Well, it's that time again.  The time for questionable jewelry choices, crappy dinners and overpriced flowers.  That's right, it's Valentine's Day.  In an effort to ease the pain of this difficult and ridiculous "holiday", the Gentlemen of Elegant Leisure have again dipped into their cocktail repertoire to find a couple of PINK drinks that should be the highlight of your Valentine's Day

First up is the Communist!  It should be red right?  At least a little pink.  This recipe comes from Ted Haigh's "VIntage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails".

The Communist
-1933 Cocktail Parade

1 once gin
1 ounce orange juice
1/2 ounce cherry brandy
3/4 ounce lemon juice

Shake in and iced cocktail shaker and strain into a cocktail glass.

Uh oh.  This drink isn't red.  That 1/2 ounce of cherry brandy doesn't do anything for the redness.  Or for anything else for that matter.  In fact, the Gents didn't think that flavours of this drink mixed together very well at all.  Remember those old style sink faucets where the hot and cold didn't really blend to become warm but instead did sort of alternating burning/freezing sensation.  That's this drink.  Unless the Gents did it wrong.  Give it a shot and see what you think.

 
Next up is a drink that promises to be pink.  It has to be.  It's called the Pink Lady.

Pink Lady (Secret Cocktail)

1 1/2 ounce gin
1/2 ounce applejack
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 egg white
2 dashes real pomegranate grenadine

Shake it up and shake it hard!  That egg white needs a good shake to froth up.  The strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with a cherry.

The Gents forgot the cherry.  They had the cherry, but they forgot the cherry.  It doesn't matter though!  Look how great that drink looks!  It's pink!  And it's tasty.  This drink should be ordered by everybody at least one.  Think pink lemonade with a little bit of something something.  That's the applejack going to work.  Thank you Laird's Applejack!  Try this out on your sweetheart and sad sack Valentine's Days will be a thing of the past!

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In springtime they say, a young man's fancy turns to thoughts of love.  Well. in January, a young gentleman's fancy turns to thoughts of bourbon!  And fruit with a pit in it!  That's why, in this episode, the Gents are mixing bourbon up with peach nectar and apricot liqueur.  Let's get started.

First up is a drink called the French Kiss.  it's pink!

French Kiss

1 3/4 ounces bourbon 
3/4 ounce apricot liqueur 
w teaspoons grenadine 
1 teaspoon lemon juice 

Pour ingredients over cracked ice in a shaker and shake vigorously until well chilled.  Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. 

Did we we mention that it’s pink?   Full disclosure; this was the favourite drink of the two. A little bit sweet and a little bit tart but with the bourbon still on full show.  And it’s pink!

Next up is a cocktail called Queen of Memphis.  This one is fun because it calls for Midori melon liqueur.  You may recall it from the Midori Sour.  It’s a neon green colour and helps turn this drink yellow!   Such a lot of colours in this episode!

Queen of Memphis 

1 3/4 ounces bourbon 
3/4 ounce Midori 
3/r ounce peach juice 
dash of maraschino liqueur 

Pour all the ingredients over cracked ice in a shaker and shake vigorously until well chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. 

Did we we mention this drink is yellow?  That’s probably the best thing the Gents can say about this drink.  Overall, the drink was a little “thin”.  It was described as “less than the sum of its parts” which is unfortunate for such a terrific looking drink.  Why don’t you try making one and let us know what you think?

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In this episode, the Gents try two drinks that seem (on paper) to be very similar but (in mouth) are vastly different. 

First up is an ancient tipple called The Martinez.  At first glance you see gin and vermouth and you think, "Martini" right?  WRONG!  It calls for "Old Tom style gin".  Its like regular gin but a little bit sweeter.   The vermouth is sweet too.  See for yourself.

The Martinez

2 ounces Old Tom style gin
1 ounce Italian Red vermouth
1/2 tsp Luxardo maraschino liqueur
2 dashes bitters (we used Angostura)

 In a mixing glass, combine gin, vermouth, maraschino liqueur bitters with 2 cups of ice.  Stir to chill and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.  Twist a strip of lemon over the top and drop it in.

