Liberated Libations

Looking at restaurant menus these days, it’s sometimes difficult to distinguish the entrées full of local, organic produce from the house cocktails full of … local, organic produce. Take the Tomato-Basil Elixir I tried this August at the Inn at Shelburne Farms [1].

That drink offered late summer’s essence. But now we’re reaching the indoor-entertainment season, when people shake, swizzle and sip homemade cocktails to spice up family gatherings, or to work up the courage to bust out some karaoke at the office holiday party. In short, it’s the perfect time of year to experiment with creative libations.

But you don’t want to purée some organic pumpkin and dump it in a Turkey Day martini — at least, not without knowing what you’re doing. What would it take, I wondered, for a mixology neophyte like me to whip up inventions that were both daring and drinkable?

For advice, I called bartender Tim Dempsey, the guy who invented the vegetal martini I’d sampled in Shelburne. He explained that, when he’s making up a new “farm cocktail,” he lets seasonal produce inspire him. On a 1400-acre estate with full-time gardeners, Dempsey gets plenty of inspiration, until the Inn closes in October. Right now, most local gardens are limited to leafy kale — perhaps not the best choice for a crowd-pleasing martini. To complete my mission, I would need to treat the grocery store as my own personal alchemy lab.

Dempsey also thought I should watch a good bartender in action. Since his establishment is closed for the winter, he recommended Laura Wade, manager of Burlington’s Bluebird Tavern [2] and his former coworker at the Inn.

That’s how I ended up huddled at a table at the Bluebird at about 2 p.m. on a recent Thursday, a little too buzzed to drive, just 30 minutes after showing up for my crash course in bartending.

It started innocently enough. Wade was waiting for me at the bar with ingredients arrayed in front of her. She mixed fresh Seckel pear juice with spiced simple syrup and Russian vodka, gave the blend a quick shake, and pushed the glass over to me. “We don’t have a name for this yet,” she explained. I sipped and proclaimed it delicious … and dangerous. It was the kind of drink that tastes so good, you forget it’s also potent.

Wade followed that with a blend of bubbly Prosecco, a brandied amarena cherry (maraschino’s richer, sexier cousin) and a dash of chocolate bitters. Then a classic Negroni (equal parts Campari, gin and Italian vermouth) with a twist — a slice of caramelized, roasted orange instead of a fresh wedge.

As she worked, Wade pointed out that no special equipment is needed to make unusual mixed drinks. “You can muddle with a wooden spoon,” she noted. “You don’t even need a cocktail shaker. Just stir it with ice and strain it.”

When I could get safely on the road again, my next stop was a short hop away. At the Beverage Warehouse [3] in Winooski, owner George Bergin pointed me in the direction of some local products: Vermont Spirits [4] White and Gold vodkas — distilled from milk sugar and maple sugar, respectively — and Sapling Vermont Maple Liqueur [5], already a personal favorite.

Then he left me in the hands of an enthusiastic young staffer who helped me fill in some gaps in my home bar. He unearthed a bottle of small-batch Hendrick’s Gin [6], pointed out Russian Standard [7] Vodka (“as good as stuff that costs $10 more”) and tempted me with elderflower-scented St-Germain [8] liqueur, calling it “the best thing you’ve ever tasted.” I declined that $30-plus bottle, but left with clinking bags nonetheless.

Then I headed to Healthy Living [9]in search of inspiration. As I wandered the aisles, I imagined how various fruits and condiments would taste in a drink. A variety of olives — including the celery-scented Catalan version — were a must, as was local cranberry cider. Trying to move beyond the realm of the expected, I put wasabi, winter squash, preserved lemons and dill in the shopping cart. One quirky addition: a bottle of citrus bitters from a new, local company called Urban Moonshine [10].

At home, I lined up the ingredients on the counter and started grouping foods with complementary flavors. The squash, a blood orange and the bitters landed in one pile, while a finger of fresh ginger, a bag of cinnamon and the cider went in another. With the aid of a good friend brave enough to sample my crazy formulas, I got moving.

