Ok, so it’s the Wednesday before Halloween, but what even is time any more? It’s the season of the witch here at True Love + Coffee. The perfect end to my Practical Magic series, and an echo of the film, I had to do it. There was a time when I wasn't sure that anything was going to happen for Halloween this year, but I'm so glad that I didn't just let it pass by. 

I intended to find a spooky classic cocktail to work with the Halloween theme, but then I came across the Amaretto Sour. It was perfect, and I had all of the ingredients, lol. This is one of the more frightening cocktails as far as I’m concerned. Syrupy and super sweet, this cocktail can be a real nightmare. I like to increase the Bourbon, decrease the amaretto, and do away with any additional simple syrups at all. I”m a good witch, you’ll see… Happy Halloween!

Amaretto Sour
1 1/4 oz. Amaretto liqueur
1 oz. Barrel-strength Bourbon
1 oz. lemon juice
1 egg white
2 Bourbon cherries

Combine all ingredients, minus the cherries, in a shaker with ice. Shake until chilled, and then strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice. Garnish with cherries. 

Cheers!

What goes better with a Negroni than a velvet jumpsuit? Don’t answer that. This fancy number is Zara from about two years ago, and I had to get a little dressed-up. Why?Because it’s Negroni week! Everyones favorite time of year! No, just me? I’m pretty sure I’ve said this before, but if you don’t like a Negroni, you’re not trying hard enough. If you’re not ready for the traditional Negroni the internet is full of brilliant riffs that might be more to your liking. There’s really a Negroni for everyone. 

Negroni
1 oz. Citadelle Gin
1 oz. Campari
1 oz. Otto Athens Vermouth
Garnish with orange peel 

Combine ingredients in a rocks glass with large ice cube and stir with a finger. Don’t forget to wash your hands you dirty animal. 

Cheers

Transitions! Who’s feeling it? Fall is coming, school has started (or is starting if you live in a more civilized part of the world), and we’re selling our house…  We've finally had a break from the heatwave here, and I have been enjoying the last few overcast days. I had to take full advantage of the sweater weather and pull out this beautiful cable knit that my mom made for me. 

Honestly, today just felt like a Boulevardier kind of day. For some reason Bourbon always packs a little more of a punch for me, and this drink means serious business. A Boulevardier is essentially the Negroni's bad ass cousin. It was created in the 1920's by American-in-Paris, Erskine Gwynne, and named after the magazine he founded. A Boulevardier is defined as one who frequents the Parisienne boulevards by Merriam-Webster, and if one of these doesn't make you feel fancy-as-fuck then I don't know what will.

Boulevardier (adapted from liquor.com)
1 1/4 oz. Heaven Hill Kentucky Bourbon
1 oz. Otto's Athens Vermouth
1 oz. Campari
Dehydrated orange slice

Pour everything into a mixing glass with ice and stir until chilled. Pour into a low ball glass and garnish with orange slice. 

Cheers!

My baby turned five years old today! So, I’m celebrating with my favorite Brut Rosé, I deserve it after all. And, now is when I tell you her birth story in deep and gory detail. Just kidding, but I will tell you more about my favorite sparkling Rosé. This sparkling wine comes from Picchetti, a local Bay Area winery in the Santa Cruz mountains. This is a dry Rosé, crisp with delicate bubbles, a floral nose, and clean fruit flavors. It is one of my favorite summer time wines, and while it’s best enjoyed sitting on the beautiful grounds of the winery, surrounded by the mountains, its pretty good anywhere else too.

While the wine is obviously for me, the fancy dresses are for the five year old (ok, also a little bit for me). My dress is Vera Wang, and is from ten years and two babies ago, needless to say it seems to have shrunk a bit... More importantly, it matches this beautiful birthday dress from Tutu Du Monde. Despite my face in this photo, this was the most fun, and I think this is going to be a new tradition, especially the wine.

School starts for us today, so I had to celebrate the last official day of summer yesterday in style. Which means I pretty much spent the day drinking wine coolers and pretending like I don’t have to deal with the shit storm that is distance learning. While you’re pretending to be rich, childless and in Palm Springs (is that just me?) it helps to have a vintage 1970’s kaftan. I can’t decide whether this is more 1970’s cruise wear or really chic cult leader… Either way the kaftan is from a company called Mary. Juana, I kid you not, and was purchased by my father in Mexico some time in the ’70’s. The earrings are a mystery, but the shoes are Anne Klein from at least two years ago. 

This is more of a drink recommendation than a classic cocktail recipe since this drink came directly from a can. Original House Wines makes my favorite canned wine, and while I’m partial to anything that has bubbles in it, they also make some very tasty cocktail inspired wine coolers. This one happens to be the Casa-Rita, their take on a Margarita, but the Paloma is very good and the Tropical Spritz is great too!

Keep scrolling to see how I like to drink my Casa-Ritas!

Casa-Rita
1 can of Original House Wine Casa-Rita
1 tsp Salt Rimmer 
1 slice of lime

Rim glass with salt, open can and pour into glass. Garnish with slice of lime.
Cheers!

Blame this outfit on my current TV obsessions, HBO’s Perry Mason and the CBC’s Frankie Drake Mysteries, both of which take place in the 20’s and 30’s. I love anything with a  high waist, and these linen pants from Lou & Grey are perfect! Paired with this striped button-down from Madewell, this outfit has a menswear vibe that was so popular during that era. I love these slides, also from Madewell, and I had to add them for a little fun. 

