campari

On a recent Monday night I found myself at Harry Denton's Starlight Room at the top of San Francisco's Sir Francis Drake Hotel. I was at a party that celebrated one of my favorite mixologists Tony Abou-Ganim's new cocktail recipe book, The Modern Mixologist.

The book is beautiful. It's packed with helpful information on glassware and bar basics, and it also provides a guide to mixing drinks with seasonal produce as well as a brief history of cocktails. The first recipe I decided to try was Abou-Ganim's first original libation, and it's named after the bar where he created it in 1996.

It's a complex combination of Campari, Cointreau, and orange juice; a brandy float provides a potent finish. I thoroughly enjoyed this beverage; to do the same, get Ganim's recipe now.

If your house is the location of a Thanksgiving potluck, your hosting duties not only include making the turkey, but also preparing a cocktail. When guests arrive offer them a glass to get things started. Since the meal is a big one, serve an apéritif — something not too sweet that will stimulate the palate like these campari and triple-sec concoctions.

On the flip side, when attending a Thanksgiving potluck, don't show up empty handed. Bring a bottle of sparkling wine or Beaujolais Nouveau or a six-pack of festive pumpkin ale.

To look at the campari cocktail recipe, which can be easily adapted for a crowd, read more

There's lots going on with the drinks at my 28th birthday dinner. I plan on serving a different wine with each course, but before we sit down to the meal, I'll offer guests glasses of a specialty cocktail. Since the menu is rustic Italian, the cocktail features Italy's most popular aperitif and campari. When mixed with a sweet late-harvest wine and fresh-squeezed orange juice, the vibrantly colored spirit tastes far from bitter.

At dinner, I pair the salad with a crisp, dry, minerally Italian white wine. A fruity aromatic rosé will balance out the richness of the cheesy pasta course. For the seafood stew entree, I'll serve a light-bodied softer red wine.

Finally, there's only one thing to sip with the dessert: a slightly sweet sparkling wine! To check out the campari cocktail recipe, read more