WITH liquor bans being eased in some cities (Quezon City, Pasay, Makati, and Taguig at our last count), we think it’s okay now to have a drink, or two, or four — provided one follows social distancing measures, meaning one should drink these following drink recipes only at home. You don’t have to be lonely — some have gone on to the video-conferencing app Zoom for “e-numans” (remote drinking parties).
Desperados (kind of)
Oh, you might think the French are all about Bordeaux and champagne, but have you heard of Desperados? It’s a tequila-flavored pale lager sold in Francey. We don’t have that in these islands, so we’ve come up with our own alternative:
Ingredients:
1 shot of tequila
1 glass of beer
Basically, you can just shoot the tequila and gulp the beer as an apology. We understand the desperate situation in the outside world (you read the news, right?). Alternately, you can substitute any sort of spirit for the tequila, or drop the shot in the middle of the glass like the Bomb family of drinks. Either way, we won’t judge.
Soju Yakult
Yes, we’re about to ruin a favorite childhood treat — or else give it new life while you reminisce about better times without a pandemic. It sounds like something you make because there’s nothing else in the fridge, but apparently, they drink this in Korea. It got a moment when Yakult hit the mainstream thanks to Netflix rom-com To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before. We got this recipe from Drink Manila (drinkmanila.com).
Ingredients
120 ml Yakult
120 ml Soju
Directions:
Pour equal parts Soju and Yakult in a glass with ice.
Stir and serve with a straw.
BREAKER: DAY-DRINKING TREATS
Thanks to erratic work-from-home schedules, we have somehow been unbound by time, so we can’t blame you for taking a sip or two while the sun is still up, when you used to do that only at night.
Orange Blossom
It’s gin and juice — what can go wrong? This drink was apparently quite popular with the flappers during the Prohibition Era (and recently, sometimes it felt like we were still under Prohibition). We got this recipe from liquor.com.
Ingredients
1 oz gin
1 oz sweet vermouth
1 oz orange juice
Garnish: orange wedge
Directions
Add all the ingredients into a shaker with ice and shake.
Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
Garnish with an orange wedge.
Kentucky Coffee
We first learned of this drink during a Christmas morning in Texas. It’s basically morning coffee with one heck of a kick. Don’t drink this before Zoom meetings. We got this recipe from the official website of Bulleit Frontier Whiskey, a brand of bourbon from beverage conglomerate Diageo. I’m pretty sure one can substitute any brand, what with the times and all.
Ingredients
2.5 oz. Coffee
1.25 oz Bulleit Bourbon
Brown Sugar (to taste)
Creamer (to taste)
Directions
Add coffee and Bulleit Bourbon to the mug.
Add brown sugar and creamer to taste.
Stir.
Finally, we’ve got the classic mind-screwer, The Long Island Iced Tea. Featuring several spirits in one glass, it’s guaranteed to put you to bed for a couple of hours, and then some. This recipe is from liquor.com.
Ingredients
3/4 oz Vodka
3/4 oz White rum
3/4 oz Silver tequila
3/4 oz Gin
3/4 oz Triple sec
3/4 oz Simple syrup
3/4 oz Fresh lemon juice
Cola, to top
Garnish: Lemon wedge
Directions
Add all ingredients except the cola into a Collins glass with ice.
Top with a splash of the cola and stir briefly.
Garnish with a lemon wedge.
Serve with a straw. — Joseph L. Garcia
