Up Your Bartender Skills This New Years Eve
Why just be, when you can be extra? How about instead of trashcan punch or simple rum and cokes you learn to make a couple cool drinks like an adult?
I've got one classic drink for you and one Lubbock variation of a classic drink. As you may know, I was a bar owner until business interests took me elsewhere. I personally love slightly exotic drinks (and the wilder the better). One of my absolute favorites is the classic Mojito. We love Mojito's around here so much we started growing mint in the backyard. So, that's your first chore; finding mint. Sprouts nearly always has mint and Market Street seems to have it off and on. Once you locate some mint, here's how you knock out a Mojito.
Put six mint leaves in the bottom of a glass. Put two teaspoons of sugar on top. Add a splash of club soda. Now, use a wooden spoon or something to smash up those mint leaves. Add two ounces of rum, a nice size squirt of lime, ice, then top off with more club soda. These are DELICIOUS (and to be quite honest, really fun to get silly on). If you'd like to up your game further, use coconut rum for a Coco-Mojo.
The next drink is much, much easier but is still a bit more grown-up than most. It is a variation of a Cape Code or a Cape Codder, but since it was invented here, we'll call it a "Lubbock Lake". This one is very simple.
Fill a tall glass with ice. Put in two ounces of Vodka, fill half the remaining space with cranberry juice and the other half with Sprite. Garnish with a lime if you're feeling it.
So there are two drinks to up your bartender game. While you're at it, you might need to learn how to make a Lubbock classic, The Chilton. Happy bartending and Happy New Year!