The Claridge Cocktail

Apricot and orange liqueurs add aromatic flavor to this 1920s Martini variant

The days are becoming shorter in our part of the world. And the weather is a bit less sultry. So our cocktail choices are turning from tall coolers toward short bracers.

Like this one – a most excellent combination of gin, dry vermouth, apricot liqueur, and Cointreau.

Prost!

The Tulip Cocktail

This spring charmer uses calvados (or applejack)

Ah, spring! Balmy days, chilly nights. And the welcome appearance of flowers.

Like tulips. So the Tulip Cocktail would make a terrific springtime tipple, no?

It’s a wonderful mixture of French calvados (or American applejack), sweet vermouth, apricot liqueur, and lemon juice.

The Tulip Cocktail is a bit on the sweet side, but far from cloying – which makes it a delightful predinner drink. Floral, you might say. 

The Eye Opener Cocktail

This “morning after” drink delivers great flavor any time of day

Happy New Year! Still feeling the effects of late-night revelry? We’ve got a restorative beverage for you.

Some say the Eye Opener Cocktail is the perfect pick-me-up after a night that ended in the early hours of the morning. Because it contains an egg yolk, some might call it a health drink, too.

We just consider it a fun drink with interesting flavor. And it’s a bit of a conversation starter – that is, if you’re up for conversation after that wild New Year’s Eve you celebrated.

The Charlie Chaplin Cocktail

 Sip one of these while watching the Oscars

April brings both the Oscar awards and the birthday of film favorite Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (born April 16, 1889). What better way to celebrate than with the Charlie Chaplin Cocktail?

It combines sloe gin, apricot brandy, and fresh lime juice in a sprightly mix that shouts spring. Show-stopping flavor, you might say.

Get the popcorn ready.

The Pendennis Cocktail

This classic has the clear, cleansing flavor of an April shower

The weather is finally getting warmer in our part of the world. Soon we’ll be craving cool libations to sip during those long spring evenings.

The Pendennis Cocktail, with its pink hue and enticing apricot aroma, is perfect for that. Named after a Louisville private club, the drink is less well known than it deserves to be. Once you taste it, though, we’re betting this will become a regular in your drinks rotation.

Be sure to share it with your friends, too. They’ll toast your generosity.

The Millionaire Cocktail

This Prohibition-era classic tastes like a million bucks

Ah, the 1920s. Flappers. Sheiks. Jazz. Prohibition. Bootleggers. A roaring stock market.

Despite Prohibition – or maybe because of it – during the 1920s drinking gained a social acceptance it never had before. And the stock market was creating more millionaires (at least on paper) than history had ever known.

So The Millionaire Cocktail was born. Enjoy it before The Crash comes.

The Golden Dawn Cocktail

Wake up to a party in a glass

Memorial Day marks the beginning of summer in the US. Here at Kitchen Riffs, it also marks the beginning of our Summer Sippin’ and Snarfin’ Series. More on that in the Notes.

This is the season for celebratory brunches, too: Graduations, weddings, Father’s Day, whatever. And you need something for your thirsty guests to drink—something that can stand up to the robust flavors of brunch dishes.

May we suggest the Golden Dawn Cocktail? It contains orange juice, so it shouts “brunch.” It’s also a tad sweet, which means it will pair well with spicy breakfast sausages, savory omelets, and just about any other brunch food.

Plus, it’s a great looking drink. So you know it will be the life of the party.