Reviving the Apricot Sour

This month's Mixology Monday topic, Retro Redemption, kinda has me stumped. Jacob Grier at Liquidity Preference describes the 1950's-1990's as the Dark Age of Mixology, and challenges us to revive a drink from the "lost decades."

The problem is, I wasn't drinking yet. At least not anything worth reviving. Rum and cokes, Fuzzy Navels, jello shots, Budweiser. A teenage girl's best friends, until she throws them up. Today, I can't even be in the same room as Peachtree schnapps, and the dreaded rum incident got a dedicated humor column written by me on Angstgiving exactly two years ago this week.

History makes me crazy. For the love of Dale*, I can never remember where classic drinks came from, who made them, and why. Some cocktails are best forgotten, like my ex-boyfriend.

But family heritage is my notable exception. Be it stories or objects, I saved everything my parents ever gave me, like the pair of red knee socks with white hearts my mom bought for me over twenty-five years ago. Though they’ve faded and the elastic is long-gone, causing them to bunch around my ankles and slide into my shoes, I still wear them every Valentine's Day.

When Leah and I opened the Lounge, my parents passed on to us their 1974 Mr. Boston Bartenders Guide (53rd printing). I flipped through the classics, but what caught my eye were the handwritten recipes penciled inside the back cover. Tequila sunrise. Daiquiri. In my dad’s script, Margaritas: Fill a blender halfway with tequila and the rest of the way with half triple sec and half either limeade, or pop plus Rose's lime juice. And then there was my mother’s favorite drink, recorded in her slanty handwriting: the Apricot Sour.

Reading the recipe, I could taste it in my memory, its tart flavor known intimately to me from eating the liquor-soaked maraschino cherry left at the bottom of her glass. The trick to making a good one? Use fresh-squeezed lemon juice instead of sour mix, and make sure to add that splash of orange juice. Try it; I bet you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Apricot Sour

1 ½ ounce apricot brandy
1 ounce orange juice
¾ ounce lemon juice
a few drops of maraschino cherry juice
maraschino cherry

Fill a Collins glass with ice. Add brandy and juices. Stir. Garnish with maraschino cherry.

*Dale DeGroff, a master mixologist credited for the revival of "classic cocktails."

No, you're not crazy. If this blog post seems familiar, it's because portions of this column were previously published on this blog.

Visit Liquidity Preference to see the roundup of Mixology Monday cocktails worth reviving from around the world.

Flight of the Concord

This month's Mixology Monday topic, hosted by Alcohol Alchemy, is Local Color. Usually I'm anal retentive about following the Mixology Monday instructions each month, so I made sure our cocktail used local ingredients, and it sure is colorful.

Except after Leah created the drink and took an awesome photo, I realized my rebel side once again shoved my straight-and-narrow side off a speeding train. I did not start with a local craft spirit as instructed. Oops.

I haven't always been this impulsive, really. Okay, maybe I have, but I'm still firmly in denial, so I'll blame Leah.

Here's the story: We belong to a most excellent local fruit CSA this year (after swearing off vegetables when the veggie CSA forced one too many parsnips upon us). In this week's basket, we received peaches, plums, pears, apples, and concord grapes.

Grapes. Yum. But they're kind of tart, and the skins get stuck in your teeth, and they have annoying seeds. No way I was going to labor to take all the seeds out and make a pie, appealing as the end result might be.

Then in came Leah. And out came the ball jar. In went the grapes and gin. Out came the muddler.

Minutes passed: The gin turned a peaceful lavender. Hours later: A ball jar full of deep bruised purple. The next day: The Concordian took flight.

[In retrospect, obviously I'd use a local gin to follow the Mixology Monday rules. The most popular gin made in the Finger Lakes region of New York (maybe the only gin? i've yet to hear of another) is Finger Lakes Distilling's Seneca Drums Gin. I've written about their gin before, in both cocktail form and via a general review. And we've showcased their cherry liqueur, which hands down is our favorite FLD product at the Lounge. You can read more about Finger Lakes Distilling HERE.]

The Concordian

1 1/2 ounces concord grape-infused gin*

tonic

lime wedge

Fill a rocks glass with ice. Add grape-infused gin. Top with tonic. Garnish with a lime.

*Concord grape-infused gin:

1 lb Finger Lakes concord grapes

32 ounces gin

Muddle and let sit for 24 hours. Strain.

