Drinks from the Top Shelf!

Our private list of (occasionally) tasty cocktails.

Infante x3

The main problem with making a batch of orgeat is that cocktails usually only call for very small amount of it. So, in searching for an orgeat-forward cocktail, I stumbled upon the Infante, and it immediately sounded like a winner.

I was right.

Bouncing ideas off Krossland, trying to decide what type of tequila to use between blanco and reposado, he challenged me to do both. I took it a step further and did one with rum as well (There may be another name for the rum one, I am unsure.)

All three were absolutely delicious. The tequila ones live somewhere between a lemonade (or limeade) and a margarita. The rum one, similarly, lives between a lemon/limeade and a mai tai.

Highly highly highly recommended. It will be a go-to for me, I am certain.

Shake all liquid ingredients, serve over a big ol' ice cube, garnish with lime wheel and nutmeg.

Ingredients:

2oz Tequila (or rum)
3/4oz Lime Juice
3/4oz Orgeat
3 drops orange blossom water
lime wheel garnish
fresh nutmeg garnish

Author: PJ Heller

Featured On:

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Dominus Portobello

Easily the most comical part of the first few chapters of the book, the 30-megaton atomic warhead chilling in the pantry inspired me to try to make a mushroom-forward cocktail. I ended up with a mushroom syrup created from Renude Chaga Ccino, which is used as a coffee or tea additive. I mixed 2 ounces of that with 1.5 ounces of water to create a syrup. With more time and tuning, I'm sure a better syrup could be made, but this was serviceable. The mushroom flavor paired with the herb notes of the Fernet Branca and Green Chartreuse and balanced by the lime resulted in a very promising first draft of a weirdly savory take on a Fernet Sour.

Ingredients:

1.5oz Fernet Branca
1.5oz Green Chartreuse
1.5oz Mushroom Syrup
1.5oz Lime Juice

Author: PJ Heller

Featured On:

171 - Light Bringer - Episode 2 - Chapter 7 - 11

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A Clean Blade

It's time for "A Clean Blade." I wanted to make something inspired by the clean bladed duel in Jade War between Shae and Ayt, and this perfectly hit the spot. The idea of the iconic white moonblade got me thinking about other ingredients that could yield a mostly pale drink– and pear juice did just that. Paired with mint, and an egg white dry shaken, this drink was absolutely incredible. I would recommend it universally.

Originally, I made this drink with just vodka, but subbing in a mix of 1.5 oz of Vodka/Gin turned out to be the trick to keep it balanced. This cocktail serves 2.

(P.S. This drink also won a cocktail night I had with friends: It really is a winner!)

Ingredients:

1.5 oz Vodka
1 oz Gin
.50 oz Maraschino
3 oz Pear Juice
1 oz Lime Juice
.25 oz Mint Simple
6 Mint leaves, mulled
Egg White
Dash of Green Chartreuse

Author: Krossland Shaw

Featured On:

153 - Jade War - Episode 5 - Chapter 30 - 36

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The Lemon Drop

I'm gonna be perfectly honest with you: I don't think I understood what a lemon drop was supposed to taste like. I had never truly made the connection between the cocktail and the candy. The only other lemon drops that I've had in my life have been way less sweet and more tart. This recipe, however, tasted exactly like the lemondrop candy. That realization happened while I was talking about it on this episode, and I think it probably sounded like I was dissing it for being too sweet. The less sweet/more tart version is good, certainly, but I think this is better and is probably the actual intention.

Shake all ingredients to combine and serve up, garnish with lemon wheel.

Ingredients:

1.5oz Vodka
.5oz Triple Sec
1oz Simple Syrup
1oz Lemon Juice

Author: PJ Heller

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The First Lady

We recorded this episode on 4/20 and I decided to add some THC-infused juice into the mix. Mine was a blackberry juice, but I didn't think the flavor would matter at all, as so little gets added. I added a 1/4 tsp, which accounts for 7 or 8 mg of THC.

All the ingredients get added to the shaker, dry shaken briefly, then shaken with ice. Served in a lowball glass, garnished with some fresh basil leaves.

The flavor of the THC juice was just a bit too overpowering (not the blackberry flavor, the flavor that's consistent across any THC edibles I've had a chance to try. Unsure if it's truly universal. Maybe whatever you get your hands on is less potent in that flavor. More power to you if so!) so I wasn't really able to analyze the flavor much. I love the idea of this cocktail, and am looking forward to re-approaching it without the added infusion.

Ingredients:

1.5oz Gin
.5oz Triple Sec
.5oz Simple Syrup
.5oz Lemon Juice
1 tsp Matcha
1 egg white
0.25 tsp THC-infused juice

Author: PJ Heller

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The Jade Emperor (PJ's recipe)

This recipe is the "tweaked" version of ChatGPT's Jade Emperor. It mostly uses the same ingredients, with some slight changes to the ratios and the addition of an egg white and matcha powder garnish. It is also served up, rather than in an ice-filled lowball. Overall, I think this made for a brighter, more flavorful, and more appealing cocktail. The original version felt fairly muddled. If you listen to the episode, I describe it as "basically just tasting like iced tea".

Add all the ingredients to a shaker without ice, dry shake for a few seconds, then add ice, shake, and strain into a coupe. I used a bench scraper to cover half the frothy surface of the cocktail before sifting matcha powder onto the exposed surface.

