Happy Hour Tuesday: Rometti Aviation

Happy Hour Tuesday!

What do Time Square and Hugo Ensslin have in common? The answer comes in a martini glass and is dearly loved by all the cocktail enthusiast in the world: it’s Aviation, a gin based cocktail that traces back to the era of airshows and flight races. Aviation is “from the ’20s, and tastes like spring”, as The Blacklist‘s character Raymond Reddington states during a dinner with FBI agent Elizabeth Keen.

Made with dry gin, lemon juice, maraschino liqueur and Creme de Violette, the first recipe for Aviation appears in Ensslin’s 1916 Recipes for Mixed Drinks. Later on in 1930 another version of Aviation appears in the well-known Savoy Cocktail Book, this time without the Creme de Violette. The distinguishing blue/purple color given by such ingredient was now gone, and became impossible to replicate once Creme de Violette completely disappeared from the market shelves in the ’60s, slowly leading Aviation to the oblivion. Only in 2007 Rothman and Winter reintroduced Creme de Violette in the United States, and the past seven years have brought the original Aviation back onto out cocktail lists!

Although many of you might still stick to the recipe without the Creme de Violette, Rometti Limoncello feels like it’s necessary to include it in the ingredients of our Rometti Aviation version: the floral taste and sky color make Aviation a unique, mysterious drink that seems to take us back to the sophistication of those year.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 oz Aviation American Gin
1 tsp Crème de violette
1/2 oz Maraschino Liqueur
1/2 oz Freshly pressed lemon juice
1/4 oz Rometti Limoncello

Pour all the ingredients into a shaker filled with ice. Shake well, strain into a well-chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with brandied cherry, or a slice of lemon if you prefer.

~Enjoy!

 

Image from 2eat2drink.com

Happy Hour Tuesday: The Corsican

Happy Hour Tuesday!

If you are not Italian or French you may not know that Corsica is a small island located to the West of Italy or to the South-East of France, thus a territory that in the past has been fought over between these two countries. Today Corsica belongs to France and it’s also called Island of Beauty, as it offers a variety of sceneries, from its beautiful beaches where scuba diving is almost a must, to its great trails along the mountains.

The Corsican Cocktail, similarly to the inner nature of the island, mixes a bit of French and a bit of Italian: the aperitif Lillet Blanc with Rometti limoncello. Given the refreshing, zesty taste of limoncello, these two ingredients marry well together since Lillet Blanc contains wine, orange peel and quinine. Their flavors combined make a remarkable, balanced, modern drink, not extremely bitter and with a moderate sweetness. In addition to Lillet Blanc and Rometti Limoncello, eldelflower syrup and club soda are added, which increment the sweet, floral taste that makes this cocktail an enjoyable treat for every occasion.

Ingredients:
3 ounces Lillet Blanc, chilled
7 ounces Rometti limoncello, chilled
3 1/2 ounces elderflower syrup
1 3/4 ounces freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 (10-ounce) bottle club soda, chilled
6 lemon twists (optional)

Combine the Lillet, Rometti limoncello, elderflower syrup, and lemon juice in a large measuring cup or medium bowl. Using a funnel, transfer to a 3-cup-capacity bottle (or 750-ml bottle) with a tightfitting lid and refrigerate for up to 8 hours.
When ready to serve, pour about 4 ounces of the mixture into a chilled cocktail glass and top with about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 ounces of the club soda. Garnish with a lemon twist, if desired, and serve. (Alternatively, you can combine all of the ingredients except the lemon twists in a 5-cup punch bowl and serve immediately.)

~Enjoy!

Recipe from http://www.Chow.com

Image from OHSOBEAUTIFULPAPER.COM

Happy Hour Tuesday: Amerouge

Happy Hour Tuedsay!

Italy marries Brazil in this week’s cocktail called Amerouge, which features among its ingredients Campari bitter -which at this point we all know what it is, right?- and Cachaça, a distilled spirit made from sugarcane. Cachaça originated in Portugal where it was made up until the 16th century when its production moved to Brazil. Similar to rum, cachaça can be unaged or aged, and today it’s most known in countries outside of Brazil as one of the main ingredients for Caipirinha.
Sweet, smoky, with hints of fruit and spices, cachaça is the yang to the Campari yin: together they balance each other in a bittersweet symphony of smooth, citrusy blend.

Orange juice, mango and a splash of Rometti limoncello contribute to make Amerouge the perfect, exotic aperitif that couldn’t open up our Spring 2014 Happy Hour Tuesday series in any fresher way. Consume preferably ice cold and in company of some good friends.

Ingredients:
1 1⁄2 oz Cachaça
1 oz Campari
1 1⁄2 oz Orange Juice
1 1⁄2 oz Mango Juice
1/2 oz Rometti Limoncello
1/2 Fresh Lemon Juice
3 oz Tonic Water

Mix juices, Rometti Limoncello and cachaça in a shaker with some ice cubes. Shake well until chilled and pour over a glass with some crushed ice. Add Campari, stir gently. Fill up with Tonic Water and add a slice of orange to garnish.

