For the rest of my days, I hope to remain an amateur at several different activities; drink mixing is one of them. But, fellow amateurs, experimentation is everything – try and fail, try and fail, try and fail – until you succeed.
The $2,000.00 bottle of brandy is worthless if it doesn't suit your tastes – and choking down a perfectly mixed Julep is still an unpleasant task, no matter how long and loud professional mixologists might wax poetic. I will forever and always add additional mint leaves. My brother prefers Sobieski to smoother vodkas and I prefer Metaxa brand ouzo over much more accessible fare. The sting is the thing. Medicinal over fruity, etc. etc.
This will be my first drink mixing post – from an amateur with a sincere heart and a genuine love of the strong stuff. Here we go:
Rock and Rye. I've spent much of my life believing that Rock and Rye was nothing greater than the Faygo brand soda (great though the soda is). As it turns out, Rock and Rye is a fine mix of – yes, you guessed it - rock candy and rye whiskey. The italicized text below is a quotation that I've typed from the second volume of these books:
a 1939 limited first edition copy of Charles H. Baker, Jr.'s
The Gentleman's Companion. The second volume bears the delightful subtitle:
Being an exotic drinking book, or, Around the world with jigger, beaker, and flask. This recipe is split between pages 166 and 167:
Rock and Rye
All of us have seen this eye-titillating array of goodies imprisoned in spiritual bliss in a large squarish bottle. How many of us have thought to assemble a bit for ourselves. It's very simple indeed.
Rye whisky, 1/5 gallon, not a full quart Jamaica rum, jigger
Rock candy, 1/2 cup, leave in large lumps Whole cloves, 1 doz
Quartered small California orange, peel left on Quartered seedless lemon, peel left on
Stick of cinnamon, or two
Put ingredients in jar, cover with rye, and stand for a fortnight. Strain out spices through fine cloth or filter paper. Put back on fruit until needed. To serve: Cut spiral orange rind, also one spiral lemon rind, put in whisky glass, and pour liquor over. … Can be served hot with excellent effect to fight off colds, influenzas, miasmas, megrims, swamp mists, and blackwater fevers. In fact any sort of excuse seems to work. Any excuse seems to work - Amen. Without any formal training in culinary arts, I am always happy when I find scrapbook-style instructions online. But, as they say, you reap what you sow. It is about time that I sow a bit.
Step 1: Make Rock Candy. I've never been very good at this; I boil water and slowly pour in sugar for awhile – until it doesn’t seem like the water will hold anymore. The sugar-water gets poured into a jar and I place a stick or a string, coated in sugar, into the fluid. I don’t know exactly what I do wrong, but a large portion of the sugar falls to the bottom of the jar every time. Wait a week or so, extract the crystallized sugar from the jar and you’ve got your rock candy.
Step 2: Compile the rest of the ingredients.
Step 3: Put everything into a large jar. Cover, and leave stand for a fortnight (two weeks).
Step 4: Remove the fruit and strain out all of the floating spices, etc. I have read all sorts of clever ways to strain/filter – from coffee filters to Brita water purifiers. I stick with the cheesecloth – though with cheesecloth, running the liquid through twice seems to be a good idea.
Step 5: Enjoy – or, mix the Rock and Rye with something else. Mix mix mix. Rock and Rye is very sweet; if I am going to drink it on its own, I prefer it served nice and hot.
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