Dear Sir: I was recently served a magnificent cocktail called a French 75. I believe it to be made of champagne, gin, and grenadine? Served in a sugar rimmed champagne flute. Are these the correct ingredients, and if so, what measurements. Also, do you have any info on the history of this cocktail. Most splendid. Highly recommend if you have someone else to drive for you. Many thanks, in advance.
Rick

Hi Rick,
FRENCH 75 Thought to be created at Harry's Bar in Paris around World War I and named after a French 75mm artillery pieceused in the first world war. I believed that as well until I picked up Harry McElhone's slim volume called ABC of MIXING COCKTAILS, and the drink is not even listed with the pther recipes in the book.In the book Harry credits a bartender This recipe originally called for gin, but it has become more popular with brandy. 1 oz. Brandy 3/4 oz. Simple Syrup 1/2 oz. Fresh Lemon Juice Champagne. Shake with ice the Brandy, lemon juice and sugar. Strain into a large cocktail glass and top with Champagne. Note: Can also be served over ice in a white wine glass. Cheers

How do you make a summer Hummer? Could you please tell me how to make this. Thank-you so much. Connie.

Hi Connie, I make a Hummer...and i don't think there is any difference between a Hummer and what some may call a Summer Hummer...: In a blender combine: a handfull of cracked ice 1 ounce dark rum 1ounce Kahlua 1 scoop vanilla icecream 2 ounces of milk and blend If you like a sweeter drink just add a bit of coffee or choocolate syrup. Cheers Dale

How to make a good Long Island Iced tea?

Try this fresh lemon juice recipe I used for years at the Rainbow Room with great success:

LONG ISLAND ICED TEA
1/2 oz. Vodka
1/2 oz. Gin
1/2 oz. Rum
1/2 oz. Tequila
1/2 oz. Triple Sec
3/4 oz. Fresh Lemon Juice
3/4 oz. Simple syrup
Fill with Coca Cola Combine all the ingredients except the Coca Cola and stir. Top with Coca Cola and serve and a collins glass. Garnish with a wedge of lemon.
Cheers, Dale

Hi Carolyn, I am sorry to be so tardy in my reply, I don't know the Balck Martini, but my guess is it would be based on Bacardi Kurant which is flavored with black currants , with maybe a dash of black Sambuca. Cheers dale

Dear King Cocktail
Came across your excellent site while searching for the Bloody Caesar, which is a classic Canadian variation on the Bloody Mary. I was wondering if you could help me answer a literary drink question, which is what is a stengah? This drink is referred to in Somerset Maugham short stories on Asia in the thirties--planters and other colonial layabouts are always hanging around in clubs and verandas drinking "stengahs". Is this perhaps just a gin and tonic by another name, or is some forgotten, exotic refresher which my friends and I could revive... thanks and regards

JM, Hong Kong

Hi John,
a "stengah" was a whiskey and soda, served over ice.  The term derives from the Malay word for "half."  "Pahits", often consumed in the same colonial locales, were a combination of gin and bitters. 

Cheers Dale

Dear King Cocktail,
I'm organizing a bachelor's party for one of my best friends and I'd like recipes of cocktails with light colours (pink, green, blue, yellow), easy to make, and if you know one, one cocktail whose name would be about seafoam. But I've no shaker or electric blender. Thank you very much for your help, Aurore

Hi Aurore
First you'll need to buy yourself a Boston Shaker set in order to shake the cocktails- not an expensive item and easily found on the internet. Also, be sure you stock your home bar with Angostura Bitters. It is a very flavorful ingredient and essential when it comes to creating great tropical cocktails. Here are some delicious cocktails that encompass the colors and theme you describe:

MOJITO
1 1/2 oz. White Rum
3/4 oz. Fresh Lime Juice
1 oz. Simple Syrup*
2 Dashes Angostura Bitters
2 Sprigs of Mint (Use tender, young mint sprigs)
Muddle one mint sprig with the simple syrup and the lime juice in the bottom of a mixing glass. Add the rest of the ingredients and shake with ice. Strain over cracked ice in a highball glass, top with soda and garnish with a sprig of mint.

ISLAND BREEZE* *Original by Dale DeGroff
1 1/2 oz. Light Rum 4 oz. Pineapple Juice 1 oz. Cranberry Juice 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters Build over ice in a highball glass. Garnish with a lime wedge.

SCREWDRIVER 1 1/2 oz. Vodka 5 oz. orange juice Build over ice in a highball glass. Garnish with a orange slice.

SEA BREEZE 1 1/2 oz. Vodka 4 oz. Grapefruit Juice 1 1/2 oz. Cranberry Juice Pour vodka into an iced highball glass. Fill partially with Grapefruit juice and top with cranberry juice. Garnish with a lime wedge.

BLUE DAIQUIRI 1 1/2 oz. Light Rum 1 1/2 oz. Fresh Lime Juice 1 oz. Blue Curacao 2 oz. Simple Syrup Crushed Ice Blend well. Serve in 12 oz. glass

GRASSHOPPER 1 oz. Green Menthe 1 oz. White Cacao 2 oz. Heavy Cream Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into small martini glass. You might want to consider preparing a punch instead plus one or two other drinks. It's less expensive and less work.
Cheers, Dale

Dear King,
I had a drink in Paris. It was sweet , with fresh mint. I was told it was one of Hemmingway's favorite drinks. Do you know what is might be? thanks , Steve

