Club drinks are a mixed bag, but in a canon that includes some awfully weak entries, X-Rated is possibly the best thing going. At 34 proof, it’s light enough to go down easy on its own. Almost too easy, really. It’s sweet, light, full of fruit, and so hot pink you’ll think you were drinking the freshly drawn blood of Strawberry Shortcake herself.

What’s in the bottle? Vodka, mixed with juice of blood orange, mango, and passion fruit. And probably a healthy dose of FD&C Red No. 40. The liqueur originates in France but is bottled by San Francisco-based Skyy.

On ice it’s very pleasant and almost refreshing. A touch too sweet perhaps but balanced by some bracing tartness in which the three fruit flavors all come through. It also works with vodka or as a mixer to other higher-proof alcohol. If nothing else it makes for a fantastic alternative to the much-reviled Appletini. I can see it working well instead of Creme de Cassis with Champagne in a pseudo-Kir Royale. (X-Rated calls this a “Tickled Pink.”) It is also quite yummy with lemonade.

The marketing message is a little unfortunate (and X-Rated is really playing it up; for Mother’s Day the company sponsored a “who’s your favorite cougar?” competition: Mrs. Robinson, from The Graduate, won), but try not to judge the book too harshly by its cover.

It’s hard, really, when it tastes this good. To hell with it: Here’s to you, Mrs. Robinson.

A- / $24 / xratedfusion.com

On paper, Mascarade sounds pretty interesting, as fruity mixers go, I mean: Peaches and apricots from France, Armagnac, and vodka. Not sure about mixing Armagnac and vodka but, sure, maybe this is just the upscale alternative to Southern Comfort that the market needed.

I wish it was so. Mascarade just didn’t work for me.

On its own, Mascarade is distinctly cough syrupy. Seriously, I swear I’ve had cough syrup with this very flavor. Now maybe that’s a complement to cough syrup — I can drink that stuff all day when I’ve got a bad cold — but I can’t imagine that’s a flavor too many people are looking for in a spirit. Sure, peach and apricot are there, but they just don’t provide the real punch of fruit that I’d have liked.

Mascarade (just 32 proof) fares better in cocktails, but not by much. The
stuff overpowers anything it touches. I tried making the “Mascarade Martini” (1 oz. Mascarade, 1 oz. vodka, 2 oz. orange juice) and expected a more complex Screwdriver. What I got instead was the strong taste of Mascarade cut with a little orange. Mascarade might be fine in tiny quantities, but you probably wouldn’t even notice it was there… and then what would be the point? Considering it has to be refrigerated after opening, one bottle could last an eternity.

Just found this one… If you happen to have mangosteen fruit, mango juice, lime, and gin, the Penang Angel might be something tasty. Now where to get some mangosteen…

C- / $26 / web

Ginger is one of the hottest flavors in cocktails right now, and it’s only fitting that someone has put the essence of ginger into a liqueur. Domaine de Canton is the real deal: Baby ginger steeped in cognac, bottled at 56 proof, and coming together as a spicy and flavorful monster of a liqueur that imparts the kick of ginger into anything it touches.

I’m not mad about it on its own, but in cocktails it shines. I used it in Canton’s own suggested recipes: A ginger mojito (Canton, white rum, lemon, mint) and a ginger martini (Canton, vodka, Grand Marnier), and both were knockout drinks. (Fair warning: Canton, as most spirit producers, errs on putting too much of its own product in any given recipe, and here you really know when you’ve overdone it.)

Domaine de Canton is one of those rare spirits that actually taste better than the raw ingredient used to make it. No one would argue that an orange-flavored vodka beats using fresh orange juice or orange peel in a cocktail, but fresh ginger is always way too overpowering in a drink for my taste. Canton’s cognac mellows the ginger perfectly while still keeping its essence. It’s irresistable.

The bottle is a thing of beauty, but be warned: Pouring from it results in a good amount of spillage due to the awkward shape of the neck. Use a jigger.