Isn't this a nice amber coloured beverage?  Taste is a little bit sweet but it doesn't come across too sweet because of the trick of the lemon oil we've spattered over the surface of the drink.  Enjoy this 140 year old drink responsibly.

Next up is a classic dry Martini.  The Gents couldn't believe that they hadn't done it already.

Martini

2 ounces gin
1/4 ounce dry vermouth
1 drop Angostura bitters

Combine ingredients in a mixing glass with ice.  Stir to chill and strain into  chilled cocktail glass.  Garnish with a jumbo olive.

That's it.  The big classic.  If you would like it "drier", drop the amount of vermouth.  If you like it "wetter" add more vermouth.  Some old recipes even call for equal proportions of gin and vermouth.  Mix it as you like it.  You are after all the Harry Houdini, of your favourite Martini!

Please leave a comment and let us know if there are any drinks you would like to have us mix up.

See you next time!

It's almost New Year's Eve!  Traditionally a time to break out the bubbly.  But what if you have no bubbly and still want to have a cocktail?  What if you don't even like Champagne? Well look no further my friends, the Gentlemen of Elegant Leisure have you covered.


This time they are dipping once again into the hallowed pages of the BC Liquor boards Taste magazine and a couple of tasty treats from David Wolowidnyk.  First up is the Grand Marnier Sbagliato.  The Gents did a Spagliato in a previous episode but it didn't have Grand Marnier.  Let's give it a go.


Grand Marnier Sbagliato
-by David Wolowidnyk from Taste Magazine


1 ounce Grand Marnier
1 ounce Campari
2 ounces of soda water
Orange zest for garnish


In a mixing glass with ice, combine Grand Marnier and Canpari.  Stir to chill and dilute.  Strain into a chilled rocks glass over cubed ice, top with soda water and garnish with an orange zest,


Little bit bitter and a little bit sweet and a little bit fizzy.  Take that Champagne cocktails!  Who needs you?  Best of all, this recipe forces you to go get that dusty bottle of Grand Marnier that you have and only used once and pop it open.  Mmmmm, orange!

Next up is a Tequila drink that will help you use up that bottle of St-Germain that you don't know what to do with.  It's time for the St-Germain Daisy!


St-Germain Daisy
-by David Wolowidnyk from Taste Magazine

1 oz St-Germain
1 oz tequila
1/2 oz lime juice
2 oz soda water
lime wheels and thyme sprigs for garnish


Shake St-Germain, tequila and lime juice.  Strain into glass with ice.  Top with soda. Garnish with lime wheels and thyme sprigs


This was the clear favourite of the two drinks.  Very refreshing and flavourful.  The Daisy you may recall is called the Margarita in Spanish and the sweetness this time comes from the St-Germain instead of sugar syrup.

Please try both of these out at your New Year's Eve gathering but please remember to be safe and smart!  Make sure you have a ride home if you need one.  See you in the new year!


Happy New Year!

Are you ready for Christmas yet?  No?  Well, neither are the Gentlemen of Elegant Leisure.  If you want proof, just check out this apathetic Christmas show.   One of the drinks doesn't even have a recipe!

The first drink is called the London Town and includes a rum made by Lemon Hart called Blackpool Spiced rum.  The Gents didn't have Blackpool rum though so they used Trader Vic's spiced rum and changed the name from London Town to Camden Town.  If you need a Christmas connection, Bob Cratchit lived in Camden Town.  If you'd like to make a London Town, you can find the recipe here.

Camden Town

• 60 ml (2 oz.) Trader Vic's Spiced Rum
• 24 ml (3/4 oz.) Sweet vermouth
• 2 Dashes Angostura bitters
• Ice cubes
• Orange twist

Fill a shaker or tall glass with ice cubes. Add rum, sweet vermouth and bitters and stir (with a bar spoon) for about a minute. Strain into a chilled coupe and garnish with an orange twist.

Yummy.  Probably better with the Blackpool.  Try it out and leave a comment

Gentleman Fred said, "We've never made a Whiskey Sour."   The other Gent's said, "So, make a Whiskey Sour."  He did.  Except he didn't.  Turns out he made a Boston Sour.  Maybe.  He also didn't have a recipe.  You'll have to listen to the episode to find out what me put in it.

