In the glass
Cocktails
Fruit brandy isn't only a digestif. These drinks are tagged by fruit, so you can jump from a cocktail straight to the spirit — and its history — behind it.
Jack Rose
Applejack / apple brandyThe classic American applejack sour — pre-Prohibition, rosy from grenadine.
- •2 oz apple brandy (Laird's Bonded)
- •0.75 oz fresh lemon (or lime) juice
- •0.5 oz real pomegranate grenadine
- •Shake with ice, strain, serve up.
Norman Sidecar
CalvadosA Sidecar with Norman apple brandy in place of Cognac — orchard depth over grape.
- •2 oz Calvados
- •0.75 oz orange liqueur
- •0.75 oz fresh lemon juice
- •Shake, strain into a sugar-rimmed coupe.
Poire Spritz
Poire WilliamsAlsatian pear eau-de-vie, sparkling wine, and soda — fragrant and light.
- •1 oz Poire Williams
- •2 oz sparkling wine
- •1 oz soda water, build over ice, pear-slice garnish.
Kirsch Royale
KirschwasserA dry cherry lift for sparkling wine — the Black Forest goes to a party.
- •0.5 oz kirschwasser
- •Top with brut sparkling wine
- •Express a lemon twist over the top.
Plum Old Fashioned
SlivovitzAged plum brandy stirred down like a whiskey Old Fashioned — deep and dark-fruited.
- •2 oz aged slivovitz
- •0.25 oz rich demerara syrup
- •2 dashes aromatic bitters
- •Stir over ice, strain over a big cube, orange twist.
Framboise Fizz
Framboise / HimbeergeistRaspberry Geist, lemon, and soda — the aromatic Geist method in a tall glass.
- •1.5 oz framboise
- •0.75 oz lemon juice
- •0.5 oz simple syrup
- •Shake, strain over ice, top with soda.