Tags
alcohol, cocktail, cognac, garnish, lemon juice, Martini, orange liquor, recipe, Sidecar, sugar rim, tutorial, winter
Today’s cocktail tutorial will be on: A Sidecar.
Hurrah! With snow warnings threatening to ruin our February I am glad to report that the office here at This Is Our Town in Kingston is completely snowless, though be it a little wet and cold still. Here is a celebratory cocktail that will be sure to warm you up and put hair on the chest of anyone needing to grow some extra layers to anticipate the up and coming snow.
Dating back to World War One, a Sidecar is one of those ones that I like to refer to as a ‘Proper Grown Up Drink’ (I would say manly but that would be sexist wouldn’t it?). Boasting simple but mature flavours of Orange, lemon and rustic Cognac a Sidecar is a perfect adult winter warmer. The quantities are somewhat controversial and so are its origins, but if you’re using nice quality spirits I think that the proportions should work out like this:
50ml Cognac 25ml Orange Liquor 25ml Fresh Lemon Juice.
That’s it!
Alternative recipes include a higher volume of Cognac in comparison to the Orange Liquor and Lemon Juice, or lower volumes of Lemon juice in comparison to the other ingredients…blah blah blah the list goes on as it does for every cocktail. So this is the only version we are doing in today’s cocktail making session, but as I always say; please feel free to comment or try out alternative methods. It’s all to do with personal preference.
so,
1. Chill a Martini Glass (Stick it in the freezer or fill it with crushed ice)
2. Put cubed ice into the shaker, PLEASE BE STINGY. Frivolous ice users will dilute the mixture too much, which we do not want for our winter warmer.
3. Give it a good old rattle for around 10 seconds.
4. Quickly rub a slice of lemon around the rim of the glass (this acts like a glue and you then dip it into a pile of sugar) Voila! Sugared rim.
5. FINE strain your mix into your Martini Glass. This means that you use the normal strainer (bog standard cocktail equipment) AND also a mini sieve so that no ice fractures fall into your drink. Presentation is important.
6. Garnish with a lemon twist
7. Enjoy your masterpiece.
Written By Caroline Antonia Southwell