Science Of Drink

As you know the most of Russian and Ukrainian are orthodox christians. The Orthodox Christmas is celebrated January 7. Actually we don’t drink cocktail on the Christmas. On the over hand Americans has very interesting Christmas drink – Tom and Jerry. This drink is hot egg nog – the winter beverage with alcohol, eggs and milk or water.

The Tom and Jerry is very old drink. The recipe we may found in the first cocktail book – How to Mix Drinks, or Bon-Vivants Companion by Jerry “Professor” Thomas (1862). Some people say that Tom and Jerry was invented by Thomas. He specified in his book that this concoction has another name – Jerry Thomas. In one interview Thomas says that he named the drink in honor of two his mouses – Tom and, of course, Jerry. But we have and alternate story. It is currently reported that Tom and Jerry drink was invented by London sport writer Pierce Egan in the 1820s. The name is a reference to two character from his book Life in London – Jerry Hawthorn and Corinthian Tom.

The famous Harry Craddock wrote that “… The Tom and Jerry and the Blue Blazer … were the greatest cold weather beverages of that era”. And I completely agree with this opinion.

The recipes of Tom and Jerry drink is so simple. This hot egg nog contain brandy as main alcohol, rum, eggs and sugar. Optional ingredients are spice and milk. The authentic recipe from Jerry Thomases book is:

5 LBS. SUGAR.
12 EGGS.
1/2 SMALL GLASS OF JAMAICAN RUM.
1 1/2 TEASPOONFUL OF GROUND CINNAMON
1/2 DO. DO. CLOVES.
1/2 DO. DO. ALLSPICES.

Beat the whites of the eggs to a stiff froth, and the yolks until they are as thin as water, them mix together and add the spice and rum, thicken with sugar until the mixture attains the consistence of a light batter.

Take a small bar glass, and to one table-spoonful of the above mixture, add one wine-glass of brandy, and fill the glass with boiling water, grate a little nutmeg on top.

The some points of this recipe is very interesting. First – the sugar. Five pounds of sugar or 190 grams per one eggs. It seems very, very, very sweet. Second point is spice. I hate ground spice, thus I try to use spiced rum instead.

My recipe of famous Tom and Jerry drink is (approx 5-6 drinks):

Tom and Jerry

the base (“batter”):
2 eggs
10 ml rich Jamaican rum (5 ml per one egg)
140 g sugar (70 g per one egg)
Separate the eggs. Mix yolks with rum and beat until it are thin as liquid. Beat the whites until stiff froth. Then mix all together and add sugar. Mix well.

drink (one servings):
20 ml brandy
40 ml spiced rum
2 tablesponsful “batter”
add boiling water or steamed milk
Stir well. Serve in the ceramic cup or London dock glass. Garnish by grating a little nutmeg on top.

I use kitchen handheld electric mixer for execution. I whip the white of the eggs in stiff froth and add beaten yolks with rum, then add sugar. I use mix of the refined sugar and demerara brown sugar.

Actually Tom and Jerry drink with water is no good as with milk. The Tom and Jerry drink is very delicious sweet holiday drink. Marry Christmas!

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New Year coming soon. And we need some special for our holiday party. We drink different cocktails year around and for New Year Night we need something unusual and festive. Many people has very good tradition – to celebrate New Year with glass of Champagne or another sparkling wine. Thus I select two very interesting and delicious champagne cocktail for this case. Now we try the Classic Champagne Cocktail and it’s special variation – the Alfonso Cocktail.

The Alfonso Cocktail was created for Alfonso XIII – dethroned Spanish King. The Alfonso Cocktail looks like French creation but first print mention we find in Craddock’s The Savoy Cocktail Book. The Alfonso cocktail is variation of Classic Champagne Cocktail with Dubonnet wine instead cognac.

