So here come ten cocktails that tie in beautifully with the season. Some are sweet, some are fizzy, some contain some amazing liqueurs you should be familiar with, and some will just look damn good in your hand as the sun sets over your balcony every night between now and September.

The Manhattan is one of the few cocktails that never seems to go out of style.  As a boy, I remember them being enjoyed by my parents and their friends. And as an adult they are regularly ordered at the bars by my own contemporaries.

“Contemporaries” is my fancy way of referring to Laura and Sean: my hag and my mentor.

Laura and Sean were the ones who ordered me my very first Manhattan a few years back at Martuni’s, a slender tavern and piano bar wrapped around the corner of Valencia and Market Streets in San Francisco.  I first found the Manhattan’s sweetness slightly off-putting, but was eventually won over by it’s smooth finish and gentle kick.

The Classic Manhattan

1 1/2 to 2 ounces quality bourbon
1/2 ounce sweet vermouth
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 maraschino cherry or lemon twist (or in my case, both)

Add bourbon, vermouth and bitters to a mixing glass filled with ice.  Stir vigorously for 30 seconds.  Strain into a martini glass and garnish appropriately.

Next: The Moscow Mule
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The Moscow Mule

• 1 1/2  ounces vodka
• 4 ounces Reed’s Ginger Beer
• Lime wedge garnish
• (some variations include up to an ounce of lime juice and a tsp of sugar syrup)

Fill a glass with ice.  Pour over the vodka (and lime juice and syrup if including) and top off with the ginger beer.

As for the origins of the drink… first it’s important to note (or be reminded of) a time in American popular culture where vodka was not the celebrated, dominating spirit it is now. Through the 1930s, America’s alcoholic drink of choice was decidedly gin.

The credit for popularizing vodka in the U.S. goes to the company of Heublein, Inc., an American alcohol distributor who in 1938 acquired all rights to Smirnoff Vodka, which had its own origins in Moscow in the mid 1860s. The original purchaser of the U.S. rights to Smirnoff failed to gain any traction trying to sell Americans on what they were missing, and turned over the rights to John Martin, the President of Heublein, who hoped to have more success with it.

And initially, he didn’t. At first, vodka only found U.S. admirers in the form of newly-transplanted Eastern European immigrants. The natives simply found it too overpowering.

It wasn’t until the early 1940s when Martin connected with his friend, John Morgan, owner of a English style pub on Sunset Strip called The Cock’n Bull that the Mule started really kicking and the vodka started really pouring!

Morgan was simply looking to unload a few cases of his own unsold ginger beer. The marriage of the two failed beverages was an instant sensation with the Hollywood crowd. From there, Martin’s brilliance for promotion and a little copper cup took the Mule on the rest of its journey to stardom.

Perhaps your grandparents had one of these sitting on a curio shelf and you never had any idea what the hell it was.  Martin had ordered specially engraved “Moscow Mule” copper mugs and set off to market the Mule in bars, one by one, across the country. He went to each tavern to show bartenders how to make the drink, then would have the bartender pose with the copper cup and a bottle of Smirnoff, and with his trusty Polaroid, Martin took two pictures – one to be left behind, and the other taken with him to the next bartender to show him what his competitors were serving patrons.

Between 1947 and 1950, thanks to Morgan, Martin and the Mule, Smirnoff vodka sales skyrocketed in the United States.  For the last ten years, they’ve skyrocketed because of me.

Final note:  Ginger beer is non-alcoholic so don’t look for it in the liquor section of your store. I located mine at Gelson’s and it can also be found at World Market.  Reed’s is the preferred brand and is often referred to specifically in Mule recipes.  Enjoy!

Four years after I first posted this video I shot to YouTube, not a day goes by without a new comment hitting my in box. Everyone seems to have an opinion, and they seem to be split right down the middle. Some insist the cashier was required by law to accept the hundred dollar bill. The rest think that the woman was just a crazy… well, bitch. Having witnessed it first hand, I tend to side with them, but I’m open to argument. Two things I can tell you for sure about this video:

1.) Because I took it into the manager of the store the next day in defense of the cashier, I got free coffees for a month.

2.) I still laugh every single time I hear my mom at the end say, “What is WRONG with her???”

Video is below. What do YOU think?

The Manhattan is one of the few cocktails that never seems to go out of style.  As a boy, I remember them being enjoyed by my parents and their friends. And as an adult they are regularly ordered at the bars by my own contemporaries.

“Contemporaries” is my fancy way of referring to Laura and Sean: my hag and my mentor.

