Dallas Drinks: The Pam

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

The third season of TNT's reboot of Dallas will conclude on Monday with two episodes. Hence I'm sharing not one but two new Dallas Drinks today.

Pam's cocktail charts her time on Dallas from beginning to end.

Pam utters the first line of dialogue on Dallas: "Bobby James Ewing, I don't believe you." She had just tied the knot with Bobby, the youngest of Jock and Ellie's three boys. The occasion is marked here with sparkling wine, specifically Italian prosecco. It was a happy time, but tough times were head.

During the course of the show, Pam frequently did battle with J.R., represented here by bourbon. Having to put up with the Ewings, it's no surprise that Pam went a little crazy in the fifth season, which this drink's absinthe nods too. Years later, Pam made her exit after a fiery car crash left her disfigured, hence the smoky Islay Scotch. Of course, many will choose to remember her resolve, smarts and good looks--the last of which is represented by the grenadine, which gives the drink a reddish tint not unlike her auburn hair.


Dallas Drinks: The Pam

Scant amount absinthe
1 oz. bourbon
3/4 oz. grenadine
1/2 oz. lemon juice
2-3 oz. prosecco (sparkling wine)
1/2 oz. Islay Scotch
Lemon twist (garnish)

Rinse a champagne flute with absinthe. In a cocktail shaker, combine the bourbon, grenadine and lemon juice. Add ice and shake until cold. Strain into the flute, then top the mixture with prosecco. Float the Islay Scotch on top and garnish with a lemon twist.

Dallas Drinks: The Julie

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the television show Dallas--both the classic series and the newer TNT Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

Julie Grey was J.R.'s first secretary and although she lasted only 5 episodes, she was one of classic Dallas's most memorable women. Julie was a tragic character: initially loyal to J.R. with whom she was having an affair, Julie later betrayed J.R. to Cliff, an action that ultimately let to her demise when information she had safeguarded became known to members of the oil cartel.

Julie's drink recognizes her ties to several of the show's main men: bourbon for J.R., ginger liqueur for Cliff (which also nods to actress Tina Louise's best-known role as ginger on Gilligan's Island), and sweet vermouth ties her to Jock, with whom she had a friendship. The Bitter Tears are a reminder of Julie's tragic end.

Dallas Drinks: The Julie

1 1/2 oz. bourbon
1 oz. ginger liqueur
1/2 oz. sweet vermouth
2 dashes Bitter Tears bacon-peppercorn bitters
Orange peel

Combine bourbon, ginger liqueur, sweet vermouth and bitters in a cocktail mixing glass. Add ice and stir until chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Squeeze the orange peel over the drink, then drop it into the glass.

Dallas Drinks: The Lucy

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the television show Dallas--both the classic series and the newer TNT Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

Lucy Ewing, one of Southfork's youngest residents, could be a good girl, but she could also get herself into a lot of trouble. She excelled at getting kidnapped, for example. Although generally pleasant, she could be sharp-tongued, especially around J.R. This refreshing but tart cocktail nods to Lucy's duality.

Dallas Drinks: The Lucy

1 oz. fresh lemon juice
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
1 1/2 oz. American dry gin
3/4 oz. pear liqueur
2 dashes Bittermens Burlesque bitters
2 oz. Fever Tree tonic water

Add the lemon juice and one rosemary sprig to a cocktail shaker. Muddle the herbs into the juice, then add the gin, pear liqueur and bitters. Add ice and shake until cold. Double-train into a rocks glass with ice. Top with tonic water and garnish with the other rosemary sprig. 

Dallas Drinks: The Kristin

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the television show Dallas--both the classic series and the newer TNT Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

Kristin Shepard is, notoriously, the answer to Dallas' most important trivia question. Dallas Decoder has a rundown of her greatest moments. In designing the drink, I wanted a refreshing highball--something relatively light that you could imagine Miss Shepard sipping at an outside Dallas cafe as she plots her next move. I also wanted to connect the drink to three characters: her sister, Sue Ellen; her lover/bullet-holder, J.R.; and her biological son, Christopher.

With The Sue Ellen cocktail, the Kristin shares its pale pink color from the grenadine (a subtle nod to J.R.'s blood). With The J.R. Shot, the drink shares the flavor of mint, which I also used because its vivid green color reminded me of the Italian sportswear Kristin favored on the show. The drink shares the most ingredients with The Christopher, Bobby and Pam's adopted son, but also Kristin's biological son with Jeff Farraday, most notably its use of peppercorns and ginger to give the drink a nice spicy kick in fitting with Kristin's fiery personality.