Ingredients:

2oz Green Tea infused Vodka
3/4oz Honey Syrup
1/2oz Tangerine Juice
1oz Lime Juice
4 dashes Orange Bitters
1 egg white
Matcha Powder garnish

Author: PJ Heller

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The Jade Emperor (ChatGPT recipe)

I was tasked with creating our featured cocktail for this week, and I decided to play around with ChatGPT for some inspiration. I asked for a recipe that would pair well with "the first 15 chapters of Jade War by Fonda Lee" and the below recipe and description were outputted. In my rendition of this cocktail, I had to make some small changes. First, I used tangerine juice instead of orange juice and omitted the mint garnish, simply due to available ingredients in my kitchen. My vodka infusion was probably also a bit stronger than what the recipe called for. -PJ

To infuse the vodka, add 1-2 green tea bags to a bottle of vodka and let steep for 2-4 hours, depending on how strong you want the tea flavor to be. Remove the tea bags before using. In a shaker filled with ice, combine the infused vodka, honey syrup, lime juice, orange juice, and orange bitters. Shake vigorously for about 15 seconds, until well-chilled. Strain the mixture into a rocks glass filled with ice. Garnish with a sprig of fresh mint. The Jade Emperor is a refreshing and flavorful cocktail that pays homage to the novel's setting and themes. The green tea-infused vodka represents the Jade City, while the honey syrup symbolizes the delicate balance of power between the clans. The citrus juices add a bright note of optimism, while the orange bitters give a subtle touch of bitterness that nods to the looming conflict.

Enjoy the cocktail with your book club as you discuss the first 15 chapters of Jade War, and savor the flavors and complexities of both the drink and the novel. Cheers!

Ingredients:

2oz Green Tea infused Vodka
3/4oz Honey Syrup
1/2oz Fresh Lime Juice
1/2oz Fresh orange juice
1 Dash Orange Bitters
1 Sprig of Fresh Mint

Authored by Guest: ChatGPT

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My Blood for the Pillar

We absolutely needed a featured cocktail to kick-off Jade War, and Thomas delivered with not only a great looking drink and accompanying photo, but with an incredible recipe that is bound to make you laugh hysterically. I best recommend pairing this recipe with the first 10 minutes of Jade War Chapters 1 - 7.

Ingredients:

A Tall Glass
An Amount of Seltzer (approx. 17 vibes worth; Thomas used Lime)
A Splash of Cran-Pineapple Juice
Too Much Rum™
3/4 Hand Squeezed Blood Orange
1/4 Slice Blood Orange Garnish

Authored by Guest: Thomas B.

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Bero's Little Button Staycation

Bero certainly didn't stay in Little Button long, but Erin likes to believe he would've sipped a couple of these in his downtime. The below recipe makes three servings of this cocktail, after it's been blended. Erin added simple to sweeten it a bit, considering it didn't have any sweetness to begin with; this may be remedied by using fresh pineapple.

Sip and stay cut, Keke.

3 cups pineapple pieces (frozen) 6 oz gin 2 oz simple syrup 1oz fresh lime juice 1oz pineapple juice 2 cups ice

Ingredients:

3 Cups of Pineapple Pieces (Frozen)
6 oz of Gin
2 oz Simple Syrup
1 oz Fresh Lime Juice
1 oz Pineapple Juice
2 Cups Ice

Authored by Guest: Erin

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Casino

This is a classic cocktail, done up specifically for the raid that occurs on Poor Man's Road in Jade City. Throw all ingredients in a shaker with ice, shake for 10 seconds and Strain.

1 ½ fl oz Hayman‘s old Tom gin ¾ fl oz luxardo maraschino liqueur ½ fl oz lemon juice (freshly squeezed) 1 dash orange bitters

Ingredients:

1.5 oz Hayman's Old Tom Gin
.75 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
.5 oz Lemon Juice
1 Dash Orange Bitters

Authored by Guest: Erin Ayer

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Shon Ju's Stolen Honor

Made for the finale episode of Jade City. A callback to Shon Ju's favorite cocktail: Rum with Chiles and Lime. This is a take on a Daiquiri, with rum infused with jalapeno, lime, and simple syrup. All ingredients shaken and served up.

Ingredients:

3 parts jalapeno rum
2 parts lime juice
1 part simple syrup

Author: PJ Heller

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"The Sleepless Pillar"

Inspired by Kaul Lanshinwan from Jade City, this is a crisp cocktail with ginger spice and evocative notes of caramel. The thought here was to take Sake, of which is generally very delicate, and pair it up with a much more aggressive spirit, without overwhelming the whole flavor profile. It works very well!

Add all ingredients to a shaker, and shake. Garnish with squeeze of lime peel. Stay cut, Keke.

Ingredients:

1.5 oz Dry Sake (Bride of the Fox)
1.25 oz Barrel Aged Rum
.5 oz Lemon Juice
.5 oz Ginger Simple Syrup
A dash of Green Chartreuse

Author: Krossland Shaw

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Garret Richards' Hawaiian Mai Tai

I took this recipe from an Educated Barfly YouTube video, featuring Garret Richards.

The acid adjusted pineapple juice is created by adding both citric and malic acid to the pineapple juice so it has the same acid content as lime juice. What results is an amazing and interesting liquid that TASTES like pineapple but FEELS like lime. It's hard to explain.

Flash blended and open poured over spent lime wedge. Usually served with mint sprig, but I’m running late and don’t want to go outside