The Sweet Tart!

So every once in a while, mistakes are made. I will get suckered in by some cool packaging, a nifty ad campaign or a good sale and end up buying a mistake. Vermouth, mixers, liquors clutter up my 2nd cocktail cart and gather dust in their dark cave of uselessness.

But rather than admit defeat, I look for ways to use, abuse or re-create the mistake into a tasty cocktail concoction.

Last night, as I was making Adam his nightly cocktail, inspiration struck. I had this bottle of vodka mixed with calvados. Sounds like it would be good? Not really. But I pour a hefty amount in the shaker anyway. What could I mix it with to make it more palatable? Apple cider first came to mind. The weather has had an unseasonable chilly and fall drinks have been on my mind. But that would require a 1am trip to he deli, and I wasn’t in the mood. Besides, that would be too easy. I like the challenge of making something out of whatever we have on hand. Looking down at our bar cart, I see the small bottle of family made bootleg Calvados from France that Adam received from his last employer.

Just a dash of that goes in the shaker. Its like moonshine and too good to waste if the drink is a dud. The fumes rising from the shaker tell me its is strong enough, now to round out the flavors. Some Grand Marnier goes in, as does the juice of one lemon. Wow! That is tart! Ok…some sweetness is in order. I was about to reach for the agave, when I saw another mistake in the fridge.

V8 Tropical Twister should have been easy to pass on, the color alone looks like nothing in nature. But it was purchased during the humid spell we had last week and I was craving juice to quench my endless thirst. It was too sweet to drink straight, but it just might do the trick for this drink. In the shaker it goes...

The result? A perfect Sweet Tart! Poured into my vintage champagne coups it looked like a beautiful late summer rose. The flavor was bright and strong. Even Adam declared it a success!

Mistakes can be magic!