ELS/Holiday Cocktail Kit (2020)

We've passed our time in quarantine with each other and, not infrequently, with cocktails. We've put together kits that we're hoping you can use to share a cocktail or three with us in at some way.

Toward that end, we made cocktail ingredients from a number of botanicals and spices and put together recipes for four cocktails (one is a great mocktail). We've enjoyed making these ingredients and drinks and we hope you'll enjoy them too.

Because we know that people's bars vary, we've constructed the recipes below so that they require our ingredients plus lemon juice and water. If you've made other recipes using other ingredients, please let us know so we can try them out too!

Suggested Recipes

Rosemary Dish Walk Cooler [EtOH optional]

In a few words

Sparkling rosemary lemonade.

Ingredients

• 1oz (30ml) ELS Rosemary Syrup
• ⅔oz (20ml) Fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• 2oz (60ml) Sparkling water (normal water will be OK too!)
• [Optional] 1oz ELS Pear Gin

Instructions

• Mix all ingredients except water into a cocktail shaker
• And ice and shake for 45-60 seconds until cold and diluted
• Strain into a highball or collins glass over ice cubes
• If you've got them on hand, garnish with a sprig of rosemary

Name TBD

In a few words

A spiced fruit-forward martini suitable for a cold winter night.

Ingredients

• 2½oz (75ml) ELS Pear Gin
• ½oz (15m) ELS Spice Vermouth

Instructions

• Mix ingredients into a mixing glass
• Add ice and stir for 40-60 seconds until cold
• Strain the ice and pour the liquid into a chilled stemmed cocktail class or coupe
• If you've got either on on hand, garnish with a piece of dried pear or a toothpick or a twisted orange peel

Best-of Week

In a few words

A spirit forward shaken cocktail with a bit of something for every pallette.

Instructions

• 2oz ELS Pear Gin
• ¾oz ELS Spiced Vermouth
• ¾ oz Fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• ½oz ELS Rosemary syrup
• [Optional] 1 dash Grapefruit bitters
• [Optiona] If you have a fruit eau-de-vie like pear or plum, swap in ½oz of eau-de-vie for the same amount of gin.

Instructions

• Mix all ingredients except water into a cocktail shaker
• And ice and shake for 45-60 seconds until cold and diluted
• Strain into a stemmed coupe or cocktail glass
• Garnish with a expressed grapefruit peel as garnish (lemon will work too if that's what you have)

Credit and inspiration

Inspired by Death & Taxes by Joaquín Simó (Pouring Ribbons, NYC)

Name TBD

In a few words

A low-alcohol vermouth based libation. The optional ingredients will take things in a floral direction but it's good without them too!

Ingredients

• 1½oz ELS Spiced Vermouth
• ½oz ELS Pear Gin
• ½ oz ELS Rosemary Syrup
• ¾oz Fresh squeezed lemon juice
• [Optional] 5 drops orange flower water
• [Optional] 5 drops aromatic cocktails bitters (e.g., Angostura or even ELS Aromatic Cycle Old Fashion Bitters, which we hope you do not have around any more!)

Instructions

• Mix ingredients into a mixing glass
• Add ice and stir for 40-60 seconds until cold
• Strain the ice and pour the liquid into a "lowball" or DOF glass over a single large ice cube if you've got one.
• Garnish with a lemon twist

Credit and inspiration

Inspired by A Thousand Blue Eyes by Nick Detrich (New Orleans)