The Negroni is a quintessential classic cocktail. What does it have to do with Sesame Street, the popular long running American educational television show for kids? As a proud Sesame Street "graduate," I can tell you the Count was one of my favorite characters. The Negroni's history also involves a Count. In 1919 Count Camillo Negroni, an Italian nobleman (unlike the Count, he was not modeled off of Bela Lugosi's interpretation of Count Dracula in the movies) asked Fosco Scarselli, his bartender, to strengthen his favorite cocktail.  The result became famous around the world.

1 ounce gin
1 ounce Campari
1 ounce sweet vermouth

Combine in a shaker with ice, stir with Italian flair and grace (or the Count's deliberate cadence), and strain into a chilled glass or a glass with ice. Orange peel garnish optional.

The Negroni is a great gateway cocktail for people who haven't experienced gin or an amaro (bitter liqueur).  Campari, an indispensable ingredient, is a widely available amaro with a vague orange taste. One of the great features of the traditional Negroni is how easy it is to make.  Three ingredients, equal proportions. If you like one ingredient more than the others, you always can adjust the ratio. Although in modern times one typically serves the Negroni in a rocks glass, at the time of its creation it's more likely one would serve it in a smaller, more delicate glass. Unfortunately for Scarselli, Negroni got the credit.

The Negroni lends itself to all sorts of variations.  Substitute bourbon for the gin?  Now you have a Boulevardier.  Reduce and switch the Campari for Fernet Branca?  Now you have a Hanky Panky.  The cocktail can be like what I imagine the Count (the one from Florence, not Sesame Street) was like in real life -- sophisticated, elegant, and powerful.

So how many Negronis will you have? Start counting like the Count from Sesame Street ... one ... two ... ha ha ha ha.

I've never been to Newark (only through it), but I've repeatedly heard it is not one of New Jersey's highlights.  That didn't stop Jim Meehan and John Deragon at PDT in New York City from creating a cocktail in its honor. Just as the locations aren't far from each other, the Newark is not far removed from a Manhattan. Tony Soprano would like the Newark because most or all of its ingredients come from New Jersey and Italy.  Am I good with that?  Fuggedaboudit.

2 ounces Laird's apple brandy or applejack
1 ounce sweet vermouth
.25 ounces Fernet Branca
.25 ounces Luxardo maraschino liqueur

Combine in a shaker with ice, stir with the resoluteness of being Jersey tough, and strain into a chilled glass (preferably a coupe).

Laird's, which originated in New Jersey, makes apple brandy and applejack. When you compare apples to apples, you see the historical and modern differences between the spirits. Add the sweet vermouth (much of which comes from Italy) and the Fernet Branca and Luxardo maraschino liqueur (both of which come from Italy), and you have one great cocktail. Want some accompanying music from some real Jersey boys?  I suggest Frank Sinatra (you might associate him with New York, but he was born and raised in New Jersey) or Bon Jovi.

As anyone who's seen the musical or movie Jersey Boys would tell you, big girls (and boys) don't cry.  They drink Newarks.

If you're a child of the 1980s like me, you'll probably like the Netflix series Stranger Things. You'll definitely appreciate period details such as the floppy disk.  I thought about the show as Ms. Wulf Cocktail Den and I recently savored cocktails at the Floppy Disk Repair Company in Austin.  Courtesy of Chris, who remembered us when he worked and we drank at a different watering hole, we imbibed a number of cocktails.  The Racketeer is spectacular, especially if you think you're a Whiskey Queen, and other standouts included unusual libations such as the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club and familiar ones like the Vieux Carre.

The atmosphere is funky (in a good way).  You can get high quality cocktails in a beer and a shot environment. A quick word of advice -- you can't just walk in.  Even though the fake speakeasy trend peaked awhile ago, the Floppy Disk Repair Company insists you message it beforehand, and then you get clues for the passcode.  It doesn't take much effort (just 24 hours advance planning) and the cocktails are worth it.