Dallas Drinks: The Kristin

1/2 tsp. pickled green peppercorns (with brine)
12-15 spearmint leaves
1/2 oz. ginger liqueur
1 oz. American dry gin
1/2 oz. grenadine
4 oz. Italian lemon soda (Limonata)
Mint sprig garnish

Add the peppercorns, mint leaves and ginger liqueur to a cocktail shaker. Muddle the ingredients. Add the gin and grenade and fill the shake with ice. Shake until cold, then strain into a highball glass filled with ice. Top with Italian soda and garnish with mint sprig.

Dallas Drinks: The Jock

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the television show Dallas--both the classic series and the newer TNT Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

All of the Dallas Drinks for Ewing men related by blood contain bourbon, so of course, The Jock does too, balanced with the herbal sweetness of Benedictine and the bitter sweetness of sweet vermouth, representing Jock's ability to be both a nurturing father and a hard-ass. A float of Islay Scotch to finish the drink makes it smoky on the nose, a reminder of Jock's critical stature as the founder of Ewing Oil.

Dallas Drinks: The Jock

1 1/2 oz. bourbon
3/4 oz. Benedictine liqueur
1/2 oz. sweet vermouth
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1/4 oz. Islay Scotch
Lemon peel

Combine bourbon, Benedictine, sweet vermouth and bitters in a cocktail mixing glass. Add ice and stir until chilled and diluted. Strain into a rocks glass with a single large ice cube. Float the Islay Scotch on top. Squeeze the lemon peel over the drink and then drop it in.

Dallas Drinks: The Miss Ellie

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the television show Dallas--both the classic series and the newer TNT Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

Dallas characters have a knack for getting in trouble. And who do they often turn to for help getting out of it? Miss Ellie, the wise matron of Southfork ranch, who more often than not know exactly what needs to be done. Thus, the vodka in the Miss Ellie cocktail is infused with sage and sweetened with the citrusy-fresh taste of St. Germain elderflower liqueur. 

Dallas Drinks The Miss Ellie

1 1/2 oz. sage-infused vodka (see note)
3/4 oz. St. Germain elderflower liqueur
1/2 oz. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 oz. simple syrup
Sage leaf, for garnish

Combine vodka, St. Germain, lemon juice and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake until cold. Strain into a chilled coupe glass and garnish with a small sage leaf.

Note: To infuse the vodka, combine 8 oz. vodka and 10 sage leaves in a jar. Seal the jar and leave in a cool place to infuse for at least 24 hours (longer will make the vodka more flavorful, but be careful not to go too long).

Dallas Drinks: The Cliff

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

Dallas returns to TNT next week with the first episode of the second half of the third season. With Southfork engulfed in flames, it's sure to be a hot one.

Since I've already made drinks for all of the current show's regular characters, I've decided to honor the original series with drinks inspired by some of its characters. Cliff, of course, is a good bridge between both the original and new Dallas. A regular from the original show, during which he frequently schemed against J.R. and the other Ewings, Cliff was brought back as a recurring character on the new series and made into an outright villain.

Despite Cliff's life-long feud with the Ewings, he wouldn't be who he is without them, and thus bourbon, the drink of choice for the Ewings, courses through the Cliff cocktail as well. The other flavors nod to Cliff's love of Chinese food: amaretto, a principal ingredient in the Mai Tai, and ginger, a common East Asian flavor. The lemon is because Cliff is just such a sour guy these days.

Dallas Drinks: The Cliff

3/4 oz. bourbon
3/4 oz. amaretto liqueur
3/4 oz. ginger liqueur
1 oz. lemon juice
Lemon peel (garnish)

Combine bourbon, amaretto, ginger liqueur and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake until cold. Strain into rocks glass with ice. Garnish with lemon peel.

Dallas Drinks: The Nicolas

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

Monday is the mid-season finale of TNT's Dallas before the show breaks until its return in the summer, when the final seven episodes of the third season will air. Dallas Decoder and I are in such suspense over this season. Will John Ross seize total control of Ewing Global? Will Sue Ellen regain her sobriety? How will Pamela react to finding out about her husband's extramarital liaisons with Emma? So many questions! I'm sure some will be answered Monday, but certainly others will linger while new ones emerge. This is Dallas after all, the show that made cliffhangers a prime-time staple.

To celebrate next week's episode, Dallas Decoder and I have teamed up for another Dallas Drink, this one inspired by season 3's new regular, Nicolas Treviño, played by the dashing Juan Pablo Di Pace. Nicolas is a mysterious, complex character and so is his drink. Inspired by the mole sauce we saw Nicolas prepare this season, the drink combines the flavors of smoky mezcal, nutty amaretto, spicy habanero and a dash of chocolate. We think Nicolas is irresistible; we hope you agree this drink is too.

And speaking of smoky, the upcoming episode is titled "Where There's Smoke." You can watch Dallas Monday night at 9 p.m. EDT (8 p.m. CDT) on TNT. It's sure to be a hot one!


