Dark and bittersweet like the end of summer...
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ahhh, the sound of the cicadas on a late August midnight… Cocktails have a way of transporting us to a time and place, but they are best served IN that time and place. Tonight’s the night!
This one came about as I tried a similar recipe published on Imbibe Magazine’s website, but found it too sweet and lacking body. My version adds some dark spiced rum, in this case I used Cruzan Blackstrap rum instead of cachaça, but I suspect that any darker black spiced rum would work. I wouldn’t use a good aged rum, but maybe it’s worth trying too. I also added a bit of lemon and my favorite, orange flower water. I think this is super yummy and despite my sunny photo I recommend drinking it on a warm humid summer night on the porch where you can hear all the insects playing their symphony. Drinking this reminds me of yet another wonderful painting, this one by a slightly lesser known artist than Picasso or Matisse: Charles Burchfield. This is a watercolor, if you can believe it, and as with most of Burchfield’s work, it's about expressing the sound and energy of nature:
As I look at those wild curvy lines in the night sky I can almost hear the cicadas humming. Burchfield was also a fan of modern classical music, his favorite being Sibelius, but I think of Stravinsky. Choose your own favorite and use this cocktail as a way to drink in that dark night and let the hum slowly move up into your head…
1 ½ oz. Cynar
1 oz. Nocino
1 oz. Blackstrap rum
¼ oz. fresh squeezed lemon
Dash orange flower water (garnish)
lemon twist (express and garnish)
Orange twist (express and garnish)
Stir liquor and lemon with ice, strain, pour over rocks, garnish.