I hereby declare that winter has ended! I admit that weather is still crisp (to say the least), that’s why today’s cocktails are both very sour.

 

Two pictures of the same drink using different lightning…

RED TORNADO

2 parts gin

dash of blanco tequila

4 parts Passoã

4 parts blood grapefruit juice, hand squeezed

1 to 2 parts lemon juice

Blue Curacao (superchilled in the freezer beforehand)

Twirl a lemon peel into a cocktail glass (as in tornado, got it?). Shake ingredients (except Blue Curacao) with ice and strain into the glass. Gently pour Curacao to the glass, it will sink to the bottom.

Red Tornado is a machine; not necessarily the most empathic thing… this is why I feel his cocktail should be dry and sour. My goal was to create the feeling you would have during a conversation with him (it?): you would not feel outright rejected, but not necessary enjoying yourself… because that android is pretty sour.

 

Same daring lightning techniques as in Red Tornado…

VISION

Bottom layer, red:

Red grenadine (from the freezer)

Middle layer, yellow:

2 parts ordinary or lemon vodka (see below)

2 parts Rose’s Lime Cordial

1 part lemon juice

Top layer, green:

1 part sour apple liqueur

1 part apple juice

Shake layers with ice, one by one, and layer them one by one. Yellow sets on top of the red really easily, however you need to be pretty careful when layering the green on top of the yellow.

This drink is less sour than Red Tornado, but still pretty zesty. Green part is sour, but because of apple, not the usual lemon… then you get to the yellow part, where that “grumpy” lemon awaits, but it’s balanced with sweetness. Finally there’s plain sweet red, as a reward in the end.

You can think this cocktail as a metaphorical study of Vision’s mind: sour and sour, cold and unsymphathetic android, but a good and sweet guy after all. Of course you can approach Red Tornado The Cocktail with the same mindset.

About vodka in the cocktail… ordinary vodka is just fine, but I would recommend Absolut Citron or something similar… OR you can soak lemon peels in vodka for few days: it will turn yellow and gain really rough lemon sting, great for Lemon Drop Martini… or Vision.

 

Next time we’re close to St. Patrick’s Day… so the drinks are green 😀

 

This is the last post inspired by melancholy of winter, next time it’s going to be March and I’ll start publishing spring time cocktails: full of joy and anticipation of summer.

However, now we’re living the last stretch of winter… sometimes the only way to survive that bitter battle is to “get hammered”… and who’s the most likely supervillain around to “hammer you around”…?

JUGGERNAUT

3 parts gin

3 parts yellow Chartreuse

1 part Kahlúa

Shake with ice and strain into a old fashioned glass filled with ice. Drink too many of these and your head is still “hammering” next day ;P

[EDIT: Looking for a Juggenaut drink inspired by That Famous Line? You can find it here.]

Simple(minded) and brutal: that’s Juggernaut, all right. Actually there is more intrigue design philosophy behind this drink…

My Juggernaut design is based on this Ye Olde Cocktail:

ALASKA

1 part gin

1 part yellow Chartreuse

Shake with ice, as above.

Alaska sure has “Alaskan” feel: dry gin and spicy anise of Chartreuse Jaune create raw and relentless aroma, truly creating a feeling of The Northern Wilderness. It’s a great cocktail, but adding a little Kahlúa “rounds up” the taste a bit… it tempts you to drink it little too fast, considering the alcohol volume; still it maintains “raw and brutal” feel.

So basically Juggernaut is a trap, you end up hammered by it pretty easy, as you would end up by its namesake in a fistfight 😀

This was last in my “Melancholic Superhero Cocktails for Winter 2018-19”-series, next time we’re trying to revive ourselves from hibernation for upcoming spring!

Man’s best friend is his dog, I’m told… but who’s superhero’s/-heroine’s best friend? Faithful butler, of course!

St. Valentine’s day is not far away, so I’ll post couple of hot and heartfelt drinks to be shared with your friends and loved ones in the middle of cold February.

Both “Batman’s Friends and Foes” and “Avengers Assemble!” are updated to include these two recipes, please check them out in Recipes and downloads.

 

ALFRED PENNYWORTH

2 parts hot black tea

1 part Midori

(dash of lemon juice)

Build into a tea cup or mug.

You might want to replace Midori with some other sour liqueur, for example Sour Apple (and try adjusting the ratios, maybe add some gin?). Let’s face it: Alfred is an Old School Englishman, pretty uptight and stiff… that’s why his tea cocktail is sour. Nevertheless, he is Bruce Wayne’s most trusted companion.