A / $32 / domainedecanton.com

Mexico’s answer to Amaretto (and no, I didn’t know there was a challenge that needed answering either) is Almendrado, a tequila-based liqueur flavored strongly with almonds and bottled at 60 proof.

If you’re the type of person who can handle Amaretto on the rocks after dinner, you’ll have no trouble with Reserve del Señor Almendrado. (As far as I can tell, Reserve del Señor is the only company in the Almendrado business.) The tequila base is almost completely masked by the sugary sweet almond flavor, creating a dessert-like experience in a glass that’s heady with candied nuts. I’m sure you will find more differences among Amaretto brands than you will between Almendrado and, say, DiSaronno.

All that said, Reserve del Señor Almendrado is perfectly palatable in small doses and can work well in cocktails, I think. Pairing it with Licor 43 and Kahlua feels like a natural for a south-of-the-border themed dessert drink.

B / $22 / almendrado.com

Once again, it’s dessert drink time at Drinkhacker. This one’s inspired by the eponymous cookie.

Nilla Wafer
1 1/2 oz. vodka
1/2 oz. white chocolate liqueur (I use Godiva White)
1/2 oz. Navan vanilla liqueur
1/4 oz. Damiana liqueur (a Mexican herbal liqueur)

Shake with ice in a cocktail shaker and strain into a cocktail glass. Rim the glass with sugar beforehand if you’re feeling ambitious.

Try adding 1/2 oz. of creme de banana liqueur for an additional twist.

Sloe Gin Fizzes were the first cocktail I mastered, but it’s been years since I’ve had one. No reason why, really. Sloe gin, a liqueur flavored with sloe berries, the fruit of the blackthorn tree, has hardly seen the renaissance that other spirits have in recent years. There hasn’t exactly been a clamoring for the stuff in the market.

Well, Plymouth (which I’m on record as stating, unequivocally, makes the best gin on the market) is trying to change that by introducing a premium sloe gin, perhaps the first of its kind. Plymouth threw a swanky party for its new bottling last night at Bourbon & Branch here in San Francisco, and I was fortunate enough to try the spirit along with a number of cocktails made with it.

First, a bit more about sloe gin: It’s made by steeping sloe berries in gin (Plymouth gin, of course), and watered down to 52 proof. 26 percent alcohol makes it a pretty standard liqueur rather than a true gin, so plan accordingly. Served straight, it’s quite tart, really too sour to enjoy on its own, but in cocktails it really shines.

Sloe gin’s natural habitat is the Sloe Gin Fizz, and in its preparation here (with fresh lemon juice, simple syrup, fresh egg white, and a splash of club soda) it was a real delight, creamy, with a good mix of sweet and sour. In a good cocktail, sloe gin tastes a lot like cranberry, and in The Wibble (recipe below), you get the essence of sloe gin at its best. This concoction, which includes grapefruit juice and blackberry liqueur, is like a Cosmo on steroids. Really good.

Amazingly, the addition of sloe gin to gin and Campari made the “Sloegronie” impressively drinkable, still quite bitter, but much better than a real Negroni. Finally, I finished up the night with Plymouth’s Southside (pictured, because it was so cool looking), which actually didn’t include sloe gin at all. Essentially a Mojito with gin instead of rum, I was impressed with how much more interesting this now-tired drink could be. Sub in lemon for lime and add a shot of sloe gin and you’ve got a Sloe Gin Genie (pictured at top, next to the bottle). I’ll give it a try when I get a bottle of my own to play with.

Plymouth Sloe Gin isn’t quite yet available in the U.S. yet, but keep an eye out for it. (If it’s sold at the same price here as it is in Britain, it’ll run about $35 a bottle.)

The Wibble
1 oz. Plymouth Gin
1 oz. Plymouth Sloe Gin
1 oz. freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
1/4 oz. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/8 oz. simple syrup
1/8 oz. Wild Blackberry Liqueur (Creme de Mure)

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.

