ÆppelTreow Appely Brut ($16):

From the ÆppelTreow Winery in Burlington, Wis., this straw-yellow cider is fermented in the bottle and is a respectable eight percent alcohol. It’s very tart, with a strong aroma of fresh apples on the nose, and it finishes with a hint of sulfury yeast.

Farnum Hill Semi-Dry ($15):

Farnum Hill Semi-Dry is a sophisticated beverage from Poverty Lane Orchards in New Hampshire. The cork releases with a satisfying pop and the cider pours with a head like cava. It shows fine bubbles that persist in the glass and a lovely golden hue, similar to chardonnay. It’s well-balanced, starting with fruity white-grape flavors and ending with a clean sharpness. It’s worth seeking out.

Newtown Pippin Single Heirloom Varietal ($12):

The latest creation from Original Sin is part of the new trend of single-varietal brews. Traditionally, cider is blended to achieve the right combination of sweetness, body and acidity. The Newtown Pippin apple, which was grown in Thomas Jefferson’s and George Washington’s orchards and introduced to England by Benjamin Franklin, needs no help. This product is bright and crisp, with notes of juicy apple and a subtly sweet finish.

Wanderlust ($8) and Wickson Single Varietal ($10):

I tried two offerings from Wandering Aengus Ciderworks of Salem, Ore. Wanderlust is tart and semi-dry, with a chewy apple-skin bite (think Granny Smith). But I preferred its Wickson Single Varietal, which has tiny bubbles and a touch of sugar that came through on the finish to soften the tartness.

Max Watman is the author of Chasing the White Dog: An Amateur Outlaw’s Adventures in Moonshine.

2nd Floor on Clinton, New York, 212 529 6900:

When you’re tired of swilling beer at Lower East Side dive Barramundi, head through the back door and up the stairs to the cozy 2nd Floor on Clinton for one of mixologist Kenneth Eberle’s tasty creations. You’ll feel like you’ve emerged in the elegant living room of a grand Upper East Side apartment.

What to Drink: Glass Slipper (Hendrick’s Gin, Lillet Blanc, St-Germain, orange blossom water)

The Hideout, San Francisco, 415 252 7740:

The Mission District’s Dalva is famous for its Sangria and jukebox, but in The Hideout, the tiny haven in the rear, the vibe is decidedly swankier. While you savor an original concoction or one of the many Scotches, be grateful that you’re missing out on the karaoke shenanigans up front.

What to Drink: Whiskey in Church, (Ardbeg Ten Years Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Hidalgo Oloroso Sherry, maple syrup, house-made smoked pear bitters)

The Office, Chicago:

Only those lucky enough to score an invite can get inside The Office, the basement bar at celebrity chef Grant Achatz’s acclaimed The Aviary in Fulton Market. Here you’ll be treated to Craig Schoettler’s unnamed gastronomic tipples that showcase a range of inventive ingredients, plus an array of creative food dishes.

What to Drink: Grappa concoction (grappa, house-made Amarillo hops soda, tangerine juice, Meyer lemon juice, coriander tincture, thyme)

The Varnish, Los Angeles, 213 622 9999:

After devouring a hearty French dip sandwich at Cole’s in downtown LA, walk past the red booths to Eric Alperin’s cocktail den. You’ll most likely have to wait for a seat, but his list of expertly mixed standards is worth it.

What to Drink: Holland Cobbler (genever, Curaçao, raspberry, lemon juice, grated nutmeg)

Velvet Tango Room, Cleveland, 216 241 8869:

Entering the Velvet Tango Room is like stumbling upon a classy party. And on Friday and Saturday nights, you can escape the revelry by making a reservation for the back room. As you enjoy the piano player, try a complex Tango Manhattan that features the owner’s own house-made vermouth and bitters.

What to Drink: Tango Manhattan (Maker’s Mark Bourbon, house-made vermouth, house-made bitters)

The Wilson & Wilson Detective Agency, San Francisco, 415 346 1735:

While a delicious cocktail is always a sure thing at Bourbon & Branch, The Wilson & Wilson Detective Agency (pictured above) provides a truly bespoke experience. Jayson Wilde’s drinks can be sipped a la carte, but you can also order a three-course $30 tasting menu. Punch is a great choice to share with a date as well at a romantic table for two.

What to Drink: Lost Temple Punch (strawberry-infused pisco, Dolin Blanc Vermouth, lemon juice, rosemary syrup, sparkling wine)

Alia Akkam is a New York-based writer and managing editor of Hospitality Design.

