Thursday Happy Hour: Cocktail Recipes, Drinks, Music, and Good Times

French 75

Happy New Year!
This year, we were lucky to have several good friends visit from out of town. There's just nothing better than a house-full of friends, newly downloaded lounge music turned up just loud enough to make everyone raise voices, dancing candle-flames, and a table of small bites.

We stuffed dates with blue cheese, paired Gorgonzola and fig jam with piles of Prosciutto, poured blackberries in bowls, and drizzled creme fraiche over smoked salmon and bagel chips. Of course, we also served up lots and lots of French 75s -- our favorite sparkling white wine cocktail.

Cable Car

Ready for a Ride on Santa's Cable Car?
My sister loves the holidays: the presents, baking, winter music, scarf- and beanie-wearing, and pictures with Santa. She's lots of fun. This year, she invited us to take the Polar Express to see Santa  -- and although I'd love to watch my nephew take his first train ride, for some reason, the idea of paying big bucks to sit in a small space full of caroling children didn't thrill me. Grinchy of me, yes.

Instead, she and my brother-in-law brought Cable Cars to our place. Cinnamon, spice, and orange zest in a frosty glass ... definitely a new holiday tradition! 

Stinger

Holiday Cheer from Your Hosts at Thursday Happy Hour!
We've been celebrating Thursday Happy Hours for a while now -- as you can see from this photo of us apparently taken in 1957. Okay, sure, Gary is handy with the Photoshop, but we still had a great time sipping Stingers -- our holiday favorite -- and being silly with a trip-pod and camera remote while winter tunes thumped the house. Doesn't everyone do this kind of thing during the holidays?

Happy Hour Essentials

Thursday Happy Hour: The Store is now open!
And just in time for any last-minute holiday shopping for your friends who appreciate a proper cocktail hour. We hope these hand-picked gifts from Amazon help make your happy hour happier! Check out what we've selected at Thursday Happy Hour: The Store today!

White Whiskers

Happy Birthday, Diane!
In honor of our very special friend's birthday today, we asked Rufus the Tabby Cat to give a toast. He paced as he rehearsed, tossing out words like "esteemed," "gorgeous," and "memories." Unfortunately, every time I turned on the camera to capture the moment, all he could do was complain to the bartender.

I think he kept rejecting his cocktails because he was a little confused. It's not Thursday, after all.

Oh, well. To Diane! Happy birthday, girlfriend! Salud! We made you a mixed tape for your birthday.

~Shelly and Gary

P. S. No alcohol was used in this filming, and the cat was not harmed. Just confused. Music in the video by Kevin MacLeod.

Copyright © 2008, Pybop, LLC (for thursdayhappyhour.com). All rights reserved.

Muddy Mint Slide

Naughty or Nice?
We have a couple friends who get off work late on Thursday nights. Another couple likes to come over after the little one goes to sleep and the sitter is safely planted on the couch. In both cases, they have dinner beforehand, and often arrive at our place with a craving for a sweet.

We created this holiday cocktail just for them, for our after-dinner happy hours. Neither couple actually visited this Thursday, but we were thinking of them, so we shook up a batch till ice crystals formed on top. Before sipping the indulgent dessert drinks, we made a toast to our friends while holiday lounge re-mixes (and classics) spilled into the living room. "Wish you were here!"

Ting and Sting

The Taste of Sunshine and Seaspray
We admit it; it wasn't hard to convince Gary to do a holiday-themed photo shoot during Thursday Happy Hour -- not when the subjects happen to be close friends who live in a ocean-kissed beach bungalow and always serve icy refreshments. The sunshine, unfortunately, was weakened by fog and we had to fake it with strobes and reflectors, but the Jamaican drums and the beverages -- TING and Stings (after the shoot was over) -- made up for the damp. Thanks, K & S!

If you don't have TING soda at your grocery, you can order TING online, try a different citrus soda, like IZZE's grapefruit, or use Squirt® citrus soda.

The Inspiration A few years ago, the four of us, anchored at a small island in the Caribbean, went ashore to buy ice. But instead, we found a thatch-roofed bar where expats and locals mingled, sipping on ice-cold Ting and Stings. A nice change from all that rum. ~Gary & Shelly

The Drink : Ting and Sting 2 oz gin grapefruit soda Pour gin over ice. Top off with soda. Think warm thoughts.

Be smart, safe, and healthy. Drink in moderation. Don't drink and drive. We thank you.

Copyright © 2008, Pybop, LLC (for thursdayhappyhour.com). All rights reserved.

The Inspiration A few years ago, the four of us, anchored at a small island in the Caribbean, went ashore to buy ice. But instead, we found a thatch-roofed bar where expats and locals mingled, sipping on ice-cold Ting and Stings. A nice change from all that rum. ~Gary & Shelly

The Drink : Ting and Sting 2 oz gin grapefruit soda Pour gin over ice. Top off with soda. Think warm thoughts.

Be smart, safe, and healthy. Drink in moderation. Don't drink and drive. We thank you.

Copyright © 2008, Pybop, LLC (for thursdayhappyhour.com). All rights reserved.