Beer Mimosa

Maybe I'm too lazy, or maybe I'm too busy, but whatever the reason, I simply haven't jumped on the beer cocktail bandwagon yet. Leah's definitely had her hands full with incoming produce from our awesome farmer: scapes, black caps, and soon, plums.

Those black cap (black raspberry) cocktails are CRACK. We've gotten a lot of people completely addicted to them, and now they want, want, want and we sell, sell, sell. Stop by the Lounge this week for a fix.

But back to beer. Typically, I'm a purist. I like my gin on the rocks with no mixer, my wine in a glass with no spritzer, and my whiskey swigged straight out of the bottle. Beer is no exception. So when Frederic at Cocktail Virgin (Slut) announced that this month's Mixology Monday theme is beer cocktails, I knew I had some work to do.

Or not. Because the day before I read Frederic's post, I actually made a beer cocktail. It wasn't on purpose. I was just too lazy, I mean, busy, to go out and buy champagne when I had a craving for a mimosa. I opened the fridge, and next to the orange juice was a can of PBR, beckoning me to take a risk.

Ice cold PBR and orange juice. Weird, or genius? It worked for me. The recipe is complicated. so pay attention:

PBR Mimosa, aka The Lazy Girl

PBR

orange juice

champagne flute

Open the can of PBR. Take a swig from the can. Fill your champagne flute halfway with PBR. Chug some more beer from the can. Add orange juice to the PBR in a champagne flute, take a sip, and proclaim loudly, "This is the shit! It tastes just like a mimosa. Who needs champagne?"

Bitter About Flowers

Welcome to Mixology Monday! Okay, you caught me. Today is actually Tuesday. I waited until the eleventh hour to write my post, and then company showed up and we drank a bottle of 2009 Cotes Du Rhone instead. As a result, my writing skills rapidly deteriorated into giggles and yawns. Hazelnut coffee in hand, I begin my belated post a day late and a bottle of wine lighter.

Hosted by Dave at The Barman Cometh, this month's Mxmo topic is floral cocktails. Rhubarb is NOT a flower, so despite the fact that I just picked fifteen pounds of it and will start shaking up Rhubarb Martinis at the Lounge tonight, rhubarb is not what I am going to write about.

I am also not going to write about violets, though I spent an hour picking them yesterday. They are destined to become violet syrup, and eventually a blueish cocktail of some sort.

And I'm not writing about the exploding purple lilacs in my yard. Stunning and tasty as they are, for now I'm simply going to snort them, and maybe float a few in a drink as garnish.

Instead, the topic of my post is lavender bitters. Leah started making her own bitters a few summers ago: orange bitters, coffee bitters, lavender bitters and soon: rhubarb bitters. Usually I don't like lavender in my beverages because I feel like I'm drinking massage oil or lotion, but the lavender scent dances gracefully with the already floral essence of gin, turning an everyday drink into a culinary delicacy.

When it comes to the commercial stuff, I'm bitter about bitters: There is absolutely no reason to include the artificial and potentially harmful caramel color (Peychaud's, Fee Brothers, Angostura), Red #40 (Peychaud's, Fee Brothers), or Yellow #6 (Fee Brothers). And bitters that are chemically produced in a factory down the street from you are NOT "locavore." You drive me crazy when you buy a bottle of mass-produced bitters from the Super Walmart and proclaim them "locavore." You want locavore? I'll give you locavore upside your head. Bring it on.

As soon as we mow the lawn, plant mint, stack the wood, fix the windows, replace the ice machine, build new porch benches, install stair lighting, repair the brick steps, and clean out the gutters, we're going to start bottling our own bitters. Get ready: we're bitter and we can make it better.

In the meantime, you can dream about this lavender gin and tonic, but if you want to taste it, you'll have to come to Felicia's:

Lavender Gin and Tonic

1.5 ounces gin

2 dashes of lavender bitters

tonic

Fill a rocks glass with ice. Add gin and bitters. Top with tonic. I know, you don't have our lavender bitters - yet. Bookmark this page, drop by to stack some wood, and give us a few months.