The Art of Fermentation ($40) by Sandor Ellix Katz:

While it’s not legal to produce spirits at home, Sandor Ellix Katz’s guide will teach you how to create pretty much every other fermented thing, from yogurt to ginger beer. It includes a foreword by Michael Pollan as well.

Beer Cocktails ($13) by Howard & Ashley Stelzer:

When it’s hazy, hot and humid, you normally have to choose between having a beer or a cocktail. But now you can have both in one glass. This slim volume contains 50 recipes for making all kinds of sudsy concoctions.

Gaz Regan’s Annual Manual for Bartenders, 2012 ($22) and 101 Best New Cocktails: 2012 ($20) by Gary Regan:

Liquor.com advisory board member Gary Regan has been hard at work on not one but two volumes. Serious about mixology? Pick up his updated Annual Manual for Bartenders now and add his 101 Best New Cocktails to your library in June.

The Juice: Vinous Veritas ($27) by Jay McInerney:

This collection of wine articles penned by Bright Lights, Big City author Jay McInerney for various publications over the years will both entertain you and will make you thirsty for a bottle of hearty Bordeaux or a magnum of bubbly.

Restaurant Man ($28) by Joe Bastianich:

If you’ve ever been curious about what goes on behind the scenes at the country’s top establishments or dreamed of opening one yourself, read Joe Bastianich’s Restaurant Man. Part memoir and part instruction manual, the tome from Mario Batali’s business partner reveals what it really takes to succeed in the food-and-drink industry.

No matter whether these affairs are risqué or merely lively, cocktails are an essential part of the festivities. And to make sure that what you’re drinking is actually good and not just…raunchy, we asked Chris Hopkins, one of the best bartenders in Las Vegas (it is the hen and stag party capital of the world, after all), house mixologist for the Cosmopolitan Hotel and general manager of its acclaimed Vesper Bar, for two of his favorite recipes.

Having a big group? Whip up a pitcher of Hopkins’ quaffable Pleased as Punch (pictured above), which combines citrus vodka, sweet St-Germain, lemon juice, mint and bubbly.

If it’s more of an intimate celebration, try fixing his Spice and Intrigue, which mixes spiced rum, ginger liqueur, lime juice and pineapple juice with exotic green cardamom and an orange blossom honey syrup.

Both concoctions are so tasty, you should consider serving them at the wedding, too.

Pleased as Punch

Contributed by Chris Hopkins
INGREDIENTS:

• 4 oz Ketel One Citroen Vodka
• 2 oz St-Germain
• 3 oz Fresh lemon juice
• 2 oz Simple syrup (one part sugar, one part water)
• 15 to 20 Mint leaves
• Sparkling wine
• Glass: Wine

PREPARATION:
Add all the ingredients except the sparkling wine to a 1-quart pitcher or carafe and fill with ice. Stir vigorously and top with sparkling wine. Strain into wine glasses filled with fresh ice.

Spice and Intrigue

Contributed by Chris Hopkins
INGREDIENTS:

• 2 Green cardamom pods
• 1.5oz  Chairman’s Reserve Spiced Rum
• .75 oz Domaine de Canton
• 1 oz Fresh lime juice
• 1 oz Pineapple juice
• .5 oz Orange blossom honey syrup (one part orange blossom honey, one part water)
• 2 dashes Bittercube Jamaican #1 Bitters
• Glass: Collins or highball

PREPARATION:
In a shaker, muddle the cardamom. Add the remaining ingredients and fill with ice. Shake, and fine strain into a Collins or highball glass filled with fresh ice.

Taylor Fladgate Late Bottled Vintage Porto, 2007 ($25):

If your mother is like ours, she enjoys sipping something delicious after dinner. Taylor Fladgate’s rich and complex Late Bottled Vintage Porto is a great choice, since it pairs well with desserts and also with cheeses.

Lillet Rose ($20):

Just in time for the festivities comes the brand-new Lillet Rose, made from a blend of Bordeaux grapes, fruit liqueurs and, in keeping with tradition, a measure of Peruvian quinine. Try it on the rocks or in a Vesper.

Microplane Stainless-Steel Citrus Bar Tool ($20):

Looking for a last-minute gift? If your mom is into bartending, pick up Microplane’s handy and recently introduced garnishing tool, which cuts fruit-peel spirals and grates zest. It even includes a built-in bottle opener.

Prepara Ice Balls ($10):

If you’re fixing drinks for a Sunday brunch, give your tipples a special flair by using Prepara ice-ball molds. The two-inch spheres can freeze a range of mixers, plus herbs, slices of fruit or flowers for a truly dramatic touch.