Whiskey Sour a la Fred Partridge

Ingredients and proportions in  the episode

This drink was good too, no matter what it's called.   The secret is that it's got an egg white in it.  Egg white makes everything better.  Smooth and a little frothy.  Fred used Scotch whiskey but probably should've used a bourbon or a rye.

From all of us  to all of you have a very merry and safe Christmas! 

It's not even winter yet and still this weather has you down doesn't it?  Longing to get away to sun-kissed beaches, but you can't because you've got that Gender Reveal party scheduled?  Look no further than this exciting episode of the Gentlemen of Elegant Leisure to help you kill both those birds with one stone.  (Not literally.  Do NOT throw stones at the Gender Reveal party!)

This time around we've got a pink drink and a blue drink from a neat little book called "The Cool Caribbean Cocktail Book" by Gilly Gobinet.  Gilly is an artist located in Antigua and you can see pictures of her gallery right here .  www.gillygobinet.com    Gilly put this book together by traveling around the islands of the Caribbean and visiting all sorts of resorts, restaurants and bars.  You can order your own copy of the book by clicking right here.

These two drinks were created by Gavin Weekes of the Sandals resort on Dickenson Bay in Antigua.  You can check out his Instagram page right here.  Seems like a nice guy and these two drinks are delicious.  Ready to try 'em out?  Let's get started

The first drink is called "Gavin's Rose Pink Special".   This is the drink you want to make if the Gender Reveal party is for a little girl.

Gavin's Rose Pink Special
-by Gavin Weekes, Sandals Resort, Antigua.  Taken from "The Cool Caribbean Cocktail Book" by Gilly Gobinet
 
2 ounces 5 year old English Harbour Rum
1 1/2 ounces amaretto
1 ounce triple sec
2 ounces pineapple juice
A dash of grenadine
1/4 ounce lime juice
 
Shake and strain into a highball glass and add ice.  Garnish with cherry and pineapple

 A little like a Mai Tai but sweeter, and more almondy because of all that Amaretto.  The Gents thought that maybe if they were to make it again, they would increase the lime juice to a half ounce just to get a little more tartness, but all and all this is a really tasty tropical drink!

But what if it’s a boy, you ask?  Well, you’re going to need a blue drink for that.  Look no furthur than this treat of a cocktail, the Blue Ice

Blue Ice
-by Gavin Weekes, Sandals Resort, Antigua.  Taken from "The Cool Caribbean Cocktail Book" by Gilly Gobinet

2 ounces 5 year old English Harbour rum
1 1/2 ounces Blue Curaçao
1 ounce Galliano
2 ounces pineapple juice
 
Shake and strain into a highball glass and add ice.  Garnish with cherry and pineapple

What does it taste like you ask?  Gentleman Dave called it rummy rootbeer!  Why don’t you try making it and leave a comment below letting the Gents know what you thought it tasted like?

As always, thank you for visiting our site and please enjoy your Gender Reveal party responsibly!

DO NOT THROW STONES!

In this episode, the Gentlemen of Elegant Leisure honour all those Gentlemen and Gentlewomen of Elegant Military Service.  First up is a drink from Ted Haigh's "Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails" that honours the Marines!  The Leatherneck Cocktail.

Leatherneck Cocktail
-by Frank Farrell (This recipe is from Ted Saucier's book "Bottoms up" in 1951, but is reprinted in Ted Haigh's "Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails".

2 ounces blended whiskey (We used Crown Royal)
3/4 ounce blue curaçao
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice

Shake all ingredients in an iced cocktail shaker.  Strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with a lime wedge.

The Gents had low hopes for this drink but it were pleasantly surprised.  This drink is just like the Marines and you would be mistaken by underestimating it!  Try it now!  That's an order!

Next up is a drink that Gentleman Dave tracked down. It's called the Army and Navy Cocktail. The origin of this beverage is a bit sketchy, but may have been born at the Army & Navy officer's club in Washington, DC.
 
