Off Hours Bourbon Summer Cocktail Contest Gone Wild!
Off Hours is featuring cocktails from Nashville, Grand Rapids and Central Indiana’s finest cocktail artists. From Music City to the Craft Beer Capital of the United States to the outstanding foodie destinations of Central Indiana, the cocktail artists create and craft drinks that will rival any city around the world. Through in summer ingredients and Off Hours Bourbon Whiskey and you have a winning combination! Off Hours and Edible Indy made a call for some of the brightest stars around the Midwest to dream up and make cocktail recipes that are sunkissed and reminds us of those sunny days that go on and on. Out of the many who submitted their creations, the winners have been announced are highlighted below!
The winners took home the following prizes from Off Hours Bourbon.
1st place: $250 + Yeti Package
2nd place: $150
3rd place: $100
People’s choice: $250
Plus all recipes are highlighted on EdibleIndy.com.
WANDERLUST COCKTAIL - 1st Place and People's Choice Winner
By Caitlin Quigley of Social Misfits
Social Media Handle: @caitlininclouds
I wanted to create a cocktail that had ties to my love for travel. Anyone that knows me well, knows I am in love with the sweet and spicy combo. I wanted to highlight some Asian(Yuzu,Ginger) and Hispanic(Tajin) influences along with North American(Strawberries,Bourbon) to the not so traditional whiskey sour. This fruitful cocktail has hints of savory notes keeps your mouth watering and the sun shining!
Wanderlust
1 1/2 ounce Off Hours Bourbon
1 ounce Monin Strawberry Puree
1 ounce Yuzu Juice
¾ ounce Ginger Simple Syrup*
1 Egg White
Dry Shake, Shake w/ Ice
Served In A Coupe w/ A
Hefty Tajin Sprinkle for Garnish
Fill a shaker with ice and pour all ingredients into shaker. Vigorously shake for 15-20 seconds and strain into a coupe glass and sprinkle with tajin.
*Ginger Simple Syrup
Yields 1 Quart
Pour 18 ounces of water into a sauce pot and simmer over medium heat. Add one, three inch chunk of chopped fresh ginger. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and strain.
Add 18 ounces granulated sugar to hot liquid and stir until completely dissolved. Allow to cool and pour into a glass jar. Refrigerate.
Bio
After spending almost every holiday in the kitchen cooking with my Mom and Gigi, I developed such a love for flavor profiling and the community that
it provides. I decided to dive into a culinary degree from Secchia Institute for Culinary Education in Grand Rapids. Over time I have been involved in
the restaurant/bar industry for about 10 years. I have come to absolutely love the cocktail universe and the exploration that comes along with it. My
additional love for travel and nature never ceases to inspire my creations. Let’s experience all of the flavors our world has to offer.
AFTER HOURS SOURS - 2nd Place Winner
By Matt Gillen from St. Elmo Steakhouse | Indianapolis, Indiana
@stelmosteakhouse
2 oz Off Hours Bourbon
2 oz Jumex peach nextar
½ oz ginger simple syrup
½ oz fresh lemon juice
Add all ingredients to a mixing tin with ice. Shake vigorously and then strain into an ice filled Collins glass. Garnish with a lemon peel.
To make ginger simple syrup: Add 1 cup of water, 1 cup of granulated sugar, and ½ cup of peeled and sliced fresh ginger root to a pan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 20 minutes. Strain out ginger and let cool.
Bio
Matt has been bartending at St. Elmo for 13 years. He loves connecting with his guests to share a laugh or talk about sports (especially St. Louis Cardinals baseball). Matt has recently been working on perfecting his own limoncello! Matt and his wife Stacie met at Indiana State and reside in Indianapolis with their 12 year old son.
SAGE 'N VICE - 3rd Place Winner
By Jeriel Johnson of Nashville, Tennessee
IG: @elthepoet_
When I think of a hot, summertime farmer’s market, I envision jams, fresh herbs, veggies, nuts by the pound, lush fruits, and a lemonade stand. Off Hours bourbon has a salty, leathery, caramel corn kick that beckoned for something savory and juicy as a complement. Peaches immediately came to mind. I wanted to keep the cocktail bright with the prime citrus of lemon, yet lean into the savory notes of Off Hours Bourbon with some sage and walnut. The overall experience is a crushable peach cobbler cider with a touch of candied walnut. It’s a balanced drink worth revisiting. The bourbon can push up to 1.5 ounce for the more spiritous drinker.
“Sage ’n’ Vice”
1¼ ounce Off Hours Bourbon
½ ounce Sage-infused Cruzan Vanilla Rum*
½ ounce Lemon Juice
¼ ounce Herradura Agave Nectar (or 0.5 ounce brown sugar simple)
½ ripe yellow peach with skin, fully muddled
3 drops Fee Bros. Black Walnut Bitters
Select a ripened peach that holds it’s dimple when pressed. Wash away any heavy fuzz and cut off half the peach along the pit. Fully muddle the peach to a puree inside cheat shaker tin.
Add all other ingredients to larger shaker tin. Fill cheat tin with ice and vigorously shake all ingredients for 8-10 seconds. Fine strain the cocktail into an 8 ounce rocks glass with large (4 ounce) cube. Use the bar spoon to swizzle free any liquid from particulate in the fine mesh strainer. Garnish with two small leaves of sage clapped open and placed onto the cube.
*Sage-infused Cruzan Vanilla Rum*
Place 7 large sage leaves into a bottle of Cruzan Vanilla Rum and let steep for 24-48 hours.
Gently agitate the infused rum to ensure full incorporation of the sage before use.
Bio
This Alabama native enjoys creative works of all kinds and puts his Vanderbilt film degree to use by creating balanced cocktails with flavors that activate the imagination and amplify the individual stories of those who drink them.
DOWNTIME SMASH - Top 4 and Fabulous
By: Nick Matio from C3 Bar | Bloomington, Indiana
@mixed_by_matio
1½ ounce Off Hours Bourbon
1 ounce Fresh Lemon Juice
¾ ounce Rothman & Winter Apricot Liqueur
½ ounce Honey Syrup*
5 Loose Mint Leaves
5 Dashes Haus Alpenz Nux Alpine Walnut Liqueur (Used a Bitters Dasher Top)
Garnish: Mint Bouquet & 2 Luxardo Maraschino Cherries on a skewer
Add Bourbon, lemon, honey, apricot liqueur, loose mint leaves and walnut liqueur to a cocktail shaker with 3-4 ice cubes. Light whip shake 4-5 times. Strain through fine mesh strainer into a chilled Double Old Fashioned glass. Pack glass with Nugget/Pebble Ice to the top. Add expressed mint bouquet and skewer of cherries as a garnish. Enjoy.
*Honey Syrup: Mix 2 parts Local Honey with 1 part hot filtered water, stir until dissolved.
Bio
Nick Matio, Bar Manager at C3 Bar in Bloomington, IN. Graduate of Indiana University in Informatics & Business. Bar Academy Graduate along with 11+ yrs experience behind the bar. Owner/Founder of Mixed By Matio LLC Bar & Beverage Consulting.
