This drink is tart with only a little sweetness.

• 2 oz.s Vodka
• 1/2 oz. Elderflower Liquor
• 1/2 oz. Chambord
• Fresh raspberry for garnish – optional

1. Chill a martini glass with ice and water
2. Stir all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice
3. Strain into chilled glass and garnish

The hardest part about this drink is rimming the glass.  Plus you can easily play with this by subbing vanilla or orange vodka, etc.

• 1 oz. Vodka
• 1 oz. Frangelico
• 1 oz. Creme de Cacao, preferably white
• Optional chocolate for rimming glass – see note

1. Chill a martini glass with ice and water
2. Stir all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice
3. Strain into chilled glass

Note:  Here are a few ways to rim a glass for this drink:

1. Use dark or semi sweet chocolate and melt with a small amount of water.  Allow to cool slightly, then dip the glass rim into the melted chocolate.  After all excess chocolate has dripped off, set the glass upright in the freezer until ready to use.
2. Use melting chocolate.  Melt the chocolate as per package instructions.  Allow to cool slightly, then dip the glass rim into the melted chocolate. This will stay hard at room temperature and can also be used in a small squirt bottle to actually decorate the glass.
3. Use finely chopped dark or semi sweet chocolate.  Moisten the rim of a dry, chilled glass with water or vodka and dip into the chocolate.
4. Use black decorating sugar.  Moisten the rim of a dry, chilled glass with water or vodka and dip into the chocolate.

This is surprisingly easy to make, and you can serve it dozens of cool ways.

Tuna Tartare

• 1/3 – ½ Lb. Sashimi Grade Tuna
• Sesame oil
• Sriracha Sauce
• Soy Sauce (rather than salt)

1. Cut cold tuna into ¼ inch dice.  Make these as uniform as possible.
2. Gently toss diced tuna first with a little sesame oil to taste, then Sriracha and finally soy sauce to taste.
3. Serve immediately on won ton chips, or Chinese soup spoons.
4. Garnish with snips of chives or toasted sesame seeds
   

   Tuna tartar in a cucumber cup garnished with sesame seeds and chives.

    

To make the towers you will need a food mold.  We used a 2 3/4 inch mold for the towers pictured above.  Spray the molds with cooking spray and press 1/4 of the tartar into the bottom of a mold.  Cover the tartar with a little wasabi roe and cover with another 1/4 of the tuna.  Cover the top with wasabi roe and garnish with sour cream.  You can extend the wasabi roe by covering only the edges of the tower.

To make the cucumber cups.  Cut a 3/4 inch piece of English cucumber.  Using a sharp spoon, gently scoop out a portion of the seeds, leaving some for the “bottom.”  Fill with the tartar and garnish with chives, sesame seeds, pickled jalapenos, ginger, wasabi cream or what ever you can dream up.

I ran out of sweet vermouth so I looked around the cabinet for another vermouth type fortified wine and spotted the Lillet Rouge.  Somewhere I have seen a “Negroni” made with Aperol and Lillet Branc so I figured “why not.”  Anyway, it is a bit darker and has a slightly heavier flavor.  I prefer a Negroni with sweet vermouth, but this isn’t bad!

• 1.5 oz. Plymouth Gin
• 1.5 oz. Campari
• 1.5 oz. Lillet Rouge
• 2 dashes orange bitters – Suggest Regans or Angostura

1. Chill an old fashioned glass with ice and water
2. Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass and stir with ice
3. Strain over fresh ice in chilled glass
4. Garnish with orange zest flame and drop flamed zest into drink

This is based on the Cubed Old Fashioned.  I changed the syrup and the bitters.  This has a bigger cinnamon flavor than the original and is perfect for those cold winter’s nights, (which in San Antonio means anything under 50 degrees).  The syrup is made with brown sugar so it is not as sweet.  If the drink is too bitter for your taste, try adding a little more syrup.  Decreasing the bitters will decrease the spice.

• 1 oz. cognac
• 1 oz. aged rum
• 1 oz. aged bourbon
• 2 dashes Fee Brothers Aromatic Bitters
• 2 dashes Fee Brothers Aztec Chocolate Bitters
• 2 dashes Angostura Orange Bitters
• 1 oz. Winter Old Fashioned Simple Syrup

1. Chill an old fashioned glass with ice and water
2. Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass and stir with ice
3. Strain over fresh ice in chilled glass

Garnish with a thick orange zest and a cherry

This is based on “Old Fashioned” Simple Syrup, an idea I got from Jamie Boudreau – famous mixologist.  The changes are the brown sugar and different bitters.  I prefer my house made bitters, of course, but Fee Brothers Aromatic Bitters works well.  Angostura will not work because it lacks the cinnamon flavor of the Fee Brothers.

• 1 cup Brown Sugar, or 3/4 cup Brown WheyLow
• 4 ozs. Good Bourbon
• 2 ozs. Fee Brothers Aromatic Bitters

1. Add all ingredients to a sauce pan over medium heat
2. Stir constantly until the sugar has dissolved
3. Allow to cool and transfer to a glass bottle.
4. This will keep refrigerated for a few weeks.
5. Shake well before using