Ghostini

Ghostini is the perfect ghostly white Halloween cocktail that you can serve your friends that is both delicious and frightening.

Happy last Saturday before Halloween!!  

Today our oldest had a baseball tournament (big surprise, right?) about an hour from our house.  His games were at 9 & 4 and the older team needed a couple more players, so him and one of his friends (another team mate of his) filled in for their 2 games as well.  Yep, you did the math right, four games in one day......oh boy.  

I took the three younger kids to our cities Halloween festival and parade today and it was surprisingly REALLY hot there....yup and it's October.  

We have seemed to have had our summers later in the year for the past few years here.  

I remember it being really warm for trick or treating last year.

It's been a long, hot day so I thought I would find and make a Halloween-y cocktail to enjoy.  

I had actually found tonight's cocktail a while ago and had been looking forward to making it.  Pillsbury's site is where I found this cocktail.  

For me, there's toooo much hazelnut liqueur in this cocktail.  

Definitely too much.  

If that liqueur was toned down a bit (or more) then this cocktail might have some good potential.  If you are someone who loves hazelnut liqueur, then you may want to give this cocktail a try.

Now onto a serious matter..........order pizza or go out to dinner?

Here is a photo of the end result:

Here is a photo of the ingredients:

Here is the recipe for a Ghostini:

• 1 1/2 ounces vanilla vodka
• 1 1/2 ounces whipping cream
• 3/4 ounce hazelnut liqueur
• 3/4 ounce white chocolate liqueur

In a shaker, add ice and all of the ingredients above.  Shake and strain into a chilled martini glass.

Here's to it being Saturday!  Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Cheers!!

The Cocktail Lady

Whiskey by John Lamond

Whiskey by John Lamond

**Some links in this post are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you follow the link and make a purchase.

I was sent a book to review a while ago named: Whiskey ** by John Lamond.  

I was sent a free product to review in exchange for my honest opinion.  All views in this post are mine and I was not compensated for them in any way.

As the cover of the book reads, you will become an "Instant Expert" of Whiskey once you have finished reading this book.

Inside you will find a wide range of information about Whiskey:

You will learn everything from, "What's in Whiskey?", "Why it's spelled Whiskey sometimes and others just Whisky".  

You will learn about the different types of whiskey (I honestly didn't realize how many different types there were!), different barrels tried and used as well as Glencairn Glasses.  

** There are also a few whiskey cocktail recipes in the back, a few of which I have not yet made (stay tuned for those).

If you are a whiskey enthusiast or just simply enjoy a good whiskey and want to learn more about it, this is a good informational book to check out.  

This book retails at $16.95 and can be purchased through the publisher's site, Princeton Architectural Press.  You can also search amazon for this book ** and find for a bit less.

I must say that I did learn quite a few things about whiskey from this book.  

I also think the yellow elastic band connected to the book is an awesome touch.  

This book is a nice smaller sized 144 page informational book that I will enjoy showing to friends and family who are curious about......well just about anything whiskey.

Thank You for sending over this book for me to read through!  I appreciate it!!

Vampire Shot

I will be the first to admit it....Halloween is totally sneaking up on me.  

I thought I had a month to get ready and prepare for it.  Turns out I only have a little over a week.  

Things To Do:

-Get both girls Halloween Costumes : Check

-Get youngest sons mask and hair dye: Check

-Get more hair dye for youngest son as he's "changed his mind a little": Still need to do that

-Figure out a non-messy costume friendly dinner: Still need to do that (any ideas are welcome)

-Get Halloween Candy: Check

-Make sure we have Trick or Treat bags/pumpkins: Still need to do that

-Create Halloween Cocktails for blog: work in progress

-Create a blog post listing good Halloween Cocktails: Still need to do that

OK, so I can at least say that I have completed some things on my Halloween Checklist.  

Onto today's Halloween Cocktail.  

This little shooter isn't half bad.  

It does not make you quiver what so ever after you shoot it, which is something that I like about it.  

The mixture of the three ingredients is OK, I think if you used less Chambord it would taste better in my opinion.  If I make this one again, I will definitely be changing the amounts to my liking.  

