“When discussing all things apple, it’s important to me to not only use apple-related products but complementary flavors that taste incredible alongside apples,” says Lauren Mote, the co-proprietor of bitters and tincture producer Bittered Sling and bar manager at the ultra-sleek UVA Wine & Cocktail Bar in Vancouver, British Columbia.
For the celebrated Canadian cocktail queen, this drink, the Apple Cart, is a liquid embodiment of this stance on true flavors. “It is a combination of great ingredients, topped with a funky, tart and refreshing cider,” she says of the cocktail. “Bourbon has an inherent baked apple note, sherry’s got a bit of crisp, fresh apple on the nose… and spiced apple on the palate.”
For Mote’s tannic syrup, dried hops can be found at a home-brew store or online.
Cider made from a brewery in the center of British Columbia’s wine country, Dukes Dry Apple is produced exclusively from apples grown in Kelowna — now a hotbed for cider fruit. Dry, tart, and lightly carbonated, this cider does the trick for Mote’s multifaceted sipper.
Apple Cart
Makes 1 cocktail
1 1/2 ounces Bulleit bourbon
1/2 ounce Aperol
1/2 ounce Lustau East India Solera sherry
3/4 ounce lemon juice
3/4 ounce Tannic Apple Syrup (recipe follows)
2 dashes Bittered Sling Zingiber crabapple bitters
4 ounces Tree Brewing Dukes Cider Dry Apple cider
Bouquet of lemon verbena and mint, for garnish
Combine the bourbon, Aperol, sherry, lemon juice, syrup, and bitters in a shaker with ice. Strain into a tall collins glass filled with fresh ice. Top with the cider, stir gently, and serve garnished with a bushy bouquet of lemon verbena and mint.
Tannic Apple Syrup
Makes 2 cups
1 1/2 cups honey
1 1/2 cups apple juice
1/8 teaspoon dried hops
In a saucepan, bring the honey and apple juice to a low simmer. Remove from the heat and pour over the hops in a heatproof container. Allow to steep and infuse for 1 hour at room temperature. Strain and discard the hops, and bottle the syrup. It will keep, refrigerated, for 7 to 10 days.
Excerpted from Tasting Cider © 2017 by Sip Publishing. Photography © by Antonis Achilleos. Used with permission from Storey Publishing.
