There’s a running joke that every cocktail I make has a wine reduction or vinegar in it, so I leaned into it this time! I’ve used only my favourite methods, ingredients, and flavour pairings to create a drink that is 100% unapologetically “me.” I do my best creative work at home in my kitchen, so every aspect of my drink can be recreated in any venue and by any bartender. There’s no fancy equipment here!
By Rachel Mynczywor
Glassware
Rocks Glass
Garnish
Tuille with cranberry caviar
Ingredients:
45ml Makers Mark
20ml Maple & Apple Shrub
20ml Cinnamon Orange Blossom Honey Water
10ml Spiced Salvaged Red Wine Reduction
Maple & Apple Shrub:
150g pink lady apples, cubed
150g apple cider vinegar
75g white sugar
75g Maple from Canada Amber syrup
Add to a pot uncovered on medium heat for 10 minutes, then cover and lower to a simmer for 5 more. Remove from heat and strain through a fine mesh strainer.
Cinnamon Orange Blossom Water:
300g water
100g Beechworth orange blossom honey
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Add all to a pot and stir just until honey is fully dissolved. Remove from heat and strain through a very fine paper coffee filter.
Spiced Salvaged Red Wine Reduction:
600g oxidised & out-of-date red wine
600g white sugar
5g whole cloves
3g whole star anise
Bring all to a boil, uncovered, for about 20 minutes. Stir often, and once off heat, strain out the spices.
Orange Blossom Tuille (garnish):
30g water
30g vegetable oil (can use sunflower or other neutral oil)
10g all-purpose flour
Barspoon orange blossom water
Orange food colouring
Blend ingredients with a small electric whisk, and pour a little at a time on a hot pan over medium-high heat. Let bubble, and remove once the center is cooked through.
Cranberry Caviar (garnish):
100g cranberry juice (100% juice)
20g white sugar
1.2g agar agar
Heat all ingredients in a pot until the agar and sugar are dissolved. Let cool slightly, then pour into a squeeze bottle. Drip single drops into a tall pint of chilled neutral oil (have it chilling in the freezer while making the cranberry mixture). Strain the caviar, now solidified, from the oil with a mesh strainer and very gently rinse in cold water. Store in an airtight jar in the fridge.
Cocktail Method
Mix all liquid ingredients together in batches of 6 at a time (so 270ml Makers Mark, 120ml shrub, 120ml honey water, and 60ml wine reduction) without ice and pour into a beeswax-lined bottle to rest at least 24 hours before serving. When ready, pour 95ml of the cocktail over a king cube and garnish.