We fully听the听support the听carrying of flasks听wherever you might need them鈥攖hat鈥檚 just smart preparation.
But flasks are so much more than just an insurance policy against weddings with bad drinks (or none at all). Kentucky-based journalist has carried a flask for years. It鈥檚 almost like a good-luck charm for her. 鈥淚鈥檝e听always considered flasks to be like those talismans that you carry around,鈥 she says. And like any good-luck charm, over time听her flask has developed a rich patina of stories from the places it鈥檚 been听and the debauchery it鈥檚 seen.听
Baird is the author of the newly released 听($16, Chronicle Books).听It鈥檚 the essential guide to packing mixed drinks听for backpacking, fishing trips, and any adventure that might demand some celebration.听
鈥淎 flask cocktail can get nasty so fast,鈥 she says. When developing the recipes for her book, her conditions were strict.听鈥淚t 肠补苍鈥檛听mold, or rot, or curdle, or taste bad at room temp.鈥 That meant no dairy and听no frothy flips made with an egg white. Even muddled fruit is听a no-go. 鈥淭here were a lot of physical constraints, but it鈥檚 neat to have to work within those constraints,鈥 she says.
There are enough recipes that you鈥檒l definitely find a drink you love, but don鈥檛 skip the first few pages of basic instruction. The intro gives you the dos and don鈥檛s of creating your own flask concoctions. It鈥檚 essential reading so that you understand what will and won鈥檛 work. (Plus, there鈥檚 good stuff about how to clean your flask.)
For example, some citrus juices react with the walls of a metal flask, causing a metallic taste as you drink. Instead, Baird suggests using expressed (squeezed) lemon or lime peels to get that citrus flavor without the tinny tang that reverberates off your dental fillings. Another great tip: honey seems like it should be a safe ingredient, since it doesn鈥檛 need to stay cold, but Baird warns that it will coagulate at the bottom of your drink鈥攜our cocktail won鈥檛 be sweet until the last gooey nip.
Each recipe makes either a single flask-size portion (six听ounces) or a thermos-size听batch (17 ounces). Baird wrote some of the听recipes herself, but others are from mixologists at watering holes around the country.听By asking around鈥攁nd then publishing those recipes verbatim鈥擝aird has curated a more diverse ensemble than any one author could create on their听own.
国产吃瓜黑料 readers will dig the section devoted to cocktails for the great outdoors. When camping, 鈥測ou want something that鈥檚 a little gussied up, but is easy to put together,鈥 Baird writes. Her main rule was that the ingredients had to be readily available.听鈥淭he last thing you want to do is have to find a specialty liqueur as you鈥檙e听packing for your camping trip,鈥 says Baird, who is also听an avid hiker. For example, the Sasquatch calls for honey whiskey. My immediate reaction was to think, Now where am I going to get that? Turns out that Baird has figured out how to make a whiskey and honey infusion, and听the honey won鈥檛 settle on the bottom as you hike. If you have honey and whiskey in your pantry, you鈥檙e all set.
Even if you don鈥檛 tuck a flask into your backpack, this is a fun book for anyone who likes making cocktails with straightforward and shelf-stable ingredients. If you get annoyed at having to buy an entire crate of passion fruits just to muddle one into a martini, this is the guide听for you. The fact that you can take any of these recipes into the backcountry and still have them taste great three days later is an added bonus.听
The Buckskin Playmate
This recipe is from and 听of听the in Atlanta. While it鈥檚 not technically in the outdoors section of the book, Baird says it鈥檚 her go-to for hiking trips to Kentucky鈥檚 Red River Gorge. It percolates all day with no ill effects, and then, she says,听鈥淲e usually split it while eating pizza at Miguels, a legendary pizza spot for hikers and climbers that鈥檚 in a dry county.鈥
Ingredients
- 2 thinly sliced lemon peels
- 2 dashes Herbsaint
- 2 dashes Peychaud鈥檚 bitters
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- 1 ounce Rainwater Madeira
- 1 ounce Bourbon
- 1 ounce rye whiskey
- 1 ounce Cocchi Vermouth di Torino
Directions
Fill a cocktail tin (or a large measuring cup) halfway with ice, and add all the ingredients. Stir for 45 seconds to a听minute,听or until all ingredients are mixed, chilled, and diluted. Funnel into your flask, lemon peel and all.