Coquito Time Take Two

The results of the last Sunday's first batch of coquito have come in and it seems that I need to tweak my recipe. Why? Well if you can believe it folks, it is too strong in terms of the rum portion used. Yes, I said it, it was too strong. Now mind you, Momma-San took a bottle to her job for their holiday party and said it was strong though it was polished off in record time. The second bottle that was in my fridge was tasted by Juju, Stella and Momma-San and though it was strong, half of it was gone by the time I got to it. So I decided to taste my concoction. What did I think of it?

The Coquito thickened up nicely. It was very aromatic and (after giving it a good shake) the first two glasses were strong in terms of alcohol but quite pleasant. The last remaining Coquito in the bottle was a different story. That little bit may have had the concentrated effect of the rums that settled to the bottom, as well as, the cinnamon sticks that stay at the bottom. It was potent. After a few sips I was definitely feeling it. At that point I decided that I needed to rework the recipe. There's nothing wrong with a little kick, but it shouldn't dominate or overpower the flavor of the Coquito. But there was a bit of a hitch: I already had two more batches in the fridge that I had made earlier in the day. What to do. I came up with the following plan:

Make a batch without the rums and cinnamon syrup and incorporate it into the existing batches at a ratio of about 2-1 with the "2" being the alcoholic portion of the coquito.

At a quick taste of the combined batches, the rum and cinnamon flavors seemed to be toned down. Before I can make a final determination, I need to leave the batch in the fridge for about a day or so to see how the flavors mix. I'll report on it as soon as I taste it.

Until Then Happy Drinking
Sisco Vanilla

Coquito Time

Since we're chugging along in the Holiday season, I've decided to make that favorite punch of us Latinos known as Coquito. Some call it Spanish Egg Nog since it is very similar to Egg Nog except that the main base of the punch is Coconut Cream. I don't have an actual standard recipe that I can say that I have perfected so depending on how these batches come out, I might alter the recipe. Here is what I worked with:

Coquito
1 can of Coco Lopez Cream of Coconut
1/2 can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 Egg Yolk
4-8 Cinnamon sticks
1/8 tsp of Freshly Grated Nutmeg
1 tsp of Vanilla Extract
1-2 oz of Cinnamon Syrup (recipe below)
15 oz Bacardi Silver
7 oz Bacardi Oakheart Spiced Rum

Build in a blender by adding all the ingredients one at a time. Pour the rum in to the empty Cream of Coconut can and swirl to get the remaining coconut that might be stuck to the sides. Blend for about 5-10 minutes. Taste and alter to taste. Put at least one cinnamon stick that was used in the cinnamon syrup recipe. Pour mixture into a glass bottle or jar and refrigerate. It will thicken somewhat.

Cinnamon Syrup
Put one cup of water to boil with 4 to 8 Cinnamon sticks. After it comes to a boil, extract a shot worth of the liquid.

At quick taste it is quite delicious and very creamy. I made two batches. One for Momma-San's holiday party and another one for another party that we'll be having in the bar this upcoming Monday night. I'll see how they are received and make any necessary changes.

Next on the Holiday drink schedule is Egg Nog. That comes this weekend.

Until Then Happy Drinking,
Sisco Vanilla