Laura and Sean were the ones who ordered me my very first Manhattan a few years back at Martuni’s, a slender tavern and piano bar wrapped around the corner of Valencia and Market Streets in San Francisco.  Being a steadfast devotee of the the vodka martini, I first found the Manhattan’s sweetness slightly off-putting, but was eventually won over by it’s smooth finish and gentle kick.

The Classic Manhattan

1 1/2 to 2 ounces quality bourbon
1/2 ounce sweet vermouth
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 maraschino cherry or lemon twist (or in my case, both)

Add bourbon, vermouth and bitters to a mixing glass filled with ice.  Stir vigorously for 30 seconds.  Strain into a martini glass and garnish appropriately.

The Rob Roy is a scotch whiskey version of the classic Manhattan.  Scotch whiskey is used instead of rye whiskey in honor of Robert Roy MacGregor, the famed Scotsman who battled against feudal landlords in the Scottish Highlands during the 18th century in an effort to reclaim his land and protect his family.

The Rob Roy

1 1/2 oz Scotch
1/4 oz sweet vermouth
Angostura bitters to taste
Maraschino cherry for garnish (a lemon twist may be substituted)

Stir the first three ingredients over ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.  Garnish and serve straight up, or mixed in rocks glass with ice.

As the default Rob Roy is made with sweet vermouth, there is no need to ask for it “sweet,” though you can order “dry” or “perfect” versions. A dry Rob Roy obviously substitutes in dry vermouth for the sweet, while a perfect Rob Roy uses equal parts sweet and dry vermouths.

The origins of the drink are sketchy, though many peg it to the Waldorf-Asotria hotel in 1894, where a drink was created and named in honor of the opening of a Broadway show called Rob Roy by American composer Reginald de Koven.  Rob Roy opened at the Herald Square Theatre on October 29, 1894 and became one of de Koven’s biggest New York successes, ringing up 164 performances.

From A History of the New York Stage from the First Performance by Allston:

It was fairly common in those days for cocktials to be created in honor of a Broadway opening.  The “Floradora” ( 1 1/2 oz gin, 1/2 oz fresh lime juice, 1/2 oz framboise liqueur, ginger ale and a lime wedge) was created in honor of Floradora, one of the first big musical hits of the twentieth century concerning love and deception at a perfume factory on a island in the Philippines.  The  ”Adonis” (1 oz dry sherry, 1/2 oz sweet vermouth, 1/2 oz dry vermouth, 2 dashes orange bitters) was named after the 1884 musical Adonis which tells the story of a handsome male statue that comes to life and finds humans so repugnant, chooses to turn back to stone.

While the Floradora and the Adonis have not help up in the public consciousness over the decades since their inceptions, the Rob Roy is still alive and kicking.  And it’s easy to see why.  The drink has a hypnotic golden-reddish hue, an intoxicating, sweetly herbal aroma, and a strong Scotch finish, buttoned by the sweetness of the maraschino waiting for you at the bottom of the glass.

Just hours before Labor Day 2010 hits, here’s one last sweet cocktail to go alongside The Bramble, The Dark ‘N Stormy and The Moscow Mule as a drink just right for summer picking.  The Honolulu Lulu is ideal for sipping on your sun-baked balcony, poolside, or to get you through the agony of having to watch the neighbors sniff through your old album collections and mis-matched dish sets during your Labor Day Yard Sale Blowout.

Not to mention that if you plan on making a human sacrifice to your favorite tiki god on a forbidden burial ground deep in the heart of the Kula Kai Caverns, there isn’t a cocktail with a name better suited.

The amount of available differing recipes for a Honolulu Lulu indicate that no version of the drink has ever really taken off, leading just about everyone and their unemployed younger brother to snap up the catchy name, add a list of random ingredients to it, and slap a party parasol on top.

This Lulu recipe, for my taste, featured the most complimentary ingredients.  Sweet and coffee-flavored with minor punches of hazelnut and lime, there’s no denying that this is the sort of drink you might only be interested in ordering if you were situated in The Pirate’s Cove Lounge with Ted Lange as your bartender and the bouncy notes of Kathie Lee Gifford’s “Ain’t We Got Fun!” wafting in from a few decks above.

But if you’ve got the ingredients on hand (I’m guessing it would still be a treat without the simple syrup and the light rum), give it a shot.  And if you don’t have the ingredients on hand, just tuck this recipe for now, away and bust it out while making the preps for your next limbo party.

