Science Of Drink

As we know the Bee’s Knees Cocktail is wonderful drink. Then I explore the Bee’s Knees cocktail I found the Jeffry Morgentaller opinion that rum is good substitute of gin in this cocktail. It seems fantastic :) Of course I try it!

First I tasted the Bee’s Knees Cocktail with white rum. I use same proportions as original version.

Bee’s Knees (Rum ver.)

50 ml white rum
20 ml honey syrup
15 ml fresh lemon juice
Shake. Tumbler with ice. Garnish with lemon wedge.

I serve the Bee’s Knees Cocktail with rum on the rocks. The Bee’s Knees Cocktail need good and powerful rum as Havana Club Anejo Blanco for best results. The Rum version of Bee’s Knees Cocktail has excelent and good balanced a little sweet refreshing taste with great rum palate.

And I try the Bee’s Knees Cocktail with aged rum. I use Jeffry’s proportions and garnish for this cocktail.

Bee’s Knees (El Vaquero ver.)

50 ml aged rum
25 ml honey syrup
25 ml fresh lemon juice
Shake. Tumbler with ice. Garnish with quartered orange with clove.

The Bee’s Knees Cocktail with El Dorado 12 y.o. is great drink. It has very rich palate with aroma of rum, honey and citrus. But with Bacardi 8 I obtain very mediocre results. Anyway, the Bee’s Knees Cocktail with aged rums is great drinks.

The Bee’s Knees Cocktail is real Prohibition cocktail. The honey was great choice for masking awful smell and taste of bathtub gin. But in other side honey is very interesting natural ingredient with a lot of worth.

Bee’s Knees

50 ml gin
20 ml honey syrup
15 ml fresh lemon juice
Shake. Cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon peel.

I use honey syrup (1:1) instead of pure honey for ease.

Well. Actually the Bee’s Knees Cocktail is a wonderfull drink. It has so sweet and aromatic taste with pleasnt palate of gin and honey. Admirable!

As you know, I was realy inspired by March MxMo theme – punch. And I realy inspired by old mixed drink – pure classic like Gin Punch. Now I exploring another old and classic cocktail – The Knickerbocker Special. This cocktail has very interesting composition – rum and raspberry syrup. The classic version of this cocktail specifies five main ingredients – raspberry surup (Hogg and Jackson, but CocktailDB specified grenadine), lime or lemon juice, orange juice, curacao liqueur and rum. Thereat CocktailDB and Jackson prescribed light rum, but Hogg and DeGroff – dark. I use one of my gold (actually aged) rum – Bacardi Reserva.

Knickerbocker Special

60 ml gold rum
8 ml raspberry syrup (berry grenadine)
8 ml fresh lemon juice
8 ml orange juice
8 ml orange curacao
some peneapple chunks
Muddle the pineapple spear with juices. Add the rest of ingredients and shake. Serve in a cocktail glass.

The Knickerbocker Special Cocktail has very interesting taste. It has rich berry-fruit sweet-and-sour taste with bright rum palate. The Bacardi Reserva Rum work extremely well in this cocktail. It is amazing cocktail.

I explore one of the oldest version of Knickerbocker, which I found in Imbibe! by D. Wondrich (one of my favorite cocktail book in present time). The original recipe is:

1/2 LIME OR LEMON, SQUEEZE OUT OF THE JUICE, AND PUT RIND AND JUICE IN THE GLASS
2 TEA-SPOONFULS OF RASPBERRY SYRUP
1 WINE-GLASS [2 oz] SANTA CRUZ RUM
1/2 TEASPOONFUL OF CURACOA

Use small bar-glass.
Cool with shaved ice; shake up well and ornament with berries in season. If this is not sweet enough, put in a little more raspberry syrup.

I adopt Wondrich`s recipe to:

Knickerbocker Punch

60 ml gold rum
15 ml raspberry syrup
15 ml orange curacao
15 ml fresh lime juice
Shake. Serve in a tumbler with crushed ice. Garnish with berries, pinneaple spear and lime shell.

The Knickerbocker Punch is a magnificient drink. I was fascinated by its rich and smooth palate with a first sip. Actually it is real “mai tai!”, awesome cocktail. One of the best cocktail that I ever drink.

This MxMo hoster is Mike at Hobson’s Choice. He propose so interesting and so wide theme for this MxMo – Punch. I think that any so big cocktail with many ingredients is appropriate. Some times ago I found one interesting mixed drink in one of my cocktail book – Imbibe! by D. Wondrich. It is Gin Punch. This old and rare cocktail come into my notice with one uncommon ingredient – the Holland Gin. The recipe from Imbibe! by D. Wondrich looks like that:

1 TABLE-SPOONFUL OF RASPBERRY SYRUP
2 TABLE-SPOONFUL OF POWDERED SUGAR
1 WINE GLASS [2 oz] OF WATER
1 1/2 WINE GLASS [3 oz] OF HOLLAND GIN
[JUICE OF] 1/2 SMALL-SIZED LEMON
2 DASHES MARASCHINO
2 SLICES OF ORANGE
1 PIECE OF PINEAPPLE

Fill the tumbler with shaved ice.
Shake well, and ornament the top with berries in season.
Sip through a glass tube or straw.

My first interpretation of this recipe include dutch gin (genever, geneva) – Jonge Bols Graanjenever (or Plymouth Gin, or London Dry Gin as D. Wondrich specified). I use berry grenadine by Routin instead raspberry syrup. I decrease a quntity of sugar for 2 little bar-spoon and use 1 oz of fresh-pressed lemon juice:

Gin Punch

15 ml raspberry syrup
2 tsp. sugar powder
60 ml water
90 ml Holland gin (genever) / Plymouth gin / London dry gin
30 ml fresh pressed lemon juice
2 dash maraschino liqueur
2 slices of orange
1 piece of pineapple
a few berries
Shake all ingredients (except fruits) with a lot of ice. Pour into tumbler with shaved or crushed ice and garnish with fruit and berries. Serve with a straw.

The Gin Punch in this version is admirable drink. It has very smooth sweet and sour taste with berry and fruit palate. The best results I obtain with genever and Plymouth gin. This mixed drink is so similar to Fraises Fizz.

Also I try version with raspberry syrup. In original version the Gin Punch is amazing drink. It has very interesting taste with main palate of gin with pleasant raspberry note. It is not so sweet as version with berry grenadine. It is good-balanced light and refreshing drink.

For celebration of St. Patrick Day I prepare one interesting modern club cocktail – the Dancing Leprechaun. It works!

Dancing Leprechaun

45 ml Irish whisky
20 ml Drambuie
20 ml fresh lemon juice
Ginger ale
Shake whisky, liqueur and juice with ice. Strain into highball with ice cubes and fill with ginger ale. Add a twist of lemon.

The Dancing Leprechaun Cocktail has interesting refreshing taste with sweet notes of Drambuie. It is admirable concoction for active celebrating.