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Come Party With Me: Kentucky Derby - Drinks

partysugar — Thu, 01 May 2008 13:31:29 -0700

The mint julep - a refreshing mint whiskey cocktail - is the official drink of the Kentucky Derby. Naturally, one should offer guests the potent concoction at a watching party. This classic recipe features a mint-infused simple syrup so don't wait until the last minute to make it.

Traditionally mint juleps are served in special silver glasses, but they're equally delicious in any festive glass. For the mint julep recipe, read more.

Mint Julep
From the Kentucky Derby

Ingredients

2 cups sugar
2 cups water
Sprigs of fresh mint
Crushed ice
Whiskey
Silver Julep Cups

Directions
Make a simple syrup by boiling sugar and water together for five minutes. Cool and place in a covered container with six or eight sprigs of fresh mint, then refrigerate overnight.

Make one julep at a time by filling a julep cup with crushed ice, adding one tablespoon mint syrup and two ounces of whiskey. Stir rapidly with a spoon to frost the outside of the cup. Garnish with a sprig of fresh mint.

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Happy Hour: Brandy Julep

YumSugar — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 14:28:33 -0700

The weather warmed up this weekend, and a wonderfully refreshing drink was definitely a must. Looking for inspiration, I flipped through the latest issue of Imbibe magazine and came across a Brandy Julep. With a Kentucky Derby Party just around the corner, I knew I had found my drink. It's a sweet treat for a hot day, and a nice twist on a classic cocktail. To get the recipe, read more.

Note: If the day is warm enough the ice will start to melt and dilute the drink a bit. At first I was worried that it would be a problem, but soon realized that the melting ice toned down the sweetness of the drink .

Brandy Julep
From Imbibe magazine, May/June 2008

Ingredients

1 1/2 oz. brandy
1/4 oz. Jamaican (dark) rum
1 oz. simple syrup
3-4 fresh mint sprigs*
crushed ice

Directions

Fill a highball glass halfway with crushed ice.
Add ingredients and stir, bruising the mint lightly with the spoon.
Garnish with season fruits.

*Note: My mint looks dark because it is a chocolate-mint variety. It just happens to be the one that is growing rampant in my back yard, and doesn't actually have much chocolate taste at all. Any mint variety should do.

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Happy Hour: Lemon Mint Julep

partysugar — Fri, 01 May 2009 16:00:42 -0700

Sometime last week, I came to the realization that I've never had a mint julep. I decided immediately to mix up a round of cocktails. To be authentic, I wanted to serve the icy drink in silver mint julep glasses. However, finding the glasses is not easy. I searched ShopStyle. I called Williams-Sonoma, and Sur la Table. I texted my bartender buddies. To no avail. I couldn't find mint julep glasses anywhere!

Since the vessel does not affect the flavor of the drink, I made it anyway. I'm relieved I did because this classic cocktail is fantastic. With its crushed ice, fragrant mint leaves, zesty lemon syrup, and potent Bourbon, it's surprisingly refreshing and fun to drink. I highly recommend you make one to celebrate the Kentucky Derby.

If your heart is set on serving the concoction in the traditional glass, Stephen Liles, bartender at San Francisco's Boulevard restaurant, told me he got his from a local florist. To look at the recipe, read more.

Lemon Mint Julep
From Martha Stewart

Ingredients

17 lemons
3 1/2 cups sugar
32 sprigs mint
Crushed ice
3 cups Kentucky bourbon

Directions

Squeeze 16 of the lemons, reserving the rinds and juice.
In a large saucepan, combine 3 cups of the sugar and 3 cups water, stirring until dissolved. Add the lemon rinds*, and cook over medium heat until the liquid becomes syrupy, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat, and let stand until room temperature.
Remove, and discard lemon rinds. Stir in the lemon juice, about 4 cups.
Spread remaining 1/2 cup sugar on a small plate. Cut the remaining lemon into quarters.
Rub the wedges along the rims of 16 mint-julep cups or tall glasses, and invert the glasses in the sugar to create a sugared rim.
Crush a few mint leaves into the bottom of each glass with a muddler or the back of a wooden spoon.
Fill each glass with ice, and pour 1/2 cup of lemon syrup in each glass. Top off with about 1 1/2 ounces of bourbon per glass. Garnish each glass with a fresh sprig of mint.

Makes 16.

*Be sure to remove the stickers from the fruit before adding to the syrup.

I made 1/4 of the recipe. I used the juice from four lemons and combined 3/4 cup each of sugar and water to make the syrup.

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Ray's One Mint Julep

YumSugar — Wed, 27 Dec 2006 00:03:32 -0800

The date is December 27, 1960 and somewhere in the ABC Paramount studios, Ray Charles is recording what will become a number one hit. The song is called "One Mint Julep," a jazzy number that gets its name from a cocktail distinctive to the south. To celebrate this recording I say let's make ourselves a drink and have a toast. To learn about the traditional Mint Julep and recipe, read more

Traditionally, Mint Juleps were served in pewter or silver cups and were often held by only the top and bottom edges. This way frost was able to form on the outside of the cup.

Since the Mint Julep is the traditional beverage of the Kentucky Derby, I figured we should turn to them for the right recipe.

Mint Julep
From the Kentucky Derby

2 cups sugar
2 cups water
Sprigs of fresh mint
Crushed ice
Whisky
Silver Julep Cups

Make a simple syrup by boiling sugar and water together for five minutes. Cool and place in a covered container with six or eight sprigs of fresh mint, then refrigerate overnight.

