Drinks - quick and easy recipes - page 14

Pegu Club bartender Kenta Goto’s lovely cocktail La Fleur de Paradis spends its evenings perched atop a weathered zinc bar, sipped by the beautiful people of New York. Our rendition of it using wheat beer instead of champagne is more at home in a plastic cup, enjoyed by folks sporting cut-off shorts and soaking in the sun on a picnic blanket or the open gate of a pickup truck.

Knocking back a glass of Pisco Punch is a boozy part of San Francisco’s history. This potent cocktail traces back to the 1890s, when a bartender named Duncan Nicol invented it in SF. This recipe, adapted from San Francisco bartender and Small Hand Foods proprietor Jennifer Colliau, is an easy three-ingredient drink to mix: Simply shake pisco, lemon juice, and pineapple gum syrup together and serve with a pineapple wedge if you’re feeling fancy.

CHOW’s former food editor Aida Mollenkamp turned me on to the Black Manhattan, a variation on the traditional whiskey and sweet vermouth drink made with amaro, which she first discovered at San Francisco’s Alembic. In this version, I throw back in a little of the sweet vermouth, as well as a touch of deep, dark nocino, an Italian green walnut liqueur, which gives the whole drink a smooth, nutty finish. Don’t forget, this recipe makes enough to serve you and a friend!

Inspired by the idea of making a camping cocktail, we thought it’d be novel to use a little pine liqueur to bring the taste of the great outdoors to the canteen. We found the punchy, herbal liqueur a little tricky to mix with, but ultimately we were able to balance it out with some dark rum and a little pineapple juice. This recipe is scaled to fit into a canteen, and serves four.

Mango lassis are commonly served at Indian restaurants, but their thick consistency and sweet flavor can be like drinking a milk shake with your meal. This savory and refreshing version of the yogurt drink from Chef Susan Feniger of Street restaurant in Los Angeles is flavored with fresh mint and cumin, and lightened by the addition of sparkling water. What to buy: Indian black salt, also known as kala namak, is a sulfurous-tasting salt used in Indian and Pakistani cuisine.

This festive holiday punch is made with tart pomegranate and lime juice, aged Jamaican rum, simple syrup, and a touch of orange bitters. Just before serving, top it off with your favorite dry sparkling wine, like cava, Prosecco, or champagne. And to make it extra festive, we’ve included instructions on how to make a beautiful pomegranate-and-lime ice block to keep it chilled. Game plan: You can make the punch base and chill it up to 8 hours ahead.

This autumn-inspired drink uses sweet maple-flavored liqueur with apple brandy, sparkling apple cider, and a bit of lemon juice to balance it all out. What to buy: We like Sortilège maple liqueur for its smooth and not-too-sweet blending of whisky and maple syrup.

Champagne and club soda lighten up this deep-red punch made with claret wine, brandy, and dark rum. Fresh orange and pineapple slices add a hint of citrus and bright color. What to buy: Wines labeled “claret” are red wines that contain a blend of Bordeaux grapes. You can find them in most well-stocked wine shops or online.

Often used as a cold remedy, a hot toddy is at once delicious and invigorating. This take on the classic receives a boost of flavor from honey liqueur and apple brandy, for a toddy that’s sure to leave everyone warm and a bit toasty. A unique blend of highland honey and fine spirits, it can be found at well-stocked liquor stores or online. If you can’t find it, high-quality clover honey can be substituted.

Deep in the heart of San Francisco’s gritty Tenderloin neighborhood is the creative bar Rye. When a few folks from the CHOW staff made a trip there, they fell in love with this light, bubbly cocktail made with elderflower liqueur, Yellow Chartreuse, and Prosecco.

Tart kiwis are an excellent fruit to muddle into a cocktail, especially when offset with a sweet, fruity liqueur like peach. Gently crush the kiwis to release their juice, add the rest of the ingredients, strain into a glass, and top with sparkling wine.

Angèle in Northern California’s Napa Valley is where locals go for satisfying French fare, but the restaurant’s creative cocktails.

This boozy but balanced St. Patrick’s Day punch combines Guinness, cider, and whiskey. First, freeze nonalcoholic and hard apple cider into an ice block. When you’re ready to get your drink on, pour the beer and more hard cider into a punch bowl and add the ice block. Pour the whiskey over top of the frozen cider, and as the cider block thaws it’ll give the punch the sweet-tart flavor of a Black Velvet cocktail with a whiskey back.