Sorry folks, it’s a bit too long from my last post. But without further delay, let’s get onto today’s drinks…
BRAINIAC
6 cl (2 oz) cognac (Camus VS highly recommended)
4 cl (1 1/2 oz) Pisang Ambon
1 egg white
Shake vigorously with ice and strain into a cocktail glass with some ice in it.
Tip: if you or your cocktail party guests (aka. drinking buddies) have a tendency to suck their drinks down to the last drop, it’s a good idea to add some simple syrup to the bottom of the glass before adding ice and straining the drink. I think Brainiac The Cocktail is decent, but gulping it down to the one final drop leaves kind of unpleasant aftertaste – this can be remedied with a drop of sugar.
[sigh] Brainiac has been rewritten so many times (same problem I had when designing Captain Marvel)… which version should I use as a basis for the drink: android (something like in Red Tornado and Vision), alien, robotic incarnation…? I considered a “miniaturized drink” for a while (as in Kandor The Shrunken City) but I decided not to try anything too fancy.
Brainiac… let’s go with “the intelligent feel”. I remembered my old creation Dr. Doom: it’s basically vodka martini with Pisang Ambon… cool, analytical, calculating – something that the bad guy would sip when he considers his options for conquering the world and/or smashing the good guys.
Camus VS has just the right kind of aroma to collaborate with Pisang Ambon; the result would be “raw” without the binding element of egg white. It’s not the most complex recipe I’ve created, but there are enough different levels to justify it as “an analytical cocktail” – suitable for Brainiac.
I might return to Brainiac later, I’ve not abandoned that Kandor idea completely. An hey, there’s still Brainiac 5; a good guy version – that sounds sort of a challenge for your humble superhero cocktail designer geek.
I’m not making any promises, we’ll see. And now onto our second cocktail of the day…
DESPERO
1 part bourbon
2 parts cranberry juice
1 part tomato juice
splash or two lemon juice
splash or two sarsaparilla syrup
Shake with ice and strain into a highball glass with some ice in it.
And as always, a reminder about cranberry juice… please do not use premixed juice drinks, but high quality concentrate diluted with water 1:1 ration instead of recommendation (usually 1:3 or 1:4).
Somehow this drink kinda designed itself; the first version was right on spot, further attempts only made it worse or at least “not-so-good” (e.g. swap bourbon for vodka if you like). Controlling the mount of lemon juice and sarsaparilla are essential in this drink, as you will see if you conduct experiments.
The drink has certain “ruthlessness” in it – suitable for a tyrant, yet it’s enjoyable summer refreshment… well, that’s not suitable for “tyranny feel”, I give you that, but once in a while bad guys need their “easygoing” drinks 🙂
DESPERO (mocktail version)
Simple skip the bourbon, it’s still delicious and has that “Supreme Tyrant of Kalanor”-feel.
Next time… Spider Man Baddies!
Superhero Cocktails 