Regent's Punch

By far the largest punch in the New York Bartender's Guide from 1997, the Regent's Punch serves 80! It is the reason I had to get a dedicated punch bowl. It still wasn't large enough to handle the full size of the punch, so I served it in a half size (see how full that punch was!) and re-filled the bowl when it ran out.

The need of such a massive punch  comes from those colonial balls and large parties of societal figures including monarchs. Take a look at the ingredients to see the kind of royalty this punch caters to: champagne, riesling, cognac, dark rum and triple sec. It truly was intended for regents or the ruling class.

Besides settling on Gruet blanc de blanc sparkling wine over more expensive champagne, I did not deviate from the recipe.  I used Broadbent rainwater Madiera, Appleton signature blend rum, Meukow cognac (Because it tastes more French than brandy) and Combier Liqueur d'Orange as an expensive and high quality triple sec. Chilling all ingredients first was a major help to pulling off this huge punch in time for the party, and having two bundt pan ice cakes ready was critical. Just after I served the punch with the ice and sparkling wine included, I found a large spring flower to set in the center of the ring of ice.

• 1 bottle riesling or dessert wine (Chateau st. Michelle riesling used)
• 2 bottles Madeira (Broadbent rainwater used)
• 1 bottle triple sec (Combier d'Orange used)
• 3 bottles champagne or sparkling wint (Gruet blanc des blanc used)
• 16 oz. dark rum (Appleton Estate special blend used)
• 1 bottle cognac (Meukow used)
• 16 oz. black tea
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 quarts sparkling water (2 bottles of San Pellegrino)
• 8 oz. lemon juicee
• 24 oz. orange juice

Combine all liquid ingredients except champagne and sparkling water in a large punch bowl and stir to dissolve the sugar. Refrigerate the bowl and liquid for at least an hour before serving. When serving, add a large cake of ice (I prefer a bundt pan rings) and top with sparkling water and champagne and stir.

Bosom Caresser

A nice bosomy wine glass is perfect for this rich egg, Madiera and brandy cocktail. The impression you get from a sip of the Bosom Caresser is a warm and silky drink with lots of candied grape and orange flavors. This is definitely a dessert drink. Use brandy or cognac, but don't skip out on the Madiera, it adds the needed wine component.

• 2 oz. brandy (Hennessy used)
• 1 oz. Madiera
• 1 oz. triple sec (Vitae orange liqueur used)
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tsp. grenadine

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a red wine glass.

Prince Of Wales

I was afraid I wouldn't be able to enjoy this cocktail until I had the trifecta of brandy, Madeira and champagne. But I had them all at once in this drink at work last night. Madeira is a fortified wine (sherry) made on the Portugese island of Madeira, It is strong and nutty with a dry wine flavor. It loves being mixed with brandy (cognac please) and champagne, as it is in Prince of Wales.

The primary flavor of this cocktail is orange, however, due to the presence of an orange slice garnish and curacao. The effect is a fizzy sangria that sneaks up on you with round oakiness from cognac and Madeira.

• 1 oz. brandy (cognac)
• 1 oz. Madeira
• 1/2 oz. white curacao
• 3-5 dashes Angostura bitters
• champagne or sparkling wine
• orange slice

Combine all ingredients except champagne and orange slice in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled wine glass. Top with champagne and garnish with the orange slice.

Creole Lady

The Creole Lady is really a lot like a Manhattan with sherry substituted for the sweet vermouth. The recipe in the New York Bartender's Guide calls for one red and one green cherry, but who has both on hand anyway. If you have them, good on you! You can make the drink look pretty. I used this nice sunset as a backdrop, though.

• 2 oz. bourbon
• 1 1/2 oz. Madeira (Cossart and Gordon used)
• 1 tsp. grenadine
• red maraschino cherry
• green maraschino cherry

Combine all ingredients except cherries in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with the cherries.

Brandied Maderia

I'm just going to keep "brandying" everything while I'm at it. This is another fortified wine from Cossart Gordon. Follow the recipe! Oh. But I was out of lemon twists at the time. Shame!

• 1 1/2 oz. brandy
• 1 1/2 oz. Madeira
• 1/2 oz. dry vermouth
• lemon twist 

Combine all ingredients except lemon twist in a shaker with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. 

Nightmare

This freaky cocktail puts me in the mood for spine-tingling tales. It's easy, and now I know how to make the daddy of the Nightmare Abbey.

• 2 oz. gin
• 1 oz. madeira
• 1 oz. Cherry Heering
• 1 tsp. fresh squeezed orange juice

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.