College Times

Issue date: 10/18/07 Section: Main Stories

Media Credit: Ryan Ruiz

Alcohol has been around for millennia; humans have consumed it for a range of reasons, but have always tried to make it better – mixing and matching different kinds, experimenting with flavors, adding varieties and nuances in taste.

By the time alcohol was outlawed in the United States during the 1920s, people had come to realize certain types of alcohol mixed best with certain beverages, and these recipes were universally accepted as standard.

While there are always variations of classic cocktail recipes, the basic concoctions are satisfying the way they are.

In this edition of our series on throwing your own non-keg party, we chose the classics cocktails, but versions of them that have been perfected over time. Best of all, they are sure to please. 

Nate Hisamura, a bartender at Tempe’s Monkey Pants, offered up his recipes for the classic drinks: the Long Island Iced Tea, Bloody Mary, Cosmo and Jamaican Ten Speed, as well as his advice for keeping your party-goers happy all night long.

 

Cosmopolitan

2 oz. citrus vodka

1 oz. triple sec

Dash of sweetened lime juice

3 oz. cranberry juice

Splash of Chambord (optional)

Mix the vodka, triple sec, lime juice and Chambord in a glass. Fill with cranberry juice; it should be about

3 oz. Pour into a shaker with ice and shake until mixed. Pour into a martini glass. Garnish with a lemon peel.

THE FACTS: While Monkey Pants doesn’t sell many of these classic sweet, yet tart cocktails, Hisamura says when he was a bartender in Scottsdale, he made tons of them. The Chambord, a concoction of raspberries, blueberries, honey, vanilla and cognac, is optional, but adds a unique flavor.

 

Long Island Iced Tea

1 oz. vodka

1 oz. rum

1 oz. gin

1 oz. triple sec

3 oz. sour mix

Splash of Coke

Add vodka, rum, gin and triple sec to a glass with ice. Fill with the sour mix and add just a splash of Coke. Garnish with lemon.

THE FACTS: While the history of the Long Island Iced Tea is checkered, many stories mark its origin sometime during Prohibition. Because it looked just like a regular iced tea, it was easier to keep secret. It fell out of fashion after the end of Prohibition, but had a resurgence in the 1970s because of its high-alcohol content. It’s been a staple in bars ever since.

 

Bloody Mary

2 oz. vodka

6 oz. tomato juice

Dash of Tabasco (to taste), dash of Worcestershire, Dash of A1 steak sauce

Pinch of pepper

Pinch of celery salt

Dash of horseradish and a splash of olive juice

Measure a 2 oz. shot of vodka and pour into a glass with ice. Combine the Tabasco, Worcestershire, steak sauce, horseradish, olive juice, celery salt and pepper into the glass. Fill with tomato juice. Garnish with two olives and a celery stalk. The salted rim is optional.

THE FACTS: Hisamura says, left to his own discretion this is the recipe he uses, but there are a lot of different ways to make a Bloody Mary. “Some people like it really spicy,” he says, “so I always just ask.” That’s why many bars, including Monkey Pants, offer Bloody Mary bars, so people can add whatever they want. Monkey Pants has its Bloody Mary bar on Sundays for $3.

 

Jamaican Ten Speed

1/2 oz. melon liqueur

1/2 oz. Parrot Bay coconut rum

1/2 oz. Crème de Banana liqueur

1/2 oz. cream

Combine ingredients into a shaker with ice. Shake and pour into a shot glass. This recipe is for one shot only. Adjust ounces accordingly for more shots.

THE FACTS: This is a popular shot around the Pants, and for good reason; it’s surprisingly delicious. To experience it at its finest, try it during the One O’clock Shirtless shot when willing patrons (yes, even the ladies) remove their shirts for penny shots.

 

Know your Alcohol:

What mixes with what?

 

Vodka

Vodka is the most unassuming of the basic alcohols. While it can mix with a lot of things, it combines best with almost any type of juice, because it’s not too overpowering.

 

Gin

Gin is flavored with juniper berries, which give it that pine cone flavor, but also make it difficult to mix. Try it with tonics or orange juice.

 

Rum

Rum is sweeter than most alcohol, because it is flavored with sugar. That sweetness makes it a perfect match with sodas. That explains why rum and Coke is so tasty.

 

Tequila

Tequila is sweetened with agave, but it has its own distinct flavor and many varieties. It is mixed with triple sec and sour mix for margaritas almost exclusively, but it can also be added to orange juice.

 

THREE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR STOCKING A LIQUOR CABINET ON A BUDGET

Nate Hisamura, one of the Monkey Pants bartenders, suggests having the following on hand for any party:

 

VODKA

Vodka is good because it mixes so well with so many things; it’s the basis for many shots and mixed drinks. Because you’re mixing it with other things and because it has a pretty standard subtle flavor, you don’t need to get the expensive stuff. Any well will do.

 

TRIPLE SEC

Triple sec is also the foundation for many mixed drinks. Mix it with vodka and some lime juice and you’ve got a Kamakazi, which Hisamura says is an “easy shot that everybody likes.” Mix it with tequila and sour mix and you have a cheap, effortless margarita. Both drinks are two standards for any house party.

 

TEQUILA

Splurge a little bit for good tequila, but you don’t need Patron or anything super expensive. Hisamura suggests tequila mostly because it’s the only basic alcohol that is good on its own, making it nice to have on hand for shots. As he put it: “Everyone likes tequila, right?”

 

 

ABOUT MONKEY PANTS

Monkey Pants, as the name might imply, has been the home to the weird and wacky for years. With weekly events like Mustache Mondays, where those with mustaches – either real, fake or drawn on – get happy hour prices all night, and Wig Wednesdays, where wig-wearers receive discounted drinks, it’s easy to see why Monkey Pants is not only a place to drink, but also a place to have fun.

The most popular event is the fish races on Thursdays. Here, participants chose their goldfish from the bar’s stock and use squirt guns to move them along a rain gutter full of water. It certainly is a chaotic, dynamic sight to see.

And let’s not forget the infamous One O’clock Shirtless Shot, where customers who take off their shirts get a penny shot and toast to 1 a.m.

Every night there is some kind of special, and happy hour includes $1.50 domestic draughts and $2.50 wells.

With an interior that looks a lot like your friend’s living room, complete with couches, table lamps and coffee tables, it’s inviting and comfortable.

Nate Hisamura has been working there as a bartender for about a year, “but I’ve been drinking here for five,” he says. “It’s a really fun place to work; it’s very laid back.”

That about sums it up – fun and laid back.

Monkey Pants, 3223 S. Mill Avenue, Tempe, 480.377.8100

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