Bourbon - - Page 4

by gansie

When Caffeine Actually Makes You Forget

Do you know what I don’t fucking suggest: drinking coffee cocktails until 2 in the morning.

My dear friends Tim and Alice hosted a holiday drinking fest. They displayed an amazing liquor selection: whiskey, Kahlua, Bailey’s, vodka, bourbon, kirschwasser and um, lots of things I don’t care to remember. And, there were a bunch of lighter additions as well: lots of fresh citrus and allspice. With all of those options, we felt quite ambitious. We made eggnog from scratch and it was not so cute having to beat the egg whites to a soft peak and then adding sugar to beat it with a stiff peak — without an electric beater. We passed around the bowl to a few friends as our arms burned of whisking overdose.

I wish I could expand on the night. But the combination of coffee and alcohol for hours on end is not a combination I suggest. (Although I do suggest trying these popsicles. I’m dying to know if they are as good as they sound.)

Mint Julep Cupcakes

_{No more for me, thanks; I’m driving.}

May isn’t the most holiday-heavy month of the year, and because of that, most people tend to associate it with one of two days: Memorial Day, which is a real holiday, and Cinco de Mayo, which is not. For people of the Southern persuasion, however, May is all about the first Saturday of the month: the running of the first leg of the Triple Crown, the most exciting two minutes in sports, Kentucky Derby Day. Big hats, mint juleps, blue grass, Hot Browns, mint juleps, bourbon, fried green tomatoes, mint juleps, etc. Oh, and there’s a horse race or something, too.

But you needn’t celebrate horse racing for only three days of the year. (Fine, just two days – only douchebag frat boys celebrate Preakness.)

Like most legacy cocktails, the history of the mint julep is clouded in the hangover of the past. The name itself is a mutation of the Persian word for “rosewater,” and we can see how far it’s come from that simple definition. Even just a debate over the proper preparation of the drink is equivalent to fightin’ words in some circles of the Deep South. Muddle the mint or no? Simple syrup or superfine sugar? Cracked ice or seltzer water? It hardly matters, since a long drink like the mint julep is little more than a bourbon delivery system anyway. Besides, we’re making cupcakes today, albeit those of the boozy, minty, julep-y variety.

My horse lost, by the way. Stupid longshots. Off to the glue factory, you worthless flea biscuit!