Just as alcohol can provide temporary relief from some conditions, e.g. sobriety (ha!), antibiotic drugs can cure all sorts of nasty physical conditions. Sam Ross is not a doctor, but he is a legendary New York City bartender who created the Penicillin.  I'm sure Dr. Alexander Fleming, who discovered penicillin in 1928 (and no relation to Ian Fleming, the author of the James Bond novels), would approve.

2 ounces blended Scotch (I prefer Monkey Shoulder)
.75 ounces honey syrup
Ginger (see below for options)
Juice from 1/2 lemon
.25 ounces smoky Scotch (I used Laphroaig 10)

Combine everything except the smoky Scotch in a shaker with ice, shake with the force of penicillin destroying bacteria, strain into a chilled glass, then float the smoky Scotch on top (hold a spoon upside down over the glass and pour slowly).  Candied ginger or lemon garnish optional.

You have two options for the ginger.  First, use .5 ounces of a ginger liqueur such as Barrow's Intense (full disclosure -- I am a small investor).  Second, muddle two or three small pieces of fresh ginger in the shaker before adding the other ingredients.  I prefer the first option because Barrow's Intense gives you a strong and consistent ginger taste with slightly less effort.

Speaking of effort, making honey syrup doesn't take much of it. Just follow the recipe I used for A Thief In The Night.  The smoky Scotch, which is a key ingredient in cocktails such as the Fireside Chat, helps bring everything together to make the Penicillin a tasty and warming cocktail.

Penicillin -- it's good for what ails you.

Sometimes the word renegade has a bad connotation, e.g. the wanted man in the classic Styx song.  Sometimes history ultimately vindicates renegades because they dared to be different.  The word comes from the Latin renegare, which means to deny or renounce.  A 2013 creation from Sara Rosales, the Renegade cocktail isn't nearly as old as the word.

1 ounce bourbon
1 ounce mezcal
.75 ounces yellow Chartreuse
1 dash orange bitters
1 dash Angostura bitters

Combine in a shaker with ice, stir with the confidence that it takes to be a you know what, and strain into a chilled glass.  Orange twist garnish optional.

Like a true renegade, the Renegade stands out because of its high powered mix of bourbon and mezca, a key part of drinks such as the Naked and Famous).  The yellow Chartreuse, used in drinks such as the Diamondback, masks its strength with a slightly sweet taste. Be careful, as too many Renegades will make you face the same fate as the man in the Styx tune (he's about to hang on the gallows). If you want to be a renegade with a Renegade, change up the ratios of the spirits, or the bitters.

Does this combination of ingredients look a little weird?  Yes.  Just remember the motto of the elite British Special Air Service: who dares, wins. 

Renounce weak cocktails, dare to have a Renegade, and win.

Sine metu (Latin for "without fear") is the motto of Jameson Whiskey.  Yes, that Jameson, the most famous brand of Irish whiskey.  You can find it in bars around the world, and not surprisingly every pub in Ireland. The original distillery, which is no longer in use, is one of the top tourist attractions in Dublin.

Last summer my wife (and my muse for the Whiskey Queen) visited the New Midleton Distillery, which is near Cork, Ireland.  The distillery produces a number of whiskies, the most famous of which is Jameson.

Along with two of my wife's co-workers and their spouses, we took an extensive tour of the distillery and participated in a private whiskey tasting.  Conor, our bartender, was quite knowledgeable, and the rest of the group indulged us when we spoke about cocktails.  The whole experience was informative and fun.  And I would've said that even without trying half a dozen premium whiskies in the distillery's portfolio.

Do you want to pour and bottle your very own Jameson?  You can do it at the distillery.  We did (see the video below).  It always will be a special bottle for us.  We won't use it for cocktails such as the Intense Irish, but we'll be happy to use other products such as Jameson Caskmates.

Does reading all of this make you thirsty?  Then go forth and drink Jameson sine metu.

"Part Time-Lover" was a huge hit for the great Stevie Wonder.  Truth be told, if you're going to talk about 1980s pop songs with the word "lover" in the title, I prefer "Easy Lover" from Phil Collins and Philip Bailey (from Earth, Wind, and Fire; he also happened to sing backup on "Part-Time Lover").  Stevie Wonder didn't create this cocktail.  Instead, the Part-Time Lover is a creation from Jon Weimorts in Los Angeles.

1.5 ounces blanco tequila
.5 ounces Aperol
.5 ounces elderflower liqueur or super simple syrup
Juice from 1/2 lemon
2 dashes Angostura bitters

Combine in a shaker with ice, shake with the passion of a (you can figure out the metaphor, right?), and strain into a chilled glass.  Lemon garnish optional.

Just as the catchy upbeat vibe of the song belies its sad substance, the smooth taste of the Part-Time Lover belies its strength.  The tequila provides the subtle kick beneath the bitterwsweet Aperol (a lighter, less potent amaro with an orange taste) and the sweeter elderflower liqueur, e.g. St. Germain (a key ingredient in the Flower of Normandy), or super simple syrup. Weimorts uses elderflower liqueur because it adds more flavor to the Part-Time Lover.  If you don't have or want to get that, super simple syrup does quite well.

Have a full-time fun cocktail and drink a Part-Time Lover.