Caipirinha

Done with a little cheating, aka using simple syrup and not real sugar, it was extremely easy to create the Brazilian national drink. A few easy ingredients, just a little muddling, and this tasty creation is good to go.

2.5 oz Cachaca
1/2 oz simple syrup
4 lime wedges (1/2 lime)

Add all the goodies (squeeze all the lime wedges) over a significant amount of ice.

Go to town with a muddler.

Pour it all into a cup.

Voila...

I could drink about 9 of these... 

The Last Word

Originally created by a gentleman named Frank Fogarty at the Detroit Athletic Club in 1920. Half assed research shows that he seems to only be famous for creating this drink.

Revived sometime in the 2000s by Murray Stenson. Now called the "definitive Seattle cocktail. All things considered... Seattle could do a whole lot worse.

The Last Word is an expensive drink to make (around $100 for all the bottles), but so amazingly balanced with herbal, sweet, and sour flavors all coming through.

Also, incredibly easy to make.

The Last Word
3 oz cocktail

3/4 oz Gin (I used Washington's own Voyager)
3/4 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur.
3/4 oz Green Chartreuse
3/4 oz Fresh Lime

Mix, Shake w/ Ice, Strain, Serve.

A true favorite.

Pisco Sour

A small surprise occurred a few months ago here in Olympia... the local liquor store, for whatever reason, had a special order of Picologia Pisco.  It was a little pricy, but certainly worth it to create the signature cocktail of not one, but two different countries.

Variations are aplenty with the Pisco Sour. Some (perhaps the Chileans?) claim the egg whites are unnecessary, most recipes say to use lemon... but then one notes that South American Limon is closer to a lime. Some use 2-1 rich syrup, some use 1-1 simple syrup. 

And no matter the makeup... Anthony Bordain would rather have a beer. 

In the end, I just went with what I know I like... less sweet and more alcohol. Thus, the recipe from imbibe magazine (with a quick nod to the limon/lemon/lime issue).

Pisco Sour

3 oz Pisco

1 oz lemon and lime juice mixture

3/4 oz simple (1:1 ratio of water and sugar) syrup

1/2 egg white

4 drops angostura bitters

Ice

In a cocktail shaker, mix together pisco, lemon and lime juice (I did about 50/50), simple syrup, and egg white. Cover and shake.

Uncover and add ice (bigger ice cubes are better). Recover and shake.

Strain into a cocktail glass.

Drop 4 or so drops of angostura bitters onto the egg white foam in different spots around the drink. Use a toothpick and swirl them around for the nicely finished look.