Episode 152: 2023 Year in Review & the Winter Cup

It's time for our annual year in review! 2023 was a crazy year filled with movies, music, strikes, cocktails, and other adventures! Check out what we loved in 2023, and what we're looking forward to in 2024. Plus, check out the amazing Winter Cup cocktail from Cosmopolitan along the way! 

• 1oz Dry Gin
• .5oz Raspberry Liqueur
• Splash Sparkling Lemonade
• Oranges, Raspberries, Blackberries, Mint for Garnish

 Build cocktail in rocks glass with ice. Add fruit/mint as a garnish 

 Young Willy Wonka is an aspiring chocolatier, but the well organized chocolate families aren't going to make it easy for him to break into the business. With a song in his heart, and some help from new friends, Willy goes on an adventure to bring his chocolate to the world.

This week we are singing, mixing up chocolates, and taking a trip down memory lane with Willy Wonka and making some new friends (and cocktails) along the way.

Join us for Mozart Chocolate liqueur, little orange men, giraffes, Noodle, bad contracts, and a chat about Wonka!

Cocktail comes from Baldhiker!

• 1oz Chocolate Liqueur
• .75oz Heering Cherry Liqueur
• .5oz Kahlua Especial Coffee Liqueur
• 2oz Heavy Whipping Cream
• Espresso Powder for garnish

Add ingredients to shaker with ice. Shake and strain into coupe or martini glass. Garnish with espresso powder or chocolate shavings. 

He's made his list, he's checked it twice, but it's going to be up to Kate & Teddy to harness every bit of Christmas magic to help save Santa, and keep the spirit alive!

This week we infuse some vodka with candy canes and dive into a more recent Christmas classic, with the help of the reindeer, some elves, and a leather coat wearing Santa Claus.

Join us for old camcorders, the naughty list, magic ornaments, grand theft auto, and a chat about The Christmas Chronicles!

This week's cocktail comes from Boulder Locavore!

• 2oz Candy Cane Infused Vodka
• .5oz Clear Creme de Cacao
• 2 dashes Aromatic Bitters 

To infuse Vodka - Add candy canes to half plain and half vanilla vodka and allow to infuse for 3-4 days.

Add ingredients to shaker with ice, shake and strain into candy cane rimmed martini glass.

We're a couple of misfits, but when a winter storm puts Christmas in jeopardy, this band of outcasts are going to save the day, and teach an important lesson to Santa and the rest of Christmas Town!

This week we are taking on a classic TV movie and mixing up a classic spiced wine to help us fight our way through the winter storm.

Join us for dentists, grumpy Santa, being cute, misfit toys, and a chat about 1964's Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer!

• .75 Cup Water
• .75 Cup Sugar
• 1 Cinnamon Stick
• 1 Orange
• 10 Cloves
• 1 Bottle Red Wine 

Add sugar, water, and cinnamon stick to saucepan. Bring to a boil to dissolve sugar.

Squeeze juice from orange into sugar syrup and add the orange halves and cloves to syrup. Simmer for 30 minutes.

Add wine to syrup and warm gently for about 5 minutes. Sip and Enjoy! 

In a story of relationships in the 5 weeks running up to Christmas, the connecting threads of characters, friends, heartache, and love can become a tangled mess. Luckily though, Christmas is all around us!

This week we take a trip to Wisconsin for the dive bar classic "Dirty Snowball" as we pursue love, because Love, Actually is all around!

Join us for questionable caroling practices, drum lessons, an emergency flight to Portugal, Joni Mitchell, and a chat about Love Actually!

• 1 shot Vodka
• 1 shot Creme de Cacao
• 1 shot Coffee Liqueur
• 1 shot Heavy Cream
• Ice

 Add ingredients to blender and blend until smooth.  

Joshua loses his wife in a dystopian near future, where the battle between humans and AI are coming to a head, but the AI weapon Alfie has the ability to end all war.

This week we head out to the local iMax screen and take in the new sci-fi story that has us pondering the path ahead with our partners in technology, plus we mix up a pretty bitter but delicious cocktail to help us plot the course. 

Join us for giant ships, memory chips, explosions, temples, and a chat about The Creator!

Cocktail comes from Difford's Guide!

• 8 Raspberries
• .75oz Campari
• .75oz Silver Tequila
• .5oz Agave Syrup
• .75oz Lemon Juice
• Dash Orgeat Syrup

 Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into small glass. 

Mark Watney is an astronaut, a botanist, and the only man on Mars, and it will take all his problem solving skills to survive long enough for help to arrive.

This week we are blasting off, growing potatoes, and mixing up a tiki version of the Martian sunset.

Join us for Matt Damon, cold nights, staple guns, beautiful landscapes, science, and a chat about The Martian!

This week's cocktail comes from Harpers Bazaar!