Dallas Drinks: The Nicolas

1 1/2 oz. mezcal
1 oz. amontillado sherry
1/2 oz. amaretto liqueur
5 dashes chocolate bitters
2 dashes Bittermens Hellfire habanero shrub
Lemon twist

Combine mezcal, sherry, amaretto, bitters and shrub in a cocktail mixing glass with ice. Stir until combined and chilled. Strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with lemon twist.

Dallas Drinks: The Harris

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

In their history, the Ewings have had no shortage of formidable adversaries: Cliff Barnes and his father Digger instantly come to mind, as well as Katherine Wentworth and Jeremy Wendell. Of course, this is Dallas, so these foes often have tangled, intimate histories with the Ewings: Cliff is Pamela Ewing's brother, Digger was once attached to Ellie Ewing, Katherine is Cliff and Pam's half sister, etc.

Harris Ryland was introduced on TNT's new Dallas last season and has comfortably slipped into this mold: attempting to con Sue Ellen into laundering money for him, joining forces with Cliff Barnes to take down Ewing Energies, scheming against his daughter's efforts to reconnect with her mother Ann Ewing, whom Harris was once married to.

The Harris cocktail is appropriately potent: it's almost all alcohol, but despite this, it's a rather smooth and delicious drink. The trick is in the ice: using crushed helps quickly chill and dilute the drink until it is just right. I like all the Dallas Drinks, but this just might be my favorite.

Grapefruit, which appeared as shrub in The Judith and soda in The Emma completes the Ryland drink trio as bitters in The Harris (he is a rather bitter man after all). The three also share London dry gin, and Harris and Emma both contain Galliano, nodding to their special father-daughter bond. The walnut liqueur represents Harris' particular brand of enmity for the Ewings, recalling the scene in the episode "Let Me In"where Harris munches on nuts while describing for Governor Sam McConaughey--another Ewing foe--how his plot to take down the Ewings is like a komodo dragon patiently waiting for just the right moment to strike its victim.

Dallas Drinks: The Emma

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

Emma, daughter of Ewings foe Harris Ryland initially seems as icily cold to the Ewings as her grandmother Judith. But Ann eventually connects with her, and Emma leaves the controlling Ryland family to live with the Ewings at Southfork where she quickly develops a fondness for both John Ross and Drew. 

The Emma is appropriately tart and fiery, owing to the grapefruit flavor she shares with her grandmother and the habanero shrub, which represents her attraction to Drew. The bourbon is for her other potential love interest: John Ross. She shares the gin with her grandmother but it also represents England, where Emma learned to ride horses.

I made the grapefruit soda myself by carbonating fresh grapefruit juice in a siphon. But a commercial brand, such as Fresca, could also work.

Dallas Drinks: The Drew

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

Drew Ramos, the bad-boy brother of Elena, hardly ever catches a break. John Ross is out to get him, and his sister, used to his shenanigans, views him with skepticism. But like Elena, Drew wants to make it in the oil business. He's determined to strike oil on the land their father once unsuccessfully drilled.

Like his oil-interested sibling's drink, The Drew features smoky mezcal but gets a fiery bad-boy kick from Bittermens Hellfire habanero shrub. Even more fire comes courtesy of the flamed orange peel, a garnish made by squeezing the oils from the orange peel over a lit match to ignite them as they drop into the drink. It's a dramatic flair worthy of the epic family drama of Dallas.

Dallas Drinks: The Judith

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

The second season of TNT's Dallas has given us a slate of new characters, the most deliciously twisted of them being Judith Ryland, mother of Ann Ewing's former husband Harris. She loves her son Harris, to a dysfunctionally possessive extent, but is deeply suspicious of pretty much everyone else and has a special contempt for Ann. 

The Judith cocktail starts with dry gin for Judith's icy stately ways. Add a bit of yellow Chartreuse for those sharp blonde locks and mix with grapefruit shrub, a form of preserved grapefruit juice with vinegar for extra tartness. 

Dallas Drinks: The Pamela

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

TNT's Dallas has returned for a second season, which is a very big deal when you're married to Dallas Decoder. Monday nights at 9 p.m. is Dallas time.

One of last season's most intriguing storylines was the mystery around the identity of Rebecca Sutter, the new wife of Christopher Ewing, who at first seemed like a sweet young woman, but who turned out to be a con artist. And then, in a final twist, the last episode of the season revealed that Rebecca was really Pamela, daughter of the Ewings' longstanding rival Cliff Barnes.

Although I made a Rebecca cocktail last summer, Pamela is nothing like Rebecca. She needed an update: something that nodded to The Rebecca but stronger, more confident and sophisticated. The Pamela, like The Rebecca is gin-based, but features higher end Plymouth. Both have Cointreau, but instead of grapefruit juice, The Pamela gets its citrus flavor from the fine St. Germain and Galliano liqueurs. 