Alfonso Cocktail

1 sugar cube
1-2 dash of Angostura bitter
15-20 ml Dubonnet Rouge
Champagne
Place sugar cube in the flute and coat it with bitter. Add Dubonnet and fill the glass with cold Champagne. Add lemon peel or twist. Stir gentle and serve.

Original wine in this cocktail is Champagne. It is AOC and it is so expensive stuff. I try this cocktail with another French sparkling wine – Cafe de Paris Blanc de Blancs Brut by Cusenier (Pernod Ricard). The result are pretty good. The Alfonso Cocktail has so sweet, light and smooth taste with some bitter notes. It is very good festive cocktail.

Also I try the original – Champagne Cocktail. This cocktail is very old creation. First mention about Champagne Cocktail is in Jerry Thomases How to Mix Drinks, or Bon-Vivants Companion. The Champagne Cocktail is real cocktail – it consist of alcohol any kind (Champagne), sugar and bitter.

I use unusual recipe of this cocktail from diffordsguide.

Champagne Cocktail

1 cubes of brown sugar
3 dash Angostura bitter
15 ml cognac
Champagne
Place sugar cube in the flute and soak it with bitter. Add cognac and fill the glass with cold Champagne. Add orange twist.

I use Remy Marten VSOP and sparkling wine mentioned above. The Champagne Cocktail is very interesting drink with main palate of cognac and pleasant aroma of orange. It is good way to improve unloved wine :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR my dear readers. I wish you health, wealth and good luck in New Year!

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This cocktail I was found in the awesome book – Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails by Ted Haigh. Dr. Cocktail suggest that this cocktail was created by Emil Bauwens – head barman of the Bar Saint-James in Brussels. The drink was described in the Emil’s book Livre de Cocktails. The name of this drink is unclear. Actually this cocktail has anything blue.

Blue Paradise

50 ml cognac
25 ml Dubonnet
4 dash Parfait Amour liqueur
Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.

Actually this refined mix was carefully stirred by me then shaked. I use Remy Martin VSOP Cognac and BOLS Parfait Amour liqueur for this cocktail. I think that the BOLS liqueur is best choice for Blue Paradise. This liqueur has main vanilla flavor with subtle hint of curacao orange and rose petals. This liqueur has so natural purple color which works well in cocktail.

Wow! The Blue Paradise Cocktail is amazing drink. It has very balanced so sweet round cognac palate. The Dubonnet and the liqueur play with cognac very good. It is great drink!

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As you know there ara many kinds of cocktail – aperetive, digestive, all time drinks and over. Now I want to explore some interesting after dinner drinks – classic dessert coctails which groups to “Alexander’s family”. The main cocktail of this family is famous Alexander Cocktail. As Barry Popik suggest the Alexander Cocktail in its original version consist of gin, creme de cacao liqueur and fresh cream and id was created in early XX century by Troy Alexander barman of famous New York eatery Rector’s for fictional commercial character – Phoebe Snow. This cocktail was first mentioned in Recipes for Mixed Drinks by Hugo Enslin (1915).

I use recipe with equal proportions of ingredients.

Alexander (Александер)

25 ml gin
25 ml creme de cacao white
25 ml cream
1 bsp. simple syrup (optional)
Shake. Cocktail glass. Garnish with grated nutmeg (optional).

For my first Alexander Cocktail I use Befeater, BOLS Cacao white and cream with 20% fat. Really the BOLS liqueur is not a creme. It is insufficiently sweet. Thus in my second Alexander I add one bar-spoon of simple syrup for best results. The garnish I propose to omit in any case as it is contrary to story of Phoebe Snow.

The Alexander Cocktail is sweet and creamy concotion with smooth chicolate and botanicals palate. The gin is very good company to chocolate.

Next cocktail from this company is Brandy Alexander (or Alexander #2). It is Alexander Cocktail with brandy instead gin. This cocktail is more popular than origanal and these two libations are confuse often. The early mention of Brandy Alexander we can find in the Burke’s Complete Cocktail and Tastybite Recipes by Harman Burny Burke (1936). Some people say that creation of Brandy Alexander connected to wedding of Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood and Viscount Lascelles, in London, in 1922.

