Cowboy Cocktail: Pour 1 1/2 oz Scotch whisky and 1 tbsp light cream into a cocktail shaker half-filled with ice cubes. Shake well, strain into a cocktail glass, and serve.
Inspired by Author of the Day, Zane Grey and his descriptive books of the West. If you’ve never read Zane grey, here’s three great ones to sample: The Zane Grey Frontier Trilogy: Betty Zane, The Last Trail, The Spirit Of The Border.
Edith Day Cocktail. Pour 1.5 oz dry gin, 1 oz grapefruit juice, 1 egg and .5 teaspoon sugar into a cocktail shaker half-filled with ice cubes. Shake vigorously. Pour over shaved ice in a champagne flute. Stare out to sea. Embroider. Think of Ethan Frome.
Inspired by Author of the Day, Edith Wharton. She rocks. Her novel, House of Mirth is listed on The Greatest Books Of The 20th Century. And it is a great read. Another great find is her collection of ghost stories written for magazines of the day. Eleven pieces showcase her mastery of the traditional New England ghost story and her fascination with spirits, hauntings, and other supernatural phenomena. Called “flawlessly eerie” by Ms. magazine.
Cocktail: Lady Brown. Shake 1.5 oz gin, .75 oz Curacao and 2 teaspoons lemon juice together briefly and then serve over ice in a cocktail glass. Gin was once called “Genever” and originated way back in the 17th century.
Inspired by Author of the Day, Anya Seton. While she is generally known for her novel Katherine, I love Anya’s follow-up novel, The Winthrop Woman. This book details the life of a real woman, Elizabeth who married into the family of Governor John Winthrop of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the early 17th century … one of her three marriages… yeah, ’nuff said.
Cocktail: Gent of the Jury. In shaker, half-filled with ice, combine 2 oz gin and 1.5 tsp dry vermouth. Stir well. Strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with three cocktail onions.
Inspired by Author of the Day, Joseph Wambaugh’s The Onion Field which is the true accounting of young cops and robbers in L.A.
Cocktail: Prison Bitch. Shake 1 oz vodka, .5 oz triple sec, .5 oz amaretto almond liqueur, 2 oz cranberry juice and 2 oz orange juice with ice. Pour into tall glass. Threaten your drink a little. Curse. Feel tough.
Inspired by Author of the Day, Jack Henry Abbott’s In the Belly of the Beast: Letters from Prison shares stories of 25 years behind bars (he’s in his late 30s). Fascinating. Troubling. Compelling.
Cocktail: Orange Monk. In brandy snifter, pour 1.5 oz B & B Benedictine with 1 oz Grand Marnier liqueur. Savor.
Inspired by Author of the Day, R.A. Salvatore, a fantasy author this collection is one of my favorites. The Cleric Quintet Collector’s Edition tells the tale of the scholar-priest Cadderly, who is plucked from the halls of the Edificant Library to fulfill a heroic quest across the land of Faerûn. This one-volume collection includes all five of the original novels, complete and unabridged, with a new introduction by the author.
Cocktail: Black Baltimore. In a shaker half-filled with ice cubes, combine 2 oz brandy, 1 oz black sambuca and 1 egg. Shake well. Strain into a cocktail glass. Yeah… not for the weak but neither is the author.
Inspired by Author of the Day, Edgar Allen Poe, who brought me a great many delights. I can still hear the heart ticking… can you?
“Beauty of whatever kind, in its supreme development, invariably excites the sensitive soul to tears.” EAP
Cocktail: Pooh Bear. Pour 1 shot Jack Daniel’s Tennessee whiskey and cream soda over ice. Mmmmmmm
The complete set
Inspired by Author of the Day, A.A. Milne. Happy Birthday to the man who brought us Winnie and Tigger and Rabbit and Piglet. Take a walk back into the Hundred Acre Wood and rest for awhile.
Cocktail: Alcoholic Sherbert Delight. Combine 5 oz orange juice, 2 oz Absolut Mandrin vodka, 2 oz spiced rum, 1 oz gin and 2 dashes grenadine syrup in a highball glass. Be sure to make your first pour the OJ. Serve and delight.
Inspired by Author of the Day, Anne Brontë’s novel, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. Considered a classic, this book is fantastically gothic with its alcoholism, marital breakdown, and the position of women all set in Victorian society. Based some on dealing with her brother, Brontë’s novel scandalized then and still grips readers today. Indulge!
Cocktail: Black Witch. Shake 1.5 oz gold rum with a splashes of apricot brandy, dark rum and pineapple juice in with ice. Strain into a cocktail glass.
Inspired by Author of the Day, Graham Masterton, a horror author notable for dark humor and great plotting. The 5th Witch Black is a great thriller for those who enjoy witching, mobsters and magic.
