Skittles Shots? Try Them at Tap 42

Nicole Danna

"When I was creating the craft beer cocktails I was having a hard time keeping them from being too watery," said Nast. "Finally, a light bulb went off and I said 'why not make a beer simple syrup?'"

Like her herb infused syrups, Nast reduced a blend of three beers (Harpoon's Leviathan Imperial IPA, Magic Hat #9, and Brooklyn Lager) to make a beer concentrate. The end result is a flavorful beer-syrup that takes this classic cocktail to the next step to become a hoppy-sweet, smooth drink.

And Nast also makes Skittles shots, best described by a Tap 42 bartender: "You made my favorite candy a drink!"

Nast infuses Svedka vodka mixed with a pound or so of single-hued Skittles for two weeks before straining and displaying the candy-colored drinks -- red, purple, yellow, green -- in large glass dispensers at the end of the bar, where they glow like neon liquid lava lamps.

Never one to sit idle, Nast said she is currently working on a list of seasonal cocktails that will utilize the plethora of pumpkin beers getting ready to hit the taps at Tap 42. She's also working another project: a specialty menu of non-alcoholic cocktails.

"There have been some challenges so far, but I think that -- with the crowd we attract -- and the interest that's out there for craft [beverages], these drinks will do just as well as the beer," said Nast. "These [drinks] are different. You're not going to find these anywhere else."

Nicole Danna

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