Original Wedding Cocktail

My friend Marc and I enjoying the cocktails.

Wanting to give a unique gift to some friends who recently got married, I offered to create an original cocktail to be offered at the rehearsal dinner which all of the guests were invited to. The restaurant was happy to accommodate me since I would be picking up the tab for all of the guests who ordered the drink which meant more business for them. The groom loves gin, the bride likes fruity but not too sweet, and the wedding was the weekend before Thanksgiving. Here's what I came up with.

2oz of Gin (the bar had Bombay Saphire)

1oz of Apple Cider

1/2oz Nocello Walnut Liqueur

dash of lemon juice

Thin apple slice for garnish

Shake all ingredients 20 times over ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. Add apple slice.

The sweetness of the apple cider is tempered by the gin and accented by the walnut liqueur. Judging by my bar tab I'd say it was a hit.

Richard A L'Orange A.K.A. Dick A L'Orange

Recently I had the good fortune of creating a drink for a longtime friend of mine, Richard, whom I hadn't seen in about 8 years. Recently he turned 21 and settled on Bombay Saphire and orange juice as one of his preferred cocktails. Remember, he's young, only recently 21. After introducing him to the idea behind the various notes of a cocktail (simply put, what you smell, initially taste, what that taste is accompanied by, and finally its aftertaste), I created this drink for him to illustrate how the taste of gin and orange can be enhanced to include more depth. Here is the result:

The Richard A L'Orange
A.K.A Dick A L'Orange

2oz of Bombay Saphire Gin
1oz Combier or other orange liquor

1/2 oz of fresh squeezed Orange juice
dash of Reagan's Orange Bitters No6
rinse of Orange Blossom Water
Orange rind for granish

Rinse the cocktail glass with a splash of orange blossom water and then throw the water out. Put the remaining ingredients (except orange rind) in a cocktail shaker with ice, shake about 15 times then strain into the waiting, rinsed cocktail glass. Hold the orange rind over the glass and bend it to release its oils (can be done in front of a flame for added effect and a carmelized taste) then drop into the drink (running it around the rim first is also not a bad idea).

The drink was definitely orange, but with many more notes than simply Gin and Juice. It smelled sweet, almost perfumey (thank you orange blossom water), but the first sip tapped into the roundedness of the Combier, and the bitters sealed the deal replacing the sweetness with a burnt orange bitterness that lingered on the tongue. I can still taste it.

Bombay Saphire in a one liter bottle: $30, Combier Liquor: $32, fresh squeezed O.J: $5, Reagan's Orange Bitters No6: $9, Orange Blossom water: $5, orange rind: $1... spending time with Richard: Priceless.