WORDS Susan Lundy
The walk from our sea-level hotel in San Francisco took us huffing and puffing up and over some of the city’s famous hills…but we were on a mission. Similar to other quests during travels near and far, we sought the birthplace of something culturally significant to the city; in this case, the Lemon Drop cocktail.
We knew that Henry Africa’s bar—where the Lemon Drop was invented sometime in the 1970s—no longer existed. But perhaps another bar sat in its place? Finally finding the spot, we discovered a taco joint had replaced Henry Africa. A dive bar on the other side of the intersection did not serve Lemon Drops, nor did the Michelin-starred restaurant, Lord Stanley’s, directly across the road. But no matter! We’d found the cocktail’s birthplace and sampled a San Fran classic elsewhere in the city.
The adventure was reminiscent of other travels—when we’d sipped a Manhattan in New York City, savoured a Caesar in Calgary and even sampled a little-known cocktail called a Toronto in that Canadian city.
These days, as the COVID-19 pandemic makes international travel a distant dream, and yet the sun is shining and the backyard beckoning, it seems the perfect time to hit the home bar and mix up some cocktails for a virtual round-the-world tasting trip. We’ve found some ideas to help you shake, muddle and stir a range of spirits that will transport you to a variety of countries and cities. These recipes were found on the site liquor.com (but it doesn’t take much internet research to discover numerous delectable variations on them).
San Francisco / Lemon Drop
2 ounces vodka
1/2 ounce triple sec
1 ounce simple syrup
1 ounce fresh lemon juice
Garnish: sugar rim
Coat the rim of a cocktail glass with sugar and set aside (do this a few minutes ahead of time so the sugar can dry and adhere well to the glass). Add all the ingredients into a shaker with ice and shake. Strain into the prepared glass.
Italy / Aperol Spritz
3 ounces Prosecco
2 ounces Aperol
1 ounce soda water
Garnish: orange wheel
Add all ingredients into a wine glass with ice and stir. Garnish with an orange wheel.
Peru / Pisco Sour
2 oz pisco
1 oz fresh lime juice
1/2 oz simple syrup
1 Egg white
Garnish: Angostura bitters
Add all ingredients into a shaker with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a chilled rocks glass over fresh ice. (Alternately, you can pour it neat into a Nick & Nora glass.) Garnish with 3 drops of the bitters. Using a straw, swirl the bitters into a simple design.
Bermuda / Dark and Stormy
1 1/2 ounces Gosling’s Black Seal rum
Stormy ginger beer, to top
Garnish: lime wedge
Fill a tall glass with ice, and add the rum. Top with the ginger beer. Garnish with a lime wedge.
Spain / Sangria
1 bottle dry red wine, like Rioja
1/2 cup brandy
1/2 cup orange juice
2 tbsp sugar
1 orange, cut into wedges
1 apple, cored and diced
1 lemon, cut into wedges
Garnish: orange wheel
In a large pitcher, add the sugar, orange, apple and lemon and muddle for 30 seconds. Add the brandy and orange juice and muddle again for 30 seconds. Add the red wine, stir, add ice and serve in a red wine glass.
France / Kir Royal
1/2 oz crème de cassis
Dry sparkling wine, to top
Garnish: lemon twist
Pour the crème de cassis into a Champagne flute. Top with the sparkling wine. Garnish with a lemon twist.
United Kingdom / Pimm’s Cup
2 ounces Pimm’s No. 1 Cup
3 ounces Sprite, 7 Up or ginger ale
1 slice cucumber
Garnish: mint sprig
Garnish: strawberry
Garnish: lemon wheel
Garnish: orange wheel
Add all ingredients into a highball glass over ice and stir to combine. Garnish with a mint sprig, skewered strawberry and optional lemon and orange wheels. To mix things up a bit, you can replace the Sprite, 7 Up or ginger ale with Champagne.
New Orleans / Sazerac
Absinthe
1 sugar cube
3 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
2 dashes Angostura bitters
2 oz Russell’s Reserve rye whiskey
Garnish: lemon peel
Rinse a chilled rocks glass with absinthe, discarding any excess, and set aside. In a mixing glass, muddle the sugar cube and both bitters. Add the rye, fill with ice and stir. Strain into the prepared glass. Twist a slice of lemon peel over the surface to extract the oils and then discard.
Mexico / Paloma
2 oz tequila
1/2 oz fresh lime juice
Grapefruit soda, to top
Garnish: lime wheel
Add the tequila and lime juice to a highball glass filled with ice. Fill with grapefruit soda, and stir briefly.
Singapore / Singapore Sling
3/4 ounce gin
1/4 ounce Grand Marnier
1/4 ounce cherry liqueur
1/4 ounce herbal liqueur
1 ounce pineapple juice
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
1 dash bitters
Club soda, to top
Garnish: orange slice
Garnish: cherry
Add all the ingredients except the club soda into a shaker with ice and shake. Strain into a highball glass, and top with the club soda. Garnish with an orange slice and a cherry.
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