The Bucking Bronco Cocktail

A short entry today, due to the stifling humidity that has saturated my office and caused me to promptly wilt. Luckily, this spicy and refreshing drink served as a pick-me-up and enabled me to push through this rather abbreviated preamble.

This cocktail is a riff on the Moscow Mule, substituting black peppercorn-infused vodka and lemon for the original's plain vodka and lime. Ever since my wife infused our first batch of vodka with crushed black peppercorns, we have been fascinated with cocktails made with the peppery liquor, which easily plays off vodka drinks already on the books, but with names that offer a variation on the theme... For instance, the Salty Dog became the Dirty Cur, and in this case, the Moscow Mule becomes the Bucking Bronco.

This drink also lives in the shadow of the Shangri-La cocktail, with the same basic flavors.

The Bucking Bronco Cocktail

• 2 oz black peppercorn-infused vodka (recipe here)
• Lemon wedge, squeezed and dropped into glass
• Dash of Fee Brothers Lemon Bitters (optional, but it adds a tart high note)
• Ginger beer (something zippy, such as Gosling's, Barritt's, Reed's, Citadelle, etc.)

Squeeze the lemon wedge into a highball glass with ice, and drop the lemon in.  Add just a dash of the bitters, then the black peppercorn vodka, and top of with ginger beer. Stir and enjoy.

An alternate version of this makes use of a drop or two of Bittermens Xocolatl Mole Bitters instead of the Fee Brothers Lemon Bitters, which enhances the black pepper flavor with a slight hint of chocolate - a surprisingly nice combination with the ginger.

The best thing about the black peppercorn-infused vodka is its ability to add an unexpected nuance to a drink, pairing well with a variety of flavors from citrus to dark fruit, chocolate, ginger, and more. It is almost culinary in terms of the the way the pepper flavor enhances or adds facets to other ingredients. There are many avenues of experimentation.

Bottoms up!

The Shangri-La Cocktail

Utopia at Dave & Kerry's place. Photo by Dave & Kerry.

A verdant, earthly paradise depicted in James Hilton's 1933 novel Lost Horizon, as well as on celluloid by Frank Capra, Shangri-La is one of the eternal utopias of the imagination - one where youth does not wither, and peace is not endangered.

That makes it the perfect moniker for this marvelous, refreshing cocktail, which was invented by my dear (and genius) friends Kerry and Dave, using black peppercorn-infused vodka that my wife and I presented to Dave as a birthday gift. The overnight infusion process is easy; especially well-suited to those of us who do not wait patiently. It is worthwhile to make the infused vodka in order to try this cocktail. I have additional bespoke recipes for the black peppercorn-infused vodka here that you can also try.

This drink earned its name because of its distinctly Asian flavors - combining the bite of ginger, the spicy richness of the peppercorn, and the tartness of the lemon in a beautiful, well-balanced way. Shangri-La is a fictional place, of course, but it is located (I think we can agree) in Tibet. Other names considered along the way were the Cato; Hummingbird; Peppery Tart; Shanghai Surprise (forget about the terrible movie; the rude Urban Dictionary definition would indicate a drink that starts off with one impression, but ends with a different one - though in this case, both are welcome); Bangkok Bite; and even Lost Horizon. There was a dubious moment when we considered calling this the Phuket Cocktail - but maybe that's for another drink, another time...

We stayed with Shangri-La because of its romantic, dawn colors; its floral notes; and its sharp-yet-subtle layers of sweetness, warmth, spice, and tang. Plus, to quote Dave: drinking this takes you to a beautiful, hard-to-reach paradise.

The Shangri-La Cocktail

• 2 oz black peppercorn-infused vodka (recipe here)
• 1 oz ginger liqueur (avoid artificial flavors: I've tried this with Stirrings Ginger Liqueur, Domaine de Canton French Ginger Liqueur, and G.E. Massenez Crème de Gingembre - each of which has the requisite ginger "snap")
• 3/4 oz fresh lemon juice

Shake the ingredients with ice until very cold, and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a basil leaf or a lemon twist (or whatever seems right to you - this is utopia after all).

