cocktail Archives - Cruisin with the Colemans

Lemon Ice Spike

Del’s Lemonade is a popular beverage that you can find all over town when the weather is nice. Shops, food carts, and even ice cream trucks serve this frosty delight. During our trip to the zoo, there were lemon ice carts all over the park even though the temperatures were still a little chilly. The original is a semi-solid slushy and our version plays on that fact, making it the perfect drink for summer. By the way, it didn’t get its name the way you might think. Our hotel was overrun by volleyball players in town for a tournament which inspired the “spike.” You could probably use your favorite lemonade mix if you can’t get your hands on Del’s mix, but they do sell it online.

2 ounces dells lemon ice mix

2 cups of ice

1/2 to 1 cup of water, depending on how thick you want the finished product

3 shots of Tito’s Vodka (our favorite)

Put all ingredients into a blender (we love the Ninja for this). Blend for 30 seconds. Divide between two sugar rimmed glasses and enjoy.

Irish coffee milk

Coffee milk is another Rhode Island staple but it might be a little harder to find now that coffee shops are everywhere. I looked at several places and it was never on the menu, but I bet they would make you one if you asked. This is exactly what it sounds like, the chocolate milk from your childhood, only made with coffee syrup. I found several different brands of coffee syrup available around town but none compared to Dave’s Coffee. Made in small batches, it only has three gradients: cane sugar, fresh ground coffee, and water. The way it should be done. You probably won’t be able to find coffee syrup and your local supermarket but you could make your own. Start with four shots of espresso and put that in a saucepan with half a cup of sugar. Heat until sugar is dissolved and pour into a bottle or jar to cool.

1 cup whole milk (you could use a milk substitute, but it will change the flavor)

3 tablespoons of coffee syrup

1 shot of Irish whiskey, such as Jameson’s

Pour all of the ingredients into a shaker over about a cup of ice. Shake vigorously. Uncapped the shaker and pour everything into a glass. Don’t use the shaker’s strainer or you will miss all of the delicious foam. Garnish with a drizzle of coffee syrup and relive a grown-up version of a favorite childhood treat!

We hope you enjoy our cocktail series. Leave us a comment below if you have a favorite from Rhode Island that we missed.

We have been so busy exploring Pine Island, Cape Coral, and Fort Meyers that there is no blog post for this week. but we have been working hard to find the best cocktail with a view! We’ve tried Rum Rummers, Goombay Smashes, Hurricanes, Mojitos, and more, but don’t worry, we’re always safe and never drive if we’ve had too many.

After extensive research, we decided to go straight to the source and visit the Wicked Dolphin Distillery in Cape Coral. Wicked Dolphin is the first distillery in Florida since Prohibition and they make rum in small batches from local ingredients. If you are in the Fort Myers area, you should definitely go check them out. The tours are free, as are the tastings. We picked up two bottles (but wanted more) and have created a couple of cocktails that we thought that you, our dear readers, might enjoy (we certainly have)! In all of the recipes below, we are using Wicked Dolphin Rum, but you could use your favorite as a substitute. We bought everything we used and they didn’t give us anything for free… but hey Wicked Dolphin, give us a call and we’ll pick up anything you’re willing to donate for the mention!

If you are not familiar with cocktail mixing, you should know that a jigger is the standard measure. The hourglass-shaped bar mixing tool holds 1 1/2 ounces on the large side, which is a shot; and 3/4 of an ounce on the small side, which is half a shot. There are variations and not all jiggers are created equal so you should do a “reality check” with your jigger to know its volume. Most home bartenders are not too worried about it and when making our drinks, I rarely measure, which can be dangerous!

Our first creation we decided to call the Pine Island KOA Breeze. In a pint glass, combine 1-1/2 ounces of coconut rum, 3 ounces of orange juice, and ice. Shake to combine and top with Cranberry Sprite (you could also use 3/4 ounce of cranberry juice and top off with Sprite). Garnish with orange slices and a sugared cranberry if you have them (we didn’t).

Next up is the Pine Island Storm. We made this one out of necessity since we ran out of Cranberry Sprite (it’s only available during the holidays). Begin by chopping up a fresh pineapple and covering it with coconut rum and let it marinate in the fridge for at least 24 hours. In a shaker, combine 1-1/2 ounces each of the pineapple infused coconut rum and black rum with ice and 3 ounces of orange juice. Shake until frothy. Pour over ice and top with Sprite and pieces of the drunken pineapple (and some maraschino cherries, if you have them). Give the glass a float of more dark rum to make it happy! The picture below is actually a double because we were doing laundry and were not very close to the RV.

The last cocktail we created we called the RumSlide. Combine equal parts black rum and Bailey’s Irish Cream with ice. Shake until frothy and pour over ice. If you want to take it to the next level, swirl some chocolate syrup into the glass first!

We hope you enjoy the fruits of our labors here on Pine Island and if you have other favorite rum cocktails, let us know in the comments. You don’;t have to be on the beach to enjoy a few moments of island life!

Tag: cocktail

Cocktails with the Colemans – Providence, RI edition

Lemon Ice Spike

Irish coffee milk

No blog today… but we have cocktails!