Save the date! Rapture Party 5/21/11 from 6pm-close at Felicia's Atomic Lounge. I'll be live twittering the rapture, too. Follow me on twitter at @ameliasauter

Mixology Monday: Tomato Zinger

I am so excited that it is Spring. Please reassure me it's not going to snow again so I don't impulsively buy a plane ticket to Cancun where I can suck in tropical sun and tropical cocktails until I explode into a million droplets of warm joy.

Because Felicia's likes to use raw materials in our cocktails, Spring is a critical time of year for us and for our favorite farmers at Tree Gate Farm. This weekend, I cut back the mint and oregano, and planted a bunch of rhubarb roots to meet your unquenchable demand for Rhubarb Martinis. We transformed over 20 lbs of rhubarb from Tree Gate into martinis last May! I'm feeling piggish as I reminisce, and must confess to you that I found a pound of last summer's rhubarb in the freezer yesterday and cooked it with some sugar, then proceeded to eat it all right out of the pot. Forgive me. I'm sorry I didn't share. (Okay, I'm not sorry. If I found another pound right now, I still wouldn't share it. Seriously, Rhubarb and I are monogamous.)

As we dive face-first into Spring, Mixology Monday this month is hosted by Spirited Remix. Chris asked everyone to post about their all-time most amazing cocktail creation, and later this week he will put all of those cocktails on his website so head over there to check it out.

I'll be honest with you, I'm not a great cocktail maker. When it comes to our fresh philosophy, Leah is the one who you'll find in the kitchen making something unusual with coriander syrup or cucumbers or whole vanilla beans or fresh horseradish or wild ramps or lovage from a neighbor's garden. I'm more tame in the cocktail creativity category, and content to be her taste-tester.

But a couple of summers ago, I actually created one drink that I fell truly, madly, and drunkenly in love with: the Tomato Zinger. Since it requires fresh-picked cherry tomatoes, I tend to forget about it in the winter. Last week, however, Leah and I taught a cocktail class at Tompkins Cortland Community College and played a version of Chopped that we called Shaken. We asked the students to create cocktails using three required ingredients: cherry tomatoes, rosemary, and limes. All the resulting drinks were delicious, but I was left pining for summer and for another hot affair with the Tomato Zinger.

Don't tell Rhubarb I'm cheating on her.

Felicia's Tomato Zinger

5 small Sweet 100 cherry tomatoes
pinch of sea salt
1/2 ounce lemon juice
1/2 ounce honey syrup (equal parts honey and water)
1 3/4 ounces gin

Muddle four cherry tomatoes, sea salt, honey syrup and lemon juice. Add gin and shake with ice. Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with the remaining cherry tomato.

Mixology Monday: Like That? You'll Love This!

This month's Mixology Monday is brought to you by eGullet, an online forum where people chat about culinary stuff. The theme, "Like That? You'll Love This!" sounds kind of like a game show: You could win this dishwasher, or you could win (dramatic reveal by blonde model) A BRAND NEW CAR!

I don't have a recipe for you. I'm sitting in my underwear in front of the blazing fire, drinking cheap red wine, and waiting for the lake effect snowstorm that seems to be arriving fashionably late this evening.

However, Leah, also drinking cheap red wine though more tastefully clad in a fluffy white bathrobe, would like to offer her two cents:

"You want a Midori sour? Try this shot of Bookers bourbon!"

During our particularly hair-raising psycho-busy bartending shifts this summer, doing shots of Bookers became a trend for the bartenders on duty (specifically, the Friday Happy Hour staff, but I'm not naming names), almost a game, to see who could throw it back fast and keep a normal expression as it set their mouth-throat-stomach-loins on fire. I must admit, a little Bookers certainly takes the edge off a rough shift.

A feat which a Midori sour cannot claim.

The statement, "Like Midori sours? Then you'll love a shot of Bookers!" is probably a lie, and is bound to be followed by cries and laments of angry mobs of villagers wielding torches and demanding the surrender of the monster.

Bring it on. Just give me a second to do a shot of Bookers first.

Mixology Monday: Gin Sangaree

This month's Mixology Monday was a little tricky: write about a Forgotten Cocktail. Hey, wait a darn minute, Rock & Rye wiseguy. If I've forgotten a cocktail, how can I write about it? And frankly, since my brain turned 40 (which actually happened when the rest of my body turned 35), I can't even remember how to make a Sex on the Beach. Which is probably good, because those kinda suck.