Like the speakers in Spinal Tap and one of the main characters in Stranger Things, the Floppy Disk Repair Company goes to 11.

Do you know a nasty woman? Donald Trump called Hillary Clinton a "nasty woman" during the last Presidential debate. I did not watch any of the debates (deliberately vague full disclosure -- I dislike one candidate and despise the other). However, I did watch the very funny Saturday Night Live sketches of the debates, including the last one that spawned Trump's comment and ultimately this cocktail. Many thanks to Jenni Avins who created this drink and posted it on the Quartz website.

1.5 ounces blanco or reposado tequila (hola Herradura)
1 ounce cherry juice (like Avins, I use Trader Joe's brand)
Juice from 1/2 lime

Combine in a shaker with ice, shake with (I could go 10 ways with this considering the drink name and the political climate), and strain into a chilled glass.  Lime garnish optional.

Pairing cherry juice, which is a key component in the National, with tequila seems odd, but the Nasty Woman makes it work (that sounds bad, doesn't it?).  This cocktail takes the Cointreau or Grand Marnier out of a Margarita and brings in cherry juice.  The result is a little sweet, a little tart, and very powerful.

If you're not in the mood to watch or discuss politics, I suggest watching Cleveland from Family Guy ("that's naaaasty") or listening to some tunes from Janet Jackson (Ms. Jackson if you're nasty).  And when the election ends and/or you're out of tequila  -- have an El Presidente.

"Sweet science" refers to boxing, a sport of brutal elegance.  Although the genesis of the term is unclear, it pays homage to the simultaneous focus on objective "science" (e.g. physics, leverage, power) and subjective "sweet" art (e.g. timing, finesse, drama).  The closest I get to boxing is going a couple of rounds on the heavy bag at the gym.  I do this with all the grace and ferocity of the Tasmanian Devil (the cartoon character, not the animal) having a seizure.

Fortunately I'm much better at making cocktails and liqueurs.  "Pugile" is the Italian word for boxer.  Pugilecello is a combination of moracello (blackberry liqueur) and mirtillocello (blueberry liqueur).  Here was my thought process in naming it: "black and blue" --"bruiser" -- "boxer."  Making it is a lot easier than going a round with iconic American boxers such as Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, and Floyd Mayweather.

Round One -- Combine 12 ounces of blackberries (preferably organic), 12 ounces of blueberries (preferably organic), and one liter of 190 proof grain alcohol, e.g. Everclear, in a container.  Wait one week. 

Round Two -- Make super simple syrup with four cups of water and three cups of sugar.  Wait until it cools to room temperature.  Strain the berries from the Round One mixture and combine with the super simple syrup.   Store in a cool, dark place for four weeks.

Round Three -- Savor this sweet science while watching a boxing match, clips of classic fights such as the Thrilla in Manila, or a movie such as Rocky (the first one is a great film, and like any good sports movie, it's only about the sport on its most superficial level).

Before you step into the ring with pugilecello, here's some advice -- it may float like a butterfly, but it can sting like a bee.

Robert Burns was an 18th century Scottish poet and a big deal in the Romantic movement.  Even if you're like me and don't know much about poetry, you probably have heard his most famous poem -- Auld Lang Syne.  It's the song everyone massacres on New Year's Eve because they don't know the  words and/or have had too many cocktails (the title roughly translates as "days gone by" or "old times"). 

2 ounces scotch (I used Monkey Shoulder)
1 ounce sweet vermouth (I love Carpano Antica)
.5 ounces Benedictine

Combine in a shaker with ice, stir with the grace and passion of creating your own liquid poetry, and strain into a chilled glass.

Combining these ingredients may look odd, but they complement each other nicely.  You can adjust the ratios depending on the taste of the scotch you use, or how sweet you want the drink to be.  I suggest scotch constitute at least half of the Bobby Burns.

The Bobby Burns is one of many Scottish things and/or people that I like.  Others include the actor Sean Connery and bagpipe music.  Yes, bagpipe music.   If hearing a bagpipe rendition of Amazing Grace (click on the above link) doesn't move you, you have no soul.

