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Mixology, a thread about booze.
DragonPup
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
For Christmas my older sister and her husband gave me some materials to learn how to mix drinks and be a good/classy host for guests, etc.
Now I drink very little(more on that later), so the main crux is what should I have stocked, and what should I know how to mix for impromtu hosting duties? I was also given a bottle of Beefeater Gin, a bottle of whiskey, a bottle of sweet vermouth, angostura bitters, as well as a lemon/lime squeezer, fancy looking mixing thing, a strainer, spoon and measuring glass. Also, I know some alcohols have a shelf life once the seal is cracked, but I don't know which those are.
As for me, I rarely drink and have not experimented much myself. I disdain beer (heresy, I know) and I didn't much like my first attempt at a Manhatten. I do like Midori Sours, however.
Thanks!
Now I drink very little(more on that later), so the main crux is what should I have stocked, and what should I know how to mix for impromtu hosting duties? I was also given a bottle of Beefeater Gin, a bottle of whiskey, a bottle of sweet vermouth, angostura bitters, as well as a lemon/lime squeezer, fancy looking mixing thing, a strainer, spoon and measuring glass. Also, I know some alcohols have a shelf life once the seal is cracked, but I don't know which those are.
As for me, I rarely drink and have not experimented much myself. I disdain beer (heresy, I know) and I didn't much like my first attempt at a Manhatten. I do like Midori Sours, however.
Thanks!
"I was there, I was there, the day Horus slew the Emperor." -Cpt Garviel Loken
Currently painting: Slowly [flickr]
Currently painting: Slowly [flickr]
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This ought to help.
Currently painting: Slowly [flickr]
For a progression example, I started out with captain and coke, then captain and water, captain rocks, gin and tonic, gin rocks, vodka rocks, crown and coke, cognac, manhattans, vespers...seriously though, I'm not an alcoholic :P
If you can find it Pimm's and sprite is delicious. I was just introduced to this on New Year's and my fiancee and I both enjoyed it. I'm not sure where my buddy found it though.
You may also like Amaretto with coke. Also tasty on vanilla ice cream.
As for hosting, I'm not sure what your friends like, but I would take a guess that in general ladies would like something sweeter like the amaretto and coke while the gents might prefer vodka / gin and tonic.
A gin, vodka, whisky, rum and some mixers and you should be set. Sweet / dry vermouth, Coke, orange, pineapple, cranberry juices, and tonic water should give you plenty of options I would think. Lemons / limes and plastic umbrellas if you want to go really crazy.
Currently painting: Slowly [flickr]
Anyway...if you want to figure out what drinks you like you have a few options. The cheapest route may be to get the ingredients to make the Midori Sour, and then look up online or in a book what other drinks you can make that are similar.
If you go out often with people who drink and they/you are okay with it, ask them if you can try a sip of whatever drink they have ordered. That's how I learned I liked a lot of things was by stealing whatever my husband ordered ;-)
You could also ask a bartender to recommend things, if you tell them what you like they can usually think of something for you to try...sometimes it sucks, other times you'll be surprised.
I hated the way a lot of drinks and wine tasted, and I still don't like beer, but I gradually got used to them and slowly grown to like things I would've hated before. I think tasting something you eventually get used to it?
Oh, make sure if you're trying out different drinks that you're not eating something really sugary or sweet beforehand. It came make the drinks taste comparably bitter.
As for being a good host...everyone likes different things, just ask them what they want perhaps?
I'm a fan of Stolichnaya vodka. Smirnoff is pretty good too, nice flavor infused vodkas. Grey Goose is over priced for its quality.
If you want to know how to mix a few generic drinks, be able to whip up a martini (vodka or gin, there are tons of variations, are cosmopolitans still popular?), a bloody mary (mainly this is picking a good bloody mary mix), a white russian, a mojito (needs mint), and a long-island iced tea (maybe, though I think it's kinda a waste of good liquors). Though where I live you could probably get by with just knowing how to pour a good margarita which necessitates tequila and orange liquer.
So long as you can close the bottle again, the only liquors that go "bad" might be those that have a high sugar content (it gets crusty at the cap) and fortified wines.
Your best value for vodka (IMO) is Monopolowa, very clean potato vodka and quite cheap. The only Amaretto I've had is Disaronno. Oh and get an Irish Cream (like Bailey's), cause it's just yum, straight up, on ice, or in your coffee.
This is absolutely true. Vanilla Skyy and root beer tastes like creme soda, too.
Also, get some tequila. Ladies love it 'cause it mixes well with fruity drinks, same goes for rum.
I use Ketel One as my "good" vodka, because it's just about as good as Grey Goose, but less expensive.
Personally I try to keep a stock of: vodka, light rum, dark rum, gin, and whiskey.
none of these will go bad once cracked, but try to keep them in a cool dry place.
before hosting any events I fill a freezer bag or two with icecubes so I`ll have plenty for blender drinks. I also prepare about 1.5 liters of simple syrup, which will be more than enough to sweeten all the drinks that will be had at an event of about 20 people or less.
Obviously, make a trip to the grocery store and pick up some lemons, limes, and mint sprigs. I might pick up a coconut or pineapple if there`s a theme or anything, but mostly lemons limes and mint are good enough.