Mr. Boston Deluxe Official Bartender's Guide, 1974 edition to the rescue. Because I have an aversion to books that smell like wet basements, I don't have any old cocktail books in the house except this one, which belonged to my parents and is complete with their hand-written recipe notes on the inside front and back covers.

To find a "forgotten cocktail," the re-publication of which might change the world of modern spirits forever and provide me with fame and excessive wealth, I paged through the guide. It appears that there are only eight unique recipes in the entire book of 1000+ drinks, all of which contain one or more of the following ingredients in slightly differing ratios: Mr. Boston's brandy, apricot brandy, triple sec, vermouth, scotch, gin, grenadine and lime. And many of which deserve to remain forgotten.

I found one cocktail that I had not previously heard of that included an interesting non-Mr. Boston ingredient: The Gin Sangaree.

You know my distaste for history, so I'm sure you'll appreciate the huge 45-second effort I spent researching sangaree on the internet. Sangaree comes from the latin word for blood and refers to the inclusion of port wine in the cocktail.

With the holidays approaching, this cocktail choice serves up a hint of festive, with a shy dash of nutmeg weaving together the flavors of the port and gin. Because the Gin Sangaree is light, you can savor it before dinner as the port and nutmeg stimulate your appetite. Because it's slightly sweet, it is also effective as a post-dinner sipper.

But is it memorable? Well, I remember liking it last night. Ask me again in six months and we'll see.

Gin Sangaree

2 ounces Gin
1 tablespoon port wine
1/2 teaspoon powdered sugar
1 teaspoon water
club soda
nutmeg

Dissolve sugar in water by stirring, and add gin. Pour into highball glass filled with ice. Top with club soda, and float port wine on the top.

Authors note: F*ck floating the port. I can never make sh*t float. Which is probably my fault, but I'll tell you what, that port looked to me like it weighed as much as a f*cking rock compared to the soda-gin-sugar which was half-comprised of carbonated weightless air bubbles. And if you can float the port, I hate you. I'll bet you can light lemon zest on fire, too. Showoff.

For a roundup of the "Forgotten Cocktails" posted on renowned cocktail blogs all over the world today in celebration of Mixology Monday, visit Rock & Rye.

Fernet Branca: The Pipe Cleaner

This month's Mixology Monday, hosted by Brown, Bitter and Stirred, requires a visit to an old frenemy of mine, Fernet Branca:

A FEW DAYS AGO, I noticed a foul odor in my kitchen. My first thought was that it was emanating from the refrigerator, from one of my partner Leah’s lacto-fermentation projects, which can thrive happily and stink up the fridge for months. But when I washed my hands in the kitchen sink, a dead cabbage smell wafted up to my nose, and I realized that something was rotting in the drain.

I hoped the stank in the sink would be easy to extinguish, but Leah’s efforts proved futile. Throughout the day, she poured various substances down the drain: boiling water, dish soap, baking soda, vinegar, bleach. As a last resort, she tossed in a splash of Fernet Branca. If that didn’t improve the bouquet, she said, then she’d take apart the pipes tomorrow.

Since I wrote about Fernet Branca in an earlier column, I’ve been surprised to find how many people enjoy drinking this medicinal, menthol liqueur; One friend fondly reminisced how his great-aunt used to give him a spoonful for tummy aches when he was a child, his introduction to the healing power of liquor. Many people were shocked to hear that I, a lover of all booze, was not in love with this particular amaro.

My distaste for Fernet Branca comes from a bias: I am not a fan of cooling herbs. Perhaps it’s from having Vicks VapoRub shoved up my nostrils on a tissue torpedo when I had a cold as a child. Or maybe I used too much Ben Gay on torn ligaments when I was a cheerleader, when the coach insisted we do full splits at tournaments even when our bodies insisted we couldn’t. (It’s true. I cheered, complete with feathered hair, fringy pom poms and a short-short black and gold skirt. You can stop laughing now). Mint ice cream and mint juleps are on my most-hated list. Even toothpaste challenges me. Right after I brush my teeth, I can’t drink a glass of water without gagging. The only exception to my mint aversion is mojitos, which I can easily consume in large amounts. The muddled limes seem to castrate the mint and leave it powerless to offend me.

Which got me thinking: Maybe I’d be able to tolerate Fernet Branca in a cocktail with lime.

