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Gift Guide: Mother’s Day at the Beach and a Giveaway!

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Mom wants to be sipping cocktails on a beach somewhere. She does not want to hear about this guy you met on Tinder (or maybe she does? Does he have a job?).

It’s always last minute with you kids. Did you forget it was Mother’s Day Sunday? I did too. Oops. Let’s take Mom on a mini vacay this year. Bring the unbreakable wine glasses, some fancy napkins and a giant sunhat, because…. rosé all day. Throw in some tasty cocktails and let her lounge around reading about beach cocktails, while at the beach.

To sweeten the deal, you can WIN a copy of Beach Cocktails AND score a $50 gift card to Mouth.com to buy Mom some chocolate, or some booze. Probably best to get the booze. Just head over to our Instagram and tag your mom, or a friend, in the comments. Winner will be announced Friday at 8pm PST.

1. You and Yours Sunday Gin 2. Rosé All Day hat 3. St. George Spirits California Citrus Vodka 4. Corkatoo Corkscrews 5. Beach Cocktails book 6. Bendiware Unbreakable Glasses 7. Fruitlab Orange Liqueur 8. Champagne Napkins

Catch up on all the gift guides here!

{Now Closed} Giveaway // Wild Drinks & Cocktails and a Hazelnut Orgeat recipe!

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Giveaway - Wild Drinks & Cocktails // stirandstrain.comReady to get wild with your cocktails? No, I’m not talking about hauling out some liquid nitrogen, but instead hauling yourself out into nature and using your backyard for some cocktail inspiration. Your guide book? Wild Drinks & Cocktails by Emily Han.

Today we’ve teamed up with Fair Winds Press to offer one lucky Stir and Strain reader their very own copy of the book. Emily is a fellow Los Angeleno who empowers people to cultivate a mindful relationship with nature and nourishment. As a writer, recipe developer, educator, and herbalist she focuses on topics such as handmade food and drinks, foraging and wildcrafting, and herbs and spices. Her cookbook, Wild Drinks and Cocktails (Fair Winds Press, 2015), encompasses healthful, handcrafted beverages using local, fresh, or foraged ingredients. Passionate about growing communities, Emily is also the Communications Director for LearningHerbs.com, founder of LA Food Swap, and co-­founder of the international Food Swap Network.

Want a taste? Check out Emily’s recipe for Hazelnut Orgeat (and if you know us, we LOVE our orgeats) and enter below! Check out the options below to enter and get up to 9Â entries to win. For more information on Wild Drinks, check that out here! Giveaway ends at 11:59pm PST Monday November 30th, 2015. Please see terms and conditions below (sorry, only open to U.S. and Canada residents). Good Luck!

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Wild Drinks & Cocktails Giveaway on stirandstrain.com

Hazelnut Orgeat

Recipe reprinted from Wild Drinks & Cocktails by Emily Han, with permission from Fair Winds Press, copyright 2015
Yield: about 2-1/2 cups (590 ml)

2 cups (8 ounces, or 224 g) blanched hazelnuts (also known as filberts)
2 cups (470 ml) water
2 cups (400 g) sugar
Dash orange flower water (optional)

Place the hazelnuts and water in a blender or food processor. Pulse until the hazelnuts are finely chopped but not pureed. Pour the hazelnuts and water into a bowl. (To chop without a food processor, crush the hazelnuts with a rolling pin and then stir them into the water.) Cover the bowl and let stand for 8 hours or overnight.

Line a fine-mesh strainer with a fine-mesh bag or flour sack cloth and strain the liquid into a saucepan. Squeeze the bag or cloth to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard the hazelnut pulp. Stir the sugar into the hazelnut liquid. Warm the mixture over low heat (but do not boil), stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and let cool. Stir in the orange flower water. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. (Because this is an oil and water emulsion, the orgeat will separate in the refrigerator, so always shake well before using.)

{now closed} Cucumber Basil Caesar and a Caesars Cocktail Book Giveaway!

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Cucumber Basil Caesar Cocktail and a Giveaway! // stirandstrain.comHappy Canada Day to all my Canadian readers out there! I know you exist (my stats tell me so). Today I honor all of you with your national drink, the Caesar.

However, I’m not excluding all of the rest of the world with this post, because I’m also opening up a contest for all my Canadian and US readers with a cocktail book giveaway on this very drink. For the next week, enter win your own copy of Caesars: The Essential Guide to Your Favourite Cocktail by Clint Pattemore.Cucumber Basil Caesar Cocktail and a Giveaway! // stirandstrain.com

And for everyone across the globe, I’m also giving you a cocktail to try out. Because you’ve read this far.

I have to admit it, I didn’t realize that a Caesar was specifically a Canadian invention. Like many drinks with a history, I had a vague idea of its origins. Wasn’t it a cousin to the Bloody Mary, just with clam juice? Well, I consider myself schooled now. The Caesar I still work into the realm of day drinks, or even Sunday morning drinks (or Monday morning if Sunday was rough). And today I’m gussying up the classic with some fresh Persian cucumbers and basil from my garden. It’s seasonal and refreshing and only has a touch of savory flavor to contrast against the bright vegetable flavor.Cucumber Basil Caesar Cocktail and a Giveaway! // stirandstrain.com

Try this, or one of the many (like, over 50) ways to create a Caesar from your own copy of the book. But! You have to enter to win a copy first!

Actually, let’s make a drink first…

Slightly Adapted from the Caesars cocktail book
4 cucumber slices (preferably Persian cucumbers that you don’t have to peel)
4-6 basil leaves
3 dashes hot sauce (I use Tapatio)
freshly cracked black pepper to taste
1-1/2 ounces gin
4 ounces Clamato

1 tbsp smoked salt, 1 tsp pepper, cucumber spears for garnish

Garnish your highball glass (or small goblet) first by rimming the outside of the glass with a cucumber slice then dip in salt and pepper mixture poured into a small bowl. In a mixing glass, muddle together cucumber slices, basil, hot sauce and pepper. Add gin and Clamato. Stir and strain into a highball glass filled with ice. Finish garnishing with a cucumber spear. Straws are always optional!

Enter below for your chance to win a copy of Caesars: The Essential Guide to Your Favourite Cocktail! You can get up to NINE entries to win. Contest runs until midnight PST Wednesday, July 9th, 2014. Please see terms and conditions below.

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