HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU ALL!

Here's wishing you and yours a wonderful Holiday Season. May you be blessed with Good Health, Prosperity, Lots of Love & Happiness and Great Cocktails!

Herb Westphalen

THE TARTAN-- MOVE OVER COSMO!

I had the pleasure of creating the "Next Iconic Beverage" according to NEXT Magazine in NYC. "THE TARTANTM" is my new libation, featuring the flavor trends and taste profiles for the next decade. NEXT is currently highlighting the last 5 decades of primo cocktails in the magazine, focusing on THE TARTAN as the "FUTURE", "the next bar star." Please try the TARTAN COCKTAIL today. I'd love to know your opinion. Thanks!

CORPORATE HOLIDAY PARTY COCKTAILS

As many of you know, I create specialty cocktails for Corporate Events. I had the pleasure of concocting two drinks for the QUEST SOFTWARE holiday party. The client requested a SHOOTER and a SEASONAL COCKTAIL with a more masculine profile. The UNIFIED SHOOTERTM illustrated the QUEST logo colors while the VISTA COCKTAILTM promoted product with a seasonal flair, using an Apple Cider base.

If you would like an original cocktail for your company, product or event, please call me at 212-684-6521 or email me at Herb@SignatureCocktailCreations.com.

Check out my website for additional information.

THE 12 DRINKS OF CHRISTMAS

The 12 Days of Christmas deserve The 12 Drinks of Christmas. By the time you get shopping, cooking, cleaning and partying, you'll need these tasty libations to ease the holiday stress.

On the First Day of Christmas my true love mixed for me...

1. Hot Apple Cider laced with PEAR Liqueur.

2. A Zyr Vodka Chocolate Martini made with DOVE Chocolate Martini Mix.

3. A HENnessey Sidecar with Cointreau and fresh Lemon Juice

4. A glass of BlackBIRD Vineyard Arriviste Rose, with a dash of Nutmeg Simple Syrup and Pomegranate seeds

5. A chilled shot of GOLDschlager

6. A Grey GOOSE Peppermint Cosmo

7. Seagram's 7 and 7

8. Egg Nogg MILKshake laced with Bailey's Irish Cream

9. Mulled Wine made with DANCING Hares Vineyard Cabernet Franc

10. House of LORDS vintage Gin Martini, very dry

11. PIPER Heidsieck Champagne Cocktail

12. 12 Year Glenfiddich Single Malt Scotch, Neat!

Happy Holidays to you all!

COCKTAILS FOR DOGS

My girl Anna loves a "Cockertail" when she gets in from a day of playing in the snow.

No need to leave your best friend out of the Holiday Celebrations. When your guests come for cocktails, include your dogs! Check out these festive and healthy Holiday "Cockertails". Each one is alcohol-free and has a taste your fuzzy loved ones will adore; "Pooch Punch", "The Dirty Muttini" and "The Whisker Sour". 

POOCH PUNCH (Serves a houseful of pups)

1/2 Gallon of fresh Water

2 oz Fresh Wheat Grass Juice

2 oz K-9 Liquid Health Glucosamine

Mix and serve in a large Punch Bowl

Garnish with a Tablespoon of Fresh Grass Clippings

THE DIRTY MUTTINI (serves one)

1 Cup of Fresh Water

1/2 Cup of Fresh Beef Broth, chilled (do not use canned or store-bought as it usually contains onions)

Mix and serve in a Low Martini Bowl

Garnish with a plain Ground Beef Meatball

THE WHISKER SOUR (serves one)

1 Cup of Fresh Water

1/2 Cup of Fresh Chicken Broth, chilled (do not use canned or store-bought as it usually contains onions)

Mix and Serve in a Footed Bowl

Garnish with a Happy Hips Chicken Strip

Here's to keeping our furry friends Happy, Healthy & Safe during the Holiday Season!

I hope you and your pups enjoy these special Cocktails for Dogs.

HOT APPLE PIE MARTINI

Well, it's officially cold! Time to warm yourselves with a great winter libation: The Hot Apple Pie Martini. I originally created this seasonal cocktail for a restaurant in NYC's Greenwich Village. The Hot Apple Pie Martini is always served warm. Whip up a few for friends and family and get your holidays started right!

HOT APPLE PIE MARTINI

1 oz Vanilla Vodka

1 oz Sour Apple / Apple Pucker Liqueur

3 oz Warm Apple Cider (not juice)

Mix 3 Tablespoons of Castor Sugar with 1 Teaspoon of Cinnamon for the rim

Lemon Juice for the rim

Moisten rim of Martini Glass with Lemon Juice

Coat rim with Cinnamon Sugar

Shake up ingredients and pour into Martini Glass

Garnish with a Lemon Twist & Cinnamon Stick

Rachel Rosales Birthday Cocktail

Happy Birthday Rachel! The "Rachel-tini" has been created for your birthday celebration. Time to paint the town RED. The ingredients sooth the throat and tickle the pallet. The rose petal garnish celebrates the many bouquets bestowed upon her for her many operatic successes. So raise your glasses and toast the Diva; Brava Rachel!