Dallas Drinks: Cynthia Cider

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the new TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

In advance of the TNT Dallas first season finale tomorrow, we conclude Dallas Drinks today with a toast to the series' developer, Executive Producer Cynthia Cidre.

Given her name, this drink is inspired by apple cider, represented here by Laird's Applejack, an apple brandy blend. Ginger beer gives it a spicy kick.

Additionally, the drink features ingredients from all the other Dallas Drinks: bourbon (John Ross, J.R., Bobby), lemon juice (Ann, Christopher, Sue Ellen), agave nectar (John Ross, Elena) and Cointreau (Ann, Rebecca).

Dallas Drinks: The Sue Ellen

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the new TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

There was a time when there was little in former beauty queen Sue Ellen Ewing's life besides her husband J.R. When his philandering finally got to her, she turned to the bottle, becoming a boozy mess, leading to several trips to the "sanitarium" (Dallas's version of rehab).

How times have changed. These days Sue Ellen is an independent woman, in the beginning stages of a Texas gubernatorial campaign, and a devoted mother to John Ross. She hasn't had a drink in years and won't be tempted.

The Sue Ellen cocktail honors her sophistication, femininity and sobriety: a mocktail version of the Cosmopolitan.

Dallas Drinks: The Elena

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the new TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

When we first meet Elena Ramos, she's linked to John Ross, both as a partner in striking oil on Southfork and in the bedroom. But then we learn that Elena, the daughter of the Ewings' longtime cook, also has a history with Christopher, whom she almost married.

As such, Elena is a woman torn between two men. The Elena cocktail nods to her Mexican heritage as well as her connection with John Ross and Christopher, featuring common flavors with The John Ross (mezcal and lime) and The Christopher (muddled cucumber).

Dallas Drinks: The Christopher

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the new TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

Christopher Ewing takes after his father in many ways. To represent their connection, this drink, like The Bobby, features ginger.

Like is cousin John Ross, Christopher wants to be in the energy business, but rather than pursue oil, he's an alternative energies man. Thus his drink also has a fiery kick like The John Ross, but instead of jalapeño, it gets that kick from ginger-peppercorn syrup.

Dallas Drinks: The Bobby

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the new TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

There are few characters on Dallas with a purer heart than Bobby Ewing. Honest, brave and caring, he's the guy you want on your side. He has the sort of all-American charm that wins over just about everyone.

The Bobby is a dessert cocktail that's a play on the all-American treat--apple pie and ice cream--featuring the familiar pie spices cinnamon and ginger with a touch of vanilla and cream. The drink's bourbon is a nod to the bond he shares with his brother, J.R.

Dallas Drinks: The Rebecca

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the new TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

When we first met Rebecca, she was the vivacious and sweet bride-to-be for Bobby Ewing's son Christopher. The girl next door with a playful streak. But we quickly learned there was more to her than meets the eye.

What is she up to with her brother? Is she in it for the con, or is she really in love with Christopher? Did she really break up Christopher and Elena? Something tells me the answers to these questions will not be simple ones.

The Rebecca plays up the character's mystery with Bénédictine liqueur, an herbal liqueur from France whose recipe is so secret supposedly only three people know it. Grapefruit juice gives the drink a refreshing but slightly bitter lift.

Dallas Drinks: The J.R. Shot

Dallas Drinks is a co-creation with Dallas Decoder, honoring the characters of the new TNT drama Dallas, which continues the Ewing family saga. See all of the Dallas Drinks here.

"Who Shot J.R.?" is the most classic of Dallas story lines. It was the cliffhanger arc between the third season finale and the beginning of the fourth season. Dallas' ratings were never higher, and speculation over the identity of the unseen shooter fueled a level of watercooler buzz shows would kill for these days.

The new Dallas nodded to the story last week, when Ann, sensing an intruder, pointed her shotgun at a man rifling through papers in a Southfork storage room. The would-be intruder turned out to be J.R., who took one look at the barrel of Ann's shotgun and quipped "“Bullets don’t seem to have much an effect on me, darlin’.”

Of course J.R.'s signature drink has to be a shot. I started with bourbon, which Dallas has established is J.R.'s drink of choice. I also wanted something to represent oil, for which Kahlúa is perfect, not only because of its dark color, but its higher density makes it sink to the bottom of a layered drink, evoking the underground deposits of oil J.R.'s ambition is to exploit. Peppermint schnapps forms a refreshing middle layer between the two--the buffer that unites J.R.'s southern roots with his single-minded business sense for oil. His way as a smooth operator has made J.R. a success in the board room and the bedroom.