With the new year approaching, I've been contemplating goals for 2016. As I was wandering around the garden with my morning coffee, I couldn't help but admire the Clementines draping off the trees and the Meyer Lemons just asking to be picked, made into something tasty. They look like little orbs of edible sunshine, and my brain went straight to Limoncello as a way to do citrus-y justice for them.

Limoncello is traditionally an Italian liqueur made by infusing lemon zest with a high-proof alcohol for a while, then mixing the infused alcohol with a simple sugar syrup. After a hefty dinner, there is nothing like a little glass of chilled limoncello to help with digestion and give you the zest to overcome a potential food coma.

 With homegrown lemons, I started my very first goal of 2016 - make limoncello! Pretty sweet goal, eh? I enjoy making it. Friends enjoy drinking it. Everyone wins with this goal.

Except instead of regular limoncello (because I can never make anything just regular), I also add a delicious twist into my mix with the garden Clementines. So what shall this hybrid creation be called, you ask?  CLEMONCELLO!

This Clemoncello can take anywhere from 4 days to 1 month to make, depending on how robust of a citrus flavor you want. Most of the flavor infusion happens the first 4 days, but the longer the lemon and clementine zests sit in the alcohol, the bolder the citrus flavor will be.

So technically, you could make this right now and have it ready for New Year's Day dinner, or you could host a New Year's Day Clemoncello-making party with your buddies, and have this tasty digestif ready in time for Valentine's Day to share with your special someone...OR YOU COULD DO BOTH! (Just sayin'.)

Either way, as you get the ingredients and stuff for this fun recipe, here are some important tips:

• Use vodka that is made from grapes. This type of vodka is considered one of the cleaner, more neutral tasting vodkas.
• Meyer Lemons are the best, but regular lemons are good too. Meyer lemons cost a little more than regular ones, but they'll give the Clemoncello a "sweeter" lemon taste and make the liqueur more fragrant. Using regular lemons are good too, and will still give you a great flavor.
• Pick lemons and clementines that have thick skins, if possible. The thicker the skin, the more zest you'll have for the infusion. Thin skins will run the risk of accidentally getting the white pith into your infusion, and the smallest trace of white pith from the fruit will yield a bitter taste in your Clemoncello.
• Make sure to really scrub those citrus fruits clean before using. It's super important to scrub off any pesticides or wax that is on the outside of the fruit - the alcohol will pull every flavor out of the zest, and you don't want any of that nasty stuff in your infusion. Better yet, buy organic if you can, but still scrub to the fruit to get the wax off.

Since I just decided to start this delicious adventure today, you could call this a "Clemoncello-along". We can embark on this journey together. :)

Last week I had the privilege of competing in a Red Hot Blues bourbon cocktail contest in America's Capital. The judging criteria was creativity, taste, and how well it matches a blues music theme. With six contestants, 30 judges, and a desire to capture the glory of bourbon, we stirred, shook, muddled and twisted for the win. In the end, I am proud and honored to have prevailed at the top.

My cocktail tells a story of what late night blues is all about for the blues dancing community - my cocktail is called The Smoldering Embers [of Late-night Blues]. With each sip, the flavor evolves from smokey to sweet to bright and smooth. A sidecar of cayenne candied bacon also helps to bring another dimension to this story by building heat over time using cayenne and complementing the smoky flavor with the meatiness of bacon. I feel that cocktails should not be static in flavor. They should progress along with the night, while inviting you to try one more sip again and again. 

Classy punches are making a comeback in a big way on the cocktail party scene. All over Chicago and New York, I've seen punch houses pop up left and right, touting a speakeasy swagger and a deadly kick to their smooth elixirs. With the ease of making a large batch of boozy love, you can easily serve punches as a supplement to your cocktail parties at home. It takes the guesswork out of guests trying to figure out measure and pour something delicious, and it keeps you, the host, from making cocktails endlessly for your guests throughout the night.

With the recipes below that feature a variety of different liquors, you'll be sure to please even the most discriminating palates. These punches pair well with fancy shoes, dazzling smiles, and witty conversation.