SaloonBox Subscription Review & Coupon – May 2016

SaloonBox is a monthly cocktail subscription box. Every month you’ll receive two cocktail recipes, top-shelf liquors for the recipes along with any specialty items, plus the background on each cocktail.  Note:  Be sure that someone 21+ is home to sign for the delivery.

Lots of care in packing this box.  Just look at all of the paper shreds!

Under the envelope was another box, also carefully packed.

In the envelope there was a letter which provided information for each cocktail, as well as details on some of the ingredients to be used.  For May, SaloonBox decided to tailor its cocktails to capture the celebrations surrounding The Kentucky Derby and Cinco de Mayo.

Also included was an ingredient checklist card for the box.…And detailed recipe cards for each cocktail.  The cards give a brief history of the drink, the bar, and mixologist associated with it.  Here’s the card for the Strawberry Mint Julep.The card for the Muay Thai Margarita.  Sorry for the bad editing.  I couldn’t get these crops straight or aligned correctly.

And here’s what was hiding in the boxes and paper shreds.  I like what I see already!

First order up – Strawberry Mint Julep by Josh Thinnes of PlumpJack (features Old Forester Bourbon and Sonoma Syrup Co. Mint Infused Simple Syrup).  Mint Juleps are associated with the American South and the Kentucky Derby.  Old Forester Bourbon is actually the official drink of the derby!

For this drink, I had to provide strawberries and mint (optional – garnish).  From past reviews, it seems that SaloonBox has changed their offerings some and eliminated perishables and bar tools.  Too bad I missed out.  Luckily, we’re still in strawberry season and had a sale at the grocery store.  Not that I need an excuse to buy strawberries.  I don’t have the option of crushed ice from my ice maker, so I used a meat tenderizer to break up the ice cubes.  I also don’t have a muddler, but I used my pestle to muddle the fruit.  This is definitely a sipping drink!  It packs a punch, so easy does it.  The strawberries enhanced the sweetness of the bourbon and the syrup gave just a hint of mint.  I thought this was a great summertime drink.

My second cocktail is the Muay Thai Margarita by Kelly Naughton of The Keystone (features Herradura Blanco tequila, Bitter Queens Thai Bitters, and pineapple syrup).  There’s a play on words in the name of this drink.  The Serrano peppers will give you a kick, and it uses Thai bitters.  Get it?

A typical Mai Tai features rum, Curacao, and lime juice.  This definitely deviates from that formula and is an entity of its own.  For this drink, I had to provide the lime and Serrano pepper.  This is the first time that I’ve had a drink with peppers in it, so naturally I forgot the pepper when I was shopping and had to go back to the store.  Also, my store didn’t have Serranos, so I substituted with jalapenos.  I am not a fan of salt with my margarita, but I wish I had rimmed my glass (pink Himalayan salt on Dad’s glass).  The salt helped to cut the kick from the pepper, which hits you in the back of the throat on the finish.  The Thai bitters toned down the sweetness of the pineapple syrup, and the drink had a nice balance of flavors overall.  To me, this was a smoother drink than the Mint Julep.

At $37.50, this box may seem a little steep.  However, if you think of how much you’d spend for 4 drinks (plus tips) on a night out, this is reasonable.  Not to mention, you get a full color recipe for each drink, so no need to memorize what the bartender did, and you don’t have have to elbow your way up to the bar.  I had fun with the box and look forward to getting more interesting and tasty beverages.

What did you think of this month’s SaloonBox recipes? Save 20% on your subscription with coupon code HELLO20.

Visit SaloonBox to subscribe or find out more!