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Happy Hour: Cran-Limoncello
Every few months, I host a book club in my home, and find it a lovely occasion to try out a new cocktail. This time around, I couldn't wait to incorporate ingredients that evoke the holidays, like cranberries and the zesty Italian after-dinner favorite, limoncello.
This three-ingredient sipper couldn't be easier to pull together; it simply calls for seltzer, limoncello, and cranberry juice — no shaker required.
Happy Hour: Cranberry Margarita
While I'm a fan of the classic margarita, during November, I like to enjoy its Thanksgiving-themed cousin, the cranberry margarita. It's surprising how much the addition of cranberry juice changes the flavor of the tequila, orange liqueur, and lime juice cocktail. It's festive and familiar, but potent with a rich autumnal hue.
Happy Hour: 2005 Bad Boy Bordeaux
When I first received this bottle of Bordeaux in the mail, its Bad Boy name and whimsical label, which features a black sheep and an arrow labeled "garage," meant little to me. But after doing some research, I discovered the whole thing makes quite a bit of sense.
The inky red wine, which is 95 percent Merlot and 5 percent Cabernet Franc, hails from the famous French region of Bordeaux, which is known for its style of highly tannic, collectible wines.
Happy Hour: Apple Cidercar
After declaring I'd discovered the perfect Fall cocktail last week, I was worried I'd have nothing to look forward to. But surprisingly, my success had the opposite effect: I was inspired to go in search of other tipples that glorify the season's bounty.
Right now, it's impossible to wander the farmers market without being smitten by frosty jugs of freshly pressed apple cider.
Happy Hour: Sparkling Pomegranate Elderflower Cocktail
There's no better way to get in the spirit of the season than by pouring a fizzy and festive cocktail like this sparkling pomegranate-elderflower concoction. It's blushing color is reminiscent of Fall sunsets and falling leaves, while the effervescent texture screams holiday.
The elderflower adds a hint of syrupy sweetness that's not cloying or overly floral.
Happy Hour: The Normandy
Over the weekend, something monumental happened: I discovered what is quite possibly the world's most perfect Fall cocktail. The Normandy, as it's called, has cool weather written all over it, with ingredients like cranberries, green apples, and Calvados, a type of French apple brandy from — you guessed it — Normandy.
The tipple balances all the elements you'd ever hope for in a drink.
Happy Hour: Sage Sangria
Just because Summer is long gone but that doesn't mean you have to stop enjoying sangria. Depending on the ingredients you employ, the wine-based punch can be sipped all year round. Instead of using a warm-weather fruit like peaches, this sangria is infused with Fall's most woody herb, sage.
Happy Hour: Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Ale
These days, my street isn't the only thing covered with pumpkins; so is my kitchen. I've been using the gourds in everything from moist pumpkin bread to chicken pumpkin stew, and so I decided it was high time I enjoyed it in ale form, too. Although it's believed early American icons like George Washington and Ben Franklin enjoyed pumpkin ales, one Bay Area craft brewhouse, Buffalo Bill's, brought the beer back into vogue when it became known for its special blend in the 1980s.The whisky-colored amber ale ($7.99 for six), which is brewed with fresh roasted pumpkins and malted barley, possesses only a delicate squash flavor, but has lingering pumpkin pie spices like cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg that become more prominent as the beer warms.
Happy Hour: Eyeball Highball
All month I've been fixated on trying my hand at as many spirited Halloween cocktails as possible. And with only five more days until the scariest night of the year, I wanted to shake up something that was more frighteningly festive than anything else I've made.
I was going for something creepier than my slime rickey, but not as gross as the infamous brain hemorrhage.
Happy Hour: Quinta da Aveleda Vinho Verde 2008
If you've never tried Portugal's most famous white, Vinho Verde, I suggest you sample Quinta da Aveleda's 2008 Vinho Verde. Literally translated, Vinho Verde means "green wine," but the name doesn't refer to the grapes, rather the fact that the wine is consumed young.
Voted one of Wine & Spirits top 100 wines of 2009, the Quinta da Aveleda is a lush slightly effervescent white that has a pale amber color and crisp finish.
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