~Enjoy!

Happy Hour Tuesday: Italian Fizz

Happy Hour Tuesday!

Today is la festa del papa‘ – Father’s Day- in Italy, as it falls on the same day of Saint Joseph’s Day. In consideration of such great celebration Rometti selected a drink made with ingredients such as Rye whiskey, port and, of course, limoncello: Italian Fizz.

Aged for a minimum of two years in charred, new oak barrels, Rye whiskey is distilled from at least 51% rye (a type of grass similar to barley and wheat). Dry, peppery and with notes of walnut, rye whiskey marries well with Tawny Port, a nutty, woody and dry dessert-wine made with grapes from Portugal fortified in grape neutral spirit aged for 10 years or more in porous wooden casks. The cozy, mellow taste of the two dry ingredients harmonically contrasts with awakening, bittersweet flavor of Rometti Limoncello.

Whether or not you are celebrating paternal bonds today, Italian Fizz is a modern drink to enjoy with your Father any time of the year!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 ounces Rittenhouse Rye
1/2 ounce Taylor-Fladgate 10 year old Tawny Port
3/4 ounces fresh lemon juice
3/4 Rometti Limoncello
the white of one egg (optional)
Club soda
Ice

Combine ingredients but ice and soda in a shaker and shake well. Add ice and shake again for 10 more seconds, then strain into a highball glass with 2 ice cubes. Add chilled club soda and stir gently.

~Enjoy!

Image from http://www.foodrepublic.com, Bryan Quinn

Happy Hour Tuesday: Pear Lemon Fizz

Happy Hour Tuesday!

If there is one fruit that is usually underrated, well.. That is Pear! Apples, strawberries, blueberries and raspberries always grab people’s attention, while this pulpy fruit that becomes ripe towards the end of summer and beginning of fall seems to make no noise. But, believe it or not, pears with their subtle, earthy skin color, definitively less bright than all of their fellow fruits, are actually one of the world’s healthiest foods! Rich in antioxidants, anti-inflammatory and apparently even anti-cancer nutrients, pears also help maintaining good glucose levels. Yep, pears basically seem to cover everything, from a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes, to heart disease, and ultimately, reduced cancer risk.

This week we decided to give some well-deserved spotlight to this underdog fruit. Before today is over, I bet you are all going to make a quick stop to the grocery store to buy some delicious, succulent pears. You might also want to get some more ingredients (in case you didn’t have all of them) to make a bubbly Pear Lemon Fizz!

Ingredients:
Ice cubes
1/2 oz pear vodka
3/4 to 1 oz Rometti Limoncello
A splash of fresh lemon juice
Champagne, for topping off (about 1/2 cup)
A slice of pear

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add vodka, Rometti Limoncello and a splash of fresh lemon juice. Shake well and strain into a glass. Top off with Champagne. Garnish with a slice of pear, or a lemon wedge.

~Enjoy!

Image from http://www.pinterest.com/pin/14847873741711341/

Happy Hour Tuesday Valentine’s Day Special: Blushing Sparkler

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Today is the sweetest day of the year, the day when if you have a husband/wife or a boyfriend/girlfriend, or simply a friend that cares about you, you might get a box of chocolate that symbolizes the three words that everyone longs to hear: I love you. It’s time to celebrate!
Rometti Limoncello has found for you a special recipe for such a special day, Blushing Sparkler.

Sweet and sour, definitively fruity and bubbly, Blushing Sparkler is perfectly in theme with Valentine’s Day, and – open your ears my friends!- if you choose a zero calorie flavored sparkling water, you might feel less guilty for all that chocolate that you will have eaten before the end of the day! Not to mention that a flavor such as Pink Grapefruit or Raspberries is simply perfect for such a romantic day!

Ingredients:
1 oz whipped vodka
4 oz Cascade Ice Pink Grapefruit
1/4 oz Rometti Limoncello
ice
Lemon wedge to garnish

In a cocktail shaker filled with ice pour vodka, sparkling water, and Rometti Limoncello. Shake well and pour in a chilled glass. Garnish with lemon wedges.

~Enjoy!

Recipe courtesy of Cascade Ice Sparkling Water

Happy Hour Tuesday: Sweet Seduction

Happy Hour Tuesday!

Alright folks, it’s that week of the year again, the one that couples in love have been waiting for yet the one week out of the year that singles simply could live without! It’s Valentine’s Day week, and we magically came across a delicious recipe with a name that could not be more appropriate: Sweet Seduction. Featuring a harmonically flavored blend of banana liqueur, pineapple juice and Malibu rum, the original recipe does not list limoncello among the ingredients. However, just like enduring love is always better when there is a balance between sweet and spicy, we feel like a splash of Rometti Limoncello could contribute to the refreshing taste of such an exotic drink.

