au pair

Joseph Donohue

Song: Bikeage by The descendants

Song choice rationale:
The line, youre an old maid, youre only fifteen, got me thinking of the old maid cocktail, so I did a riff on that. When I though about a wild young nanny I thought of an au pair.

Recipe:
2 oz. Appleton Estate Reserve
.75 oz zubrowka
.75 oz lime juice
.5 oz falernum
4 apple slices

Muddle two apple slices. Add remaining ingredients, shake and strain into an ice filled collins glass. Top with ginger beer and garnish with mint sprig and remaining apple slices.

BOTTLES AND MODELS

Christopher James

Song: the club cant handle me right now by flo rida

Song choice rationale:
i envision myself sabering the bottle and the champagne spraying everywhere, everyone dancing and going nuts and stacks of napkins (money would be cooler) flying through the air when he drops the "bottles and models" line, hence the cocktails namesake. "bottles" being bottles of champagne amongst others im sure, but also inspiration for that element of the drink. i intend on making this vision a reality. this is an awesome pary song. the theatrics of the spraying champagne/sabering, the flaming ornage peels and my persona are right in line with the energy of this song. if selected i plan to recreate the music video as much as humanly possible. the star anise garnish not only provides aroma but indicates the (rock)star quality behind this cocktail.

Recipe:
2 oz. Appleton Estate Reserve
.75 oz spiced honey syrup
.75 oz fresh lime juice
small egg white
top off with 1 oz champagne

**Shake the first 4 ingredients dry for 15 seconds
and then with ice for another 15. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Top off with the Champagne. Flame an orange twist over the surface of the cocktail and discard. Garnish with a star anise

Road To Zion

Bratislav Glisic

Song: Can't Stop by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Song choice rationale:
Red Hot Chili Peppers Can't Stop Addicted to making great drinks and keeping the masses happy! :)

Recipe:
2 oz. Appleton Estate Reserve
1 1/2 oz Appleton Estate Reserve 

Thymed Exposure

Lindsay Matteson

Song: Just a Girl by No Doubt

Song choice rationale:
I wanted to choose a song that was personal and had that fun, laid-back character of Jamaica and rum. I grew up in Southern California, listening to No Doubt, and have always loved this song; Tragic Kingdom was one of the first CD’s I ever owned. One of the lines of the song is, "I'm just a girl living in captivity,” and I played off this idea for my cocktail. The song is fun and upbeat, and I thought about this fun girl getting out of the captivity of the U.S., going to the tropical paradise of Jamaica, and what cocktail she'd create with what she found there. Appleton has a long history on the island, and I wanted to showcase it’s specific character. I used the indigenous ingredients of thyme and guava to bring out the slightly funky spice notes, and round, full flavor on the palate. The name of the drink (and garnish) came from the opening line of the song: “take this pink ribbon off my eyes, I'm exposed and it’s no big surprise”, bringing us “Thymed Exposure.”

Recipe:
2 oz. Appleton Estate Reserve
1/2 oz lime juice
1/4 oz guava puree
1/2 oz thyme syrup (see recipe below)
4 dashes Peychauds bitters

Whip-shake all ingredients, pour into a collins glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with a sprig of thyme, lime wheel, and straws tied with a pink ribbon.
(Thyme syrup: boil 1/2 cup water, add 1/2 cup superfine sugar 5 oz fresh thyme, let simmer and stir until sugar dissolves. Cool, let sit for 12 hours. Strain out thyme.)

Free Jamaica

Lubens Besse

Song: Exodus by Bob Marley

Song choice rationale:
Exodus is one of his favorite Bob Marley songs and it is very representative Of the strife of the whole African diaspora. As a Haitian-American it resonates with me. I also intended for this experience to be fun, unique but with a sense of depth. I feel that this song hits all those notes and my cocktail adds to that experience

Recipe:
2 oz. Appleton Estate Reserve
.75 oz Lime juice
.75 oz velvet falernum
.5 oz Jamaican black bean soup
Lime garnish