Rapture

I am currently working on a very special project, and this cocktail was the result of experimentation for that.  I love playing with unusual liqueurs and ingredients, and I thoroughly believe that cognac and brandy need to make even more of a comeback in cocktails than they already have, and this is just one of my contributions to that end.  The photo was taken amidst my collection of YA and faery fiction...haha.  It works, as it's a little dark, a little mysterious, and deliciously decadent...yet surprisingly light.  I'm thinking chocolate mole bitters might twist this down a much darker, yet still delicious, path.

Rapture
Glass:  Small cocktail
Method:  Shake and Strain
Garnish:  No garnish.

Ingredients:
.5 oz Meukow VS cognac
.5 oz Nux Alpine walnut liqueur
3 drops Pure Vanilla extract
1 dash Regan's orange bitters
1 dash Bitter Truth's Xocolatl Mole bitters
1 oz Fonesca Bin 127 ruby port

Lady Godiva's Stand

With Valentine's Day creeping around the corner I've decided to work on a list of special drinks for Valentine's weekend.  Given that Valentine's is typically a chocolate sort of day, I couldn't resist using one of my guilty pleasure liqueurs for the occasion:  Godiva Chocolate (chocolate chocolate...not white chocolate.  Ew, white chocolate).  

I wanted to do something similar to (but not) your run-of-the-mill chocolate martini, so it was clear from the start that I absolutely Was. Not. going to use vodka in this one.  Cognac seemed like a natural choice--the sweetness and flavors would work beautifully together.  This past summer at Tales of the Cocktail, I was introduced to a lovely product called Meukow Vanilla cognac.  As a result, when I was choosing my bar, instead of Korbel or Christian Bros. brandy I chose to use Meukow VS as my go-to brandy/cognac.  The Meukow turned out to be the perfect choice for this cocktail.

Lady Godiva's Stand
Glass:   Large cocktail glass (in the 9-10oz range)
Method:  Shake and strain
Garnish:  Fresh grating of chocolate on surface


.75 oz Meukow VS cognac
.75 oz  Godiva (regular) Chocolate liqueur
.5 oz     DiSaronno Amaretto liqueur
.25 oz   Simple syrup
3 oz      Heavy cream


Shake with ice and strain into a large cocktail glass.  Grate Godiva dark chocolate over the top to garnish (Tip: keep the chocolate bar frozen until ready to use.  This will make for easier grating).


On Naming:  The legend of Lady Godiva's infamous ride to protest her husband's taxation was the base for this name.  I wanted to use "Godiva" in the name since it is such a recognizable brand around Valentine's (and it's in the drink, of course!), but I also really wanted to pay homage to the legend of the woman.  Like Lady Godiva, this is a lovely drink with a bit of backbone to it.