If you don`t have some already, you should pick up some fancy swizzle sticks because they really help with the presentation of the drinks.
one more thing you might want to pick up are some easy pour spouts. . . they make everything much more fun!
Yes. Disposable liquor bottle pouring insert thingies are a must. Nobody likes to clean up the liquor that Bob spilled because he couldn't pour straight.
Which doesn't necessarily mean you should stock your bar with nothing but top shelf. Smirnoff is perfectly fine as a mixer while Grey Goose is, if you've already payed that much for it, (though Stoli is strongly recommended by just about everyone) wasted on a coke and vodka. But I'd recommend keeping a couple top shelf bottles for drinks that rely more on the taste (or lack there of) of the liquor.
it is a wretched combo
If you aren't sure, go sip some Absolut Mandarin and come back.
I tried some last night Absolute Mandarin last night for the first time, yeah, mixed with cranberry juice. It wasn't terrible, but it's not really a flavor I would ask for ever.
Ran into this problem on New Years. Just split the overstrong drink into 2 cups, and add more mixer to thin it out.
They came back with three bottles of blueberry vodka and a bottle of coconut rum.
Buy unflavored alcohols as a good base, then if you want to get something flavor infused, do it as is required for the occasion. Not the other way around.
Haha...yeah. I had a conference badge for the Austin Film Festival this year, which let me into a few parties with free booze. Dos XX and Absolute Vodka were the sponsors, so that's all they had. Since it was free the bartenders were pouring the drinks STRONG, and I dare say not mixing well.
The mouthful of Absolut pineapple(with a splash of juice) I got made the (relatively) less potent drink of Absolute mandarin and ginger ale taste almost good ;-)
1. Gin + Ginger Ale. It's a different take on a Gin + Tonic, instead of Tonic Water you use a ginger based soda. I prefer Bombay Sapphire Gin and Canada Dry Ginger Ale. I do about half a can of soda per shot worth of gin and you can't even taste the gin. If too strong (can taste gin) you can always add more ginger ale.
2. Long Island Iced Tea. Although it recipie doesn't include any tea, the name comes from the taste. It's a little difficult to get it to taste right, restaurants just use a pre-mixed alcohol and just add coke so you might be better off using the pre-mixed bottles, but it takes 1 part vodka, 1 part tequlia, 1 part rum, 1 part gin, 1 part triple sec, 1 1/2 parts sweet & sour mixer, and 1 splash of Coke.
3. Mojito. Contains flavored rum I believe, Bacardi Carta Blanca or something, 1oz of Lime, 2 teaspoons of sugar, mint, ice and soda water.
Edit: The Mojito. For the smoothest mojitos, gently crush mint leaves and lightly squeeze lime in a cool tall glass. Pour sweet syrup on top to cover and fill glass with ice. Add Bacardi Rum, club soda, and stir your emerging mojito well. Garnish with a lime wedge, a few sprigs of mint.
Just regular rum is fine. I sometimes use lime soda water instead of regular soda water too
but the Mojito is awesome.
As mooshoepork said, mojitos are a great drink that goes well with the frat or fancy crowd.
Other than that I would suggest another gin. Just a personal preference, but I think Beefeater is garbage taste wise. I love gin and would have to say that you can never go wrong with Bombay Sapphire, Hendricks is not a traditional flavored gin but very interesting, Magellan for those bold saucy times.
also experimentation can be fun in a good and bad way. recently during a party my wife wanted Kahlua, but didn't not know what to mix it with given what we had. So just joking I dared her to drink any concoction I could create with it without knowing the contents. I just grabbed a shot glass and mixed Kahlua and whiskey, called it a Hillbilly Breakfast and surprisingly she really liked it. I tried one and it really wasn't half bad. I'm sure this has already been done a million times by others and has an official name, but it can be fun to "invent" your own drinks. This can swing in the reverse and be the worst tasting thing ever, but it makes for a good laugh at least.
Just be careful when using milks or cream as when mixed with certain things they instantly will curdle and gel up. Yes I know there are many drinks that actually call for this to happen, but keep a puke bucket near by as they often cause people to gag on how nasty it is.
Steam
XBOX
I find that whiskey and ginger ale is even better. But I pretty much love whiskey and anything.
and another poster said "Edit: The Mojito. For the smoothest mojitos, gently crush mint leaves and lightly squeeze lime in a cool tall glass. Pour sweet syrup on top to cover and fill glass with ice. Add Bacardi Rum, club soda, and stir your emerging mojito well. Garnish with a lime wedge, a few sprigs of mint."
gently cannot be stressed enough. I've had friends try and make mojitos before and they pulverize the mint into little bits. You shouldn't be slurping up bits of mint with each sip. The mint leaves should pretty much still be intact after the "crushing". Just a gentle press and minor bruises and tears in the leaf releases the flavor. Also it is a much sexier looking drink with the full leaves floating in there, not to mention the leaves stay put and all you get is the drink, not a chunky mouthful of booze and mint.
Steam
XBOX
Currently painting: Slowly [flickr]
Belvedere vodka for me. Also, Yukon Jack and Sprite was big in college. Never fell much into the flavored vodkas.