Cocktail Recipes
Can we mix you a drink?
Years ago we lived next door to Dave Elger, star of the low-budget TV show, “Hot Mixology.” The show’s concept is simple: Community Theater meets Leaving Las Vegas. When Charlie Sheen embarked on his post-meltdown comedy tour a few years ago, he was stealing Dave’s act.
One evening, Dave convinced us to join him on camera in the role of bar patrons. The moment a stranger dragged us into a lighted hallway and began coating us in layers of hairspray and makeup, we realized that we had made a terrible mistake. Andrea’s hair was teased to Debbie Harry perfection. The layers of CoverGirl on Steven’s neck and face were so thick that he felt like he was wearing a rubber Nixon mask. We saw the video the following day; our onscreen personas can best described as somewhere between a Kardashian and a rodeo clown.
Even worse than the caked on makeup or the constant waiting around during endless filming was actually having to sip the drinks and pretending to enjoy them. The theme of that week’s show was “Product Placement For Absinthe.” Every drink set in front of us was the cocktail equivalent of Pixy Stix. In this case, we don’t blame “Hot Mixology.” Absinthe is bitter. The traditional way to make it palatable is to keep adding simple syrup until it is indistinguishable from ginger ale. By those standards, the drinks were excellent. From a Drink Your Carbs perspective, however, when you drink one of these it’s like your diet hitting an iceberg.
Most of these drinks contained more calories from sweeteners than liquor. There are about 100 calories in a shot of Absinthe. There are 50 calories in a tablespoon of simple syrup. We estimate that each drink contained about three to four tablespoons of simple syrup.
As far as we are concerned, this is the problem with modern cocktail culture. We cannot repeat this too many times: when it comes to cocktails, follow a simple rule: No Mixers. In most cases, losing the mixers eliminates more than half the calories. If you want to continue drinking on your diet, the no-mixer rule is key.
This does not mean that you have to drink your liquor straight. It is still possible to make excellent cocktails and adhere to the rule. To prove this, we offer a few of our favorite cocktails and a mixing guide that will allow anyone to create endless cocktails of their own. Try our recipes. Then experiment with your own. It is not difficult to mix mixer-free drinks so good that even “Hot Mixology” would approve.
One evening, Dave convinced us to join him on camera in the role of bar patrons. The moment a stranger dragged us into a lighted hallway and began coating us in layers of hairspray and makeup, we realized that we had made a terrible mistake. Andrea’s hair was teased to Debbie Harry perfection. The layers of CoverGirl on Steven’s neck and face were so thick that he felt like he was wearing a rubber Nixon mask. We saw the video the following day; our onscreen personas can best described as somewhere between a Kardashian and a rodeo clown.
Even worse than the caked on makeup or the constant waiting around during endless filming was actually having to sip the drinks and pretending to enjoy them. The theme of that week’s show was “Product Placement For Absinthe.” Every drink set in front of us was the cocktail equivalent of Pixy Stix. In this case, we don’t blame “Hot Mixology.” Absinthe is bitter. The traditional way to make it palatable is to keep adding simple syrup until it is indistinguishable from ginger ale. By those standards, the drinks were excellent. From a Drink Your Carbs perspective, however, when you drink one of these it’s like your diet hitting an iceberg.
Most of these drinks contained more calories from sweeteners than liquor. There are about 100 calories in a shot of Absinthe. There are 50 calories in a tablespoon of simple syrup. We estimate that each drink contained about three to four tablespoons of simple syrup.
As far as we are concerned, this is the problem with modern cocktail culture. We cannot repeat this too many times: when it comes to cocktails, follow a simple rule: No Mixers. In most cases, losing the mixers eliminates more than half the calories. If you want to continue drinking on your diet, the no-mixer rule is key.
This does not mean that you have to drink your liquor straight. It is still possible to make excellent cocktails and adhere to the rule. To prove this, we offer a few of our favorite cocktails and a mixing guide that will allow anyone to create endless cocktails of their own. Try our recipes. Then experiment with your own. It is not difficult to mix mixer-free drinks so good that even “Hot Mixology” would approve.
Fact: Our depiction of Hot Mixology is not entirely fair. We were on the show in 2010. At the time, it was a drunken Wayne’s World that aired after midnight on local cable. The show is now syndicated nationwide and appears on The Cooking Channel. It is now far more professional. That said, we imagine that the hairspray, makeup and the hours of waiting around are still a valued part of the experience.
Our portrayal of Hot Mixology might be unfair, but we strongly believe that our depiction of Dave is still dead accurate. In college, Dave worked summers as a Party Catalyst for Club Med in Mexico. His job was to get people drunk enough that they were willing to participate in activities like the poolside bikini contest. Twenty-five years later this is still, fundamentally, his job.
When Dave lived next door, he had a two-car garage so packed with liquor bottles that he had to park his car on the street. Sadly we don’t have any photos of that car. It was a convertible Mercedes fully wrapped into a collage of taps, bottles, shot glasses and agave plants. It was a mobile billboard advertising, “Please officer, pull me over right now and give me a breathalyzer.” (We assume Dave would pass that breathalyzer; nonetheless, his car demanded one be given.)
Dave recently opened the Hot Mixology Bar and Lounge in Denver. His cocktail program has gained rave reviews. He is now a respectable tavern owner and a leader of Denver’s blossoming cocktail culture. But he cannot have changed that much. His newest ride is an old school bus that has been wrapped in pictures of bottles, liquor logos and a gigantic portrait of Dave himself, presumably in case the police are unsure who to breathalyze.
Links to Drinks:
DYC Margarita| Amaro Cocktail | Bartender’s Guide | Perfect Cocktail Ice