If you are going out on a date this coming Friday, Sweet Seduction is the drink that will take you and your partner on a gateway trip at every sip! And if you do not have a partner… well, you surely have a delicious drink that you can serve to your friends for a cozy, fun evening together!

Ingredients:
1 oz Malibu Rum
1 oz Banana Liqueur
1/2 cup Pineapple juice
1/4 oz Rometti Limoncello
ice cubes
1 tbsp Grenadine

In a cocktail shaker with ice pour Malibu Rum, banana liqueur, pineapple juice and Rometti Limoncello. Shake for about 30 seconds or until the outside gets frosty. Strain into a glass filled with ice and pour the grenadine on top. Garnish with a slice of pineapple or a cherry.

~Enjoy!

Happy Hour Tuesday: Charlie Chaplin

Happy Hour Tuesday!

This week we found an excellent, fruity drink that takes us back to the 1920s, and it’s from the 1920s’ irreplaceable actor with mustaches, hat and cane, that it takes the name after. Ladies and Gentlemen, may I introduce you to Charlie Chaplin!

Charlie Chaplin – the drink, not the person!- was made prior to 1920’s and it became the Wastorf-Astoria signature of those years when silent movies started to break out. The original drink is made by equal parts of apricot brandy, sloe gin and lemon juice, however to add some zesty flavor and a  little kick, we substituted the 1 oz lemon juice with 1/4 oz Rometti Limoncello and 3/4 lemon juice.

Almost as sweet as the slapstick acrobat that made generations laugh for decades, Charlie Chaplin is a blend of fruity, earthy and citrusy notes, delightful as after dinner.

Ingredients:
1 oz gin
1 oz apricot brandy
1/4 oz Rometti Limoncello
3/4 oz fresh lemon juice

Shake all the ingredients with ice. Strain into a cocktail glass, garnish with a sliver of lemon zest and serve.

~Enjoy!

Happy Hour Tuesday: Champagne Lemon Cocktail

Happy Hour Tuesday!

with our displeasure, Christmas holidays have officially left us. It’s been fun to hang out for a little longer with our friends and family while enjoying some traditional cuisine. And now, all we have left of those cheering and cozy days spent cuddling up around a fireplace are a few more pounds to carry around. As reality hits back, it’s time to put away the comfy snowflakes sweaters we very much loved throughout the season and take out of the closets our work out clothes!
To start the new year with a sparkling drink that won’t ruin all of our work out efforts yet it will flavorfully give us an excuse to keep cheering with our beloved ones, we selected a simplistic, bubbly Champagne Limoncello Cocktail. Champagne unlike other alcoholic beverages has less sugar intake, furthermore Brut champagne – which is dry thus has an even lower sugar content- only has about 65 calories per pour (about 4 oz). Limoncello although syrupy, if added in the right amount will be enough to enrich the drink with its citrusy flavor without “enriching” it too much in calories. Because of this, after a great work out session, you can still meet up with friends and raise your glass without feeling guilty! Enjoy!

Ingredients (serves 8):
8 (3 x 1/2-inch) lemon rind strips
8 tablespoons Rometti Limoncello
4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 (750-milliliter) bottle brut Champagne, chilled

Roll up the lemon rind strips and place each one of them in 8 champagne flutes. Add 1 tbsp Rometti Limoncello and 1/2 tbsp of lemon juice per glass. Pour in Brut Champagne and serve. This drink only has about 105 calories!

~Enjoy!

Recipe from http://playing2lose.wordpress.com
Photo credits: Mark Thomas

Happy Hour Tuesday: Colony Records

Happy Hour Tuesday!

1621 was a year that marked forever our history as Americans. This coming Thursday, three hundred and ninety two years later, we will still gather around a table, reminiscent of all the great people and good times that this past year has been blessing us with, and give thanks for everything/everyone that makes our life special.
To make sure that you will be cheering at this Thanksgiving with a delicious cocktail, we found an amazing recipe online called Colony Records, by Allan Katz, distiller and Liquor.com advisory board member, and nonetheless Director of mixology & spirits education for Southern Wine & Spirits of New York. Colony Records has a fruity, bittersweet flavor  -especially with our own addition of Rometti Limoncello to it!- combined with a spicy touch will be the perfect complement to a Thanksgiving meal.

Ingredients:

2 oz Cruzan Single Barrel Rum
1.5 oz Fresh grapefruit juice
.75 oz Cranberry Syrup*
a splash of Rometti Limoncello
2 dashes Angostura Bitters

Combine 1.5 cups of Fresh Cramberries, 1 cup of water, 3/4 cup of sugar in a small saucepan on medium hear. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer for 10 min until the cranberries start to fall apart. Strain into a bowl and let cool. You just made cranberry syrup! Cover and store in the refrigerator.
Add rum, grapefruit juice, cranberry syrup, Rometti Limoncello and Angostura bitters in a shaker filled with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a grapefruit twist.

~Enjoy!

Recipe and image from Liquor.com