Check out this hot Mamma's amazing voice!

What Vassar Collage Department of Music says about Rachel:

"Blessed with a sumptuous voice of magnificent proportions, soprano RACHEL ROSALES is capable of delivering the fiery intensity of Verdi's most demanding works or spinning out the delicate filigree of Handel's intricate embellishments and has achieved both popular and critical acclaim on stages in opera, oratorio and solo recitals."

HERB'S CUSTOM BITTERS

My original custom bitters formulas will fit your favorite Cocktail Lover's tastes perfectly.

Bitters, by definition, are spirits of varying strengths flavored with roots, herbs or fruit, used to create depth of flavor to cocktails. Used in this country for over 200 years, bitters started out with medicinal purposes. Among the popular brands: Angostura, Fee Brothers, Gary Regans' and Peychauds.

What better gift to give a true cocktail lover but Custom Bitters based on their flavor profile. Pair that with their own Signature Cocktail (using their own bitters of course) and you have the perfect holiday gift.

QUEEN OF SHEBA COCKTAIL

I recently created this cocktail for an Ethiopian restaurant. It features "Q" Quintessential Gin.

The cocktail is based on the gifts given to King Solomon from the Queen of Sheba; Gold and exotic spices. 

If you're looking for an original, tasty cocktail for your restaurant, contact me. Thanks and enjoy imbibing!

OBAMA COCKTAIL

WOW! What an election. I had the pleasure of creating a cocktail in honor of our president elect for an Election Night Party with the wonderful Ken (NYC Rock Radio DJ Deluxe) & Jane (actress extraordinaire) Dashow. The hit of the party was The Obama-Rama cocktail. It is just like the man himself: Strong, colorful & elegant (and the more you drink, the more hopeful you become...)

For more fun, creative and elegant cocktails, check out my website. Thanks.

HALLOWEEN COCKTAIL FUN!

Scary Cocktails with Eyeballs, Chunks of Human Flesh & Bubbling Slime!

 

Thanks to the wonderful staff of WINE HEAVEN for hosting the demo & tasting!

Working my magic creating some original Halloween concoctions.

"Frankenstein's Lab", "Hannibal Lecter" & "Witches Brew" all get a toast by happy revelers at the WINE HEAVEN store demonstration.

HALLOWEEN COCKTAIL DEMONSTRATION

Please join me for a FREE Halloween Cocktail Demo at WINE HEAVEN on Sunday, October 26, 2008. I will be featuring three of my original Halloween libations: Witches Brew, Frankenstein's Lab & Hannibal Lecter. Learn how to make these creepy, great tasting cocktails for your own Halloween celebrations. Your guests will be freaked out and delighted! Hope to see you there.

SPECIALTY BARTENDER FOR YOUR HALLOWEEN PARTY

I hope you are enjoying my Halloween cocktails. Please keep in mind that I am available to create these and other great cocktails at your party, in or out of costume. Halloween is just a few weeks away. Leave a message if you'd like to book me for your party. You can contact me through my website as well.

Happy Halloween everybody!

Herb

HALLOWEEN COCKTAILS FRANKENSTEIN'S LAB

"Frankenstein's Lab" is a new cocktail I created to enhance the "creepy" factor at your Halloween Party. The drink tastes great and will freak out your guests. So, "Here's looking at you!"

FRANKENSTEIN'S LAB

1 oz Midori Melon Liqueur

1 oz Matusalem Platino Rum

1 oz Master of Mixes Whiskey Sour Mixer

1/2 oz. Lychee Syrup

EYEBALL Garnish

2 Lychee nuts (canned in syrup)

2 fresh blueberries

(Place one blueberry into each pitted lychee nut hole)

MIX

Shake Midori, Rum, Sour Mix & Lychee Syrup with ice in shaker.

Strain into tall narrow glass over 2 Eyeball garnish

For more Creepy Halloween Cocktails contact Herb at:

Herb@SignatureCocktailCeations.com

or through the website.

WICKED WINEHOUSE HALLOWEEN COCKTAIL

I created this Halloween cocktail in honor of one of this worlds scariest creatures: Amy Winehouse. Good thing she wasn't around in the 1930's or Margaret Hamilton would have been out of a job!

In keeping with the Winehouse lifestyle, (without actually promoting substance abuse) I've used ingredients that will keep you going all night at your favorite haunts.

