Cocktail Thought of the Day-- National Rum Day

I pity them greatly, but I must be mum, for how could we do without Sugar and Rum"- William Cowper, English Poet 

Its Friday, Its Payday, and its NATIONAL RUM DAY!!! What a great day this is. Rum is one of my favorite spirits to drink, and also to mix with. So today's blog post is going to kill 2 birds with one stone. I am going to give you the cocktail thought of the day, with some cool Rum facts, AND leave you with a couple of my own Rum cocktails for your pleasure and to try at home.

Cocktail Thought of the Day

What is Rum?

Rum is a distilled spirit that is made from Sugar Cane byproducts, such as molasses or directly from sugarcane juice by a process of fermentation and distillation. Light Rums are commonly used in cocktails, where as "golden" or "dark" rums are generally consumed individually( i.e. "neat") or in some cases used in cooking, and now with the classic cocktail coming back and being popular, now are being used more in cocktails. Ultra Premium Rums are also available and used more so for sipping. Where Rum is made has 1 major thing in common, ITS HOT!!! Every major Island group boasts its own Rum. From Barbados, Dominican Republic, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Puerto Rico, and Trinidad to name a few. Brazil boasts another type of light rum called Cachaca. But we will cover Cachaca real soon in another post.


So now that leads me to my favorite part of my posts, its sharing with you some of my cocktails. Now don't get me wrong there is a myriad of rums that i enjoy, including Chairman's Reserve, Zacapa, Shellback, Bacardi, but I do have a favorite and its from the Serralles USA portfolio and Its Don Q. Don Q RUm is a Puerto Rican rum and is the #1 selling Rum in Puerto Rico. If you've been to or booked me for events, you know this is usually my go to rum of choice for cocktails, punch, etc.. So the 1st cocktail i give you for National Rum day has Don Q Cristal as the base....

1.5oz Don Q Cristal
1oz Triple Sec(Cointreau preferred)
.50z Lemon Juice
.50oz Pineapple Juice
.25oz Strawberry Puree
Garnish with a Strawberry Slice









My next cocktail is one that I was asked to do for Koloa Rum company. They are a company based out of Hawaii that produces an award winning single batch rum at their distillery near Kalaheo. I was asked to come up with something a little different from your  go to cocktails like a Daiquiri or a Dark and Stormy. So this is what I give you all,...

The Apple Fritter
1.5oz Koloa White Rum
1oz Lairds AppleJack
.50oz Spiced Simple Syrup
.50oz Fresh lime juice
2 dashes homemade Apple Bitters
Garnish with an apple slice or Cinnamon Stick



I hope you ALL enjoy National Rum Day today! I know I will.

Cheers,

Mr Mixologist

Cocktails and Cupcakes Event

Wonderful Friday night was spent doing something positive. DrinkxXx On Me Bartending was honored to be able to volunteer our time at the Blue Sky Bakery, "Cocktails and Cupcakes" fundraiser last night. Blue Sky Bakery provides homeless and at-risk youths with employment and skills to help them become productive members of society.

The youths at Blue Sky Bakery, when hired, get 12 weeks of paid employment and get skills in cash handling, cooking, baking, maintaining a sanitary work station, deliveries, and customer service. When we were approached to volunteer our time for this fundraiser it was a no-brainer. The concept of this event was to taste 1 of 4 specialty cupcakes for the night then the USBG Mixologists( DOM Boss Josh Davis, Carol Donovan, and Bryson Ryan) picked out spirits and created cocktails to pair with the chosen cupcakes.  My cocktail was paired with the sweet potato cupcake. I had Admiral's Nelson Spiced Rum. So what i did was a variation on the Dark and Stormy cocktail, and created "The Dark Knight"- Admirals Nelson, Cinnamon syrup, fresh lime, Ginger beer. Needless to say that cocktail along with Carol's,and Bryson's was a HIT!!

Alot of fun was had and we supported a GREAT cause!! To check out and learn more about Blue Sky Bakery look at their website here ---> http://blue-sky-bakery.org/


Until Next Time
Mr.Mixologist

Mixing It Up Mondays

The second installment of Mixing it up Monday features a brand new cocktail that I created for Koloa Rum Company. I was hanging out in Binny's Beverage Depot and stumbled across a brand new Rum company to hit the shelves here in Chicago.. Bought a bottle and actually enjoyed the spirit. So a few weeks later via my twitter profile, the same company reached out to me to create a cocktail for the website. I jumped on the opportunity and here is what I came up with...

Apple Fritter
1.5oz Kaua'i White
1oz Lairds Apple Jack
.5 Spiced Simple Syrup
.5 Fresh Lime Juice
2 dashes homemade Apple Bitters
Garish with an Apple Slice or Cinnamon stick
Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass. Shake and strain into a chilled coupe glass. Garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon and the slice of an apple.

