World Cocktail Day. What?!

If you listen to KALW's Daily Almanac you'll know that today is World Cocktail Day, an occasion commemorating the first printed definition of a cocktail as: “a stimulating liquor, composed of spirits of any kind, sugar, water and bitters …” Wikipedia goes on to say that a cocktail today is thought of as simply, "a drink that contains two or more ingredients with at least one of in the ingredients alcohol." But who really cares about the details which in this case seem less important than the occasion itself. The point is how to celebrate in style. 

We recommend a look through Amy Stewart's book, The Drunken Botanist which contain all sorts of fascinating facts about plants that have been involved in the making of cocktails throughout history. How about some Prickly Pear Sangria?! We hope this will inspire you to work on your gardens and cultivate some cocktail ingredients since we can't get them in bars these days.  

Mix It Up
Thin slices of fruit:  lemon, lime, orange, prickly pear, mango, apple, and so on
4 ounces brandy or vodka
2 ounces triple sec or another orange liqueur
1 bottle dry white wine such as a white sparkling Rioja
2 ounces prickly pear syrup
A 6-ounce split of Spanish cava or other sparkling wine (optional)

Soak the fruit in the brandy and triple sec for at least 4 hours.  Combine the wine and prickly pear syrup (fruit) in a glass pitcher;  stir vigorously and add more syrup if you like to deepen the color.  Stir in the fruit mixture.  Serve over ice;  top with cava if desired.  Serves 6