2013, really? I spent the first week of 2013 ill in one form or another, kicking it off with a 40-hour migraine while in an mod beach house, followed by a cold and various stomach ailments. (really interesting stuff, right?) But that seems to be behind me now, and to say I’m really freaking excited for the upcoming year would be a vast understatement. There will be lots of travel, eating, cocktail art, and new projects.
Today I left for beautiful Cazaderos in Sonoma County for the first annual retreat for my business lady group (yeah, a new name is in the works). There will be much reflecting, planning, goal-setting, and wine-drinking in the redwoods soaking tub. In honor of the new year with this lovely group of kick ass business ladies, I’m making this as our signature cocktail for the weekend.
Turning Over a New (Maple) Leaf
This is a variation of the maple leaf cocktail, which I’ve enjoyed before but was recently reminded of it in this post by Heidi Swanson. I’ve been making them with both meyer lemon and regular old yellow lemons, and both are pretty awesome. I have a seville orange that I believe is cocktail bound as well. I tweaked the ratios a bit from Heidi’s, and added bitters. The salt addition, however, is here to stay. If you want an eye-opening discussion of sub-threshhold levels of salt, this episode of Cooking Issues is a must-listen.
2 oz bourbon (Bulleit and Buffalo Trace both work well)
1/2 oz lemon juice
1/2 oz maple syrup
few dashes bitters
smidgen of salt
Shake vigourously with ice. Serve up with lemon twist.
Makes one delicious cocktail.
