I made this recipe from The Aviary cocktail for some friends who visited this week, and it got absolute rave reviews… it really was phenomenal. I mean, matcha ice!

If you know the book, or the chef, or the sister restaurant Alinea, you probably wouldn’t be surprised to know that these recipes all have a million steps and many require some specialty equipment; this one, however, does not! Just two days of prep time 😆

It was juicy, tart, refreshing, and complex. The drink changed as the ice melted, from something in the tiki world to having new texture and deeper flavor. Really quite an experience.

One note, the Siamese Twin beer is a Belgian dubbel; I couldn’t find that but subbed a tripel and it worked great.

Here’s a photo of the recipe; too many steps to type 😵‍💫

Billed by the book Speakeasy as “the queen of summer cocktails,” this one seemed perfect for a night grilling. And it was! It’s fun, flavorful, and pretty.

• 4 watermelon cubes
• ¾ oz simple syrup
• 1 ½ oz Plymouth Gin
• ½ oz lemon juice
• ½ oz Campari
• 1 watermelon wedge

Muddle the watermelon cubes and syrup in the bottom of a mixing glass until the fruit has turned into a juice. Add the gin, juice, and Campari and fill the glass with 5 large ice cubes. Shake briefly and pour unstrained into a Collins glass. Garnish with the watermelon wedge.

This one’s from death and co. It looked just right for my mood; all liquor, rye base, some sweetness, and indeed it was perfect. I drank it and made another straightaway!

• 1 oz Rittenhouse 100-Proof Rye
• 1 oz Pierre Ferrand Ambre cognac
• 1 oz Carpano Antica sweet vermouth
• 1 tsp Bénédictine
• 1 dash Angostura bitters
• 1 dash Death & Co Peychaud's bitters
• 1 lemon twist

Stir with ice, and garnish with a lemon twist.

You can probably guess I’m still working through the grapefruit I squeezed over the weekend… this is a pretty, light, floral little number I found in the data banks that’s perfect for spring. I’m not sure of the origin! Maybe Empress gin, since that’s the named gin in my version of the recipe.

• 2 oz Empress 1908 gin
• 1 oz St. Germain
• 2 oz grapefruit juice
• ¼ oz lemon juice
• ¼ oz rosemary simple syrup
• 1 sprig rosemary for garnish

I used Plymouth gin, and didn’t make rosemary simple syrup — I muddled rosemary leaves with the juices and some sugar. Delicious!

I was cooking with chickpeas tonight and had a grapefruit laying around… putting it together got me to this Paloma variation. And man, it’s great! Subtle flavor, bitter and sweet, high notes of the tequila, and a gorgeous silky texture.

• 2 1/2oz reposado tequila
• 3/4oz grapefruit juice
• 1/2oz agave
• 1oz aquafaba

This one is from Sons & Daughters, in NYC. Interesting and uncommon to combine rye and mezcal, but it works pretty nicely! A little bitter but not at all unapproachable, and worked great as an aperitif.

• 1 ½ oz rye whiskey
• ½ oz Del Maguey Vida mezcal
• ¾ oz Cynar
• ¾ oz Carpano Bianco vermouth
• 1 dash celery bitters

Stir with ice.

I love this recipe. I feel like it’s not that common to have this style of spirit-forward drink use a reposado base (I’ve seen a fair amount of mezcal bases). Probably a me problem, but this is just a delight. Too bad I’m out of yellow chartreuse but it still worked with green! It’s from the speakeasy cocktail book.

• 2 oz Partida Reposado tequila
• 1 oz St. Germain
• ¾ oz Yellow Chartreuse
• 1 dash orange bitters
• 1 lemon twist

Mix ingredients and stir with ice. Strain into a glass and garnish with a lemon twist.

I made one of my favorite Trinidadian dishes last night (doubles), and what better pairing than the Queen’s Park swizzle — named after the Queen’s Park Savannah in Port of Spain where carnival takes place. Of course it has angostura, along with black rum and mint. Lovely! I took this recipe from smuggler’s cove.

• 4 mint leaves
• ½ oz lime juice
• ½ oz Smuggler's Cove Demerara Syrup
• 2 oz black blended rum
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• 1 mint sprig

Gently muddle the mint leaves with lime juice and syrup in the glass. Add the rum and bitters. Add crushed ice until the glass is three-quarters full, then swizzle. Top with crushed ice to fill the glass, and garnish with a mint sprig.

Here’s a lovely and pretty simple fall recipe from Death & Co. Perfect for this crisp evening!

• 1 oz Laird's Bonded apple brandy
• 1 oz Busnel VSOP calvados
• ½ oz lemon juice
• ½ oz lime juice
• ¾ oz Death & Co Grenadine
• 4 apple slices

Shake with ice and garnish with fanned apple slices.

Here’s a lovely summery drink from Death & Co; it’s a fizz take on the Chinese Cocktail from the Savoy cocktail book. A late season warm day called for a celebration!

• 2 oz Appleton Signature (fka V/X) rum
• ¼ oz orange liqueur
• ¼ oz Maraschino liqueur
• ¼ oz grenadine
• ½ oz lemon juice
• ½ oz simple syrup
• 1 dash Angostura bitters
• 1 egg white

Dry shake, then shake with ice. Double strain into a Collins glass with fresh ice and garnish with an orange wedge. I used aquafaba instead of egg white and didn’t have an orange (sue me!!).

My friend developed this recipe in advance of his wedding, and I made it to be his guinea pig. It’s super tasty, and nicely balanced (the agave goes well both with the espresso and the tequila; I could imagine knocking it down a little to make it slightly more coffee/forward).

• 1 oz Mr. Black cold brew coffee liqueur
• 1 oz reposado tequila
• 1 oz espresso
• 1/2 oz agave

Here is an interesting one from Death & Co. that combines tiki flavors with the complex bitterness of beer, of all things. It’s not much beer by volume, so it’s not nearly the predominant flavor. It’s a little weird seeing, but it really works!

• 2 oz Tanqueray No. 10 Gin
• ¾ oz John. D. Taylor’s Velvet Falernum liqueur
• 1 oz pineapple juice
• ½ oz lemon juice
• Green Flash West Coast IPA
• Mint sprig

Shake the liquid ingredients (except the IPA) with ice, strain into a Collins glass with ice, and top with the beer. Garnish with the mint sprig (or remember right at this stage that you forgot to buy mint, like me!).