Whether you're toasting to your lovah or drowning your sorrows, do it up correc' with these fine and frosty libations.
1 1/2 oz. Sub Rosa Tarragon vodka
1/2 oz. Limoncello
Lemon peel
Put ingredients, including lemon peel in shaker. Shake and strain into martini glass. Garnish with an additional long lemon peel. If you have some lemon sorbet, a large melon ball scoop or small ice cream scoop floating in the middle is visually striking.
Recently Mike Sherwood of Sub Rosa Spirits sent me two bottles of their infused vodkas. He also sent me several CDs of awesome mashups that really set a party mood, but that's because our fun phone conversation covered everything from booze to Oregon to GirlTalk.
The first was a Tarragon vodka. It's a subtle blend of organic tarragon that is slightly licorice yet herbal; with a touch of fennel and a note of mint on the back of the palate. The Tarragon vodka makes a sublime martini with simply a lemon twist or a touch of Lemoncello. You'd almost call it feminine if it weren't 90 proof.
The second was a Saffron vodka. This golden distillate has notes of toasted cumin on the nose, a mid-palate of lemony coriander wrapped in the aromatics of saffron with grace notes of ginger, black peppercorn and red chilies. This infused vodka is as complex as a gin with 8 spices making up a mélange that echoes India and Morocco. They are both 90 proof. This one really needs some juice to tame it. Served straight up, at 90 proof, it's a bit overpowering. But in a cocktail, quite memorable.
Mike's right. Straight, these vodkas are intense and complex, almost too much to bear, but tamed by your favorite mixers, they really add a little somethin-somethin. And the Saffron vodka in a spicy, salty Bloody Mary makes it different from the usual.
Cocktail number two comes from the fine folks at Sandeman's Founders Reserve Porto. Now, you might be thinking, "Port? In a cocktail?" The answer is: YES. Resoundingly, YES!
1 part Founders Reserve Porto
3 parts Sparkling wine
Serve in tall champagne flute. Guzzle.
What could be easier? Nothing. And I promise, this sparkling sip will make crafting all those kids Valentine's cards MUCH more bearable.
Happy Valentine's Day to you!!
