To Sir Mixologist, With Love

There is a special cocktail to commemorate the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.  I’m not the least surprised.  I can’t imagine that every vendor in London isn’t trying to come up with something to commemorate the wedding.  I’m sure one of the butcher shops features a “Kate’s Tiny Rump Roast” and a “Beef William-ton.”   If they don’t anyway, they should.  A new princess doesn’t get kissed into royalty every day, you know.

It is kind of amazing to me, however, that this cocktail made the news all the way over the pond.  People Magazine reported it first, I believe.  Apparently, “mixologist” Dan Warner (who just happens to be the brand ambassador of Beefeater Gin), created the recipe.  Here it is:

BEEFEATER ROYAL PUNCH
• 2 parts Beefeater London Dry Gin
• 1 part Dubonnet
• 1 part pomegranate juice
• 2 parts fresh lemonade (American style)
• Angostura bitters to taste 

     Serve in a large punch bowl and garnish with wheels of lemon and lime, mint sprigs and pomegranate seeds. Chill the punch with lots of regular ice cubes or make your own fruit ice cubes by freezing orange and lemon slices with water in a plastic container.

Warner explained his concoction further in that the Dubonnet was a nod to Queen Elizabeth, who "was known to enjoy gin and Dubonnet as an apertif," and that the pomegranate juice represents marriage (who knew?).

Well, Sir Royal Mix a Lot? I’ve got one for you:
 

THE DARE

A few months ago,  I was treated to some time with both Tim and Cheyanne after a rare dinner together.  My mom and Dia had eaten with us too, but Mom was giving us some time to catch up as the ‘original’ family and was entertaining Dia in the living room.  That left the three of us in the kitchen to act foolish.   Eventually someone – and I don’t remember if it was me or Tim honestly – dared Cheyanne to make a drink using the first row of items in the liquor cabinet.  The condition was that she could add a mixer, but she had to use every different alcohol in the first row.  We were all laughing at how ridiculous this was – her task was to mix gin, Chambord, Kahlua and vermouth  - but Cheyanne was confident she could create something palatable.

Her finished product was dubbed, appropriately, “The Dare”.  Shockingly, it is delicious.  

Now, Cheyanne is an amazing chef and it goes to follow that her bartending skills would be on par with her culinary skills, but it’s still quite surprising that this combination of alcohol was able to co-exist in such perfect harmony.  The gin alone should have thrown the whole thing into the sour beer category.  But here is our very own mixologist’s recipe:

•    1.5 shots Beefeater London Dry Gin
•    1 shot Chambord
•    ½ shot Kahlua
•    Splash of vermouth
•    Sprite to taste

     Serve in a martini glass and garnish with whatever is in your fruit drawer and, of course, plastic dinosaurs.

So take that, Sir Warner!  Whoever said that Americans were uncouth and uncivilized never made a visit to the Cameron household.  I think Kate and William would much prefer The Dare to The Royal Punch any day.  (I feel I can speak on authority since my grandmother was a Middleton and surely Kate and I go way back.)

Cheers!