Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Wow, Labor Day, really? It seems the summer is nearly through, but before the leaves turn there is still celebration & libation to be had. This week's cocktail is a fantastic summer-celebrating fruity treat, with a delight of sweetness and a tease of the tastebuds. My friends I give you the Pineapple Upside Down Cake. This is a particular favorite during a party because it does not take long to make, the presentation is fantastic, and you have the added bonus of hearing people say “Wow, it really tastes like  pineapple upside down cake!” because, trust me, it does.

The ingredients for this one are simple. First off, pineapple juice. I use frozen concentrate. I’m sure if you did use fresh squeezed it would be a case of awesome made awesom-er, nevertheless for me, for now concentrate is sufficient. One thing I will say in regards to this is it is best to use unsweetened pineapple juice as there is plenty of other sweetness we will be adding along the way.

Since we are using pineapple juice it will be best to garnish this drink with a cherry at the bottom. This is best done right before mixing your cocktail. And I love the way a cherry sits at the bottom of a martini glass, soaking up the cocktail ingredients for a delightful chewy huzzah at the end.

Next up vanilla vodka. I have learned to make peace with the crazy array of infused and flavored vodkas making their way into cocktail culture. Though I've yet to see what will be done with “Salmon Vodka.” I kid you not. No need to go too expensive with the vanilla vodka, but at least consider a mid range brand. I use Pinnacle. It’s readily available, cost effective, and they really seem to be one of the more popular infused / flavored vodka brands, especially in the range of dessert vodkas.

To help bring that baked crust taste you want to use amaretto. Amaretto is essentially a sweet almond flavored liqueur.  The most common of these is Disaronno. For my first go round making the pineapple upside down cake I used Gozio Amaretto and found it worked quite nicely.  To give the cocktail some color and a little more sweetness, this is based on a dessert after all, you will add a small splash of grenadine which also helps enhance the pineapple upside down cake appearance.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake
1 ½ Oz Vanilla Vodka
3 Oz Pineapple Juice
½ Oz Amaretto
Splash of Grenadine
1 Cherry
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Prep Martini Glass with Cherry. Combine Vodka, Pineapple Juice and Amaretto in cocktail shaker. Add ice & shake well. Strain into martini glass, add small splash of grenadine.

So, the build on this is fairly simple. First, prep a chilled martini glass with a sizable maraschino cherry at the bottom. Now, in your cocktail shaker add 1 ½ oz of vanilla vodka, 3 oz of pineapple juice and ½ oz of amaretto. Add ice and shake till chilled. Strain into martini glass. You will see a thin layer of foam at the top because of the pineapple juice.

Now add just a splash of grenadine in the middle while still maintaining the foamy layer. The grenadine should sink down around the cherry. The cocktail should now have a fun layered look of cherry on the bottom, a yellowish vanilla, amaretto, pineapple layer in the middle and a thin foamy white top with a hint of pink in the center where the grenadine splashed through. Enjoy!

Rye Whiskey Smash

Rye Whiskey Smash

"Bourbon is a soothing, comforting presence that allows drinkers to drink as if they were warm in their mothers’ wombs. Rye gives you a little taste of being slapped by a jilted lover. But you just can’t help but go back and beg her for another chance." 

I can honestly tell you it was these words from the article “American Whiskey Showdown: Rye vs. Bourbon” by Brown Liquor that made me finally decide that these two spirits while seemingly interchangeable definitely each held a distinct difference and I must find discover the difference for myself. Furthermore, I wanted to a find a cocktail to help showcase each spirit and it's unique characteristics. As you may recall, our first cocktail on this blog was the Whiskey Sour and showcased Maker's Mark Bourbon. Very similar in it's key ingredients, but quite different in it's preparation and presentation is this week's cocktail the “Rye Whiskey Smash”

The Rye Whiskey Smash is a fantastic cocktail of muddled lemon, mint, some simple syrup, and a crisp spicy rye whiskey. It is a veritable celebration of traditional cocktail making where fruits & herbs and spirits are brought together to delight the senses. The Rye Whiskey Smash is served in a rocks glass with crushed ice and a sprig of mint garnish making it a great sit down cocktail for a warm summer day. But, before we build our cocktail let's talk a bit more about rye and bourbon. 

