I’m your huckleberry 🤠

I just got back from Montana with my friends at @traegergrills. It was strictly a grilling event but given what I do, of course I had to get behind the bar. I knew I wanted to incorporate local Montana ingredients like huckleberry, juniper (grown on site) and honey but also wanted to incorporate smoke from the grill. So I had the idea to make a bramble type cocktail.

For the smokey element, I smoked some local raw honey along with some juniper berries on the Traeger to just get a kiss of smoke. I then constructed the cocktail originally using gin like a traditional bramble, but the juniper botanicals overpowered the recipe so I switched to a reposado tequila and knew it was the perfect fit. They also had some locally made huckleberry liqueur which was the perfect last ingredient to top the cocktail and bring that sweet/sour/fruity element to the cocktail. Finally topped it with that smoked juniper berry branch to give it that botanical pop and tricking your brain into thinking you’re drinking a bramble when you’re actually drinking something closer to a margarita.

Given the ingredients and location, it was just fitting to call this the ‘Big Sky Bramble.’ Cheers y’all.

Big thanks to @i_drewcifer for the R&D help!
🎥: @tobojosh / @grillvaultbbq

6 cocktail recipes to kick off pumpkin spice szn

5-frozen-cocktails-you-need-to-make-this-summer

Not all great bourbon comes from Kentucky, and this Old Fashioned proves it. I reach for an Old Fashioned whenever I want to know what a whiskey is really made of. Three ingredients, nothing to hide behind, so whatever is in the bottle comes through clean. First up is TINCUP 10 Year, made in Colorado on Rocky Mountain water. What sets it apart is the blend. There is Stranahan's single malt whiskey in there alongside the bourbon, so it drinks grain-forward and light at 84 proof, with cherry, pastry dough, and sweet fruit syrup carrying right through the sugar and bitters. Want a higher proof pour? Reach for Pendleton 1910 out of Hood River, Oregon at 90 proof. It brings more maple, clove, rye, and warm baking spice, with a longer oak finish on the back end. Same recipe, two very different drinks, and not a Kentucky zip code between them.

Hot honey and peaches are a match made in heaven 🍑🍯

Today with my friends at @MijentaTequila, we're making a maybe the ultimate end-of-summer drink. Peaches are at their peak here in SC and today we're going to make good use out of them using hot-honey to make a frozen peach margarita with hot honey and sea salt. If that doesn't sound good to you then I don't know what does. Fun fact: Did you know South Carolina produces more peaches than Georgia? #themoreyouknow 🌈🌟

The Puttanesca happened on a whim one night with no measurements, no plan, and definitely no name. I knew it was good, so I R&D'd it into something repeatable. The recipe reads like if the bartender was Italian but also just happened to be your Nonna. Tomato vermouth and anchovy vermouth (via Veso) form the base. Oloroso sherry adds depth and nuttiness. Dry gin brings structure. Queen olives and an orange slice finish it. When I asked for name suggestions, the internet delivered instantly. Puttanesca was the winner because it's exactly what this drink is: a savory, briny, umami-forward cocktail that tastes like someone's grandmother figured out how to pour Italian flavors into a glass.

Cheers, y'all!