There are more than just bananas in there...
It certainly feels tropical in Tennessee today, all the humidity with none of those pesky, cool ocean breezes to blow your parasol away. Still, it makes me want a boat drink, something with a little umbrella, so I’m gonna try one I have been looking forward to, the Halekulani.
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It is the Saturday before Memorial Day which usually means I’m exhausted but surrounded by friends from all over the world at GeoWoodstock. We know this year was different, even before it was rescheduled to 2021, but this weekend is always special for our crew, even more so since The Godfather left us nearly five years ago, so sit back and think about 18 years of good times as we make a Salty Dog in honor of my friend, Joe Armstrong.
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So you think you’re hip? You think you’re cool? You’ve had a shot and a pickleback while listening to Nickleback? Well, if you’re tired of standing in lines to clubs you’ll never get in, up your game, quit doing shots with the cool kids and grow into a hipper, bearded cocktail, The Pickled Surfer.
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I love Tiki drinks, Tiki bars, Tiki music, Tiki culture, just all the things. Always have, most likely always will. Honestly, I have been looking forward to making this drink since this whole thing started. I found the right mug, tracked down the ingredients and made the syrup. So crank up The Cranberries cause it is time to make the Zombie.
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I was reading about prohibition cocktails the other night and ran across another I had forgotten about. Hemingway mentions it in The Sun Also Rises and honestly, I want to try pretty much anything he writes about and I want to drink anywhere he drank. It’s funny, but I remember years ago reading one of his passages about trout fishing and drinking white wine straight from the bottle that had been chilling in the stream and it made me want that. Not just the drink, but the whole experience. He was one of the first writers who connected to that inner drive, who tapped those desires with his spot on descriptions. Honestly, I would probably not list Hemingway as a favorite author or human, but when it comes to describing experiences, I doff my fine cap to this master. And always drink at an old Hemingway hang out when you get the chance, they usually have a certain air of carefree disreputability that you need in your life. Anyway, the drink harkens back to the early days of cocktails with its brandy-esque base and it gave me an excuse to get a bottle of Applejack so I figured, why not. Time to kick off your shoes and look at your mixing station with a certain world weary grizzledness as we construct the Jack Rose.
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It is a peachy kinda day here celebrating Liam’s award-winning cornbread recipe, so we decided to stay with the theme and make a peach based cocktail. Plus, I noticed that I’ve been tending toward things in coupes and tall glasses, so I’m angling back toward whiskey and rocks glasses with lots of fancy cubes. I still wanted to shake the drink and I’m on a big chunks of fruit and mint getting pulverized by ice kick, so I opted for the classic Peach Bourbon Smash.
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There are days when it is clear things aren’t going to work out the way you expected, when things are cancelled, those disappointing rainy days. I’m bad about taking them to heart, getting bummed about what might have been and overlooking how things can still be. Today’s cocktail is kinda like one of those days. I came home all fired up to make something kind of original, something I thought of today in a challenging moment, only to find I lack one crucial ingredient. Granted, that’s not a big loss, but when thrown on top of the rest of the day, it felt like a thing. Part of me just wanted to skip it and go for a walk, in the rain, petulantly. At that moment, I heard my buddy Robert’s disembodied voice in my head, like Yoda or crazy old Ben Kenobi, reminding me of that TOM Creative Group adage that, “Not every job is worth doing, is worth doing well.” So, I decided to phone it in, which is ironic for posts created entirely on my phone. Anyway, I looked at the ingredients that were already out and handy, remembered another drink that looked “ok” that used them and decided to go low effort with The Verdant Lady.
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Sometimes, things fall off your radar. I had completely forgotten about this drink until a friend shared it with me last week and I have looked forward to making it ever since. The problem was, I didn’t have one of the ingredients, so I had to exhibit patience, which is not a thing I am known for. I mean, I can be patient…if I have to, but instant gratification is so much more fun. That said, having something to look forward to is definitely a thing. I’m a long time pleasure delayer and a strong believer that desire is often more satisfying than possession. That has been messing with me during “whatever it is we are calling this chapter of life” this week. With so many plans cancelled and the usual rituals with friends on indefinite hold, I’m kinda drifting with the tide with no clear destination in sight. Not saying it’s all been bad, it’s just different. I miss things to look forward to, but I ain’t special, we are all there, always. That’s really the thing isn’t it? We are all being pulled between desires and needs and responsibilities, all the time. But maybe, that is what makes a life. That’s a lot of words, huh? Probably too many. So, with a look to brighter days a-coming, I present The Last Word.
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I had other plans for tonight’s cocktail, but then I saw one that I absolutely could not resist. My friend, Joe Dougherty is a true cocktail connoisseur who has introduced me to many amazing drinks and helped inspire me to not just read and learn about them but to make my own cocktails at home. If you want to see what a pro does when he shares his cocktails from quarantine check out @bitterbotwin on Instagram. Truly amazing stuff, follow him, salivate over his amazing photography and drinks, come to Corsair Artisan Distillery (when it reopens to the public) and have him make an amazing drink for you. Anyway, he has turned me on to some really great stuff and shares my penchant for tiki drinks, so when he shared his “Lauwiliwilinukunuku’oi’oi” I just knew I had to make it. It’s a bit of a mouthful to say or type and he instructs you to “pour into a fun vessel” so I’m gonna take that to heart and rename my version of this one, “Speaking in Tongues”, for convenience sake.
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I’m feeling nostalgic, maybe yearning for a lost bit of my misspent youth, or just missing old friends. Either way I jumped back to the early 90’s to college days for a Kamikaze.
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