PH factor: 9.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ounce Hennessey VS cognac o 1 ounce Bombay gin o 1 ounce Flor de Caña Extra Seco rum o ½ ounce Amontillado sherry o 1 dash Hella Citrus bitters o ½ ounce orgeat syrup o ¾ ounce fresh lemon juice o ¾ ounce fresh orange juice Garnish o orange peel o cherry o pineapple spear o cocktail umbrella Method: 1. Shake cocktail ingredients except sherry over ice. 2. Serve over ice in a Tiki mug or hurricane glass. 3. Top with sherry. 4. Garnish with the above. Remarks: This cocktail is attributed to Trader Vic. It therefore must be garnished excessively and drunk jubilantly. Thanks Vic. . . .

PH factor: 9.5 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ounce Woodford Reserve bourbon o 1 ounce Pedro Domecq Fundador brandy o 1 splash Bénédictine D.O.M. o 1 splash Amontillado sherry o 1 dash Angostura bitters or to taste Garnish o orange twist Method: 1. Stir cocktail ingredients over ice in a mixing glass. 2. Serve up in a cocktail glass. 3. Garnish with orange twist. Remarks: This is a complicated drink but one with real potential. The four spirits may be too much for it to become a classic cocktail like a Manhattan or Old Fashioned but don’t let that stop you, my friend. . . .

PH factor: 9.5 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ounce Ararat 5 Star VS Armenian brandy o 1 ounce Schladerer Edel- Kirsch o ½ ounce Triple Sec o ½ ounce fresh lemon juice Method: 1. Shake over ice. 2. Serve up in a cocktail glass. Remarks: Reformulated from the 1930's recipe of Harry Craddock. We use Edel-Kirsch and a Yerevan brandy to make a bright tasting cocktail with an authentic cherry flavor. One that we are sure you will enjoy. . . .

PH factor: 9.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 2 ounces Ararat 5 Star VS Armenian brandy o ½ ounce Crème de Cassis o 1 ounce Lillet Blanc o 1 dash Hella Orange bitters or to taste Garnish o lemon twist Method: 1. Stir cocktail ingredients over ice in a mixing glass. 2. Serve up in a cocktail glass. 3. Garnish with a twist of lemon. Remarks: The CEO is a little sweet and has a brandy aftertaste. It is a recipe of Ted Haigh who shakes all of the cocktails he makes regardless of the ingredients. Please feel free to stir yours. We stirred ours. Shhh. Don’t tell Ted. . . .

PH factor: 8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 teaspoon sugar o 4 mint leaves. o 2 ounces Hennessy VS cognac o ½ ounce Fever-Tree Premium Club Soda Garnish o Tillen Farms Merry Maraschino cherry o ½ orange wheel o mint sprig Method: 1. Muddle mint and sugar in a cocktail shaker. 2. Add ice and cognac and shake. 3. Strain into an ice-filled Old Fashioned glass. 4. Top with soda. 5. Garnish with your choice of the above. Remarks: If you’re in the mood to pore through websites and recipe books as we did, you’ll find numerous Brandy Smashes. Not all call for muddling the mint leaves. We think that's odd. It's called a Smash for a reason, right? . . .

PH factor: 9.0 Recipe (Serves Two) Ingredients: Cocktail o 2 ounces Ararat 5 Star Armenian brandy o 1 ounce Mount Gay XO rum o 1 ounce agave nectar o ½ teaspoon vanilla extract o 3 ounces milk o 1 ounce cream o 1 egg white Garnish o grated nutmeg Method: 1. Shake cocktail ingredients without ice. 2. Add ice and shake again to chill. 3. Fine strain into two cocktail glasses. 4. Garnish with nutmeg. Remarks: A similar recipe was recorded in 1862 but the popularity of milk punches dates to the 1700’s. This was originally a single serving recipe. We tried it and decided to split it in two and use large cocktail glasses instead of the large mug called for in the original recipe. . . .

PH factor: 9.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o sugar o 2 ounces Pedro Domencq Fundador brandy o 1 splash of Pierre Farrand Dry Curaçao o 1 dash Angostura bitters o 1 splash fresh lemon juice Garnish o lemon peel Method: 1. Moisten the rim of a cocktail glass and invert it into a shallow dish of sugar to coat the rim. 2. Shake remaining cocktail ingredients over ice. 3. Strain into the prepared glass. 4. Garnish with a significant piece of lemon peel wrapped around the inside of the glass. Remarks: The Curaçao and sugar mellow the brandy. This is a cocktail for anyone who believes that only mad dogs and Englishmen can drink brandy in the midday sun. . . .

PH factor: 10 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ½ ounces 1800 Añejo tequila o ½ ounce Pimm’s No.1 Cup o ½ ounce Licor 43, Cuarenta y Tres o 1 ounce fresh lime juice o 1 ounce Simple Syrup, see: Syrups etc. o 2-3 drops Bittermens Xocolatl Mole bitters o 12 ounces Modelo Negra cerveza Garnish o mint leaves Method: 1. Shake all but cerveza over ice. 2. Pour into in an ice-filled Belgian beer glass. 3. Top with cerveza. 4. Garnish with mint leaves. 5. Serve remaining beer with the cocktail. Remarks: This is a very good, if unusual, cocktail. It is also good to have with food, especially if you can linger over lunch. . . .

Recipe Ingredients: o 2 blood oranges o 2 cups vodka or clear spirit of your choice Method: 1. Cut ends from oranges and discard. 2. Slice oranges in half longitudinally. Remove white integuments then slice latitudinally into half rounds 1/4-inch thick. 3. Layer slices in a tall jar. Fill with vodka and let steep in a cool, dark place for 3 to 4 days. 4. Taste it. It should taste like vodka that is a trifle bitter and has a background flavor of oranges and should be the color of a young girl’s cheek the first time she is willingly and willfully kissed. 5. Strain through cheesecloth or filter paper into an airtight container. 6. Seal well and refrigerate. . . .

PH factor:  8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o sugar o 1 ounce Goslings Black Seal 151 proof rum o 1 ounce Kahlúa o ½ ounce Triple Sec o 4 ounces hot coffee or espresso Garnish o whipped cream o cinnamon and/or nutmeg Method: 1. Moisten the rim a glass mug and invert it into a shallow dish of course sugar to coat the rim of the mug. 2. Combine the cocktail ingredients in the prepared mug. 3. Top with whipped cream. 4. Garnish with cinnamon and/or nutmeg. Remarks: Not surprisingly, this tastes a little sweet and a little spicy. . . .

PH factor:  8.5 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ounce J. Wray Silver Jamaican rum o ½ ounce Goslings Black Seal 151 proof rum o ½ ounce Kahlúa o 1 ounce coconut cream o 2 ounces orange juice o 2 ounces pineapple juice o ½ ounce grenadine Garnish o Tillen Farms Merry Maraschino cherry o orange or pineapple slice Method: 1. Shake cocktail ingredients except grenadine over ice. 2. Serve in an ice-filled hurricane glass. 3. Add the grenadine. 4. Garnish with orange or pineapple slice and a cherry. Remarks: If you plan to make a lot of these you just might want to use a blender. Coconut cream can be hard work otherwise. . . .

PH factor: 8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 3 ounces Fever-Tree Premium Ginger Beer o ½ ounce fresh lime juice o 2 ounces Goslings Black Seal 151 proof rum Garnish o lime wedge (optional) Method: 1. Stir to combine ginger beer and juice in an ice-filled double Old Fashioned glass. 2. Float rum on top of the drink. 3. Garnish with lime wedge if using. Remarks: Another take on the Moscow Mule. This one extends your ginger beer season well into summer. . . .