Lost & Found
I only recently discovered Caorunn gin, a small-batch gin created, surprisingly, in Scotland. But bartenders have known about it for a while at least (I found one recipe from last fall prepared by Henderson Avenue’s hipstery dive bar The Gin Mill, called Gin, Smoke & Lies, made with amaro, pineapple, hibiscus syrup and lime). I’m a big gin drinker, though, so here are a few more recipes culled from mixologists around the U.S., that fall into a category called “shrub drinks” (“shrubs” usually combine 1 cup each fruit juice and sugar with vinegar and citric acid, plus other ingredients as needed).
Lost & Found (created by Vincent Favella, Brooklyn)
1 oz. Caorunn gin
3/4 oz. prickly pear shrub
Champagne
Making it: Whip-shake gin and shrub with one ice cube; pour into coupe glass; top to taste with champagne. Garnish with orange twist.
The Brand New Companion (created by Scott Koehl, Chicago)
2 oz. Caorunn gin
Blueberry balsamic shrub
3/4 oz Cynar
Brooklyn Sunset
3/4 oz. sweet vermouth
1/2 oz. simple syrup
Making it: Stir together ingredients, and serve in a Nick Nora glass. Garnish with lemon.
Brooklyn Sunset (created by Tony Del Pino)
2 ox. Caorunn gin
5 oz. lime juice
1/2 oz. ginger shrub
Club soda
Making it: Combine first three ingredients in a cocktail shaker; strain into a Collins glass. Top with club soda to taste. Garnish with a lime wheel.
