Cocktail Engineering: The Western Tanager – a cocktail recipe by Michell...

Cocktail Engineering: The Western Tanager – a cocktail recipe by Michell...: I picked up some nice fresh peaches and nectarines at the Farmer's market last weekend and started thinking about making a cocktail with...

The Western Tanager – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

I picked up some nice fresh peaches and nectarines at the Farmer's market last weekend and started thinking about making a cocktail with a nice peach flavor.  This is a sweet little cocktail that's nice this time of year to go with all the stone fruit are coming in.  So here you go!  

In a cocktail shaker 1/3 filled with cracked ice add:

• 4 oz Ketel One Peach & Orange Blossom Botanical Vodka
• 2 oz Giffard creme de Peche de Vigne liqueur
• 3 oz fresh squeezed orange juice
• a few drops of Scrappy's orange bitters

Shake and strain into two small cocktail glasses and garnish with a sprig of rosemary and a twist of orange peel.

I like the Ketel One brand of flavored vodka because it has no added sweeteners or sugars and is all-natural.  I'd like to take a trip to Holland some day to visit the Ketel One distillery.

Cheers!

The Red Munia

I dedicate this little cocktail to my friend Diana and also in recognition of national heart month - you can read more from the links below.  This little drink is a twist on the French 75 and comes out with a light pink hue for a nice Valentine's Day cocktail.  

Shake the following over ice and strain into two cocktail glasses garnished with strawberry:

• 1.5 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 4 oz Beefeater Pink strawberry flavored gin
• 8 drops of Lavender bitters (Scrappy's, 0.5 oz size bottle)
• Big squeeze of agave

Top w/ Brut Rose sparkling wine.

The Red Munia is also known as a strawberry finch.  It makes it's home in the grasslands of tropical regions in Asia.  You can read more about it on Wikipedia - it's a very pretty bird.

Read about American Heart Month here:

https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/american_heart_month.htm
https://www.goredforwomen.org/ 

Cheers!

The Great Spotted Woodpecker – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

A nice little fall cocktail...

Into a cocktail shaker 1/3 filled w/cracked ice add:

- 2 1/2 oz. good bourbon
- 1 oz. of Nocello Walnut liqueur
- 1/2 oz. of Trader Joe's vanilla bean infused Maple Syrup

Shake and strain into a cocktail glass.  Makes one sweet and warming little drink.

Apparently, the Great Spotted Woodpecker can crack open a walnut.  I watched a video on YouTube.

Cheers!

The Black Redstart – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

Hello, I'm back after a summer hiatus with a nice little spicy and refreshing cocktail.  The only special ingredient you need is the Averna Amaro Siciliano liqueur.  To build this one in a shaker 1/3 filled with cracked ice add:

- 5 oz. good quality white or golden rum
- 1 oz. of the Averna Amaro Siciliano liqueur
- fresh squeezed juice from one small orange
- fresh squeezed juice from one lemon
- a good squeeze of agave nectar

Shake and strain into two ~6 oz cocktail glasses with two or three small ice cubes.  Garnish with one orange and one lemon peel.

The Black Redstart is a bird that can be found in Sicily as well as other parts of Europe.

Enjoy!

The White-cheeked Turaco – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

This little cocktail is herbal and a bit bitter and also very refreshing.  To build this drink:  muddle about (6) 1-2" chunks of grapefruit with (6) fresh sage leaves.  Pull out the grapefruit husks and pour into a cocktail shaker - you should have about 2 ounces of juice with the sage leave pieces and pulp.  

To the 2 ounces of grapefruit juice add

• 4 ounces of good gin (I used St. George 'Botanivore' - that said I want to experiment w/other gins to see how the flavor changes).  
• 1 and 1/2 ounces of Chartreuse
• two drops of bitters (Bittercube Bitters 'Jamaican #1 if you can find it).

Shake with ice and strain into two small (4 to 6 oz) cocktail glasses.  Garnish with a slice of grapefruit skin and a small sage leaf.

The White-cheeked Turaco is a beautiful, flamboyant bird that makes its home in the horn of Africa.  

Cheers!

The Cardinal – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

This is basically a cosmo made my favorite way - very dry.  You have to follow the ingredients exactly to get one this dry.  Just in time for National Cocktail Day!

To a shaker 1/3 filled with cracked ice add:

5 oz. good quality plain vodka
1 oz. dry curacao
1 oz. fresh-squeezed lime juice
3 oz. 100% juice cranberry juice (no sugar added)

Shake and strain into 2 cocktail glasses garnished with a nice big piece of fresh lemon peel.

Cheers!

The American Goldfinch – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

This being winter, the warming cocktails are more on my mind.  So Kentucky bourbon it is!  This is a nice and simple cocktail that you can enjoy while watching an early winter sunset or admiring your first lily bloom of the season.  In this cocktail I used a small batch bourbon called "Bird Dog".  I have to admit, I tried it because I love bird dogs and the dog on the label reminded me of my German Shorthaired Pointer a bit.  To my delight, it turned out to be a lovely bourbon that I plan to keep in the barmoire cabinet for cool night nips.

To build this cocktail with a shaker 1/3 filled with cracked ice add:

4.5 oz good quality bourbon
1.5 oz Dry Curacao (I used Pierre Ferrand)
1 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice
4 oz apple juice (I used an organic Gravenstein juice)

Rub the inside rim of two cocktail glasses w/pinched lemon rind.  Rim w/brown sugar.  Shake and strain into cocktail glasses.  Makes two drinks.

Cheers!

