PH factor: 9.5 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ounce Goslings Black Seal 151 proof rum o 1 ounce Boulard Calvados VSOP o 1 ounce Grand Marnier o ½ ounce maple syrup o 1 dash Angostura bitters o ½ ounce Lemon Rosemary Shrub. see: Syrups etc.) o 1 dash apple cider vinegar Garnish o lemon twist o rosemary sprig Method: 1. Stir cocktail ingredients over ice in a mixing glass. 2. Strain into an ice-filled Old Fashioned glass. 3. Garnish with rosemary sprig and lemon twist. Remarks: One day someone whose taste I appreciate and whose opinion I respect came back from SXSW extolling the virtue of shrubs. I cooked some up and found a cocktail to go with it and I now know what the fuss was about. . . .

PH factor: 9.5 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o sugar o cinnamon o 2 ounces Finlandia vodka o ½ ounce Boulard Calvados VSOP o ½ ounce Lillet Blanc o ½ ounce Licor 43, Cuarenta y Tres o 1-2 ounces unfiltered apple cider Garnish o thin apple slice o cinnamon stick optional Method: 1. Moisten the rim of a martini glass and invert it into a shallow dish containing a mixture of sugar and cinnamon to coat the rim of the glass. 2. Stir remaining cocktail ingredients over ice in a mixing glass. 3. Serve up in the prepared glass. 4. Garnish with apple slice and cinnamon stick. Remarks: There is a lot to love about our Apple Pie Martini. It is easy to make and it tastes like apple pie. Need we say more? . . .

PH factor: 8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o ¾ ounce Crown Royal o ¾ ounce Hennessy VS cognac o ½ teaspoon Bénédictine D.O.M. o 1 dash Angostura bitters o 1 dash Peychaud’s bitters Garnish o Tillen Farms Merry Maraschino cherry Method: 1. Stir cocktail ingredients over ice in a mixing glass. 2. Strain into an ice-filled Old Fashioned glass. 3. Garnish with a cherry. Remarks: The Vieux Carré traces its origin to the Carousel Bar in the 1930s. Still evocative of the Big Easy it's as rich and decadent now as it ever was. . . .

PH factor: 9.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 2 ounces Flor de Caña Extra Seco rum o 1 ounce Hennessey VS cognac o 1 ½ ounces fresh orange juice o ½ ounce fresh lemon juice o ¾ ounce orgeat syrup Garnish o banana wheel o pineapple spear o Tillen Farms Merry Maraschino cherry Method: 1. Blend or shake with cracked ice. 2. Pour all into a hurricane or other large glass. 3. Garnish with a banana wheel, a pineapple spear, and a cherry or otherwise, as you see fit. Remarks: Originally served in a large bowl with a long straw for each person at the table. We scaled this down to a single cocktail. It is amazing either way. You will feel you are at the beach or by the pool regardless of where you happen to be. . . .

PH factor: 9.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 2 ounces Hennessey VS cognac o 1 ounce Lillet Rouge o ½ teaspoon Simple Syrup, see: Syrups etc. o 1 dash Angostura bitters or to taste Method: 1. Shake over ice. 2. Serve up in a martini glass. Remarks: The Metropolitan has all of the elements of the classic cocktail from the 1800s including bitters. Since bitters will often define the taste of a cocktail and since taste varies from person to person we include the codicil, "or to taste" in many of our recipes. . . .

PH factor: 9.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ounce Hennessey VS cognac o 1 ounce Boulard Calvados VSOP o 1 ounce Southern Comfort o 1 dash Hella Orange bitters o 1 light squeeze of an orange wedge Garnish o cinnamon stick (optional) o candied ginger (optional) Method: 1. Combine in a brandy snifter. 2. Garnish with cinnamon stick and candied ginger, if using. Remarks: This is a very warming drink and one you will want to sip slowly. . . .

PH factor: 8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o sugar o 1 ½ ounces Hennessy VS cognac o ¾ ounce Cointreau o ¾ ounce fresh lemon juice Garnish o orange peel Method: 1. Moisten the rim of a cocktail glass and invert it into a shallow dish of sugar to coat the rim of the glass. 2. Shake remaining cocktail ingredients over ice to chill. 3. Strain into the prepared glass. 4. Garnish with orange peel. Remarks: David Embury in "The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks" (1948), says the Sidecar was developed in a Parisian bistro during the first world war by a gentleman who was driven there in the sidecar of a motorcycle. Which bar is a matter of speculation, but it is popularly thought to have been Harry's New York Bar. . . .

PH factor: 8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ½ ounces Hennessy VS cognac o 1 ounce sake o ½ ounce Lillet Rouge o 1 dash of Woodford Reserve Cherry bitters or to taste Garnish o lemon twist o Tillen Farms Merry Maraschino cherry Method: 1. Stir cocktail ingredients over ice in a mixing glass. 2. Serve over ice in a cocktail glass. 3. Garnish with a cherry and a lemon twist. Remarks: We first tested this with a dry vermouth. Then we substituted Lillet Rouge and found that we liked it better with the resultant hint of sweetness. . . .

PH factor: 8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o grated lemon zest o sugar o 2 ounces Remy Martin VSOP cognac o 1 ounce St. Germain liqueur o ½ ounce fresh lemon juice Garnish o lemon peel Method: 1. Moisten the rim of a cocktail glass with lemon then invert it into a shallow dish containing a mixture of sugar and lemon zest to coat the rim of the glass. 2. Shake remaining cocktail ingredients over ice. 3. Serve up in the prepared glass. 4. Garnish with lemon peel. Remarks: This a very different take on the original sidecar. But one that is quite satisfying in its own right. . . .

PH factor: 8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o grated lemon zest o sugar o 2 ounces Remy Martin VSOP cognac o 1 ounce St. Germain liqueur o ½ ounce fresh lemon juice Garnish o lemon peel Method: 1. Moisten the rim of a cocktail glass with lemon then invert it into a shallow dish containing a mixture of sugar and lemon zest to coat the rim of the glass. 2. Shake remaining cocktail ingredients over ice to chill. 3. Serve up in the prepared glass. 4. Garnish with lemon peel. Remarks: This a different take on the original Ritz Cocktail which was named after that other ritzy New York establishment. . . .

PH factor: 8.5 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ½ ounces Hennessy VS cognac o ½ ounce Crème de Mûre o ½ ounce Manzanilla sherry o ½ teaspoon fresh lemon juice o 1 dash Hella Orange bitters or to taste Garnish o blackberry Method: 1. Shake cocktail ingredients over ice. 2. Strain into an ice-filled Old Fashioned glass. 3. Garnish with a blackberry. Remarks: This has a complex combination of flavors. But it is not nearly as complicated as the man that was responsible for the music it was named for. . . .

PH factor: 9.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ounce Hennessy VS cognac o ½ ounce Grand Marnier o 1 splash of Campari o champagne Method: 1. Stir cocktail ingredients except champagne over ice in a mixing glass. 2. Strain into a cocktail glass. 3. Top with champagne. Remarks: In a flute, it's a champagne cocktail. In a cocktail glass, it's a cocktail that has champagne in it. We could also see this in a glass with some ice and a garnish. Perhaps a job for another day. . . .