Tag Archives: cocktails

Cocktail of the week: White port and tonic

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In the muggy days approaching the official first day of Summer, our thoughts turn to warm weather cocktails. Annabelle Kressman, this week’s official co-taster, and I sipped Fonseca Siroco Extra Dry White Porto with Fever-Tree Indian Premium Tonic this week, thankfully in air-conditioned comfort.

IMG_0417White port, even the extra dry variety, is on the sweet side, slightly oaky, reminiscent of stone fruit and typically served chilled as an aperitif. It takes on a pleasantly citrus vibe when mixed with tonic, especially a tonic with a super clean edge like Fever-Tree.

It isn’t complicated to make. Fill a rocks glass with ice, mix the porto and tonic to taste, add a spritz of fresh lime and enjoy.

White port and tonic is a sophisticated blend and your guests might not be able to identify the potent potable unless you give them a hint. Or just tell them outright.

Annabelle’s pronouncement: “Refreshing, different, very summery. A thumb’s up.”

IMG_0409Fonseca Siroco has been around since the 1950s, a great era for cocktails, which makes it an authentic and unexpected choice for a retro-style get-together. The port has a budget-friendly price point of $19, which means you can splurge on the Fever-Tree, which will set you back about $5 and change for a four-pack of 6.8-ounce bottles.

 

Beluga vodka, a premium pour

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It’s bad form to drink like a fish.

But do reach for Beluga, the vodka with the sturgeon on the label.

The number one super premium pour in Russia, Beluga now sells two vodkas in the United States: the flagship Beluga Gold, with individually numbered bottles and a $199 price tag; and Beluga Noble, a finely crafted vodka packaged in a lovely bottle embellished with a shiny  sturgeon and available for less than $40.

We sampled Noble, which matures for 30 days and is distilled three times with a whisper of honey, oats and milk thistle extract at Russia’s iconic Mariinsky Distillery. The water comes from the chilly Siberian artesian springs that water the hardy grains that go into the vodka. The result is a crystal clear elixir that is a bit medicinal upon first sip and soon settles into a crisp, pleasing tonic for whatever ails you.

We mixed Beluga in cocktails and decided we like it best presented simply, with a generous splash of Schweppe’s tonic and a slice of lemon or lime. Chill the tonic and the vodka and add lots of ice. Or skip the tonic and ice and simply enjoy a nip of blizzard-cold Noble. Forget all about Siberia.

The intuitive pairing for Beluga is caviar. It’s also an impressive accompaniment to smoked salmon.

Whatever you serve it with, think of Beluga as a fish to be reckoned with in the big pond of premium vodkas. And you don’t have to swim upstream to enjoy it.