According to cocktail author David Embury the original recipe was flawed in its proportions, so he modified the recipe and published it in his 1948 book Fine Art of Mixing Drinks. We use Embury's version.
 
What makes this cocktail different from a standard gin sour is the addition of sweet, almond-flavored orgeat syrup.

Army & Navy Cocktail

 2 ounces gin
3/4 ounces lemon juice
3/4 ounces orgeat
a few dashes of Angostura bitters

Shake all ingredients and strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with a cocktail cherry

This too is a great drink but you'll have to listen to the episode to see which one the Gent's preferred.

A big thank you to military veterans past and present.  Thank you for your service!

Have you ever wanted to see three people sample three whiskey's?  Now's your chance!

Happy Halloween! The Gents have pulled out all the stops (organ reference) to bring you a special early episode to spice up your Halloween night. Sure, our early episode still might be a little late. Maybe you had your Halloween party this past weekend like some sort of savage. However, if you waited until tonight for your party, or you don't have to work tomorrow, or you live somewhere where little ghosts and goblins don't come come ringing your doorbell every three minutes, and you feel the need for a little thirst quenching buzz, the Gents have a couple of festive drinks for you. Let get mixing because the trick or treaters are on their way!

Next up is a drink from the Imbibe magazine website.  This drink was on the menu of the halloween-themed pop-up PUB Dread in Washington, DC. back in 2017.

Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice!
-Paul Taylor, PUB Dread, Washington, D.C., 2017

1 oz. Aperol
¼ oz. Campari
½ oz. sweet vermouth
1 oz. strawberry syrup
1 barspoon absinthe
3 oz. sparkling water

Combine all the ingredients in a highball over ice, stir, then garnish with a red Twizzler

Strawberry Syrup
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup strawberries (tops removed and cut in half)
1 cup water

Heat all the ingredients in saucepan until the sugar is dissolved. Allow to cool, then strain into a bottle and refrigerate.

This drink is for the Negroni lovers out there.  It's got a little bitterness from the Aperol and Campari but the bitterness is softened significantly by the big glug of strawberry syrup.  The Gents did not make there own strawberry syrup but instead used the strawberry syrup made by Giffard.  All in all a fantastic drink.  Again, pictures were taken but this is the shot from the Imbibe website.

Please have a safe and happy Halloween!

In this episode the Gents are back together tasting rums, reminiscing about Mike, Mark and Jack, and wondering if Kauai (the Garden Island) is the New Jersey of Hawaii.  All this and a couple of drinks!  Let’s get started.

First up is an old drink from the turn of the century.  The last century, not this most recent one.  It’s called a Mamie Taylor and was named after a musical actress named Mayme Taylor.  There are a couple of different stories involving her asking for this drink, or being accidentally served this drink, but either way, she was involved.  It was huge for a few years, then fell out of fashion.  Fortunately, it’s preserved in Ted Haigh’s Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails.  It’s much like any drink that has spirit and fizz but better.  Find the spiciest ginger beer or ale that you can.  The Gents were lucky enough to get a hold of some “Old #3 Hot” Blenheim Ginger Ale.  You can track down some yourself right here.  You want the red cap!

Mamie Taylor
-circa 1899 from Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails by Ted Haigh.

2 ounces Scotch
3/4 ounce fresh squeezed lime juice
Spicy ginger ale or ginger beer (Get Blenheim’s #3 Ginger Ale)

Pour the scotch and lime juice into an ice-filled highball glass and fill with ginger ale. Stir and garnish with a lime wedge.

Mmmmmmm.  Mamie Taylor, where have you been all our lives?  This drink is all gingery scotchy limey goodness.  It’s just what you think it’s going to taste like, only better somehow!  If you happen to be in Vancouver, why don’t you head on down to Mamie Taylor’s in Chinatown and get one made for you?

Next up is the Modernista.  This is Ted Haigh’s name for the drink which he derived from a drink called the Modern Cocktail or the Modern Maid.  He readjusted the proportions to what you see here and added Swedish Punsch.

The Modernista
-adapted by Ted Haigh from "Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails" by Ted Haigh.

