Delicious Cocktails To Please Your Guests

When having a dinner party, a large aspect of its success is determined by the cocktails that you make available.  You can really turn your party into a night to remember if you can expose your guests to some delicious drinks that they'll never forget.  In this article, we'll relay some cocktail recipes that can surprise and impress your guests.

A commonly-used twist on a classic drink is known as the "Purple Haze".  Based off of the Long Island Iced Tea recipe, the drink gets its name from the famous Jimi Hendrix song since it is purple in color.  While the drink shares many of the same ingredients as a Long Island, it features a distinct taste that provides a good dose of alcohol while still tasting delicious.  To make a Purple Haze, you're going to need the basic liquors that go into a Long Island -- tequila, rum, vodka, and gin.  In addition, you're going to need the secret ingredient that gives the Purple Haze it's color -- Chambord, which is a raspberry-flavored cordial.  You'll also need a lemon-lime flavored soda and sweet and sour mix.

To make a single Purple Haze, mix ½ oz of the four Long Island liquors with ½ oz of Chambord.  Add in an ounce of sour mix, and top it off with a splash of lemon-lime soda for a little carbonation.  That's all you have to do!  The result is a drink that packs a punch while still being very delicious.

Are you looking for an adventurous cocktail that can really add some flair to the evening?  The Flaming Dr. Pepper can be a great addition to an evening, especially for a Tiki-themed party.  Be forewarned -- the drink involves lighting a liquor on fire.  The end result will shock you and your guests, however -- it tastes almost exactly like Dr. Pepper!

To make a Flaming Dr. Pepper, you're going to need a bottle of 151 proof rum as well as a bottle of amaretto and plenty of light beer.  The preparation of the drink can be easily ruined, so take heed for the following directions:

Take a shot glass and fill it ¾ full with amaretto.  Top the shot with 151 -- it should end up layered on top.  Fill a pint glass halfway full with light beer.  Now comes the showmanship part -- using a lighter, carefully light the top of the shot on fire.  The 151 will burn off the top of the shot, and once it's lit, you need to drop it into the pint glass.  The concoction will fizz up, and you need to down it as soon as you can.  By some act of God, the drink actually tastes amazingly like Dr. Pepper -- shocking, considering there isn't a single non-alcoholic ingredient in the mix!

These two drinks can add a delicious and exciting aspect to your next get together.  Exercise caution when making the Flaming Dr. Peppers, and be sure to take the keys of anyone who has been drinking too much.  Enjoy!

Wine Accessories At Kitchen Junkie

Wine is more than an alcoholic beverage.  It's almost a way of life!  There are more wine accessories available than you could even imagine.  From the necessities like corkscrews and glasses, to the not so necessary yet entertaining accessories like decanters, ice buckets, and pourers- there is more to wine than just drinking it.

Corkscrews & Openers

While there are hundreds of varieties of corkscrews, they all work in basically the same fashion.  You screw one end directly into the center of the wine's cork, and use a handle to life the cork out of the bottle in order to enjoy your bottle of wine.

If you want something other than a corkscrew, you can find another style of opener that uses cartridges to ''pop'' the cork out of the bottle.  The pop style openers tend to be a little more expensive than the traditional corkscrew, but image is everything when it comes to wine, and a specialty opener may be just the extra accessory you need for your dinner parties or restaurant atmosphere.

Decanters

Decanters are glass bottles with special shapes designed to encourage the heightening of wine flavors when you store your open wine in them.  They also make for a nice presentation when you place the decanter on the table.

There are literally countless different shapes and styles that decanters come in.  Many resemble a glass flower vase.  Certain wines should be placed in specific shapes of wine decanters in order to enhance the flavor of the wine to the fullest extent.  Others can be stored in any of the fancy decanters.

For an incredible display, you could find a decanter with it's own base unit.  These are highly stylish, and often hold the decanter at an angle, and suspended over the table.

Some decanters come with glass ball stoppers to be placed on the opening of the bottle in order to keep the freshness in when the wine is stored.  Air can have damaging effects to the properties of wine, and so it's usually best to keep open wine in an airtight container.

Additionally, some decanters are able to remove sediments from older wine and aerate younger wines to further enhance their flavors.

Decanters are certainly not necessary to drinking wine (you can place the cork back in the bottle of a wine to keep the air out when you're not pouring the wine) but they certainly make for a nicer presentation and can actually help the overall flavor of the wine.

Wine Racks

Where do you store your wine bottles?  If you're like most people, you keep them in one of your kitchen cabinets until you're ready to use them, or maybe in the basement.  If you drink wine often, however, you would probably enjoy having an elegant and functional wine rack in the kitchen or dining room that is designed to display and hold your wine bottles, glasses, and accessories.

Some wine racks are mounted to overhead cabinet space, so that the bottles are placed lying down inside them, while the glasses hang from their stems.  These are perfect for kitchens with decent space under their overhead cabinets.  If you don't have the room for this style of wine rack, there are wine racks that sit directly on the counter, and hold the bottles at arms reach.

If your kitchen simply doesn't have the space on the counter top or under the overhead cabinets for these styles, you can enjoy a wine rack that stands alone.  These often have small base units, sometimes refrigerated, as well as space for glasses and accessories.  They take up more floor space, but can really dress up a dining area.