Above, one of the cocktails featured at the 7 For All Mankind Spring 2012 launch. I had one (just one, because me and tequila are not friends), and it was delicious. Very summery. Excited for summer.

GARDEN PARTY

2 oz Patron Silver

1 oz simple syrup

Splash of fresh lime juice

5 mint leaves

A couple of strawberries.

Muddle all ingredients and shake over ice. Pour over fresh ice and add 1 oz lemon-lime soda. Garnish with a strawberry.

Click here for many more cocktail ideas.

Original Article

I’m sorry, maybe you didn’t hear me.

STRAWBERRY PEACH VODKA COLLINS POPSICLES.

I know, I know: vodka doesn’t freeze, you say. But I once asked the chef at SPiN NYC (where they serve freezy pops filled with various liquors) about this, and it is possible if you proportion it correctly with freezable ingredients - like the tonic water that’s in these.

I don’t even care that it’s not summer. First strawberries I see are getting popsicle-d.

Click here for more Boozy Pop inspiration.

Via Endless Simmer.

Original Article

MORGAN’S SIGNATURE “I’M PREGGERS” DRINK*

Raspberry tea

Frozen orange juice

Splash of lemonade

Mint leaves

Sliced lime

(Can be used to top off champagne as a fun twist on a mimosa for the non-pregnant.)

*Can’t take credit for this one; it was Melissa’s creation and it was delicious. 

Original Article

I first made this white sangria years ago, for an L.A. friend’s birthday party, and on New Year’s Eve I decided to revisit the recipe, this time using sparkling wine rather than regular old pinot.

Above, the wine I chose for the sangria’s base.

WINTER WHITE SANGRIA

In a large pitcher, combine 2 bottles of sparkling white wine, 1/2 lb seedless, halved green grapes, and 2 thinly sliced Red Delicious apples. Let sit for an hour or so, and then pour in a cup of apple juice and a cup of pineapple juice. Serve over ice garnished with a few grape halves and apple slices.

Original Article

Let me start by saying that this drink is much prettier if you serve it in a highball or Collins glass and garnish as it should be garnished, with a curled lemon peel. A couple of cranberries (fresh or sugared) would also be welcome here. Basically, anything but a strawberry, which, while quite delicious, makes very little sense in the company of a holiday drink.

But we worked with what we had, and this drink is seriously wonderful and festive - just the tiniest bit sweet and citrusy, and easy to make stronger (use champagne) or weaker (use club soda) according to your preferences.

ELDERFLOWER CHRISTMAS COCKTAIL

In a highball glass (over ice or not; up to you), pour 4 oz dry white wine (I used pinot grigio). Add 1 oz. St. Germain elderflower cordial, 1/2 tsp lemon juice, and top with a little champagne or club soda.

Original Article

That “turn” thing I was talking about?

Hey-o.

The major problem with this weather is that it makes me hate my dogs, and they didn’t do anything to me except for look cute and need to pee in a place that is not my floor.

But anyway.

Cold weather does have its benefits, and one major one is that you get to make things like mulled wine and call it “cooking” (what? you do it on a stove).

So here’s a mulled wine recipe to make you (and me) happy on this wintry weekend.

JORDAN’S SPICED MULLED WINE

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the following:

1 bottle fruity wine (I used flipflop pinot noir, about $7 - it has notes of cherry and spice, so it’s perfect for mulled wine)

1/2 cup sugar

1 mini bottle of brandy (or more to taste)

1 cinnamon stick

1/2 apple, sliced

1/2 orange, sliced

1 tsp allspice

Place the saucepan over very low heat, and let it warm slowly, giving it an occasional stir - you don’t want it to come to a boil.

When the pot is steaming, your mulled wine is ready! Use a ladle to serve (leaving the solids in the pot) and garnish each glass with a cinnamon stick and orange peel twist.

My suggestion: Leave the wine over low heat all afternoon and let your guests serve themselves at will. But if you do this, remember to remove the fruit slices after about half an hour; there’ll be plenty of flavor already, and you don’t want the apples and oranges to absorb too much of the liquid.

Original Article

Excuse me, what?

I mean, yes yes yes yes yes.

I found this recipe on The Conscientious Carnivore, and am now thinking a) is it Happy Hour yet? and b) bacon-infused bourbon would make for a pretty spectacular Christmas gift for a very special man in my life.

Bacon-Infused Bourbon:

Add 1 1/2 oz rendered bacon fat to 1/2 bottle of bourbon and let it stand at room temperature for at least four hours. Stick it in the freezer until the fat has solidified on the top, skim off the fat, and strain the bourbon through a coffee filter into a glass container.