Both are aged from cereal grains for at least two years in charred oak barrels. However, where bourbon must be at least 51% corn (but not exceeding 79% or it is considered corn whiskey) rye must be 51% rye. Suddenly the characteristics of these two becomes very clear. Bourbon is corn based, therefore it is sweet and smooth. Rye is rye based therefore it is crisp and spicy. Historically, rye was more popular before prohibition, and bourbon found it's popularity after. In fact, it seems that it is just within the last decade or so as people are returning to a love of "classic" cocktails that the love for rye is slowly growing again. My rye of choice is Bulleit Rye. The Bulleit Rye has a green label, as opposed to their equally as good Bulleit Bourbon Frontier Whiskey which has an orange label. 

For our citrus we are going to use 2 lemon wedges. I made an interesting discovery recently about lemons. While they may be large in size this does not guarantee they contain a tremendous amount of fruit or therefore juice. I plan to research more as to what varieties are better suited for these type of cocktails. You also want to be sure your mint is fresh as possible . My wife grows ours. Yes, she is that awesome. And of course about 3/4 oz simple syrup for sweetness.

This final ingredient may seem to be the least important, but hear me when I say it is crucial to the character of this drink. You want to use crushed ice. Many current households have a refrigerator with a built in ice machine, and some even crush the ice for you. If not you can use a blender as well but be prepared for some trial & error as to the right consistency. I use what is referred to as a Lewis bag. It is a canvas bag, much like bankers use. You can fill it with as much ice as needed and then whack it against a hard surface or with a heavy spoon. Essentially you are beating the ice to a crushed consistency. If you do not have a Lewis bag, they can be purchased online here. 

Nevertheless, you can still get sufficiently crushed ice using a clean dish towel. Put a small mound of ice in the middle pull the four corners together and proceed with the beatings. Be ready for a few runaway ice shards and try to keep the ice as compacted inside the towel as possible. Once the ice is crushed up pour & shake it into a small bowl while you build the rest of your cocktail. 

Rye Whiskey Smash

2 Oz Bulleit Rye Whiskey

2 Lemon Wedges

3/4 Oz Simple Syrup

3-5 Mint leaves

1 mint sprig

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Muddle simple syrup, lemon wedges, and mint leaves in bottom of old fashioned glass, 

add rye whiskey, add crushed ice, top with mint sprig

In a rocks glass muddle 2 lemon wedges, with 3-5 mint leaves and 3/4 oz of simple syrup. Muddling is not a matter of drastic force but rather stirring, pressing and gently but intentionally working the oils and juices free. Once this is well muddled you should start to smell the aroma of sweet citrus and mint. Now add your 2 oz of Bulleit Rye Whiskey and muddle a little more. You now want to fill the rest of the glass with crushed ice. Now take your mint sprig and slap it a couple times on the back of your hand or inside of your palm. This is to stir up and release the sweet refreshing oils inside, thus making your cocktail that much more satisfying. Garnish the cocktail with the freshly awakened mint and serve with two small cocktail straws. Enjoy! 

Royal Gin Fizz

Royal Gin Fizz

This week’s cocktail is the Royal Gin Fizz. It certainly qualifies as a gentleman drink in the sense that this is one to sit down and enjoy. The Royal Gin Fizz is a nice blend of savory flavors, velvety texture, and a hint of sweetness. I particularly like this one earlier in the day especially on the weekend after a good breakfast. The Royal Gin Fizz is a variation of the Gin Fizz. The Gin Fizz consists of gin, lemon juice, simple syrup and club soda. Some common variations of the Gin Fizz are as follows. 

Silver Fizz - uses egg white
Gold Fizz - uses egg yolk
Royal Fizz - uses whole egg

Wait. Come back. Don’t leave. Let’s face it, the idea of an egg in a cocktail tends to fall into two camps. Nervous and Intrigued. If you are a member of  the “Intrigued” camp. Stick around. You’ll be glad you did. If you fall into the "Nervous" camp, I’d encourage you to still give this a read & possibly try for yourself. 

