Last month, I bought a bottle of Eastern European plum brandy (called Slivovitz here in the US). It belongs to a family of fruit brandies that my Hungarian relatives would call Palinka, but its also called Rakia in the Czech Republic and elsewhere. My mom did some digging into our family tree, and she is pretty convinced that some of her relatives bootlegged this stuff during Prohibition. I can confirm that it is still a staple of the Hungarian Cultural Club in Cleveland, OH - my mom went up for a dinner a few months ago, and they had an ice sculpture that dispensed frosty Palinka for their guests.I was first introduced to Slivovitz by my great uncle Jim, who always had a bottle or two in his freezer, as any good Hungarian should. After buying my very own bottle, I sent my mom a picture, thinking she would appreciate my attempts to appropriate my ethnic heritage. Below is the transcript of our conversation:
Me: [Picture of bottle of Slivovitz] Uncle Jim would be proud!
Mom: Where is this and are they passing it through an ice sculpture to chill?
Me: In my fridge, getting icy.
Mom: So you willingly bought that paint thinner to consume on purpose?
Me: Its your fault that I'm half Hungarian. I blame genetics.
Mom: In the morning, you'll be blaming that rot-gut.
As you may be able to decipher from the conversation above, the problem with Palinka is that it is just *tad* bit on the harsh side. It has a strong bite that is evident when you first taste the clear liquor and gets stronger as it works its way down your throat. I'm doing a great job selling this so far, right? But here's the thing - if you can get past the sharpness (or if you're numb to it after years of liver abuse, as must be true of all Eastern Europeans), it has a really unique, nice taste! I really don't mind Slivovitz by itself, but apparently its not for everyone (Ann gave me a really dirty look after I made her try it - did I mention Palinka has a strong bite?).
My mission this month was to find a way to make Slivovitz palatable for friends and family, and so I scoured the internets hoping to find someone brighter than me who had discovered a way to prepare a drinkable Slivovitz cocktail. The fine folks at Liquor.com came through in spades with their suggestion of making a modified Cosmopolitan (named after the magazine by bartender/creator Cheryl Cook) with plum puree in place of cranberry juice and Slivovitz in place of vodka. Below you will find the recipe with a few slight modifications and suggestions. Try it without fear! The drink it produces is sweet and fruity with some nice complex notes underneath the sweetness to keep it interesting. You can taste the brandy, but without the bite, and the fruit puree adds a nice color and texture to the drink! You can also make this as a frozen drink, which I actually prefer. You'll find that modified recipe below as well. And I'm happy to report that Ann even likes this one - she even asked me to make it for her a second time. Success!
The Slivopolitan
In a cocktail shaker, combine the following:
1.5 oz Slivovitz plum brandy
1 oz Cointreau
0.75 oz plum puree*
0.5 oz lime juice
Shake over ice for ten seconds and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with a slice of plum.
*To make the plum puree, wash and PEEL four small plums. While the plum peel add nice flecks of color to the drink initially, the peels tend to congregate on the bottom of the glass and make the lat few sips much less appetizing. Peel your plums! Dice the peeled plums and place them in a blender. Add 3-4 drops of vanilla extract and add 1-1 simple syrup as needed to allow the mixture to blend well (maybe a little less than 1/4 cup). Blend until smooth and store in a airtight container. The mixture will initially be pure white, but will turn orange-purplish after a day or two. Don't worry, the puree is still good even after the color change!
To make the frozen Slivopolitan, follow the modified recipe below (makes 4)
In a blender, combine the following:
1 1/2 cups Slivovitz plum brandy
1 cup Triple Sec (no sense wasting the good stuff on a blended drink!)
3/4 cup plum puree
1/2 cup lime juice
Fill blender with ice and blend until well crushed. Serve in a lowball glass without garnish.
Enjoy your Slivopolitans!