Sticking to my 1930’s theme, I made a King’s Jubilee cocktail, which was created by Harry Craddock in 1935 to Celebrate the silver Jubilee of King George V. I made mine with a little more rum and lemon juice because I found the Maraschino liqueur a bit over powering in the. original spec. The Ten to One Rum is so delicate that this makes for a very smooth drink, and the end result is well balanced, not too sweet, not too spirit-forward. I think this could be a new favorite! Keep scrolling for the specs.

King’s Jubilee
1 1/2 oz. Ten to One Caribbean White Rum
1/2 oz. Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur 
1/2 oz. Lemon juice

Combine all of the ingredient in a cocktail shaker with ice until chilled and diluted. Pour into a chilled Nick and Nora glass and garnish with a Maraschino cherry. 

Cheers!

I hate wearing black in the summer, and to weddings. I couldn’t really tell you why, chalk it up to a little bit of superstition, and I just don’t wear a lot of black. This dress though… Fair warning I’ve had it forever, I bought it from Banana Republic for an event when I was pregnant with my first baby (he’s six now). It’s flowy, silky and has pockets! The belt and the orange bracelet are Hermes, the wedges are Jimmy Choos. I think the belt and the wedges really help make this look a bit more casual. This is what I wish I was wearing while standing on a balcony, staring at a beautiful view, with a Tequila Sunrise in my hand, and a fabulous dinner reservation *sigh*. My husband may or not be invited…

I’m not going to lie, the accessories for this outfit were inspired by the Tequila Sunrise, a cocktail that I’ve never had the pleasure of before. While I wouldn’t necessarily call it classy or sophisticated, this is a beautiful drink and I wouldn’t turn one down, especially if a beach and and actual sunset are involved. This version is true to the original specs, right down to the fresh OJ from oranges I picked off the tree. I think that this could be a great cocktail with a few tweaks, but you’re going to have to wait for that because its the Home Bar Awards challenge this month! Keep scrolling for the specs.

Tequila Sunrise (liquor.com)
2 oz. Blanco tequila
4 oz. fresh orange juice
1/2 oz. grenadine syrup
Garnish with orange slice and cherry


Combine tequila and orange juice into a highball glass filled with ice. Top with grenadine, its heavier than the tequila and orange juice and will sink creating the sunrise effect. Garnish and enjoy. 


Cheers!

Welcome to my first official Cocktails & Clothes post! First things first, let’s talk about this dress. I don’t usually go for florals, but I love how dark and moody this print is. In fact, this dress has a lot of things that you won’t see anywhere else in my closet, ruffles, weird arm bits, it should be a wardrobe malfunction waiting to happened. But, it’s not.  It's great and swishy, and I totally forget that I’m covered in ruffles and flowers when I’m wearing it. Another huge bonus, this flowing floral dress is from one of my favorite sustainable brands Reformation. Paired with some strappy blush velvet sandals this is the perfect outfit to wear to a summer wedding (are people still doing those) or just lounging around your living room with a cocktail, staying home in style. 
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This fantastic dress calls for an equally decadent cocktail. And what’s more decadent than opening a bottle of champagne just for yourself, in the middle of day when you're  trapped in your house by a raging virus while you slowly lose your mind? It's so romantic... If there was a way you could make a glass of champagne any fancier it would be a Kir Royale. Traditionally made with Creme de Cassis, I have always made mine with Chambord for reasons unknown or forgotten. The Blanc de Blanc that I used is one of my favorite Champagnes (I know this is technically a sparkling wine, just give it to me) and the crisp, dry flavor is perfect in a Kir Royale. So put on a fancy dress, pop some bubbly, and let the kids watch tv for the rest of the afternoon, I highly recommend it. Keep scrolling for the specs!

Ok, so I’ve been trying to get this post out for at least a week now, but I’ve been super distracted. Things are moving ever so slowly on the house buying front, and I’ve had it with this crazy holding pattern that we’re in. I need to know, and I need to know now! Mostly, I need to know if I can start packing yet…Things have ground to a halt while I wait to see if I should start filling boxes or not, and one of those things is the never-ending rotation of baby clothes. Any baby clothes smaller then 12 months goes through this crazy cycle of waiting for it to fit, wear it once and then its too small so you donate it and move on.

** Just a little update, this post now includes affiliate links, but was originally written before I had a relationship with the company and I wasn't compensated for any of the services or products discussed below.**

Luckily, I really hit the hand-me-down jackpot with this baby, which means that I can spend all of that money on silly over-priced shoes and frilly little outfits. So when I found Mac & Mia, a service that offers to ship you a box of baby clothes picked out by a stylist I couldn't resist. I was so impressed with the my stylist, not only is there a questionnaire when you sign up to help determine the style your looking for, but I was assigned an actual stylist who contacted me by email to further discuss what I was looking for and followed me on Instagram so she could get a better idea of how I was currently dressing the baby.

You can get a better idea of how the service works from their site here. All of the pieces that were sent to me were beautiful, well-made and that being said they did run a little on the expensive side around an average of $40 each. I ended up returning a few of the pieces mostly because Charlie already had something similar. For me this is just a little too expensive to do on a regular basis, but I will definitely consider it again during the next big growth spurt. If you’re a really busy mom who loves to put beautiful clothes on their kid but doesn't have the time to shop around then I would really recommend this service.  They will also shop for an occasion, so if you’re looking to splurge on a special birthday or holiday like Christmas or Easter, but picking out baby outfits isn't your thing let one of Mac & Mia’s stylists handle it for you.