Brandy Alexander (Бренди Александер)

25 ml brandy
25 ml creme de cacao dark
25 ml cream
Shake. Cocktail glass. Garnish with grated nutmeg.

I use cognac instead brandy – Hennessy VSOP, BOLS Cacao brown liqueur and cream with 20% fat.

In this superb version it is admirable cocktail. It has mild creamy-fruity-chicolate taste. Excellent cocktail!

Also I try the Alexander’s sister Cocktail – it is Alexander with creme de menthe green instead creme de cacao white.

Alexander’s sister

25 ml gin
25 ml creme de menthe green
25 ml cream
Shake. Cocktail glass.

The Alexander’s sister is sweet and mint concotion. It is so palatable after dinner stuff. It is good substitution for after meal chewing-gum.

And finally I tasted the Alexandra (Special) Cocktail from The Artistry of Mixing Drinks by Frank Meier. Actually the Alexandra (Special) Cocktail is Alexander with brandy instead gin and Anisette (French sweet anise liqueur) instead creme de cacao. I use own equal proportion.

Alexandra (Special)

25 ml brandy
25 ml Anisette
25 ml cream
Shake. Cocktail glass.

Wow! It is amazing cocktail. It is very delicious. It has sweet, very smooth cocktail with anise palate and great hints of cognac. Excellent dessert cocktail.

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The cocktail that I want to explore today I like for a long time. The recipe of this cocktail was at my blog some times ago. Actually the American Beauty Cocktail is in my Special Reserve. This flowery and extraordinary cocktail is one of the best choices for novice – it is not so strong, have interesting sweet taste and it has great look. This drink is great thing to look at as well as to sip.

The story of American Beauty Cocktail is forgotten. It is known that name of this drink connected with popular sort of the garden rose. American Beauty roses was best-selling roses from 1888 to 1920. The creator of this drink is unknown. Supposedly this cocktail was first mentioned in first edition of The Savoy Cocktail Book by Harry Craddock.

My first American Beauty Cocktail I mixed with recipe was found at the CocktailDB. Now I taste this cocktail with authentic cognac and real Porto.

American Beauty

15 ml brandy
15 ml vermouth dry
15 ml fresh orange juice
15 ml grenadine
1 dash creme de menthe white
30 ml Port wine
Shake all ingredients except port with a lot of ice. Strain into cocktail glass and top with port wine.

The cognac in this cocktail is needless. The delicate flavor and taste of the cognac is invisible in this sweet and fruity drink. I prefer to use in this cocktail something powerful and complete brandy like young (about 5 years old) armenian brandy.

The American Beauty Cocktail in old proportions has sweet and fruity taste with little mint pleasure notes in the finish. The cocktail scent of port wine. With every sip you have both layer of the drink – the a luttle bit tart and sweet port and sweet and fruity mix – it is great feeling.

If you do not like so sweet old version you may taste the modern version of this rare cocktail. This recipe I found in the one of my favorite cocktail book – The Essential Cocktail by Dale DeGroff.

American Beauty Cocktail (DeGroff’s version)

20 ml brandy
20 ml vermouth dry
20 ml fresh orange juice
2 dashes grenadine
2 dashes simple syrup
1 dash of creme de menthe green
15 ml ruby port
Shake all ingredients except brandy in a ice-filled shaker. Strain into cocktail glass and float the port on top. Garnish with rose petal (organically grown or well washed).

Actually for old-style two layer look you must use a little bit more of grenadine. I use about teaspoonful of grenadine otherwise port wine do not make a separate layer.

This drink is perfectly balanced. It is not so sweet as old version. This cocktail has sweet taste with great brandy and vermouth palate with a hint of mint in the finish. It is admirable, amazing drink!

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