April Drink of the Month: The Assembly Ball Cocktail

The blood orange is distinguished from the typical orange by its crimson flesh, somewhat smaller average size, and tougher skin. The blood-colored fruit is the result of the antioxidant pigment Chrysanthemin (thanks Wikipedia). The flavor is unique - you still get the citrus notes of a regular orange, but there are additional raspberry-like notes that give the blood orange depth of flavor. I love blood oranges in cocktails - substituting them for Navel or Valencia oranges in the Blood and Sand cocktail gives the cocktail a new twist. I've also made a few batches of Blood Orangecello and blood orange infused vodka, which I've used in the Buongiorno in lieu of gin. However, this month, I've found my new favorite application for blood oranges. 

I finally got around to browsing through Bitters & Shrub Syrup Cocktails, a birthday present from my little sister. There were plenty of great recipes in this little book, but my favorite so far was the recipe for the Blood Orange and Charred Rosemary Shrub. Shrubs, as you may recall, are "drinking vinegar" that are made by combining a variety of vinegar with fruit, aromatics, and sugar. For this application, we combine the peel and fruit of four blood oranges (make sure to scrape the inside of the peel with a pairing knife or something similar to remove as much of the white pith as possible) with Demerara sugar, charred rosemary, and yuzu vinegar. Most of these ingredients were easy to find, but the only place I could find yuzu vinegar was at online specialty shops (I went to every single Asian market in South Bend, as well as Whole Foods Fresh Thyme Market - no luck). Since this was my first go-round with yuzu, I decided against forking out $20 plus shipping for a small bottle of vinegar and used the internet recommended substitute - rice wine vinegar with a little lime juice added to the mix. Here is the recipe for the shrub, as I made it:

Combine the peels and fruit of 4 blood oranges in a mason jar. Add the needles of 2-3 stalks of rosemary that have been lightly charred by holding them above a flame (match, etc - no stalks, only needles!). Add 1 cup of Demerara sugar and stir to combine. Screw on the lid of your canning jar and let sit overnight. The next morning, through the magical process of maceration, the sugar will have drawn out the juices of the fruit and oils from the peels in order to create a sweet syrup. Add 1 cup of rice wine vinegar and 1/2 oz of fresh squeezed lime juice, and let the mixture sit in the refrigerator for 12 hours. Strain the mixture through a double layer of cheesecloth, pressing on the cloth to extract as much juice from the fruit as possible. This shrub will keep for ~2 months.

Warren Bobrow, who wrote the recipe for this (and other) shrubs, came up with a wonderful drink that features this shrub. He named it the "Assembly Ball Cocktail" after a high-society event first held in Philadelphia in 1748. Bourbon provides a backbone for the sweet and sour shrub, while the addition of grapefruit bitters help balance out the sugar. Here is the recipe - but make sure to act quickly! Blood orange season ends in May, so grab some fruit for shrub-making while you still can!

In a cocktail shaker, combine:

2 oz quality bourbon (I liked wheated bourbons for this cocktail, like Larceny or Maker's Mark)
0.5 oz rhum agricole (which adds a little hogo, but any good white rum will do in a pinch)
2 oz of our Blood Orange and Charred Rosemary shrub (above)

Shake over ice and pour into a coupe glass. Add a splash of soda water and 2-3 dashes of grapefruit bitters (we used homemade grapefruit tincture). Garnish with a rosemary sprig and serve!

We hope you enjoy your Assembly Ball Cocktail!