Episode 33 - White After Labour Day? Why Not?

Okay.  We know.  They say you're not supposed to wear white after Labour Day.  But who are "they" anyway?  Why should we listen to "them"?  Are "they" better than "us"?  Yikes.  Maybe they are.  Maybe we shouldn't wear white after Labour Day.  Ever.  On the otherhand though, NOBODY said anything about drinking white after Labour Day did they?  So let's do that.  Every drink in today's episode shall be white!  All of today's drinks come from Ted Haigh's book, VIntage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails which you can get right here.  It's a marvelous book and should be in every bartender's library.

First up is a Milk Punch.  Dr. Cocktail says this drink was in the first cocktail recipe book ever published, way back in 1862 and I gotta say, it's kind of an odd one.  It's not thick like eggnog.  It's really quite refreshing.  Give it a go!

Milk Punch
- Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails by Ted Haigh

1 ounce brandy
1/2 ounce dark rum
2 teaspoons simple syrup
2 dashes vanilla extract
4 ounces whole milk
nutmeg

Shake the ingredients in a shaker with cracked ice then strain into a glass half filled with shaved ice.  
Grate or shake some nutmeg on top.

Mmmmmmm. Nutmeg.

Next up, the White Lady.  This drink is perhaps more ghostly than white. It even sounds
​like a haunting...

"The old Hatley place?  No.  Nobody goes up there since they've started seeing . . . the White Lady."

It's tasty and refreshing though.  It's gin mixed with lemon and orange.  How could you go wrong with that?

White Lady
-Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails by Ted Haigh

1 1/2 ounces gin
3/4 ounce Cointreau
3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice

Combine all the ingredients, then shake with ice cubes in a cocktail shaker.  
Strain into a cocktail glass.

"Summer time and the living is easy", am I right?  You're not going to shock the world with this drink, but neither is the world going to send it back and ask for a different one.

Boooo. I'm the ghost of the White Lady!

The last drink was suggested by Fred, and isn't quite as white as he thought it was going to be.  It's a fun little number called Soyer au Champage.  This is the drink for all those people out there that say, "Sure I like champagne, but why can't there be ice cream in it too?"

Soyer au Champagne
-Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails by Ted Haigh

2 dashes maraschino liqueur
2 dashes pineapple juice
2 dashes orange curaçao (or Grand Marnier)
2 dashes brandy
champagne
1 tablespoon vanilla ice cream

In a parfait glass, combine the first four ingredients.  Fill with champagne then add the vanilla ice cream on top.  Serve with a spoon and a straw.

​

This one is fun!  When you add the ice cream, the drink gets all foamy.  As you can see from the picture, it's not really white though.  The pineapple juice and the brandy give it a yellow hue.  I think Fred thought there was going to be a huge scoop of ice cream in it, and it would end up looking like a shake or something.  It's still a great drink though, and I hope you give it a try the next time you make a dessert drink.

Try them all if you can and don't forget to leave us a comment.  Just click on that little blue word "comments" right down there.  You see it.  See you in a couple of weeks!