Oscar-themed cocktails

02/24/2012

Nikkole Palmatier, a bartender from Spybar and VLive here in Chicago was mixing up some great Oscar inspired cocktails for us in studio today.

If you'd like to try out some of her drinks, check out the recipes below.

Hugo (Mocktail)
- 3 raspberries
- 1/2 oz. simple syrup
- 5 oz. Lemonade
- 1 package pop rocks (cherry preferred)

Rim a martini glass with pop rocks
Muddle the 3 raspberries in simple syrup. Pour into glass
Fill glass with lemonade and ice and stir well

Inspiration: I wanted a drink that speaks to the passion and enthusiasm of a child - and so, created a liquor-less mock-tail that the whole family could enjoy together.

The Descendants
- 1 oz. Cabo Wabo tequila
- 2 oz. orange juice
- Muddled pineapple
- 1 oz. coconut cream

Rim a martini glass with fresh shaved coconut
Shake all ingredients well and serve in a chilled martini glass

Inspiration: This cocktail is inspired by a twist on a pina colada, but I wanted to modernize it a bit. I swapped in Cabo Wabo tequila, as a homage to the tequila's founder Sammy Hagar, who owns a house in Hawaii

Moneyball
- 2 oz. The Glenrothes Single Malt Whisky
- 1 sugar cube
- 1 cherry - 1 orange wedge
- Dash of Angostura bitters

Muddle sugar cube with cherry and orange wedge
Stir well and serve over ice in a rocks glass

Inspiration: This cocktail is inspired by a classic sport: baseball and so I chose a classic cocktail the Old Fashioned. This film is more than just a game of baseball, so I use a very special vintage Speyside Scotch called The Glenrothes to elevate the cocktail through hints of the whisky's vanilla and caramel notes

Midnight in Paris
- 1 oz. No. 3 gin
- 1 teaspoon simple syrup
- 1/2 oz. lemon juice
- 1 muddled strawberry
- champagne

Muddle one strawberry and simple syrup. Add gin and lemon juice. Shake and strain into a champagne flute
Top with champagne and garnish with a whole strawberry

Inspiration: This drink is a twist on the famous French 75, which I always consider a very beautiful and classic drink. To bring to life the magic and romanticism of Paris, I used a gin that all of the Parisians are talking about: No. 3 gin

The Artist
3/4 oz. Glen Grant single malt whisky
3/4 oz. house-made cherry syrup
3/4 oz. freshly-squeezed orange juice
3/4 oz. sweet vermouth

Shake all ingredients together with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Garnish with a flamed orange peel

Inspiration: This film was all about high quality and standing out - so the cocktail's ingredients do just that. I've included homemade cherry syrup and a fantastic whisky called Glen Grant that adds a certain complexity to the cocktail

The Help
- 1 oz. Hibiki Japanese whisky
- 1/2 oz. Frangelico
- 3/4 oz. Irish Cream
- 1/2 oz. chocolate liqueur
- 1/2 oz. heavy cream

Fill cocktail shaker with ice. Add all liquid ingredients into shaker and shake for 1/2 minute
Strain into a rocks glass
Garnish with shaved chocolate

Inspiration: This chocolate pie cocktail focuses on two things: Mississippi in the south - and also breaking barriers. I decided to go with a Japanese whisky called Hibiki as the base of this chocolate pie drink because right now, it is changing people's minds today about where great whisky can come from.