AMARETTO SOUR

• 1 ½ ounces Amaretto
• 1 to 2 ounces Sweet and Sour Mix

Pour ingredients in a shaker filled with ice, shake well, and strain into a ice-filled glass. Garnish with cherries and/or orange slices. Personally, the orange makes it a bit too acidic for my taste, so I just place cherries in mine. Believe me, you never feel it until it hits you

POINSETTIA

• 1 Tbsp. Grand Marnier, or Triple Sec
• 1 Part Cranberry Juice
• Champagne
• Juice of ½ lime (optional)

There are several variations of the cocktail. One version has you mix the triple sec and cranberry juice, then adding the champagne and floating the lime juice on top. Another has you pour the cranberry juice in the glass, add the champagne, and float the Grand Marnier, skipping the lime juice. Whichever you prefer, I hope it helps you to enjoy the holiday!

Hat tip to Vmaximus

WHAT DID YOU GET FOR CHRISTMAS??

And more importantly, for me at least….

WHAT DID YOU GIVE??

I better not hear about any sexcapades here. Just keep it to material girl stuff

But this is what the GDOTW is for!

The Hot Toddy

• 1 Tbsp Honey
• 3/4 cup Hot Tea
• 2 Shots Brandy
• 1 slice Lemon
• 3-4 Cloves (optional)
• Cinnamon sticks (optional)
  

Brew your tea (or just do hot water, if you prefer), add honey and brandy, stirring well. Pierce lemon slice with cloves, and float on top, adding cinnamon stick. This may not cure your cold, but it will make you not care you have one

Not that I ever did that, mind you.

The Fuzzy Navel

• 1 part Peach Schnapps
• 1 part Orange Juice
• 1 part Lemonade

In a highball, mix all ingredients first, then add ice. Garnish with slices of peach and orange.

For those of you who prefer a manly drink, omit the schnapps, OJ, and lemonade, and just add vodka.

Yesterday while being a hostage to the Cartoon Network switching channels I saw an add for one of those weird reality shows where brides are involved. I think it was called Say Yes to the Bridezilla Acing a Cake Wondering If It’s Her Wedding Anyway. I didn’t watch it, except I did see what was being served at the “bridal luncheon”, probably to deal with five dozen women having histrionics at one sitting:

Champagne Cocktail

• 3 oz Champagne
• 1/3 oz Cognac
• Angostura Bitters
• Sugar Cube

Soak one sugar cube in a champagne flute with angostura bitters. Add champagne and cognac. Squeeze in a twist of lemon and discard. Garnish with half a slice of orange, or as I prefer, raspberries. I love the combination of lemon and raspberries, and the splash of red looks gorgeous against the pale gold of the champagne.

Remember: don’t drink it for looks. Drink it because it will make dealing with idiots at parties a lot easier.

*Yep, still G0000000gling for hits here.

The featured drink for this week is more of a summer drink. It is also a very famous drink. There are songs, a movie, a band (or five) named after it. The ease of making it is rivalled only by the prettiness of the color, even though it falls in the orange side of the spectrum.

Tequila Sunrise

• 2 oz. Tequila
• Orange Juice
• 2 dashes of Grenadine

Pour tequila in glass of your choice with ice, and top with orange juice. Stir. Add grenadine by tilting glass and pouring grenadine down side by flipping the bottle vertically very quickly (it helps if the grenadine bottle has a little pourer to prevent over-dosing on this). The grenadine should go straight to the bottom and then rise up slowly through the drink. Garnish with cherry and an orange slice.

I have done this as a martini glass drink, too. I shake the OJ and tequila over ice, and pour into a sugar-rimmed martini glass. The grenadine looks very pretty on the bottom of the glass. My sister omits the sugar and grenadine altogether and calls it a Mexican Screwdriver. I call it heresy. My brother-in-law omits the OJ and calls it Nytol.

I can’t argue with that

It means I get to start drinking early. And what better drink, than one that looks so innocent??

The Lemon Drop

• 1 oz Vodka
• 1 oz Lemon Juice
• 1 Sugar Cube

Add sugar to the rim of an old-fashioned glass, and drop a cube or packet of sugar into the bottom of the glass. Pour vodka and lemon juice into a stainless steel shaker over ice, and shake until completely cold. Pour into the prepared old-fashioned glass, and serve. Personally, I like using Sugar in the Raw™ to rim the glass, since it’s prettier than yellow colored sugar. Also, I add two cubes instead of one. Why? Well, for one thing, I like sweeter BOOZE*, and for another, I can get sloshed a lot quicker.

*Yes, still angling for the G00000glers.

BRANDY ALEXANDER

• 1 ½ oz. Brandy
• 1 oz. Dark Creme de Cacao
• 1 oz. Half-n-Half
• ¼ tsp Grated Nutmeg

In a shaker half-filled with ice cubes, combine the brandy, creme de cacao, and half-and-half. Shake well. Strain into a sugar-rimmed cocktail glass and garnish with the nutmeg. You can also use grated allspice. I like using a combination of cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg for a very autumn-y flavor. Brings to mind pumpkin pie, only with BOOZE**.

* According to Bako, this is a Grandma drink. According to me, Grandma had it going on if she was getting sloshed to this.

** Still G0000000gling for hits.

For me, it’s all about the glass. The BOOZE* has to be in a pretty glass. That’s probably why I gravitate towards martini-like drinks so much. And probably why I own ten Lolita™ martini glasses. But presentation counts, right? I was going to do Tequila Sunrise, but I hate drinking BOOZE* from a highball. It makes me feel like I’m hiding the fact that I’m drinking BOOZE*.

So I give you instead, the Washington Apple Shot:

WASHINGTON APPLE SHOT:

• 1 oz. Whiskey (BOOZE*)
• 1 oz. Sour Apple Schnapps(BOOZE*)
• 1 oz. Cranberry Juice
• Splash of Sprite or Tonic Water

Pour whiskey, schnapps, and cranberry juice into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake well, and strain into a cinnamon sugar-rimmed martini glass. Add Sprite or tonic water if desired. Garnish with an apple wedge.

*Yes, still doing the shameless G00000000gle whoring.