The Moscow Mule

Back in the day when Kingsly Amis was writing, ginger beer was a commonality. Nowadays, not so much. Sure some weird craft brewers bottle ginger beer, but that only tends to happen in places that are not close to me. So I had to improvise, and wait until Giant Eagle got some Ginger Beer in stock, its not the alcoholic variety, but it is pretty tasty, and I bought it for two drinks from the book, and this is the first.

The Moscow Mule
Vodka
Ginger Beer

Legend has it that this beer was created in California when a guy who had a whole lot of Vodka met up with a guy with a whole lot of Ginger Beer and thus created this drink.

Thanks to the ability of vodka to mix with things and be undetectable, the Moscow Mule basically just tastes like ginger beer. Pretty refreshing, actually.

Campari and Soda

This drink is not for the feint of heart, or anyone who wants a quick drinking spirit.

Campari and Soda
Campari
Soda

Most people can't handle the taste of Campari, but I love bitter drinks, so it's up my alley. I only tried this drink after watching The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. This is a drink that you have to sip to enjoy. Drink it too fast and it's too bitter. But take it slow, and you can really appreciate the flavor.

The Mojito

For some reason, this drink was lost to humanity for like 50 years until it made a comeback in 2002ish. This probably has to do with the fact that making an actual mojito is too time consuming for today's general public. The fine people at the drink mixer corporations have seen it fit to premix some mojito juice, and thus its a little bit more accessible. I've only ever had a mojito out on one occasion, and only because Friday's had $5 Ultimate Mojitos.... the restaurant version of this drink pales in comparison.

The Mojito
1 Lime
1 tsp sugar
5-6 mint leaves
rum
soda

I have found that the best way to make the mojito is to cut the lime into 4ths, and then one of the 4ths in half again. Squeeze all the limes except for one of the eigths into a rocks glass. Put the last piece in whole. Add the sugar, mint leaves, and just a dash of soda. Muddle this for a few seconds, then add ice, as much rum as you want, and then soda to fill the glass. Stir and then enjoy.

My dad once commented that I should make mojitos for the bar, and I replied that I would have to charge $15 a piece. Such is the power of a homemade mojito.

The Tequila Sunrise

This drink apparently gets its name because when you put the grenadine in, it sinks to the bottom, creating an ornate, multihued affair of a drink.

The Tequila Sunrise
Tequila
Orange Juice
Grenadine

This drink is complex only because the grenadine settles to the bottom of the drink. The closer you get to the bottom the more you taste it...i.e. the sweeter it gets. I don't think I'll be having any more of these.

The White Lady

I have heard this drink referred to as both the White Lady and the Delilah. Amis calls it the White Lady, so I will too.

The White Lady
Gin
Triple Sec
Sours

Hrmm, that recipe looks familiar. Oh yeah, it's basically a gin Margarita. The drink basically tastes like one too. Actually it tastes more like Kamikaze, which is the Vodka version of this drink. Too sweet for my tastes.

The Piña Colada

For some reason Amis dislikes this drink, and he even lived in a time before really terrible premixed Piña Colada mix was the norm.

The Piña Colada
Rum
Cream of Coconut
Pineapple Juice

I always take the time to buy real cream of coconut and pineapple juice, both are readily available at any grocery store, and its just as easy to mix them in the blender as the as prebottled stuff.

The Piña Colada is one of the only frozen drinks that I like, but mostly because I love coconut.

The Mint Julep

Ah the famous drink of the Kentucky Derby. Apparently people have gotten into duels over whether or not the mint should be crushed. Trader Vic says not to, Kingsley Amis says not to, but to leave them in the sugar water for an hour before finishing the mix, but Robert Duvall's character in Thank You For Smoking advocates crushing to loosen the oils, and if I remember my directors commentary right, that was an ad lib. So Robert Duvall I will listen to. Also, I have a muddler that I use for my mojito's so why not put it to use.

The Mint Julep
Bourbon
5-6 Mint Leaves
1 Tsp Sugar
Water enough to dissolve the sugar

Not having any fine single batch bourbon on hand to make this drink (which I am assured makes it all the much better) I substituted Seven Crown. I have long held that Seagram's 7 Crown is your best bargain whiskey. It tastes pretty good and costs pretty little.

The Mint Julep is a smooth drink. The mint and the sugar combine with the woody notes of the whiskey to make something that is truly drinkable. I can see why the Southern gentry of old sipped on this drink as a staple.

I think the mojito is still a better drink, but thats only because I love both rum and lime, but so long as I have mint for the mojitos and whiskey lying around, I can see where this drink would go good on a porch.

The Tom Collins

I used to drink these a lot a few years ago. They're really refreshing and easy to make.

