Tag Archives: Ready To Drink

DIY Ready-to-Drink Frozen Cocktails

Posted on May 24, 2013 | Leave a comment

No Blender Frozen Modern Margarita is a DIY Ready-to-Drink frozen cocktail – recipe and photo by Mixologist Cheri Loughlin, The Intoxicologist

You can make your own Ready-to-Drink frozen cocktails. It’s easier than you think. Once you start making your own, you may never buy prepackaged cocktails again! The only problem you might run into is running out too fast because they are so good!

Make Your Own Ready-to-Drink Frozen Cocktails

Ready to freeze pouches are frozen until ready to serve for blender style drinks without actually needing a blender. Fabulous idea! Good blenders are expensive. Cheap blenders usually don’t blend ice fine enough for cocktails. There are a few problem areas in freezing cocktails though. Alcohol and sugar don’t like to freeze. Consider recipes meant for blender use first when choosing recipes to use as Ready-to-Drink frozen cocktails. These will be the easiest recipes to convert for freezer pouch use.

A portion of the difference in volume between the base ingredients and a shaken cocktail needs to be added into the recipe to create a Ready-to-Drink frozen cocktail.

An ordinary cocktail is put together in a cocktail shaker with ice. Let’s say there are 4 to 5 ounces of cocktail liquids that go into the shaker to build the cocktail. The cocktail is shaken until it is well chilled. Let’s say 20 seconds. Remember, we do not like a lazy shake! The liquid is strained into the cocktail glass. There is now a larger volume of liquid than the 4 to 5 ounces that went into the shaker due to ice melt. If that finished cocktail liquid were measured it would be more than the original measurement. THAT difference in volume is the key to making your own Ready-to-Drink frozen cocktails. A portion of the difference in volume between the base ingredients and a shaken cocktail needs to be added into the recipe to create a Ready-to-Drink frozen cocktail.

DIY No Blender Frozen Modern Margarita

The drink that inspired me to create a no blender necessary Ready-to-Drink frozen cocktail is served at one of my favorite Mexican restaurants. Roja Grill in the Omaha Old Market serves an amazing fresh Modern Margarita with fresh squeezed lime and grapefruit juice. Bartenders Manny, Bren and Jamie do an amazing job behind the bar at Roja. They also make some of the best, freshest Margaritas in the Old Market. Skip the Margarita machine and let the bartenders make a fresh Margarita for you. It’s well worth it!

I’ve never asked the bartenders at Roja for their Modern Margarita recipe. My recipe might not taste exactly like the one there. You will still need to go to Roja and sample the real thing! This recipe is an adapted version for freezer purposes.

No Blender Frozen Modern Margarita is an adapted version of the Roja Grill Modern Margarita – photo and frozen recipe by Cheri Loughlin, The Intoxicologist

No Blender Frozen Modern Margarita – recipe by Cheri Loughlin, The Intoxicologist

Makes 1

2 ounces Blanco Tequila

1-1/4 ounce Fresh Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice

1 ounce Fresh Lime Juice

1/2 ounce Premium Orange Liqueur

1/4 ounce Agave Syrup

1 ounce Bottled Water

Combine liquids in freezer safe container. Stir. Seal container. Freeze until ready to use. Mixture will freeze mostly solid within 4 to 5 hours depending upon how cold your freezer gets. Remove from freezer when ready to drink. Allow to slightly thaw for a few minutes. Shake to mix up contents. Pour into salt or sugar rimmed glass if desired. Garnish with lime wedge.

Ready-to-Drink Frozen Cocktails Tips & Tricks

Just a quick minute to thaw & shake is all you need for a wonderful icy, blended style frozen Margarita. No blender necessary. EASY! – photo and recipe by Cheri Loughlin, The Intoxicologist

Makes only one?!? I know. There is a reason frozen cocktails are sold in single pouches rather than party pouches. I did multiply the recipe and froze it in a container that held five servings. There is a bit of settling that goes on as the cocktail freezes. It’s possible to freeze multiple cocktails within one container. However, the entire container has to thaw for a few minutes so it can be shaken to remix the contents due to settling. It’s much easier to freeze individual drinks.

I’ve used zip style freezer bags for my frozen cocktails. They work in a pinch but they sometimes leak and they are difficult to stack until the liquid is completely frozen. Then I found the Ball 8 ounce Plastic Freezer Jars at a local grocery store. They are wonderful! They are the perfect size for an individual cocktail. There is a “fill to” line marked on the container allowing proper space for the drink to expand as it freezes. The containers are stackable which saves freezer space. They seal perfectly, so no worries about plastic bag punctures. When it’s time to thaw the cocktail, it’s super easy to shake and pour.

Add Your Comment: What DIY Ready-to-Drink Frozen Cocktail recipes would you like to learn how to make?

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Posted in Frozen

Tagged Agave Syrup, Blended Drink, Fresh Lime, Grapefruit Juice, Margarita, National Margarita Day, Premium Orange Liqueur, Ready To Drink, Roja Grill, Tequila

Adding Fresh Pizzazz to the RTD Mint Julep

Posted on May 30, 2011 | Leave a comment

Ready to drink formulation cocktails from the bottle are perfect for furthering
experimentation. Just because their main purpose is a quick and easy pour cocktail does not mean your imagination must stop there. With a little creative
blending, you can turn the plain pre-mix into the mouthwatering delicious cocktail you would otherwise be missing.

