By Donna Cornelius
Journal features writer
Is your favorite dad still wedded to the same drink he loved at frat parties? Does his neighborhood bartender plop down the usual concoction every time he sees dad walk through the door?
If so, maybe it’s time to shake things up this Father’s Day. Do it literally, by giving dad’s go-to drink a fresh remix.
LeNell Camacho Santa Ana and her husband, Demián Camacho Santa Ana, created these contemporary takes on old favorites such as the Old Fashioned and Salty Dog. The couple also came up with a beer cocktail—what’s not to love there?
The husband and wife team met in Mexico during a master distiller’s wedding, LeNell said. They’ve taught cocktail classes together, co-authored articles on wines and spirits and co-owned a reservation-only bar called Casa Coctel in La Paz, the capital of Baja California Sur.
Demián is bar manager at Little Savannah. LeNell bartends private events through the cocktail catering company The Bar Hops.
Right now, they’re finishing up a children’s book called “Mommy and Daddy Are Bartenders.”
“The book is inspired by our beautiful girl, Damiana,” LeNell said. “She is named after an herb used in Mexican liqueurs.”
LeNell’s Beverage Boutique, an award-winning liquor store that first opened in New York City, should be open in Birmingham’s historic Norwood neighborhood by early fall, LeNell said.
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The Houndstooth
LeNell said the Houndstooth is inspired by the history of the classic cocktail known as the Old Fashioned.
“People drank a mixture of spirits, bitter, water and sugar over 100 years ago. Once bartenders starting mixing in liqueurs and other flavors, customers referred to the old recipes as the Old Fashioned without the liqueurs,” she said.
The Houndstooth was created to honor the University of Alabama football team for winning the BCS Championship against LSU in 2012.
.25 ounce rich simple syrup (recipe follows)
.25 ounce Luxardo maraschino liqueur
4 dashes Fee Brothers whiskey barrel aged bitters
1 2-inch long by 1-inch wide grapefruit peel, pith removed
2 ounces bourbon
Add syrup and maraschino liqueur, bitters and grapefruit peel skin side up into heavy bottomed rocks glass. Gently press the peel with a muddler to release the skin oils. Add the whiskey and 2-3 large ice cubes. Stir.
Rich Simple Syrup
1 cup raw sugar
1 cup warm water
Add ingredients to an empty bottle. Cap. Shake to dissolve sugar. Let sit for a few minutes. Shake again.
Paloma
“Growing up, I remember my dad drinking salty dogs, a vodka and grapefruit highball with a salted rim,” LeNell said. “My husband and I owned a bar in Mexico for two years where I fell in love with the flavors of grapefruit with tequila. This makes even a great brunch drink.”
LeNell said Demián loves using San Pellegrino grapefruit soda and that she’s “wild about” all-natural Q grapefruit soda.
1 ½ ounces 100 percent agave blanco tequila
¼ ounces fresh-squeezed lime juice
Grapefruit soda
Sea salt
Lime wedge
Moisten the rim of a glass with the lime wedge and then dip the rim in a plate of sea salt. Add ice to the salt-rimmed glass. Pour in tequila and lime juice. Top with grapefruit soda. Stir. Add lime wedge.
Hoptail
“When folks traveled by stagecoach and horse and stopped at a tavern on their journey to rest, they might very well drink a mixed concoction of beer and other ingredients,” LeNell said. “Beer cocktails have become quite trendy lately as folks have discovered how much fun it is to use in mixed drinks.”
Demián created this drink when he had a slew of blood oranges on hand in the winter, LeNell said.
Although it can sometimes be a challenge to find blood oranges locally—try Whole Foods or Fresh Market—regular OJ is just not as good, LeNell said.
Demián uses the blond ale from Cahaba Brewing Company in Birmingham.
“Aperol is an Italian bitter aperitif liqueur a tad lighter than Campari,” LeNell said.
¾ ounce fresh blood orange juice
¼ ounce lime juice
½ ounce simple syrup
½ ounce Aperol
1 ½ ounces 100 percent agave blanco tequila
½ ounce blond ale
Lime wedge and orange twist
Pour juices, syrup, Aperol and tequila in glass with large ice cubes. Top with ale and stir. Garnish with lime wedge and orange twist.