Cocktail Club

Meet the creator behind the Lucky Charmtini cocktail

Raise a toast on St. Patrick's Day with this festive drink.

By Shira Laucharoen

March 15, 2023

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There’s one more celebratory way to get in the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day—head over to City Tap House in Fort Point, and order a Lucky Charmtini, with a side of ten spice wings to go with it. The colorful drink is the creation of Taylor Panza, City Tap’s sales and event manager, who got her start bartending at Yard House in the Fenway.

“Doing a lot of the promotional events throughout the past year, I would say that I still get a chance to get behind the bar,” she said of her current work at City Tap. “I remember those drinks that I used to love and make them for everyone else.”

We asked Panza to share with us how she makes the special drink and what she loves about the beverage industry. Scroll down to learn about the inspiration behind the cocktail, what City Tap is like on St. Patrick’s Day, and how to make the inventive Lucky Charmtini at home.

What was the inspiration behind the Lucky Charmtini?

A few years back, I noticed that the ingredients of blue Curaçao, amaretto, and Baileys actually worked really well together. Some people may call it a pistachio shot or pistachio martini. The beautiful color of green and how easy it goes down, that was my idea behind it. Last year, I came up with it… and it sold super well.

… All of the ingredients are equal parts, and it’s going to be shaken really good, then strained into a martini glass. Having the martini glass chilled prior is definitely something that makes the drink even better. The colder, the better. I would say that it’s super crushable. Once you have one, you’re going to want more, all day. People wouldn’t expect the ingredients to work so well together, but they do, and it’s super tasty.

The Baileys gives it that creamy, milky vibe, which obviously [evokes] Lucky Charms in cereal, with milk. It’s super festive, and anything green, throughout this weekend, is going to catch anyone’s eye.

Where did you get your bartending experience?

I started with Yard House, [in the] Fenway, in Boston. I just moved my way up there. They have a really strong beverage program. They have quizzes and tests, everything that made me super knowledgeable about alcohol. I also was the beverage manager of Yard House, as well. I worked with over 160 taps. I had to keep up with the trends of cocktails, and that’s sort of where I came from.

I think [the beverage industry] is just fun and exciting, and there’s always something new to create.

What do you think makes City Tap House special?

The people, for sure. We have a really great team there. Everyone really complements each other in different ways. There’s a nice little pub twist on a bunch of different items. You’re going to have these ten spice wings that you can’t get anywhere else. Instead of Buffalo cauliflower, there’s Nashville cauliflower. Our burgers are probably like the “number one” in Boston.

What will City Tap House be like on St. Patrick’s Day?

It’s just casual and fun. There’s a wide variety [of things to do]. If you just want to drink, you can drink. If you want to drink and eat really good food, that’s exactly what you’re going to do. After you go to the parade, and after you go to some bars in Southie, this is a great end cap.

Lucky Charmtini

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