Hot weather drinks to cool you down

Cajun Lemonade

12 ounces white rum or vodka
4 ounces Pimm's No. 1
8 ounces fresh lemon juice
4 ounces Simple Syrup
1/2 tablespoon Tabasco
Ice
8 ounces chilled 7-Up
Thin lemon wheels, for garnish (optional)
In a large resealable container, combine all of the ingredients except ice, the 7-Up and the lemon wheels. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour. Cover tightly and shake, then pour into an ice-filled pitcher. Strain into ice-filled rocks glasses, stir in the 7-Up and garnish with lemon wheels.

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Mango Sangria
Serves: 4

Total Time: 30 min

Ingredients
1/3 cup(s) sugar
1/3 cup(s) water
1 cup(s) Grand Marnier
1 bottle(s) Viognier
1 mango, chopped

2 peaches, cut into thin wedges

1/4 cup(s) mint
Directions
In a saucepan, cook the sugar and water until the sugar dissolves; transfer to a pitcher and refrigerate until cold. Stir in the Grand Marnier, Viognier, mango, peaches, and mint and serve over ice.

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Tea Thyme
Yields: 1 drink
Total Time: 5 min

Ingredients
2 sprig(s) thyme
Ice
1 1/2 ounce(s) Tea Vodka
3/4 ounce(s) fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoon(s) honey
2 teaspoon(s) water

Directions
In a cocktail shaker, lightly muddle 1 of the thyme sprigs. Add ice and the Tea Vodka, lemon juice, and honey syrup, and shake well. Strain into a chilled martini glass or coupe and garnish with the remaining thyme sprig.

4th of July shot

Patriotic Shot

Chill all the ingredients and the shot glass.

Ingredients :

1/2 Part Grenadine
1 Part Blue Curacao
1 Part Vodka

Preparation:

In a shot glass pour grenadine.

Tilt the glass and with a steady hand pour Blue Curacao.

Tilt the glass and with a steady hand pour Vodka.

Seared Duck Breast with Cherries and Port Sauce Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Seared-Duck-Breast-with-Cherries-and-Port-Sauce

ingredients

2 5-to 6-ounce duck breast halves or one 12-to 16-ounce duck breast half
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) chilled butter, divided
1/4 cup finely chopped shallot (about 1 large)
1/2 cup low-salt chicken broth
8 halved pitted sweet red cherries, fresh or frozen, thawed
2 tablespoons tawny Port
1 tablespoon orange blossom honey

preparation

Place duck breast halves between 2 sheets of plastic wrap. Pound lightly to even thickness (about 1/2 to 3/4 inch). Discard plastic wrap. Using sharp knife, score skin in 3/4-inch diamond pattern (do not cut into flesh). DO AHEAD: Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cover and chill.
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle duck with salt and pepper. Add duck, skin side down, to skillet and cook until skin is browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. Turn duck breasts over, reduce heat to medium, and cook until browned and cooked to desired doneness, about 4 minutes longer for small breasts and 8 minutes longer for large breast for medium-rare. Transfer to work surface, tent with foil to keep warm, and let rest 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, pour off all but 2 tablespoons drippings from skillet. Add shallot to skillet and stir over medium heat 30 seconds. Add broth, cherries, Port, and honey. Increase heat to high and boil until sauce is reduced to glaze, stirring often, about 3 minutes. Whisk in 1 tablespoon cold butter. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper.
Thinly slice duck. Fan slices out on plates. Spoon sauce over and serve

(Epicurious)

Castello di Ama Toscano

Il Chiuso is a blend of Sangiovese and Pinot Noir in different proportions, and as such it perfectly reflects the terroir characteristics of Castello di Ama’s wines.
This wine offers an fruit, a full body with nice tannins. Stated simply its elegant! Drink with a nice steak or lasagna with Italian sausage. Also very nice as a nice red to end your day.
Come in and ask a wine specialist today! All this for less than $25!!

Laxas Albarino

TROPICAL AROMATICS, AWESOME MINERALITY, CRISP PEAR FINISH
Fresh, juicy, very dry, and full of minerally terroir, this Albariño from the Laxas (la-shas) winery is first class - produced from old vines in the more oceanic reaches of western Galicia. This white shows an Atlantic saline-like quality which renders it positively delicious with seafood, and the melon, pear, and mineral notes are almost like a meal in themselves. Finishing with impressive length, richness, and a bit of banana essence, this is serious Albariño for the money.
Serving Suggestion:
In Spain they would eat gooseneck barnacles, but here in the US we're more than happy to pair this with nearly any great shellfish, especially mussels will be perfect. Also great as a stand alone wine.

