Sun Valley Sips - The Duchin Lounge

THE DUCHIN LOUNGE

Classic Sun Valley with an upbeat twist.

by JEN LASKEY

Ingrid Bergman. Gary Cooper. Clark Gable. Loretta Young. From the 1930s to the 1950s and beyond, Sun Valley, Idaho, was the most stylish spot in ski country. Starlets skied on its slopes, skated on its rink, and flirted by the fire with leading men. In the evenings they celebrated alongside writers, socialites, and Hollywood elite. You’d find everyone in the Duchin Room at Sun Valley Lodge, sipping cocktails and swaying to bandleader Eddy Duchin’s beats. “I drink to make other people more interesting,” said regular Ernest Hemingway in one of his more telling quotes.

Slip forward in time to 2018 and what’s now known as the Duchin Lounge is just as hip. Seasoned skiers and millennials stand by its bar during après-ski, humming as longtime piano man, Joe Fos, tickles the keys. Jazzy hits from The Great American Songbook set the mood. The Duchin’s Ian Timoney mixes cool and refreshing cocktails with skill and grace. His latest hit, a cocktail called Highway 75, is as enticing as this storied space.

Named after the state highway that runs through nearby Ketchum, Highway 75 is a play on the classic French 75 cocktail — that elegant mix of gin and bubbles used to toast festive occasions since the 1920s. Like its predecessor, Highway 75 is served in a slim champagne flute and is ideal for toasting sunny days on the slopes. Yet it has a much more modern take on mixology, made with creamy Sunnyslope Nectarine Vodka by 44° North, a distillery in Boise that uses Idaho potatoes, of course. Ingredients also include St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur and lemon juice, with a dash of Prosecco and a twist of orange on top.

This sparkling sipper is just one of several attracting skiers for après. Like the Duchin Lounge itself, the Highway 75 is classic Sun Valley with an upbeat twist.

HIGHWAY 75

• 1 ounce 44° North Sunnyslope Nectarine Vodka

• 1/2 ounce St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur

• 1/2 ounce lemon juice

• Prosecco

• Orange twist

In a champagne flute, combine the vodka, elderflower liqueur, and lemon juice, then top with Prosecco and garnish with an orange twist.