• 1 1/2 oz Coconut Rum
• 1 oz Anejo Tequila
• 4 oz Pineapple Juice
• Splash of Lime Juice
• Dash of Grenadine

Add all ingredients except grenadine to shaker with ice. Shake and strain into martini glass. Pour in grenadine to create sunset effect. 

Arthur gets taken on a whirlwind journey, hitchhiking his way through the galaxy to find love, adventure, confidence, and friendship.

This week we are opening our travel guide, grabbing the gin, and headed off to find the question to the answer of everything.

Join us for bog smoke, paranoid androids, 2 faces, bathrobes, bog smoke, and a chat about The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy!

Cocktail comes from How to Drink!

• 2oz Gin
• 2-3 Dashes 20% Saline Solution
• Top with Club Soda
• Lemon Twist
• Barspoon Fernet Branca
• Peat Bog Smoke

Shake gin and saline with ice, strain into coupe glass. Top with club soda and float of Fernet Branca. Garnish with lemon peel then smoke with Peat Bog smoke! 

Mrs. Brisby is on a mission to save her sick son , but it will take all her bravery to navigate owls, cats, and the rats of NIMH to get her family to safety!

This week we go back to the childhood (albeit traumatizing) Don Bluth classic, with a perfect bourbon smash cocktail to go along with it.

Join us for scares, joys, beautiful animation, Nicodemus, mystical medallions, blackberries, and a chat about The Secret of NIMH!

Cocktail comes from Hash House a Go Go! 

• 2oz Bourbon
• 3 Blackberries
• Orange Wedge
• Sugar Cube
• Bitters

Garnish with sugar dusted Blackberries

Muddle sugar, blackberries, orange, and bitters in rocks glass. Fill with ice and add bourbon. Stir and enjoy! 

Through a twist of fate, rich and powerful Edward is going to get his entire outlook on life changed by working girl Vivian, but will their different stations in life stand in the way of their love?

This week we go back to 1990 to talk one of the most classic romantic comedies of them all, and mix up a delicious and beautiful cocktail to have along the way!

Join us for escargot, brown polka dot dresses, romance, helpful concierges, cool cars, and a chat about Pretty Woman!

Cocktail comes from Blanche Bar!

• Egg White
• .75oz Lemon Juice
• 1.5oz Chambord
• 1.5oz Gin
• 1oz Simple Syrup

Add ingredients to shaker tin and shake for 30 seconds. Add ice and shake again. Double strain into chilled coupe glass. 

Bruce Lee was an influential figure, as a person, as a martial artist, and as an actor. And this week we celebrate the 50th birthday of maybe his most influential film.

In this episode we join in on a martial arts tournament, bust up a crime ring, and mix up a fancy aged rum and mezcal cocktail, the Dragon's Heart.

Join us for spike hands, mirror rooms, boat rides, crime bosses, fighting without fighting, and a chat about Enter the Dragon! 

Cocktail comes from The Spruce Eats!

• 3 lime wedges
• 3/4 ounces elderflower cordial
• 5 dashes aromatic bitters
• 1 1/2 ounces aged rum
• 3/4 ounces mezcal
• 1/2 ounces ginger liqueur
• 1 1/2 ounces blood orange juice
• Blood orange slice, for garnish

Muddle lime wedges with elderflower and bitters. Then add ice and remaining ingredients. Shake and strain into coupe or martini glass. Garnish with orange slice. 

Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo, & Raphael are back in action in a new animated story that brings the Turtles out of the sewer and into our hearts.

This week we mix up a new to us gin cocktail and chat about some of our favorite childhood turtle heros!

Join us for Superfly, April O'Neil, Splinter, all the celebrity voice actors, a surprisingly tasty beverage, and a chat about TMNT: Mutant Mayhem!

• 1oz Gin
• .5oz Blue Curacao
• 2oz Orange Juice

 Shake ingredients with ice, then strain into a chilled glass and enjoy your new mutant abilities! 

Veronica is trying her best to stay in good with the Heathers, but a new love affair with JD and some personal slightings leave Veronica with blood on her hands and a red scrunchie to lead the school.

This week we dive into this cult classic on its 35th anniversary and mix up a cocktail to honor Veronica's signature blue.

Join us for high school revenge, a twist on the classic whiskey sour, Christian Slater, and a chat about Heathers!

This week's cocktail comes from Cocktail Contessa!

• 1.5oz whiskey
• .5 oz blue curacao
• .75oz simple syrup
• .75oz lemon juice
• Egg white
• 5 drops Bitterless Marriage Bitters (Lavendar–Hibiscus-Oak)

Add ingredients to shaker tin, shake, then add ice and shake again. Strain into chilled coupe or rocks glass. 

Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer is on the cutting edge of science, but what does it mean for a man to give the world a weapon capable of destroying itself.

