2 weeks Ago
Thursday is the spring equinox. For those who don’t know, there are two solstices and two equinoxes. An equinox is where night and day are equal length, while the solstices represent either the longest day, or the longest night, depending.
So, with the winter holidays — and winter itself — almost behind us, let us look ahead to spring. A great idea in the alcohol industry was Oktoberfest. Why do I bring that up here? Because the point of Oktoberfest is not just to drink beer.
Instead, it’s to drink a specific type of beer: Märzen beer, or, in German, “March” beer. Oktoberfest was designed to drink the rest of the so-called “spring” beer and make way for the new “winter” beer. Genius!So, I have an idea.
Why not, in March, we do the same thing, except in reverse? Marchfest! We can drink up whatever is leftover from winter and make way for the new spring and summer cocktails. Think of it as a spring cleaning for cocktails.We all know that winter is all about full-flavored drinks: red wine, whiskey, brandy and the like.
Spring will bring its gin and tonics soon enough. But right now, as we straddle the two seasons, we can take advantage of both for our Marchfest celebration. Winter spirits combined with winter citrus — Meyer lemons, in particular — make for exceptional spring drinks.
Ironic, huh?The New York Sour is a winter drink that can be reimagined for “Marchfest.” (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)With those goals in mind, I’ve assembled here four classic winter cocktails, all reimagined for our Marchfest spring cleaning.
All have been localized for your consumption, which should help financially if any impending tariffs actually do go into effect.Jeff Burkhart is the author of “Twenty Years Behind Bars: The Spirited Adventures of a Real Bartender, Vol. I and II,” the host of the Barfly Podcast on iTunes (as seen in the NY Times) and an award-winning bartender at a local restaurant.
Follow him at jeffburkhart.net and contact him at [email protected] RecipesNew York SourIngredients2 ounces Sausalito Liquor Co.
’s Unsinkable Bourbon1 ounce fresh-squeezed Meyer lemon juice1⁄2 ounce simple syrup1⁄2 ounce aquafaba1 ounce leftover red wineDirectionsCombine the first four ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake until cold and foamy. Strain over fresh ice in a serving glass. Top with red wine carefully, creating a layered effect.
Meyer lemons have a slight orangey taste, which in many cocktails eliminates the need for triple sec — think margarita, lemon drop and sidecar.Leftover wine is a term for the wine you didn’t drink the night before.Sonoma SazeracIngredients2 ounces Griffo Distillery’s Barrel 151 reserve brandy1⁄2 ounce simple syrup2 dashes Bitter Girl Bitters’ Garden Party bitters1⁄4 ounce Barber Lee Spirits’ Absinthe BlancheDirectionsCombine brandy, simple syrup and bitters in a cocktail shaker with ice.
Shake until cold.Meanwhile, fill a serving glass with ice and add absinthe, swirl until glass is cold and coated with absinthe, and then discard the contents. Strain the other chilled ingredients into the chilled coated glass and garnish with orange twist.
Cognac has been a great value for money the last few years. This might be changing, but luckily many California brandies are up to the task. The famous Sazerac cocktail, perhaps the first cocktail ever, was originally made with French cognac (Sazerac de forge and Fils) before switching to rye whiskey sometime in the 1800s.
Here we switch it back with outstanding results.An Almost Naked and Almost FamousIngredients3⁄4 ounce Santo Spirits’ Mezquila3⁄4 ounce Geijer Spirits’ California Amaro3⁄4 ounce Accompani’s Flora Green3⁄4 ounce Meyer lemon juice1⁄2 ounce aquafabaDirectionsCombine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake until cold and foamy. Strain into a chilled coupe glass, making sure to pile up foam on top.
The taste of Flora Green is somewhere midway between green and yellow chartreuse without the high alcohol content of either. It’s also an American product, cheaper and more readily available.Perfectly Clear Spring ManhattanIngredients2 1⁄2 ounces Griffo Distillery’s White Whiskey1⁄2 ounce Alessio Vermouth Bianco1⁄2 ounce Vya Whisper Dry Vermouth1 Bada Bing stemmed all-natural cherryDirectionsCombine the first three ingredients in a mixing beaker with ice and stir until ice cold.
Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with the stemmed cherry.Bianco vermouth is not “dry” vermouth. Essentially it’s sweet, or red vermouth, without coloring.
However, it does tend to present as lighter and more refreshing. Typically, a “perfect” Manhattan is equal parts sweet and dry vermouth, along with whiskey, garnished with a twist. In this clear cocktail, the dark cherry makes for an extreme if not unorthodox contrast.
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