The Honolulu Lulu

1 1/2 oz. dark rum
1 oz. light rum
1 oz. Frangelico
1/2 oz. Kahlua
3 oz. pineapple juice
1 oz. lime juice
1 tbsp. simple syrup
1 lime wedge

Add all ingredients but the lime wedge into a shaker filled with ice. Shake vigorously. Strain contents out into a collins glass or a hurricane glass with 2-3 cubes of ice. Squeeze juice of lime wedge over the top of the drink, then drop it in.  Serve immediately.

Be very careful when you fix yourself a Dark ‘n Stormy.  Making it incorrectly could land your ass in the slammer.

The drink is actually protected by a trademark owned by the Gosling family, makers of Gosling’s Black Seal Rum.  So technically, if you use any other brand of rum to make this cocktail, you are breaking the law.

The Goslings ain’t kidding either.  Check out this 2009 article from The New York Times.

I have actually tried this drink with other rums, and I honestly feel that the Black Seal improves it. I’m generally not a rum fan to begin with. The sugary flavor tends to overwhelm my taste buds, but Black Seal’s sweetness is a little darker and aromatic with some hints of vanilla and cinnamon. Met head on by the fizzy pepper flavor of the ginger beer, the rum is blunted just enough to make a fan out of any drinker born without a sweet tooth or a pirate for a mother or father. So steer clear of the half-bottle of Captain Morgan you’ve been holding on to since your college days, and go for the Black Seal. The Gosling family thanks you.

The Dark and Stormy

• 2  ounces Gosling’s Black Seal rum
• 4 ounces Reed’s Ginger Beer
• Lemon or lime slice garnish
• (some variations include up to 1/2 ounce of lime juice)

Fill a glass with ice.  Pour over the rum (and lime juice if including).  Top off with the ginger beer and stir.

A key ingredient here is the crushed ice, which cannot be substituted with cubes for the reason that as the ice melts, the flavor of the drink slowly morphs.  I noticed that the citrus of the lemon juice was slowly overcome by the wonderful full flavor of the berry liqueur, prompting me to hold off on my next sip longer and longer to let the ice have its way with the glass.  The Bramble is another great summer cocktail you won’t mind serving to your grandmother.  It’s light on its feet and will keep you light on yours as well.

The Bramble

• 2 ounces gin
• 1 ounce fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 ounce simple syrup
• 1/2 ounce Crème de Mûre.

In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, shake together the first three ingredients and strain into a rocks glass filled with crushed ice, piled high. Drizzle crème de mûre over the top and garnish with a slice of lemon, two blackberries and a short straw.

Despite the seemingly simple ingredient roster, I have had something of a hard time assembling this drink properly. First and foremost, you may notice in the photos that I am currently out of short straws.  I’m sure you’ll let that one slide, and for that, I thank you.

Secondly, Crème de Mûre is not as easy to find as you might think.  The employees at my local BevMo had never heard of it, didn’t know they carried it, and once their computers told them it was in stock, didn’t know where to find it.  In case you have the problem, direct them to the brandy section, which is where my bottle was found.  I would expect it to be with the other flavored fruity liqueurs, but it was not the case.  So if you can’t find it in one, look for it in the other.  It’s definitely worth the effort.  It tastes, as you might guess, something like blackberry pancake syrup and a few drops of it have already found their way into my vodka martini (I’m not slowly going Sex and the City here.  I’m just trying things out.)

Thirdly was the question of buying simple syrup or simply making it at home. I do enough homemade, so I decided to pop for the $12 bottle.  But if you do want to make it, simply stir together equal measures of hot water and sugar, cool to room temperature and keep in your fridge until ready to use.

Fourth is crushed ice. If you have heard that the best way to crush ice cubes is by wrapping them up in a clean dish towel and whacking the hell out of them with a pan or a heavy spoon, you’re being misled.  EIGHTY-SIX THE DISH TOWEL.  You’ll find that so much of what is cracked sticks uncomfortably and tenaciously to the fabric. Better to pack your cubes in a plastic ziploc bag, crush, use what you need and zip up the rest to keep handy for Bramble #2.

Next, there are debates about the drink-making procedure. Many instruct to add all the ingredients, and pour the Crème de Mûre over the top, creating a beautiful lava lamp cocktail as the crème descends to the bottom of the glass. The argument against that procedure is that the Crème de Mûre doesn’t mix with the drink.

There are two solutions:

The first is to simply float the crème over the top of the drink (for instructions on that, hit up my post on The Harvey Wallbanger).  Your second option is to simply mix all the ingredients in a shaker.

Finally, there is also disagreement over the appropriate fruit to garnish this drink, but since you can substitute your favorite flavored liqueur for the blackberry, you really should go ahead and garnish any way you please.  As long as you have crushed ice awaiting in the glass and follow the portions outlined above, you’re sure to enjoy The Bramble.