2 ounces Scotch
1/2 ounce dark Jamaican rum
1 teaspoon absinthe or pastis (Pernod etc)
1/2 ounce Swedish Punsch
1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
 2 dashes orange bitters

Shake in an iced cocktail shaker, and strain into a cocktail glass.  Add a lemon twist

Ted says in his description that this can be a challenging drink.  If you were new to cocktails you might have a little bit of trouble with it.  The licorice flavour of the absinthe certainly comes through as does the lemon juice.  All the other flavours seemed to be secondary.

In fact, the Gents took it upon themselves to tweak the recipe a little further by adding some ginger beer from the Mamie Taylor, and came up with a new drink that they’re calling the Modern Mamie.  Try it out and leave a comment so they know what you think of it.

Modern Mamie
-The Gentlemen of Elegant Leisure 2018

2 ounces Scotch
1/2 ounce dark Jamaican rum
1 teaspoon absinthe or pastis (Pernod etc)
1/2 ounce Swedish Punsch
1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
 2 dashes orange bitters
1/2 ounce of spicy ginger beer or ale (Get Blenheim’s #3 Ginger Ale)


Shake all ingredients (except ginger beer) in an iced cocktail shaker, and strain into a cocktail glass.  Add the ginger beer and stir gently.

The Gents thought this drink tasted better.  The addition of the ginger beer changed the flavour in such a way that Gentleman Jason thought it now tasted of apples.  Please try making one for yourself and let the Gents know.

During the episode Gent J mentioned an old sketch that he had been in called the Spit Take Sketch.  Please enjoy this trip to 1996!

Swedish Punsch.  The Gentlemen of Elegant Leisure have used this ingredient before and thought, “Why not use it again?”  In fact, there are two drinks back to back in Ted Haigh’s book “Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails” that use it.  You can purchase the book right here.

First up is the Doctor Cocktail.  There are a few variations of this drink, and the Gents may come back to this one for the sake of comparison. This drink is a Trader Vic variation of one that was promoted by Frank Meier of the Ritz Bar in Paris in 1936.  Let’s credit them both shall we?

Doctor Cocktail
by Frank Meier and Victor Bergeron. (from Ted Haigh’s “Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails”)

2 ounces Jamaica rum
1 ounce Swedish Punsch
1 ounce lime juice

Shake in an iced cocktail shaker, and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime twist.

What do you get when you mix rum, Swedish Punsch and lime juice together?  As far as the Gents are concerned, not much.  Misery maybe?  Sadness?  Disappointment for sure.  Loads of disappointment.  The lime seemed to come on way too strong and easily overpowered whatever sweetness was coming from the Punsch.  The rum was definitely there, but for the Gents, the drink came off like sour rum.  Had they called it a Rum Sour, maybe this would work better.  As Doctor Cocktail, you’d be better of going to the walk in clinic down the street.  Try it and leave a comment.  Perhaps the Gents missed the point.  They are always willing to learn. 

Next up is the Diki-Diki Cocktail.  This one sounds like a Tiki drink, but it isn’t.  It’s got Calvados in it.  You remember Calvados, the apple brandy?  Here it’s mixed with Swedish Punsch and grapefruit juice!

Diki-Diki Cocktail
from Ted Haigh’s “Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails”

1 1/2 ounces Calvados
1/2 ounce Swedish Punsch
3/4 ounce grapefruit juice

Shake well in an iced cocktail shaker, and strain into a cocktail glass.

What do you get when you mix Calvados, Swedish Punsch and grapefruit juice together?  As far as the Gents are concerned, not much, but it’s better than the Doctor Cocktail.  Its’ sweeter, so it’s a little bit more pleasant to drink.  The Swedish Punsch gets a chance to come through so there’s a little hint of rum with the apple brandy and the grapefruit lends a little bit of tartness.  Still, the Gentlemen were a little disappointed with this drink too.  Maybe it was because they were down a man.  Gentlemen Fred was in Hawaii for this episode but was able to be in the episode through the magic of the internet.

Please try both these cocktails a leave a comment about which one you prefer.  Gentleman Fred will be back in town and ready to drink for the next show.  See you then!