Sometimes, a Sunday afternoon calls for a classic cocktail with a twist. A Clover Club with Chambord included in the recipe did the job nicely.
Last Sunday afternoon, Riley and I were cleaning up after having friends over to film an upcoming Tasting room episode. We finished our cleaning, took a nap, and watched football. Then I started thinking about this week’s cocktail.
We had just purchased a bottle of Chambord, a black raspberry liquor from France, so Riley suggested I make a cocktail using this ingredient. I thought that was a perfect idea! So I started searching online for recipes using raspberries and/or Chambord.
I saw a few recipes that interested me, and the Clover Club cocktail was one of them. It had been a few years since I’d tasted the classic cocktail, but I know it’s a good one.
It took a few tries and adjusting the traditional recipe to include Chambord. But what I ended up with was a great-tasting cocktail with flavors that hold true to the classic and adds a little more punch.
It was all about balance and adjusting ingredients to replace the original recipe’s raspberry syrup for Chambord.
I used 3/4 of an ounce of Chambord to find the right amount of raspberry flavor. Since the liqueur isn’t as sweet as the syrup, I used 1/4 of an ounce of simple syrup to tie it all together.
Since I added more spirits with the Chambord, 2 ounces of gin, called for in the original recipe, made the drink a little too strong. The additional alcohol hid the delicate raspberry flavor, so I used 1 1/2 ounces of gin.
This was a great, light-tasting cocktail to enjoy on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
We will still enjoy the original recipe, but this little riff on a classic was an enjoyable experiment.
I hope this inspires you to play around with your cocktail ingredients. Swap one for something else and try to make something just as great. Sometimes you could even make one better. It is also a great way to spend a day together with the person you kinda like.
how to make a fresh raspberry syrup
ingredients
- 6 ounces of fresh raspberries
- 6 ounces of hot water
- 3 ounces of sugar
instructions
- Combine all ingredients into a blender
- Blend on high for 20 seconds
- Put into a container and refrigerate until cool and store
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