1 lime, cut into 8 wedges
1 tablespoon sugar
2 ounces vodka
Muddle the lime wedges with the sugar in the bottom of an old-fashioned glass. Fill the glass with crushed ice, add the vodka, and stir well.
Ben's Notes:
While completely unpronounceable, this drink is very good. Apparently it's traditionally made with cachaça (also unpronounceable). Be warned, you need to stir it VERY well if you want to have the bottom not end up tasting like limeade concentrate. Also, I added a lime spiral because it looks awesome.
The Rya Review:
FRISBEE
2 ounces vodka
4 to 6 ounces fresh orange juice
Orange slice
Pour the vodka and orange juice into an ice-filled highball glass, and stir. Garnish with the orange slice.
Ben's Notes:
This drink. All summer. From now until forever. I somehow had never had one of these before, which is criminal. Be sure to use fresh orange juice! Also, I enjoy the legend behind the drink: oilmen in Iran in the 1950s stirred this drink with (pause for effect) screwdrivers!
The Rya Review:
LOG
2 ounces gin
¼ ounce fresh orange juice
¼ ounce fresh lemon juice
2 dashes grenadine
Stir the ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
Ben's Notes:
This sounded so good in the book, but really did not have it in the glass. Remember how earlier I said I don't care for grapefruit? Well, it turns out that combining orange and lemon juice creates a concoction that tastes pretty much exactly like grapefruit. Not for me.
The Rya Review:
HOSE
2 ounces gin
3 to 5 ounces chilled ginger ale or ginger beer
Lime wedge
Pour the gin and ginger ale into an ice-filled old-fashioned glass. Stir well. Squeeze the lime wedge over the drink and drop it in.
Ben's Notes:
Also known as Prohibition Champagne, this mildly sweet take on a gin and tonic was a hit. I'm sure it would have been even better with a higher quality ginger ale, but all I had on hand was Safeway brand.
The Rya Review:
FRISBEE
2 ounces good-quality gin
4 ounces chilled tonic water
1 or 2 lime wedges
Pour the gin and tonic water into an ice-filled old-fashioned glass. Stir well. Squeeze the lime wedges over the drink and drop them in.
Ben's Notes:
I've always enjoyed gin and tonics, but taking the time to do one right was really worthwhile. What does "right" mean? Chill the glass in the freezer, use high quality tonic from a small bottle (not a big 2-liter) and your favorite top shelf gin. This is the perfect drink for a hot summer afternoon.
The Rya Review:
LOG
2 ounces gin
1½ ounces fresh lime juice
Pinch of superfine sugar
3 to 4 splashes of Angostura bitters
Lime peel spiral
Pour the gin and lime juice into an ice-filled highball glass. Add the sugar and bitters and stir to combine. Twist the lime peel spiral over the drink, and drop it in.
Ben's Notes:
This drink was apparently created by Ernest Hemingway as a hangover remedy. While I very much enjoyed it, it was extremely bitter. Even just 2 splashes of the bitters was the max I could handle. I'm also not sure why it's to be made in a highball glass. It only just fills it up passed halfway. If I make this drink again I'll use an old fashioned glass, only one splash of bitters, and two pinches of sugar.
The Rya Review:
FRISBEE
Lemon wedge
Salt
2 ounces vodka
4 to 6 ounces grapefruit juice
Rub the rim of a chilled highball glass with the lemon wedge and rim with salt. Fill the glass with ice, pour in the vodka and grapefruit juice, and stir. Squeeze the lemon wedge over the drink, and drop it in.
Ben's Notes:
You will like this drink as much as you like grapefruit. Kate loves grapefruit, so she loved it. I'm not really a grapefruit fan, but still enjoyed sipping the drink nonetheless. Very tart and refreshing. We substituted a lime wedge because we had no lemons.
The Rya Review:
BALL
