Category Archives: Make

Red Star + star anise infused Campari.

Red Star. Being aware that some of you good readers might not be in possession (yet) of exotic amari and fancy liqueurs called for in many aromatic stirred cocktails I came up with this simple yet satisfying concoction for the … Continue reading

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Making your own gin!

Golden Gin – make your own gin! Some say there was once a dude who turned water into wine. Neat trick but I think we can do better. Let’s get miraculous and turn some boring old vodka into gin! In … Continue reading

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Robert Capa + gastrique

Robert Capa. Other than cocktails my interests include photography and history and all of those happen to converge in the person of Robert Capa, the godfather of modern photojournalism. Capa’s partial autobiography Slightly Out of Focus is a surprisingly amusing … Continue reading

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Hip Flask Hack #1

Hip Flask Hack #1 Hogmanay is imminent and if you’re going to be out on the randan for the bells you might want to take something in a hip flask to fortify yourself against the elephants. Scotch is a typical … Continue reading

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John the Revelator + coffee infused bourbon.

John the Revelator. I’ve recently become very fond of the combination of Suze and Amaro Montenegro. The marriage of the gentian bitterness of the Suze and the sweetness of the Montenegro play a great supporting role to quite a few … Continue reading

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Clear ice balls (and other shapes).

Clear Ice Balls. A while back we looked at a way to make clear ice and, while it works extremely well, it does have a couple of drawbacks. Not everyone can spare a whole shelf in their freezer for 24+ … Continue reading

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Pisco Inferno + home-made chili liqueur.

Pisco Inferno. We recently looked at a very tasty classic cocktail – the Pisco Sour. Tinkering around with such classics is a fun way to come up with new drinks, most of the hard work already having been done for … Continue reading

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The Garnish. Part One + dehydrated citrus wheels

Garnish schmarnish. “So what’s all this garnishing nonsense,” you ask. Ahhh. I’ve been expecting and slightly dreading that question. You’re right of course, it’s something we need to talk about. Now first up I should point out that a) I’m … Continue reading

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The Japanese Cocktail + home-made orgeat.

The Japanese Cocktail. Appearing in the first ever cocktail book – Jerry Thomas’ Bartenders Guide (sic) of 1862 (#113, page 51) – the Japanese Cocktail is a curious drink. Although this hallowed tome contains almost 500 recipes only a handful are … Continue reading

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Calico Jack + home-made spiced rum.

Calico Jack. Let’s look an example of making a new cocktail by taking an established classic and modifying the crap out of it. The Calico Jack is a Daiquiri derived cocktail I came up with many years ago and hadn’t … Continue reading

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