The Drink: Negoni Slushie, Frozen Negroni, Snogroni, FroGroni. Call it whatever you want. I love Negroni’s and this frozen version has become my go to during this summer.

Here’s how to do it for one. Just keep doubling if you want to whip up a bigger batch.

• 2.5 oz gin – we used New Amsterdam
• 2.5 oz sweet vermouth – we used Noilly Prat
• 2.5 oz Campari

Pour all ingredients in a blender (we use a Ninja).
Add a few handfuls of ice.
Blend that mother.
Pour into a glass, garnish with orange twist, stick a straw in and suck it down on hot afternoon.

The Glass: Blown glass found in a Cabo market (similar).

The Attire: Forever 21 shark print tank.

This is a mini takeover with Jamie Clayton to teach y’all a litle sumpin’ sumpin’. He’d been going on and on recently about a peach infused bourbon he made, and then later another with pecans added. I took the oppurtunity on a recent trip to Nashville to head over to his house to first and foremost, taste it (YUM), and second, photograph the process so y’all can make some of your own.

The rest of the post is written by him:

My neighbors and good friends Stephen & Jessica own The Peach Truck.  Its an awesome business where they take peaches from Peach County, GA (I’m not kidding) and sell them all over Nashville and small towns across the southeast. Being from South Carolina, I’m partial to my peaches and I have to admit, these are some of the best damn peaches I’ve ever had.

Another cool thing The Peach Truck sells is pecans from Pearson Farm. I decided this summer I would infuse some of my favorite whiskies with The Peach Truck peaches & pecans. It’s easily one of the best decisions I’ve made this summer. The ONLY problem is that the bourbon goes too quick.

For how good it tastes, it’s incredibly easy to make…

In an airtight container, add 4 peeled and cut up peaches (large chunks) and a hefty handful of pecans.

Get a bottle of your favorite whiskey – make it something you would enjoy sipping neat or on ice. Pour the entire 750ml bottle of bourbon into your container. 

Close that bad boy up and give it a good shake. Keep it in your fridge and give it a light shake once a day.

Wait about 5-7 days and then strain your whiskey into a bottle. I used an old Bulleit bottle because lets be honest, they look badass.

When you strain the bourbon, put a cheesecloth in a funnel and strain about 2-3 times. Your end goal is gorgeous bourbon with as little sediment as possible in it.

EDITORS NOTE: Jamie just moved and in the process he lost his smaller funnel so he has been using this giant one. It did the job and did the job well.

After you double strain your whiskey – you are good to go. Once you strain one, I’d recommend starting on another. Trust me. By the time you finish your first bottle you are going to be hoping you have another bottle ready to be strained.

The end product is a bourbon with a nice subtle note of peach and pecan

Pour into a double old fashioned glass over an ice sphere and garnish with a peach peel.

Glass: Old Syndey Hale candle.

Photographed in Burnet, TX

A few weeks ago while visiting my parents new home in Burnet, I wandered into Twin Liquors in search of a Texas whiskey to try. The few I have experienced have all been fantastic, and up to that point, I merely chose by judging the bottle. It’d proven successful thus far, so I did the same with this one I’d yet to see. With the giant TX label, how could I resist? To top it off (pun intended), each bottle cap is handmade, mostly from repurposed cowboy boots. Learn more about the bottle cap stories here, it’s pretty dang cool.

That evening, we popped open the TX Blended Whiskey and sipped it neat and man, oh man, did we fall in love with it. The strong vanilla scent, the caramel and honey buttery flavor. We nearly drank the entire bottle on that first night, and fought over the last drop on my last night.

A few days later, my Mom texted me a photo of her holding two giant bottles that she’d be driving back to Montana. I just about cried over it.

I’m mixing up this “Drink This” feature with an interview. Rob Arnold, Head Distiller at Firestone & Robertson Distillery, was kind enough to answer a few questions. Keep up the incredible work, Rob!

______

Raised in:
Louisville, Kentucky

Lives in:
Dallas, Texas

What inspired TX Blended Whiskey:
There are many blended whiskies on the market, but premium blends tend to come from Scotland, Ireland, Canada, and other regions aside from the United States. We wanted to create a premium American blended whiskey that could stand up against the great blends of the world. We need the right equipment to do this, so checking out some Kentucky whiskey barrels for sale as well as other barrels is important for us to make the whiskey that we want to put out there.

Favorite tasting note in TX Blended Whiskey:
The fruity notes that come through upon the addition of a small amount of water.

