I like a good mixed drink, and tonight I'm going to have some folks over, so I was just about to head out to the liquor store to get some stuff. It crossed my mind that, since Joe has posted some helpful tips in recent months (I love Gran Classico now), you all may have some good ideas, too. I'm all ears.
Here's my contribution: bourboned cherries. Like brandied cherries, but way better, and just about the easiest thing ever to make. I get a ton of cherries from a farmer's market, stuff them in some pint-sized mason jars, add a half cup of sugar in each pint, fill the jars with bourbon, and store them in a dark place for a couple of months. I just shake them a bit every week or so to get the sugar to dissolve. After six weeks, you've got a sweet cherry-bourbon liquor and the cherries are a great garnish. I use the cherry liquor in place of simple syrup in an old fashioned, and it kicks it up a notch (really I use it in place of any simple syrup in mixed drinks). Here's a link to a similar recipe, but I kick back the sugar a bit and swap out the brandy for bourbon.
http://www.saveur.com/article/Wine-and-Drink/Brandied-Cherries
I've also got a recipe for homemade crema di limoncello that takes more time, but is totally worth it, and is a killer drink served ice cold in the summer heat. When it was 106 earlier this week, my limoncello tasted like liquid air conditioning. Here's a similar recipe: http://www.vanillagarlic.com/2007/05...ooch-ever.html
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