.