How you’d describe it in 5 words or less:
Viscous, slightly sweet, tropical fruits.

Favorite song that mentions “whiskey”:
The Pogues – “Streams of Whiskey”

______

If you’re in Texas or Louisiana, find out where to buy this delicious whiskey. For those who live beyond, write it down on your “whiskey’s to try list” and get it if you’re in the area. Prayers for greater distrubution would also be appreciated.

The Drink: I reached out to Julian Goglia of The Pinewood in search for a good Rum Punch recipe. He kindly shared this one and declared it ‘The Keelhauler.’ It’s awesome! My only adjustment to Julian’s recipe was using 2 oz of rum as opposed to 1.5 oz. Personally, I like a drink a tad boozier, and the addition of more rum made it a tad less sweet, which I also prefer. If you love a sweeter cocktail, try it with 1.5 oz first.

• 2 oz aged rum – we used Flor de Caña’s 7 year reserve
• 1/2 oz John D. Taylor’s Velvet Falernum*
• 1/2 oz ginger syrup (1 part ginger juice to 1 part sugar)
• 1/2 oz fresh lime juice

Shake and strain into glass over a large cube.

The Drink: The 36th Vote – High West’s Barreled Manhattan. Made with the pre-Phobition recipe of two parts Rye whiskey, one part sweet vermouth and two dashes of bitters. It’s then aged in a white oak barrel for 90 days.

It was Jamie Clayton that introduced this to me, so here’s his experience first…

Recently, I was lucky enough to shoot a wedding in Seaside, Florida. I got to stay at the amazing Watercolor Inn for 3 nights. The first night I was there, I sat down and ordered a drink called The 36th Vote. I can’t remember the bartender’s name. Gary? Ronald? He was a fantastic bartender. He grabbed a double old fashioned glass and pulled out the Macallan Ice Ball Maker and dropped a beautiful ice sphere in my glass. He then grabbed a bottle from Utah’s High West distillery. He put 2 dashes of Peychaud’s in the glass and then a solid 2 oz pour of this spirit. Wait, what? No mixing? I quickly realized I had ordered an aged manhattan. A simple garnish of 3 maraschino cherries on a pick and he slid the drink towards me. It was so delicious I ordered probably 10 the rest of the time while I was staying there. Nothing else. All I wanted was the 36th Vote.

Back to me (Caroline). We were staying just down the road in Santa Rosa Beach while Jamie was in Seaside. Every night he was in town, he’d text us to come to his hotel bar and try this drink. “Just one drink,” he’d say, “you’ve gotta try this manhattan.” Since we were on vacation with my parents, I never could pull myself away from family time, but I promised Jamie I’d buy a bottle on my way back through Atlanta.

So I did. We got home, and the first drink I poured was this baby. Just as the bartender served for Jamie. 2 dashes Peychaud’s, one large ice cube, 2 oz High West Barreled Manhattan. Y’all. This is hands down the best barrel aged Manhattan I’ve had (second to one that Jamie made a while back with bourbon, port wine, and amaro). I’ve been sharing it with guests like crazy, and cannot recommend it enough.

The other day I ran into High West’s Barreled Boulevardier which I will be buying immediately after I drink every last drop of the manhattan. Stay tuned…

The Glass: Fleur-de-Lis glass from One Kings Lane.

The Drink: Named after our 5,000th Twitter follower (@thegoodsouth), adapted from Karah Carmack’s (Cured, San Antonio) Dare I Say? cocktail (featured in this month’s Imbibe).

To be honest, I adapted this cocktail by accident. Instead of grabbing the Fernet Branca bottle, used in Carmack’s recipe, I grabbed the Branca Menta next to it. I followed the recipe exact, tasted it, and liked it. The strong mint flavor left in my mouth made me realize what I’d done, and realize there was way too much of it left on my palate. So, I remedied my mistake, made the drink according to the recipe, and tasted that one. Really good, but now I missed the mint…

So I made the “wrong” one again, using less Menta, and gave both to Mark for a blind taste test. We swapped, and I tasted both, and we both agreed the Menta added something extra special to this cocktail.

• 1 oz Rye – I used Old Overholt
• 1/4 oz Branca Menta
• 1/2 oz sweet vermouth – I used Dolin Rouge
• 1/2 oz Aperol
• 2 dash Peychaud’s

Put all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice and stir.
Strain into a rocks glass with a large cube – I used Tovolo King Cube.

The Glass: Anchored Style Whiskey Flag glass (c/o).