2021 Cocktails
The Xenomorph
This Halloween season we’re going to be exploring cocktails and horror films every Friday night, using Jason Ward’s “Chilling Cocktails: Classic Cocktails with a Horrifying Twist” (Thunder Bay Press, 2021) as both a guide and a source of inspiration.
For example, this particular cocktail is a riff on Ward’s “Raspberry Ripley”, but instead of celebrating Sigourney Weaver’s Ellen Ripley, we’re paying homage to the Xenomorph Queen from the Alien films. Ward’s recipe calls for raspberries, Chambord Raspberry Liqueur, and vodka, but we’ll be using fresh blackberries, blackberry liqueur, and an Ontario craft gin instead.
For the gin, use a good London Dry, which has a fairly balanced flavour profile, as you don’t want to overwhelm the blackberries. North of 7’s Triple Beam Gin, Whitewater Brewing’s Paper Boat Gin, or Muskoka Brewing & Distilling’s Legendary Oddity Dry Gin would be good choices.
– ½ oz simple syrup
– 8 – 10 blackberries (fresh if possible, but if you’re using frozen berries, let them thaw first)
– 1oz blackberry liqueur (or you can you use Chambord, depending on what you have available)
– 3oz gin (or you can use vodka, depending on personal taste)
– Lemon twist for garnish
Add the simple syrup and blackberries to a mixing glass and muddle until quite pulpy.
Add the blackberry liqueur, the gin, and some ice, then seal the mixing glass or cocktail shaker and shake until well chilled.
Double strain into a chilled martini glass. NOTE: for this cocktail, it’s important to double strain in order to make sure you don’t end up with ice chips or blackberry seeds in your drink.
Garnish with a lemon twist and enjoy while awaiting your inevitable doom! Or, while watching one of our VIRTUAL HAUNTED CAMPFIRES!
Researched, thoroughly tested, and photographed by The Haunted Walk’s Halloween Mixologist: Dan Davies
We All (Root Beer) Float Down Here
For this one, we take inspiration from Stephen King. I have to admit that I didn’t read King’s work as a teen, but having dipped my toes into the horror genre as an adult, I don’t think he gets enough credit for the skill with which he can craft a story. A number of his shorter books get overlooked, and some of the great ones leave you wondering exactly what was happening (‘The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon’ is a particular favourite in our household, for exactly this reason). We also highly recommend Season 1 of the Castle Rock series. We can’t comment on Season 2, though, as we haven’t seen it yet.
Anyway, you came here for a cocktail, not a literature lesson, so here goes…although, fair warning, this one gets messy…
Jenny’s Basil, Ginger, and Pink Peppercorn Smash!
We’re going to put Jason Ward’s ‘Chilling Cocktails’ aside for this last cocktail of the season and look at a different book this week: ‘Dark Waters’, a water-themed horror anthology edited by Rhonda Parrish, an Edmonton-based author, and editor. In the lead-up to the book’s release, Rhonda asked some of the authors if they’d be interested in putting out a free e-book that contained excerpts from some of the stories and cocktails or mocktails that went with the stories.
As my wife, Megan M. Davies-Ostrom’s story ‘Jenny’ had been selected for the anthology, she asked if I’d be willing to come up with something to contribute, and after much experimenting (lime juice vs. lemon juice, what kind of gin, how much simple syrup, etc.) “Jenny’s Basil, Ginger, and Pink Peppercorn Smash” was born. The recipe itself is a fusion of three different drinks: – a Gin Sour, a Pink Peppercorn Gimlet, and a Basil Gin & Ginger.
I tried to use as many local Muskoka products as I could for this, as that’s where the story is set. In the end, you get a nice summery drink with a bit of a spicy edge…
– a dash of ginger bitters
– ½ tsp pink peppercorns
– 8 to 10 fresh basil leaves (or more, go wild with the basil)
– 1 tbsp peeled and roughly chopped fresh ginger
– 2oz gin (works best with Muskoka Distilling’s Butterfly Effect Pink Peppercorn Gin, but another Muskoka-area craft gin could work in a pinch, like Legendary Oddity, or Georgian Bay Gin; alternatively, to go with a nautical theme, you could use Mermaid Gin, from the Isle of Wight)
– 1oz fresh lemon juice (from pink lemons, if possible)
– ½ oz simple syrup – 2oz to 3oz of ginger ale (Muskoka Springs Dry Ginger Ale if you can find it, otherwise Canada Dry Premium is a good substitute)
– Lemon wheel, pink peppercorns, and a sprig of fresh basil (or spruce) for garnish
Muddle the ginger bitters, ½ tsp of pink peppercorns, fresh basil leaves, and chopped fresh ginger in the bottom of the mixing glass/cocktail shaker.
