To most of us, packages of fresh cranberries in markets this time of year mean cranberry sauce. To me, they say it’s time to make a key ingredient for my favorite seasonal cocktail: the Cranberry Rose.
To most of us, packages of fresh berries in markets this time of year mean cranberry sauce. To me, they say it’s time to make a key ingredient for my favorite seasonal cocktail: the Cranberry Rose.
It’s a riff on the traditional Jack Rose, a simple cocktail made with applejack brandy, lemon juice, and grenadine. It’s an old-fashioned sipper that was popular in the ’20s and ’30s — it even gets a mention in Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises).
Try this smoky spin on a classic Paloma cocktail>>
This variation was borne out of some recipe testing last year that left me with extra cranberry syrup, which seemed a natural substitute for grenadine. Along with applejack brandy, which dates back to colonial New Jersey, it makes for a truly all-American seasonal cocktail. For parties, you can scale up a big batch of the mix to shake and serve on demand.
The syrup comes from The Cranberry Cookbook by Sally Pasley Vargas. It’s a great mixer for all kinds of cocktails, from this simple riff on a Jack Rose to margaritas to a seasonal French 75.
Cranberry Rose Cocktail
Equipment
- 1 medium saucepan
- 1 fine-mesh strainer
- 1 jar
Ingredients
Syrup
- 1¼ cups water
- 1¼ cups sugar
- 2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
Cocktail
- 1½ ounces applejack brandy (or Calvados)
- ¾ ounce fresh lemon juice
- ½ ounce cranberry syrup
- Orange twist
Instructions
Syrup
- Combine water and sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the cranberries and simmer for 10 minutes or until the berries soften and pop. Remove from heat, and cool to room temperature.
- Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean jar, pressing the cranberries to extract as much juice as possible. Refrigerate up to 1 month. (Makes about 1¾ cups.)
Cocktail
- Combine the brandy, lemon juice, and syrup in an ice-filled cocktail shaker. Shake for 10 seconds and strain into a chilled martini, coupe, or Nick & Nora glass. Garnish with an orange twist. (Makes 1 cocktail.)