The Lion's Tail Cocktail

Bourbon and allspice dram pair up in this bracing autumnal pleaser

It’s October – and what’s not to like? Pleasingly cool evenings cry out for heartier food. Not to mention drinks with a bit of zip.

For the latter, consider the Lions’ Tail, a bourbon cocktail that features spicy allspice dram and zesty lime juice. Its lively flavor will chase away the chill.

Perfect for sharing with your sweetie while gazing into the fireplace.

The Cherry Bounce Cocktail

A riff on a drink made by Martha Washington

Cherry bounce dates back at least to 17th century England – and was quite popular in colonial America. In fact, Martha Washington made a big batch every year (we provide her recipe in the Notes).

Made the traditional way, cherry bounce takes a few months to age and mature. But we can’t wait that long. So we’re offering a cocktail version that’s much faster and easier to make, while still dispensing great flavor.

Martha (and George) would approve.

The Mother-in-Law Cocktail

This New Orleans charmer features complex, spicy flavor

Looking for a new twist on Mother’s Day? Try this tasty tipple.

It features bourbon at play with some spicy, jazzy companions (because New Orleans, you know).

Serve it and toast all the maternal spirits in your life. It’s the right thing to do.

The Creole Cocktail

Get your Mardi Gras on with this tantalizing tongue tingler

This time of year, our thoughts head towards New Orleans – home of Dixieland jazz and some of the best food in the US. Not to mention Mardi Gras.

Of course, St. Louis (where we live) also has a pretty rambunctious Mardi Gras celebration – probably second only to the more famous one in New Orleans. Not this year, though. COVID is seeing to that.

So we’ll celebrate at home, sipping a Creole Cocktail. Heck, we’re talking Mardi Gras – let’s make that two. 

The Liberal Cocktail

This timeless charmer will intrigue and satisfy

The US had an election last month, and the results are in: We need a drink! And what more appropriate choice than the Liberal Cocktail?

It’s a bipartisan standard that dates back at least 125 years. So if you’re hankering after some traditional values, this is your drink.

Mix up a round of these beauties, then give us your vote of thanks.

The Hot Toddy Cocktail

Beat winter’s chill with this classic libation

January means serious cold in our part of the world. Time to warm up!

And what’s more warming than a Hot Toddy? It combines the firewater of your choice (we prefer rum, but any brown liquor works) with a bit of sugar and boiling water. The result is a smooth sipper that will chase the chill away.

Oh, and if you’re unlucky enough to have a cold? The Hot Toddy will make you feel loads better.

Just what the doctor ordered.

The Eastern Sour Cocktail

A bourbon-fueled Tiki classic from Trader Vic

It’s a new year, so time to discover a new drink. Allow us to present the Eastern Sour Cocktail.

This one is a tasty mix of bourbon, orange juice, lemon juice, and orgeat syrup. Which makes it perfect for winter, we think. All that citrus has to be great for combating colds and flu.

To your health!

The Derby Cocktail

Celebrate the Kentucky Derby with a classic

Thoroughbreds are chomping to run for the roses. And you’ll need bourbon to watch them.

Enter The Derby Cocktail, a bourbon-based charmer that will quench your thirst while you lounge in the bluegrass.

We know you’ll like this one. We’ll even bet on it ($2.00 limit, of course)

The Fourth Regiment Cocktail

This spicy Manhattan-lite is perfect for summer

We love us a Manhattan Cocktail. As traditionally made, though, it can be a bit heavy for warm weather.

But fear not. The Fourth Regiment is here to save us.

It has less whiskey and more sweet vermouth than a traditional Manhattan, so it’s less alcoholic. And it uses three different kinds of bitters, which gives it a spicy, aromatic flavor that pairs well with many summer foods. Like barbecue, for example.

Sometimes it pays to march to a different drummer.

The Fanciulli Cocktail

This classic charmer is essentially a Manhattan made with Fernet-Branca

The Manhattan Cocktail is one of our favorites. It’s a smooth combo of rye or bourbon and sweet (Italian) vermouth, spiced up with Angostura bitters.

Well, replace the bitters with Fernet-Branca (an Italian liqueur), and you have the Fanciulli Cocktail. This drink is largely forgotten today, but it seems to have been quite popular in pre-Prohibition America.

Time for a revival, no? Especially since the the Fanciulli’s spicy flavor makes it perfect for winter sipping.

We like to serve the Fanciulli as a predinner drink, though it’s great any time of the day. Well, maybe not for breakfast. But you know what we mean.

Cranberry Shrub Cocktail with Bourbon

You can also make a kid-friendly version of this holiday drink

Ready for some holiday cheer? So are we.

The season calls out for cranberries, of course. And bourbon is perfect for warming a long December night. Mix them both with a tangy, vinegary shrub syrup, and you have a cocktail that even Santa can’t resist. (But we know some of his elves don’t drink, so we provide instructions for a nonalcoholic version of the cocktail, too.)

Wishing you a berry merry December.

The Boulevardier Cocktail

This bourbon “Negroni” is the perfect autumn drink

Ever had a Boulevardier Cocktail? Right, we didn’t think so.

But you probably know the Negroni — that delectable combo of gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth. It’s become trendy during the past few years. Well, just swap bourbon for gin, and you have the Boulevardier.

This cocktail has a bittersweet flavor that makes it perfect as a pre-dinner drink. And bourbon gives everything a nice, warm glow – so it’s welcome as autumn approaches in our part of the world.

Time to haul out those sweaters and mix up a Boulevardier. You’ll need to take the chill off.

Ice Cream Shrub Soda with Booze (or not)

The perfect summer dessert – for kids of all ages

Ice cream might be the ultimate summer dessert. You know all about that. But shrub? And why call this an ice cream soda rather than a float?