Make one julep at a time by filling a julep cup with crushed ice, adding one tablespoon mint syrup and two ounces of whisky. Stir rapidly with a spoon to frost the outside of the cup. Garnish with a sprig of fresh mint.

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Happy Hour: Kentucky Derby Mint Julep

YumSugar — Sat, 05 May 2007 07:51:19 -0700

Well folks, if you don't already know, the 133rd Kentucky Derby is happening today. And while you probably won't be down at Churchill Downs watching the race in person, you can bring a little bit of the atmosphere home. Folks, I'm talking about the Mint Julep - the traditional Derby Day drink. A refreshing drink made with bourbon, mint and sugar, the Mint Julep has been the historical drink served at the Derby. Over 80,000 mint juleps will be served today, so why not make it 80,001. To check out the official recipe, read more

Mint Julep
From the Kentucky Derby
2 cups sugar
2 cups water
Sprigs of fresh mint
Crushed ice
Whisky
Silver Julep Cups
Make a simple syrup by boiling sugar and water together for five minutes. Cool and place in a covered container with six or eight sprigs of fresh mint, then refrigerate overnight.
Make one julep at a time by filling a julep cup with crushed ice, adding one tablespoon mint syrup and two ounces of whisky. Stir rapidly with a spoon to frost the outside of the cup. Garnish with a sprig of fresh mint.

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Yummy Link: Mint Julep Cupcakes

YumSugar — Thu, 01 May 2008 05:00:07 -0700

If you weren't keen on serving a buttermilk pie at your Kentucky Derby party - although I'm not sure why you wouldn't be! - then try these Mint Julep Cupcakes instead. Just don't suck up the frosting with the straw! - Cupcakequeen on Flickr

Celebrate 52 Years of Disneyland

YumSugar — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 01:38:39 -0700

Disneyland turns 52 today and in celebration, I thought I'd share with you my favorite Disneyland recipe. I've only been once, but I definitely recall the crisp coolness of their non-alcoholic mint juleps. I'm pretty sure they're only available at the Mint Julep Bar in the French Quarter area (near the French Market facing the train station - stand near the New Orleans bathrooms and you'll be across from it), but if you can't make it there, treat yourself to one at home. For the refreshing recipe, read more

Disneyland Mint Julep
From Disney Recipes

1 cup Sugar
3 tsp Lime Juice Concentrate
3 cups Soda Water
6 tbsp Creme DeMenthe
6 oz. thawed Lemonade Concentrate

Dissolve sugar into soda water. Add lime juice and lemonade and bring to
boil. Remove from heat and add Creme DeMenthe. Chill.
To serve, combine 3 parts syrup to 5 parts water.

Yield: Approx. 2/3 gal.

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Lemon Mint Julep

partysugar — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 16:54:43 -0700

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Must-Read: Imbibe

YumSugar — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 10:15:49 -0700

Living in a cocktail town like San Francisco, I can't help but want to learn more about the ever-evolving art of mixology. Since I've enjoyed my fair share of old-fashioneds at Alembic and sazeracs at Rye, a friend got me a copy of Imbibe!: From Absinthe Cocktail to Whiskey Smash, a Salute in Stories and Drinks to "Professor" Jerry Thomas, Pioneer of the American Bar by David Wondrich.

Part cocktail-making manual, part biography, and part bartending history, Imbibe is delivered in the same quirky voice as Wondrich's drinks column for Esquire magazine, with a forward by Dale DeGroff. It's a fun book to read front to back, but it's also an extensive recipe collection. For a breakdown of what I liked and what I didn't, read more.

Wondrich's book is a tribute to Jerry Thomas, often considered the godfather of modern bartending thanks to his 1862 cocktail book, which Wondrich uses as a jumping-off point.

Pros:

It's a very fun read, full of edgy humor and hilarious histories.
The book provides a comprehensive breakdown of the cocktail's evolution, from potent punches consumed by army regiments to much-later Manhattans and martinis.
The methods and recipes are very authentic, so Wondrich tells you what modern-day ingredients are the closest approximations to the olden days.

Cons:

In his quest for historical accuracy, the recipes are presented in their original form and often annotated so heavily they are hard to follow.
Many of the more outlandish drinks are fun as curiosities but not something I'd like to make at home.

Recipes: The recipes are interwoven with bits of history and broken down by type (i.e. Punches, The Children of Punch, and Toddies, Slings, Juleps, and Such). The last chapter asks modern mixologists to come up with their own twists on old recipes. Some highlights:

Old-Fashioned Cocktail
John Collins
Philadelphia Fish House Punch
Tom and Jerry
Aviation Cocktail
Whiskey Peach Smash
Homemade Bitters and Fruit Syrups

Imagery: No photos, but there are a few historical illustrations of old bar tools and drinks.

Overall Rating: If you are into cocktails and want some good trivia to toss out at the bar, Imbibe is filled to the brim.

Come Party With Me: Kentucky Derby - The Look

partysugar — Fri, 02 May 2008 06:03:09 -0700

Let the official Kentucky Derby Churchill Downs poster inspire the look for your Kentucky Derby party. First cover the dining table in a simple white cloth. Next add splashes of color with the accessories.

Sprinkle horse and jockey confetti down the middle of the table. Bright blue plates pop against the white cloth. Red napkins contrast with the plates and match the confetti. Purple flowers are regal and festive.

If you can, splurge on authentic metal julep glasses. Add, fun novelty items - a horse stuffed animal, a book about horse racing wages - that will spark conversation among guests.

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