Cognac is often thought of as a heavy spirit, not for everyone, masculine, and probably expensive. This drink will change your mind about that!
Cognac, and brandy as a whole, is a delicious, hugely varied and highly mixable category to play with. They can be used to make every style of cocktail you can think of!
Read MoreIngredients
- 40 ml BRANDY (2 parts)
- 30 ml AMONTILLADO SHERRY (1.5 parts)
- 15 ml ELDERFLOWER LIQUEUR (3/4 part)
How to make it
- 1 – Add all ingredients to mixing glass
- 2 – Fill mixing glass with ice and stir ingredients together
- 3 – Stir until the ingredients are ice cold, and enough water has been added through ice melt
- 6 – Strain into a Coupette glass
- 7 – Garnish with a dehydrated lemon wheel
Watch this
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| Ingredient | 0 | 0 | unit |
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| Brandy | 0 | 0 | ml |
| Amontillado Sherry | 0 | 0 | ml |
| Elderflower Liqueur | 0 | 0 | ml |
| Dehydrated Lemon Wheel | 0 | 0 | |
| Ice | 0 | 0 | grams |
Get nerdy with it
COGNAC – As with all cocktails, your choice of spirit will have an impact on the final recipe. No need to spend crazy amounts of money here, but at the same time, ‘good in’ equals ‘good out’. A younger, lighter style VS Cognac will work well here, but if you have a VSOP or older on your shelf and it sits there never being drunk because you never know what to do with it…use it in this! You’ll love it.
AMONTILLADO SHERRY – The delicious ‘forest floor’ earthy, nutty rich dryness of Amontillado Sherry is simply delicious, and such a great cocktail ingredient. It brings all those flavours to this cocktail whilst adding dryness that ensure the Elderflower liqueur does not over-sweeten the recipe.
ELDERFLOWER LIQUEUR – Balances and smoothes the recipe whilst imparting delicate floral notes that combine beautifully with the flavours of Cognac and Sherry.
There are a few to choose from, but the one you’ll probably find most easily is St Germain, and it’s perfect for this recipe. Often referred to as ‘Bartender Ketchup’ because it really can be added to anything! It’s not a bad looking bottle either!
ICE – None needed for serving, but cubed ice is required for stirring the ingredients to chill and add the essential water that will unlock all the flavours carried in the alcoholic ingredients.
Why we chose this recipe for you
This recipe is included to highlight two historic, but to many people, unusual cocktail ingredients.
Brandy is a staple in classic cocktails, and has played an important role in the story of the cocktail for nearly as long as cocktails have been around. This recipe calls for Cognac, a regional style of brandy made from grapes, and must be produced in the Cognac region of France.
It’s lighter than many other brown spirits, although styles vary massively depending on their age and the grapes used. It is effortlessly mixable, and beyond this recipe, try mixing your favourite rum and Whisk(e)y cocktails with Cognac instead!
The other ingredient you may not have mixed with much is Sherry. The delicious Spanish fortified wine that has also been used in cocktail recipes since its first hayday! Fino and Manzanilla Sherries make excellent replacements for Dry Vermouth in cocktails like the Dry Martini.
The Amontillado style Sherry used here is also dry on the finish, but much more earthy and nutty and full bodied. It has a delicious woody note that’s reminiscent of a walk through the mulch of an old forest.
So, this delightful must try recipe is not only delectable in its own right, but it also means that you’ll have Cognac on your shelf and Sherry in you fridge to sip, enjoy and experiment with!
As always, don’t forget to show us what you made by tagging us!
@Candra_Drinks #MakeBetterDrinks #CandraDrinks
