COCKTAILS Archives - Page 2 of 3

Sakitini – Sake Martini

May 28, 2016 by Michele 16 Comments

This site uses affiliate links, such as Amazon which pays this site a small commission if you purchase at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Read full info here.

This Sakitini – Sake Martini is a refreshing, thirst quenching cocktail that is great with any light dish you are serving or perfect alone after a long hot day in the sun!

This weeks Friday Cocktails selection is the Sakitini – Sake Martini. It’s a very refreshing cocktail that is a change up on my normal straight up gin martini.

A few years ago my husband and I were eating sushi at Kabuki, a restaurant here in California when he saw a note in their menu for a sake tasting. While I’m a certified sommelier, I had never really developed a taste for sake so I wasn’t excited about going. I’m so glad he talked me into it!

At the tasting they had a Master Sake Sommelier explaining about each individual Sake selection. They paired the selections with various menu options so you could see how versatile it is….

Amped up Watermelon Margarita

May 12, 2016 by Michele 19 Comments

A change up from the classic cocktail this Amped up Watermelon Margarita is bursting with the fruit flavor muddled with lots of lime juice but the first taste you get is the chili lime salt which gives the drink a nice kick! (non-alcoholic option too!)

This Amped up Watermelon Margarita completely surprised me. Im normally a purist and want the traditional margarita; on the rocks with regular salt. But sometimes inspiration comes from different places in your life.

I have a busy Instagram account and when I made the Purple Tears Cocktail one of the comments on the IG photo was that they loved the Tajin’s Chili Limon Salt rim, but they suggested I try it on a watermelon Margarita. Since I love love love salt on my watermelon (Ive been told it’s a midwest thing) I thought well why not give it a whirl! Wow, its a nice zesty burst that pairs perfectly with the sweet, fruity watermelon!…

Purple Tears Cocktail

April 29, 2016 by Michele 31 Comments

Purple Tears cocktail; refreshing because of lemon and lime with the seasonal goodness of fresh blackberries! And Vodka and the SECRET INGREDIENT for the kick you need at Happy Hour!

This weeks cocktail for my FRIDAY COCKTAILS series is the Purple Tears Cocktail. It’s one of those recipes that succeeded in the end, but I had to play with it a lot. Not because the ratios were off, but I was trying to have a purple cocktail!!!

I’d seen a lot of tributes to Prince and several cocktails and I kept saying why aren’t these drinks purple? Now I get it… they may start out purple, but as you add the alcohol, mixers, and garnishes… it dilutes to more red than purple.

I decided to go with it and played with some names to go with his songs… the raspberry beret probably would have been the best one, but alas I had already gone with the blackberries. In the end instead of the name Purple Rain, I figured people have been so distressed that purple tears worked…. because you know, if you cry a lot it would dilute right?

What is the “secret ingredient” of the Purple Tears Cocktail?

…

A perfect Signature Wedding Cocktail

March 4, 2016 by Michele 41 Comments

The better Half & Half, a signature wedding cocktail all your guests will love! (great for any party too!)

A version of a delicious signature wedding cocktail that will please even the pickiest of drinkers: A better half and half. It’s combination of Sweet Tea Vodka and fresh lemonade. It’s a nice change of pace, not overly strong, but very satisfying.

This weeks Friday Cocktail is from my niece Halley’s wedding in St. Pete’s Beach, Florida last November. It was their signature wedding cocktail and they called it the better half and half! Clever and delicious, it was the perfect drink to have to celebrate!

It was nice and cold for a hot day and it was easy to drink many of them while toasting to their marriage! (They are a really LOVED couple, the toasting of them was nonstop, so trust me when I say it was many of them.)…

The original Mai Tai

August 14, 2015 by Michele 9 Comments

A copycat of Trader Vic’s Original Mai Tai~ cool, refreshing, tangy and tart! The perfect cocktail to serve for any get together where you want a classic Tiki vibe!

The best tropical drink ever……. A Trader Vic’s style Mai Tai!

This weeks edition of Friday Cocktails is a Mai Tai that is rumored to be the original recipe from the original Trader Vic’s. Many variations are famous these days in any tropical bar, hotel or tiki lounge. It’s tropical flavor is highlighted by orange citrus and full of two kinds of rum.

There are many variations on this drink, but the original drink hails from Trader Vic’s. They made a variation for the Royal Caribbean Hotel that’s slightly different (it has pineapple juice it that recipe but that’s a version for another day.)

There is a story that when the original recipe was made, it was made for some friends visiting Trader Vic’s from Tahiti. When the lady took a drink she exclaimed “Maita’I roa ae” which translates to very good! Thus the name….Mai Tai!

Trader Vic's Original Mai Tai ~ cool, refreshing, tangy and tart! The perfect cocktail to serve for any get together where you want a classic Tiki vibe!

Ingredients for a tropical cocktail!

…

A Gin Rickey; A Refreshing cocktail!

August 7, 2015 by Michele 3 Comments

When you want something Simply refreshing, thirst quenching, and made with ingredients you are sure to have on hand…. A Gin Rickey is the answer! It’s this week’s selection for Friday Cocktails.

When I was younger (long before I was of legal drinking age) my mom wanted to make sure that when I was in a business situation I would be able to order a cocktail and not make a face when I took a sip of it. Really, this is a true story.

When you first try alcohol it can be a bit jarring to the taste buds, (yes, I’ve since gotten over that). But when I was younger my mom was worried I would spit out a drink if I didn’t like it. We would go to dinner and she would order something and I would try it. There were many epic fail drinks, but this drink was a winner at the first taste….