Right, folks! I think it's time I got down to business and started reviewing season-themed cocktails for you. We're a bit late in the year for fruity drinks like the zombie and bebidas frescas like the martini. I gave you a Halloween sort of deal with the Dark and Spooky; now let's move on to Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Actually, I have a marvelous libation in mind for Yuletide, but I'll get to that later.
And so! In the midst of this season of harvesting, cooking, baking, eating, imbibing, and everything else having to do with saliva, I give you a cocktail you'll be thankful for. It's best sipped in a house smelling of pumpkin spice or apple butter, possibly even turkey grease. It's called the "tower topper."
1½ ounces Canadian whisky
½ ounces Grand Marnier
½ ounces light cream
In a shaker half-filled with ice cubes, combine all the ingredients. Shake well and strain into a cocktail glass.
I won't lie. The first time I ran across this recipe in The Bartender's Bible, my nose involuntarily wrinkled up.
Yerk, I thought. Who's going to want to try that?
Fortunately, a complete lack of Grand Marnier made the issue a moot point.
I've been on a whiskey kick lately, as I think I've mentioned. So when I paged through the Bible last evening and encountered this drink once more (with a half-full bottle of Grand Marnier in the drinks cabinet), I was given pause.
...for about two seconds. I mixed it up (using milk instead of cream, which we didn't have) and sampled it.
You'll have to decide for yourself what this drink tastes like. The flavor is highly subjective, and could potentially be the topic of much debate. I was, however, forcibly reminded of cooking as I imbibed. To me, this stuff tastes like a kitchen full of people cooking Thanksgiving dinner. The tower topper has a holiday feel to it, probably lent by the softness of the milk (cream), the spice of the liqueur, and the warmth of the whisky.
Try it, it's good. Have one handy when you're basting the turkey. And make it a double, it'll last longer.
Lo and behold! A good cocktail with a mere two ingredients!
1½ ounces vodka
½ ounces Grand Marnier
In a mixing glass half-filled with ice cubes, combine the vodka and Grand Marnier. Stir well.
As you might very well expect, this tastes mostly like Grand Marnier. Still and all, there's a frosty hint of the vodka underneath that refined blend of Cognacs. The drink itself is a flavorful digestif and fine sipping. It's not as strong as you might think, either. And you don't have to like vodka to appreciate it.