The Tom Collins
Gin
Soda
Sours

The Tom Collins is a good sit by the pool sort of drink. It basically tastes like slightly bitter lemonade and since you can put as much soda in it as you like, you can sip on one for hours.

A classic

The Boilermaker

Before the Jaëger Bomb, the Irish Carbomb, the Cherry Bomb, or the ill conceived Buie Bomb, there was the Boilermaker. Named presumably after the tough union type that would order such a thing at 5am after his shift at the plant ended, it's simply whiskey and beer. I once ordered one and the bartender said "here you go--the worst drink in America."

The Boilermaker
3/4 Pint of Beer
Shot of Whiskey

The Boilermaker can be experienced in one of three ways. One can either: shoot the whiskey and then chase with the beer, pour the shot into the beer and drink it, or, and the most spectacular way, drop the shot glass into the beer and then chug.

I always drink mine the third way. Sure you do have to watch out for both overflow and that shot glass rattling around in the bottom of the pint glass, but if you are careful, you won't lose any teeth.

I like the boilermaker because it turns regular mass produced American style lager into something that tastes more like a scotch ale. The flavor of the whiskey brings out the malt in the beer. However, because it is a drink that is best drunk quickly, the Boilermaker is certainly not something you can drink for a shift.

The Screwdriver

This drink is fairly common, and probably one of the first drinks anyone has, since most people always have its key ingredients lying around. It is an easy drinker, and it does its job in terms of packing a punch.

The Screwdriver
Vodka
Orange Juice

I once had a friend that drank screwdrivers because she couldn't stand drinking orange juice straight. I'm pretty sure that's a common sentiment. This drink is good, but nothing out of the ordinary.

The Sidecar

I have been putting off this drink for some time, because I really didn't know how brandy would mix with triple sec and sours. Legend has it that the drink was named after the conveyance of choice of it's inventor.

The Sidecar
Brandy
Triple Sec
Sours

Wow, this drink is amazing. If you ever wanted to take Hi-C orange and turn it into booze, you would end up with the Sidecar. Very refreshing, no alcohol taste whatsoever, and super easy to make.

The Gimlet

Though technically I added soda to this and made it a Gin Rickey, the Gimlet is probably one of the tastier of the vintage cocktails no longer seen today.

The Gimlet
Gin
Lime Juice

While not as good as rum and lime juice, the Gimlet is a refreshing drink. The flavor of the gin is cut ever so slightly by the lime juice, but neither ingredient overpowers the other. A neat mix of flavor.

The Whiskey Sour

The Whiskey Sour was my drink of choice for many years before switching back to Rum. I used to make it with lemon lime Gatorade.

The Whiskey Sour
Whiskey
Sours Mix

Amis calls for lemon juice and sugar, but he didn't live in a day when you can go down to the store and buy premixed sours. It's a lot less hassle than making your own, but can lead to heartburn.

The Whiskey Sour is still probably my favorite drink after Rum, Soda, and Lime juice.

The Old Fashioned

In reading the book, it seemed like the only drink Amis mentioned as the Dry Martini was the Old Fashioned. He once said it was the best drink on the other side of the spectrum from said Dry Martini, and he was actually right.

The Old Fashioned
Mostly Whiskey
Sugar
Angostura Bitters
Orange Juice
Maraschino Cherry Juice

I followed the method he described in the book--dissolving the sugar in some warm water, adding the bitters, then the whiskey (he calls for bourbon, I used 7 Crown) and the oj and cherry juice, stirring, then adding ice and stirring again. I forwent the fruit garnish, as I dont like cherries, and I didnt feel like slicing an orange.

This drink is a little time consuming to make, but not anymore so than my homemade mojitos, and it has the added bonus of being the only whiskey + fruit juice drink that I have found good, let alone tolerable.

The Old Fashioned has made whiskey interesting again

The Tigne Rose

This drink may be the precursor to the Long Island Iced Tea, or it may have been just created by someone only had one shot left of everything in his cabinet and put them all together.

The Tigne Rose
1 tot Whiskey
1 tot Rum
1 tot Vodka
1 tot Gin
1 tot Brandy

I don't know why anyone would want to drink this if not for experimental purposes. This drink has no taste but all aftertaste, but not good aftertaste like the Rusty Nail. This is just awful.

The Vodka Martini

I needed to get some vodka today to make some rigatoni's so I figured I might as well try the more popular version of the martini

The Vodka Martini
Mostly Vodka
Some Dry Vermouth
Olives

I'm not sold on this drink. It seems to me that the Gin martini is better because Gin at least is supposed to have some flavor to it. Vodka by nature is not supposed to have color and very little taste, so this drink just tastes like alcohol.