Peace Out, Pumpkin - Not So Basic Fall Cocktails

Move over Pumpkin Spice, it’s time to celebrate fall in all its glory with some cocktails that feature more than just the season’s most popular (and played out) flavor. 

With ingredients like apple cider, sweet potatoes, and maple syrup, the cocktail recipes below from Sauza Tequila, 901 Tequila, Hornitos Tequila, Skinnygirl Cocktails, Pinnacle Vodka and Hard Rock Cafe are perfect for celebrating the new season with a twist. 

Sauza® Minted Mule 

·        1 part Sauza® Signature Blue Silver Tequila

·        1/2 part lime juice

·        3 parts ginger beer

·        mint leaves

Preparation: Add all ingredients to a copper cup and stir. Add ice to the cup and stir again. Garnish with mint leaves.

901® New Fashioned

·        2 parts 901® Tequila

·        2 dashes Angostura® bitters

·        1 part maple syrup

·        Blueberries for garnish

Preparation: Stir all ingredients over ice in rocks glasses. Garnish with skewered blueberries.

Hornitos® LA MAN-ZANA 

·        1 part Hornitos® Spiced Honey

·        1 part apple cider

·        ½ part lemon juice

·        4 parts Mexican lager

Preparation: Combine all ingredients except Mexican lager in a shaker, shake vigorously, strain over fresh ice and add Mexican lager.

Skinnygirl® Sweet Potato Pie Cocktail

·        1 ½ parts Skinnygirl® Bare Naked Vodka

·        1 part sweet potato puree 

·        ½ part DeKuyper® Buttershots® Butterscotch Schnapps 

·        ½ tsp cinnamon

·        Splash of ginger ale 

·        Orange slice for garnish

Preparation: Mix ingredients in a shaker and pour into a chilled glass over ice. Garnish with an orange slice.

Pinnacle® Whipped® Hot Cider 

• 1 part Pinnacle® Whipped Vodka
• 4 parts apple cider, hot
• Cinnamon for garnish 
• Whipped cream for garnish 

Preparation: First, pour vodka into a heat-proof mug then, fill the rest of the mug with hot apple cider. Top with whipped cream and cinnamon for garnish (optional). 

Hard Rock Cafe’s Rush on the Rocks 

·        2½ oz  apple juice

·        1½ oz  Crown Royal Maple Whisky 

·        1½ oz  sweet and sour mix

·        ¾ oz Monin Spiced Brown Sugar

·        Speared lemon wedge 

·        Cajun seasoning for rim

Preparation: Coat mason jar rim with Cajun seasoning. Mix apple juice, Crown Royal Maple Whisky, sweet and sour mix and Monin Spiced Brown Sugar in a shaker.  Pour over ice and garnish with speared lemon wedge. Enjoy!

Support Breast Cancer Awareness Month with a PINK Drink

In honor of the upcoming National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Hard Rock’s 16^th annual PINKTOBER campaign, Hard Rock Cafe locations are serving up sweet support with a beverage offering that raises funds and awareness for the cause.

Now through October, guests can enjoy Hard Rock Cafe’s non-alcoholic Wildberry Smoothie – a frozen blend of blend of fresh bananas, piña colada mix, orange juice and Monin Wildberry. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Breast Cancer Research Foundation and The Caron Keating Foundation.

Liven Up Your Lemonade

Next Thursday, August 20th, is National Lemonade Day! To celebrate, Hard Rock Cafe has some great recipes to jazz up the summer classic:

Strawberry Basil Lemonade

Ingredients:

2              Strawberries

2              Lemon wedges

4              Basil leaves

½ oz.      Agave nectar

6 oz.       Lemonade

Directions: Combine Strawberries, basil leaves and agave nectar and muddle. Squeeze lemon wedges into glass. Add lemonade and shake with ice. Garnish with basil sprig and strawberry.