First I simmered some custom versions of simple syrup — sugar dissolved in boiling water — which Wade suggested was an easy way to give drinks unique flavors. I made one with cubed squash and another with ginger, allspice and cinnamon. The former turned a pleasant shade of orange and tasted sweetly of earthy fruit. The latter, thickened by the inclusion of ground spices, ended up with “the consistency of snot,” in the words of my helpful husband.

But when I actually mixed up my drinks, using a half-gallon Ball jar as a shaker, the squash-flavored one came out too sweet, while the spiced-cider drink was a hit. Lesson learned: Although syrups make great additions, deepening and enhancing a drink’s other flavors, they shouldn’t be the basis of a cocktail — unless you’re serving hummingbirds.

The next morning, zonked from five drinks the day before, I didn’t particularly feel like pouring another cocktail. But duty called.

After a hearty breakfast of eggs Benedict and roasted potatoes, I tried out a twist on a Bloody Mary. I swirled gin, organic vegetable juice, preserved lemon brine and minced dill over ice and added two splashes of Cholula hot sauce and a pair of Catalan olives. The gin added a complex herbal flavor that would have been missing with a plainer spirit such as vodka, and the hot sauce was a pick-me-up. Of the three drinks I’d invented so far, this was my favorite.

That night, my resolve to concoct another complicated potion failed me. All I could manage was intensely maple-flavored Sapling liqueur in a glass of creamy raw milk. For something so simple, it was pretty great.

I’m far from ready to tend bar, but with a few more experiments under my belt, I’m confident I can whip up something snazzy and unique in time for Thanksgiving. I’ll keep in mind Wade’s caveat about the importance of proportions: Too much alcohol, an overdose of simple syrup or a poor combination of flavors can make a beautiful-looking mixture undrinkable.

Given those constraints, I’m ready to go a bit mad-scientist with my mixology. Considering the collection of liquors and flavorings on the counter, I ponder the possibilities. I have yet to mix up a savory drink with sauerkraut juice or make something with miso paste — both of which I’m convinced are good ideas. Yesterday I unearthed a baggie of aromatic lavender flowers, and I’m pretty sure those will end up in a cocktail, too. I just hope my holiday guests have an adventurous spirit. Santé!

Recipes from Tim Dempsey, bartender at Shelburne Farms

Apples Mulled in Red Wine
Makes four 7-ounce cocktails

Special Equipment:
1 sheet parchment paper

4 Irish coffee glasses

Thermometer

Ingredients:
5 cups Shelburne Vineyards [11] Coach Barn Red wine

1 cup sugar

2 cinnamon sticks

2 cloves

Peel of 1 orange

Peel of 1 lemon

4 apples, peeled and cored

4 ounces Green Mountain Organic Lemon Vodka [12]

6 ounces brandy VS

6 ounces fresh-squeezed orange juice

4 orange wedges

Prep:
1. Combine 4 cups of wine, sugar, cloves, cinna-mon sticks and citrus peels in a small bowl.

2. Place apples in large saucepan.

3. Pour prepared liquid over apples.

4. Cover apple saucepan with parchment to keep in humidity.

5. Cook apples over medium heat for 20 minutes, until tender.

6. Cool the apples for five to six hours in the wine. Remove the apples, cinnamon, cloves and citrus peels from the saucepan, reserving the wine. Cut the apples into wedges. Discard the spices.

Mixing:
1. In the same saucepan, reheat the mulled wine. Whisk in the remaining cup of wine, orange juice and brandy. Heat to 150ºF.

2. Place two wedges of apple into each warmed glass. Add 6 ounces of mulled wine. Stir in 1 ounce vodka. Garnish with a fresh orange wedge and serve.

