Don’s Own Grog

The second most common juice used in cocktails. This citrus juice is about 6% acid; 4% from citric and 2% from malic, with small amounts of succinic acid (this is what gives it a little bloody taste). Lime juice should be used the day it is squeezed, some like it freshly squeezed and others like it a few hours old.

This syrup swaps in golden-hued demerara or turbinado sugar as opposed to processed/bleached white sugar. This gives a deeper, almost caramel-like flavor with a funky molasses nose popular in tropical drinks. We always use 1:1 syrup unless otherwise noted in the recipe itself.

A commonly used syrup made from pomegranate juice, characterized by a flavour that is both tart and sweet, and by a deep red colour. Coming from the French spelling of pomegranate, 'grenade.' To make it yourself (don't buy it premade) combine 100% pomegranate juice (like the Pom Wonderful brand) with equal parts sugar by mass. We always use 1:1 syrup unless otherwise noted in the recipe itself.

A French liqueur made from blackberries, drank in cocktails or as an aperitif; 16% ABV.

A rum aged in charred oak barrels that lend their color to the rum. If a recipe calls for this rum it is likely refuring to a darker colored rum with a rich and strong yet smooth flavor. Common varieties come from Jamaica and Haiti.

Also referred to as silver or white, light rums are unaged, aged in steel, or aged in oak and have had their color filtered out, and usually have a sweeter and lighter taste than darker rum varieties. The name refers to these rums lighter or clear color.

A sub-set of dark, molasses-driven rums. These rums are very dark in color from added refined sugar (molasses), multiple distillation, and likely, but not always, aging in charred oak. There is no formal definition of black rum, if a recipe calls for this type of rum, it is usually refering to a very very darkly colored rum; a common example is Gosling's Black Seal. Pair it with lemon, lime, ginger and pineapple.

A concentrated aromatic bitters made in Trinidad from water, ethanol, gentian and other herbs and spices; used in many classic cocktails like the Manhattan.

The seed from an evergreen tree, used as a grated garnish in many cocktails. A must for egg-nog and egg-nog like drinks. In sufficent amounts it gives a numbing sensation.