Campari Fizz and Americano

Today we are celebrating Campari's 150th Anniversary by drinking two relatively easy drinks to make (and even easier to consume, I assure you).  We're making the Campari Fizz, a really light-on-alcohol cocktail that goes down like a quality fruit punch.  We're also making the Americano, a drink that isn't particularly alcoholic either, and has its own refreshing qualities, similar to a French soda.

Campari Fizz

If you missed yesterday's post, take a moment to read up on Campari's origin and its founder.  Both of the following drinks are found at the Campari website, Campari.com.  It is an excellent resource for all things Campari, and, they have nice short videos of their bartenders making Campari cocktails.

Campari Fizz

1 part Campari
1 part sweetened lemon juice (1 part sugar, 1 part water, 1 part lemon juice)
1 part pineapple juice
A few drops of Angostura bitters
1 part Soda

Shake all the ingredients together except the soda.  Pour into a juice glass with ice.  Round off with one part of soda.

This is an excellent, refreshing, little-alcohol cocktail.  It actually tastes a bit like grapefruit juice. This is more of a punch than anything else.  Did I already mention how little alcohol is in the drink?  Campari is about 25% alcohol, and is only 1/4 of the drinks liquid contents.  Compared to say, a martini, or a manhattan, this is just fruit juice. 

It's still a quality drink, it's just a light one.  This would be a very good drink to make by the pitcher for parties.  If you do though, be sure to add the bitters into the mix just before serving.  Bitters tend to expand their proverbial territory in a cocktail the longer they're given a chance. 

Americano

1 part Campari
1 part Vermouth Rossa
1 part Soda

Build in a double rocks glass over ice.

This is a really interesting cocktail.  The taste contains the classic bitter quality that the Campari name is known for.  It's quite good though because the sweetness from the vermouth and the fizz from the club soda provides an interesting counterbalance to the bitterness.

I think this is an excellent aperitif, something to drink before a meal.  You could easily knock back a few of these too, largely because they're so easy to whip together.  1 part of each of its contents over ice, serve.  Easy peasy.

I hope that you've enjoyed Campari week here at the Amateur Mixologist.  I've certainly enjoyed drinking the Campari cocktails.  Until next week, ciao! 

Campari Primer

Last night was going swimmingly, until I realized I didn't have an ingredient for last night's drink.  Normally, that isn't a problem.  A quick run to the store solves the issue in a heartbeat.  But, it was late.  Quite late actually.  And, I made the executive decision to push off today's Campari drink onto tomorrow.  Tomorrow, we'll be doing 2 Campari cocktails - it will be a Campari cocktail party!

Lest you leave without anything gained, let's preview tomorrow's drinks by examining Campari, the liqueur, a bit further.

Campari is an Italian liqueur, invented in 1860 (this year is its 150th anniversary), originally invented by Mr. Campari himself, Gaspare Campari.  Gaspare was a drink maker.  Legend has it that he was an expert by the age of 14, working at Bass Bar in Turin.  He invented what we know as Campari using 60 different ingredients, the contents of which are known to only one individual at a time.  Campari's recipe makes the Coca-Cola secret recipe look trivial and small.  One person knows it?!?  If that guy gets into an accident, we're all screwed!

Mr. Campari

You can read more about the man, the myth, the legend, here.

Campari is considered an aperitif (a drink served before a meal to stimulate one's appetite), though, it's also often classified as a bitter (an herbal concoction made with alcohol that contains a bittersweet flavor profile).  Campari is extremely popular, and is exported to close to 200 countries.

Tomorrow, we're going to try a couple of Campari cocktails.  I highly recommend checking out the Campari website, available here, for their recipes and nice video accompaniments.

Until tomorrow, cheers!

What We're Drinking This Week

The Amateur Mixologist had to change up the schedule this week.  I'm battling a post-Lollapalooza hangover!

Not a literal hangover, mind you, but a figurative one.  Three days of concerts, and a return home at 3am with the Official Mascot in tow (she stayed at JB's parents place), and it made for a long long day.

Lolla was a ton of fun.  I've been to the Chicago-based music festival 3-4 times now, and I simply cannot imagine a better-run festival than Lollapalooza.

It's easy to get from stage to stage; you have the backdrop of the Chicago skyline; the food is remarkable (more on that in a second); getting to and from the festival is easy; and there's no shortage of drink stations (free water and Coke/beer/wine stands) as well as bathroom facilities.