Back Porch Tea – BACARDI Superior Rum, Bombay Sapphire Gin, St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, iced tea, made-from-scratch lemonade, muddled basil and mint with a hint of Monin Cucumber

Raspberry Mint Lemonade

Ingredients:

3              Fresh raspberries

3              Fresh blueberries

4              Mint leaves

1 oz.       Simple syrup

1 oz.       Raspberry vodka  

½ oz.      Gin

½ oz.      Elderflower liqueur

1 oz.       Lemon juice

Splash   Lemon-Lime soda

1              Lemon wedge

1              Mint sprig

Directions: Muddle fruit with mint and simple syrup. Add liquor and lemon juice.  Shake and strain over fresh ice. Top with lemon-lime and garnish with lemon wedge and mint sprig

Beat the Heat with New Summer Cocktails at Hard Rock

Hard Rock Cafe is shaking up some refreshing cocktails to help guests beat the heat. Whether enjoying poolside or at a local Hard Rock Cafe during a night out on the town, these fresh adult-only beverages are the perfect summer accessory!

Whichever way you stir it, sip on some unique mason jar mixtures from Hard Rock Cafe, including:

• Summer Splash Daiquiri – BACARDI Limón Rum, amaretto, Finest Call Mango Puree, sweet and sour mix and strawberries 
• Hard Rockin’ Mai Tai – Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey, BACARDI OakHeart Spiced Rum and amaretto mixed with made-from-scratch lemonade, pineapple juice, grenadine and splash of Sierra Mist®
• Summer Fizz – BACARDI Gran Reserva Maestro Rum and Cointreau Orange Liqueur shaken together with muddled fresh raspberries, Black Cherry Reàl and lime
• Summertime Blues – fresh blueberries, mint and Blueberry Reàl muddled together with made-from-scratch lemonade and topped with Red Bull Yellow Edition
• Back Porch Tee – BACARDI Superior Rum, Bombay Sapphire Gin, St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, iced tea, made-from-scratch lemonade, muddled basil and mint with a hint of Monin Cucumber

Support FDNY 150 with All-New Merchandise Line at Hard Rock Cafe New York

Hard Rock Cafe New York unveiled its limited-edition FDNY merchandise to support the New York City Fire Department and honor its 150^th anniversary, with a portion of the proceeds benefiting The FDNY Foundation. 

Available now at Hard Rock Cafe New York’s Rock Shop, the co-branded merchandise line includes a t-shirt, hat, magnet, water bottle and collectible pin.

Toast the Holiday Season with Festive Cocktail Recipes from Hard Rock Cafe

The holidays are right around the corner, so let Hard Rock Cafe help you celebrate in style with some unique and innovative cocktail recipes that embrace the spirit (and flavors) of the season!

Nothing complements a festive family get-together like a signature drink and this year, Hard Rock is introducing a line of limited-edition cocktails that will get guests ready to raise a glass and make the holidays all the merrier.

·         Coco Press – a warm twist on Hard Rock’s new press cocktails; features a mix of Amaretto, Bacardi Oakheart and Hot Chocolate, served in a coffee-press vessel over whole marshmallows

·         Pumpkinpalooza – a homemade Milkshake blended with Pumpkin puree and Maker’s Mark, topped with Whipped Cream and Caramel Syrup

·         Pumpkin Smash – this non-alcoholic blend of milk, vanilla ice cream and pumpkin puree and is a perfect seasonal treat for the whole family!

·         Pomegranate Prosecco – add a little sparkle to your party with this bubbly mix of Prosecco, White Sangria Mix and Pomegranate Seeds with a rosemary sprig for garnish

Create some fun memories at home or at your local Hard Rock Cafe with these cocktail creations!

Cocoa Press:

Ingredients

1 oz.                       Amaretto

2 oz.                       Bacardi Oakheart

3 oz.                       Pumpkin real puree

14 oz.                    Hot Chocolate

5                            Marshmallows

Directions

·         Place 5 marshmallows (regular size) into bottom of press

·         Add the first three ingredients then fill with hot chocolate

·         Insert depressor and lid

·         Slowly press the depressor to the bottom of French Press to smash marshmallows

Pumpkinpalooza:

Ingredients

2 ½ oz.                  Makers Mark

2 ½ oz.                  Pumpkin real puree infused syrup

4 scoops               Vanilla ice cream

Directions

·         Blend ingredients

·         Garnish with Whipped Cream and Caramel Syrup

Pumpkin Smash:

