Friday Night Cocktail: Cucumber Champagne Cocktail: Version Two

 

The pressure was one to come up with a well-rounded, handsome riff on the work-in-progress cucumber & champagne cocktail, as some friends who are getting married at the Metropolitan Club in May were stopping by to talk about ideas for their signature cocktail. I served up a couple new iterations that I'd come up with, and the first one we tasted was the winner.  It does require sourcing fresh cucumber juice (which I just get at a juice bar near my apartment), Bottle Green Elderflower Cordial and Regan's Orange Bitters No. 6, which you should have already. Both cordial and bitters are available at Kalustyan's, and they do shipping. But once you've got all that it's rather easy to make, fresh and Spring-y, a bit flash, which if fun at a fancy wedding, and quite, quite irresistible.

As Yet Unnamed Champagne Cocktail:

1.25 oz. Hendrick's Gin
3/4 oz. Green Bottle Elderflower Cordial*
Juice of 1/2 medium lime (about 3/4 oz)
Tablespoon of cucumber juice, with foam

Build the above in a flute, but  start with the orange zest garnish in the empty glass--essentially it's a long, very narrow strip of orange zest that snakes around the inside of the glass about 3 times--it's an exaggerated Horse's Neck twist. Top off with champagne leaving room for about 1/2 Tablespoon of cucumber juice with foam. Top with generous dash of Regan's Orange Bitters No. 6. (Again, Kalustyan's)

*Dilute the Cordial by cutting it in half-1:1.

Comments

[Kyle]

O, that is pretty

[Martini Recipes]

Great summer drink!