Of course I do Steve; it's a MOJITO! Hemmingway liked to have his Mojitos at La Bodeguita del Medio in Havana. MOJITO 1 ½ oz. White Rum ¾ oz. Fresh Lime Juice 1 oz. Simple Syrup 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters (optional) 2 Sprigs of Mint (Use tender, young mint sprigs) Muddle one mint sprig with the simple syrup and the lime juice in the bottom of a mixing glass. Add the rest of the ingredients and shake with ice. Strain over cracked ice in a highball glass, top with soda and garnish with a sprig of mint. Cheers Dale DeGroff

Hi King,
I just had a delightful drink at the Rainbow Ranch Lodge in Big Sky, Montana--a Doley Stoli. It was pineapple marinated in vodka. Do you have any recipes for this flavored vodka? Thanks-Shannon

Hi Shannon-
The marinated vodkas with fruits are not that hard to do:
Get a really sweet whole pineapple and cut the rind away. Slice it up and place in a large jar, add a liter of vodka and cover. Leave it alone for three or four days. After that you can strain out the fruit and place back into the bottle. Try eating a piece of the fruit - you'll be surprised at how much kick it has!

Dear Mr. Cocktail, I've heard of this Brass Monkey and was wondering if you knew what is in it. The Beastie Boys made a song of it which leaves me thinking of it constantly. Does this drink really exist? Also, I've heard of someone talking about a drink called a Helicopter, It's got a lot of stuff mixed in it and I would like to knew what it is. You're suppose to set the drink on fire. You put it out with your hand which suctions your hand to the cup. Then you swirel it around and drink it real quick. I've had it before but don't know if that's what it's really called. Please help me!! Kim

Hi Kim,
Yes the drink really does exist and here is the recipe...
BRASS MONKEY
1 oz. Vodka
1 oz. White Rum
1/2 oz. Galliano
4 oz. Fresh Orange juice
Build all the ingredients in a highball glass over ice with the exception of the Galliano. Float the galliano on top. Garnish with a slice of orange and a plastic monkey.

I will need to look around for the "Helicopter" you asked about-Here's a link about how to flame a drink.

Dear King
I'm looking for a raspberry liqueur to use in mixing drinks. I've only found one, chambord. I was wondering if there might be another type out there to compare it with? - The Mad Surfer

Hi Mad Surfer...if they carry the brand in your area, Marie Brizard makes an awesome Raspberry liqueur...Also try a liqueur called Mure, it is the French version of Raspberry syrup and it has a very true fruit flavor and it is not overly sweet.

Dear King,
Do you know a drink called Emerald City? -Lynn

Hi Lynn, I found the recipe for Emerald City it is as follow:
8oz. Malibu rum.....4oz. Midori melon liquor....4oz. Blue Curacaos, and a splash of sweet and sour, and a splash of sprite. > > Cheers Dale DeGroff

Dear King,
Any drink suggestions for white port ?
Thank you Andrew

Hi Andrew, here's two to try:
EL MOROCCO
1 oz. Port
1 oz. Cognac
1/4 oz. Curacao
1/2 oz. Lime Juice
Shake with ice and strain into chilled cocktail glass.

AMERICAN BEAUTY COCKTAIL
3/4 oz. Brandy 3/4 oz. Dry Vermouth 3/4 oz. Orange Juice 1/2 oz. Port 2 Dashes Grenadine 2 Dashes Simple Syrup (optional) Shake all ingredients except the Port with ice and strain into a small cocktail glass. Float Port on top. Garnish with one rose petal (organically grown or washed). *Note: Some recipes call for a dash of Creme de Menthe. Cheers

Hey Dale,
I'm in the middle of a fierce debate from our regular martini drinkers on whether olives should be on their own in the martini glass or should they be speared on a tooth pick.Very valid points from both parties. What are your thoughts?

Forget the toothpicks...don't mess up the visual with an ugl toothpick. There is always a way to get the olive out of a Martini...

Dear King,
While in Scotland a bartender served us a Long Vodka. She described it as vodka, a dash of bitters and lemon-lime. Do you what they used for lemon-lime?

Hi Mike, In Europe they call our 7UP lemonade...it was probably Lemon -Lime soda, but a bit less sweet than ours. You will notice in Europe all ther sodas are less sweet than in the US. Cheers

Hello Dale, I hope you don't mind me using your first name. I am a great a admirer and an aspiring bartender who loves spicy food. Particularly Thai food. What are some great cocktails to match up with a spicy meal? I have asked this question several different places and have either been ignored or had Thai beer, Singha, been recommended. Guess they didn't read the question. Any help on this topic would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Mr Nicotine.

Hey Mister Nicotine,
Actually this is right up my alley. I have been doing Cocktail Dinners for several years, matching food courses to cocktails. I got the idea years ago at a restaurant here in Manhattan that serves a spicy Thai fish soup that has a bit of smoky taste because there is at least one smoked fish in the soup. I was going to serve an Alcasian white wine probably a Gewurztraminer from Trimbach...which by the way, is not a bad call for spicy Thai food...but the food came too quickly and I was still working on a Lagavulin Single malt scotch ...well the combo worked out really well the scotch and the spicy soup...You will find the Chinese doing the same thing with Szechaun and other spicy cuisines ...using scotch and cognac as a dinner beverage...
Cheers

Dear king
I'm from Canada, and up here at a restaurant called Milestones, they serve a wonderful drink called a "Blood Orange Margarita". It's not made in a blender and hence not full of air, but rather shaken with ice and then poured out separately into a glass. I have no idea how to make one of these, but let me tell you it is delicious. I found your site while searching for a recipe for the drink and hope that you may be able to help.
Thanks, Joan

Hi Joan- Here is the
BLOODY MARGARITA:
1 1/2 oz. Tequila
1 oz. Blood Orange Juice
1/2 oz. Fresh Lime Juice
3/4 oz. Cointreau
Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

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