Below is the recipes for the simple syrup and the Apple bitters... Cheers and Happy Mixing. Be on the lookout for this recipe on Koloa Rum's website soon...

Until next time
Mr. Mixologist



\


Spiced Simple Syrup--
Equal parts sugar to water.(I use 2 to 1 myself) Add Allspice berries, whole cloves, cinnamon sticks, and anise pods.. Bring mixture to a boil, until sugar is dissolved and let steep for 5 minutes. Cool and bottle. Usually lasts a week while refrigerated.

Apple Bitters
(Recipe from the book- Bitters A Spirited History of the classic cure all by Brad Thomas Parsons) 

Peels from 6 medium to large (preferably organic) apples

Zest of half a lemon, cut into strips

2 Cinnamon sticks

.5 tsp Allspice berries

.25 tsp Coriander

.5 tsp Cassia chips

.5 tsp Cinchona bark

 4 Cloves

 2 cups High-proof bourbon

1 cup Water

2 tbsp Rich simple syrup (two parts sugar, one part water)

Place the apple peels, lemon zest, cinnamon, allspice, coriander, cassia, cinchona bark and cloves in a 1-quart Mason jar or other glass container with a lid. Add the bourbon, making sure all the ingredients are covered. (Add more bourbon if needed.) Seal, and store at room temperature out of direct sunlight for 2 weeks, shaking once a day. Strain the liquid through a cheesecloth-lined funnel into a clean 1-quart jar, squeezing the cheesecloth to release any excess liquid. Seal the jar and set aside.

Transfer the solids to a small saucepan and add the water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. Add the contents of the saucepan to another 1-quart Mason jar, seal and store at room temperature out of direct sunlight, for 1 week, shaking once a day. Strain through cheesecloth until all solids have been removed and add the liquid to the bourbon mixture. Add the rich simple syrup and shake to combine. Let stand for 3 days and strain through cheesecloth again to remove any debris. The bitters will last indefinitely, but for best flavor use within 1 year.

Hot Happy Hour Cocktails

Happy New Year everyone! I have neglected my readers on here for way to long.. Expect alot of new posts, some reviews Ive been promising, event pics, and vids and all the new developments that ended 2011, and are continuing thru 2012 and beyond.

Now here in Chicago we have been having an unseasonably warm winter. It almost felt like spring for the last couple weeks. But the last couple days the bottom finally fell out!! Its COLD AS A MOTHER IN LAWS WORDS right about now. Snow, wind, ice, slush, we got hit with it all at the same time... What to do when its cold like this? The traditional Vodka/Cranberry, Rum/Coke, Margarita is not really in season. Why don't you warm up with some "Hot" Cocktails. There are many Hot cocktails that can be made with Tea, coffee, hot water, etc so here's 3 that are my personal favorites and some I'm sure you all will enjoy as well...

Irish Coffee 
Whiskey( Jameson is my preference)
Cream(Bailey's is my preference)
Coffee(Duh..lol)
Brown Sugar

Now there are many different variations of this cocktail, but I like the original which calls for Brown sugar instead of white. So the prep consists of pouring the Coffee in a mug. Add Whiskey, and a Tsp. of sugar and stirred until dissolved. Layer the cream on top, using the back of a bar spoon. It should sit right on top of the coffee and the drink should be sipped thru the cream. This can be a very tasty way to warm yourself up on a cold day!\









Hot Toddy
Whiskey
Hot Water
Sugar
Honey
Lemon

Who hasn't had one of these? This has been a tradition in my family to kill a cold for years.. Actually my 1st ever encounter with alcohol came in the form of my uncle giving me one of these when i was younger! Thanks Unc! It is a mixed cocktail where you take some boiling water, add a little whiskey( Old Grandad is my preference) Hot water, squeeze about an ounce of fresh lemon juice, and about half an ounce of Sugar and honey. Now Ive heard some people like to add a dash of cinnamon or garnish with a cinnamon stick, to add to the flavor.

And finally one of my NEW favorite hot cocktails and Today is the NATIONAL day for this cocktail, the Hot Buttered Rum.



Hot Buttered Rum
1 small slice soft butter
1 tsp brown sugar
Optional spices to taste: ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, allspice
Vanilla extract
2 oz Dark Rum
Hot water

All I can say is this is Deliciouslessness(yes I made that word up!) in a glass!! I like Rum, actually I love Rum! And if you've been out all day, on a cold Chicago winter day and you come in and whip one of these up, makes for a great evening. Muddle your butter,sugar,vanilla, and your choice of additional spices, Add your Rum, and hot water. Give it a good stir and enjoy!

So here are a few of my favorite hot cocktails, and hopefully during this cold Chicago Winter you'll be able to enjoy one from time to time. And if you ever catch me at the SL Sports Lounge working a shift and you want to warm up, feel free to ask for one. Ill make it just right for you :)

Until Next Time
Mr.Mixologist