When I mentioned this idea to Leah, she suggested I start with a base alcohol that could compete with the menthol, like a peaty scotch. For this drink, I chose cognac. I added lime juice and sugar, and topped it with a splash of club soda, because, gosh darn it, bubbles are fun, and the Fernet needed something on its side.

The resulting cocktail was palatable and refreshing. The lime did the trick, and I felt relieved to tell my friends that I, too, had found a way to appreciate the highly regarded Fernet Branca. I don’t love it, but like any alcohol, it’s all in how you mix it.

And miraculously, when mixed with boiling water, dish soap, baking soda, vinegar, and bleach, Fernet Branca cured the drain of its malodorous ailment.

Pipe Cleaner

1 ½ ounces cognac
¼ ounce Fernet Branca
¼ ounce lime juice
1 teaspoon sugar
club soda
lime wheel

Fill a shaker with ice. Add cognac, Fernet Branca, lime juice and sugar. Shake. Strain into a double rocks glass filled with ice. Top with club soda. Garnish with a lime wheel.

Be sure to visit Brown, Bitter, and Stirred for a wrap-up of other recipes that are brown, bitter, and stirred, which probably taste better than mine.

Tom Waits, Boones Farm and Taxis

This month’s Mixology Monday is weird, and I’ve got a weird tale to comply with the weird task.

Andrew at Caskstrength instructs us:
Let the bawdy, lovely, peculiar and obvious late nightlife inspire you to tell a favorite drinking tale while listening to, or being inspired by Tom Waits.

Summer in Ithaca is like a fairytale when you are twenty-two years old and recently set free from dungeons of the University. The hot sun combined with red wine, late nights and skinny dipping in waterfalls makes you think you can do anything.

I had found myself a damp, basement apartment on the hill, across from my favorite pub (for drinking what at the time was housebrewed porter), The Chapter House.

My best friend Antigone lived at a nearby anarchist vegetarian coop. It was Antigone who introduced me to Boones Farm and to the boy. Skinny and effeminate, with long golden curls, he looked like a prince in tan corduroys. He drove a taxi by day, a pursuit I found so romantic that I called the taxi company and got hired on the night shift.

Late one evening not long after I met him, the boy pulled out a guitar and started playing Tom Waits’ songs.

I don’t remember his name, if I kissed him, or what songs he played. I only remember how odd it was to hear gravelly growling and choking sounds coming out of his heart-shaped pink lips which had seconds before been graced by his girlish voice.

In that moment, I knew we would never be lovers.

I quit the taxi company before my first shift, and Antigone and I spent the rest of the summer drinking Boones Farm by the waterfalls.

The hazy memories are revived only by the sound of Tom Waits’ voice, a stranger’s request for late night drinking tales, and the occasional passing of a taxi.

Mixology Monday: Eggnog Martini

Folks, it's time for Mixology Monday again. Head on over to Beers in the Shower where a roundup will be posted in a couple of days or so.

My contribution is the Eggnog Martini, because everybody needs eggnog. We feel compelled to drink eggnog at least once a year during the holidays. Maybe it's the festive thing to do. Even if you don't love eggnog, tradition trumps taste buds.

The Eggnog Latte Martini, which adds Starbucks liquor, is a caffeine-filled alternative. Or simultaneously simplify and upgrade to a premium spirit by drinking eggnog with Jameson in your morning coffee. Like I'm doing right now.

Unrelated side note: I tried to enjoy a cachaca margarita last night. Don't drink cachaca after you've been painting your studio all day. Cachaca smells surprisingly similar to latex paint. I had no idea. But now I do. Trust me.

Related side note: Is eggnog one word, or two?

Eggnog Martini

1 and 1/2 ounces Stoli vanilla vodka
4 ounces eggnog
Dash of nutmeg

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with ground nutmeg.

Mixology Monday: Anti-Vermouth

This month's Mixology Monday, hosted by Cocktailians, challenges us to post a tasty vermouth cocktail recipe. Vidiot says we can use any aromatic, fortified wine. So being the rebel she is, Leah created a cocktail, um, without vermouth.

Since Leah is in the midst of a three-week root canal with complications, she gets to be a beast and not follow the rules. You've got a "Get Out of Jail Free" card, I tell her. I don't argue with a woman who has a wild look in her eye, who is pacing the hallway like a panther, and who says it feels like someone is splitting her jaw open with a hacksaw. Vicoden is child's play, she tells me, downing a shot of whiskey and popping open a bottle of Brute. That's right, Brute with an "e."

