National Dive Bar Day!
Please patronize your favorite dive bar! They need you and you need them.
- Jet Cannon
Food and Drink
Classic Burgers
Since 1950, Frisko Freeze has served up delicious burgers, fries and shakes in Tacoma, Washington. It was added to the Tacoma Register of Historic Places in 2008. While it did not make it into George Motz’s Hamburger America, which describes 200 great burger joints…. Seattle’s Dick’s Drive-In made the list…. it is on par with Dick’s from a classic burger standpoint. However, don’t expect fast service. It’s not. While they’ve replaced the little white order pads with a computer, the grill is the same size as it was back in 1950. But it’s worth the wait. When in Tacoma, check it out.
– Jet Cannon and Hunter S.
Happy Place
Our visit to Baby Boomers Mike and Karin’s Happy Place began with a mini live rock and roll concert in their neighbor Dave’s man cave. Dave’s a musical entertainment czar and he’s got the photos and rock posters in his cave to prove it. Welcome to Crescent Bar!
Mike and Karin’s condo overlooks the mighty Columbia River and surfing behind their Centurian Surf boat is a popular activity. And so is golf. And so is ripping around the community in golf carts to visit with other happy folks enjoying the summer. Whether behind the wheel of the boat, his cart, his truck or just sipping from his WSU Cougar coffee cup, Mike was in the zone. Karin will surf your doors off and is the reigning community midnight golf champion. Mike is the reigning champion mixer of the perfect Manhattan cocktail and he insists on making his own Bloody Mary’s, not trusting his inexperienced guests to do it properly. That last part is not entirely true.
Visiting on July Fourth meant being able to enjoy a golf cart parade in the morning and spectacular fireworks in the evening. Crescent Bar is hopping!
We were fortunate to partake in the summertime fun in a truly Happy Place with such great hosts. There are vacation rentals available and a limited number of RV spots. Google “Crescent Bar rentals” for various options.
– Jet Cannon and Hunter S.
Gimme a Whiskey
At the Branding Iron Saloon in Twisp, Washington the signature cocktail is…. beer. As it should be. Twisp is a quiet little town on the Methow and Twisp Rivers originally inhabited by miners, ranchers and the small businesses supporting them. Things haven’t changed all that much since it was settled in 1897, although fires and floods have required rebuilding over the years. It’s still a small, quiet little town.
Pursuant to Buzzed Boomer’s interest in signature cocktails, I asked the nice waitress in the Branding Iron, besides beer, what do the locals drink? Whiskey and water was the reply. Pendleton is a favorite.
So there you go. Beer and whiskey in a western town. It feels right and tastes good too.
- Jet Cannon
Jack’s Ghost
Buzzed Boomer is always on the lookout for signature cocktails. We’re going to say Jack’s Ghost fits the bill at Sun Mountain Lodge in Winthrop, Washington even though they have some other interesting speciality cocktails. Jack’s Ghost is named for Jack Barron the visionary who originally built the Lodge in 1968. The location is a 3,000 foot high mountain top with 360 degree vies of mountains and valleys. The Lodge has since been sold and updated since Jack passed away in 1985 and is now a world-class resort known for it’s excellent food, wine, hiking, biking and winter-skiing trails.
Jack’s Ghost is a blend of Hedgetrimmer gin, lime juice and Boomsma clooserbitters. Can’t get that at home!
Hunter S. and my parents came to Jack’s original Sunny M dude ranch before we were born since Jack was our uncle’s brother. We’ve been fortunate to visit many times over the years. In fact, Hunter S. and his wife were married there.
It’s nice to see a plaque honoring Jack out front and a delicious cocktail named after his ghost.
- Hunter S. and Jet Cannon
Coffee the hard Way
Many Baby Boomers are familiar with Irish coffee and espresso martini’s. Adding a kick to coffee is a time-honored tradition. So Boomers will not be surprised to find spiked coffee in a can. Ask for a PBR and you could be handed a Pabst Blue Ribbon Hard Cold Brew. Packing a caffeine and low alcohol-by-volume Buzz, it might just be the ticket for an early-morning tailgate this coming season!
– Jet Cannon
Sort of a Healthier Buzz
Hard seltzers are growing in popularity in part due to their offering a lower calorie and lower alcohol-by-volume alternative to other alcohol beverages. Earlier this year, Michelob marketed the first national USDA-certified organic seltzer with zero sugar, zero carbs, 80 calories and is filtered six times to remove impurities. A race to healthier is a good thing and beverage makers are pitching real fruit juice, gluten-free, and seltzers with less ingredients. The calorie content of spiked seltzers are comparable to light beer as well as liquor mixed with no-calorie beverages. All good…. Unless you drink too many of them.
– Jet Cannon
The Grape Ape
Awhile back, Seattle Times food writer Bethany Jean Clement crafted some cocktails from what was in her cupboard because going to the store during the height of Covid was a daunting undertaking. One of the recipes stood out to me because it used grape juice. Purple grape juice. Something I’ve never had in a cocktail, for sure. Also, she says one can use vodka or gin. Really, gin? I like gin. But with grape juice? Anyway, I never got around to trying it at the time but I kept her recipe. A quick trip to the store. Masks no longer required but I’m wearing one so no one recognizes me while I’m buying only a bottle of grape juice. Here’s the recipe:
1 part grape juice
1 part tonic or bubbly water
“Glug” of vodka or gin
Lime wedge
Combine in a tall glass with lots of ice then squeeze the lime over the top then drop it in. Using gin? Add a sprig of rosemary.
What do I think? I tried with gin first. That’s as far as I got. Delicious! I did the tall glass then made another shaker-full for a martini glass. So I’m done experimenting and I’ll make it again. Very refreshing, colorful summertime, or anytime, drink.