Bottoms up!

And now, as a postscript, a quick report on my experiments. I tried this with a small dollop of Sriracha chili sauce in the bottom of the glass (which, in a dream earlier, gave rise to the aforementioned name Shanghai Surprise), and also with a moderate dash of Angostura bitters (not at the same time as the chili). Of the two versions, the Angostura worked best, imparting a bit more depth; the chili sauce came off a bit viscous, and this drink has no need to be spicier than it is. Neither ingredient actually added anything to this drink, which is already quite well-balanced. Nonetheless, there are many possibilities for research: try it with a dash of Peychaud's bitters, or even orange bitters. Feel free to leave your suggestions and comments!

The Night Tripper Cocktail

On June 18, I disclosed the recipes for black peppercorn-infused vodka and my very own Dirty Cur Cocktail, a riff on the Salty Dog. And it was good. Since then, I have been playing mad scientist. The flavor of the infused vodka is rich and peppery, spicy and bold. The color is amber. It inspires experimentation. The flavor has real potential in cocktails.

I call this one the Night Tripper because I devised it while listening to Dr. John, The Night Tripper's Gris-Gris album, and it includes absinthe (popular in New Orleans). So there is a certain Crescent City-inspired atmosphere at work. Like Dr. John's debut album - a swampy, psychedelic, sultry, voodoo-sounding work of art (in my opinion) - this drink has mojo. It is spicy, mysterious, and satisfying. You can play around with the proportions and the supporting ingredients. And it packs a punch.


The Night Tripper Cocktail

• 2 oz black peppercorn-infused vodka (recipe here)
• 1 oz sweet vermouth (My choice is Carpano Antica Formula, but any sweet vermouth is fine)
• Splash of absinthe (I use Kübler in this; also try Pernod, Herbsaint, or other absinthe substitute)
• Dash Angostura Orange Bitters
• Orange twist for garnish

In a chilled cocktail glass, add the absinthe and swirl to coat. Discard (and not into the sink, barbarian). In a shaker with ice, add the infused vodka, bitters, and the vermouth. Shake vigorously and strain into the cocktail glass. Add the orange twist.

Feel the mysterious flavors of the pepper and fruit, with the dark undertone of absinthe.

Bottoms up. Let me know what you think.

The Dirty Cur Cocktail

This is one I came up with after making my own black pepper-infused vodka, and I have to say it is pretty effing good. On its own, the black pepper vodka is intense - extremely peppery - but its flavor suggests that in the right combinations, it could be an excellent addition to a variety of cocktails.

The Dirty Cur is basically a riff on the Salty Dog (which is vodka and grapefruit juice, over rocks in a glass with a salted rim). The difference is the flavor of black pepper vodka.

First of all, you need to make your infusion. It's pretty easy:

Black Peppercorn-Infused Vodka

1. In a two-cup mason jar, add a handful of coarsely cracked black peppercorns.
2. Fill with good-quality vodka (when I say good quality, imagine drinking it ice-cold by itself).
3. Cover and let sit in a cool, dark place for no longer than 24 hours. It gets too intense quickly after that. 
4. After the 24-hour period, strain the vodka into a clean pint bottle or a mason jar - and put it in the freezer. It will be the color of a dark rum.
5. Let it mellow another day, and it's ready to drink.

When it is ice-cold, you can drink the infused vodka on its own, as the Russians do. You'll be surprised how tasty it is!

So, now you have your black pepper-infused vodka. It's time to concoct the Dirty Cur:

The Dirty Cur Cocktail

2 oz Black peppercorn-infused vodka
4-6 oz Fresh-squeezed pink grapefruit juice
Garnish: lime wheel

First, the rim job: To salt the rim of your highball glass, rub it with a lime wedge (gently, so you don't get the side of the glass all sticky), then dip it into a dish of coarse salt. Go easy, you don't want a rim that is too thickly encrusted...

After salting the rim, add ice to the glass, along with the vodka and the juice. Stir to mix, add the lime garnish, and enjoy the Dirty Cur. Bottoms up.