The Great Thanksgiving Cocktail Guide!
It's Thanksgiving time!!! Woohoo! I mean, we all know Thanksgiving can be fraught in myriad ways, but let's make sure the drinks aren't. Here's my guide to what to drink this year - alcoholic and non alcoholic! - with your big meal.
Start here...
To app or not to app onThanksgiving? I think this decision depends on whether you are a family that does Thanksgiving as a late lunch or if it is supper. And whether anyone eats lunch earlier in the day versus saving it all for the dinner. I grew up in a no-app family (I mean, let's be serious, I grew up in a Norwegian family doing their best impression of what we imagined Thanksgivingw as like. Since subscriptions to food magazines made their way into our lives, however, Thanksgiving has become - in the immortal word's of Chico Bon Bon and the Maniac Muffins - a "taste sensation!!!") but when I lived on the East Coast, I joined friends in Maine for T-Day and they always had crudités and baked brie, and it was also awesome. Whether you are nibbling on snacks, or just turkey skin while you cook, the light and bright citrus, hibiscus, and quinine of Vélo Spritz is truly perfect for whetting the appetite. Serve it with a green olive and an orange wedge for max aperitif-ing. For an unbelievably delightful and complex NA palate-opener, try pouring a 2 oz. shot of espresso (or cold brew) over ice and topping with tonic water.
The main event...
Let's have a cocktail that screams "IT'STHANKSGIVINGAND I AM REVELING IN HARVEST DELICIOUSNESS" at the top of its lungs. That is to say, a cranberry-ginger-rosemary punch. We have this available as a kit at the distillery, so if you live nearby, allow us to do the work for you. Just stop on in to pick up a kit (we will have a spritz kit as well, yummmm). But, if you are farther flung, or simply feel gung-ho about making it yourself, here's a guide!
Cranberry Rosemary Punch
Serves 6
2 cups Øvrevann Aquavit
1.5 cup cranberry-rosemary syrup (see below)
1/2 cup lime juice
1 cup soda water
Mix everything together and serve over ice!
To make the cranberry syrup
Combine 1.5 cups sugar, 1 cup water, 1 cup fresh cranberries, 1/4-1/2 cup sliced fresh ginger (the ginger ginger gets mellow as you cook it, so it won’t make it spicy, but you can still decide for yourself how strong you want the flavor), and about 1/4 cup fresh rosemary. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a low simmer and cook until the cranberries have softened, about 15 minutes, crushing the cranberries to release their juices, stir in 1 cup unsweetened cranberry juice. Allow to cool, then strain through a fine mesh strainer.
To make an NA drink, use the cranberry-rosemary syrup and top it with spicy ginger beer or a sparkling pear juice.
Settle in...
There's a reason herbal and bitter drinks are traditional for closing out a meal, they really work to stimulate digestion and make you feel comfortably full and happy instead of overstuffed. I absolutely love to sip a nip of our Amaro Superiore on it's own or on ice as a digestif. But, I've also become very enamored of this savory aprés-dîner cocktail I learned from a friend a couple weeks ago, and I think it's a smashing finale forThanksgiving(and excuse to purchase some Madeira).Stir 1 oz. Øvrevann Aquavit, 1 oz. Madeira, and 1/2 oz. Amaro Superiore with ice just to chill, then strain into a cocktail glass with a large ice cube. Garnish with a lemon twist and an orange twist!If you don't want to invest in Madeira, you could also make this drink deliciously with sweet vermouth. (I do hope you have sweet vermouth at this point, otherwise my next email is going to have to be a touching tribute to the joys of vermouth to try to convince you.)
Want something non alcoholic? Make this tonic! Your tummy says thank you!