I’ve been looking for a cocktail which is sort of a contradiction. I wanted something light, fizzy and fruity, yet (since it’s nearly december) I wanted it to be Christmassy and festive. Couldn’t find anything which fit the bill, so I sorta made one up.
I love bourbon (it’s also helpfully quite easy to find vegan bourbons!) and since I got engaged in Stockholm, I also love all things Scandinavia. My mum grows shed loads of berries in summer so at this point my freezer is always full of frozen little dudes. My fave? Redcurrants! I remember having a soda in Sweden called Vinbärssaft and I wanted to make it seriously hard core.
The bourbon, redcurrants and the cloves make this drink Christmassy, but the ginger and the bubbles make it refreshing and light. A perfect balance, I’d say!
Wanna make it VIRTUALLY non alcoholic? Switch the ginger beer for kombucha and leave out the bourbon! Oooooh mama!
Hard Ginger Vinbärssaft (Redcurrant Cordial Cocktail)
Ingredients
For the Vinbärssaft (redcurrant syrup)
- 100 g redcurrants (fresh or frozen)
- 3 cloves
- 35 g caster sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon citric acid (or 1tsp lemon juice)
- Put the berries (cloves and sugar in a saucepan with 120ml water and bring to a boil. Simmer until the berries are all burst (around 7 minutes).)
- Put the berries into a muslin bag and strain out the juice into a measuring jug (being careful not to burn yourself. Add the citric acid and stir. Allow to cool.)
- Makes one drink
For the Cocktail
- Ice cubes
- Lime slice to garnish
- 1 tablespoon Vinbärssaft (redcurrant syrup)
- Juice of half a lime
- 50 ml vegan bourbon (Bulleit or Woodford Reserve are great)
- 200 ml ginger beer (or to taste)
Instructions
To Make The Cocktail
- Pop the ice and the lime slice into a rocks glass or small tumbler.
- In a cocktail shaker add the Vinbärssaft, the lime juice and the bourbon. Pour over the ice into the glass. Top up with ginger beer.
