2.5 oz. Citrus Vodka
1 oz. simple syrup (1 cup sugar to 1 cup water, mix ahead of time and store in fridge)
1 juice of 1/2 lemon
1 juice of 1/2 lime
8 (or so) cilantro leaves
sugar for rimming
crushed ice

Muddle the leaves with some crushed ice in the bottom of a shaker then add some more crushed ice. Add vodka, simple syrup, lemon and lime and shake well. Let sit for a minute while you rim a chilled martini glass and add a lime wedge. Shake again, strain and enjoy!  Thank you Mary!

If you do serve it as a punch, a fun way to serve it would be to use the watermelon as the punch bowl.  Cut off the top only of the watermelon to scoop it out.  This was you have a bowl shape remaining. 

Watermelon and summer go hand and hand so you can’t go wrong with this delicious drink!

Watermelon Chiller (Punch)

One Watermelon (6lbs)

12 oz vodka

12oz lemon lime soda

¼ cup fresh lime juice

Scoop out the watermelon.  Puree, strain and put in a bowl.  Stir in vodka, soda and lime juice.  Garnish drinks with green apple slice or lime

We recently decided we needed a hot, holiday drink to offer our guests this weekend.  One of our innkeepers suggested an Egg Nog Latte.  Nothing says Christmas like egg nog!  All of you who make cappuccino at home can try this delicious drink too.  In place of milk, just add hot eggnog.  We offer an alcoholic version also in which we add spiced rum. (YUM!)  Egg nog does not froth very well so you may have to top it off with steamed milk.   Sprinkle some Gingerbread Spice on top, throw in a festive candy cane and ta-da!  A cup of hot, holiday cheer!

Everyone who’s been to the Hartstone Inn knows that we love cocktails.  At any given time we feature up to ten “specialty” cocktails that we offer to our guests both during cocktail hour and at dinner.  The latest drink that we are crazy about is the “Moscow Mule”.

History

The Moscow Mule was ”born” in the 1940′s and was a popular cocktail of the 50′s and 60′s.  The story goes that John G. Martin of G.F. Heublein Brothers, Inc., who bought the rights to Smirnoff in 1939 was on a mission to market his “white whiskey” as an alternative to gin.  Gin was widely popular at the time in the U.S. and vodka was not.  He met John “Jack” A. Morgan, owner of a ginger beer franchise at a bar in Los Angeles in 1941 and came up with the idea for the Moscow Mule, a mutually beneficial cocktail!  They ordered engraved copper mugs and bought one of the first Polaroid cameras.  They then began to market their new drink to bars across the country.  The two would ask bartenders to pose for a picture with their copper mug and a bottle of Smirnoff vodka.  They would then take the photo to neighboring bars to show them what the competition had to offer in hopes to get them to sell the new drink too. 

Smirnoff vodka sales tripled between 1947 and 1950 with much credit going to the trendy new drink.  The name they say is for two reasons.  “Moscow” because Smirnoff began at a distillery in Moscow and vodka was considered to be mainly a Russian spirit at the time. “Mule” was because of the “kick” from the ginger beer.  The Russian connection proved to have consequences in 1950 as Americans began to connect Smirnoff with the Communist Party.   Smirnoff denied any connection as it was now an American company and the uproar eventually passed.  Vodka now out sells all other spirits in the U.S. 3 to 1 and Smirnoff is today owned by a British company.   

The Moscow Mule is refreshing enough to be a summer drink but gingery enough to be “warm” in the winter!  Here is the recipe so you can make them at home or, come visit us and we’ll make one for you!

Moscow Mule

• 1 ounce vodka
• 1 tsp. sugar syrup
• Fresh lime juice
• 1/2 cup ginger beer
• 1 sprig fresh mint
• 1 slice of lime

Directions:

In a highball glasss or a copper mug (if you have one) pour vodka over ice. Add  sugar syrup and lime juice. Top with ginger beer and stir. Garnish with a slice of lime and a sprig of mint.

I feature the berries in the restaurant during July and they appear in everything from salad dressings and sorbet to breakfast trifles and muffins. Perhaps the most popular recipe is our Black Raspberry Mojito, perfect on a hot summer evening and equally popular during our evening cocktail hour. I have included the recipe below. If you don’t have your own black raspberry bush growing in your back yard, you can substitute either red raspberries, boysenberries  or blackberries. 
 

 Black Raspberry Mojito
1/2 cup of fresh mint leaves
4 teaspoons granulated sugar (or 2 packets Splenda)
2 limes
1/4 cup fresh black raspberries (or red )
3/4 cup light rum
1 cup club soda
2 sprigs of fresh mint for garnish

1.      Place the mint and sugar in a mortar and “muddle” it with the pestle. Squeeze in the lime juice and add half of the blackberries. Lightly crush the berries.
2.      Pour the mixture into a cocktail shaker and add the light rum and club soda. Shake to mix.
3.      Place 4 large cubes of ice in two rocks glasses and divide the drink equally between them.
4.      Garnish each glass with the remaining black raspberries and a sprig of fresh mint.

Ginger-Pomegranate Martini

4 oz ginger syrup (recipe below)

5 oz vodka

1 oz pomegranate syrup (Monin is a good brand)

1 oz lime juice

2 oz club soda, cold

1.  Place all of the ingredients except for the club soda in a cocktail shaker with 6 large ice cubes, cover and shake 10 times.

2.  Strain into a martini glass and divide the club soda between the glasses. Garnish with a few fresh pomegranate seeds, a slice of fresh ginger root and/or a wedge of lime on the rim.

Ginger Syrup

2 cups granulated sugar

2 cups water

1/4 cup grated fresh ginger root

1.  Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir to dissolve the sugar and simmer for 5 minutes.   

2.  Add the grated ginger and allow the mixture to steep for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight, placing it in the refrigerator when it has cooled.

3.  When cool, strain the syrup through a fine mesh strainer to remove all of grated ginger.

Make a thin layer of graham cracker crumbs on a small plate. Juice the limes and reserve. Take one of the squeezed lime halves and coat the rim of two martini glasses with lime juice. Invert the glass and dip the rim in the graham cracker crumbs to coat the rim. Place the glasses in the freezer to frost them. Mix the reserved lime juice, keke beach liqueur and vanilla vodka together in a cocktail shaker. Add the crushed ice, secure the top of the shaker and shake vigorously for 20 seconds. Strain the drink into 2 chilled martini glasses, garnish with a slice of lime and serve immediately.

Join us at the Hartstone Inn for cocktails between 5 and 7 p.m. on your next visit and take advantage of our “Happy Hour Specials”. Signature cocktails are only $5 and include such favorites as: Key Lime Martinis, Peach Martinis and Raspberry Mojitos.