Prefer vodka? Vodka goes with anything so if you like grape juice, you’re golden.
– Jet Cannon
Photo courtesy of Pinterest.com
Call Me Old Fashioned
And proud of it! I met John Selby while helping to bottle Nota Bene wines one beautiful morning in Seattle. John was one of many friendly volunteers helping out with bottling 800 cases of excellent Nota Bene wines. At one point, John mentioned that he made the world’s best Old Fashioned. Quite a claim. I was intrigued. Better yet, he was willing to share his recipe which has evolved to perfection over the years. His father gave him a head start years ago as his parents enjoyed having a Happy Hour Old Fashioned before dinner but John continued to tweak and improve his signature cocktail until it was the “world’s best”. His “Call Me Old Fashioned” button is evidence of his achievement.
I wanted to try his recipe as soon as I got home but I had to substitute the cherries and syrup so I still have not tried the world’s best. John assured me that the proper Luxardo cherry was essential. My attempt was delicious and it’s just going to get better when I get my Luxardo’s. Here is his recipe for which I am grateful:
One teaspoon of Luxardo syrup with two Marishino cherries
One half jigger of simple syrup
One jigger of Maker’s Mark whisky
One jigger of cold water
One two-inch long slice of orange peel
Two ice cubes
Five drops of Angostura bitters (more or less to taste)
Enjoy the best Old Fashioned in the world. Thank you John! Cheers!
– Jet Cannon
Whole Fruit Margarita
Perusing the Vitamix blender recipe book, we found this Margarita recipe that uses whole limes, lemons and oranges, rather than just the squeezed juice. Peeled, of course. But the blender chops it all up and you end up with a small-party-suitable quantity. You can buy dedicated (and pricey) margarita blenders but a regular good quality blender will do.
Ingredients
1/4 cup water
6 oz tequila
2 oz orange liqueur like triple sec or Grand Marnier
1 medium orange peeled and halved
1 lime peeled and halved
1 lemon peeled and halved
6 tablespoons of sugar
6 cups of ice cubes
Blend on high for about 45 seconds and serve in salt or sugar-rimmed Margarita glasses with a slice of lime for garnish.
– Jet Cannon
Photo courtesy of bigoven.com
Proper Paper Plane Cocktail
My apologies to Farmer Earl. Awhile back in an earlier post, I complained about not having ingredients for many of the cocktails I read about and would like to make. The Paper Plane was one. I didn’t have amaro. Farmer Earl read me the riot act and told me to quit being so cheap and buy ingredients that, yes, I might not use too often but for the most part they will keep. Now I do have the ingredients. Farmer Earl made me a proper Paper Plane recently and they are delicious. Here’s a recipe courtesy of Bon Appetit:
Ingredients
MAKES 2 SERVINGS
1½ ounces amaro (preferably Nonino)
1½ ounces Aperol
1½ ounces bourbon
1½ ounces fresh lemon juice, strained
Preparation
Step 1
Combine amaro, Aperol, bourbon, and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker. Fill with ice and shake vigorously until outside of shaker is frosty, about 20 seconds. Strain into 2 coupe glasses.
Then make a tiny paper airplane and skewer it to properly present the Paper Plane.
– Jet Cannon
Photo courtesy of masterclass.com
World Gin Day
Once again the Buzzed Boomer Research Department missed an important day. Apparently the team thinks that Saturdays are holidays and for leisure rather than work. Sad.
Anyway, Saturday, June 12th was World Gin Day. One company took this world-thing to heart. If you go to Worldgin.com https://worldginday.com/world-gin-day-gin/ you can procure gin with ingredients from all seven continents! I’m not sure my gin needs those ingredients but the concept is fairly intriguing. Here they are:
- Juniper from Europe
- Liqourice Root from Africa
- Cinnamon from Asia
- Coriander from Australia
- Angelica Root from North America
- Lime from South America
- Sea salt from Antarctic water
Order now and enjoy your internationally-sourced gin on World Gin Day 2022.
– Jet Cannon
National Bourbon Day – June 14th
Nationaltoday.com provides some history. In the mid-1700s, Scots-Irish settlers in the area that is now Virginia and Kentucky began distilling corn — the only grain native to the area, but one which made for excellent whiskey owing to its sweetness. Another geographical factor was also beneficial to the birth of bourbon.The Limestone Shelf region, where all major American whiskeys are still made today, imbued the local water with calcium while filtering out iron. Turns out that high-calcium, low-iron water is excellent when it comes to makin’ moonshine. We have a clergyman-cum-distiller named Elijah Craig to thank for the third major piece of the bourbon puzzle. In the late 1780s, Craig was using old fish barrels to store his spirits.Not surprisingly, fish-flavored wood did not enhance the whiskey’s taste, so Craig started purifying the white-oak barrels by charring the inside. Then he stamped the barrels with their county of origin (Bourbon County, in his case) and sent them on a 90-day trip down to New Orleans. The charred oak and three-month travel time combined to mellow the whiskey and give it a smooth, smoky, oaky flavor. WhenNew Orleanians requested more of “that whiskey from Bourbon,” the name and the spirit were born.
– Jet Cannon
Post Game Burger
Seattle burger chain Dick’s is reminding us that there is hope to reclaim a basketball team, after the NBA champ Sonics left town years ago, with a special t-shirt. NHL hockey is coming to Seattle in the remodeled Coliseum so there’s a modern venue in which to play. And Dick’s has a restaurant right down the street! Dick’s features one of the best burgers in America according to me and George Motz author of Hamburger America. And the fries and shakes are excellent as well.
While we wait for hockey and basketball, we still have Dick’s.
– Jet Cannon
