June 29 is the feast of Saints Peter and Paul. These two Apostles founded the Church in Rome, turning the capitol of Roman imperialism into the headquarters of Christianity. To this day, Rome’s citizens celebrate the Feast of Peter and Paul as a replacement of the city’s mythical and fratricidal founders, Romulus and Remus.

The Gibson
Let’s begin the celebration with St. Peter. In Drinking With The Saints we recommend a Gibson (a martini with pearl onions) because of a colorful Italian legend about St. Peter pulling his unpleasant mother from the fires of hell by the strands of an onion. Make your Gibson the way you would a gin or vodka martini and simply add a pearl onion or two, which you can usually find next to the olives at the supermarket. For added festivity, we took two toothpicks and make the Keys of St. Peter out of them: a silver one, made from duct tape, and a gold one, made from yellow electrical tape. I shaved off a little bit of wood at the center of each toothpick, glued them together, and voila! (or rather, Ecce!).

Still confused? Watch me make a Gibson on YouTube.

Brandy Milk Punch
For St. Paul, try a Brandy Milk Punch. Paul uses milk as a metaphor in his writings, and brandy or “burnt wine” is related to the wine that he recommends for the stomach ailment plaguing St. Timothy. Since we do not include the Brandy Milk Punch in Drinking With The Saints, here is a good recipe from bonappetit.com:

2 oz. brandy
1 1/2 oz. heavy cream
1 oz. simple syrup
1/2 vanilla extract
nutmeg
Pour all ingredients except nutmeg into a shaker filled with ice and shake forty times. Strain into a highball filled with ice and top with a pinch of nutmeg.

And watch me make a Brandy Milk Punch on YouTube.

If you don’t want to try both drinks in one evening, you can wait until June 30 for the Brandy Milk Punch, since practically speaking more attention is paid to St. Peter today whole St. Paul is commemorated tomorrow. And not to tempt you, but the Brandy Milk Punch is technically a “morning cocktail” like a mimosa or Bloody Mary.

Happy feasting!