Blackberry & Bacon Cocktail:

1. Squeeze the juice from 8-10 blackberries and set aside.

2. Muddle a few more raspberries in a glass.

3. Fill glass with ice, and add 2 oz bourbon, 1 oz blackberry juice, 2 tsp honey, and dash of bitters.

4. Garnish with…wait for it…a bacon swizzle stick. OMG.

For more liquor-type infusions, click here.

Recipe & photo via.

Original Article

An easy, low-cost way to add a splash of scary to your party: make a Dead Man’s Icy Hand. Just fill a clean non-latex glove (some people are allergic to latex) with water, tie off the end, and stick it in your freezer for a few hours. Peel off the plastic, and you’re done.

To make the punch pictured above, combine 1 chilled bottle of vodka and 2 chilled 2-liter bottles of Sprite in a punch bowl. Add some red food coloring to make it bloody-looking, and then stick your dead hand right in the center (in the past, mine have tended to fall over and float around in the punch; whatever, it still gets the point across). Add some marshmallows, and then squirt more red food coloring over the whole mess to make it even bloodier.

I’ll admit, it’s not exactly a gourmet beverage, but it’s certainly…festive.

Original Article

Yum yum yum.

ABSOLUT BERRI ACAI SOUR

2 parts Absolut Berry Acai

3/4 part simple syrup

1 part fresh lemon juice

Shake and strain into rocks glass filled with ice. Garnish with blueberries and a sprig of mint.

Yesterday evening, I met producer and author Marianne Mancusi for drinks at 44 1/2. I was absolutely in awe when I learned that she’s written twelve (TWELVE!) books since 2005. As someone who’s been working on her Great American Novel for…oh…three years now, let me just say: that is seriously impressive.

If you head over to 44 1/2 for drinks, I highly recommend checking out their fun cocktail list (under “Menus”). I get the Chelsea Hot and Dirty minus the Hot part (I substitute regular Ketel One for Absolute Peppar, and order extra blue cheese-stuffed olives on the side).

To keep costs down at cocktail parties, I serve just wine (a pinot grigio and a fruity, lighter red like a pinot noir), and one really delicious speciality drink. Upon arrival, each guest was handed a sugar-rimmed, personalized wineglass filled with a PAMA/champagne concoction, and during the party I wandered around with pitchers refilling glasses (so much easier than having everyone make trips to the bar every time they need another cocktail).

I swear, I should have been shooting a PAMA commercial during the party. “Jordan, what IS this extraordinary drink?!” “This is the most delicious cocktail!” “Oh my god, I LOVE this PAMA stuff!!” Direct quotes. Swear. It’s really, really good - I thought it might be too sweet mixed with the champagne, but it adds just the perfect amount of fruitiness.

PAMA CHAMPAGNE COCKTAIL

Combine 3 parts champagne and 1 part PAMA. Serve in a glass with a sugared rim and garnish with berries, if desired. You can also play with the proportions, adding more or less PAMA as you like.

PAMA products generously donated by manufacturer.

Oh my, is Domaines Ott Chateau de Selle Rose ever delicious. Especially good when perched on a beach, but this is what I’ll be sipping this summer while sunning on my rooftop, as well.

Oh, yum. I just received a sample of PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur in the mail, along with a recipe for cider that I tweaked a little. I love making spiked cider during the holidays, and pomegranate liqueur sounds like a nice twist.

COZY PAMA CIDER

What you need:

2 oz. PAMA

3 oz. hot mulled apple cider

Superfine sugar

Optional: Cinnamon stick & orange spiral

What you do:

1. Heat a glass mug by filling with hot water and then emptying; rim with superfine sugar (and a little ground cinnamon, if you like).

2. Add PAMA and hot mulled apple cider; mix well.

3. Garnish with cinnamon stick and orange spiral, if desired.

I had to return a whole bunch of things to Macy’s this afternoon, so afterwards I stopped by the bar that Pam works at, which is on 34th and 3rd. She fed me tiny red velvet cupcakes, and I wandered back out into the cold a happy camper. She also taught me how to make a salty dog, which sounds delicious, and also sounds like something that I might possibly be ordering later on this evening. 

SALTY DOG 

1. Rim a highball glass with lime juice and salt (just run a slice of lime around the rim and then dip the edge of the glass into a plate of salt).

2. Add ice; pour in gin (or vodka, which would probably be my pick) and grapefruit juice; mix and serve.

Check out Beerdude.com for detailed instructions on how to brew your own pear mead (you need orange blossom honey, pear juice, wine yeast, water, and assorted brewing instruments). Yum.

You can also go here for a list of places to buy mead online. Some Costcos, Safeways and Whole Foods Markets also carry the stuff, but call ahead to check first.