A Colonial-era cocktail that's perfect for fall. more ›

Wow, can it be National Rum Day again already? Last year we presented The Drought-Ender, a wonderful way to savor the earthy funk of Smith & Cross rum from Jamaica. Elsewhere in the tropics, on the island of Martinique, you'll encounter a whole other class of pungent herbal spirits known as rhum agricole. more ›

We joined hundreds of fellow rumheads at the Bottom Lounge's Volcano Room last Thursday for the Third Annual Chicago Ministry of Rum Festival. Early birds were treated to a Jamaican buffet, courtesy of Ja'Grill. And we're glad we were one of them--with more than 100 rums on pour, imbibing on an empty stomach would have been sheer foolishness. As it was we sampled about 15 before calling it quits. Attendees were given a handy little program with plenty of space for jotting down tasting notes. There were scores of gems. We were especially excited to sample the entire line of New Holland Brewing Co.'s rums. Their Freshwater Huron White would make for a powerfully tasty Hemingway daiquiri. Here are some shots we took while wandering around. more ›

June is GLBT Pride Month, and this refreshing sipper is the perfect drink for celebrating it. more ›

We make no secret of our tiki obsession, having covered the re-opening of Trader Vic's, provided more than one Mai Tai recipe, and told you about the best tropical drink cocktail book in the world, Beachbum Berry Remixed. That book is the focus of tonight's Book Club at The Whistler, which is transforming itself into a tiki den for one night only. more ›

Our friends over at Gaper's Block linked to the safe for work version of this earlier today. We, however, work from home, and have a very different definition of "safe for work." more ›

Perhaps it's a bit perverse, given the recent oscillations of the climate, to post a drink recipe that has the word "cooler" in its name. But it's prime time for apple cider, and why drink it plain when you can drink it spiked? If you liked the Kentucky Holler, you're sure to enjoy the Furnace Creek Cooler. more ›

Today is National Rum Day. We never need an excuse for drinking rum, as you can probably guess from all the rum drinks we've posted. And whether you like a good straightforward daiquiri or a psychedelic tiki creation, there's a rum drink out there for you too. more ›

Sometimes, everything goes wrong with an evening out - and you still have so much fun that you don't care. During our visit to 90 Miles Cuban Cafe, we got caught in a torrential downpour. After it ended, we were seated back out on the patio and got caught in another torrential downpour - just our bad luck. We were quickly moved to a great table inside, but had to deal with the inevitable service fallout of moving every customer in the restaurant around, over and over. Despite these difficulties, the experience was great. Everyone was cheerful, the food was tasty and our bottle of rum remained intact and rain-free. more ›

It should come as no surprise to frequent readers of Chicagoist to discover that we are over the moon about the new collection Beachbum Berry Remixed. We seriously love us some tiki, and in the world of tropical cocktails Jeff "Beachbum" Berry is the wacky offspring of Julia Child and The Professor from Gilligan's Island. Berry's approach neatly epitomizes why we love them. He's serious enough about his craft to urge his readers to acquire an eyedroper, for those recipes requiring a single drop of Herbsaint. But on the other hand he's also created a cocktail with the name of Okonkulukooler. At their best, tiki drinks balance great taste with outright silliness. more ›

We ran our very first Properly Sauced nearly two years ago. So, after a bit of research, we were shocked! shocked! to discover that we had never written about what is arguably our very favorite cocktail: the Mai Tai. more ›

Earlier this summer while on a trip to L.A. we made a pilgrimage to Tiki Ti. A tiny place perhaps (it seats fewer than thirty people) but its importance in the world of cocktails looms large. Opened in 1961 by Ray Buhen, a former bartender at the original Don the Beachcomber's as well as several lesser establishments, Tiki Ti has almost single-handedly kept many a vintage cocktail recipe from vanishing forever. Buhen passed away in 1999 but his son and grandsons proudly carry on the Tiki Ti tradition. more ›

When it comes to naming the city's best mixologists, Adam Seger's name is usually one of the first to roll off one's tongue. The general manager of Nacional 27 is a Certified Culinary Professional and worked the lines in kitchens before hearing the sirens' call of the bar. Seger takes the approach of a chef to his cocktailing, sourcing artisan products, growing herbs and spices in the planters lining Nacional 27's sidewalk seating and infusing spirits in-house. more ›

