SiscoVanilla Makes a Ted Williams August 1, 2018

Part Two of the cocktails that I took with me to the Hangover Takeover podcast last Thursday was a something that I dubbed The Ted Williams. For this post, I share the floor with my alter-egos BaseballSisco and HistorySisco for the historical dimension concerning Ted Williams. Don't know who Ted Williams is? Simply put, Williams is one of the best players to ever play the game of Baseball. Allow me to reintroduce him to you all.

Ted Williams was born Theodore Samuel Williams on August 30, 1918 in San Diego, CA. Williams played his entire Baseball career with the Boston Red Sox and served in both World War II and the Korean War as a fighter pilot. Williams is the last player to his for over .400 for the season batting .406 for the 1941 season. While Williams was one of the best ballplayers to ever lace up cleats, he was also one of the most confident (some may say arrogant) and mercurial. Williams was quoted as saying the following about himself:  “If there was ever a man born to be a hitter it was me.”

Williams could be sweet one minute and bitter the next. Consider this. In his last at-bat on September 28, 1960 Williams homers for his 521st career dinger. He refuses to come out for a curtain call afterwards, just taking the field before being replaced. The fans serenade him with a standing ovation as Williams disappeared into the dugout, never once acknowledging the fans, bringing his playing career to a close. He would mellow out somewhat in his later years and finally gave the fans (and some might even say the game of baseball) some love during the 1999 All-Star Game that was hosted in Boston's Fenway Park. And I say that HE gave love since the fans, especially in Boston, always loved The Splendid Splinter. But history could have been different.

As stated above, Williams was born in San Diego to a father Samuel Stuart Williams who had a Welsh/Irish background and a mother May Venzor who was Mexican American. Consider the times that he played in. Williams debuted in 1939, in one of the most segregated cities in the North. Williams debuted 8 years before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier and the Boston Red Sox were the last team to integrate when Elijah Jerry "Pumpsie" Green became the first black ballplayer on the Red Sox...on July 21, 1959. 12 years after Jackie Robinson took the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers. So its no surprise that Williams didn't shed light on his Mexican side given the racial climate of the times. That finally leads us to the cocktail.

In honor of Williams' diverse heritage, I decided on making a mule of a drink combining Irish Whiskey and Mezcal. For the whiskey portion, I used Paddy's Irish Whiskey. I have previously profiled Paddy's on this blog in the following post from April 3, 2014 entitled Two Irish Whiskies on a Tuesday Night. On the Mezcal side I used the Montelobos Mezcal. Mezcal is similar to Tequila in that the spirits is distilled from Agave plants. Unlike Tequila that is made exclusively with Blue Agave, Mezcal is made with Espadín agave and the pinas are smoked in an underground pit giving the Mezcal its almost scotch-like smokiness. To these two spirits I added lime juice, simple syrup, ginger beer and Angostura bitters. Like Williams himself, you had Irish, Mexican, tart, sweet, spicy and bitter all rolled up into one amazing cocktail.

Here is the recipe I used:

Ted Williams
1.5oz Paddy's Irish Whiskey
1oz Montelobos Mezcal
0.5oz Lime Juice
0.25oz Simple Syrup
Ginger beer to top
5 dashes of Angostura Bitters

Build ingredients in copper mule cup with ice, stir slightly after adding bitters and garnish with lime if desired.

To paraphrase JuJu from the Hangover Takeover, this cocktail is a sipper. Both her and Gypsy agreed that it would pair well with ribs, brisket, pulled pork and other bbq selections. I found it to be delicious. I love the smokiness that the Mezcal brings to the forefront with the spiciness and sweetness on the back end. Paddy is just chilling out with all the ingredients. Its definitely a sipper folks. You don't want to slurp too many of these down too fast. It will definitely catch up to you. We had a great time.

Give them a follow both on Facebook: The Hangover Takeover , on Instagram: The Hangover Takeover and you can listen to their many podcasts on Soundcloud: The Hangover Takeover as well as on iTunes.

One of the suggestions on the Hangover Takeover was to make a series of Baseball Player related cocktails. Sounds good to me. Anything you want to see ? Drop me a line and let me know.

