cocktail hour...

In an attempt to become more social we've begun what I hope will become a semi-regular thing with some friends of ours. We'll plan a simple, cheap dinner, take-out or we'll cook if we decide to go the extra mile, and head to there house in the early evening. The key to the evening, the reason for the evening really, is the cocktail. We'll decide on something seasonal, maybe with a theme for dinner or whatever, and splurge on that. We've only done it twice so we'll see how long it lasts but it's been pretty successful so far. The trick is to do it early so the kids can play in the yard before dinner and to pick something not too alcoholic because let's face it, J is kind of a lightweight.

So a couple of weeks ago we went with a vermouth spritzer. It's not something I'd usually drink (I like my booze with booze in it. And nothing else) but it's summer here which means it's hot and dry and it's nice to sit in the yard while the earth cools and enjoy something cold and fizzy and just strong enough to take the edge off. I'll admit we got the recipe from Martha Stewart (where else?) but it's pretty good. First off you freeze some orange juice in ice cube trays. Throw some of those into a glass and add 1 part vermouth and 2 parts soda water (I think, I'm writing this from memory so adjust it to taste. That's my philosophy for pretty much anything) and a couple splashes of bitters. It was pretty good. I've never had vermouth as anything but a mixer but it made a light, not too sweet drink. As the "ice" melted it cut the bitterness of the vermouth well and was very refreshing in the heat.

Last week we did a cocktail with Pimm's #1, Britain's premier drink of summer. You start with a tall glass layered with ice and cucumber slices, an ounce of Pimm's, 1.5 oz of vodka and top it off with lemonade. Garnish with a slice of lemon. It's a little citrusy, a little cucumber-y and a lot good. A little sweeter (though I not cloying) and more potent than the vermouth drink. You can't go wrong with either.

So there it is. I don't know what's coming up next but I'm sure it will be fun.