Ingredients

1 ½ oz. Pumpkin real puree infused syrup

4 oz.                       Milk

3 scoops               Vanilla ice cream

Directions

·         Blend ingredients

·         Garnish with Whipped Cream and Caramel Syrup

Pomegranate Prosecco

1 tbs.                     Pomegranate Seeds

1 oz.                       Finest Call White Sangria Mix

2 oz.                       Santa Margarita Prosecco

1                              Rosemary Sprig

Directions:

·         Add Pomegranate Seeds and Sangria Mix into Champagne flute

·         Fill with Santa Margarita Prosecco

·         Garnish with rosemary sprig

Raise Your Spirits with PINK Drinks for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

In honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October) and Hard Rock’s 15^th annual PINKTOBER campaign, Hard Rock Cafe locations worldwide are “raising the bar” for a cause that affects millions of people around the globe. Throughout September and October, Hard Rock is serving up sweet support with limited-time food and beverage offerings that benefit research and awareness-driving efforts for various breast cancer charities, and we would love for you to consider sharing Hard Rock’s PINK menu items with your readers.

Giving back never tasted so good as Hard Rock offers its new “Flight for a Cure” – guests can enjoy a sampling of Hard Rock’s pink margaritas (Monin Wildberry, Finest Call Watermelon and Monin Pomegranate) accompanied by a personal sized portion of PINK tortilla chips and pico de gallo.

Whether you’re hosting a fundraising event, celebrating the completion of a support walk, or simply looking to enjoy a meal that gives back, we would love your help to continue spreading awareness of Hard Rock’s PINK menu items for PINKTOBER:

• Red Berry Press – a delicious fruit-infused cocktail pressed tableside and great for sharing! Includes homemade lemonade, SVEDKA Clementine Vodka,fresh lemons, strawberries and raspberries
• Wildberry Smoothie – a non-alcoholic blend of fresh bananas, pina colada mix, orange juice and Monin Wildberry
• Red Velvet Cake – Hard Rock’s PINKTOBER cake for the cure is a decadent red velvet cake topped with homemade vanilla cream cheese frosting and finished with a pink sprinkle ribbon

Hard Rock’s Flight For A Cure – 3 mini samplings of PINK margaritas

Ingredients:

2 oz Avion Silver Tequila

¾ oz Cointreau Orange Liqueur

3 oz HRC scratch margarita mix – (for at-home mixing pick your favorite brand)

-        ½ oz Monin Pomegranate Syrup – (for at-home mixing you can use pomegranate juice)

-        ½ oz Finest Call Watermelon Puree – (for at-home mixing you can use fresh watermelon, puree the watermelon and add simple syrup)

-        ½ oz Monin Wildberry Syrup – (for at-home mixing, you can use any berry flavored syrup)

Directions:

Shake the first three ingredients together without ice and pour into three serving glasses filled with ice and ½ salted rims.  Top each mini margarita with ½ of one of the three flavors.  Garnish each mini margarita with a lime wedge.  Serve with your favorite brand of chips & salsa

Hard Rock’s Red Berry Press

Ingredients:

3 lemon wedges

3 whole strawberries (hulled and sliced)

3 fresh raspberries

3 oz Svedka Clementine Vodka

7 oz HRC scratch lemonade – (for at-home mixing, purchase your favorite brand)

7 oz Lemon –lime soda

Directions:

For at-home mixing get a large pitcher or container that will hold 20 oz. Add the fruit to the bottom of the pitcher and muddle about 5 times enough to break the berries apart and release the juice from the lemons. Add the remaining ingredients stir and serve into iced filled rocks glasses. This can be made several hours in advance. The longer the fruit is in the mixture the more flavorful it will be.

Hard Rock’s Wildberry Smoothie

Ingredients:

3 oz Monin Wildberry Syrup – (for at-home mixing, pick your favorite berry flavored syrup)

3 oz Orange Juice

4 oz HRC Scratch Pina Colada Mix – (for at-home mixing, purchase your favorite brand -- Skinnygirl!)

1 Ripe Banana

Directions:

Blend all ingredients together and pour into serving glass. Garnish with a pineapple leaf & pineapple wedge