Cosmic cocktails for black-tie holiday bash

When Patti Davis (“Anatomy of a Dinner Party”) throws a party, she really throws a party – an out of this world party. And that is exactly what she did recently for her annual holiday bash, choosing the theme this year of “space.” The Davis house was transformed into the outer realms of the universe, complete with the stars and planets above, and fabulous nibbles and drinks below. Did we mention that we created cocktails for this fantastic black tie event?

Several months before, Patti contacted us to create two specialty cocktails for her popular black tie event.  We were excited to take on the space theme challenge. The challenge (and fun!) grew when she told us the two spirits we would use, the flavor profiles, and the presentation she wanted.  So, we teleported to the OLN Lab and created the Pangalatic Punch and Sex on the Holideck.

Pangalactic Punch
The first ingredient up was Cava, with a request for the finished cocktail to be blue-green in hue. We wanted to meet the requirement of color and yet find a way to incorporate flavors of the holiday season. Our solution was to blend Cava with an unfiltered apple cider, add a touch of Blue Curacao for color and citrus, and finally a homemade clove tincture. The result was punch perfect in color with a flavor that evoked holiday apples and spices. A drink totally contradictory in appearance and taste, but delightfully so!

In the spirit of the theme, we also created this sci-fi copy to be presented along side the punch. How could we resist?

The red sun Falnumus was seting over the mountains of Scorpius UB313 as we struggled in the cruiser over the last of the rocky plains, finally reaching the nesting ground of the Knardy Beetle. Why make the trip? Well, you can’t make Pangalactic Punch without the glowing blue yolk of the Knardy’s egg. While Nicky distracted the beetle with his forbidden dance (don’t ask why it’s forbidden), Katruska used the retrieval microbot to grab the egg. Egg in hand we ran for the cruiser, only losing one limb in the process. So, enjoy the Pangalactic Punch’s smooth, fruity character born of our inter-dimensional travels.

Pangalactic Punch
(makes one punch bowl – 113 oz)
50.7 oz Martinelli’s unfiltered apple juice (one full bottle)
51 oz Cava (two 750ml bottles)
11 oz Blue Curacao
68 drops clove tincture
Pour all over ice mold, stir to chill, then serve up in a glass of your choice.

Sex on the Holideck
The second ingredient was rum, but not just any rum. Coming on board as a sponsor for the party was Cayrum, a handmade golden rum from the Dominican Republic that is specially blended with honey and fresh ginger. This spirit just screamed Tiki. Hmm. Tiki. Space. Of course! The beaches accessed through the Star Trek Holodeck!

But, instead of traditional Tiki-style fruits, we opted for papaya and cranberry. The cranberry provided a nice tang that blended well with the honey-ginger of the rum, while the orgeat and black walnut bitters smoothed out the drink leaving a nutty essence on the back end. The color was a beautiful red that was perfect for the holidays.  It played perfectly into our other sci-fi concept provided below!

Mixologist’s log, stardate 41631.7: There’s nothing like it. The sand between your toes. The gentle ebb and flow of the surf. The gentle breeze caressing your face. This was the third afternoon in a row I had spent in this secluded cay just outside of Amaliemajor. The location wasn’t the main attraction. No, the attraction was him. I didn’t know his name, but when we met three days ago, his gentle smile was all that was required to persuade me to join him in the dunes. Now I see him approaching down the beach. The sense of anticipation is building to the point that I…wait a minute. Where the hell did the beach and my lover go?

At this point, the deck’s operator informs me that the central rendering units have malfunctioned and will take at least an hour to repair. So, instead of a tryst in the sand dunes, I had time to create this cocktail. Well, at least you can be satisfied with a libation that echoes of remote sunny beaches, holiday fruits, and just a touch of sin. Cheers until the deck is back online.

SEX on the HOLiDECK
2 oz Cayrum
1 oz Papaya juice
1 oz pure Cranberry juice
.5 oz orgeat
two dashes black walnut bitters
Combine in iced shaker; shake and strain into chilled cocktail glass.

So, should you find yourself in a galaxy far, far away this holiday season (i.e. the in-laws or too many days with family visiting), mix up one of these space libations, put on some Also Sprach Zarathustra, and warp drive into your own star system. May the force/Santa be with you!