Here's how to make a "WICKED WINEHOUSE":

Ingredients

1 oz Midori Melon Liqueur

1 oz V2 Energy Vodka

1 oz R2 Energy Rum

1 oz T2 Energy Tequila

1 oz Hendrick's Gin

3 oz Sprite Zero

A handful of Mike & Ike Candy (to look like pills)

1 tsp Powdered Sugar (to sprinkle not snort)

Mix

-In a cocktail shaker with ice, mix all liquor

-Pour into a large snifter, add Sprite

-Throw in a handful of Mike & Ike Candies

-Dust the top with powdered sugar

HALLOWEEN COCKTAIL Featuring MIDORI & V2 MINT VODKA

"Terrors of the Deep" Halloween Cocktail would knock good ole' Captain Nemo right on his Nautilus! Layered cocktails are a fun and exciting trend in the industry right now. Impress your friends with this simple, colorful and potent libation. V2 Mint Vodka, Midori melon liqueur, citrus and a touch of ginger blend for a tasty treat in this concoction. Feel free to mix it up before you drink it down for a scary, murky sea bottom drink! Check out more seasonal cocktails on my web site.

BOLS GENEVER RELEASE IN NYC

   

   The "original gin" has come to the Big Apple, and the US! Bols, established in the late 1500's in Holland, has "updated" its Genever (or Jenever in Dutch) recipe based on the 1820 formula. Lucus Bols began distilling the world's favorite genevers in 1664. The current spirit (now protected in its own catagory) is a combination of Maltwine and a blend of botanicals. 

   Unlike London Dry Gin, this spirit has a rounded malt character to it. The botanicals add depth without screaming juniper.

   Check out my upcoming post this week for my own original GENEVER recipe: "Vermeer's Pearl Earring" and try the cocktail yourself.

MIXED EMOTIONS

My mascot, MIXIE, will be appearing from time to time with some suggestions. With Halloween coming up next month, he suggests using MIDORI melon liqueur in some of your favorite holiday cocktails. I will feature some of those recipes in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!

HEATHER MILLS / PAUL McCARTNEY DIVORCE COCKTAIL

I have had many requests to post this favorite from the April 2008 MIXOLOGY MONTHLY. I created it in honor of the Mills/McCartney divorce. Take a look and please comment. Yes, I know it's irreverent, that's the idea!

CHEERS MAGAZINE INTERVIEW

The latest issue of CHEERS Magazine, September 2008, features an article by Martha Russis entitled "One Size Doesn't Fit All, The right glass can make or break a quality drink" on page 44. I was interviewed for the "COCKTAIL CLASSICS" segment. Please check it out. As many of you know, I believe that the proper glass form is important when serving classic cocktails. There is good reason they had stood the test of time. Newer styles of libations give room for play and creativity. Practicality and appropriateness should not take a back seat to inventiveness.

FERGUS IN THE GRASS

Wonderful friends of mine, Jen & Marc, were married this summer in NYC. They hosted a casual rooftop BBQ celebration in honor of their nuptials. I had the pleasure of creating a Signature Wedding Cocktail for the event. When asked what they would like the drink to represent, they said "Fergus, of course!" Fergus is their adorable and very headstrong pup. So, Here's "Fergus in the Grass."

The cocktail featured some great summer flavors, including muddled fresh Kiwi fruit. The garnish was a hand-dipped chocolate & chocolate chip decorated marshmallow; an edible FERGUS head.

Congrats Jen, Marc & Fergus!

MIXOLOGY MONTHLY May 2008

Here's an example of my e-newsletter "Mixology Monthly". This one featured "The Three Candidates" (Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama & John McCain) before the Primary Election. Coming in October: "The Veeps".

Vijay Amritraj Foundation Event

I had the honor of creating two original cocktails for the Vijay Amritraj Foundation event at the private Akhoury estate on Saturday, September 6, 2008. For those of you who may not know who Vijay is, he is one of the world's most celebrated Indian tennis players, as well as an actor (James Bond & Star Trek films). His foundation helps the most needy and often forgotten people suffering in India. www.vijayamritrajfoundation.org

The two cocktails I created, "The Clay Court" & "The Grass Court", had Tennis themes and incorporated the flavors of India (cardamom, curry and tamarind).

Seasonal Cocktails

Welcome to my Cocktail Blog

I look forward to sharing creative cocktail ideas with you, keeping you posted on events I am participating in and offering information on trends in the cocktail industry.

I have been creating unique cocktails since the early 1980's, when I had my own specialty catering group "Creative Fine Dining." Since then I have continued to experiment with fresh herbs and spices, unusual ingredients and over-the-top presentations. 

I will soon offer a link to sign up for my e-newsletter "Mixology Monthly", where I present fun, quirky and insanely current cocktails.

Thanks for joining me in my passion for original cocktails!

Please check out my website.

Herb