Thanks to this blog, I think I might have sprouted my official barfly wings. With so many new places opening, new seasonal menus, and even new distilleries coming online, 2017 was quite a busy year for the Boozeblog. Here are 10 drinks that still make me drool!
Dawn’s Hour – Mix Mix, Santa Ana: “a familiar-looking stirred cocktail whose aroma has me reminiscing about smoking clove cigarettes at a Cure concert. Every drink, a subtle reminder that “It’s Friday, I’m in Love.”
Saturn’s Rings – Broadway by Amar Santana, Laguna Beach: “If I were to guess what Saturn’s rings tasted like, I’d imagine something like deep-fried space chicken, complete with a big dipper-full of intergalactic gravy. The drink, however, is like a boozy fruit salad in tiki form.”
Spanish Bombs, 370 Common, Laguna Beach: “this thing drinks like a tequila zombie, however, due to the intense ghost pepper heat, can completely carpet-bomb your taste buds.”
Can’t We All Get Along? Farmhouse at Roger’s Gardens, Corona Del Mar: “The drink is somewhat like an old bar joke, where a cucumber, wild honey, lime, and charcoal-infused Aquavit find their way into a glass…the punchline is that this drink is completely refreshing, despite looking like a Guinness Stout with a lime wedge.”
Mommy’s Juice Box, Social, Costa Mesa: “I hear carrot juice in a cocktail counter-acts any visual buzz from hard alcohol,” I mutter, trying to be witty and social, ordering Mommy’s Juice Box. The tall orange collins glass looks sort of like a Thai-iced tea, but smells juicy, ginger-spicy, with a kiss of herbaceousness.”
Overproof & Underpaid, a competition drink at 320 Main’s Tiki Throwdown event by Emily Delicce. “Kind of like a Scot on vacation in Jamaica, where instead of blowing bagpipes, he’s puffing on this, Laphroaig and Jamaican rum, anyone?”
Frozé – Rooftop Lounge, Laguna Beach: Frozé looks more like a fruit smoothie than anything. Super-sweet strawberry, blueberry, and a kick of fermented rosé grapes ring the nose. “This is like breakfast on a cruise ship,” I quip, trying to suck a small blueberry through a straw to no avail.”
Islay, Scotland – Vacation Bar, Santa Ana: “The drink looks like a pub beer served on nitro, complete with cascading head. The combination of smoked black salt, super-satisfying foam, Laphroaig’s peetfire phenols, and overall mouthfeel left me flabbergasted. “It’s good with mescal too,” says Gaby, with her delightful British accent.”
Everything I had during OC Negroni Week. “Pretty sure my pee smells like Campari after Negroni Week” – Overheard in men’s restroom.
Actuatly, It’s an Old Fashioned, nFuse, Anaheim: “The visual of Brandon delivering his first drink, Actuatly It’s An Old Fashioned, (the typo a nod to the syrup made from local brewery Bottle Logic’s Double Actuator beer), all heads in the bar swivel as he walks my way with such a lavish drink tray: a cross-section of a tree with a full-on Pinterest display, complete with tap handle. I’ve never been served something so pretty.”
What were some of your favorite drinks in 2017? We can’t wait to see what 2018 brings!
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