First up, Gin. Gin is a spirit of cereal grains that is flavored by the use of botanicals. Botanicals, quite simply are ingredients taken from plants and flowers such as the following, bark, berries, fruits and fruit peels, leaves, roots, seeds. The primary flavor of gin comes from juniper berries. In fact juniper berries are the defining ingredient of all gins. My preferred gin is Bombay Sapphire which is considered by many to be a premium brand and in my opinion is tremendous for making gin martinis. It is also my preferred gin for the Royal Gin Fizz.

The principle of a Fizz is an acidic juice with carbonated water. In the case of a Gin Fizz the acidic juice is freshly squeezed lemon juice and the carbonated water is club soda. There is another variation called the Diamond Fizz which uses sparkling wine in place of the club soda. With our Gin Fizz a little simple syrup is added to sweeten up the cocktail and bring out the sweetness in the gin botanicals. 

So before we build our cocktail let’s talk a bit about the egg, the “Royal” in our Royal Gin Fizz. The primary concern people have about using egg in a cocktail is health especially avoidance of salmonella (though some may also have a flashback to that scene from Rocky). In my own research I have found the consensus to be that it is safe to use raw eggs in cocktails provided one has employed the following safety measures. 

1. Only purchase eggs from refrigerated cases. 
2. Only use pasteurized eggs as the pasteurization process is what kills any bacteria in the egg. 
3. Store in a refrigerator immediately after purchasing. 
4. Observe dates. The USDA recommends only storing eggs up to 3 weeks.  
5. When in doubt, throw it out. If it is cracked, discolored, or has any abnormalities, do not risk your health. 
For more, information see the following Egg Safety

Now, while there is no guarantee against samonella, the already favorable odds against become all that more favorable. So, with all safety in place let’s build our cocktail.

Royal Gin Fizz
1 ½ Oz Gin
1 Oz Lemon Juice
1 Oz Simple Syrup
1 Whole Egg
Club Soda
3 Cherries
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Combine all except the Soda in a shaker.
Shake extra well due to egg
Pour over ice in Old Fashioned Glass
Top with Soda, stir, garnish with 3 cherry lay 


Fill a cocktail glass with ice, and set aside. Now, with your shaker glass add 1 1/2 oz of gin, 1 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1 oz of simple syrup, and finally crack in 1 whole egg. Seal your shaker and shake this up a bit so everything gels together. Now, add your ice and shake it up again. Then shake it just a bit more. Remember: you really want to work the egg into the cocktail. You want velvety texture throughout. Once done shaking strain into your glass with ice. Spear up 3 cherries.and lay them across the rim of the glass. I like odd numbers for garnishes as it's is much more artistically pleasing, and I use 3 cherries for this drink because it is special, after all it is a Royal Gin Fizz. Enjoy!

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I was fairly certain this drink could not be improved upon. Until last week. 

Lost Buoy Gin

My wife and I were on a short getaway to Cannon Beach. During some shopping downtown I discovered the Cannon Beach Distillery, and they were doing tastings! Oh, joy and revellings!  Cannon Beach Distillery has been in business a little over a year and their current product line consists of Doreymen’s Rum (lite), Donlon Shanks Rum (amber), Peters’ Family Gin, and Lost Buoy Gin. Next year they will also have some Whiskey and Bourbon, (squee the manliest squee possible).

Mike Selberg, the owner,  was there working his tasting bar and it was great to talk spirits, shaking & the magics behind it all with him. I especially liked the Lost Buoy Gin. And though I cannot even attempt to “identify all the nuances and textures of it’s flavor palette” (sorry, taking a moment to laugh at myself for typing that.) I will say I loved the flavor, it was very smooth, sweet and had a lingering warmth that made me giggly in the tasting buds. And when I made a Royal Gin Fizz with the Lost Buoy Gin the next day...well, perfection got perfected-ier. If you love good spirits as much as I do I highly recommend stopping by next time you are in Cannon Beach.