John B. Stetson Bourbon ($28):

While Stetson has famously been producing hats for nearly 150 years, the company just came out with its inaugural whiskey. The smooth spirit, which is a respectable 84-proof, is made in Kentucky and works very well in refreshing cocktails.

Knob Creek Rye Whiskey ($40):

The Knob Creek brand continues to grow, and it now includes this small-batch, 100-proof rye. (It makes a spicy Mint Julep, if you dare.) It’s currently available only in select markets but should be in stores across the country by July.

Woodford Reserve Double Oaked Bourbon ($50):

This is the first new bourbon that Woodford Reserve has added to its permanent portfolio since launching in 1996. Master distiller Chris Morris ages the liquor in two types of barrels, which have been toasted and charred to his specifications.

And to ensure you’re ready for this weekend’s celebrations, we got agave-spirits expert and Liquor.com advisory board member Jacques Bezuidenhout to host our next set of short videos. Watch his Margarita, Paloma and Spiced Old Fashioned tutorials, and you’ll soon be shaking like a pro.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Margarita:

Bezuidenhout’s tasty recipe for this classic calls for just four ingredients: tequila, fresh lime juice, agave nectar and water. Click here for the full recipe.

Paloma:

This is one of the most refreshing drinks we know of. You’ll be enjoying the combination of tequila, grapefruit soda and a pinch of salt all spring and summer long. Click here for the full recipe.

Spiced Old Fashioned:

While we usually make this standard using American whiskey, Bezuidenhout proves that it also works well with aged tequila—especially when you add hot chile pepper. (And it’s the perfect concoction if you’re watching the Kentucky Derby on Saturday.) Click here for the full recipe.

Raising the Bar:

Acclaimed author Wayne Curtis profiles talented bartender Derek Brown, who is helping to turn Washington, D.C., into cocktail capital.

A Boston (Rum) Punch:

Celebrate New England by mixing up this local and historic tipple discovered by award-winning writer and Liquor.com advisory board member David Wondrich.

A Taxpayer’s Liquor Guide:

From a limited-edition rum to a rare tequila, use your refund to splurge on these super-premium bottlings (or save with our accountant-approved alternatives).

One for the Road:

Start your weekend at one of these top bars around the country, which serve not only delicious eye-openers but also gourmet mid-morning dishes.

MVP Mixology:

Just in time for the beginning of Major League Baseball’s season, we unearthed two ancient sporting drinks that taste great with peanuts and Cracker Jack.

The Margarita, of course, was the leader of this very small group. It was the first tequila concoction to gain widespread recognition and is still going strong. But the origins of this classic are as difficult to establish as the origins of the Martini.

Wealthy American socialite Margaret Sames claimed it was the signature cocktail at her summer home in Acapulco. Whether or not she invented the Margarita, she pioneered the use of Cointreau, and I’ve made her formula for 30 years.

Another theory is that Danny Herrera, owner of a watering hole in Rancho la Gloria, was its progenitor. According to lore, he created the Margarita for showgirl and film star Marjorie King in the 1930s. And award-winning author and Liquor.com advisory board member David Wondrich argues the drink was the result of a mistake.

A bit later, in the 1970s, the Tequila Sunrise seemed to be everywhere. The modern recipe is a dumbed-down version of what was served during Prohibition at the Agua Caliente Racetrack in Tijuana, which also included crème de cassis.

The Paloma, lately popular in the United States, has been a longtime favorite in the Mexican town of Tequila. The tipple’s invention can be dated to the release of the grapefruit soda Squirt, which provides its key flavor. Mexico’s best-known bartender, Don Javier Delgado Corona, owner of La Capilla in Tequila, is famous for his similar Batanga, a combination of tequila, lime juice and Coca-Cola.

Today, tequila and mezcal cocktails abound, and there are a number of establishments, like New York’s Viktor & Spoils, that specialize in them. Pair a chilled shot of the bar’s Sangrita Green or Sangrita Tradicional Pomegranate with a shot of your chosen tequila and salute this short but tasty agave history.

Sangrita Green

Contributed by Viktor & Spoils
INGREDIENTS:

• 3 chunks Pineapple
• 23 oz Pineapple juice
• 8 Cilantro stalks
• 8 Mint sprigs (leaves only, no stems)
• Half a serrano pepper, seeded
• .25 tsp Sea salt
• .5 oz Simple syrup (one part sugar, one part water)
• Glass: Shot

PREPARATION:
Add all the ingredients to a blender and puree. Fine-strain into a container with a lid and refrigerate for 2 hours. Serve in a chilled shot glass with a shot of tequila.