The Brazilian merganser – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

This is my take on the traditional Brazilian Caipirinha which is made with rum called Cachaca.  My sister-in-law is from Brazil and has a large collection of Cachacas as you can see in the photo below.  My brother-in-law (her husband) gave me some good guidance in Caipirinha making that he picked up from family and friends and which I'll share with you today.

To prepare the fresh limes wash and cut of the tip and branch ends.  Quarter length-wise then slice off the thin white bitter strip along the center of the lime quarters.  Then slice each quarter in half in the other direction.

For this cocktail I decided to make a simple syrup from dark brown sugar rather than use the traditional super-fine white sugar.  This gives the cocktail a dark color and a slight molasses flavor.  To make the simple syrup bring 1 cup of dark brown sugar mixed with 1 cup of water to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for another 15 minutes.  Once cooled pour into a jar.  Any left-over simple syrup should keep for a week or two in your refrigerator.

I used a Cachaca from Patos de Minas, Minas Gerais, Brazil called Leblon.

Prepare the glass:

To an old-fashioned glass add 4 to 8 quarters (depending on the size of your limes) of prepared lime pieces and muddle just to release the juice from each lime piece (crushing once or twice, depending on size, being careful not to press so hard that you release the bitters from the lime pith). Top with crushed ice.

In a shaker partially filled with cracked ice add:
3 ounces of Cachaca (you can use a white rum if Cachaca is not available)
1 ounce of the dark brown sugar simple syrup

Shake and strain into the prepared glass.  Stir.  Garnish with a lime wheel.  Makes one cocktail.

Cheers!

Note:  The Brazilian merganser is a very endangered duck.

The Dark-Eyed Junco – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

I was thinking of my 1st cousin Chris, who is coming to visit this week, when I made this nice fall cocktail.  Once the temperatures start cooling at night, I find a nice warming cocktail to be just what the barkeep ordered!  For this one I wanted something bourbon-based, herbal and a tad citrus-y.  There's a flavored simple syrup in this one, and they're simple to make.  And if you ever need a very talented sound engineer, Chris is your guy! 

To make the simple syrup to a small sauce pan add:
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup fresh cold water
5 or so fresh sage leaves & peel from 1/2 a lemon

Soft boil for ~25 minutes, then strain into a glass jar (I use those salad dressing jars) and let stand to cool.  Save the candied peel and sage leaves for the cocktail.  The simple syrup will keep in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks.

Prepare (2) small (~5-6 ounce) cocktail glasses by rubbing some lemon peel and sage leaves on the inside of the glass to release some of the oils.

To build the cocktail, to a shaker 1/3 filled with cracked ice add:
5 ounces good quality bourbon (I used Bulleit)
1 ounce Amaro Siciliano liqueur
1 ounce fresh-squeezed lemon juice
1 ounce of sage-lemon simple syrup

Shake and strain into the (2) cocktail glasses.  Add one each candied lemon peel and sage leaf (they will sink to the bottom).  Add one fresh lemon peel and one fresh sage leaf to float on top.  

And that's the cocktail!

The Dark-eyed Junco winters in the Nashville area.

Enjoy.

Michelle

The Purple Gallinule – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

I dedicate this little cocktail to friends and co-workers either directly affected, or who have family affected, by Hurricane Harvey.  Please donate if you can afford it, every little bit counts.  

http://www.redcross.org/

You can read all about the beautiful Purple Gallinule on the Houston Audubon Society's web site.  This is a marsh bird that breeds in the Houston area.

About the drink, this is a simple brandy cocktail.  I typically use Christian Brothers Frost White in my brandy cocktails as I find it to be very smooth and it plays well with other liquors.

To build the drink in a shaker 1/3 filled with cracked ice add:
1 oz. good quality vodka
1 oz. good quality brandy
2 oz. of Trader Joe's 'Tart Cherry' 100% Juice Blend (in their refrigerated case)

Shake and strain into a small cocktail or cordial glass.  Garnish with a small skewer of blueberries.

Have a safe Labor Day.

The Yellow Warbler – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

I took advantage of a neighbor's extra lemons and decided to make a kind of lemon martini to enjoy on this very pleasant late afternoon.  For this drink you can use a small cocktail glass.

To build this drink add to a cocktail shaker 1/3 filled with ice:

• 2 1/2 ounces of good quality citrus vodka (I used Ketel One Citroen)
• 1 ounce of limoncello (I used Re:Find)
• 1/2 ounce of fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• a small squeeze of agave nectar (if needed)
• a dash of Fee Brothers orange bitters

Shake and strain into your cocktail glass that has been partially sugar-rimmed.  I used a nice ginger flavored sugar.  Add a lemon peel and serve up!

I hope you enjoy this very lemony and refreshing cocktail.

Cheers!

The Painted Bunting – a cocktail recipe by Michelle Hartsell Cocktail Engineer

This cocktail has all those nice summer flavors - berries, herbs, citrus all rolled into one.  This is a nice colorful drink for a 4th of July celebration.  

Start by making a lemon-thyme simple syrup:

• 2 good sized springs of lemon-thyme or thyme
• a few thin slices of lemon
• 3/4 cup of sugar
• 3/4 cup of water

Bring to a soft boil and stir until sugar dissolves.  Then turn down heat, cover and slow simmer for ~20 minutes.  Once cool filter into a glass container (I use a dressing jar).  Keeps in the refrigerator for about a week.

To build the cocktail to a shaker 1/3 filled with crushed ice add:

• 5 ounces of good quality vodka
• 2 to 3 ounces of the lemon-thyme simple syrup

Shake and strain into two long glasses ~2/3 filled with ice to which a mix of fresh blueberries and raspberries plus a couple of thin slices of lemon have been added.  Top with club soda and garnish.  Makes two refreshing and colorful cocktails.


Happy Independence Day!