We became acquainted with Ithaca Beer's Brute last week at a lovely beer-tasting dinner at Cornell hosted by Hotel School students and Ithaca Beer's brilliant master distiller, Jeff O'Neil. The Brute proved to be the life of the party: a citrusy sour ale the color of champagne, served in a flute, and paired with some biting cheese.

Okay, it's not even close to fortified wine, but Brute IS brewed with champagne yeast. And with a bouquet reminiscent of a barnyard, Brute certainly could be deemed "aromatic." One taste, and Leah decided Brute would make a great vermouth substitute.

The result? You can call it an Ithaca Negroni. I call it a Brutoni. Leah calls it a Bitchtooth: equal parts gin (we used Plymouth), Campari and Brute. The sour and bitter and gin blend together perfectly, and the cocktail has a tad of sparkle to it, not unlike a Sparkling Negroni that I saw on Rachel Ray's website a few minutes ago. It was an accident. I really don't hang out on Rachel Ray's site. Unless I need to find a good thirty minute meal. Leah says stop talking about Rachel Ray.

Not in Ithaca? You lose. Brute is a beer that goes beyond beer and into the realm of the extraordinary. Get yourself to the Ithaca Beer brewery to try some, or have a friend send you some. Either is a worthwhile endeavor.

Ithaca Negroni

1 ounce Plymouth gin
1 ounce Campari
1 ounce Ithaca Beer's Brute

Stir with ice. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Mixology Monday XLI: Vodka Is Your Friend

Guess I hit a nerve with this one. Blood pressures are soaring on blogs everywhere! Most of those posting a blog on this month's Mixology Monday topic, "Vodka is your Friend," took this opportunity to vent their distaste for vodka, with a "yeah, but" recipe added after their cathartic venting session. That will be $90 for your cocktail therapy. Now pass the vodka.
Thank you to everyone who participated in MxMo XLI! Before I get to the round up, as I sit and type at my friend's lake house, I have no reservations about sharing with you that I am sipping a Grey Goose orange and tonic as I write. I love the stuff. I also love bourbon. And gin. And cachaca. And scotch. Since I have been drinking, eating and swimming for three days, credit for my own Mixology Monday cocktail goes to my partner Leah Houghtaling, who created the State Street 75 a few years ago, and our bartender Lil' Claire who added some blueberries to one yesterday and modeled her drink for the photo op.

Blueberry State Street 75
1.5 ounces citrus vodka
1/4 ounce simple syrup
1/2 ounce lemon juice
8 blueberries
champagne or sparkling wine (we used Cava)

Muddle the blueberries.
Add vodka, simple syrup and lemon juice.
Top with champagne and a few more blueberries.

And now for the ROUND UP of all the excellent MIXOLOGY MONDAY vodka posts:

Chris at Urbane, Not Cosmopolitan is our first contestant on “Vodka is your Friend.” Come on down, Chris! Chris overcame his anti-vodka, anti-cosmo manifesto with a trip to his local hooch manufacturer, the Great Lakes Distillery, where Chris discovered Rehorst Citrus and Honey Vodka. He created Milwaukee Lemonade and the Fiery Citrus Cocktail. His experimentations left him humbly admitting that vodka may have earned a place in his spirit world.
MxMo newbie Daniel of Gin, Not Vodka has another "this-not-that" website name that lets you know his feelings on the “vile spirit." Lucky for him, kissing the butt of the MxMo host is not a requirement for inclusion in the Mixology Monday club. Daniel uses lapsang souchong-infused scotch with vodka to create two unique drinks, Smoke on the Water and the Lazy Cocktail.

