Cocktail Pairings for FT with Friends Movie Night | Taffer's Mixologist Libations

Day….. something? of quarantine (who knows anymore?) and if you’re like me, I am desperately looking for different ways to entertain myself after work hours and am trying to have things to look forward to! Don’t get me wrong, I love a wine and tv show night, but that can get old pretty fast considering we have no idea when life is going to get back to normal again. Let’s face it, I miss my cocktails (!!!) and I can’t be the only one. For those looking for the perfect cocktails to add to their next Netflix Party or FaceTime with Friends Movie Night, Taffer’s Mixologist wants to make it easy for everyone stuck at home by pairing some of their favorite recipes with fan-favorite tv shows and movies! Taffer’s is hands down my go-to cocktail mix and it NEVER disappoints. It’s fresh, makes all the flavors in a cocktail pop and it makes creating a drink so simple.

Created by Bar Rescue host Jon Taffer to bring the craft cocktail experience to the home, Taffer’s Mixologist cocktail mixes come in seven different flavors: Bloody Mary, Cosmopolitan, Margarita, Mojito, Piña Colada, Skinny Margarita and Strawberry Margarita. The line is available at Walmart stores nationwide and cost under $5.00 a bottle, making it the perfect thing to grab the next time you go to restock your pantry. 

Here are a couple fab recipes I am into, with matching show and movie recs!

Taffer’s Mixologist Mango + Grapefruit Strawberry Float

Show Rec: LOVE IS BLIND

3.5 oz Taffer’s Strawberry Margarita Mix
1.5 oz tequila
1 oz grapefruit juice
1 scoop mango sorbet
Fresh grapefruit slice 
Rose petals

Add Taffer’s, tequila, and grapefruit juice to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake vigorously. Pour into a large coupe glass. Add a scoop of mango sorbet and garnish with fresh grapefruit and rose petals.

Taffer’s Mixologist Cosmobellini

Movie Rec: SEX & THE CITY 2

2.5 oz Taffer’s Cosmopolitan Mix
1.5 oz citrus vodka
1.5 oz champagne or proscco
¼ cup frozen berries

Add Taffer’s mix and vodka into a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously. Place frozen berries into a chilled cocktail glass. Strain cocktail mixture into the glass. Top with champagne or prosecco. 

Taffer’s Mixologist Bloody Rosemarys

Movie Rec: THE IRISHMAN

3.5 oz Taffer’s Bloody Mary Mix
1.5 oz vodka
3-4 large sprigs of rosemary

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously. Pour into a glass filled with ice and garnish with more rosemary.

Taffer’s Mixologist Peach and Pomegranate Sparkler

Show Rec: THE CROWN

1 oz Taffer’s Strawberry Margarita Mix
4 oz Prosecco
2-3 peach slices
1 Tbsp pomegranate seeds

Place peaches and pomegranates into a champagne coupe. Add Taffer’s, then top with chilled prosecco!

Celebrating Galentine's Day with Campo Viejo x Sugarfina | My Signature Cocktail Recipe

Galentine’s Day, which falls on Thursday, February 13th is one of my all time favorite holidays of the year because it’s a celebration of us girlfriends! Whether you’re single or in a relationship, you can really have a lot of fun and creative freedom when it comes to entertaining.  What better way to celebrate with your girlfriends other than with wine and candy? This year, Sugarfina and Campo Viejo have partnered together to create the perfect combo for Galentine's Day! 3 different candies perfectly curated in a bento box with wine? It doesn’t get any better.

Campo Viejo features a blend of traditional Spanish winemaking with modern day style. Campo Viejo offers a fun, vivacious and affordable range of wines – perfect for every occasion from a Galentine's Day celebration or brunch with your friends, which is why I love this brand so much. With vineyards across Rioja, Campo Viejo blends vibrant expressions of Tempranillo – the region’s signature grape – applying modern twists to traditional Spanish winemaking.