This week we head out into the desert to mix up a classic Vegas cocktail that takes it's name from the atomic frontier and chat about the newest Christopher Nolan film.

Join us for mathematics, legacy, explosives, the fastest 3 hour film, champagne cocktails and a chat about Oppenheimer.

• 1oz Vodka
• 1oz Brandy
• 2/3oz Sherry
• 2/3oz Champagne

Add liquor to cocktail shaker with ice. Stir and strain into coupe glass. Float champagne on top. Garnish with orange or lemon peel if desired. 

Ethen Hunt  has been given a mission, but the governments around the world and the black market syndicates are all giving chase as he searches for the keys to the Entity.

This week we accepting to choose a gin & grapefruit cocktail and checking in with the stunts, the car chases, and the skydiving adventures of Tom Cruise.

Join us for artificial intelligence, train chases, secret identities, and a chat about Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning pt 1!

Cocktail comes from Alamo Draft House!

• 1.5oz Gin
• .75 Pamplemousse Liquor
• .5oz Lime Juice
• Basil Leaf 
• Dash Orange/Aromatic Bitters

 Shake ingredients with ice and strain into well chilled martini glass. 

Lloyd Fellowes is trying to put on a play, but the actors, the stagehands, and the plates of sardines are going to have to get their acts together if we ever want to make it to broadway!

This week we are infusing some gin and trying a very delicious take on the classic G&T while chatting about one of Michaela's favorites.

Join us for J&B Scotch, axes, love triangles, backstage betrayals, sardines, and a chat about Noises Off...!

This week's cocktail comes from Edible Ottowa! 

• 1½ ounces gin (washed with sardine oil)
• ½ ounce Tio Pepe Fino sherry
• ¼ ounce fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon olive brine
• Fever Tree tonic

Add 1 Tbsp of Sardine Oil to 1 cup gin. Shake and put in freezer for 3 hours. Strain out frozen sardine oil, then build cocktail in tall collins glass with ice. 

Indiana Jones has seen and been through a lot, so when it's time to retire, our whip-wielding hero is ready to hang it up, but before he can find some rest, Helena is going to pull him into one last chase for an antiquity.

This week we check out the 5th installment of everyone's favorite archaeologist and dial up a couple of cocktails and mocktail from Disney Hollywood Studiosto go with it!

Join us for car chases, horse chases, eels, green tea, and a chat about Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny!

Cocktails come from WDWNT!

•  2oz Silver Tequila
• .5oz Passion Fruit
• .5oz Papaya
• .5oz Green Tea
• .5oz Lime Juice
• .25oz Agave Nectar
• 3 Cucumber Slices

Muddle cucumber and add ingredients with ice to shaker tin. Shake and strain into ice filled rocks glss.

• 2oz Bourbon
• 1oz Sweet Vermouth
• 1 Star Anise
• 2 Drops Vanilla Extract
• 2 Dashes Ginger Bitters
• Grate Cinnamon and Nutmeg

Add ingredients to shaker with ice. Shake and strain into ice filled rocks glass. Grate cinnamon and nutmeg over the top.

• 2oz Pomegranate Green Tea
• 2oz Blood Orange Juice
• .5oz Lemon
• .25 oz Agave Nectar

Combine ingredients in shaker tin with ice. Shake and strain into ice filled rocks glass.

Indiana Jones has a penchant for finding artifacts, and finding trouble along the way, but when the government comes along to get help recovering the Ark of the Covenant, Indiana will travel the globe to find his treasure, and his old flame.

This week we go back to a classic to prepare for the next chapter in Indiana Jones. There's love, there's cocktails, there's snakes, and there's the most iconic of adventure films.

Join us for melting faces, scary coat hangers, long lost loves, submarines, and a chat about Raiders of the Lost Ark!

Cocktail comes from BesottedGeek!

• 1oz Rye Whiskey
• Mist of Abisnthe
• Peychauds Bitters
• 3oz Vodka
• .75oz Brandy
• .75oz Amaretto
• Angostura Bitters

Staff of Ra - Mist shotglass with absinthe and fill with Rye and 2 dahes Peychauds bitters.

Bad Dates - Shake vodka, brandy, amaretto, and angostura bitters with ice. Strain into chilled martini glass. Garnish with pitted date.

Bruce Wayne has been using his influence and mysterious persona to clean up the streets of Gotham City, but when a new villain makes himself known it will be a battle between the comic book rivals for the soul of the city.

This week we step back to take a look at the original comic book blockbuster, and soak in that amazing Prince soundtrack with a martini and a smile.

Join us for batmobiles, parade balloons, Vicki Vale, comic hijinks, and a chat about 1989's Batman

•  2.5oz Gin/Vodka
• .25oz Dry Vermouth

Olive for Garnish

Add ingredients to shaker tin with ice. Stir and strain into a martini or coupe glass. Garnish with Olives.