Raspberry Mint Julep – created by Cheri Loughlin

3 ounces Early Times Mint Julep RTD

1/3 cup frozen Raspberries

1/2 cup Ice

Crushed Ice

Fresh Mint Leaves Garnish

Place Early Times Mint Julep, raspberries and 1/2 cup ice in a blender. Blend on
puree in the blender. Pour over crushed ice in a Collins glass or decorative glass. Garnish with fresh mint leaves.

The raspberry bite takes a tiny bit of sweetness out of the Early Times Mint Julep without robbing the cocktail of its traditional flavor and minty charm. The minty fresh taste lingers well through the raspberry fruit which by the way gives this cocktail a pleasantly vivacious color. Vibrant green mint leaves add the finishing touch for extra sparkle and contrast to liven up the concoction.

High resolution digital photo downloads are available for brand, cocktail menu creation use and individual use at www.cheriloughlin.com within the Beverages category.

Find The Intoxicologist on Twitter, Facebook, StumbleUpon or Email: str8upcocktails@gmail.com – Copyright 2011 Cheri Loughlin – The Intoxicologist – All Rights Reserved – All opinions, reviews and spirits’ coverage contained within are the personal opinion and decision of Cheri Loughlin, The Intoxicologist.

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Posted in Cocktails

Tagged Early Times Mint Julep, Mint Julep, National Mint Julep Day, Ready To Drink

Bacardi Raspberry Mojito: Effortless, Quick, Refreshing

Posted on May 22, 2009 | Leave a comment

As an avid fan of handcrafted cocktails it is with rarity pre-mixed cocktails will cause me to pause in the liquor aisle. Gone are the days of margarita mix from a plastic container with pre-requisite 2 ounce Mixto Tequila pour to get lost in the acidic sugary liquid that for some reason always glows alien green.

These days liquor companies are releasing improved ready to serve cocktails with better quality ingredients and overall enhanced taste. With consumers moving toward premium markets as their choice in spirits it seems only natural these same consumers still value the finest quality when purchasing products that make their lives a little easier as well.

Bacardi is a prime example with the new Bacardi Classic Cocktail Raspberry Mojito recently released as part of the brand’s ready-to-drink portfolio which already includes other popular summer classics. The idea: placing a refreshing, convenient pour and drink cocktail in the hands of consumers that can be enjoyed anywhere so entertaining is a breeze. The cocktails contained within the ready-to-serve line up follow a particular theme. They all center on popular, flavorful cocktails that require a few more ingredients or a couple more steps to build than standard duo or trio cocktails. Extra steps like muddling or the requirement of several different liquors becomes an irritation and time consuming when a host or guests try to prepare drinks poolside or while tailgating when they would rather be having a good time with friends. Ready-to-serve from a bottle with cups, ice and possibly a garnish if one is feeling truly spicy sure beats knocking around bottles in a backseat on the way to a campsite, sporting event or even down the street for the neighborhood pool party.

The color of Bacardi Classic Cocktail Raspberry Mojito is difficult to miss with its deep pink raspberry. This definitely is not your typical girlie ‘Cosmo’ pink cocktail. Add in a mint leaf to bring on the green garden masculine touch and men will feel the love if they have an aversion to pick drinks. This one contains a light hint of mint and lovely raspberry fruit flavor. The sweetness has a tinge of artificial character to it rather than that explode in your mouth just-bit-into-a-luscious-raspberry feel, but this is a pre-mixer rather than something one just muddled in a cocktail tin. And let’s face it; if we’d just muddled it ourselves with fresh raspberries, we probably would have added simple syrup and that’s not very natural either. Overall this is pretty good. The mint is clean and refreshing without overwhelming. The flavor of raspberry comes across just right with the right amount of sweetness that does not seem to be overdone. I was pleasantly surprised with this pre-mixer. Mint leaves and skewered raspberries left for guests to dress their own drinks would liven it up aesthetically, but the cocktail definitely doesn’t need anything extra to make it work. The real bonus aside from flavor in the Bacardi Classic Raspberry Mojito cocktail is total time to build this usually time consuming drink: 10 seconds flat…it just took forever for the freezer to let go of the ice! Seriously though, the splendor of a well made pre-mixed cocktail is in the quick pour.

The ready-to-drink bottle on the go will never replace a good old fashioned bartender who works hard to hone the craft, but the Bacardi Classic Cocktail Raspberry Mojito will certainly make an appearance at a few of my backyard parties this summer due to the ease of serve.

Bacardi Classic Cocktail Raspberry Mojito RTD sample for review courtesy representatives of Bacardi Rum.

Cheri Loughlin is a leading cocktail and photography resource for beverage companies, event planners, businesses and individuals. High resolution cocktail and beverage stock photography images are available in downloadable digital format in the newly redesigned Stock Photography Gallery at www.cheriloughlin.com.

Twitter, Facebook, StumbleUpon – str8upcocktails @ gmail.com – ©2012 Cheri Loughlin-The Intoxicologist, All Rights Reserved. All opinions, reviews and spirits’ coverage are the personal opinion and decision of Cheri Loughlin.