 

EDWIN JARVIS

4 parts hot black tea

1 part DOM Benedictine

(some honey)

Build into a tea cup or mug.

As with Alfred, above, try replacing DOM with other liqueurs… Heering, sloe gin… spice it up with a dash of cognac?

Maybe Alfred is so stiff and sour because he has to spend his time in old dusty Wayne Mansion, or worse, in a damp Bat Cave? Jarvis, instead, gets to hang out in Stark Tower in the middle of Manhattan… how sweet is that?

 

Yes, hot black tea is an excellent platform for adding your favourite liqueur, sour or sweet. I could drown you into dozens of recipes, “hot tea and this-and-that”… but there’s no point, I just wanted to point out that producing enjoyable cup of tea “with a jolt” is really easy, it’s really hard to screw it up. Just decide if you want sweet or sour (or bitter, if you want to open that door) drink: mixing too different liqueurs usually results in sloppy muddles without a clear essence.

 

So, Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! See you next time! 😀

 

Let’s not suffer and whine because of the cold (I do it, I know), let’s use it as an inspiration!

Today’s cocktail is also available as mocktail version, updated compilation can be found in Recipes and downloads.

 

In reality the colour is not that green; “glacial greenblue”, sure, but not as green as it looks in the picture.

KILLER FROST

4 parts vodka

2 parts Blue Curacao

4 parts lime juice

3 parts simple syrup

3 parts orgeat syrup

8 parts cream

few dashes of Angostura bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a highball glass filled with crushed ice. “Freezing” decoration, a straw.

Yes, it’s a version of Mr. Freeze… but not just a cheap trick of adding almond. Angostura bitters is the actual element that makes Killer Frost interesting: orgeat syrup makes the sweetness close to intolerable, but bitter balances it nicely.

Hmm… I haven’t made Suicide Squad compilation…yet. Okay, as the spring progresses towards summer, I’ll be introducing S. Squad characters, and eventually the compilation. Stay tuned.

 

KILLER FROST (NOT 0% MOCKTAIL, BUT 0,01% COCKTAIL)

2 parts blue grenadine

1 to 2 parts simple syrup

3 parts orgeat syrup

4 parts lime juice

8 parts cream

few dashes of Angostura bitters

Shake with ice, as above. If you shun that 0,01% (or so) alcohol, you might try experiment with bitter almond oil. Killer Frost needs some bitterness to balance all that sweetness.

 

Next time… St. Valentine’s Day! Warm and heartfelt drinks coming up 😀

 

Continuing our series of “Grim and Bleak January”… from the darkest dephts of the sickest minds in Arkham Asylum…

Batman’s Friends and Foes PDF is updated to include these two recipes, please check it out in Recipes and downloads.

 

ZSASZ

5 parts Creme de Cassis

4 OR 5 parts Campari (see below)

2 to 3 parts gin

5 parts coffee (cold)

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Maybe a cherry for garnish?

For coffee please use same kind of brew as in Black Mamba. Please do not use espresso or something similar, their taste dominates too much.

Victor Zsasz sure is “Out There”… but he has his (kinda) clear and “sane” moments: amount of Campari in this drink tilts the taste surprisingly much, good for representing psychopath going from insane to… well, to even more insane, “Over the Edge”.

4 parts Campari results in “ponderous cocktail”, something you automatically enjoy pretty slow. “Difficult”, yet interesting taste.

5 parts Campari: who would’ve guessed that adding Campari makes the drink easier to drink? Anyway, 5 parts gives you the cocktail more suitable as a apertif…

…which is surprising, since this drink contains so much sweet elements; something usually considered a big no-no in apertif. It seems that acrid cold coffee and Creme de Cassis “cancel” each other out, creating a interesting base for Campari and gin to blend in.

Interesting mix, indeed. I think it’s pretty decent representation of Zsasz’s psychopathic mind, full of inhumane reasoning, easily nudged from threatening silence to killing spree with tiny adjustment in ingredients.

 

It looks like a lemon peel, but it is orange. Too daring lightning, I guess.

HUGO STRANGE

2 parts tequila blanco

1 part Campari

4 parts cranberry juice

Shake with ice and strain into a highball glass with lots of ice in it. Garnish with orange peel.

