Tag Archives: Angostura bitters

Cocktail Corner: Belvedere Vodka’s New Ginger Zest Flavor

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Ginger Zest Spritz, courtesy Belvedere.

Ginger Zest Spritz, courtesy Belvedere.

A spirited toast to all things alcoholic! by Leslie Dinaberg

Belvedere Vodka‘s new Ginger Zest flavor recently hit the shelves and it’s perfect for the warmer days of late spring and summer. A delicious and refreshing blend of tangy ginger and juicy spring lemon with a touch of grapefruit, it works well in a wide variety of drinks.

Belvedere’s distinctive, time-intensive maceration process ensures its Dankowskie Gold rye vodka is imbued with real spices and fruit, reinforcing its 100% natural, no sugar added and non-GMO Polish Rye philosophy. Ginger Zest is created by extracting fragrant oils from pure ginger, spring lemons and grapefruit that have been immersed in Belvedere Vodka. The result is a delicious, smooth liquid of uncompromising quality and character, infused with notes of ginger spice and balanced with zesty citrus.

The vodka’s delicious with a simple splash of tonic and lime or grapefruit juice.

Belvedere Polish Mule, courtesy Belvedere.

Belvedere Polish Mule, courtesy Belvedere.

“For something even better, Chef and wellness expert Candice Kumai, embracing the roots inherited from her Polish father, partnered with Belvedere to create dishes that paired with the following Ginger Zest signature cocktails.”

Polish Mule 

Belvedere's new ginger zest vodka, courtesy photo.

Belvedere’s new ginger zest vodka, courtesy photo.

2 oz Belvedere Ginger Zest

.5 oz Lime Juice

.25 oz Simple Syrup

5 oz Ginger Beer

3-4 Dashes of Angostura Bitters

Whip, shake, dump and top with soda. Garnish with lime wheel.

 

Ginger Zest Spritz

1 oz Belvedere Ginger Zest 

.75 oz Lime Juice

.5 oz Honey Syrup

4 oz Soda Water

Build in spritz glass. Garnish with ginger and lime slices.

Cheers!  Click here for more Cocktail Corner columns.

Leslie Dinaberg

When she’s not busy working as the editor of Santa Barbara SEASONS, Cocktail Corner author Leslie Dinaberg writes magazine articles, newspaper columns and grocery lists. When it comes to cocktails, Leslie believes variety is the spice of life. Send your suggestions to Leslie@sbseasons.com.

Originally published in Santa Barbara Seasons on June 1, 2018.

Cocktail Corner: Cheers to Prosecco

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A spirited toast to all things alcoholic! By Leslie Dinaberg

As Don Ho sings:

Tiny bubbles (tiny bubbles)
In the wine (in the wine)
Make me happy (make me happy)
Make me feel fine (make me feel fine)

OGIO prosecco (courtesy photo)

OGIO Prosecco (courtesy photo)

Just thinking about bubbles makes me smile: bubble baths, Wonder Bubbles, Bubble Up, Champagne and more recently, Prosecco.

I had my first taste of Prosecco just a few years ago, when a friend brought a bottle of Mionetto IL Prosecco to accompany our sushi at one of the summer concerts at El Capitan Canyon.  It was delicious, bubbly and tasted good with potato chips too.

Prosecco—which is an Italian sparkling white wine—is growing in popularity by leaps and bounds these days, particularly with the trendsetting 21-something crowd. According to the beverage industry research website, just-drinks.com, “Growth in sparkling wine of the non-Champagne variety has been a somewhat unheralded success story of the global wines and spirits market during the past ten years, and the product which typifies the sector’s progress—and the star performer to boot—is the northern Italian fizz, Prosecco.”

Unlike many wines, Prosecco is designed to be consumed when it’s young, and the majority of Prosecco is meant to be light and fresh on the palate. Most of it is produced using the less time-consuming Charmat method (refermentation of the base wine in pressurized tanks, as opposed to bottles) and the taste just keeps getting better.

I recently tried a bottle of OGIO Prosecco DOC, which was delicious, light and not overwhelmingly sweet, with fruity notes of peach and green apple. As the company describes it, “an approachable, friendly and easy-to-drink wine for those who want to have a conversation over a glass of wine, not about a glass of wine!” That pretty much fits the bill for me.

In addition to the traditional Bellini, there are loads of other great mixed drinks you can create with Prosecco. Here are a few that would be perfect for a warm spring weekend:

Sgroppino, an Italian cocktail from Giada De Laurentiis, with Prosecco, vodka and lemon sorbet. Fruit Fizz, from Nigella Lawson, combines Prosecco with lemon, mango, raspberry and blackcurrant sorbet (are you sensing a theme here?)

Martha Stewart’s Prosecco Cocktail has Angostura bitters, a liqueur infused with herbs, roots, and bark, and Ruffino Prosecco has an interesting recipe for The Fresco, using Prosecco, cucumbers, lime, hot sauce and sea salt.

Cheers!

Click here for more cocktail corner columns.

Leslie Dinaberg

Leslie Dinaberg

When she’s not busy working as the editor of Santa Barbara SEASONS, Cocktail Corner author Leslie Dinaberg writes magazine articles, newspaper columns and grocery lists. When it comes to cocktails, Leslie considers herself a “goal-oriented drinker.”

Originally published in Santa Barbara SEASONS on April 19, 2013.