The days are getting cooler so here is a great tasting drink that will warm you from the inside out.  It is also easy to make.

Tahitian Coffee

7 ounces of hot coffee

1/4 ounces of Cointreau

4 dashes of Cognac

It doesn’t get much easier than that.

This drink is great for those upcoming Halloween parties.  I also like the name.  Ecto Cooler.  That just sounds like a good Halloween drink.  If you aren’t having a Halloween party then mix a batch up and watch Ghostbusters.  I don’t think Ghostbusters has an official drink but if it did it would be the Ecto Cooler.  It is easy to make and is a lovely green color.  Here is the ingredient list:

1 package of Lemon Lime Kool-Aid.  You read it right Kool-Aid.

1 Lemon sliced

1 Lime sliced

1 cup of sugar

20 oz Vodka- I recommend the cheap stuff.  No sense mixing Gray Goose with Kool-Aid.  A bottle of Popov will do nicely.

Pour all ingredients into a half gallon container.  If you don’t have a half gallon container double the ingredients and use a gallon.  Fill the remainder of the container with water and ice.  Stir until the sugar and Kool-Aid dissolve.  Serve over ice.  This will stain clothes, carpeting and your tongue green so be careful not to spill it. 

Sam Adams makes some of my favorite beers. I am currently drinking my way through a case of Sam Adams Brewmasters Collection. That keeps me going until the Holiday packs come out which is an annual purchase for me. Last night Mrs. Mai Tai brought home a Sam Adams product I had never seen before. I had never even heard of it before. Waiting in my refrigerator was a four pack of Sam Adams Hallertau Imperial Pilsner. It doesn’t look like your usual Sam Adams beer. First the packaging. There are only four beers not six. Then the bottle itself. It is the standard brown color but the bottle does not have the usual Sam Adams label on it. I haven’t tried it yet but the box explains that it is full of hoppy goodness. So hoppy that I expect my head might leap off my neck in a big hop explosion.

I am a big fan of tropical drinks.  I like drinking them.  I like making them.  I like reading about the people who created them.  One ingredient you see in many old drink recipes is Falernum.  I have never seen Falernum sold anywhere and believe me I have looked.  If you ask the sales clerk if they carry it you usually get what I call the CBS (cold blank stare) as they clearly have no idea what you are talking about.  Now how am I supposed to make these drinks if I cannot get a key ingredient?  It would be like making a Mai Tai without the Orgeat Syrup.  The other day while doing some Falernum research on the web I stumbled across the Drinkboy website with a recipe to make your own Falernum.  There are actually two recipes one for a small batch and one that makes 30 gallons.  I don’t need 30 gallons of any beverage but the small batch looks easy enough to make.  I know what I will be cooking up this weekend. 

This is a classic tiki drink. Lots of ingredients but worth the time it takes to make.

1/2 oz Light Rum

1/2 oz Gold Rum

1/2 oz of Dark Rum

1/2 oz of Grand Marnier

1 oz Grapefruit Juice

1 oz orange Juice

1 oz Pineapple Juice

Remember fresh squeezed juice is the best. Start with pouring all of the liquors in a tall glass filled with ice. Then add the juices. Some people will tell you to shake the mixture others will tell you to stir it. I recommend you try both and see what you like better. Then sit back and enjoy. An added benefit of this drink is that it will help keep scurvy away.

Some new beer from Michelob for the holidays.  If you like chocolate then you might like the Michelob Celebrate Chocolate.  This is advertised as a sipping beer.  There is also Michelob Celebrate Cherry.  They are packaged in a fine dining bottle.  I never considered Michelob as fine dining but I guess they are trying to change how people think about beer. 

Last year a group of us were at a local Buffalo Wild Wings and we saw a great bottle sitting behind the bar.  One side was red and it said Jekyll.  Next to it was a black bottle that said Hyde.  The bottles nest together to make Jekyll & Hyde.  Of course we had to try it.  They brought over the shots and it was warm.  Didn’t love it but it wasn’t bad.  On a return visit we found out that it should be served cold.  That made a big difference.  Since then I have seen it served in other places but never available at the local liquor store.  That was until a few weeks ago.  A friend found small bottles of it.  I figured if they sell small bottles they have to sell big bottles.  It took some searching but I finally found them.  I guess the test phase is over and Anheuser Busch is starting to make it widely available.  The best part is still the bottles.  If you are wondering about the taste the dark tastes like Jagermesiter and the red tastes like cough syrup.  Mix the two together to unleash the monster.  If you are planning a Halloween party you need to have these.     

This drink is another cruise line staple. I have to admit this isn’t my favorite drink. This recipe is a variation of the standard Yellow Bird. It has more alcohol which is good. On the downside it still uses Galliano which I do not enjoy. If you don’t know what Galliano is go to any bar and look for the tall bottle with the yellow liquid. All bars have it but rarely use it. More often than not it is covered in dust.

Here is the recipe:

1 oz of Meyers Dark Rum

1 oz of White Rum

1/4 oz Galliano

1 1/4 oz Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice

1/2 oz Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice

Place ingredients in a shaker. Fill glass with crushed ice. Strain into the glass.

While the temperature is still in the high 90’s every day here you know fall is approaching when Sam Adams Octoberfest hits the shelves and it has arrived.  Offically Oktoberfest doesn’t start until 9/22 but what harm is there in starting the festivities earlier. 

Ein prosit, ein prosit der Gumutlichkeit.  Ein prosit, ein prosit der Gumutlichkeit.

Eins, zwei, drei, g’suffa Zicke-zache, Zicke-zache, Zicke-zache, Hoy, Hoy Hoy

This drink isn’t as easy to make as some of the others that I have posted but it is worth it and I am sure you are up to the challenge. 

1 1/2 oz of rum (I usually have Appleton Estate on hand but use what you have)

1 oz 151 (Yeah, it is going to be strong)

3/4 oz Orange Curacao

1/2 oz Orgeat Syrup

1 oz Fresh Lime Juice ( I repeat fresh lime juice)

2 oz Fresh Orange Juice (again I can’t stress enough the importance of fresh juice)

Pour all ingredients into a shaker.  Shake, Shake , Shake.   Strain and pour it into an ice filled glass.  If you like to add garnish you can’t go wrong with an ornage or lime slice. 

Warning: This is a strong drink.  It is called a Suffering Bastard for a reason.  Don’t blame me if this how you feel in the morning.