Binny's Blog

Cranberry Ginger Snap sounds like a delightful holiday cookie or maybe a cocktail based on a delightful holiday cookie; but really, it's one of a long line of riffs on the Whiskey Sour.

We have four, yes four, recipes for you today. What’s with the horn o’ plenty-like abundance? It’s Thanksgiving and Thanksgiving is all about more; more food, more drink, more family, more friends, more love, more groaning in pain due to overindulgence and more Amaro to rectify that situation. 

Greg 2.0 is the other Greg at the Binny's offices. He's a longtime listener and he jumped at the chance to come on the podcast. He wanted to share his passion for gin, specifically local gins that are more in the Modern American style.

Try Binny's Home Bartender “Tree of a Perfect Pear” sparkling wine cocktail recipe made with Prosecco, spiced pear liqueur, Cointreau and lemon juice. It’s the perfect Thanksgiving cocktail for kicking off the festivities.

This pumpkin soup is garnished with crème fraîche, pumpkin seeds, and pumpkin seed oil and is simple to make yet sophisticated enough to serve as an early course for more formal Thanksgiving celebrations or autumnal dinner parties. The soup itself is naturally sweet, a little spicy and velvety smooth. The embellishments take it to the next level.

Who shot Tom Collins? is a cocktail in the form of a question, and a Halloween murder mystery that is quenchingly delicious. Most importantly it’s a modern Australian riff on the classic Tom Collins; A recipe that dates back in written form to the 1880s but is likely much older, with roots in British punch traditions featuring Gin, sugar, and lemon. So, mix up a drink or two and settle in for a purely apocryphal yarn of murder, mayhem, and meat pies. Umm... sorry, sorry, we just got word; there will be no meat pies.

This is what the G&T was meant to be from London to Gibraltar to Mumbai to sweltering late summer Chicago; simple to make, complexly layered, ultimately quenching and loaded with character. Mercifully, the colonial era is largely over but may the sun never set on the Gin and Tonic!

The original Americano cocktail is, of course, somewhat bitter being a blend of Campari (Red Amaro), Sweet Vermouth and soda. That is the bitter root of the matter but today we bring the Americanos together in a riff, a combo, an Americano, ‘mericano and as far as we know it was invented right here at Binny’s in the U.S. of A.

This mixologist must confess to enjoying a good Gin Sling every now and then. In fact, in the wake of Roger’s herbal tour de force of a Pimm’s Cup riff, featured on “Barrel to Bottle: The Binny’s Podcast” Savory Cocktails, we were enjoying our own riff on that classic Gin Sling. In addition to the usual suspects, we added diced peach and a bit of savory cherry shrub, among other things. Wow! What a drink that turned out to be. A great and serendipitous riff.

The Tuxedo cocktail is a highfalutin riff on the Martini with Fino Sherry in place of the Vermouth. It’s potent, crisp, and tangy from the Sherry and makes for a fun Martini alternative whether at a black-tie event or a backyard BBQ.