This is the drink that Professor Strange sips while examining the results of the latest mutant torture experiment, I think it has a “intellectual and emotionally cold” feel.

I would enjoy this highball in the summer, but it’s okay in the middle of cold winter also.

If you find Campari more distraction than a essential part of the drink, please try the next recipe instead… you’ve probably heard of it before; old recipe I stumbled upon years ago. I enjoy Grenade a lot, I decided to “zest it up a bit” with Campari and adjust the tequila volume.

GRENADE

1 part tequila blanco

3 parts cranberry juice

Shake with ice and garnish with orange peel, as above.

 

Freezing January continues here in Finland, now with a lots of snow. I’ll embrace that feeling and continue with grim and bleak characters… Mr. Freeze is one of my most praised recipes: basically it’s “a freezing highball” but despite of its name it is a summertime refreshment. Next time I’ll bring you something along those same guidelines: “freezing” in theory, but essentially “summery”… something to shake The January Blues…

 

Two years back I was really having “January Blues”, I guess that’s the reason for Man-Bat, cocktail with melancholic aroma. And last year… couple of brutal shot recipes… January sure gets into me, year after year.

Well, I guess I just have to deal with it. For example with warm and strong drink! 😀

 

LOBO

3 parts Green Chartreuse

6 parts hot coffee

2 parts simple syrup

cream on top

Build into a suitable glass, carefully float the cream on top.

Yes, it’s basically like Irish Coffee… but really MEAN… appropriate for Lobo: Chartreuse sure kicks you to the teeth more than whiskey. If you want to emphasize “The Mean Look” serve it as a shot…

 

 

I hope Lobo The Cocktail helps you through the January, at least a little bit. To be honest… I think that next cocktail is going to be grim and bleak, January ongoing. Hmm, maybe it’s time for more Batman foes, it’s been a looong time since the last Arkham lunatic…?

 

How fitting that this wiseguy makes a last minute entrance, giving New Year greetings after Your Humble Blogger already did it couple of weeks ago, stealing the show?

How fitting that this smartass wants his drink to be glaring pink, outright ridicilous? With weird jumble of aromas (that actually combine well)?

How fitting that this “gentleman” wants his drink to be treacherous? “Hidden” alcohol content which goes down too easily, making ladies “easy”? (This is how female Test Subjects described this cocktail, so ladies: please be wary around Deadpool ;P)

How fitting that this cheeky fellow wants his summer time drink to be published just before New Year’s Eve, in the middle of the winter? And that he wants it photographed with Christmas theme, just after Christmas?

 

Well, he’s Deadpool. (and he’s also available as mocktail version, read on)

 

DEADPOOL

2 parts tequila blanco

1 part Amaretto di Saronno

1 part cream

1 part milk

1 part sala syrup

dash of Tabasco sauce

Shake with ice and strain into a highball glass with lots of ice in it. Absolutely ridicilous garnish, every shade of pink should be represented in the mindblowing avalanche of decoration.

Tequila gives sting (and somehow Deadpool The Cocktail should contain that notorious booze), Amaretto adds bitter almond element. Just a dash of Tabasco for surprise element, but please don’t overdo it even if you love the fiery taste: too much Tabasco doesn’t ruin the drink, but makes it less enjoyable if it’s nothing else but a hint of fire.

Milk and cream blend well with sala syrup… that’s why it’s popular combination in Southeast Asia, I’m told. If you haven’t never heard of it… it’s syrup made out of certain palm tree fruit. I used Hale’s Blue Boy Brand, which seems to be readily available outside Southeast Asia:

Sala syrup’s weird “bubblegum” taste creates interesting combination with all the other ingredients. Deadpool is my first recipe using this syrup, but it won’t be the last; stay tuned.

 

And I promised a non-alcoholic version…

 

DEADPOOL (MOCKTAIL VERSION)

3 parts milk

1 part cream

1 part sala syrup

1 part Orgeat syrup

dash of Tabasco sauce

Shake with ice, as above. Same outrageous garnish. Unfortunately I can’t reproduce tequila’s sting, so this version hasn’t got as much character as alcohol version… but it’s okay.

This is a suitable moment to update my mocktail compilation, please feel free to check it out in Recipes and downloads.

 

Happy New Year, once again! See you in 2019 with more superhero cocktails! 😀

 

Last time I promised a compilation containing all 150 cocktail recipes… [EDIT: updated compilations are available in Recipes and downloads]

I’m couple of weeks early, but Happy New Year anyway! This time I’m going to introduce two non-superhero cocktails using sparkling wine, appropriate for new year celebration. They’re both commissions, ordered from me for certain occasion or purpose.

