Knoxville friends get creative with 'True Blood' cocktails

Photo by Saul Young // Buy this photo

"True Blood" fans, from left, Jennifer Dedman, Judy Phillips, Steve Dedman and Brian Phillips toast an upcoming HBO episode with a cocktail they created named "Kill Bill — Don’t Steal My Light." A glow-stick is featured in each drink to represent a character's inner light.

Photo by Saul Young

A cocktail of vodka and cranberry juice is served inside this "blood-rimmed" glass. The "blood" is made with corn syrup cooked to hard-crack stage.

Photo by Saul Young

The "Kill Bill - Don’t Steal My Light" drink is made with Southern Comfort, gin and peach Schnapps.

Photo by Saul Young

"True Blood" fans, from left, Jennifer Dedman, Judy Phillips, Steve Dedman and Brian Phillips toast an upcoming HBO episode with a cocktail they created named "Kill Bill — Don’t Steal My Light." A glow-stick is featured in each drink to represent a character's inner light.

KNOXVILLE — Every Sunday evening, Brian and Judy Phillips gather at the home of Steve and Jennifer Dedman.

It's there that they enjoy the bloodthirsty antics of "True Blood" vampire Bill Compton and his on-again-off-again telepathic waitress of a girlfriend, Sookie Stackhouse.

To commemorate each episode of the HBO series, the couples create a free-flowing cocktail to pair with each show.

"It started at the beginning of the second season. We were going to watch it together and thought, 'Why not make Bloody Marys?' " Judy said.

The following week they did it again.

Now it's become a tradition.

Jennifer Dedman, assistant design director for the Knoxville News Sentinel, said sometimes the drink is as simple as a glass of Judy's homemade sangria or a bottle of red wine.

"There's a brand of red wine called Evil that we've gotten before," she said.

Other times they prepare a cocktail based on what they think will happen during that week's show.

"Last season there was a very old vampire named Godric who didn't want to live anymore, so he walked out into the sun and burst into flames. On that night we served Tequila Sunrises," she said.

Other cocktails have included Mississippi Mudslide, served when Russell Edgington, the Vampire King of Mississippi, was introduced on the show, and a drink called Redheaded Bimbo was prepared when red-headed waitress Arlene found out she was pregnant.

This past Sunday the group prepared a drink that they titled Kill Bill - Don't Steal My Light, in anticipation of Sookie and Bill's breakup. A light-stick was included to represent Sookie's "inner light."

If they're unsure what drink to prepare, there is a page on the HBO "True Blood" website that features recipes from Merlotte's Bar, where Sookie is employed on the series.

Because Brian, Judy and Jennifer have read the "True Blood" book series written by Charlaine Harris (on which the TV show is based), they have a jump on what might occur on the show.

"We go by what we've read in the book and guess what is going to happen, but that's not what always happens because 'True Blood' doesn't follow the book exactly," Jennifer said.

Instead, Steve said there's a lot of, "Hey, that didn't happen in the book," or, "I know what this is" repeated by the three throughout the show.

Brian likes that new characters are represented in the show. In fact, his favorite personality was not part of the book series.

"Jessica, the little red-headed vampire, was not in the book at all. It's interesting how they have incorporated her. She's like a little naive teenager," he said.

Jennifer's favorite character is Eric Northman.

"Overall, he's a good vampire," she said.

Judy's more of a werewolf kind of gal.

"I bounce around a lot, but I'm always rooting for Alcide (the werewolf) because he gets a bad deal," she said.

Steve, perhaps unsure whether to take sides in the mythological world, doesn't have a favorite.

"I think they are all interesting in their own way," he said.

The group shares its favorite "True Blood" cocktail recipes.

Kill Bill - Don't Steal My Light

3 ounces gin

1 ounce Southern Comfort

1 ounce peach Schnapps

1 ounce peach nectar

1/4 ounce lemon juice

1 ounce simple syrup

Mix all ingredients together in cocktail glass. Serve with ice. Insert glow-stick if desired. Yield: 1 drink.

Bloody-rimmed candy glasses

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup water

Red food coloring

Stir sugar, light corn syrup and water in sauce pan on high heat until it reaches the hard crack stage or 300 degrees. Stir in red food coloring. Dip rims of glasses into pan and flip them over, letting candy drip. Let cool before pouring vodka and cranberry juice cocktail into glass (see below).

Vodka and cranberry

1 1/2 ounce vodka

3 ounces cranberry juice

Shake in a cocktail shaker over ice and pour into blood-rimmed glass.

Blood red sangria

1 cup grapes

1 lemon, sliced

1 orange, sliced

2 apples, cut, cored and sliced

1 tablespoon sugar

3 tablespoons Grand Marnier

3 tablespoons brandy

2 cinnamon sticks

1 (750-liter) bottle of chilled dry red wine

1 cup orange juice

1-2 cups Sprite

In pitcher combine grapes, lemon, orange and apples. Sprinkle with sugar. Stir to combine. Add Grand Marnier, brandy and cinnamon sticks. Let sit for one hour. Stir in red wine and orange juice. Refrigerate 24 hours. Add 1-2 cups of Sprite before serving.

Redheaded Bimbo

1 part Crown Royal

1 part peach Schnapps

Cranberry juice

Mix all ingredients together in shaker and serve in tumbler over ice. Garnish with orange slice.

Mississippi Mudslide

2 cups vanilla ice cream

2 ounces vanilla vodka

2 ounces creme de cacao

4 ounces Bailey's Irish cream

2 cups ice

Place all ingredients together in blender with ice. Pulse until smooth.

Mary Constantine may be reached at 865-342-6428. Follow her on twitter @skilletsister.

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