Yesterday was National Rum Day, but just because it's over doesn't mean we'll stop imbibing. Today's weather is in fact perfect for a Dark 'n Stormy® (one of the few cocktails to feature a trademarked recipe, by the way). more ›

Summertime: living is easy, the fish are jumping, and it's time to sit back with a long cool one and get pleasantly hammered. We have just the thing. more ›

We recently received a sample of Mount Gay Extra Old, a fine aged rum from Barbados we'd never tried. On the rocks it's superb: a true sipping rum with hints of burnt sugar and spice, and a subtle floral scent. Actually it reminded us a lot of bourbon. That started us thinking ... more ›

We've been thinking about what sort of cocktail would make a good after-dinner tipple for the cold months. Something a little sweet, a little spicy, with just enough of a punch to let you know it's high-octane. The kind of cocktail you'd like to cozy up to if you were snowbound. So we've been tinkering, testing and tasting and now we're ready to unveil our new creation. We've named our cocktail after beloved Chicago-born character actress Beulah Bondi, who played Jimmy Stewart's mom in It's A Wonderful Life. It'll give you that same homey feeling. Careful though: just like Ma Bailey, it's got hidden strength. more ›

A bar not dominated by flat-panel televisions and loud music. A sedate tropical environment which instantly transports you away from the outside world the moment you enter. Inventive, generous cocktails served without a drop of pretension. Trader Vic's is special to us. more ›

The website for the new Chicago Trader Vic's at 1030 N. State is live. And while there's not much on it yet, you can sign up for their newsletter and also peruse the cocktail menu. Well, perhaps you should limit your perusal unless you have a drool cup handy. Because just reading names like Menehune Juice, Doctor Funk Son and Hot Rum Cow has already kicked our salivary glands into action. more ›

Toby Maloney calls it a “crazy year,” but it's been over a year since he opened up The Violet Hour, the now-famous bar with no sign, no cellphones, no smoking (pre-ban) and some of the finest drinks that Chicago has ever seen. With a focus on fresh-squeezed juices, homemade syrups and bitters, and an excellent array of fine spirits with an emphasis on gin, rum and rye – no vodka at the outset – VH was the kind of place you either loved instantly, or just didn’t get it. more ›

Tomorrow is National Rum Day. Normally we make fun of silly, profit-driven holidays designed by PR flacks, but in this case we’re totally on board. It may have something to do with the fact that we love drinking rum cocktails on mild summer days like this one. Here are a couple of drinks to try out on your friends this weekend! more ›

We love a good mojito and aren't opposed to playing with the recipe just a little bit. Over the weekend we put together some strawberry mojitos to cool us down. Enjoy these outside as a nice twist on this hot weather favorite. And if you've never grown your own mint, this is the perfect to do so as you'll always be ready to whip up this fresh cocktail. more ›

Today is National Piña Colada Day. Naturally it makes sense to focus on the Colada for this installment of "Properly Sauced." Originally, the piña colada was nothing more than ripe pineapple juice, either strained (colada) or unstrained (sin colar). Visitors to Pilsen's Fiesta del Sol sample it in this version annually. According to Wikipedia, the earliest known reference to the piña colada as a rum-based cocktail was in a Travel magazine article about Cuba from 1922: more ›

Until Bottom Lounge (re-)opened, in order to find a good tiki lounge one had to travel to the suburbs. Within the city limits Trader Vic's closed last year, paving the way for the overpriced and subpar Lockwood restaurant. Trader Vic's was the lone standout for years after Ciral's House of Tiki in Hyde Park put up the shutters in 2000. more ›

While browsing at O’Gara and Wilson in Hyde Park, we stumbled across a copy of Trader Vic’s Book of Food and Drink – a first edition from 1946, signed by the Trader himself. As lovers of classic cocktails, we couldn’t let this one go, and we’ve had fun making the various 1940s rum-based cocktails and reading the dated and sarcastic prose. One recipe for “Pondo Punch” was named after “Our Filipino Boy” who apparently used to make them for the Trader. Another, the Mahukona, is described thusly: “There’s a good story about this drink, but sitting here trying to remember it, I’m stuck. I know I got the drink some place, because I still have the scrap of paper I scribbled it down on, but dammed if I can remember where it was.” more ›