Drink Recipes

Forget the green beer -- everybody knows that Irish coffee is a much better way to wash down the St. Pat's soda bread and corned beef, right?

At least, as the legend goes, some weary American travelers thought so in 1952, when a bartender in the Shannon Airport whipped up the concoction to warm them after a hard day of difficult wintertime flight. The drink allegedly made its way back stateside through San Francisco's Buena Vista Cafe, which still touts it as a specialty of the house.

For starters, the coffee's got to be good. Don't bother ordering one at your run-of-the-mill faux-Irish corner pub -- stick to eateries and bars that you know pride themselves on good coffee. Second, if you're going green for the holiday, you may as well specifically ask for an Irish whiskey -- I go for Powers, but Bushmills also fits the bill. (Of course, what happens outside of St. Patrick's Day stays outside of St. Patrick's Day...)

But what makes the perfect Irish coffee? Read on after the jump to find out.

Also known as Arrack Punch after it's Batavia Arrack ingredient, Swedish Punsch liqueur is not currently commercially available in the U.S. But importer Haus Alpenz hopes to change that by the end of this year with the launch of the Facile label in the U.S. American cocktail enthusiasts applaud this effort, as Swedish Punsch has been a hard-to-find ingredient in replicating many old drinks for more than forty years.

Swedish punsch is drank hot or cold in its homeland and can be found served alongside hearty pea soup.

Happy National Absinthe Day!

Known for its mood-shifting powers, this stormy wormwood liqueur gets a bad rep - famous impressionist Van Gogh is reputed to have cut off his right ear while under its spell. But as embraced as it may have been as the hallucinogenic of choice by the Bohemians of Belle Epoque Paris, in moderation, absinthe makes for a flowery, delicate, nuanced drink.

Legalized in the United States in 2007, the "green fairy" has increasingly been showing up in cocktail menus across the country. For some inspiration, check out Epicurious' Top 5 Absinthe Cocktails -- or link to your favorite recipes in the comments.

Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot at having your photos featured on the site.

Happy National Margarita Day!

Surely you've encountered the usual varieties of the margarita -- whether straight up, on the rocks or slushed, with a salted or unsalted rim, the standard drink usually takes a base of tequila, orange liqueur and lime juice. And while the classics are eternally refreshing and tasty, like photographer Beurremanie, we like a little more spike with these wintertime renditions.

If you're feeling adventurous, try these unique margarita recipes yourself -- or head over to your favorite happy hour joint today.

• Ancho-cranberry margarita (pictured above)
• Beetroot margarita
• Ruby red grapefruit margarita
• Jean-Georges Vongerichten's ginger margarita
• Cranberry margarita
• Strawberry-basil margarita
• Mango-cilantro margarita

Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot at having your photos featured on the site.

Demián and I experienced our first Carnaval in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico this past week. The streets were full of live music and revelers drinking from terracotta cups called jarritos de barro. Booths lined the streets with colorful signs advertising drinks like changuirongos (pronounced sort of like chan-gee-don-goes].

In the U.S., you typically find a boring version of this drink as a simple highball of tequila over ice, topped with ginger ale and garnished with a lime wedge. But ginger ale is not so common in Mexico -- more people reach for lemon/lime, orange or grapefruit sodas instead.

Our guess is that the changuirongo is related to the Paloma drink that's made with lime juice, tequila and grapefruit soda served as a highball, over ice, in a Collins glass with a salted rim. In some Mexican states, the changuirongo was nothing more than a Paloma served in a terracotta cup.

Another drink called a jarrito con piquete (jug with liquor) or jarrito loco (crazy jug) is similar. This version contains a tequila base, ice, fruit liqueur and a fruit garnish that often matches the liqueur, like fresh mango with mango liqueur.