The last few weeks I have been busy, both personally and professionally. I have been in the process of wrapping up a large engagement with one client while being immediately transitioned to another. I have travelled three of the last four weekends. And I have still been playing in the test kitchen with some new mixes. A brief recap of the last few weeks may be found below.
The Adult Arnold Palmer
I love a good Arnold Palmer (half iced tea, half lemonade). What could possible make it better than adding some liquor to the mix? I first had the notion of lemon-ginger infused vodka based on my youth and love for Lemon-Drop shots. As I thought through the possibilities, I realized using this as a sweetener for Iced Tea was the way to go. I had to go through two mini batches before getting something I am starting to be happy with. The first, I used lemon sliced and fresh ginger slices. It turned out extremely tart and lemony but not a bit of ginger to be found. After some discussions with Las Vegas bartenders (one of the travel weekends) I learned to mottle the ginger and use only lemon rind. This led to iteration two. The lemon was still a little overpowering but it made a fine sweetener to the unsweetened iced tea. My next plan is to add the ginger first and the lemon rind a day or two after.
The Russian Mojito
Mint Vodka. I made it about 3 weeks ago when I came up with the Mint and Strawberry beverage that still requires work*. And the vodka just stayed there. George Diabes, a friend since Carnegie Mellon, then helped come up with the Russian Mojito. This is a great drink for the mint lover who might not enjoy the overabundance of sugar found in rum. The citrus adds a nice balance to the mint for a great summer drink.
- 2oz mint infused vodka
- 1/2oz simple syrup
- < 1/2oz lime juice (bottled is fine)
- 6 oz seltzer (tonic is fine)
Method
Mix the first three ingredients in a shaker and combine. Pour into a glass with ice along with the seltzer. Add additional mint leaves for color.
Ongoing Trials
Looking ahead there are some nice trials ahead of me. This thursday there is a UX Show and Tell event hosted by PhillyCHI at which I plan on sharing some of my concoctions and soliciting open and honest feedback. My brother has started making his own cucumber gin based on my recommendations. And I continue to come up with new thoughts on drinks. With a handle of spiced rum sitting on my counter after one of the weekend travels, I have decided to explore mint-infused rum for rum and cokes and other darker drinks.
Your thoughts and comments are always welcome.
*The mint and strawberry drink consisted of crushed strawberries and mint infused vodka. The texture and proportions were off. I am still looking to explore this drink and am curious to any thoughts to make a lighter than smoothie consistency that is not watered down and mixes well.
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