Sangrita Tradicional Pomegranate

Contributed by Viktor & Spoils
INGREDIENTS:

• 16 oz Pomegranate juice
• 8 oz Fresh orange juice
• 4 oz Fresh lime juice
• .75 oz El Yucateco Habanero Hot Sauce
• 3 oz Simple syrup (one part sugar, one part water)
• Glass: Shot

PREPARATION:
Combine all the ingredients in a half-gallon container and refrigerate for 2 hours. Serve in a chilled shot glass with a shot of tequila.

Master mixologist Dale DeGroff is the author of The Essential Cocktail and The Craft of the Cocktail. He is also a Liquor.com advisor.

Indeed, we are now in the midst of a vermouth revolution. The classic fortified, aromatized, oxidized wine—sweet or dry, but always boasting a telltale smack of botanical-driven bitterness—has new purchase. You can easily buy niche brands like Dolin, Vergano and P. Quiles, as well as upstarts Sutton from California and Imbue from Oregon. I often overhear mixologists debating the qualities of different vermouths for specific cocktail recipes.

But I’m here to recommend that you approach vermouth with the ultimate respect a liquor can receive: as a drink unto itself. First of all, most vermouths are perfectly balanced, complex products. Carpano Antica Formula’s unctuous sweetness is tamed by a satisfying bitter turn at the end. The overwhelming headiness of Dolin Dry’s ethereal perfume is pleasingly grounded by the nutty robustness of its palate. See for yourself: As enjoyable as they are mixed with gin, rye whiskey or Campari, these bottlings are thrillingly delicious straight.

And conveniently, you probably have an open bottle sitting around, good for moments when you don’t feel like uncorking a new bottle of wine or fixing a cocktail. Similarly, vermouth’s strength lies between those beverages, giving it a unique spot in a balanced drinking progression. And finally, that complexity and sweet bitterness gets the appetite churning.

All together, these factors make vermouth the ideal aperitif. A couple ounces in a Duralex Picardie Tumbler, with a cube of ice, is the perfect sipper while I’m cooking dinner. Or while basking in the warm light of a vanishing afternoon. Or as a quick pour while waiting at a restaurant’s bar for my late friend.

We’ve come far in learning to appreciate vermouth. Now it’s time to drink it on its own.

Jordan Mackay is a San Francisco-based writer and co-author of the James Beard Award-winning book Secrets of the Sommeliers.

So when we ran into talented Portland, Ore., bartender Ryan Magarian a couple weeks ago at the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America Convention in Las Vegas, we were a bit skeptical that he was making spring Old Fashioneds. He explained that he had been playing with the traditional recipe and found that it’s great with just about every type of spirit.

After a few sips (out of courtesy, of course) of his Gin Old Fashioned (pictured above), we started to rethink our position. By replacing the base liquor, he suddenly transformed the classic into something summery and quite refreshing—the perfect beverage for a blazing-hot Nevada afternoon.

And we were even more surprised that the formula worked when he substituted in coffee liqueur. The simple creation took on the depth and complexity of a complicated cocktail. (The powers of bitters should never be taken for granted.)

Try one of Magarian’s drinks—or come up with your own—and you won’t have to forgo Old Fashioneds at all this year. Cheers!

Gin Old Fashioned

Contributed by Ryan Magarian
INGREDIENTS:

• 2 oz Aviation Gin
• .25 oz Simple syrup (one part sugar, one part water)
• 2 dashes Regans’ Orange Bitters No. 6
• 1 dash Peychaud’s Bitters
• Garnish: Lemon and orange peels
• Glass: Old Fashioned

PREPARATION:
Add all the ingredients to a chilled mixing glass and fill with ice. Stir for 20 seconds and strain into an Old Fashioned glass filled with fresh ice. Garnish with thick-cut lemon and orange peels.

Coffee Old Fashioned

Contributed by Ryan Magarian
INGREDIENTS:

• 2 oz House Spirits Coffee Liqueur
• 1 dash Angostura Bitters
• 1 dash Regans’ Orange Bitters No.6
• Garnish: Lemon peel
• Glass: Cocktail

PREPARATION:
Add all the ingredients to a chilled mixing glass and fill with ice. Stir for 20 seconds and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a thick-cut lemon peel.

360 Vodka ($18):

Not content merely to utilize renewable energy at its facility, McCormick Distilling Co. uses bottles made of 85 percent recycled glass. Return the cool swing-top cap (in the prepaid, recycled-paper envelope) and the brand will reuse it and donate $1 to Global Green USA.

Farmer’s Botanical Gin ($32):

On the palate, Farmer’s Botanical Gin is bright and citrusy. The elixir is also USDA-certified organic—no easy feat when you consider its bounty of ingredients, including juniper, elderflower, lemongrass, coriander and angelica root.