I have read the first two books in the Divergent series.  The first book is coming out in the movie theaters soon (fist pumping) and I am very excited to see it!  

The third book just came out yesterday and I have already heard that the ending may not be what I was hoping for....apparently a friend of mine has read a lot of bad reviews on it, which is disappointing, but I know I will still read it anyways.  

OK, just wanted to share that news with you all, in case there are other Divergent fans out there.

Here is a photo of the end result:

Here is a photo of the ingredients:

Here is the recipe for a Vampire Shot:

• 1/2 ounce vodka
• 1/2 ounce black raspberry liqueur
• 1/2 ounce cranberry cocktail juice

In a cocktail shaker, add ice and all three ingredients above.  Shake and strain into a shot glass.

Here's to another Halloween Cocktail.

Cheers!!

The Cocktail Lady

Candy Corn Tini

Candy corn is and always will be a staple candy for Halloween.  I've created a Halloween cocktail that now allows you to drink your candy corn too!

Friday!  Woot Woot!  Made it......phewph.......I wasn't sure that I was going to make it to Friday this week, boy it's been a long hard week.

Now that we are here, lets have a cocktail.  Let's have 2 cocktails, shoot it's Friday bring on the booze!!

I was looking in my fridge......oh my "new" fridge (this is not the exact fridge that we bought, but it's close to it) if you were wondering!  


I saw my mango puree and thought I might be able to use it to create some kind of candy corn cocktail......then I saw the peach one behind it, jackpot!  I will say that this cocktail would most likely taste better with the mango puree instead of the peach, but I was going for color and the peach is more orange then the mango.

A layered cocktail, got it.  


It didn't taste amazing by far.  


It didn't make me want to run to the sink and spit it out either.  


The layers are thicker, so as you drink you are basically drinking from the top down.  I got half way done and decided to stir up the rest and try it that way.  All in all either way you drink it, it's not half bad.  I won't be making it again though, although it is festive so it has that going for it.

Here is a photo of the end result:

Here is a photo of the ingredients:

Here is my recipe for a Candy Corn Tini:

• 1/2 ounce cream of coconut
• 2 ounces peach puree
• 1 1/2 ounces banana liqueur
• 1/2 ounce coconut rum

In a martini glass, layer your ingredients in the order above, top to bottom.  I noticed that it took a couple minutes for the banana liqueur to separate entirely from the peach puree.  It did layer, but there was a little bit of mixing at first.

Happy Friday to you all!  Enjoy your weekend.

Cheers!!

The Cocktail Lady

Ghostbuster

When there's something strange in your neighborhood.

Who you gonna call?

Wednesday......this week has me thrown off because the kids had Monday off of school so now I find me asking myself what day it is.......a lot.  

Time for a cocktail then I suppose.  

I found another Halloween cocktail on about.com and wanted to give it a try.  

I had such a blast making and trying all of the other Halloween cocktails I did last year that I'm sooo ready to make more this year.

Tonight's cocktail.......well, it looks pretty cool.  

It reminds me of the Brain Hemorrhage cocktail that I had made last year......except for the fact that the Brain Hemorrhage tastes a LOT better.  

Oh well lesson learned, just because it looks/sounds good doesn't mean it will be.  

Don't get me wrong, this was not a horrid cocktail, but it's one that I would not make again.  

This cocktail is just too sweet....yes, much too sweet.

Time to find more Halloween cocktails!  If you have any that you would like to share, please email them to me.

Here is a photo of the end result:

Here is a photo of the ingredients:

Here is the recipe for a Ghostbuster:

• 1 ounce melon liqueur
• 1 ounce peach schnapps
• 1/4 ounce Irish cream

In a shaker, add ice, melon liqueur and peach schnapps.  Shake and strain into a shot glass.  Drip the Irish cream in the middle of your shot glass slowly.

Here's to another Halloween cocktail, with more to come!

Cheers!!

The Cocktail Lady

Halloween Brew

Halloween Brew is made with juices and pumpkin pie vodka to create a fun holiday cocktail.

Here we are, the Fifteenth of October.  

This month is half over and Halloween is on its way.  

