original cocktail

Golden Delight

★ Original Cocktail ★

Ingredients

1.5 oz 90 proof bourbon (or 2 oz 80 proof bourbon)
generous 1/4 oz golden-thyme syrup
2 dashes Scrappy’s Cardamom Bitters
5 drops saline solution
thyme sprigs
lemon peel spiral

Directions

Build in a glass over ice. Garnish with thyme sprigs and a lemon peel spiral on a cocktail pick.

Notes

This is a variation on an old fashioned. Woodford Reserve bourbon works well here with its sweeter, caramel-honey notes, but use what you like. Thyme sprigs and saline solution help coax more flavor from the syrup, while still keeping the sweetness at the right level. Scrappy’s Cardamom Bitters have the truest cardamom flavor, but again, use what you can find or prefer. The lemon peel garnish is aesthetic only—expressing lemon oil from the peel throws off the delicate balance of the drink.

I don’t gravitate toward bourbon drinks—and I just love this. Absolutely delightful.

 
 

Golden-Thyme Syrup

★ Original Cocktail ★

Ingredients

2 oz Lyle’s Golden Syrup
2 oz water
2 generous sprigs of thyme

Directions

Place all the ingredients into a small pot, stir, and and bring to a simmer. Once simmering, take off the heat. Let cool, strain out the thyme, and store in the fridge.

Notes

Perhaps my proudest accomplishment in home bartending experiments! The buttery, caramel notes of the Lyle’s Golden Syrup pair so well with the herbaceous thyme. Most syrups here are 2:1 sugar to water so they last longer in the fridge. Lyle’s is quite rich though, so a 1:1 ratio is less likely to overpower the thyme. I also recommend making only 1/2 cup of syrup at a time to allow for adjusting the strength of the thyme flavor as needed. Lyle’s can be tracked down on Amazon or international grocery stores like World Market in the US.

A 2:1 version of this syrup without the thyme would also be fantastic in cocktails—especially rum drinks—where you want a hefty dose of complex sweetness.

 
 

Grenadine Soda

★ Original Cocktail ★

Ingredients

1 oz grenadine
6 oz sparkling water
3-5 dashes Angostura Bitters


Directions

Build in a collins glass over ice.


Notes

So refreshing! I had just done the grenadine and La Croix when my husband suggested adding the bitters. Makes all the difference. Next time I might try adding a lime wedge.

 
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Key Lime Pie

★ Original Cocktail ★

Ingredients

2 oz Brinley Shipwreck Coconut Rum
3/4 oz caramelized condensed coconut milk
1/2 oz blended lime cordial
1/4 oz lime juice
4 drops saline solution
grated graham cracker garnish


Directions

Shake and strain over crushed or pebble ice. Grate graham cracker over the top.


Notes

This is my first original cocktail, and it nails the key lime pie flavor. This took some trial and error, including using heavy cream, which didn’t work. Brinley Shipwreck is key here, because of its thicker, sweeter texture.

 
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Cereal Milk Punch

★ Original Cocktail ★

Ingredients

3/4 oz Wild Turkey American Honey Liqueur
1/4 oz Mellow Corn Whiskey
3 oz cereal milk
grated nutmeg for garnish


Directions

Stir ingredients and pour over a large ice cube. Grate nutmeg over the top.


Notes

This is fantastic, but took some trial and error. I first tried a recipe with bourbon, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract, which made the drink too boozy and interfered with the sweet, toasted flavor of the milk. Then I found another recipe with bourbon, corn whiskey, and Bärenjäger honey liqueur. Using what I had on hand—and adhering to my preference for less boozy drinks—I first tried mixing just the milk with American Honey liqueur. I could taste the cereal milk, but almost no booze. Just 1/4 oz of that Mellow Corn 100-proof Bottled in Bond corn whiskey does the trick!

 
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POG Punch

★ Original Cocktail ★

Ingredients

3 oz POG (2 parts passion fruit juice, 1 part orange juice, 2 parts guava juice)
1 oz pineapple juice
1/2 oz fresh lime juice
1/2 oz lime cordial
1 oz coconut rum


Directions

Mix it all up and serve over ice.


Notes

I came up with this as a variation on the Leilani volcano cocktail. Easy to make a pitcher of this!

 
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