Maker’s Mark Bourbon ($26):

A few years ago, Maker’s Mark pioneered a process of anaerobic treatment that converts the waste generated by distillation into methane gas, which is used to help power the facility, reducing its natural gas consumption by 25 percent.

Rhuby ($30):

Like a CSA in a bottle, Rhuby contains a whole garden of organic vegetables, such as beets, carrots and, of course, rhubarb. The savory liqueur was inspired by a rhubarb-tea recipe dating back to the 1700s and concocted by a botanist friend of Benjamin Franklin’s. With aromas of lemon, cardamom, coriander and vanilla, it’s a perfect spring refresher mixed with tonic.

Rod & Rifle Bourbon ($23):

Produced in the small town of Lawrenceburg, Ind., Rod & Rifle contributes to initiatives that protect hunting and fishing grounds as well as wildlife species. It makes donations to Wildlife Forever, the nonprofit conservation arm of the North American Hunting Club and the North American Fishing Club.

He studied anthropology as an undergraduate at Georgia State and George Mason and considered pursuing it as a career. But then life, as life will do, took a turn. Twelve years ago, he began working at a small neighborhood watering hole called Rocky’s in D.C.

Here, he analyzed the tribes that populated the bar and learned how to interpret their unspoken communication. And he set out to learn a whole lot about the rituals of cocktails and spirits.

“I became interested in all things bibulous,” he says. “And I realized this important bit about drinking: It has done more for humanity than we often realize, from the origins of agriculture to its role in spiritual and religious ceremonies.”

Brown had also studied journalism and started writing about the whys and hows of drinking. But covering liquor in the age of the internet—when trends can rise, fall and die in a hot minute—requires more than just a finger on the pulse. Brown has shown an ability to see and convey currents that run deep beneath the surface.

He now contributes regularly to The Huffington Post and The Atlantic’s website (full disclosure: I write for The Atlantic’s print edition), doing pieces on health (alcohol doesn’t actually kill brain cells), history (how the English stole gin from the Dutch) and unusual ingredients (like ambergris, which he described as “clotted whale cholesterol excreted by sperm whales.”)

His mastery of the craft has taken him to high places. He once made cocktails at a White House party, where he was introduced to President Barack Obama as “the mixologist.”

“Isn’t that just a bartender?” asked Obama, who then quickly added, “Well, being a bartender is a lot like being the President: Everyone thinks they can do it but they can’t, can they?”

This was, it should be noted, the perfect compliment for an anthropologist.

The Getaway (AKA Cynar Daiquiri)

Contributed by Derek Brown
INGREDIENTS:

• 1 oz Cruzan Black Strap Rum
• .5 oz Cynar
• 1 oz Lemon juice
• .5 oz Simple syrup (one part sugar, one part water)
• Glass: Cocktail

PREPARATION:
Add all the ingredients to a shaker and fill with ice. Shake, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Wayne Curtis writes about drinks for The Atlantic and is the author of And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails. He is also host of the site Slowcocktails.com.

(Photo courtesy of Jim Webb)

There’s the Ward Eight, of course, a sort of fancied-up Whiskey Sour that, legend has it, was created at Frank Locke’s Wine Rooms in 1898.

After that, there’s—well, there ain’t. One is entitled to wonder why that is. Could it be that Bostonians don’t drink? It couldn’t; they do. Or do they lack the mental acuity to combine alcoholic and non-alcoholic ingredients in just proportion? That won’t wash, either—Boston has always been a smart town.

The real reason, I think, is Rum Punch. Once Boston discovered this simple potion, sometime around the turn of the 1700s, it must have said to itself, “what could be better than this?” and quit monkeying about with bottles and whatnot. The American Revolution was planned over bowls of it at places like the Green Dragon Tavern and Chase & Speakman’s Distillery. (Up until Prohibition, New England produced a great deal of rum out of Caribbean molasses).

Post-Independence, the merchants who made the city wealthy drank Rum Punch in their clubs, and everyone else enjoyed it in the saloons. You could buy the elixir by the bowl, by the glass or even by the bottle (pre-mixed “Hub Punch” was a nineteenth-century staple).

But a proper Boston Rum Punch is an exceedingly straightforward affair. As one local bartender with a reputation for serving it explained to a Boston Globe reporter in 1889, “it is not always the elaborateness of the drink that makes it acceptable to the taste.” He suggested readers “simply take a good dose of first quality rum, put it into a glass with cracked ice [and] pour over it a dipper of liquid from the lemonade bowl.”