NEW “RULE” CONCERNING SPARKLING WINE IN THIS BLOG: bubbly is a bit problematic ingredient. Recipe X tastes great with brand A but is disappointing with brand B, even though they contain the same amount of sugar. Frustrating, when I try to give you recipes that are supposed to be reproduced succesfully all around the world.

Finally I found an answer… let me introduce ingredient “sweetened sparkling wine”. 

Buy dry or extra dry sparkling wine. Before using it for cocktail add “a healthy dose of single syrup” and give it a gentle stir.

This way you can have both “the sting” of dry/extra dry bubbly and sufficient sugar percentage which makes sure your cocktails have a taste that I intended.

“Healthy dose” is up to you, but let’s say 5-10% of bubbly (some sweet-toothed Test Subjects even prefer around 15%). Quite a lot, I know… this stuff is unpalatable as it is, but believe it or not: this sweetened dry/extra dry bubbly works better in cocktails than ANY already sweet sparkling wine.

Finally Aquaman, Black Canary and Songbird work out fine no matter what bubbly brand you use!

But now, today’s cocktails!

BIGOUDI

Twirl a lemon peel into a champagne flute (looks great in a coupe or margarita glass, too).

5 parts sweetened sparkling wine

1 part bourbon

1 part Amaretto

Build into a glass, add some crushed ice.

This commission was given to me after an inside joke grew too big. Friends of mine started to “dream” about the life of alcoholic housewife whose husband is never home… “I would be wearing hair rollers and transparent morning gowns all the time. It would be great to be tipsy all day long and order useless stuff from shopping channels. It would be awesome never to clean the house or to do dishes or do this-and-that-and-that… but what would be the drink I saturate myself with all day, every day?”

“Bigoudi” is my answer 😀 We had really delightful evening while having grotesque fun, describing the ideal/miserable life of this theoretical housewife… well, I guess you had to be there. But the drink itself is very tasty (and treacherous), you should try it out.

NEFER

Mix powdered sugar, grated lemon peel and spices. The scent of the spices is more essential than taste, so I recommend including eg. cinnamon in the mix. Rim champagne flute with the mix.

Pour some ice cold Kahlúa into the glass, straight from the freezer.

Gently stir with ice the following ingredients:

10 parts sweetened sparkling wine

3 parts Passõa

dash of Aperol

Carefully layer onto the top of Kahlúa. Add some crushed ice.

Option: Instead of rimming the glass you can skip the sugar and grated skin, just mix spices and sprinkle them on top of the drink. They stay on top of the ice, creating a desired scent (to “support” the taste of the drink)… and that scent is supposed to have “an Arabic feel”.

This drink recipe was ordered from me by an Arabic dance group (also known as “belly dancing”) who wanted to celebrate their 25th anniversary.

This was a tough nut to crack. I was given a lot of guidelines about what ingredients NOT to use, still the drink should reflect the mysticism of Arabic dance.

After countless misfires I ended up with recipe above… and they approved it, with popular uproar 😀

Sparkling wine: members of the group are women, and “naturally” all women love bubbly. Also, it’s suitable booze for a birthday.

Kahlúa: is there anything more Arabic than coffee?

Passõa and Aperol: nothing to do with Arabia, but they create interesting conflict (or “A Mystery” which was among desired elements) among themselves… and for a while with a bottom-of-the-glass-dessert Kahlúa when you finish the drink.

Spices: Their taste probably is not essential, but their scent is. I can’t say which I prefer more, rim or sprinkling the spices on top of the drink… find out your own favourite way.

That’s it, couple of non-superheroes for a change. As I said in the last post I’m slowing down the rate of publishing, I’ll be back in January… so it’s Happy New Year, everyone!

Moment of silent reflection. About two years of work have led me to this point, I’m publishing my 150th cocktail recipe. I guess that’s something.

It’s taken its toll. At the moment I’m pretty much out of ideas, and to be honest, not having much motivation anymore … but after 150 drinks, I’d be amazed if I still had the same energy for this blog as I had two years ago.

Don’t worry, this is not the end of this blog… just going to post less frequently than before.