This year my two girls are going to be Sofia (from Sofia The First) and Izzy (from Jake and the Never Land Pirates).  These two ladies are VERY VERY excited about Halloween......as I'm sure most kids are.  Our two boys on the other hand (9 & 14), ahh, not as excited.  

This year our 9 year old has decided that he will not be dressing up or trick or treating.  

Last night we ran to our local drug store and he saw spray paint for hair and one of those little masks that cover the eyes and nose and decided that he will only do that for Halloween.  

OK.......I guess he's growing up faster then I'm ready for.  

Our oldest son, 14, hasn't dressed up for a few years now.  

This year he is going to a friends house to help his friend and brother scare people as they walk up to their house.........great.

What better way to celebrate the Fifteenth of October then with a Halloween cocktail!  

I found this one where I have found many recipes, here on about.com.  

This cocktail is OK.  

I wouldn't make it again, but it is not horrible.  

I may finish it, or I may heat up my coffee..........again......and finish that instead.  

All in all, I am still on the hunt for a great cocktail using Pumpkin Pie vodka.

Here is a photo of the end result:

Here is a photo of the ingredients:

Here's the recipe for a Halloween Brew:

• 1 ounce pumpkin pie vodka
• 2 ounces orange juice
• 1 ounce cranberry cocktail juice

In a short cocktail glass filled 3/4 with crushed ice, pour in all three of your ingredients.  Stir them up well and that's it!

Here's to Halloween being right around the corner!

Cheers!!

The Cocktail Lady

London's Top 5 International Cocktail Bars in Soho

Happy Saturday everyone!!  I have a guest blogger for you today who know's London's Top 5 International Cocktail Bars to go to in Soho.  If ever we travel to London, I will definitely be checking out some....a few......maybe ALL of these places!! 

Thank You Marta!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It’s Cocktail Week!
London’s Top 5 International Cocktail Bars in Soho

I´ve always had passion for cocktails but I have to admit that it was in London that I discovered the most unique flavours, and the real art of mixing drinks. The British capital houses hundreds of little cocktail paradises where the atmosphere and of course the drinks will make you feel as if you were Carrie Bradshaw enjoying a Cosmopolitan at the coolest Manhattan cocktail bar. This week is London Cocktail Week (7^th- 13^th October) so in order to celebrate it, I said to myself that I should have at least one cocktail on the weekend…If you fancy the cocktail revolution and the city of London, here I propose 5 places in the heart of the electrifying area of Soho.

           1.      ECC: A Sexy Parisian Bar in China Town

It’s literally the French Revolution in the middle of China Town, hidden behind an unmarked door. The Experimental Cocktail Club was opened by three friends who already owned a few famous bars in Paris. Here, the music and décor will take you back to the happy times of 20s France while choosing your cocktail- try their glamorous Habana, it’s simply amazing! ECC is one of those sophisticated and romantic venues you always want to return.

13A Gerrard Street, London

           2.      Barrio  Central: A Taste of South America in Central London

If you visit Barrio Central you will quickly transport yourself to the exoticness of Mexico. Barrio Central is a latino corner where Mojitos and Caipirinhas are served almost continuously - each cocktail comes with a recommended soundtrack - My tip: Amigo hour, which runs from 3-8pm is the best time to visit this busy place on a Thursday or Friday evening. If there’s a better transport connection for you to get to North London, don’t hesitate to have one at Barrio North (Angel Tube Station).

6 Poland St, London

           3.      Floridita: Salsa & Mojitos

In London it’s possible to travel to Cuba and South America without leaving Soho. Floridita is a famous bar & restaurant in La Habana but it’s also one of the most stylish cocktail bars in the British capital. For dance lovers, there’s live music every Thursday, Friday and Saturday. There is no doubt that this bar will encourage you to travel to Cuba- the first time I visited it I had a delicious Margarita and have since fallen madly in love with the bar culture. Currently they run special events for the London Cocktail Week. It looks promising!