If you begin with a rich and flavorful dark rum—and Bostonians pride themselves on their discernment in this matter—and make as little intervention as possible, it’s hard to fail.

Boston Rum Punch

Contributed by David Wondrich
INGREDIENTS:

• 2 oz Smith & Cross Traditional Jamaica Rum
• Lemonade*
• Garnish: Nutmeg or half a strawberry and an orange slice
• Glass: Pint

PREPARATION:
Fill a shaker with finely cracked ice. Add the rum and fill with lemonade. Shake briefly and pour (unstrained) into a pint glass. Add a straw and garnish with either freshly grated nutmeg or half a strawberry and an orange slice.

*Lemonade
INGREDIENTS:

• Peels of 6 lemons
• .75 cup Demerara sugar
• 6 oz Lemon juice
• 24 oz Water

PREPARATION:
In a bowl, muddle the lemon peels and sugar. Let stand for an hour or two to extract the lemon oil. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until the sugar dissolves. Refrigerate until needed.

Ward Eight

Contributed by David Wondrich
INGREDIENTS:

• 2 oz Rye whiskey
• .5 oz Lemon juice
• .5 oz Orange juice
• 2 tsp Grenadine
• Garnish: Cherry (optional)
• Glass: Cocktail

PREPARATION:
Add all the ingredients to a shaker and fill with ice. Shake, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. If you must garnish, garnish with a cherry.

David Wondrich is the author of Punch: The Delights (and Dangers) of the Flowing Bowl and Esquire magazine’s drinks correspondent. He is also a Liquor.com advisor.

Refund Splurge:

You’re going to need to travel to get your hands on the Bacardi Maestros de Ron Vintage MMXII Rum ($2,000; pictured above). The liquor is exclusively available at duty-free shops in a few foreign airports, including London’s Heathrow. It’s a mix of rums created by eight Bacardi family members, all former master blenders.
Accountant-Approved: Bacardi 8 Rum ($30)

Refund Splurge:

Milagro Unico Tequila ($300) is definitely for sipping and not shooting. The limited edition is a combination of a special blanco and a number of aged spirits that is then rested for 30 days before filtering. There are just 1,000 bottles allocated for the whole US.
Accountant-Approved: Milagro Silver Tequila ($30)

Refund Splurge:

Glenmorangie has been a leader in finishing single malts in different woods, and its latest offering, Artein ($80), certainly ups the ante. The whisky was matured in both a bourbon barrel and a cask that held vino from a Super Tuscan winery.
Accountant-Approved: Glenmorangie The Original Single Malt Scotch ($40)

Refund Splurge:

Celebrate your good fortune by enjoying a glass of something truly luxurious: Martell Cordon Bleu Cognac ($119), which observes its 100th anniversary in 2012. After a taste of the velvety spirit with fruity notes, you’ll be wishing that tax day came more than once a year.
Accountant-Approved: Martell VSOP Cognac ($48)

15 Romolo, San Francisco, 415 398 1359:

You can order $4 glasses of punch at this acclaimed North Beach establishment’s aptly named weekend Punch Drunk Brunch. But as you enjoy a crispy chicken biscuit layered with a fried egg, green chile and arugula-walnut pesto, you might also consider having the Breakfast of Champions #2, an interesting combination of manzanilla sherry, house-made banana cordial, nocino, maple syrup and a coffee tincture.
What to Drink: Punch

Circa 33, Portland, Ore., 503 477 7682:

Ten-dollar carafes of Mimosas flow at this Prohibition era-inspired joint in Southeast Portland. While waiting for your brioche French toast slathered in Oregon berry compote, you can snack on the house-smoked bacon and house-pickled veggies (you can choose either, or both) that accompany The Dilemma, Circa 33’s savory Bloody Mary.
What to Drink: The Dilemma (vodka, house-made Bloody Mary mix, Trumer Pils beer, house-smoked bacon, house-pickled vegetables)

Clover Club, New York, 718 855 7939:

People from all five boroughs come to Julie Reiner’s famed watering hole (pictured above) in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, for its delicious tipples. But chef Gil Calderon also serves a gourmet breakfast menu featuring a hanger-steak-and-poached-egg English muffin sandwich and buckwheat pancakes topped with sweetened sheep’s milk ricotta and blood orange-maple syrup.
What to Drink: Maria Sin Sangre (cherry tomatoes, basil, silver tequila, medium dry sherry, lemon juice)

Deep Ellum, Boston, 617 787 2337:

Have a day off? This Allston-neighborhood spot serves brunch seven days a week. Grab a perch on the deck and tuck into a plate of duck-confit hash with braised Swiss chard or French toast made with Portuguese sweet bread. The cocktail list includes classics as well as newfangled creations.
What to Drink: Black Market (Death’s Door Gin, Dolin Sweet Vermouth, lemon, black tea bitters)

The Passenger, Washington, D.C., 202 393 0220:

Don’t worry about getting up early; the low-key Sunday brunch at this Mount Vernon Square watering hole doesn’t kick off until 2 PM. Late risers are rewarded with scrambled eggs, bacon and cheese tucked between crispy waffles and bowls of kimchi with pork belly. As for hair-of-the-dog libations, there are many excellent options from owners (and brothers) Tom and Derek Brown.
What to Drink: South 75 (Champagne, gin, grapefruit juice)

Some days, you get a taste of summer complete with warm temperatures, the music of chirping birds and the sweet perfume of blooming flowers. But that rarely lasts long, and it’s quickly replaced with a general dreariness, which includes little sunshine and lots of wind and rain.

So we asked a couple mixologists who are no strangers to passing showers—Angus Winchester, a British-based cocktail consultant and Tanqueray Gin global brand ambassador, and Jeffrey Morgenthaler, bar manager at Clyde Common in Portland, Ore.—to share their favorite recipes for surviving this famously wet season.

When it’s ugly outside, Winchester conjures up better times by enjoying the refreshing and fruity Space Gin Smash (pictured above), which calls for muddled mint, lemon, grapes and apple.

On the other hand, Morgenthaler likes to wait out a downpour with a hot beverage. His Damp Pavement, combining spicy ginger syrup and allspice dram with smoky Islay whisky, will certainly chase away an April chill.

So whenever the weather turns nasty, try fixing one of these delicious concoctions and remember that May flowers are on their way.

Space Gin Smash

Contributed by Angus Winchester

INGREDIENTS:

• 6 Mint leaves
• Quarter of a lemon
• 2 Seedless green grapes
• Eighth of a green apple
• .33 oz Simple syrup (one part sugar, one part water)
• 1.25 oz Tanqueray Gin
• Garnish: Apple fan, mint sprig and grape
• Glass: Rocks

PREPARATION:
In a shaker, muddle the mint, lemon, grapes, apple and simple syrup. Add the gin and fill with ice. Shake, and strain into a rocks glass filled with fresh cracked ice. Garnish with an apple fan, a mint sprig and a grape.

Damp Pavement

Contributed by Jeffrey Morgenthaler

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 oz Ginger syrup*
• .75 oz Lemon juice
• 3 oz Water
• 1.5 oz Islay Scotch whisky
• 1 tsp Allspice dram
• Garnish: Orange peel
• Glass: Mug

PREPARATION:
Add the ginger syrup, lemon juice and water to small saucepan and heat until piping hot. Stir in the whisky and allspice dram, and pour into a pre-heated mug. Garnish with an orange peel.

*To make ginger syrup, combine equal parts diced raw ginger, sugar and hot water in a blender. Puree until smooth and strain through a fine-mesh strainer. Refrigerate until needed.

But in the last several years, I started an affair with another agave-based artisanal spirit: mezcal. Like many, I initially cringed at the thought of painfully shooting badly made mezcal from a bottle with a worm in it. (Sorry, Toby Keith, but please stick to music. A worm belongs nowhere near a bottle of quality liquor.)

So how does a man fall for these two related spirits? Well, just as you can enjoy single malts from both Speyside and Islay, you can do the same with tequila and mezcal.

While some say mezcal is merely smoky tequila, it’s more than that. Yes, mezcal does have smoky characteristics that come from slow-cooking the agave in traditional pits in the ground, but they vary in intensity depending upon the producer.

Climate, elevation and soil can be very different as well. And while tequila distillers can only use a single type of agave, mezcal can be made from a few dozen varieties. The end results are uniquely complex bottlings that deserve serious respect. Look out for some of my favorite brands: Del Maguey, Sombra and Ilegal.

The liquor also offers bartenders many options to make tasty libations, from original recipes to twists on classics. I added mezcal to the Port Wine Cocktail #2, which I found in The Savoy Cocktail Book. Another good one to try is my mezcal variation on a Sour.

And when drinking mezcal, remember the ancient Zapotec toast “stigibeu,” which is a salute to your health, the health of your friends and the life of the planet, Mother Earth. Now that’s something everybody can love.