Not The End, but a milestone… In my very first post I introduced cocktails for Superman and Batman, so I guess “when you come a full circle” you end up where you started…

 

SUPERMAN (LAST SON OF KRYPTON)

2 parts bourbon

2 parts Blue Curacao

2 parts cream

3 to 4 parts simple syrup (or blue grenadine, if you want darker blue than “light sky blue”)

Shake with ice and strain into highball glass with lots of ice in it. Garnish with lemon wedge, red straw.

Yes, you noticed… basically this is “Man of Steel”, egg white replaced with cream. People are more afraid of the egg whites than I thought, they don’t want to try Superman The Cocktail… so here it is, without egg white.

 

And since we’re getting sentimental and talking about “coming the full circle”… how about the death of Superman?

 

DOOMSDAY

2 parts licorice vodka (see Harley Quinn how it’s done)

1 part Creme de Cassis

2 parts tomato juice

1 part lemon juice

Shake with ice and strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with olive (or cherry, if feel pity for the drinker).

This is the drink of strong contradicting tastes. I think it’s enjoyable after all, in it’s own unique way, but I guess most people hate it… that’s okay, Doomsday is the fella who killed Superman, you’re supposed to hate him/it 😀

But there is a philosophy in this drink, I try to include one in every drink I design: creature of contradictions, filled with hate and rage he/it can barely contain, that’s the idea behind the taste of Doomsday… and the cocktail looks like a blood: same blood that Superman bled when Doomsday murdered him.

…Luckily these are superhero comics we’re reading, and Superman was resurrected 😀

 

Unfortunately “150 cocktails” compilation is not finished, I’ll publish it in my next post… it’s going to come out some time before Christmas, and there will be couple of tasty sparkly cocktails for your New Year celebration!

See ya!

 

Today we’re going to check out couple of hostile visitors from the outer space, and use dry/extra dry Prosecco as our tool for the task.

 

FIN FANG FOOM

Kahlúa (cool from the freezer)

5 parts dry/extra dry Prosecco

1 part Midori

dash of lemon juice

Twirl a lemon peel into champagne flute and pour in some Kahlúa, incredibly cold just out from freezer. Gently stir other ingredients (cooled beforehand in the fridge) and gently layer atop Kahlúa.

Carefully add some crushed ice: yes, it’s completely possible without breaking the tension between brown and green.

Finally sprinkle some cinnamon on top. It’s primary function lies in the smell, it combines with the taste (but see below). You can experiment with other spices, too.

So, what’s this has to do with monstrous Makluan reptile? I’m not relying just on green colour: Midori and Prosecco create very dry combination, ruthless as F.F.F. himself… but cinnamon/spice(s) of your choice eases up the drinking a little, and gives the “Mystical Feel of China”; maybe experiment with Chinese fivespice?

Finally there’s a sweet blessing of Kahlúa, representing Fantastic Four’s (or whomever’s) triumphant victory against this foul creature… and when you drink the last of this drink, the spices that have been floating on the top most likely end up in your mouth. That’s the reason #2 for oversweet Kahlúa: it’s both dessert after harsh, dry drink and safeguard against possibly overwhelming “spice poisoning”.

Next drink is easier to prepare, no layering…

 

STARRO

4 parts dry/extra dry Prosecco

2 parts cranberry juice

1 part cognac OR sloe gin OR dark rum

Build into champagne flute, gentle stir, or stir in a mixing jar and pour into flutes. Add some crushed ice. If you prefer a purple look of Starro add some Blue Curacao to adjust colour: I personally like pinkish/dirty red-version of him/it.

As I’ve told you over and over… please don’t use pre-mixed juice drinks, but high quality concentrate diluted with water 1:1 ratio instead of recommendation (usually 4:1 or 3:1).

So, that foul giant starfish from beyond stars hypnotizes people, makes them attack their friends… that’s the idea of choosing between cognac, sloe gin or dark rum: the drink never tastes the same (you see the world differently, depending on Starro’s whims), but it’s always the same nasty cosmic echinoderm behind the scenes, trying to control the inhabitants of this planet.

I can’t decide which Starro is the best, with cognac or sloe gin… I personally think that dark rum isn’t a bad choice but it isn’t the best… but since some Test Subjects like that option the best, it’s included here. Try more expensive smooth rum, or cheapo bottom self choice with sharp taste: results can be surprising. I find cheap Rum Negrita the best dark rum for Starro!?! I guess expensive smooth rums blend in and “get lost” too easily in Prosecco and cranberry juice, or something like that.

 

Guess what? Next time… 150th recipe! 😀