Also new to Mixology Monday - though not so new to the pain of vodka – Herr Grau has great plans to get rich, like the rest of us cocktail bloggers already have, from his Look Alive Contest blog. He writes, “All alcohol is your friend.” He then proceeds to give the funniest explanation EVER of why vodka, in particular, is your pal. I laughed my a** off. This is my new favorite blog!
Wodka ist unser freund! Jorg (imagine two dots over the "o") at DrinkMix earns cocktail points with me for arguing that while vodka may be relatively flavorless, it can still be quality. A man after my own glass. His Legends Cocktail with elderflower liqueur, cranberry, citrus fruits and citrus vodka is a refreshing interpretation of one of Dale DeGroff's concoctions. Click “weiterlesen” for an English translation of his post.
Jon of ednbrg offers another cocktail with an elderflower-citrus theme. Almost as good as his drink recipe is his MxMo description, "Mixology Monday is billed as the monthly online cocktail party, where our host chooses a theme and we rock up a couple of hours late, stinking of cheap wine and muttering something about “consumption”."

Tiare joins us from under A Mountain of Crushed Ice to tout the Bloody Mary. Her own New Orleans-style recipe reminds us that vodka is great for breakfast. Look at this picture – it makes me want to lick the glass (and drink, of course).
Can you be classy AND drink flavored vodka? Alpha Cook says yes. While I happen to know her drink of choice is bourbon with an expensive cigar back, she is not ashamed to admit she likes a vodka collins with Blueberry Stoli and fresh squeezed lemon juice. Ask her about the infamous Nat's Peach Fuzz Bubbly, too, next time you see her. Nat, I miss you. When are you coming home? I'm out of cigars.
The Cocktail Virgin, er, Slut, gives a recipe for a Sputnik: Russian vodka with Fernet Branca and lemon juice. I have not tried it yet, but it sounds like a perfect playmate for my lake house antics and this hot weather.
Pantagruel also used vodka to tame the wild Fernet Branca, in a cocktail called the Vilnius Nastavnic. At no extra cost to you, Pantagruel threw in a second cocktail, the Surrender Monkey, because who doesn’t love a monkey?
Beers in the Shower blogger Kevin offers his Piece de Resistance: vodka, Cointreau, Benedictine and orange bitters.

The Cocktail Chronicles posted a cocktail recipe that used Benedictine as well, plus vodka and Angostura bitters. It was a big day yesterday at the Cocktail Chronicles: August 10, 2009, MxMo XLI, will now be forever remembered as the day Paul added a -gasp- vodka category to his blog.
Similarly, Stevi at Two At The Most gave us a version of the Mike Romanoff Cocktail: vodka, Cointreau, bitters and apricot liqueur. I actually have all these ingredients in my liquor cabinet and I can pronounce them. Good deal.
Let's pause for a minute to mention the vodka blog posts that, in fact, contained no vodka. Michael at My Aching Head rebelled with a Russian Pirate, a White Russian with rum replacing vodka. The Dude might not approve, though The Dood probably would.

After renouncing “vodka is your friend” as a diabolical theme, DrinkSnob at Liquor is Quicker laments that she has no vodka in the house and a bad case of F.O.M.O (Fear Of Missing Out) on MxMo. She concocts the “highly informative and well-reasoned” Churchill Martini which contains no vodka.

John the Bastard also left the vodka out. No, I’m not calling him a bastard because he has decidedly proclaimed vodka is his enemy; that’s the name of his blog. And John hates vodka. He posted a few cocktail recipes based on both rum and gin.
Speaking of The Dude, Scomorokh at ScienceOfDrink posted multiple variations of both White and Black Russians.
And speaking of The Dood, Rum Dood graciously accepted that vodka has a place in our liquor cabinets beside (behind) the rum, and posted an amazing recipe for a Coriander Kiss, which contains vodka infused with cilantro, honey and peppercorns.
Kevin from the Dallas Drinks Examiner says that while vodka is “devoid of flavor” it lets other ingredients shine. His spiffy Tuxedo Cocktail contains vermouth, absinthe, maraschino liqueur and orange bitters alongside vodka.
At Food On The Brain, Jessamyn complains that she can't work out her relationship with vodka, even with some Pernod and an orange twist, raising the universal question: why can’t we all just get along? Jessamyn gets an "A" for effort.
Vidiot at Cocktailians almost spilled a drink on the computer when the CAPTCHA for posting a MxMo comment was “Palin.” I had nothing to do with it, Vidiot, unless the other word in the CAPTCHA was “Good-bye.” Inspired by good ol' Trader Joe’s, Vidiot created a green-tea-meets-cranberry-lillet concoction.
An appreciation of vodka came from the Spirits Review blog post titled “In Praise of Vodka”, which sounds like the name of a morning-has-broken poem or an inspired symphony. Their advice? Just chill it and drink it. A second post on Spirits Review was more elaborate, making a sour drink using Bee Vodka (honey-based) from Hidden Marsh Distillery, right near me in Seneca Falls, NY. Why haven't I been there yet?
Steve and Paul at Cocktail Buzz also have nice things to say about their buddy, vodka, aka "water with a kick." The Universe cocktail includes Midori, pistachio liqueur and pineapple juice. I think I need a pink sundress and a straw hat to sip this one.
And pink can be found at Bubbly Girl. Maria mixed up a Rose Guava Pinky for this month's MxMo, a floral herbal fruity drink made with Pinky Vodka. This cocktail sounds right up my alley since I like the flavors of the garden.
Thinking of drinking? Head on over to Thinking of Drinking for a garden-based caipiroska with cucumber, lime and fresh oregano. Sonja is not ashamed to say, "Vodka still rules." I adore this cocktail.