Patience, grasshopper. All will be revealed. For the moment, just think about cool, refreshing ice cream mixed with sweet but tangy shrub.

It’s great for the 4th of July. Especially since shrubs were extremely popular in colonial America. So this drink offers a taste of America’s culinary history.

Let the fireworks begin.

The Suffering Bastard Cocktail

AKA The Suffering Bar Steward, this slow sipper was concocted as a hangover remedy

OK, the name is a bit . . . unusual. But don’t let that put you off. Because the Suffering Bastard happens to be an exceptionally refreshing drink. Which makes sense, given its origin as a hair-of-the-dog remedy.

It’s a wonderful cocktail for a lazy afternoon by the pool or on the beach. And because it’s a fairly voluminous tipple, you’ll take a while to get through one. So you won’t be drinking too many of these.

Good thing. Because you don’t want to wind up with, you know, a hangover.

The Milk Punch Cocktail

What Santa really wants you to leave out for him

Milk and cookies—that’s what kids will be setting out for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. But we think ol’ Saint Nick might prefer something with a bit more, um, substance.

Enter the Milk Punch Cocktail: All the goodness of milk. All the fun of booze.

You can serve this drink chilled, or warm up the milk and serve it hot on a snowy evening. Best of all, the Milk Punch Cocktail is refreshing, and not too heavy—just what Santa needs. After all, you want him to be able to get back up the chimney.

The Seelbach Cocktail

This bourbon-based champagne cocktail brightens up the holidays

Like bourbon? And champagne? Then we’ve got just the drink for you.

The Seelbach was invented around 1917 as the signature cocktail of the Seelbach Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky. Rumor has it that F. Scott Fitzgerald hung out at the hotel bar while writing The Great Gatsby (remember, Daisy Buchanan hailed from Louisville). And that Gatsby character? He may have been inspired by a gangster Fitzgerald met there—presumably while enjoying this flavorful elixir.

True story? Who knows? What we do know is that sometime during Prohibition (when the hotel was forced to close its bar), the recipe for this drink was lost. Then a hotel manager rediscovered it in 1995.

Lucky for us. Because on Kitchen Riffs this year, we’ll be doing nothing but cookies and cocktails from now until Christmas. As a bonus, all the cocktails will be made with champagne (or sparkling wine, to be more precise).

So stock up on bubbly and grab your party hat. As Gatsby might say, “Time to enjoy some holiday cheer, old sport.”

The Mint Julep

This Cooling Cocktail is Traditional for Kentucky Derby Day

The Kentucky Derby is among the most famous horse races in the US (and part of the Triple Crown Series that also includes the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes).  Traditionally held the first Saturday in May, it’s the first big US race of the season.  Although the horses run for only a few minutes (the course measures 1¼ miles), most of those who attend make an all-day party of the event. 

While all sorts of beverages typically are on offer, the Mint Julep is “the” drink at the Kentucky Derby.  This ice-cold cocktail traditionally is served in a silver cup — which the imbiber holds by the bottom and top edges in order not to disturb the frosty coating of condensation that develops on the outside.  I’ve never felt the need to invest in silver cups just to serve a Mint Julep, so I generally use an Old-Fashioned (rocks) glass instead.  A Collins (tall) glass also works well.

Even if you aren’t traveling to Churchill Downs this weekend to attend the Kentucky Derby, you can still relax and enjoy this cool and refreshing drink.  In the northern hemisphere, warm weather has finally arrived, so we can celebrate it with this cooler.  In the southern hemisphere, you may be enjoying the last warm days before winter arrives, so what better way to say goodbye to summer than with this refreshing drink? 

And you don’t need a silver cup.  Really.

The Ward Eight Cocktail

The Perfect Drink to Celebrate (or Mourn) an Election

Here in the US, we have a big election coming up Tuesday, November 6th.  We’ll be voting for President, not to mention other federal, state, and local offices.  Many people are heartily sick of the whole process by this time (turn on the TV in “swing” states and it’s wall-to-wall political commercials).  But we’re all curious to learn the outcome, so many of us will tune in to see the election results.  And some people may even make a party of it.

Mrs. Kitchen Riffs and I certainly will be watching — and may elect to enjoy an adult beverage while consuming the political news. 

Well, why not?  Elections and booze have a long, cozy history.  Politicians used to routinely ply treat voters with intoxicating liquid refreshment in order to buy win their votes.  And remember those smoke-filled rooms?  It’s not lemonade they were quaffing in there.

So let me introduce you to the Ward Eight, a cocktail devised to celebrate a 19th century election.  It’s a smooth drink with nice tart undertones, perfect to celebrate your candidate’s win (or mourn his loss).

The Old-Fashioned Cocktail

What to Drink if You're a Whiskey Lover

The Old-Fashioned (often spelled without the hyphen) is one of the oldest cocktails around. Indeed, it’s a pretty good example of how the original cocktails were made way back in the early 1800s (more about that later). In its day, it was the king of cocktails.

Today? Not many people drink it, or have even tasted it. In fact, the only thing many people know about it is that it’s the elixir of choice of Don Draper, of Mad Men fame.

Too bad. If you crave whiskey, no other mixed drink better showcases the deep, rich flavor of good old American bourbon or rye. And few drinks are easier to make: You need only whiskey, bitters, and sugar.

With the weather turning chilly, now is the perfect time to enjoy this bracing piece of Americana. So why not try the drink that your great-great-great-great-great grandfather used to enjoy? Nothing is more old fashioned than that.

Whiskey Sour

This Lemony Cocktail Once Was America’s Favorite

For over 100 years, the Whiskey Sour was the most popular cocktail in the United States.  It’s easy to understand why.  The drink has great flavor, a lovely bouquet, and looks mighty attractive.

Getting thirsty?  Let’s make one!