Mixology Monday

Hot on the heels of one of the most well-attended Mixology Mondays yet, the March round of MxMo could be even bigger. Hosting the March round (that’s Mixology Monday #47 if you’re counting) is Mike at Hobson’s Choice, and for this round Mike has chosen Punch as the theme. Here’s how Mike suggests participants approach the topic:

There aren’t really any specific limitations on this month’s subject. I emailed David Wondrich to ask if he had any pearls of wisdom for us as we take on the punch challenge. This was his response: “The thing I like to keep in mind while making Punch is that it is, as the London Physician Nicholas Falck defined it in 1779, ‘an extemporary kind of wine.’ It is not, in other words, simply a large cocktail. Like wine, it should be balanced, not too pungent, not too strong, and preferably not decked out in all sorts of gaudy frippery like something participating in the retail sex trade.”

Keep in mind that we are at that time of year when there are some wonderful citrus varieties available at the market. And in the warmer climates, we are already seeing the first of the Spring berries.

Those of you who are friendly with the bartender at your favorite punch-serving watering hole, it would be great if you could get him or her to share the house recipe. If there is something your family has been serving at parties for generations, go with that. Let’s have some fun with this and see how many different recipes we can find.

Once you have settled on a recipe, make the punch and then post the recipe, a photo, and your thoughts about the punch on your blog or on the eGullet Spirits and Cocktails forum.

Include in your post the MxMo logo and a link back to Mixology Monday and this [original announcement] post. (And once the round-up is published, it would be great if you could update your post with a link to that summary post.)

Good lord — “punch” as the theme. With all the ways this can be approached, and with all the crazy delicious fun that can be had with punch, this month’s MxMo could be one for the ages.

To participate, simply have your recipe (and photos, hopefully) posted on your blog or at eGullet by the close of March 22, as described by Mike, above. Be sure to let him know that you’re participating by dropping a note and link in the comment section to the announcement post, or by e-mailing Mike at hobsonschoiceinfo at gmail dot com.

Thirty-nine entries? Somewhere around 50 cocktail recipes?? Damn, the February Mixology Monday saw a lot of absinthe being poured. Many thanks to Sonja for hosting MxMo XLVI: Absinthe over at Thinking of Drinking, and thanks to all who joined in. Want to see the participating entries? Here’s part one, and part two of the roundup.

After a rousing start to 2010 with the January Mixology Monday, we’re ready to plunge onward with events for February and March.

* MxMo XLVI takes place Monday, February 22. Hosting this round is Sonja at Thinking of Drinking, and Sonja has chosen Absinthe as the theme. Here’s her announcement post, and to recap the details:

The topic for February is Absinthe. That much maligned, misunderstood, mistreated spirit, suddenly plentiful again in the US and other parts of the world. Absinthe played a role, whether large or small, in a variety of great cocktails from the 1800’s and early 1900’s – the Sazerac, Absinthe Suissesse, Corpse Reviver No. 2… I’m getting thirsty. So let’s celebrate absinthe’s history, and it’s future, with all manner of cocktails using absinthe.

You know the drill — have your absinthe-related drink posted on or before February 22. Be sure to include the MxMo logo and link to the Mixology Monday site as well as a link to the host’s blog, Thinking of Drinking (and if you can link to the roundup post once Sonja’s finished it, that’s mucho appreciated as well).  And to be sure that your drink is included in the roundup, notify Sonja of your post by placing a link in the comments of her announcement post, or e-mail the URL to her at sonjakassebaum {at} gmail {dot} com.

And if you’re the forgetful type, I usually post a reminder a few days prior to the event on Twitter; you can follow me at @cocktailchron.

* And yes, we have the March Mixology Monday already scheduled. MxMo XLVII takes place March 22, and will be hosted by Hobson’s Choice. The theme for this round: Punch. Stay tuned for an announcement post and more details sometime after the February event.

Frederic at Cocktail Virgin Slut has posted the roundup of all the entries for January’s round of Mixology Monday, and it’s an impressive list of drinks: 36 participants dug into the tea drawer to whip up punches, cocktails and other drinks laced with everything from assam to yerba mate. Thanks for hosting, Frederic, and to everyone else, check out the roundup here.

Some of us — myself included — are still observing Detoxuary, the annual period following the holidays during which you abstain from booze & rich food , but those of you not spending the whole month of January on the wagon — myself included again here — should mark your calendars for the first Mixology Monday of 2010.

This round of MxMo — the 45th, if you’re keeping count — takes place Monday, January 25, and is hosted by Frederic & company at Cocktail Virgin Slut. For this round, Fred has chosen Tea as the theme; here’s what he has in mind:

Tea has played a historical role in cocktails for centuries. Perhaps the best documented early example was its inclusion in punches as part of the spice role to round out the spirit, sugar, water, and citrus line up. Later, teas appear in many recipes such as Boston Grog, English Cobbler, and a variety of Hot Toddies. And present day mixologists are utilizing tea flavors with great success including Audrey Saunder’s Earl Grey MarTEAni and LUPEC Boston’s Flapper Jane. Now it’s our turn to honor this glorious cocktail ingredient!

Here’s how to play:

• Find or concoct a drink recipe that uses tea or tisane (a herbal “tea” which lacks tea leaves) as an ingredient. This can be hot tea, cold tea, tea syrups, or infusions and use it in a cocktail, punch, or other drink type. Be careful how long you infuse them (after 2 hours, things get really bitter!) if you go that route, and feel free to take a shortcut and use Beefeater 24 which has tea already in the botanical mix.
• Make the drink and then post the recipe, a photo, and your thoughts about the drink on your blog or on the eGullet Spirits and Cocktails forum.
• Include in your post the MxMo logo and a link back to both the Mixology Monday and CocktailVirgin sites. And once the round-up is posted, a link to that summary post would be appreciated.
• Post a link to your submission in the comment section here, or send an email to yarm-at-verizon.net

The due date is Monday, January 25th which I will interpret as whatever gets posted before I awake on Tuesday the 26th.

And that pretty much sums it up. So unlock the liquor cabinet and break out the stash of oolong — this round sounds like it’ll be especially fun. See you on January 25!