Here’s the recipe that launched this blog, reprinted here from my personal blog, just for kicks and the sake of completeness.

The Appletini, iPhone Edition (aka The iPhonetini, The iPhone Martini)
2 oz. vodka
1/2 oz. Apple Pucker Schnapps
1/2 oz. Goldschlager
1/4 oz. Cointreau (or Triple Sec)

Combine in a shaker with ice. Shake well and strain into a chilled cocktail glass, optionally rimmed with sugar. Garnish with your old cell phone (or an apple wedge).

It actually tastes pretty good: Apple and cinnamon are a natural fit. The off-white color recalls many an Apple gizmo (though not, of course, the iPhone itself), and the little touch of gold reminds you exactly what you’re paying for. (Oh, and if you like a stronger apple flavor, add a bit more Apple Pucker.)

Here’s a spin on the Casino recipe that I love so much, adding St. Germain (which I also love so much) to give it an extra dimension of taste.

The Downtown Casino
2 oz. vodka
1/2 oz. Maraschino liqueur
1/2 oz. St. Germain liqueur
1/2 oz. fresh lemon juice

Shake all the ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a brandied cherry.

Use less Maraschino and lemon juice if you find either flavor too strong, and sub in gin for vodka at your pleasure.

The red bottle and fancy writing make Ecstasy instantly appealing… but what is this “liqueur” that’s bottled at a whopping 70 proof and includes caffeine?

Clearly marketed at the Red Bull & Vodka crowd, Ecstasy is a spirit (basically diluted grain alcohol) for the LiLo/Paris/Britney crowd, spiked with caffeine, ginseng, taurine, and other stimulants designed to help you dance-slash-party after a long day of sleeping and shopping instead of mellowing out after a long day of work.

Ecstasy describes the spirit as having “the predominant flavors of pomegranate and citrus with notes of apple,” and by that I assume they mean “bubble gum.” Seriously, this is Bubblicious distilled into a bottle, and infused with stimulants and booze. Drinking it straight tastes a little like chewing Bubble Yum with a gushy vodka center. Again, imagine the target audience.

I tried Ecstasy straight (not great), with equal parts vodka (better), and in one of the most daring things I’ve ever consumed, mixed in equal parts with Jagermeister in a concoction Ecstasy calls the Exorcism (not as bad as you’d think; a bit like Blackjack gum). Still, no one in my generation is going to be knocking this stuff back on a nightly basis. But if the paparazzi are after you, well, by all means, get to it.

C / $30 (and up) / drinkecstasy.com

Vanilla is an essential part of any good dessert, and it’s equally essential as part of any good dessert cocktail. (Check out how often I use Licor 43 in my dessert drink recipes if you don’t believe me.)

The challenge is that there are very few vanilla-based spirits out there. The aforementioned Licor 43 is one (and an exceptionally good one), but now there’s another, newcomer Navan, bottled by the makers of Grand Marnier.

Head to head, the differences are pronounced. Despite having 42 other herbs in it, the Licor 43 has considerably more of a vanilla flavor and dessert-like kick, but more importantly it is much heavier, almost like a syrup. I can’t (and don’t recommend) drinking Licor 43 straight, but with a lot of melting ice, it’s palatable on its own. Navan is blended with Cognac and this character comes through, mellowing the vanilla and lending a more traditional spirit note to the liqueur. It’s easy to sip Navan on its own, but it’s even better on the rocks and, of course, in cocktails. (Also worth noting: Navan is a full 80 proof, while Licor 43 is 62 proof.)

In a complicated, chocolate cocktail, you’d have trouble picking a favorite between these two, though Navan is considerably more expensive. I’ll probably stick to 43 in most cocktails, but would experiment more with Navan in brandy-based drinks or non-dessert offerings.

A- / $37 /navanworld.com