Where’s the hottest happy hour happening these days? Your home of course! As we all continue to practice social distancing, the phrase “It’s 5 O’Clock Somewhere” has never rung more true.
From the safety of your house, mix yourself one of these cocktails from popular bars and enjoy your own private happy hour.
Tiger Balm from Chinese Tuxedo, New York City
Ok, by now we’ve all binged Netflix’s bonkers series “Tiger King.” To help process the mattress, make yourself a Tiger Balm cocktail, usually found at NYC hotspot Chinese Tuxedo. Maybe enough tequila will help us make sense of our unexpected quarantine obsession.
Ingredients:
2 oz Volcan Me Mi Tierra Blanco Tequila
0.75 oz Lime Juice
0.75 oz Grapefruit Szechuan Oleo Saccharum Soda
Directions:
Add ingredients to tin, shake/strain into a Collins glass. Top with soda, garnish with a lime wheel and a pinch of Tajin.
5 Doyers St., New York, NY, chinesetuxedo.com, @chinesetuxedo
El Escorpion from Cuyama Buckhorn, New Cayuma, CA
Road trips are out of the question these days but Cuyama Buckhorn, located on historic Route 166 within Santa Barbara County, is bringing the roadside charm into homes. Their El Elscorpion is a fun, refreshing yet smoky twist on your classic margarita with a habañero kick. “This concoction is spicy and flavorful and just a few dashes of the bitters go a long way,” says Brandon Gomez.
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Tequila Blanco
0.5 oz Mezcal
1 oz Lime
0.75 oz Agave Syrup
4 Dashes Of Habañero Bitters
Directions:
If you do not have Habanero bitters, you can make your own! Fill a quart-sized mason jar with deseeded habañero peppers and then pour in a Tequila Reposado. Let that infuse for two weeks and then strain into your desired bitters bottle. Salt the rim of your glass, combine the ingredients in a shaker, cover and shake with ice. Strain and pour into glass. Garnish with a lime wedge.
4923 Primero St., New Cuyama, CA, cuyamabuckhorn.com, @cuyamabuckhorn
Whiskey Apricot Ginger Sour from Kitty O’Sheas, Chicago, IL
A Chicago staple for over 30 years, Kitty O’Sheas, is a city favorite with an approachable, yet slightly elevated dining experience incorporating playful destination ties with local roster of food and beverage partners. Home to Chicago’s largest selection of whiskey, the bar inside the Hilton Chicago offers patrons a full menu of fresh cocktails with a class twist, including one of the signature specials, a Whiskey Apricot Ginger Sour.
Ingredients:
2 oz Whiskey
0.25 oz Gifford’s Apricot Liquor
0.75 oz Lemon
1 oz Ginger Syrup
Directions:
Shake in a cocktail shaker and serve over fresh ice. Pour into rocks glass, top with a cherry garnish.
720 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL, www3.hilton.com/en/hotels/illinois/hilton-chicago-CHICHHH/dining/kitty-osheas-pub, @kittyosheaschicago
Disco Nap from The Warren Neighborhood Bar, Pittsburgh, PA
In need of a little pick me up at home? Spencer Warren, the owner of The Warren Neighborhood Bar in Pittsburgh, created the perfect coffee-based cocktail, the Disco Nap which will leave you dancing with energy.
Ingredients:
1 oz Fernet Branca
1 oz Brancamenta
0.5 oz Borgetti Espresso Liqueur
1.5 oz Coffee
2 Dashes Angostura
1.5 oz Fever-Tree Tonic
Directions:
Shake, all ingredients except tonic. Add tonic to mixing tin, double strain in a Collins glass with ice. Express and discard Orange peel.
245 7th St., Pittsburgh, PA, thewarrenpgh.com, @thewarrenpgh
Green Bloody Mary from Elvie’s, Jackson, Mississippi
This year, we were all kinda screwed out of a traditional St. Patrick’s Day, so put some green into your quarantine with this colorful, southern twist on a brunch staple. Created by master mixologist and beverage director Brandi Carter, this bloody can be enjoyed well past the Irish holiday and any time of the day.
