We're officially in the "Dog Days" of Summer, but today marks the opening of our vintage clothing shop, 5th Street Vintage, in Beatrice, Nebraska! The shop is hosting a "Little Black Dress" party as part of its grand opening, so what better cocktail to choose for this evening than a drink named after the inventress of the great LBD: Coco Chanel!
It's no secret that Coco Chanel's favorite drink was champagne, but because there isn't much mixing involved in whipping up a flute of champagne we had to do a bit of online searching for Coco-tails! There are a number of cocktails named after Coco, but we chose a somewhat obscure version for our series this week. This particular recipe hasn't much of a history to it, but its simple yet decadent nature matches perfectly the character of such a simple woman who led an elegant but complicated life. Coco was not a lady to shy away from adding flair and decadence to everyday life, yet understood when an occasion called for something simple and understated.
With this in mind, let's take a look at our ingredients:
- 1.5 oz gin
- 1.5 oz coffee liqueur
- 1.5 oz half-and-half
- Costume jewelry for garnish (yes, you read that correctly!)
Preparation:
Begin by combining gin, a coffee liqueur (such as Kahlua), and half-and-half cream in a shaker with ice and shake vigorously until ice crystals begin to form around the exterior of the shaker. Strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with a piece of costume jewelry! Coco Chanel was a champion of costume jewelry as an affordable substitute for the real thing, so we thought it would be a fitting tribute! If you're not feeling so adventurous, opt for a cherry or a couple of raspberries skewered on a toothpick instead.
Recommended accompaniment:
To accompany your Coco, we recommend "La Javanaise" by contemporary French Singer/Songwriter Madeleine Peyroux. We can't be sure, but something tells us Peyroux's distinctly French, dégager style would have appealed to Coco; it certainly makes us miss France! So enjoy this decadent cocktail and we'll see you again next week!
Until next drink,
Jerron J.