Add the simple syrup, lemon juice, and gin, along with two or three ice cubes, to the mixing glass/cocktail shaker.
Cover / seal the mixing glass/cocktail shaker and shake until well chilled. Strain into a Rocks glass over ice (double strain if you wish).
Top with ginger ale and stir gently to mix.
Garnish with the lemon wheel, five or so pink peppercorns, and the sprig of basil (or spruce).
The rest of the Dark Waters Cocktails are available for download (for free!) here: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/xok5wfk72o
Enjoy while watching ourVirtual Haunted Campfires: https://bit.ly/VHCampfires
Researched, thoroughly tested, and photographed by The Haunted Walk’s Halloween Mixologist: Dan Davies
The (Drinks) Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
Lenore's Lament
I confess that I have not seen Roger Corman’s 1963 film ‘The Raven’ (starring Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, and Boris Karloff), which was a very loose adaptation of Edgar Allen Poe’s poem of the same name, and which is the focus of Ward’s discussion for this particular cocktail. Interestingly, the version of the Blackthorn that Ward presents is very, very different from other recipes I’ve seen. According to Difford’s Cocktail Guide, the Irish Black Thorn first appeared in Harry Johnson’s “Bartender’s Manual” (1900), and it is quite different from the English Blackthorn, which calls for gin and sloe gin instead of whiskey (since you use blackthorn berries, or sloes, to make sloe gin, this does make sense).
Ghost Tours & Paranormal Adventures
2020 Cocktails
Black Widow Smash
Take 6 to 8 blackberries, 2 tbsps of fresh rosemary, 1oz lemon juice, and 1oz agave nectar and muddle them together in the bottom of a cocktail shaker to extract the juice from blackberries.
Add in 2oz of tequila blanco or mezcal (I used Sombra Mezcal Joven, which gives it a smokier taste), two dashes of orange bitters, a dash of Angostura bitters and some ice. Shake until well chilled.
Once shaken, pour some soda water into the shaker (San Pellegrino Blood Orange and Black Raspberry Soda Water), then strain into a rocks glass over ice. Use fun ice cube trays if you have them!
Garnish with some more blackberries and a sprig of smoked rosemary.
The Grave Digger
This is a spin on the classic Bourbon and Cider Cocktail and is perfect for sunny fall afternoons when you’re playing board games (and for Thanksgiving).
Take a highball glass and mix together a dash of Angostura Bitters, 1.5oz of bourbon (or a bourbon-like Canadian whisky, such as North of 7’s Four Grain Whisky or the Gooderham & Worts Four Grain), and 3oz of hard cider (the drier the cider the better). Stir gently to mix.
Blood Orange & Blackberry Rum Punch
…but seeing as it’s 2020, and no one is going to be hosting a Halloween party, I’ve scaled it down to a single-ish serving.– instead of Black Raspberry Soda, there’s San San Pellegrino Blood Orange and Black Raspberry Soda Water and BC Raspberry Coca-Cola (2/3 soda water, 1/3 cola)
Add 1.5oz of white rum, 1.5oz of orange-raspberry juice, 1 tsp lime juice, a dash of orange bitters, and a dash of lime bitters together to a mixing glass and stir.
The original recipe can be found here.
The Herbert West, Re-Animator
For this cocktail we’re giving the Corpse Reviver #2 a slight twist and grabbing the mezcal…but before we get to the details, some background…
I’d wanted to call this one ‘The Reanimator’, instead of ‘Corpse Reviver #3’ or something similar, but there’s already a ‘Reanimator’ (equal parts bourbon and Amaro, so a more Amaro-forward Black Manhattan), and there’s also a ‘Miskatonic Reviver’, but it uses vodka, melon liqueur, and pineapple juice, which I don’t have on hand (you can find that recipe here).
The Ghostly Goblet
Based on a suggestion from a reader, I’ve done this as a Mocktail, but you can easily turn it into a cocktail if you’d like. A word of warning, though: the proportions in the original recipe are a bit on the high side given the size of glass they suggest.
To make this you build it in a stemless wine glass or a rocks glass, so no shaker required. First, add 2oz coconut cream, 2oz coconut water, and a 1/2 tsp of agave nectar. Stir well to blend it all together. Add a couple of ice cubes, then top up the glass with grapefruit soda (I prefer Ting over Jarritos), and stir gently to mix. Garnish with a lime wheel.
I briefly thought about using two small blackberries as a garnish in order to give the drink the semblance of having eyes (and make it look like the Haunted Walk Ghost), but it likely wouldn’t have stayed as ghostly white if I had.
Also, I prefer the thicker, creamier taste of coconut cream over coconut milk, and some brands of coconut milk are already quite watered down, so the addition of coconut water could dilute them a bit too much.