Piper’s Punch
a.k.a. the Kilted Bastard
By Tom Chadwick, Dram
“A lot of traditional punch recipes from the seventeenth century use tea. You’re dealing with tannins, different spice profiles. The rooibos plays well with the citrus without being too tannic.”
For cinnamon syrup:
2 cups granulated sugar
15 sticks cinnamon
For honey syrup:
1 cup honey
1/2 peach
9 oz. fresh lemon juice
2 oz. cinnamon syrup
4 oz. honey syrup
24 oz. Famous Grouse blended Scotch
12 oz. rooibos tea
6 oz. fresh grapefruit juice
2 1/2 oz. rhum orange liqueur
2 oz. pineapple juice
Ice, frozen in two clean, quart-size takeout containers
For garnish:
Sprig of mint
Pineapple round
2 to 4 lemon rounds
2 to 4 grapefruit rounds
Cinnamon Syrup: Combine 2 cups of water, sugar, and cinnamon sticks in saucepan and simmer until sugar dissolves. Allow to cool for at least 1 hour. Strain. Will keep for 2 weeks.
Honey Syrup: Combine honey with 1 cup hot water. Stir until combined. Cool.
Instructions: Slice peach and muddle in plastic bowl with lemon juice, cinnamon syrup, and honey syrup. Add remaining ingredients and let sit for 20 minutes. Strain into a punch bowl over big ice. Garnish with mint and rounds of pineapple, lemon, and grapefruit. Pour in punch glasses. Serves 8.
Elder Berry Smash
By Charlotte Voisey, Kenmare
“There is something about the combination of berries, elderflower, and Champagne that screams summer to me. This has a great balanced taste and is easy to mix up in large pitchers for an afternoon BBQ.”
2 dozen blackberries (about 1 cup)
9 oz. St. Germain elderflower liqueur
Lime juice from 3 whole limes
8 oz. Champagne
6 sprigs of mint
Instructions: Add blackberries to a pitcher, and crush with a muddler or immersion blender. Add St. Germain and lime juice, followed by crushed ice. Top with Champagne, garnish with mint sprigs. Stir just before pouring and serve in fluted glasses. Serves 6.
Farmer’s Friend
By Ron Levine, Anfora
“The tangy sweetness of rhubarb really plays nicely off the mint. Put some muscle in your muddle so you can make a big batch: Your guests will definitely want seconds.”
2 handfuls of mint leaves, torn
2 cups rhubarb (about 4 stalks), sliced into 1/2-inch pieces
16 oz. white rum
8 oz. simple syrup (bring 8 oz. water and 8 oz. sugar to a boil and cook until sugar dissolves)
4 oz. fresh lime juice
Club soda (approximately 6 oz.)
Instructions: Muddle mint leaves with rhubarb at the bottom of the pitcher. Add ice, and pour rum, simple syrup, and lime juice over mixture. Stir, and top with club soda. Pour in rocks glasses. Serves 8.
Six-Toe Punch
By Jim Ryan, Cienfuegos
“The dry herbal notes from the Hendrick’s balance the sweetness of the fruit and sugar. You can alter the amount of soda water to make it more or less boozy.”
2 entire lemon peels
2 oz. lemon juice
10 large Demerara sugar cubes
24 raspberries
6 oz. Hendrick’s gin
3 oz. El Dorado three-year- aged rum
1 1/2 oz. Strega liqueur
12 oz. soda water
Night Before: Fill 2 small Jell-O molds with water and freeze.
Instructions: In a mixing container, combine lemon peel, juice, sugar, and raspberries. Muddle well, and stir to dissolve sugar. Add the gin, rum, and liqueur, and continue to stir well. Strain into a soup-size punch bowl, and pour in 4 ounces of soda, stirring and pressing the fruit bits into the strainer. Remove the strainer, and pour remaining 8 ounces of soda into the punch and stir gently. Garnish with molded ice. Serves 6.