Until Then Keep Drinking,
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Two Irish Whiskies on a Tuesday Night

On Tuesday we decided to go out for Myron's birthday and had two stops we were going to make. The first was Soldier McGee's on the Upper West Side (480 Amsterdam Avenue, NY, NY 212-579-4299). Spencer was about to pour us a round of shots when I noticed a bottle behind the bar that a Spencer described as being "similar to Paddy's."

- 2 Gingers
According to the website for 2 Gingers Whisky:

2 GINGERS® whiskey is faithfully distilled at the famed Kilbeggan Distillery in Ireland, formerly called the Cooley Distillery. The award-winning spirit is smooth, malty, and slightly sweet to start, with a tingle of honey and citrus. The woody essence of this four-year-aged blend suggests caramel and vanilla to the finish.

Kieran Folliard was inspired by his fiery-haired mother and aunt to start 2 GINGERS® WHISKEY, the spirit over which ideas travel forward. Mary and Delia, whose faces are found on our bottle, never wasted a good idea by pondering its impossibilities. 2 GINGERS® WHISKEY is a product of an  undeniable urge to make a go of a good idea.

In terms of how it is made and tastes:

Smooth, malty, and slightly sweet to start, with a tingle of honey and citrus. 2 GINGERS® is a blended Irish whiskey, distilled twice and aged four years in the mild climate at the Cooley Distillery.

I took a sip of the Whisky and found it to be very, very smooth. It didn't have the harshness that some Irish Whiskys I've tasted can have. The back end of the shot had a nice kick.

After we were done at Soldier's, we cabbed it over to the Upper East to visit Pete at Bailey's Corner Pub (1607 York Ave, New York, NY 212-650-1341). Walking in the door with Myron and the Kahuna, the shots were being lined up. What was Pete pouring? As if fate intervened, Pete was pouring the aforementioned Paddy's Irish Whisky.

- Paddy's Irish Whisky
According to the Paddy's Irish Whisky website:

Call it fate. Call it luck. But in 1882, a young Patrick J. O’Flaherty was in need of a job, and Cork Distilleries Company was in need of a salesman. And while the perks of having whiskey as the product you’re selling was a draw, this legendary pairing of man and drink was fueled by something bigger. Soon whiskey glasses everywhere would never be the same...From Cork, to Mallow to Macroom, Paddy took to selling whiskey like a duck to water. At every pub along the way, he sold more than just the taste of "Old Irish Whiskey," making friends at every stop along the way. He embodied fun and good times and the next round’s on him.

By 1913, when pubs ran low on stock, they wrote to the folks in Cork, not for more “Cork Distilleries Company Old Irish Whiskey,” but for more of “Paddy’s Whiskey.” And because of the success of Paddy, the distillery officially changed the name of its whiskey to “Paddy Irish Whiskey.” A whiskey not named for the founder but for the man who made it his calling. The ultimate compliment in good taste and good times.

In terms of how its made:

It’s the ingredients that make PADDY stand for quality. It’s a tribute to what’s inside and gives the whiskey its distinctive soft and mellow taste: Barley harvested from the East Cork countryside; water from the river Dungourney, and malt and our special distiller’s yeast. All these ingredients make for a whiskey as unique as the man himself.

Not all whiskey is created equal. What separates PADDY Irish Whiskey from others is the addition of malt and the triple distillation process, which makes it soft and mellow. After fermentation, the wash is pumped to the first of three copper pot-stills; the Wash Still for distillation. Under the care of the Master Distiller, this process is repeated two more times: Once in the Feint Still and again in the Spirit Still, to get that great Irish Whiskey taste. It’s then filled into oak casks to rest and mature for years before the final careful blending process.

I found it to be quite smooth and I can see why Spencer said that the 2 Gingers Whisky bears a resemblance to Paddy's. I'm surprised that Paddy's isn't found as easily as let's say Jameson, Powers or even Bushmills whisky. Maybe they should engage in an ad campaign similar to Bushmills' "Since Way Back"

Well, maybe not. ;) Those ads irritate me. They come off as being fake. I know who drinks Bushmills at the bar and its not any of these people. Oh well. That's enough of the Irish Whisky for one night. Any recommendations on which Irish Whisky brands to try next?

Until Then Happy Drinking,

Sisco Vanilla

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