Port Wine Cocktail #3

Contributed by Jacques Bezuidenhout

INGREDIENTS:

• 1.25 oz Del Maguey Vida Mezcal
• 1.25 oz Fonseca Bin No. 27 Port
• 2 tsp Grand Marnier
• 1 dash Angostura Bitters
• 1 dash Angostura Orange Bitters
• Garnish: Orange twist
• Glass: Cocktail

PREPARATION:

Add all the ingredients to a mixing glass and fill with ice. Stir, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.

This recipe is adapted from the Port Wine Cocktail #2 in The Savoy Cocktail Book.

Maguey Sour

Contributed by Jacques Bezuidenhout

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 oz Del Maguey Santo Domingo Albarradas Mezcal
• .5 oz Bénédictine
• .75 oz Fresh lemon juice
• .5 oz Almond orgeat
• 2 tsp Egg white
• Garnish: Grated nutmeg and orange twist
• Glass: Old Fashioned

PREPARATION:

Add all the ingredients to a shaker and fill with ice. Shake, and strain into an Old Fashioned glass filled with fresh ice. Garnish with grated nutmeg and an orange twist.

Jacques Bezuidenhout is a national cocktail and tequila ambassador for Partida Tequila and the master mixologist for Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants. He is also a Liquor.com advisor.

But this year, it’s time to shake things up a bit. We’re well aware that the combination of baseball and beer has a long and storied history, but we’d like you to try fixing a cocktail instead of reaching for a brewski just once. (If you’re really worried, sip it between innings.)

While mixed drinks can’t boast a legacy like more sudsy beverages, there are a few recipes that can be linked to America’s pastime. That includes the tasty gin-and-vermouth Cooperstown Cocktail uncovered by award-winning author and Liquor.com advisory board member David Wondrich.

And author David Embury, in his The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, also lists a couple sporting concoctions. We got New York Distilling Company co-founder Allen Katz, another of our advisory board members, to update the formulas.

So tonight, when the season opens with the Cardinals playing the Marlins at the brand-new Marlins Park, make the refreshing Grand Slam that calls for fresh lemon juice, Curaçao, grenadine and two types of dark rum.

Or whip up the Golden Glove (pictured above)—a relative of the classic Daiquiri also reportedly served by famed Havana bartender Constante Ribalaigua Vert—which consists of white rum, sugar, fresh lime juice and Cointreau.

No matter what you decide to enjoy during the game, we wish your team the best of luck in 2012. Play Ball!

Grand Slam

Contributed by Allen Katz

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 oz Flor de Caña 7-Year-Old Grand Reserve Rum
• 1 oz Gosling’s Black Seal Rum
• .5 oz Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao Ancienne Methode
• .25 oz Employees Only Grenadine
• 1 oz  Fresh lemon juice
• Garnish: Orange twist
• Glass: Old Fashioned

PREPARATION:
Add all the ingredients to a shaker and fill with ice. Shake, and strain into an Old Fashioned glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with an orange twist.

Golden Glove

Contributed by Allen Katz

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 oz White rum (Flor de Caña 4-Year-Old Extra Dry)
• 1 tsp Cointreau
• .5 oz Fresh lime juice
• 1 tsp Sugar
• Garnish: Lime half-wheel
• Glass: Rocks

PREPARATION:
Add all the ingredients to a shaker and fill with ice. Shake, and strain into a rocks glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with a lime half-wheel.

Why Rye? (Saturday, May 12):

Meet Belvedere Vodka‘s head of spirit creation and mixology Claire Smith and Liquor.com advisory board member Allen Katz at his distillery in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, for a discussion about the spicy world of rye-based spirits.

Ladies Behind Bars (Saturday, May 12):

Join some of the country’s top female bartenders, including Kirsten Amann, Meaghan Dorman, Misty Kalkofen, Lynnette Marrero and Audrey Saunders, for a seminar about the history of women in the alcohol industry. They’ll pair tasty cocktails with great stories.

Cocktails for the Rest of Us (Sunday, May 13):

Find out what it takes to put together an excellent drinks list that still appeals to a wide range of guests. You’ll hear from Damon Dyer, bar manager at The Rum House, and Michael Neff, co-owner of Ward III and The Rum House, on the subject while you try a few of their creations.

Sunday SoulLoon (Sunday, May 13):

Spend the afternoon with talented mixologist Tad Carducci and singer G. Love for blues and soul music, delicious libations and gourmet versions of traditional bar snacks, like pretzels and pickled eggs. It all happens in The Tippler beneath Chelsea Market.

Urban Tiki, Redefined. (Monday, May 14):

It’s no secret that tropical drinks are back. Celebrate the legacies of Don The Beachcomber and Trader Vic with quaffable tiki concoctions from the crew at PKNY. Just don’t forget your Hawaiian shirt.