COCKTAILS FOR SPRING AND SUMMER

by Kim Krieger

Summer is here on the Island and we don’t know of a better way to celebrate all our beautiful seasonal plants and flowers than by toasting to them. This issue, we’re bringing you some old favourites as well as new ideas to inspire budding mixologists to leaf their cares behind and branch out. With recipes for a single cocktail, an infused spirit, a multi-serving pitcher, and even a virgin recipe, there’s a drink here for every warm-weather occasion. Cheers to flower power!

Aviation Cocktail

This beautifully balanced, fruity-meets-floral cocktail hearkens back to pre-prohibition times and it’s a wonderful way to showcase the delicate floral flavour of crème de violette. If you happen to have a patch of violets, float a freshly picked bloom on top as a garnish. If not, use a pansy instead, along with a little suspension of disbelief!

INGREDIENTS/SUPPLIES

Makes one cocktail

2 oz gin (Aviation brand gin is, unsurprisingly, a great choice here. Avoid juniper-heavy gins that will overwhelm the floral notes in this cocktail)

½ oz maraschino cherry liqueur

¾ oz lemon juice

½ oz crème de violette

One fresh violet or pansy blossom, for garnish

METHOD

1. Add all ingredients, except violet or pansy garnish, into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.

2. Shake until contents are well chilled.

3. Strain into a cocktail glass and carefully float a delicate blossom on the surface as a garnish.

Spruce Tip Vodka

Spruce tips, the tender new growth found every spring at the end of spruce branches, have become very trendy flavour additions on countless upscale local menus. Tigh Na Mara’s Grotto Spa kitchen paired a spruce tip jelly with cedar plank salmon for an uplifting and satisfying tapas feature, and Blue Spruce Ice Cream in Courtenay offers spruce tip ice cream as one of their signature scoops. Make a spruce tip-infused spirit of your own, and use it in your favourite martini recipe, by following these simple instructions. The slow-infusion method described here results in a nuanced bright citrus flavour and a beautiful clear liquor.

INGREDIENTS/SUPPLIES

Makes one bottle of infused vodka

200-250 grams of freshly picked spruce tips

1-750 ml bottle vodka (premium vodka isn’t necessary, but do also avoid buying a bargain brand)

1 one-liter glass jar

METHOD

1. Wash spruce tips with fresh, clean water. Spread gentle in single layer on a towel to dry.

2. Place whole spruce tips in clean glass jar, then pour entire contents of vodka bottle over them. Seal.

3. For the first week, give the jar a gentle shake once a day.

4. After the first week, place jar in a cool dark place.

5. Three weeks after your jar has been stored in cool darkness, the vodka will be flavoured and ready for use in your favourite cocktails!

Elderflower Sangria

One of the most universally adored floral-inspired flavours we know of is elderflower. Flirty, fun, and fizzy, this sangria is the perfect way to celebrate those first warm days outside. For a virgin alternative, pour half club soda and half elderflower sparkling water (available in tall green bottles at most grocery stores) over ice in a Collins glass. Garnish with cubed fruit and fresh mint leaves. Ahhh, delish!

INGREDIENTS/SUPPLIES

Makes a pitcher yielding up to 10 servings

1-750 ml bottle of rosé wine

1 cup elderflower liqueur (St. Germain, for example)

1 ½ cups cubed watermelon

1 ½ cups cubed cantaloupe

10 fresh mint leaves, plus at least 10 additional for garnish

1 cup club soda

1 large piece of cheese cloth (doubled) for mint bundle, plus string for tying

METHOD

1. In the centre of the cheese cloth, place 10 mint leaves and tie into a very loose bundle. Place bundle in a large pitcher and muddle to release the mint’s oils.

2. Pour both alcohols over the mint bundle. Place fruit in pitcher and stir gently, then chill for at least 8 hours.

3. Remove mint bundle from pitcher and add club soda. Pour into ice-filled Collins glasses and garnish with fresh mint leaves.