PH factor: 9.5 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ounce Ararat 5 Star VS Armenian brandy o ½ ounce Chambord o champagne Garnish o raspberry Method: 1. Add brandy and Chambord to a champagne flute. 2. Top with champagne. 3. Garnish with raspberry. Remarks: A cocktail that is tasty, pretty, and has a presence missing in many champagne cocktails. . . .

PH factor:  9.5 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ½ ounces Hennessy VS cognac o ¾ ounce light Crème de Cacao o ½ cup vanilla ice cream Garnish o grated nutmeg Method: 1. Add a quarter cup of ice to the cocktail ingredients and blend to a milkshake-like consistency. 2. Serve up in a cocktail glass. 3. Garnish with grated nutmeg. Remarks: Makes you wonder why you'd ever have a vanilla shake any other way. We used Hennessy VS cognac. Feel free to follow our example or use the brandy of your choice. . . .

PH factor:  9.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o ¾ ounce Ararat 5 Star VS Armenian brandy o ¾ ounce Mount Gay XO rum o ¾ ounce Cointreau o 1 dash Angostura bitters or to taste o ½ ounce fresh lime juice Garnish o lime wedge Method: 1. Shake cocktail ingredients over ice. 2. Serve up in a cocktail glass. 3. Garnish with a lime wedge. Remarks: It is appropriate diplomatically to have equality in an embassy. This tasty cocktail proves that equality can be a good thing. . . .

PH factor:  10 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ounce Woodford Reserve bourbon o ½ ounce Pedro Domencq Fundador brandy o ½ ounce dark Crème de Cacao o ½ ounce Godiva Chocolate Liqueur Garnish o 2 Tillen Farms BaDa Bing cherries Method: 1. Shake cocktail ingredients over ice. 2. Serve up in a cocktail glass. 3. Garnish with cherries. Remarks: This is the perfect cocktail for chocolate lovers, dessert lovers, cocktail lovers, and any other kind of lovers you can think of. . . .

PH factor: 9.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 2 ounces Ararat Armenian 5 Star brandy o 2 dashes Mount Gay XO rum o 2 dashes Pierre Farrand Dry Curaçao o ½ ounce agave nectar o ¾ ounce fresh lemon juice o 1 ounce Fever-Tree Premium Club Soda Method: 1. Shake cocktail ingredients except soda over ice. 2. Serve up in cocktail glass. 3. Top with soda. Remarks: The “Daisy” dates back to the mid 1800’s and is essentially a “sour” with the inclusion of a liqueur. This simple inclusion became the basis for a myriad of cocktails from the sidecar to the margarita. Typically, in a daisy there are two spirits and club soda. We think adding a little aged rum adds depth to the experience. . . .

PH factor:  8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ½ ounces Hennessy VS cognac o 1 ounce dark Crème de Cacao o 1 ounce cream Garnish o grated nutmeg Method: 1. Shake over ice. 2. Serve up in a cocktail glass. 3. Garnish with nutmeg. Remarks: This is a slightly later version of the 1915 Alexander Cocktail, a classic in its own right. It's not a mistake. We often use Hennessy VS cognac in place of brandy if we think it appropriate. . . .

PH factor:  8.5 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ½ ounces Pedro Domencq Fundador brandy o 1 ounce Patrón XO Cafe o 1 ounce cream Garnish o ground allspice Method: 1. Shake cocktail ingredients over ice. 2. Serve up in a cocktail glass. 3. Garnish with allspice. Remarks: The Fundador and Patrón XO take the classic Alexander in a totally different direction. . . .

PH factor:  8.5 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ½ ounces Ararat 5 Star Armenian brandy o ½ ounce Lillet Blanc o ½ ounce Lillet Rouge o 2 teaspoons Triple Sec Garnish o orange peel Method: 1. Stir cocktail ingredients over ice in a mixing glass. 2. Serve up in a cocktail glass. 3. Garnish orange peel. Remarks: If you haven't tried brandy from Yerevan, you should. Likened to Armagnac, it was a favorite of the tsars. . . .

PH factor:  8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 2 ounces Jim Beam Bonded bourbon o ½ ounce Patrón XO Cafe or Kahlúa o 1 dash Hella Orange bitters or to taste Garnish o orange peel (flamed) Method: 1. Stir cocktail ingredients over ice in a mixing glass. 2. Serve up in a cocktail glass. 3. Garnish with orange peel. Remarks: Patrón XO Cafe makes this a coffee drink without the coffee. Kahlúa would be less assertive. Your call. . . .

PH factor:  9.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o ¼ ounce Pernod Absinthe Supérieure o 2 ounces Heaven’s Door Tennessee bourbon o 1 teaspoon water o ½ teaspoon white sugar o 1 dash Peychaud’s bitters or to taste Garnish o lemon twist Method: 1. Swirl absinthe to coat the inside of a cocktail glass and discard the excess. 2. Stir remaining cocktail ingredients over ice in a mixing glass. 3. Strain into the prepared glass. 4. Garnish with lemon twist. Remarks: Very similar to the rye based Sazerac. The profound effect of simply rinsing your glass with absinthe is impressive. . . .

PH factor:  8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 1 ounce Jim Beam Bonded bourbon o ½ ounce Cointreau o 1 dash Angostura bitters o 1 dash Peychaud’s bitters o champagne Garnish o orange twist Method: 1. Stir cocktail ingredients except champagne over ice in a mixing glass. 2. Strain into a champagne flute. 3. Top with champagne. 4. Garnish with orange twist. Remarks: Why is this is a champagne cocktail for people who may not think they like champagne cocktails? Why it’s the bitters, Auntie Em. It’s the bitters. . . .

PH factor:  8.0 Recipe Ingredients: Cocktail o 2 ounces Woodford Reserve bourbon o ½ ounce Crème de Mûre o ¾ ounce Southern Comfort o ¾ ounce fresh lime juice o 1 dash Hella Orange bitters Method: 1. Shake cocktail ingredients except bitters over ice. 2. Strain into a cocktail glass. 3. Float bitters on top on the drink. Remarks: We're pretty sure that St. Phillip is ordering a double. St. James behind him might also be. . . .