Well, this being Oregon, it seems like every other person we know makes wine, beer, mead, kombucha, etc.  Or is somehow engaged in dishing up yummy  beverages.  Our friend Robert, whose drink was featured a few weeks ago, loves to experiment but he’s not the only one.

In any case, in honor of this quite extraordinary sunny and warm Friday here on the west coast (and apologies to you midwesterners who may be getting snow), I’m having the concoction on the left, aka, “The Back Porch”

 

It’s pretty simple. I took stock of what I had (not much really) and used 2 oz. of Lillet (a French aperitif, kept cold), 1/2 oz of cherry liquor that came with the homemade maraschino cherries I made last summer, a squeeze of lime, 2 drops of bitters, a cherry and a lime peel. Shaken w/ an ice cube to get colder and then served.

Mmmmm. I think I’ll have another.

The cherries are quite easy to make if you can get your hands on cherries and Luxardo liquor this summer.  Either pie cherries or sweet cherries will do,  you can pit them or not. 1 pint of cherries to 1 pint of liquor.  Put the cherries in a jar (or two, how ever many will fit), pour the liquor over the cherries, let rest in cool dark place (refrigerated is best) for a few days at least, 2 weeks is best.  Apparently you can make non-alcohol versions using pomegranate juice or grape juice. I might try some with tart cherry juice or black cherry juice. You can also add lemon peel and other spices.

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Good luck to everyone heading into this weekend. Stay safe, stay well.

L