Flower Tart

Nothing says spring quite like rhubarb

This is another original that I created way back in 2020 before I really knew what I was doing. Back then my big thing was to infuse vodka with all kinds of fruits and other foods. These days I focus more on specific types or brands of primary spirits but I saw some rhubarb in the grocery store and remembered this drink so I decided to make it again all these years later and see if it holds up. It does! I now consider it one of my more sophisticated and delicate concoctions, if I do say so myself, so I thought I'd share it with the 3 readers of my blog! You know who you are.

The main thing you have to commit to on this one is time. It's a bit of prep, but it's not difficult. You also have to buy a few ingredients. Let me just break it down for you a bit:

Rhubarb

Fresh stalks are usually available in spring, but you might need to go to a fresh fruit market or natural foods type store to get them. The amount you need depends on how many drinks you expect to make. You'll need them for both the vodka and the syrup. I used 3 stalks which was enough for 16 oz of syrup and 8 oz of vodka. Proportionally I should have done it the other way around but I figured I'd only want a bit of the vodka and could use the extra syrup to experiment with. With which to experiment. With which I could experiment... with.

syrup

Simple enough. It's just a 1:1:1 ratio. Cut the rhubarb into small pieces like you would with celery. Measure equal parts rhubarb, sugar (I use raw sugar), and water. 8 oz of each will yield about 16 oz of syrup due to the solids being taken out and evaporation. I usually add a bit more water to weaken it a bit because it gets pretty sweet when you boil it down. Once you bet it all together, put it all in a pot and slowly bring to a low boil, stirring occasionally. Once it starts boiling and sugar is dissolved, cover on the lowest heat and let it simmer for about 10 minutes. Try to keep it from boiling too much and stir it once or twice. You want to keep the lid on as much as possible to keep the flavor in. When the rhubarb has broken down into a stringy mess, let it cool and fine strain it into a jar. You can squeeze out the last bits of syrup and save the solids to make a jam or whatever, but I just use it on top of yogurt. So good!

vodka

This is really easy, but it takes a day. Just fill a jar 1/3 of the way up with your rhubarb pieces and the rest with vodka. I made 8 oz. but you can do more - just keep to about 1/4 to 1/3 rhubarb chunks to vodka. It's probably overkill, but I like the flavor to stand out. Cover and shake and put in the fridge overnight. You can shake it a few times throughout the day but rhubarb infuses really easily so it's not that important.

rosewater and bitters

You can get both of these online easily enough but if you're lucky you can find rosewater at a specialty grocery store. Make sure you get food grade and not just perfume. I mean, it basically IS perfume but very delicate and aromatic. The rhubarb bitters might be a bit hard to get without buying a set, but why not? The more you learn to play with bitters, the better your cocktails will be. Probably. Anyway, it's fun to mess around.

Okay, I think I made this recipe idiot-proof, so mix away!

Flower Tart

• 2 oz vodka (rhubarb infused)

• ½ oz rhubarb syrup (1:1:1 rhubarb, water, sugar)

• ½ oz elderflower liqueur (St. Germain)

• ¼ oz lemon juice (fresh squeezed)

• 2 dashes rhubarb bitters (Fee Brothers)

• 2 drops rose water (up to ¼ teaspoon)

• lemon peel as garnish

Shake, strain into coupe, garnish with twist of lemon peel and make sure to express the oils over the drink. It makes much more of a difference on this cocktail in particular.