Sharkbait’s Cocktail of the Week: Grab Your Keys

Happy Friday once again. I’m back with yet another drink suggested to me by a friend. I’ve been sitting on this one for a bit actually. Initially, I wanted to save this one for the week of Halloween, given the name “Skeleton Key”, but I decided to move it up in the rotation because A) I have a better plan for Halloween this year, and B) I had all the ingredients readily at hand. I can’t think of a better excuse to make a tasty beverage. Can you?

Didn’t think so.

So, here is the Skeleton Key:

1 1/4 ounces Bourbon
3/4 ounce St. Germain
1/2 ounce Fresh lemon juice
3 to 5 ounces Ginger beer
8 dashes Angostura Bitters

Build the bourbon, liqueur, and lemon juice in a collins glass filled with ice. Top it off with ginger beer & Garnish with the Angostura Bitters. Serve with a straw.

Housekeeping notes before we begin. I used Old Overholt rye, in place of the bourbon, and St. Elder elderflower liqueur instead of St. Germain.

The nose starts off with an intense bitters aroma, for obvious reasons. One thing I will say about the bitters float is the slow permeation of the drink. No mixing is required, as the bitters slowly incorporate themselves, and gradually turn the color from a light opaque to a reddish hue. The other intense scent present immediately is the ginger beer. Again, not a surprise here. The topmost ingredient, and the mixer dominating the smell isn’t exactly a surprise here.

As it turns out, the same principle holds true in the sip as well. I get a strong ginger beer flavor initially. It completely dominates everything else. The other ingredients are merely background players. The lemon provides a touch of sour that mixes in nicely with the dryness of the ginger beer, but doesn’t come close to overpowering. They then give way to a bitters and ginger beer combination. The elderflower liqueur is just kinda there. I can get small hints of it underneath the main flavor profile, but I had to take a few sips to really pinpoint it. The rye is completely lost. That surprises me a bit actually. Given how much of a stronger flavor rye has compared to bourbon. I expected some of it to come through but in the end, I hardy detected any.

Maybe that’s the point though. You might not WANT to taste too much booze in this.  As it stands now, it is a very nice drink., and great for these late summer scorchers. However this is a dangerous drink. Because it isn’t very strong in its flavor, you can easily find yourself overdoing it. I can’t taste any alcohol in this apart from the bitters, and even that isn’t very strong. So go forth and enjoy one this long Labo(u)r weekend, just be sure to mind your intake.

(Banner image found here)

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Sharkbait
Sharkbait has not actually been bitten by a shark, but has told people in bars that he was for free drinks. Married to a Giants fan, he enjoys whisk(e)y, cooking, the Rangers, and the Patriots.
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BrettFavresColonoscopy

Is there a substitute for St Germain? Just don’t stock that stuff.

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

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Dunstan

I have now reached that stage of my home bar where I have two different kinds of chile liqueur (poblano for the vegetal notes, ancho for the cinnamon-type spices) and two kinds of creme de violette (Yvette tastes better, but Rothman has that sexy purple color for cocktails).

Yes, I’m just bragging at this point. It passes the time until happy hour arrives.

SonOfSpam

I have some Lite beer and a mostly empty bottle of Sauza blanco.

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

Empty?!? I thought you were a Man of Action!

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

Scotch, whiskey, whisky, vodka, gin, bitters (not the divorce kind), vermouth, I let the braggers have the flavoured stuff.

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Gratliff

Oh hey, just tried to jump into the fantasy league and remembered that my account was broken to shit when they merged their login systems last year and I’m no longer able to do anything ESPN fantasy related. Good times.

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

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Gratliff

Just realized there’s game 7 hockey at 4 pm. Partially blessed timeline.

ballsofsteelandfury

 just be sure to mind your intake.”

I can’t believe I just read those words on DFO…

LemonJello

Didn’t see nothing about limiting intake…

Dunstan

Exactly. How else are you going to make an accurate report in the comments on your drunkenness?

LemonJello

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Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

I asked for a description of the decent into madness (okay, getting drunk) via a cocktail and the degradation of the making of said cocktail al la Confessions of an English Opium-Eater. Sharky was not up for that, which this statement alludes to the reasoning. Somebody else will have to do it if it is to be done. With jjfozz we get the before and after and not the journey.

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

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Horatio Cornblower

“I had to take a few sips to really pinpoint it.”

I’ll bet.

nomonkeyfun
SonOfSpam

If that’s anyone other than Steve Allen…

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

I see an argument for Maestro getting some big internet bucks (TM) because of him getting plagiarized.

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TheRevanchist

Sadly, I may not have a fantasy draft with my regular crew this year. That means no getting obscenely drunk, as I do once a year during the draft day.

TheRevanchist

Well, I guess I could just buy some Rumchata and (not) share with the wife. One bottle will be a good start.

litre_cola

Mrs. Cola fucking loves Rumchata in her coffee every weekend.

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

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TheRevanchist

She must drink a lot of coffee.