“Mat pooch ke kya haal hai mera teray peechey
Tu dekh ke kya rang tera meray aage”
Very powerful and romantic words from the renowned Mirza Ghalib (circa 19th century)
Roughly translated…
“Do not ask me about the colors draining from me after you leave
You worry about the colors that overcome you in my presence”
This cocktail was cooked up by John Perry Yates from Brooklyn, NY to commemorate the 2014 World Cup game between Brazil and the Netherlands. Brazil had been drubbed by Germany and Argentina had prevailed over the Netherlands in the semifinals. This game was about the “consolation prize” of third place – hence the name.
Rather unsuprisingly, the cocktail mixes the two spirits those countries are famous for – Cachaca and Genever. That is a wild combination. It is not easy to pull off those two together in a cocktail. The balance is most important (go with 2 time Genever to 1 time Cachaca).
John added Cointreau and orange bitters to round of the rough edges with the orange-y aroma and flavor.
The reviews do not give a lot of high marks to this cocktail. I, on the other hand, found this to be very enjoyable. The complexity of genever co-existed pretty well with the sweet, hard edges of the cachaca.
Two caveats: An orange peel is to be added as garnish but I was fresh out of them.
Also, the drink is served over one king ice. If you are not particularly looking for a very stiff drink to start the evening, feel free to actually pour it over more ice.
One of those friendships that were struck in June 1991 that has carried thru for over 26 years. Thru that, we have each jumped cities four or five times, jobs even more (worked together in three different companies), had two kids each but have been a great support for each other and have had some amazing times together as families.
We have had our differences too – he was an avid beer drinker and I would not touch beer, he would do Android and I would not do anything but Apple (he has switched now, as I understand) and he reveled in new cars and I would buy one only to drive it to the ground.
But our biggest difficulty has been on agreeing who has a better sense of humor. Most friends who we asked to mediate would retort “Is none of the above an option?”.
It was good – nay, great – to see Raj and Viji back in our town and at our place…
This is an interesting take on an Old Fashioned. Most Old Fashioned are “spirit forward” – which is why some form of whiskey – Bourbon, Rye or even Brandy is used to make it. Gins, Rums or Vodkas just would not have the muscle strength to carry an Old Fashioned. On the other hand, a Genever can (the aging process gives it a distinct edge and character).
The recipe calls for maple syrup (instead of your simple syrup), standard bitters and citrus peels.
Came thru very well.
The recipe is from Bols Genever website. They call it Green Hornet. But different sources suggest different alcohol base for a Green Hornet. Pisco is a very common suggestion. Difford’s Guide suggests vodka.
Since I am experimenting with Bols Genever, I changed the name a little to Dutch Green Hornet. In the alcohol world, nothing says Genever (or beer) like “Dutch” does.
Did go with a tulip glass per their recommendation though.
The ingredients are Genever, Melin liqueur and lime.