Band highlights (I may be missing one or two):  Arcade Fire, The National, Cut Copy, Phoenix, Walkmen, The Strokes, MGMT, Blitzen Trapper, Black Keys, Frightened Rabbits, and the Morning Benders were among my favorite shows. 

The main drawback was a sound issue on the north lawn stages which consistently affected bands playing on either of the two stages in the grouping.  The sound would come and go to a rather large degree.  I've read that some people attributed the changes to the wind, but I don't buy that explanation.  I don't know if the speakers were faulty, or if the soundboard techs weren't on top of their game - no matter what it was, something was off.

Lolla's best kept secret is its food.  I don't know who is responsible for it, but there is clearly a directive that says that Lolla's food needs to be stellar.  And it is.  Lolla's food options make Taste of Chicago look silly (not that I thought Taste of Chicago was good, or representative of Chicago's stellar culinary scene, but I digress).

Food highlights:  Graham Elliot's lobster corndog, Kuma's Corner's Iron Maiden and Judas Priest burgers, and everything available at Sunda (my favorite was the Asian chicken salad).

[Photos of The National, and Blitzen Trapper, respectively, gratuitously ripped from the Lolla Flickr page...all rights are theirs]

Soundtrack of the Week: Crowded House "Intriguer"  For those who remember "Four Seasons in One Day" and "Weather With You", this album will no doubt be familiar.  But, this is by far and away their most rocking album to date.  Imagine Crowded House getting a bit dirty with their sound, and playing small clubs - this is album would be the result of their time spent in such smaller venues.  My favorite track is "Amsterdam" - which reminded me of my trip back in March, and describes cool parts of the city and its overall vibe. 

What We're Drinking This Week

This week we're going to focus on Campari, the Italian liqueur that is celebrating it's 150th anniversary this year. Also, take note, we have a different schedule than normal due to the Lolla hangover, previously mentioned above.

- Thursday - Americano - Campari and vermouth are the main ingredients here.

- Friday - Campari Fizz - this is a fun cocktail with admittedly little alcohol in it - but, it's summer, and this will be extremely refreshing.

Should be a great, albeit hot, week!  See you on Thursday!

Celeb_U_Bot

I'm heading to Chicago today for Lollapalooza.  It's one of my favorite music festivals, and is always put on in an excellent fashion.  Like most festivals, I go because of the middle-acts and not the headliners.  This year, some of my favorite bands, like The National and Arcade Fire will be playing.  Some new bands that I love, like Yeasayer, will be there as well. 

Hope you all have an excellent weekend as well - maybe this cocktail will put you well on your way:

Celeb_U_Bot
(You can find the recipe at the Svedka vodka website.)

Pour all ingredients into a shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously.
Pour into a martini glass and garnish with a lime wedge (optional).

• 2 parts SVEDKA Vodka
• 1 part Fresh Lime Juice
• 1 tsp Sugar (or Simple Syrup)
• Splash Lemon Juice

This is a flavorful cocktail, more flavorful than most vodka based cocktails.  The lime juice is strong, adding a nice sour kick to the cocktail.  My friend Justin, who was over drinking this with me, thought that it was "sweet, with a slight bitter feeling to it."  He added "you can hardly tell you're drinking any alcohol."

It is sweet, without a doubt, but it works.  It's similar to any sour drink you'd make, and since the vodka isn't imparting any noticeable flavor, you're going to get a lot of the lime juice on your palate.

Alright friends - I'm off to see some music!  See you next week!

Celeb_U_Bot Update

We're bumping the Celeb_U_Bot to tomorrow's agenda as a result of one too many glasses of wine consumed the night before.  Sometimes, drinking gets in the way of drinking.  :)

See you tomorrow!

Canecutter

Today we are drinking the Canecutter, a cocktail I found at the drinksmixer.com website, a clearinghouse for drink recipes.  It's a good resource for finding random drinks or shots, and you can search by the alcohol or drink name.  Much of it is reader-submitted, so use a discerning eye, lest you find yourself mixing 1 part Everclear and 1 part tonic (maybe that's your drink of choice, I don't know).

Canecutter
Recipe available here: http://www.drinksmixer.com/drink2673.html

1 oz dark rum
1 oz Kahlua
Coke
Ice
Ice first, then add rum, Kahlua and fill with Coca Cola. 

I wasn't entirely convinced of this drink until I tasted it.  It is really good!  Each component can be tasted, and together, it is one hell of a cocktail.  When you think about it, these flavors pair well together - coffee, dark rum, and coke make sense.  They are each rich in their own way, and over ice, the drink isn't excessively sweet. 