Summer Solstice

Sundowner over Havana

Ingredients:

Bacardi Superior 1.5 Parts
Fresh Pineapple Juice 2.0 Parts
Sorel Liqueur .75 Parts
Fresh Lemon Juice .50 Parts
Preparation: Build in a cocktail shaker and dry shake. Add ice, then shake again. Pour in a tall glass over ice and garnish with a Pineapple slice or leaves. Enjoy!

Duval-Leroy Champagne

It is in this product that one can feel the unique power and character which marks out a top-of-the-range champagne. Consistency, expertise and a creative spirit ensure a success which needs no further demonstration. The Maison Duval-Leroy revels in the art of blending Pinots and Chardonnays. Enriched with around fifteen crus and generous quantity of reserve wines, Duval-Leroy Brut confirms its complexity and is recognised for its consistency.

 

Providing a perfect balance  between finesse and power, it draws out flavours of dark chocolate, cinnamon and roasted yellow figs, expressing its subtle, melt-in-the-mouth vinosity.

 

It was the only Champagne recognised by Wine Spectator magazine in its Top 100 classification for 2008.

 

Planning a wedding... Need wine help? Here are some tips!

Coming Up with a Total

How much wine to purchase will depend on various factors, including the number of guests, whether it's a wine-drinking crowd, the format of the reception, the time of year and time of day, and the menu. Here, some general rules of thumb provided by wedding planners, caterers, and married couples who have been through it already:

• It's better to have too much wine than not enough. Guests grumble when the wine runs out and they still have prime rib on their plate, or if they have an empty glass for the toast. Unopened leftovers can usually be returned to the seller (or taken home, of course).

•The standard 750-ml wine bottle holds 25 ounces; count on five servings of wine, at five ounces each, from one bottle. For sparkling wines served in flutes, allow for four ounces per serving (plus foam), which equals six servings per bottle.

• Most caterers count on each guest consuming one-half bottle of wine—roughly two glasses—every two hours. If the party lasts four hours, count on one 25-ounce bottle per person. These calculations allow for the fact that some folks will drink more, some less, and some not at all. One bottle each might seem like a lot of wine, yet many attendees want to sample everything, even though they don't drain their glasses (half your wine may sit at the end of the night in half-empty cups).

Visit us 

Come in and ask a wine specialist to recommend wines suitable to the time of day, season, food, and budget. If you're not in a rush, you should take a few recommended wines home and taste them, and if they're delicious, go back for more.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com

In the mood for Ginger.... Ginger Beer, mixed drinks!

Ginger vodka fizz

1.5 oz. vodka

1 oz. pear juice

.75 oz. lemon juice

.5 oz. ginger syrup

Sprig rosemary, for garnish

Combine all liquid ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake until chilled. Strain into a Collins glass over fresh ice. Top off with club soda to taste. Garnish with rosemary.

— Emma Janzen

Lemon Ginger Fizz

1 sprig fresh rosemary

1 1⁄2 oz. citrus vodka

3 to 4 oz. chilled ginger beer

Garnish: fresh rosemary sprig and lemon wheel

Break rosemary sprig in half and add to a cocktail shaker. Fill shaker with ice. Add vodka. Shake vigorously and strain into a tall glass filled with ice. Top with ginger beer. Garnish with rosemary and lemon.

Posted on Thursday, March 7, 2013 in Permalink

Guava Sangria

Ingredients:

1 bottle of rose wine

1/2 cup cognac

1/2 cup pureed guava or any other type of tropical fruit

1/2 cup pear juice

1/2 cup cranberry juice

1 cup sprite

Thinly sliced orange spheres

Boiled and strained cranberries

Fresh sage

*Add all ingredients in a pitcher, tasting as you go. Set fresh sage aside and serve as a garnish for each glass to achieve a hint of sage flavor in your sangria– sage can be quite potent (do not add it in the pitcher). Serve on the rocks.

Via Santa Barbara Chic