Let Me Drown

• 2.0 oz. Captain Morgan 100 proof
• 0.5 oz. espresso liqueur (Stirrings)
• 0.5 oz. Cynar
• 0.5 oz. lime juice

Shake with ice and strain into glass. Garnish with grated nutmeg.

The song is literally about drinking yourself to death, so I needed something boozy. And with a nautical theme. So I went with a 100 proof Captain Morgan to start it off. Because the drinking is to occur all night, the espresso liqueur is there to maintain the buzz. The sweetness is then cut with the bitterness of the Cynar and the tartness of the lime. Rereading this recipe after all this time, the nutmeg didn’t immediately make sense, but I actually liked it in the final drink, mostly for the nose and its combination with the espresso taste.

It’s an odd mix of flavors, but it packs a punch, which was the main point. There’s a bit of a conflict in it, which, if you know the song, makes some sense. This was Burrs point of no return. And so a fitting end to the wild party. Drink up.

Poor Child

• 2.0 oz. London Dry Gin
• 1.0 oz. Maurin Quina
• 0.5 oz. Dolin Blanc vermouth
• 1 dash orange bitters

Stir with ice and strain into coupe.

I have absolutely no idea where this one came from. I *think* that to represent the four singers in the quartet “Poor Child” I gave an ingredient to each, but for the life of me I don’t know why Black is London Dry Gin or Queenie is Maurin Quina (maybe I was playing on the word “Quina,” more obvious now that I type it out?). Burrs is bitter, I get it.

Whatever the concept was originally for this drink, it is tasty, so here it is. Forget the theme and just enjoy a sip. No poor child here.

Look at Me Now

• 2.0 oz. Bourbon
• 1.0 oz. lemon juice
• 0.75 oz. watermelon syrup
• 0.25 oz. St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram
• 2 dashes Fee’s Whiskey Barrel-Aged bitters
• 1 egg white

Dry shake all ingredients without ice, then shake with ice and strain into coupe.

The character of Kate in the show, in the middle of this song which serves as her introduction, has a great line: “Give me a bottle of bourbon and a half a chicken and I’ll conquer the world!” I just had to do something with bourbon and chicken. I had to.

After pondering a bit the possibility of trying to do some sort of chicken fat washed bourbon (I didn’t ponder it too long) I arrived at the idea of using the egg instead of the chicken. The rest is a bit of a modified sour, with watermelon syrup (riffing on a Southern theme) serving as the sweet. I can’t recall the exact motivation for the allspice dram, but trying the drink again after two years’ time I think it works, and this drink was my favorite of the bunch.

…though a bottle of bourbon and half a chicken sounds good, too.

Out of the Blue

• 2.0 oz. Magellan Gin
• 0.75 oz. Dolin Blanc vermouth
• 0.25 oz. Vanilla liqueur (Dr McGillicuddy’s)
• 3 dashes orange flower water

Stir above ingredients with ice and pour into glass rinsed with absinthe. Garnish with dollop of vanilla-infused whipped cream.

If you look at the image, it should be obvious that I went pretty literal for a song title that is figurative to the character. Still, I had the beautiful color of the Magellan gin and wanted to play off of that. The vermouth adds a little sweetness, but not cloyingly so. In fact, I wanted just a little more so added the vanilla liqueur (you could use a syrup instead, or, if you like your drinks drier, just skip it altogether). The orange flower water is subtle, but I felt a nice touch.

Originally I had used an alcohol-infused vanilla whipped cream. I couldn’t find it when remaking this drink (which I am glad for — I thought it was a very odd ingredient) so I simply whipped up some cream of my own with a little confectioner’s sugar and vanilla. It’s a fun effect but doesn’t do anything for the drink, so feel free leaving it off.

Of course, you could say the cloud foreshadows the events of the party. Best leave it in.

For this production I decided that all of the drinks would be based on songs, and the most appropriate way to start was with the title song.

Wild, Wild Party #1

• 1.0 oz. Applejack
• 0.75 oz. King’s Ginger Liqueur
• 5 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
• pinch of sea salt

Stir with ice and pour into cocktail glass. Top with 2.0 oz. Original Sin Cider.

As the song begins with the story of Adam and Eve and the forbidden fruit, using Original Sin Cider just seemed a natural choice. I immediately gravitated towards Applejack, and to spice things up I added both the ginger liqueur and a healthy dose of Peychaud’s which also contributed greatly to the color. I liked it, but it was tamer than I thought it should be. Thus:

Wild, Wild Party #2

• 1.0 oz. Rittenhouse Rye
• 1.0 oz. Aperol
• 3 dashes cayenne hot sauce
• pinch of sea salt

Stir with ice and pour into cocktail glass. Top with 2.0 oz. Original Sin Cider.

I liked the rye base much more as it stood out against the cider, yet worked well with it. The Aperol gave some great color and a little sweet and bitterness, and the necessary sinful bite was added using the hot sauce. A much more wild variation.

But the party’s just getting started.