DEETS ON THE WINE + CANDY PAIRINGS

Peanut Butter Caramels + Campo Viejo Tempranillo

Softness of the Tempranillo pairs perfectly with the creamy sweetness of the Sugarfina Peanut Butter Caramels. The vanilla and cocoa notes in the candy will further highlight these flavors in the wine. 

Fuji Caramel Apples + Campo Viejo Reserva

The bold Reserva pairs well with rich candies with the Fuji Apple Caramels, these decadent flavors compliment the velvety tannins and fruits found in the Reserva and last through the finish of both the wine and candy. 

Sugar Lips + Cava Brut Rosé

The sour Sugarfina Sugar Lips balance the buttery crisp taste of the Cava Brut Rosé -bringing out the citrus notes with every sip, and balancing the sweetness.

My Signature Cocktail | The Campo Kiss

I wanted to create my own signature cocktail recipe and got some inspiration from the sparkling rosé to create a libation that was flirty, sweet and colorful that would be perfect for entertaining with girlfriends that I know would be universally swooned over. I personally am smitten for a little tart and sour touch to anything that can be, so I played up on the citrus elements and created a Galentine’s cocktail called the Campo Kiss!

Ingredients

Coupe glass

8 oz. Fresh squeezed grapefruit juice

3 oz. Elderflower liqueur

Campo Viejo Brut Rosé

Sugarfina Sugar Lips

Method

Fill your coupe glass with 8 oz. of freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, or fill the glass halfway.

Pour 3 oz. of elderflower liqueur into the juice.

Lightly swirl the mixture.

Top off with bubbly! Pour Campo Viejo Brut Rosé into the glass.

Garnish with Sugar Lips sitting on the side of the glass. For extra tart, drop in a pair of lips and let fizz in the drink!

For more information, please visit https://www.campoviejo.com/en or follow on Instagram at @campoviejousa. Click here to purchase your own fabulous Campo Viejo x Sugarfina bento box and wine!

Photography by: Grace + Light Photo

HAPPY GALENTINE’S DAY!

Keep The 2020 Party Going with Champagne Toast Alternatives

Happy 2020!! Hard to believe we have entered a new decade. It’s January 6th and for most people, the new year, post-holiday slump has gone into full effect. I personally love to keep the party going and to create opportunities for continued celebration for friends and family.

While champagne can be enjoyed year round, I especially love it during the wintry months but it’s so much fun to put a twist on the expected bubbly libations. Today, I’m sharing a few of my favorite champagne toast alternatives for you to sip on to help bring back party mode. Bonus: I even have an option for anyone who’s dabbling in Sober January!

Simple: The classic French 75 – This four-ingredient go-to is as easy to make as it is delicious. This cocktail can also be batched for even easier service.

FRENCH 75

Ingredients:

·      2 oz. champagne (Le Grand Courtage is lovely) or sparkling white wine

·      ½ oz. Lemon juice

·      1 oz. Gin (Damrak is a nice citrus-forward gin)

·      2 dashes simple syrup

Preparation instructions:

1.     In cocktail shaker, combine gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup

2.     Add ice and shake vigorously

3.     Strain into chilled Champagne flute and top with sparkling wine

4.     To create garnish, curl orange or lemon peel around your finger to create the twist. Garnish drink with twist and serve immediately.

Moderate: The “Hot Shot” – Perfect for intimate get-together, this drink, which is wildly popular in Sweden, calls for one part Galliano L’Autentico and one part hot coffee or espresso topped with heavy cream served in a shot glass. The vanilla notes in the Galliano work beautifully with either drip coffee or espresso and the cream adds a nice body. Also, if you’re hosting, you might want a toast to end the night that goes down a little quicker than a glass of Champagne, lest your guests linger.

THE HOT SHOT

Ingredients:

·       ½ oz. Galliano L’Autentico

·       ½ oz. espresso

·       ½ oz. heavy cream 

Preparation instructions:

1.     Carefully layer the ingredients in a shot glass in the order shown (Galliano on the bottom, cream on the top).

The non-alcoholic: The holidays can mean A LOT of drinking. Sometimes guests and hosts alike want to back off the throttle a little but don’t want to feel left out.