100 Wardour St, London

           4.      Milk & Honey: New York in London

Sharing the name of a John Lennon album, Milk & Honey has quickly become an institution in London. This New Yorker venue – it was opened 13 years ago in the Flatiron District- serves delicious and unique champagne cocktails such as the Dom Pedro (Cachaça, port, peach and lemon) or the Ambrosia (Calvados, cognac, triple sec and lemon). It was for this reason that the venue was awarded several times as the Best Bar at the UK Bars Awards…

61 Poland Street, London

           5.      Archer Street Cocktail Bar: Luxurious Champagne & Cocktails

This sophisticated & chic bar has two different personalities: upstairs you can enjoy a delicious champagne cocktail whereas in the basement, the dance floor will tempt you to party harder and longer. The latest: Actors from the TV Show “Made in Chelsea” visit the venue very often.

3-4 Archer St, London

London is a true Babel of cultures and luckily this has affected the bar scene in the city. Today places like Soho offer cocktail lovers very different ambiences. If you have decided to experience the cocktail experience for yourself, check out Londonhotels near Soho with HotelClub , so you won’t have to walk too far after closing time. For those still curious about London Cocktail Week, don´t worry as it´s not too late to join in some cool and free events such as MonkeyShoulder’s DIY Drinks Kitchen -From Monday 7th to Sunday 13th, Time: 12.00-22.00- Prepare yourself for a real mix up!

By Marta Lopez Garcia

You can also follow her on twitter at @Martazepol

11 Delicious Pumpkin Cocktails

Yesterday's delicious Pumpkin Mudslide gave me an idea.  

I know I love pumpkin flavored cocktails and I figure that a lot of you out there love them too.  

That is why I decided to give you a one-stop-post shop of where to find a collection of some of these delicious cocktails.

I have a range of shooters, martinis, tall cocktails, a short cocktail, a milkshake (spiked of course) and a coffee cocktail.  

Nice arrangement if I do say so myself.  

The upcoming holidays will be here before we know it (still trying to figure out how exactly it is already October 9th) and I want you all to be prepared with a variety of pumpkin cocktails to WOW your guests with......or to make for yourself.....practice makes perfect right?

Here is my list and links to each and every one of them:

1.  Spiked Pumpkin Milkshake

2.  Pumpkin Chai Coffee

3.  Thanksgiving Cocktail

4.  Spiced Pumpkin

5.  Pumpkin Mudslide

6.  Pumpkin Pie Martini

7.  Pumpkin-Chai Pie

8.  Fall In Vermont

9.  Nutty Pumpkin

10.  Thanksgiving Cider

11.  Pumpkin Cake Martini

There you have it, 11 Pumpkin Cocktails for your sipping pleasure!  Enjoy them!

Cheers!!

The Cocktail Lady

Pumpkin Mudslide

Yes I'm aware it's not quite noon yet.  

Don't judge me.  

Today's cocktail is definitely in order, I assure you.  Why you ask?  Well the fever bug has been and still is running through our house.  I was up in the middle of the night with our latest fever reliever last night and today....well.....I just need a cocktail.

Things have been good, crazy, busy, fun, and non-stop here for the past week few weeks.  Somehow it became October without anyone asking me if it was OK.  

Well, I must say it is OK.  

Now it is that time of the year for pumpkin flavored cocktails.  

I found this Pumpkin Mudslide from Spryte's Place.  

Apparently her sister introduced this cocktail to her a couple years ago and when I found it I knew I had to give it a try.  

Glad I did!  Please thank you sister Spryte!

This cocktail is quite good.  

Their recipe calls for equal amounts of each ingredient and a splash of milk (or however much you would like).  I decided on an amount and added it to it, but I think you could even skip the milk to taste the liqueurs even more.  

I will be remembering this cocktail and will whip up a batch of it at an upcoming get together for sure.

Here is a photo of the end result:

Here is a photo of the ingredients:

Here is the recipe for a Pumpkin Mudslide:

• 1 ounce vanilla vodka
• 1 ounce coffee liqueur
• 1 ounce pumpkin pie liqueur
• 1/2 ounce milk

In a cocktail shaker, add ice and all of the ingredients above.  Shake and dump everything into a short cocktail glass.

Here is to the first of (hopefully) many holiday/seasonal cocktails on the way!

Cheers!!

The Cocktail Lady