Happy Independence Day!
On the 233rd anniversary of the independence of these United States, we offer you a perfect drink for your 4th of July picnics, cookouts, family gatherings, and fireworks viewing. And it's a Rogers Park Retro original!
We call it the "Sparkler" -- it's just as scintillating as the sparklers that are so perennially associated with 4th of July celebrations.
Here's how we make it:
1.5 oz of light (or silver) rum
juice of one lime (approx. 1 oz)
3/4 oz of pineapple juice
1/2 oz of triple sec
Shake well and serve. Cap it off with American sparkling wine. Ideally, garnish it with an American flag.
To us, this is an ideal Independence Day drink because it has a light summer composition, and the ingredients even bear some symbolic significance. Rum is closely associated with the American revolution. Paul Revere is said to have fortified himself with a drink of rum before his midnight ride. General George Washington is said to have ordered a double ration of rum for his soldiers to mark the 4th of July in 1778. We won't go so far as to propose that the pineapple represents our 50th state, or that the cherry garnish calls to mind the old story of George Washington and the cherry tree. The point is that you can enjoy the drink as a patriot, too.
Here's to the Spirit of '76!
New Year's Eve! The evening when sparkling wine flows! We certainly wish you the very happiest in 2011, and we're pleased to bring you several tempting drinks you can use to toast in the new year!
Our first drink is the appropriately named Champagne Cocktail:
This simple drink offers just enough complexity with the flavor of the bitters and orange twist to make it very satisfying. Also, the sugar helps accentuate the bubbles! Next, we have a slight variation on this drink:
A kick, indeed! A little more "oomph," huh? Along the same lines, the French 75 is a classic drink made with sparkling wine:
And here is another version of this drink, along with something they're calling a "French 90" which is very much like the brandy version we saw above:
Maybe it's not unfair to say that sparkling wine is kind of like bacon -- everything is better with it. Here we have a drink that's one of Rogers Park Retro's favorite, but with a sparkle:
Of course, you can have your sparkling wine by itself, too! Anyway you have it, we hope your new year sparkles!