Ingredients:
2 oz Cucumber Vodka
2 oz Green Apple Juice
1 oz Cucumber Juice
0.5 oz Lemon
0.5 oz Serrano Syrup
0.25 oz Bitter Lettuce Bits
3 Dashes Serrano Bitters
Directions:
Garnish with cucumber ribbon
809 Manship St., Jackson, MS, elviesrestaurant.com, @elviesrestaurant
Violet Chachki from Mahjong, Toronto, Canada
“Il Dolce Far Niente” is a famous Italian phrase meaning “The Sweetness Of Doing Nothing.” Pretty sure we can all adopt this mindset during our lockdown days. Once on the menu of Mahjong bar in Toronto, the pretty purple Violet Chachki cocktail, created by Tess Anne Sawyer, will certainly help us indulge in the sweetness.
Ingredients:
1 oz Tromba Blanco Tequila
1 oz Dry Vermouth
0.5 oz Lemon
0.5 oz Simple Syrup
Directions:
Infuse the tequila, vermouth and simple with a bag of butterfly pea flower tea (turns the drink bright purple). Add the lemon, shake and pour on the rocks. Garnish with rainbow candy.
1276 Dundas St W, Toronto, Ontario, mahjongbar.com, @mahjongbar
Old Fashioned from Galt House Hotel, Louisville, KY
Known as the official drink of Louisville Kentucky, this cocktail is a tribute to the Pendennis Club, a private social club that has existed in Louisville since 1883. Made many years ago by one of the club’s bartenders, the “old fashioned” offers something simple, yet refreshing to guests and locals alike. Check out how the bartenders at Galt House Hotel serve up theirs.
Directions:
2 oz Angel’s Envy Bourbon
0.5 oz Port Of Wine Reduction Syrup
3-4 Dashes of Angostura Bitters
Directions:
Pour ingredients into a mixing glass with ice and stir for 10 seconds. Strain into a double rocks glass over a large cube or sphere of ice. Express the juice from an orange slice into a cocktail. Garnish with a cherry with its stem and the orange peel.
140 N Fourth St., Louisville, KY, galthouse.com, @thegalthousehotel
The Beetnik from The Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay, Half Moon Bay, CA
A nod to the iconic SF Beats, The Beetnik cocktail reflects the luxury oceanfront resort’s commitment to using locally and sustainably sourced ingredients from the NorCal coast.
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Whiskey
½ Peach
Fresh Thyme
1 tbsp Simple Syrup
1 oz Cold Pressed Baby Beet Green Juice (pomegranate juice can be used as a substitute )
Tonic Water
Lemon Slice
Directions:
Muddle the peach, thyme, simple syrup and beet juice in a saker. Add whisky and ice. Shake and serve in a low ball glass, strained over ice and finish with a splash of tonic and garnish with lemon slice.
1 Miramontes Point Rd., Half Moon Bay, CA, ritzcarlton.com/en/hotels/california/half-moon-bay, @ritzcarltonhmb
Garden Variety from Troutbeck, Amenia, NY
Think spring with hints of rosemary, thyme, sage basil, anise hyssop and tarragon in this signature cocktail from Upstate New York. This cocktail is a seamless transition from the Michelin-starred Chef Gabe McMackin’s kitchen to the bar featuring seasonal herbs from local farms.
Ingredients:
2 oz Brennivin (Icelandic Caraway Spirit)
0.75 oz Herb Syrup
0.75 oz Lemon
0.25 oz Dropper Bittermens Celery Shrub
Sparkling Wine Float
Herbs On Hand
Directions:
Combine ingredients, minus sparkling wine, in a tumbler. Add ice, shake and double strain into a chilled coupe. Top with wine and garnish with herbs.
515 Leedsville Rd., Amenia, NY, troutbeck.com, @troutbeck.ny
N.W.A from Verse, Toluca Lake, CA
There are few cocktails more quintessential than the over 100-year-old Negroni. And lucky for us stuck at home, there are few that are easier to make yourself. The N.W.A (Negroni with Absinthe) was inspired by the classic Italian cocktail, but with a Los Angeles twist. VERSE’s Managing Partner/GM Rob Ciancimino, crafted this cocktail by imagining if the traditional drink were combined with a hip hop song, similar to how the F&B at the Toluca Lake restaurant/bar is combined with the immersive acoustic environment and unique soundtrack. The classic Negroni is given a “sense of attitude” with the addition of the absinthe.
Ingredients:
1 oz Gin
1 oz Campari
1 oz Sweet Vermouth
Absinthe mist
Directions:
Spray Absinthe into a chilled double rocks glass and add all ingredients into a mixing glass over ice. Stir, strain into glass, spray Absinthe on top and garnish with an orange peel.
4212 Lankershim Blvd., Toluca Lake, CA verse.la, @verse.la
Our Best Stories Delivered Daily
