For my MxMo XIX theme in September of last year I chose ‘Fizz’ generally because I thought it’d be fun and narrowly because I have trouble denying myself any reason to have a drink topped with sparkling wine, champagne, tonic water or club soda. Or hell, any with champagne as a base for that matter. So recently when my glorious wife shoved a stack of papers in my face with a great number of drinks she felt I needed to make for her to try post-haste I had no trouble taking that honey-do on when I saw how many involved the bubbly.

Among the many she found were the winners of last year’s Tales of the Cocktails competition; the Crescent City Blossom, the Starfish Cooler, and the Sparkling Sakepom as well as several from the Food Network and Martha Stewart websites including the Laughter in the Rain¹ , the Killer Mango Champagne Cocktail, the Grand Champagne Cocktail, and the Frizzante Mojito. Now, many of these require more work than I’m immediately willing to put in sight unseen² but several of these I could try with little pre-work and had the right ingredients ready, and willing, to go. We tried the Starfish Cooler, the Crescent City Blossom, and the Frizzante Mojito. Each had their considerable charms, and none fell flat or disappointed. Read More »

1. this is another drink that uses cucumber in its preparation, like the Flying Cucumber, to good effect; bit too sweet for me though [↩]
2. I’m looking at you Killer Mango thingy [↩]

After writing about The Field Guide to Cocktails and having the author, Rob Chirico, comment on my post with a reference to his ‘Summer Rain’ cocktail, I couldn’t resist trying it. I’ve been avoiding purchasing Pama liqueur for a long long time because the concept of Pomegranate liqueur seemed a bit bandwagoneerish and I am, therefore, suspicious of its quality and worth (especially when it costs over $25 per bottle here). However, Rob’s recipe gave me an excuse to revisit the purchase and, lo and behold, upon entering my favorite liquor store I found that they were finally stocking a 375ml bottle at $15. Thus, my risk and commitment aversions were both swept aside in one fell swoop. So, ‘Summer Rain’ it is.

Admittedly a variation on the Mojito, the thing I thought of first in reviewing the recipe was how the tartness of the Pomegranate juice (and presumably the Pama) would affect the balance of the drink. However, the second thing I noticed was that the amount of lime, at least for what I use in my Mojitos, is reduced whereas the amount of simple syrup remains relatively consistent. So, in short, there’s hope. Read More »