The Vodka Drink Gallery

We enjoyed putting together some fun vodka drinks this week. Of course, there were the traditional drinks, screwdriver, vodka martini (which, I was thrilled to learn is actually called a Kangaroo), Lemon Drop, and Bloody Mary, but we played around with some of the recipes and found ourselves enjoying some super tasty concoctions.

Fizz Driver

Okay, this one is a no brainer. We just added about an ounce of club soda to the top of a screwdriver. Simple, and, in case you’re drinking cheap vodka, it will cut that bitter taste. Do I really need to write the recipe?

Even better, for some extra flavor, add about a half ounce of grenadine for flavor. I recommend the real stuff (made with pomegranate) but anything you’ve got will definitely work.

Branded with a Screwdriver

Here’s a fun one. We made chocolate covered cherries with brandy over Christmas and had some cherry flavored brandy left over. We were lucky enough to find that the combination of a screwdriver with the brandy was absolutely delicious.

Ingredients:

• 2 oz Vodka
• 2 oz Cherry Brandy
• Orange juice

In a tall glass, pour the vodka and orange juice over ice. Add the brandy on the top. Garnish with a cherry.

Dirty Martini (Dirty Kangaroo)

Okay, yes, this is still traditional, but yum yum yum. I love Dirty Martinis more than I can really express. But then, I’ve loved olives since I was a kid, so it makes sense that this would rank at the top of my drink list.

Ingredients:

• 2 oz Vodka
• 1.5 oz Olive Juice
• Fumes of Dry Vermouth

In a martini glass, put a small drop of vermouth and swirl it around the glass. Tip the glass over to get rid of any excess vermouth.

In a shaker, combine the vodka and lime juice, and shake softly. Pour into the martini glass. Garnish with 3 olives.

Lemon Drop

There are plenty of recipes for the lemon drop, and even this one isn’t the one I used to serve. But, it’s a lot tastier and makes a lot more sense than many that I’ve seen in the past.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 oz Vodka
• .5 oz fresh lemon juice
• Sugar

Rim a martini glass with sugar. Combine the vodka and lemon juice in a shaker with ice and shake. Strain into the glass. Garnish with a lemon wedge.

Bloody Mary

Nobody makes a Bloody the same, and Adrian and I are no different. Try our versions, or make up your own. That’s the beauty of the Bloody – no two are the same.

Matron’s Bloody Mary

Ingredients:

• 3 oz Vodka
• 3 oz Tomato juice
• 10 dashes of Celery salt
• 7 shakes of Worcestershire sauce
• 1 shake of Tabasco
• 1 oz of Pickle juice

Fill a pint glass with ice and shake in Worcestershire, celery salt and Tabasco. Add vodka, pickle juice and tomato juice. Pour mix into another pint glass and back again. Repeat. Garnish with a pickle and 2 olives.

Adrian’s Bloody Mary