We decided to stay home today. The weather was iffy - no rain but a little chilly and windy. We BBQ'ed for dinner and decided to try a Raspberry Moscow Mule. We re-named it a Canada Mule because we made it in tin maple leaf cups as opposed to copper cups.

The raspberries in our yard are ripening and are very tasty.

Cocktail Scale (out or 5*)
James - 4.8* "It's very refreshing"
Mellissa -  4.2* "Love the bubbles from the ginger beer but maybe too much raspberry"

The recipe is from this site.

Ingredients

• 2 oz vodka
• 1 oz freshly squeezed lime juice
• 10 raspberries
  
• 1 bottle of ginger beer
• ice

Directions
Muddle the raspberries and lime juice together in a cocktail shaker. Add the vodka and some ice and shake well. Strain into a copper mug or tall glass over ice and then top off with ginger beer.

It's a dark and stormy Friday night in Edmonton so we decided to stay home and try our hand at making a Dark and Stormy. First we had to buy dark rum...and ginger beer...and bitters. I forgot to buy lime. I used bottled lime juice - fresh is much better.

This is a perfect drink for a cool, rainy evening - spicy and aromatic!

I initially forgot to add the soda water which really gave a "hit" in the back of the throat...actually James was sputtering and coughing after his first taste. I consulted the recipe our camp friend Val gave me and realized I forgot the soda water. Much better!

Cocktail Scale (out of 5*)
James 4.5 *
Mellissa 4.3*

Recipe - here is the photo Val sent me with the recipe written on the side of the rum bottle. I used a darker rum and floated it on top of the ginger beer.

The weather looks better for tomorrow so we'll likely head west to Shadybrook in the morning. Cheers!

Last August we went to Maui to celebrate my parents' 50th anniversary. Our time in Maui is documented here. While there, I enjoyed trying the mai tai's every where we went. I found out that we could drink about 12 at the weekly pool party hosted by the place we were staying with no effect. Hmmm... This week it is hot here - though not tropical - and I have been thinking I would like to go back to Hawaii. Next best thing - a mai tai at the campsite.

The best and most unique mai tai I had in Maui was at Monkeypod in Wailea. Here we are enjoying them last year. I found the recipe online but it is a little over my skill set to pull off at the campsite.

I found The Royal Hawiian mai tai recipe on line and it was voted the best in Hawaii by Hawaii Magazine. Let's give it a try!

Remember last week when I said I was going to use the liquor I already own? Well, I had to make a trip out to get orange curacao. It wasn't easy to find. I finally found it at Wine & Beyond and there was no price on the shelf. I decided I was not going to another liquor store so whatever the price is, I'm paying it. To be honest, the fancy french bottle had me a little worried about the price. Then at the till, the guy selling it said 'we just go that in and it is soooo good.' I was hoping for a $10 liqueur. It was about 4 x that price. Oops! And I had to buy Orgeat (fancy name for almond syrup). You can make it but I went for the easy way this time. Now I will search drink recipes for orange curacao. By the way, it smells and tastes like Grand Marnier.

Cock-tail Scale (Out of 5*)
James 4.75*
Mellissa 4.8*

This is a strong drink with three ounces of spirits. There is no way I could drink 12 of these! The recipe worked well but I used spiced rum instead of dark rum. Dark rum would give it better colour.

The Royal Hawaiian mai tai:

Ingredients
1 ounce dark rum
1 ounce light rum
1 ounce orange curacao
2 ounces orange juice
1/2 ounce lime juice
Dash orgeat
Dash simple syrup (bar syrup)

Instructions
Combine all of the ingredients in the order listed in an old fashioned style glass over shaved ice. Stir with a swizzle stick. Garnish with a slice of pineapple and a cherry.

We finally made it back out to Shadybrook after a three week hiatus. After surveying our ever growing, obscure collection of half empty bottles of spirits, I've decided to try cocktails with the alcohol we already own. Up this week...blue curacao.

We went on a cruise many years ago and stopped in Curacao so we bought...curacao liqueur. I'm not sure if it goes bad but we drank it and survived to tell the tale of the mermaid lemonade.

This drink is pretty and very sweet. After the first sip I had to add some soda water.

Our neighbor and fellow Airstream owner, Val, came over to try the mermaid lemonade.  She suggested it needed more lemon and/or lime. It's definitely missing something.

Cocktail Scale (out of 5*)
James 3.75*
Mellissa 3.2*
Guest judge Val 3.5*

Recipe the online version is here

Ingredients
2 c. ice
1/4 c. Blue Curacao
1 c. white rum
2 c. lemonade
1 can club soda
4 lemon slices, for garnish
8 maraschino cherries, for garnish (I used fresh cherries bought at the market)
4 paper umbrellas


Directions

1. To four glasses, add ice. Add blue curacao, rum, club soda and lemonade to each glass. Stir to combine. (If you prefer a lot of ice, stir together mixture first, then pour over ice.)
   
2. Skewer a lemon slice and two maraschino cherries on each paper umbrella and garnish lemonade.