Friday Happy Hour

I don't know about y'all, but this has been a hell of a week. I worked all day Saturday and Sunday leading up to this week to prepare for a trial on Monday. I had multiple hearings on every other day, so I'm pretty wiped out.

It's almost beer-o'clock, so don't come looking for any deep content from me. My legal advice is to enjoy your weekend.

I suggest grilling something while drinking something cold. A gin and tonic with a splash of Cheerwine? I'm game.

Enjoy your weekend.

Friday Happy Hour: 22 Reasons to Drink More Whiskey

Happy Friday. As if you needed a reason...

Friday Happy Hour: Vodka

Enjoy the first Friday Happy Hour of 2013, y'all. Did you know that vodka is the world's number one selling spirit?

Friday Happy Hour (Southern Beer)

If you like to beat the heat by enjoying a cold beverage, Garden and Gun has some Southern summer beer recommendations.

I've never had any of these. If you have, let me know.

Friday Happy Hour

The Old Fashioned:

1 large and uneven slice of lemon peel
1 rough-cut brown sugar cube
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 dash Regan’s Orange 
Bitters No. 6
No more than 1 oz. water
2 large ice cubes
2 oz.  bourbon
Small triangle of orange slice for garnish

Add the lemon peel, sugar cube, and both bitters into the bottom of an old-fashioned glass. Using a wooden muddler, begin to muddle the ingredients firmly but not violently in the bottom of the glass, working the muddler in a circle. The tapered shape of the glass allows you to perform this task with ease.

Add the water, and continue to muddle for a bit longer. Add the ice and then the bourbon. Stir with a spoon. Float the thinly sliced orange on top of the drink (not wedged onto the side of the glass), and serve.

Friday Happy Hour (Abita Turbodog)

Abita Turbodog. It's delicious, from Louisiana, and it's fun to say. Try it out.

Tub of Tasty Turbodogs

Friday Happy Hour (Best Bloody Mary Ever)

You know the scene all too well. It's early on Saturday morning, and you partied pretty hard on Friday night. You stayed up late, had a little too much fun, and you're paying for it at 7:00AM.

However, you know that you can't drink all day if you don't start in the morning, so it's time for a Bloody Mary. It's just the right combination of juice and alcohol to ease you out of the morning hangover and into the long Saturday of recovery (or more drinking).

Most of the time, I'm making these somewhere besides the kitchen (tailgate, someone else's kitchen, at the beach) I finally decided to go through what I like to put in Bloody Mary's and write it down. Behold: the Best Bloody Mary Ever. You can thank me later.

Ingredients
This makes for a big pitcher, about 8 or so drinks (depending on the size of your serving)

2 1/2 cups vodka (you'll need this)
1 quart of tomato juice (or regular V8; I don't go with the new kinds)
1/4 cup horseradish (NOT horseradish sauce - big difference there, bro)
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce (that's a hard word to spell)
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon regular, red tabasco (or more, depending on your taste)
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (stay away from the concentrate)
1/4 teaspoon celery salt
1 teaspoon grated fresh onion
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
 
Put all that in your big pitcher. Mix it up. Pour it into a glass (have some ice already in the glass). Add a stick of whatever kind of garnish you like (celery, pickled okra, olives) with top it with fresh ground black pepper. Enjoy your morning and try to remember what you did last night.

Friday Happy Hour

College Football is here my children. Feel its hearty embrace as all the cares of your work-week fade into oblivion when you watch your favorite team hit the field. For this sweetest of all Saturdays, don't get fancy. Just get the Permanent Press recommended drink and enjoy the pageantry.

Friday Happy Hour

You never knew that Champagne could kick your rear, did you?

Friday Happy Hour

First of all; FRIDAY! Ok, with that out of the way, on to the happy hour post.

I'm certainly no expert on scotch, and I don't have it too often, but when I do, it's very enjoyable. Currently, one of my favorites is "The Lasanta" from Glenmorangie.

 

Probably a large part of why I like it is because it's aged in ex-bourbon casks for 10 years and then ex-sherry casks for 2 more years. This give the whisky a softer, sweeter, more bourbon-style taste to it than a traditional whisky. "Lasanta" is Gaelic for warmth and passion, and this whisky certainly has plenty of warmth. If you're a scotch drinker, and you're looking for something interesting, give this one a try.

Friday Happy Hour

I know it's hot. Welcome to Columbia, bro. If you're looking to cool off after work, I would suggest going to the movies. Unfortunately, all the summer blockbuster movies are done, so we're in the movie dead period which lasts until late in the fall. Therefore, I recommend you find a friend who has a pool (maintaining your own pool is so time consuming) and kick back with one of these:

 Planter's Punch

Planter’s Punch is a classic pre-Prohibition drink that involves dark rum, fruit juice, and a splash of grenadine. It's probably how Mark Twain was beating the heat back in the day along the Mississippi. If you're a guy who's intimidated by mixed drinks - man up, it's just a damn drink.

Planter’s Punch:
Serves 1
1 ½ oz. Myers’s Rum
¾ oz. freshly squeezed orange juice
¾ oz. pineapple juice
dash of grenadine
Shake and serve over ice. Garnish with an orange slice and cherry.

Drink and repeat as necessary.


[H/T Garden and Gun]

Friday Happy Hour

You may be familiar with Columbia's new marketing line "Famously Hot". I heard someone proposed changing just the first word - but still having the first word start with the letter "F".

Since it's Famously hot today, here's a happy hour drink to beat the heat (below the jump)

Friday Happy Hour

PP is dreaming of lying in a hammock, drinking a Mambo Taxi from Mi Cocina in Dallas, Texas. A drink accessible through a bendy straw is essential; you wouldn't want to accidentally do a sit up in this Torrid Triple Digit Heat. 

Friday Happy Hour Drink Post

Every Friday afternoon I'm going to try and put up a drink post. Depending on the situation it could be anything from a simple cold beer to a serious cocktail. Today, it's hot. It's summer. You're tired of working, and you're ready for happy hour. We'll start with a classic drink today:

 The Permanent Press Gin and Tonic

Start with 3-4 large ice cubes in a rocks glass.

Pour 1.75 oz. (No, I'm not converting to the metric system) of Bombay Sapphire Gin into the glass.

Squeeze a freshly cut lime wedge into glass and drop the lime in.

Top with tonic water and DO NOT STIR. The bubbles of the tonic water will mix everything sufficiently. Stirring the drink will simply flatten the tonic water.

Enjoy. Repeat as needed.