A delicious cocktail recipe featuring bourbon, bitters, sparkling wine and fresh grapefruit juice that will take you sailing into fall.
Remember last week when I shared my Indian Summer I cocktail? Well, as promised, now it’s time for the second version of this perfect end of summer drink.
But before I get to that, how was everyone’s week? Did your creep by as much as mine did? That seems to always be the case when we’re coming off of a three-day weekend. Why can’t we just always have four-day work weeks?
I tried implementing a four-day work week for myself this week but, alas, it just didn’t quite work out. I’m spending some time back at my old 9-5 over the next couple of weeks, helping train the person who took my place, and as you can imagine, it’s cut into my blog “work flow” quite a bit. I was just getting the hang of making my own schedule every day! Oh well, you can’t win them all. And even though it’s great to be back at the resort (solely for the purpose of reconnecting with all of my coworkers,) to be honest it’s been even more motivation for me to put my all into CaliGirl Cooking and never want to work for someone else again. I’ve definitely gotten used to being my own boss!
Anyhow, the reason I was trying to implement a four-day work week this week is because the hubby and I are hitting the road down south this weekend for a little staycation in DTLA. Before we got married, it seemed like we were traveling almost every weekend. After the wedding, and after the injury, we put all of our travel plans on hold and I dare say this is the longest we’ve stayed in town since we started dating (a whole month and a half!!)
Well, I’m happy to report that my man is finally feeling well enough to take a little vacay and I couldn’t be more excited. You feel me when I say there’s nothing like a weekend road trip to get you excited and put a little pep in your step again? We think it is so important and traveling (whether to someplace old or new!) always puts us in a fantastic state of mind. We have lots of traveling coming up over the next few months so this will be the perfect warm-up for the crazy times ahead.
One thing Chris and I try to do a lot when we travel (especially when we’re driving somewhere) is bring along our own beverages. We usually like to indulge in wine, beer and cocktails a little bit more than usual when we’re vacationing somewhere, and bringing our own along saves us a TON of money. I’m sure you’re well aware of just how crazy some restaurant and bar markups are on their alcoholic beverages plus, this way we have a cocktail or glass of wine whenever the urge strikes and don’t have to worry about waiting on bar service or blowing all of our cash. We like to save that for the food 😉
Now that this Indian Summer II has been on repeat in our household, there’s a good chance we’ll pack our cooler full of all of the ingredients to make our own once we get down to LA. It’s not too complicated, and as long as you have a cooler on hand, your fixin’s will easily be able to make the trek. Once we get to the hotel, we’ll set up the little bar area, fill our cooler with ice, and help ourselves to a delicious cocktail.
As you may remember, our Indian Summer I cocktail consisted of mango-flavored vodka, Aperol and sparkling wine as the alcohol base, and date caramel and a lime slice as the “accoutrements.” For this Indian Summer II cocktail, our alcohol base consists of bourbon (my fave), Cointreau and sparkling wine, balanced out by a splash of grenadine and angostura bitters, plus a touch of fresh grapefruit juice.
At first glance, the Indian Summer II may seem like it would be a bit bitter or sour, but the Cointreau and the grenadine add just the right amount of sweetness. We tend to like our cocktails on the more bitter, less sweet side, but if you’re in the opposite camp, you could certainly up the grenadine and Cointreau to make the drink to your liking. It’s quite similar to this Twisted Whiskey Kind of Afternoon, but stands out because of the grenadine and grapefruit.
Although we didn’t win the Convention of Cocktails with our Indian Summer II, it received rave reviews from all of the guests who tried it. It’s a surprising contrast of flavors with beautiful coloring, and is just as suitable for the fall weather as it is for the hot and sticky summer months. Oh, and I’d be remiss to not mention that it may sneak up on you if consumed too quickly or in too much quantity…it packs quite the powerful punch so proceed with caution.
Happy Friday friends, make your weekend a great one!
Indian Summer II Bourbon and Sparkling Wine Cocktail
Ingredients
- 1 ounce bourbon
- 1 ounce Cointreau
- ¼ ounce grenadine
- A few dashes of angostura bitters
- ½ ounce fresh grapefruit juice
- 4 ounces sparkling wine
- Grapefruit peel for garnish
Instructions
- Combine bourbon and Cointreau in a rocks glass. Add grenadine, bitters and grapefruit juice and stir to combine.
- Add ice to glass (about ¾ full.)
- Top with sparkling wine, garnish with a grapefruit peel.
Notes
- Increase the amount of grenadine and Cointreau in this recipe if you like your cocktails on the sweeter and less bitter side.
Nutrition
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T.G.I.F.
I am totally trying this! And making your own mobile bar for the hotel is genius 😉
Awesome, let me know how it turns out! The mobile bar is such a lifesaver, it saves $ and is also so fun to just have a bar set up in your hotel room!