Cranberry Sparkling Garland Cocktail
Makes four 10-ounce cocktails

Special Equipment:
4 tall highball glasses (such as those used for iced tea)

Ingredients:
1 cup cranberries

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1 orange, zested and juiced

Juice of 1 lemon

5 limes, 4 juiced and 1 cut into wedges

4 extra-large eggs, separated

1 bottle Shelburne Orchards Ginger Jack [13]

6 ounces Bacardi Silver rum

5 ounces brut rosé sparkling wine

Prep:
1. Place cranberries, sugar, water, orange zest and orange juice in a saucepan over medium heat.

2. Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes until syrupy in consistency. Whisk in lemon juice.

3. Place cranberry mixture in blender, purée and strain through sieve.

Mixing:
1. Place ice in the shaker. Add 2 ounces cranberry purée, 1/2 ounce lime juice, 1 egg white, 1 ounce Ginger Jack, and 1.5 ounces rum.

2. Shake hard to make drink froth. Pour into a highball glass and top with 1 to 1.5 ounces brut rosé sparkling wine.

3. Garnish with a lime wedge and long straw.

Recipes from Kathleen Maloney of Bevo Catering [14]

Egg Nog
Makes six to eight servings

Ingredients:
8 eggs (preferably local), separated

6 ounces maple syrup

8 ounces strong Awake coffee [15]

8 ounces brandy, infused with a vanilla bean for one week before using

8 ounces heavy cream, whipped

Ground nutmeg to garnish

1. Thoroughly beat egg yolks. Add maple syrup and mix well.

2. Heat gently in a pan over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until slightly thickened.

3. Allow mixture to cool a few minutes. Stir in the coffee and brandy, then slowly add the cream. Mix well.

4. Beat egg whites to stiff peaks and fold into the brandy mixture.

5. To serve, pour into coffee cups, dollop with whipped cream and sprinkle with ground nutmeg.

Gingered Cider Manhattan

Makes six servings

Ingredients:
1/2 gallon cider

4 inches ginger root

2 cloves

1 cinnamon stick

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 cups Calvados (Applejack, which is much less expensive, will also work)

6-12 crystallized ginger cubes

1. In a saucepan, combine cider, ginger, cloves, cinnamon and sugar. Simmer until reduced to 2 cups. Strain out spices.

2. Combine the cider syrup with Calvados and chill. I recommend shaking the drinks, but pouring over ice, stirring and straining will work as well. Serve straight up with skewered crystallized ginger cubes.

New Fashion
Makes one serving

Ingredients:
A few Vermont cranberries [16]

1 kumquat, sliced

1 teaspoon raw Vermont honey (or to taste)

2 ounces Knob Creek bourbon

Dash of bitters

Muddle the cranberries, kumquat and honey in a rocks glass. Pack full with ice and add bourbon and bitters. Give a good stir or shake.

Recipes from Suzanne Podhaizer, complete novice

Bloody Different
Makes one serving

Ingredients:
1 ounce Hendrick’s Gin

4 ounces organic vegetable juice

1/2 ounce preserved-lemon brine

Juice from a wedge of fresh lemon (about 1/12 of the fruit)

2 dashes Cholula hot sauce

1/8 teaspoon minced dill

2 Catalan olives

Place ice in a tall glass. Add gin, vegetable juice, brine and lemon juice. Stir to combine. Add hot sauce and a sprinkle of dill, and garnish with two olives. Serve with a straw.

Cider & Spice
Makes one serving

Ingredients:
1 cup water

1 cup sugar

1 inch ginger root, peeled, sliced

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon allspice

4 ounces cranberry cider

1 ounce vodka

1/2 dropper of Urban Moonshine citrus bitters

2 ounces sparkling water

1. To make a simple syrup, simmer first five ingredients for about 15 minutes, then let cool. Strain out ginger slices.

2. In a shaker (store bought or improvised), mix 1 ounce simple syrup, cider, vodka and bitters. Add ice and shake until cold and well mixed. Strain into a martini glass and top with sparkling water.