Photo Credit: Jessie Smyth of Genever

PEEL ME A GRAPE

by Jessie Smyth, Genever, Los Angeles, CA

Ingredients:

·       4 muddled grapes

·       1 oz. Giffard bitter syrup (acts like a non-alcoholic Campari)

·       ½ oz. Calamansi juice

·       ½ oz. grapefruit juice

Preparation Instructions:

1.     Shake all ingredients together then strain into a wine glass filled with ice

2.     Top with Q Grapefruit and a sprig of rosemary

A few words on the drink: “This drink combines classic components of an Americano, minus the booze! Giffard Bitter syrup mixes with fresh grapes and aromatic rosemary with citrus from grapefruit, calamansi and grapefruit mixer for a refreshing autumnal spritz.”

National Coffee Day | The Boozy Way

September 29th is National Coffee Day! Coffee, which for as long as I could remember has been my favorite way to start the day. In fact, the power of coffee deserves to be recognized on a regular basis. But since this year this very special occasion falls on a weekend, it’s only appropriate to celebrate accordingly, but with an adult coffee!

Tanteo Tequila is one of my recent discoveries and I cannot get enough of the tantalizing spice. It is the original 100% agave spicy tequila. Bet you’d never think to pair chipotle tequila with coffee, huh? Well, you can’t just do that with any coffee or any tequila. But this recipe is like no other.

CHIPOTLE MEXICAN COFFEE

Ingredients:

2 oz. Tanteo Chipotle Tequila

5 oz. Freshly Brewed Coffee

1/2 teaspoon Granulated White Sugar

1 Teaspoon Brown Sugar

Whipped cream for topping

Method:

Add fresh coffee to glass, stir in white and brown sugar until dissolved. Add Tanteo Chipotle Tequila and stir. Top with whipped cream.

The Hottest Tequila Right Now: JAJA | Recipes and Recs

It is no question that JAJA is THE hottest tequila now. The founding team includes Maurice Tebele and Martin Hoffstein and it’s the tequila of our generation. Not only does it boast a smooth taste, but its bottle and branding is unapologetically photo-worthy with a design that us millennials particularly can’t get enough of. Triple distilled and thoughtfully crafted, JAJA is sweet and herbal - inspired by the lightness of free-spirited days and intimate nights.

JAJA features two delightful versions - Blanco and Reposado.

Triple distilled for a smooth experience, Blanco offers subtle notes of black pepper and citrus fruit while capturing the essence and sweetness of its only ingredient — Pure Agave Azul.

Triple distilled and aged for six months in fine oak barrels for a rich and elevated experience, Reposado (En Ingles “Rested”) offers hints of vanilla, oak, honey, and caramel.

Pronounced “ha ha,” this tequila is authentically sourced and is produced sustainably and responsibly. As if JAJA couldn’t get any cooler, it partners with the Tequila Interchange Project (TIP) to support bat friendly farms and preserve sustainable, traditional practices in tequila production. To put it simply, JAJA is the only tequila to sip now (and for many years to come). Here’s some to-die-for JAJA cocktail recipes perfect for sipping with friends and celebrating the good times together.

Pomarita

1.5oz JAJA Blanco

¾ oz pink peppercorn grenadine

¾ oz lime juice

Thin slice of habanero

Dash of bitters

Top soda water

Island Mule

1.5 oz. JAJA Blanco

1.5oz Pineapple Juice

½ oz. fresh lime juice

2-3 dashes grapefruit bitters

Top with Ginger Beer

Garnish Lemon Peel

Grapefruit Tequila Spritzer

1.5 oz JAJA Blanco Tequila

1.5 oz Grapefruit Juice

Top with lime soda

Sparkling water

Cucumber slices and rosemary to garnish

Hard Thyme Lemonade

1.5oz Blanco Tequila

4 oz Thyme-Infused Lemonade

Thyme Sprig

JAJA’s Revenge

Ingredients:

4 slices of cucumber

2 large basil leaves

1 ½ oz. JAJA Blanco

½ oz. fresh lime juice

½ oz. simple syrup