Whether your cultural tastes run towards Robert Burns from Scotland or Montgomery Burns from The Simpsons, you'll like the Bobby Burns.  But unless you have Scottish blood in you, please don't start singing Auld Lang Syne.

It's all about the mash bill.  This isn't the name of a rock band (although it could be).  The mash bill is the specific grain recipe for a whiskey.  If you read the Den post about bourbon being an alcoholic example of American Exceptionalism, you learned its mash bill must contain at least 51% corn.  

What happens once a bourbon distiller meets the 51% threshold?  In theory, almost anything. I recently found this article on the Bourbon Of The Day website.  The article provides an excellent overview of the four standard grains (corn,  barley, rye, and wheat) and the three general recipes (traditional, high rye, and wheat) distillers use to create their bourbons. As the article astutely notes, there can be a lot of variations not just with the proportions of the grains, but also with the grains themselves.

So, with apologies to the Capital One ad with Samuel L. Jackson, what's in your bourbon?

Betty Boop wishes you a happy Repeal Day boop-oop-a-doop.

Repeal Day is important to so many Americans who know nothing about it.  On December 5, 1933 the state of Utah became the final state needed to ratify the 21st Amendment to the Constitution.  The 21st Amendment repealed the 18th Amendment -- Prohibition.

The 21st Amendment ended what was a disastrous attempt at social engineering, as well as an unfortunate example of unintended consequences. If you want to read more about this important period of American history, I highly recommend Last Call by Daniel Okrent. If you want something less intellectual, watch The Untouchables, listen to music from great Prohibition era artists such as Louis Armstrong or Billie Holiday, or look at the photo of Betty Boop (whose cartoon character first came onto the scene during the tail end of Prohibition).

Want to celebrate Repeal Day with style?  Have a cocktail that someone created in the United States during Prohibition, e.g. the Scofflaw or the 12 Mile Limit, or have a cocktail an American created outside of the United States during Prohibition, e.g. the Mary Pickford or the Boulevardier. Just have a drink.

If there ever was a day of celebration for Americans who choose to imbibe, Repeal Day is it.  A toast to the 21st Amendment!

Yes (with sugar free cranberry juice!).  He also orders a strawberry daiquiri with three umbrellas, a Robitussin and tonic .........

Calm down.  James Bond doesn't actually order those  cocktails in the movies or novels.  Fortunately Daniel Craig, who has played 007 in four movies, has an excellent sense of humor.  Watch below or click here to see a hilarious clip from Craig's recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Thanks to my friend (and fellow Bond geek) Sarah for telling me about this clip. 

If you want to read more about the drinking habits of 007 and his creator, look at James Bond's ABC and Drinking Like Ian Fleming.  Or just click the James Bond archive tab on the right to see everything the Den has to offer about Bond, James Bond.

Inspiration can strike at any time.  This citrusy epiphany came one night as I stared at the lineup of homemade liqueurs in my refrigerator.  The number three is important in American society, e.g. three branches of government, the Triple Crown in baseball and horse racing, etc., so I decided to see what I could do with three ingredients of the same flavor.  And voila -- the Triple Orange.

2.25 ounces vodka
.75 ounces Lupo arancello (orange liqueur)
Juice from 1/4 orange
2 dashes orange bitters

Combine in a shaker with ice, shake with the excitement of winning the Triple Crown (like you're Miguel Cabrera or American Pharoah's owner), and strain into a chilled glass.  Orange peel garnish optional.

You make Lupo arancello just as you would make Lupo limoncello, but you use oranges instead of lemons. If you can't wait to make a batch of arancello, use Cointreau or something similar as a substitute.  However, as arancello is sweeter (half of it is super simple syrup) if you use a substitute you may want to scale back on the juice and/or bitters, or add some super simple syrup.

Plan to have three Triple Oranges?  To paraphrase the old Doublemint gum commercial, you'll have triple the fun.  And probably triple vision and triple the hangover.