Category Archives: Cocktails

Drink of the Week: The Lovers’ Quarrel

Posted on February 13, 2015 | Leave a comment

The Lovers’ Quarrel is the official Valentine’s Day cocktail from Eau Claire Distillery, Alberta’s only true craft spirits maker, located in Turner Valley. They are responsible for the amazing Parlour Gin, a London Dry-style gin made with local botanicals including rose hips and Saskatoon berries.

This cocktail takes the winning combo of gin, lemon juice and Cointreau (think White Lady) and puts a Feb. 14 twist on it with grenadine for colour and bubbles for romance. Really, there’s no way you’ll be fighting with your lover after this drink, unless there are only enough ingredients to make one, in which case you may exchange words.

This pretty drink includes two of my favourite spirits: Parlour Gin and Cointreau. The grenadine gives it just the right colour for Valentine's Day.

This Valentine’s Day-hued drink includes two of my favourite spirits: Parlour Gin and Cointreau. Image courtesy Eau Claire Distillery.

The Lovers’ Quarrel

  • 2 oz Parlour Gin
  • 3/4 oz fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 oz house grenadine (make your own pomegranate syrup)
  • 1/4 oz Cointreau
  • 2 dashes orange bitters
  • Top with champagne
  • Garnish: lemon twist

Method: Add all ingredients except champagne into a shaker. Add ice and shake. Double strain into a flute glass. Top with 1 oz brut champagne (such as Piper Heidsieck). Garnish with a lemon twist.

— Recipe courtesy Eau Claire Distillery

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Bitter Salty Perro

Posted on February 6, 2015 | Leave a comment

I have been craving grapefruits this winter. I love their colour and bitter-sweet taste, and I love that they seem like a special treat since we purchase them so infrequently. So I was pleased when Blake somehow read my mind and brought home five from the store. We gobbled down two, which left three for cocktails.

But what to make? Blake Googled “grapefruit cocktails” and came up with a selection that work this time of year. Since I can’t always turn everything into a margarita or some kind of sour, I opted for the Bitter Salty Perro. It’s supposed to be a twist on a drink called a Salty Dog (‘perro’ means dog in Spanish), which is gin and grapefruit juice with a salted rim. But I think it has more in common with the tequila-based Paloma, using tonic instead of soda, and a healthy dose of bitters. Bonus: we had all the ingredients on hand.

It's bitter and lip-puckering but also seriously refreshing. Three words: fresh grapefruit juice.

It’s bitter and lip-puckering but also seriously refreshing. Three words: fresh grapefruit juice.

I love how well grapefruit juice and tequila go together. I was worried the drink would be too bitter, but grapefruits are actually sweeter than limes, and tonic water has a lot more sugar than most people realize. Everything together makes this Bitter Salty Perro just sweet enough to want to drink again.

Bitter Salty Perro

  • 2 oz fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice
  • 1 oz blanco tequila (I used Casamigos)
  • 2 dashes Angostura bitters
  • Top tonic water (about 2 oz)
  • Salted rim
  • Half grapefruit wheel garnish

Method: Rim a rocks glass with salt and then fill with ice. Combine grapefruit juice, tequila and bitters in a cocktail shaker with ice, shake, then strain into the rocks glass. Top with tonic and garnish with a half grapefruit wheel.

— Recipe adapted from Serious Eats

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Boston Derby

Posted on January 30, 2015 | Leave a comment

This smooth and tart winter delight is basically a Boston Sour, where the bourbon has been infused with grapefruit peel. I sampled this drink in Vancouver at West Restaurant, where the bar program is ably commanded by award-winning mixologist David Wolowidnyk.

As you know by now, I really like sours, and it’s neat to see more bartenders playing around with grapefruit in this style of drink. This version is light and lemony, with a lip-puckering kiss from the grapefruit and an affectionate slap from the bourbon. Be careful though — after one sip you might end up in a race to the bottom of the glass.

Grapefruit meets bourbon in this tasty twist on a Boston Sour.

Grapefruit meets bourbon in this tasty twist on a Boston Sour at West Restaurant in Vancouver.

Boston Derby

  • 2 oz grapefruit peel-infused bourbon*
  • 1 oz honey syrup (2/3 honey to 1/3 water)
  • 3/4 oz fresh lemon juice
  • Egg white
  • Garnish: lemon twist

Method: Combine ingredients and shake quickly with ice to chill. Remove ice and shake again to maximize foam. Strain into a rocks glass and garnish with a lemon twist set atop the foam.

*Grapefruit-peel infused bourbon

  • The peels of two grapefruits, with as little pith as possible
  • A bottle of bourbon of your choice

Method: Pour the bourbon into an infusion jar, such as a large 1 L mason jar. Add the grapefruit peels. Seal and let sit at room temperature for two days. Strain out peels and enjoy.

— Recipe courtesy David Wolowidnyk, West Restaurant

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