Andrew at Cask Strength does not love vodka per se, rather he sees vodka as a teaching tool with an ulterior motive. Specifically, he recommends giving someone a bag of lemons and a zester so they can practice zesting. The rind goes into a bottle of vodka (which he has no use for otherwise), and viola! Limoncello, and you are now a zester pro.
Over on eGullet Spirits and Cocktail forum, the discussion this week centered on beets and sheets. Chris Amirault's Borsch Belt reminds us that if you can grow it, you can drink it.
eGullet alchemist Toby wins the prize for the drink with the most ingredients. His Navy Sheets has 11 separate ingredients, including berries, aperol, Lillet blond and St. Germaine.

Other attention-grabbers on eGullet include the Vice (chili-infused vodka), Gilded Cage, and Smoking Martini (vodka, Laphroig, absinthe, strawberries, and more).
My Life On The Rocks blogger Lance came in a close second with 8 intriguing ingredients in his Kingyo No Funi, such as cocoa infused vodka and Scrappy’s chocolate bitters. What the heck does Kingyo No Funi mean?

The Opinionated Alchemist has an opinion: If you want to showcase vodka, you should be able to do it without using a flavored vodka and without infusing it. The Alchemist's solution? The Nihonshu Martini, a vodka-sake martini with a dash of bitters. As sake continues to surge in popularity, interest will keep increasing in sake cocktails.
The Bar Blog/Barkeep Mister Matt G. answers the question "Is vodka your friend?" with a resounding, "Yes it is." His drink of the week is a cooler with vodka, gingerale and acai blackberry syrup.

Christian of Cocktailwelten wrote to me, "Vodka is not my friend but Cosmopolitans are OK." I’m not sure what the rest of the blog post says 'cause it’s in German, but I'll bet his drink recipe contains vodka.
Chuck at Looka!, self-proclaimed God Emperor of Procrastination, sent a late entry so as not to ruin his reputation. He implies vodka is just a phase that we’ve all gone through. However, it sounds like he is addicted to a Polish bison-grass vodka with which he made two cocktails. He wrote a wicked long blog entry, which is probably why he had to submit it late. An all-nighter and a half.
Jacob of Liquidity Preference also posted late. He took the most beautiful picture of his hibiscus tea and ginger liqueur cocktail, and while not technically a procrastinator, could be dubbed the God Emperor of Forgetfulness for posting but forgetting to let me know. Hey, I have that same coaster set.
Last but certainly not least, let us not forget to appreciate the simple vodka martini: Undertaking the Bar recommends chilled vodka with onion-stuffed olives and freshly ground black pepper. The excellent flavor of a good vodka is sure to shine through with this Peppertini.
Editor's Note 8/14/09: Late MxMo entry! A competitor for the God Emperor of Forgetfulness title, In Search of a Cocktail found a sweet drink for his girlfriend with Pinky Vodka, homemade grenadine and strawberries.
That's all, folks! Hope you were not too traumatized by this month's vodka theme. Stretching is good for you, and if you can't quite reach the vodka, there is always yoga. Everything is blurring together for me right about now, so if I missed anyone's posts, pictures or links, please let me know and I will correct it. Thanks for participating in Mixology Monday and we'll see you next month! In the in-between time, let's all follow each other on Twitter and subscribe to each others' blogs.

Now...I'm going swimming.

-amelia sauter aka Felicia