Cold Whiskey Punch a new American tradition

When I was growing up, when someone would mention punch, the first thing that came to mind was the Hawaiian punch concentrate with water and ice that my mother would serve at a party.  This is far cry from the punches of the nineteenth century that were all the rage at any party or bar of choice. Once again it is back in fashion and popular at several drinking establishments.  

One such of these delicious libations is the cold whiskey punch and was called an iced monongahela punch by a journalist of the Brooklyn Eagle informed his readers in the New Orleans in 1852. The ingredients when mixed together sounds so scrumptious, even the most finicky of drinkers may ask for a second drink.

Cold Whiskey Punch

One teaspoon of powdered white sugar
Juice of half a lemon or lime
3 oz of Rye Whiskey such as Rittenhouse
Two dashes of Jamaican Rum
One glass of shaved ice


Shake all ingredients together and pour into a stem punch glass with ice, garnish with two slices of lemon or other seasonal fruit and serve with a straw.


God bless and Cheers,

John Apodaca
john@daddyosmartinis.com

Using Eggs in Cocktails

Being involved in the craft cocktail movement and knowing a few things about mixology there's been some question about the use of eggs or egg whites in cocktails from the last few centuries as well as present day drinks.

Eggs have been an integral ingredient in cocktails for at least the last two hundred years.  They add a silky frothiness, and body that a cocktail wouldn’t have otherwise.  The reason the egg was removed from many cocktails in the last few decades was from some bad publicity.  At some point in time it was stated that “eating raw eggs could lead to serious illness from salmonella.”

The FDA states that only 1 in 20,000 eggs has the salmonella bacteria. Nowhere does the National Safety Council's data state that raw eggs are a common risk; however, death from choking on food is rated at 1 in 5000 odds.  The odds of getting salmonella from an egg are extremely remote and you have a better chance of dying from accidental drowning (1 in 1,000), a storm related accident (1 in 3,000) or slipping (1 in 6,500).

Some drinks that include egg or egg whites are the following:  The Los Angeles cocktail, Tom and Jerry, whiskey sour, pisco sour and my own Angels Flight.  Try a few of these and you'll be a hit at your upcoming parties for the holidays.

Cheers & God bless,

John Apodaca

john@daddyosmartinis.com