You've made a roast fit for royalty and sides for days, so why not add a signature festive cocktail to your Christmas menu this year? At Tom Colicchio's Fowler & Wells, head bartender Christopher James is shaking up just what you need: a drink he calls the Cranble. Cranberries are muddled with gin, lemon juice and simple syrup for a drink that truly tastes like the holidays. The best part is the cranberry garnish that's dusted with confectioners’ sugar to resemble snow.
In this recipe, we use rich simple syrup, which is simply 2 parts sugar to 1 part water. The result is sweeter and more viscous, the perfect balance to tart cranberries.
To learn more, read “Fancy Feast.”
Cranberry Gin Cocktail
Recipe adapted from Christopher James, Fowler & Wells, New York, NY
Yield: 1 cocktail
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: N/A
Total Time: 5 minutes
Ingredients
1½ ounces Fords Gin
¾ ounce rich simple syrup (see headnote)
½ ounce fresh lemon juice
Crushed ice
7 fresh cranberries, divided
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
1 mint sprig, for garnish
Directions
1. In a cocktail shaker, combine the gin, rich simple syrup, lemon juice and 2 to 3 pieces of crushed ice. Shake vigorously, then pour ½ ounce of the mixture in the bottom of a rocks glass.
2. Add 4 of the cranberries to the glass and muddle well. Fill the glass with crushed ice and pour the remaining cocktail into the glass.
3. Top with even more crushed ice then garnish with the remaining cranberries. Dust the cranberries with confectioners’ sugar, then garnish with a mint sprig and serve.
