Button Hook Cocktail

Shake half an ounce of creme de menthe (white), half an ounce of apricot flavored brandy, half an ounce of anisette, and half an ounce of brandy with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

This cocktail is rather tasty in my opinion. Shannon disagrees heartily and made her usual sour face. Guest bloggers Phil and Jannah split in a similar way, Phil thinking the drink wasn't that bad and Jannah cursing to high heaven about it. "It was awful," Jannah said. Phil said he could do with less licorice flavor, but that he'll finish it anyway. "I can't even believe you're drinking it," Jannah said. "You can't even drink it with a straight face." Phil: "It's not that bad."

This is a direct reflection of mine and Crooney's reaction.

Brantini

Take one and a half ounces of brandy, an ounce of gin, and a dash of dry vermouth. Stir with cracked ice and strain into an old fashioned glass over ice cubes.

I think it's not that bad. As the name suggests, it tastes like a gin martini with the undertone of brandy. In spite of the greater volume of brandy, gin remains the dominant flavor.

Shannon thinks that one must really enjoy the taste of alcohol to enjoy this drink. Still, it was not as bad as she expected because she managed to avoid an involuntary shudder.

Brandy Vermouth Cocktail

Take two ounces brandy, half an ounce of sweet vermouth, and one dash of bitters, stir with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass.

It's actually not a bad sipping drink. Bitters and sweet vermouth do that to almost anything. Shannon took a sip and had another full body spasm.

Brandy Toddy

Dissolve a half teaspoon of powdered sugar in one teaspoon of water in an old fashioned glass. Add two ounces of brandy and one ice cube. Stir and serve.

As you might expect, it tastes like sweetened brandy. I find it to be ok. Shannon's first reaction after sipping was to jerk so hard that I thought she was about to have a seizure. She then proclaimed that this is the second worst drink in the book. She then said that giving her this drink was the meanest thing I had ever done to her. After some time to think it over, she asked me why I hate her.

After a long hiatus, the Brandy Swizzle

Take the juice of one lime, a teaspoon of powdered sugar and two ounces of club soda and pour them into a Collins glass. Fill the glass with ice and stir. Add two ounces of bitters and two dashes of brandy. Fill with club soda and serve with a swizzle stick. Note: for our purposes this evening we are using "Carlsberg pint glass" as a stand-in for a common Collins glass.

While Crooney mixes this latest libation, allow me to apologize for the lapse since our last post. Apparently we forgot that occasionally it is fun to drink beverages not on the Mr. Boston list. We got so carried away drinking craft beers and champagne that it was only a stern reprimand from a few of our loyal followers that brought us back to the land of brandy (blandy?).

He says this drink is "quite tasty." It has the appearance of every other drink in this chapter. That said, it tastes remarkably better. As I have long suspected, bitter(s) make(s) everything better. This is one I'll make (and enjoy) again.