I think I used about 1.5-2oz of Coke, adding it to the top of the drink.  It ends up being the right amount to add.  Any more, and you're diluting the flavor in the alcohol.  Dark rum and Kahlua are fairly easy drinking, as alcohols go, making this a smooth cocktail all around.

I'd drink this before a night out and about.  It's a good pre-bar cocktail, because it isn't too sweet, it isn't too heavy, and when served over ice, it's fairly refreshing.  I could definitely see myself having more than one.

On Thursday we're drinking the Celeb_U_Bot, a vodka based cocktail you won't want to miss!  And, if time permits, we'll do a special scotch entry, continuing our ongoing series on the alcohol on Friday.

Have a great Tuesday!

What We're Drinking This Week

We've got a busy week ahead, with a couple interesting cocktails served up on Tuesday and Thursday.  But first, we have the obligatory Soundtrack of the Week as well as an extended foray into the Book of the Week.  If you just want to see what we're drinking, scroll down to the bottom, I won't be offended.

Soundtrack of the Week:  Arcade Fire "The Suburbs"  When Arcade Fire burst onto the scene in 2005, they were a revelation.  Their music was intricate, sincere, and resonated in a way that other bands could not imitate.  Try and listen to Rebellion without wanting to run through a brick wall, I dare you.  But after their debut album "Funeral", Arcade Fire turned in an album that was good but not great.  Hardly a sophomore slump by any means, "Neon Bible" just had to follow one of the best albums of the last 10 years - not a small feat to achieve.

With much of the weight from past success behind them, Arcade Fire's newest effort offers some classic songs.  The title track The Suburbs is crushing.  The lyric "Sometimes I can't believe it, I'm moving past the feeling" is stunning within the song, and a great line all its own.  The song Modern Man kicks the lyrical can further down the road, when Win sings "So I wait in line, I'm a modern man; and the people behind me, they can't understand; make me feel like; something don't feel right."

It's fitting that Mad Men's newest season coincides with the release of this album.  Both the TV show and this album heavily rely upon the notion that suburban life, modern life, are both incredibly false in their nature.  Arcade Fire has built out a niche with social commentary, and serious reflections of the modern family.  "The Suburbs" seems in many ways to be its own follow-up to "Funeral", almost a prequel to a family's existence and lives. 

"The Suburbs" comes out tomorrow.

Book of the Week: "Bananas: The Fate of the Fruit That Changed the World" by Dan Koeppel

As you have likely gathered by now, I'm a sucker for books about food (I recommended Apples by Frank Browning a few weeks back).  Bananas is a rather striking book, largely because at least half of the book is a discussion of the various maladies that threaten the banana's existence. 

We eat one variety of banana, the Cavendish.  If you go to a specialty store, you might find a couple other banana varieties, but 99% of the US market is Cavendish bananas.  Compare this to the apple market, and it's a very different beast.  We can buy upwards of a dozen apple varieties at a given store.  Bananas though - Cavendish.

Why is that?  Well, long story short - the Cavendish is one of the few bananas that had a taste-profile that was acceptable to the US market, while also ripe (see what I did there?) for production and seeming immunity to the main disease at the time of its rise in prominence, Panama disease.  The Cavendish replaced the Gros Michael banana in the 1950s, after the Gros Michel (considered a superier banana in taste) succumbed to Panama disease.

Like any monoculture, the banana plant faces serious threats from disease because if the plant is not resistant to a particular ailment, the entire crop will suffer.  The Cavendish is threatened primarily by Panama disease and Black Sagitoka.  Both diseases threaten the banana supply.  Once either malady reaches a banana crop, all of the banana plants in the area are done-for. 

At the moment, scientists are working to find a replacement to the Cavendish, a banana that is resistant to Panama disease and Black Sagitoka.  It's not an easy task though, as bananas are extremely difficult to reproduce.

I think Bananas is an excellent primer on the subject of the fruit, delving a little too briefly at times on the effect it has had on various developing countries.  No doubt entire books could be written on the destructive path United Fruit (now Chiquita) tore through much of South America and the Caribbean. 

So, with that, here's What We're Drinking This Week:

- Tuesday - Canecutter - Rum based, with some Kahlua and Coke, served over ice.

- Thursday - Celeb_U_Bot - Taken from the Svedka vodka cocktail archives - featuring vodka, lime juice, sugar, and a small amount of lemon juice.  Sound good.

See you all tomorrow!