Rhubarb Syrup: Old New York Cocktail

For our third drink to highlight the newly made rhubarb syrup, we tried the Old New York Cocktail. It was on the 2009 summer menu at Barrio in Tucson, Arizona, and I stumbled on the recipe on the Chanticleer Society's website. There are several recipes there that use rhubarb, some calling for raw rhubarb that will be muddled, which sounds interesting. Unfortunately, and fortunately, I have this syrup to use up and will save those recipes for later.

Old New York Cocktail

1 1/2 ounces Bols genever
1 ounce dry vermouth (Noilly Prat)
1/2 ounce rhubarb syrup
1 dash peach bitters

Shake ingredients in an ice-filled shaker
Strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Garnish with a lime twist

The contrast of the vibrant green twist against the delicate pink creates a striking first impression. The lime oils dominate the aroma, though there is no mistaking the malty juniper of the genever. The ingredients of the cocktail as a whole smelled pleasantly of grapefruit. The initial taste was dominated by the peach bitters, which was not what I was expecting with the citrus aroma in my nose. This was a very pleasing surprise. The juniper of the genever creeps in soon after and provides a backdrop to the other flavors. A citrus-like flavor is also present, which we ascribed to the rhubarb, kind of tricking our mouths. The maltiness of the genever lingers, as well as the light flavor of the grapes of the vermouth. The finish was a little tart and dry in a very pleasing way. The drink had a nice sweetness to it, though it was not in any way cloying; the dry vermouth does a good job of balancing out the syrup. Tracy and I were both very enamored with this drink. It was tasty, balanced and well-crafted--by far our favorite of the rhubarb drinks.

Rhubarb Syrup: Chardon

I first saw our next drink, the Chardon, in a write up on the Class of 2010 Bar Stars in the San Francisco Chronicle on May 16. The article shines the spotlight on five outstanding bartenders in San Francisco. This drink is a creation of Jose Zepeda at RN74. The combination of rhubarb syrup with Cynar piqued my interest. Sometimes that is all that is necessary.

Chardon

1 1/2 ounces gin (Hendricks) 

1/2 ounce Cynar

1/2 ounce lemon juice

3/4 ounce rhubarb syrup

Shake ingredients in an ice-filled shaker.

Double-strain into a chilled cocktail glass

Garnish with a lemon twist

The aroma of this drink is full of the bright citrus flavor of the lemon and the cucumber flavors of the Hendricks. The most distinctive flavor on first taste is from the gin, which makes sense since it was so recognizable in the nose. The citrus then takes over. The drink is quite tart, though I am not sure if due completely to the lemon or if the rhubarb is also playing a part. I was quite surprised by the level of tartness as I figured the half ounce of lemon juice would be more than balanced by the three-quarters ounce of syrup with the sweetness of the Cynar in addition. If anything I would have guessed that the flavors might have wavered out of balance on the too-sweet side, but that is definitely not the case. Tracy pointed out that my lemon might have been extremely sour, and that definitely would be possible. The herbal flavors of the amaro come into play on the swallow, which is quite dry. There is a lingering flavor of dried fruits, an almost raisiny taste, though I am not quite sure what is making this occur. The texture of the drink is much richer than a conventional gin sour--unless you are using gomme syrup--and I have this feeling that the pectin from rhubarb might be the culprit. As the drink warms, the rhubarb becomes more apparent, though not overly so. All in all, this is a very fine pink gin sour. I think that the drink was a bit unbalanced in favor of tartness, but on a hot sunny day that might be just what is needed. 

Rhubarb Season: The Syrup

Every year Tracy and I eagerly await the sight of rhubarb at the farmer's market to herald in the spring. Those bright red stalks with their slightly webbed tops have become a beacon for the coming bounty of artichokes and asparagus to be followed, finally, by summer. Warmer temperatures and that trick of light that some call sunshine are surely on their way, though off somewhere in the distance. We both love rhubarb. Rhubarb crisp, rhubarb sorbet, rhubarb pickles, all things rhubarb are celebrated in our kitchen. This year, I am going to get in on the action, and as a generous coworker recently brought us an obscene amount of chopped rhubarb, three projects are in order. Phase one is rhubarb syrup. Making rhubarb syrup is actually much easier than some of the other syrups I have made. In fact, if someone has already broken down the rhubarb stalks into bite-size chunks, it is scandalously easy.

What you need:

• 1 3/4 cups chopped rhubarb* (1/2-inch chunks)

• 1/2 cup sugar

• 5 ounces water

• pinch of salt

• 1/2 ounce 80 proof vodka (optional)

Preparation:

Add rhubarb, water and sugar to a pan. Bring mixture to a boil and then simmer covered for 30 minutes, stirring every 5 or 10 minutes. After 30 minutes, let cool (still covered). Strain through a fine sieve, using a spoon to extract as much of the liquid from the pulp as possible. Pour into a sealable bottle. Optional: add 1/2 oz vodka to stabilize the mixture for longer storage. Keep refrigerated.

(recipe adapted from cocktailvirgin's blog)

*Note: I like my rhubarb syrup to retain some of its characteristic tartness. If you like it sweeter, use less rhubarb or more sugar.  

The first cocktail that we tried using our syrup is also from cocktailvirgin's blog, called the Final Rhuse, which is a variation on the Last Word.

Final Rhuse

 3/4 ounce pisco
3/4 ounce yellow chartreuse
3/4 ounce rhubarb syrup
3/4 ounce lime juice

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Wow is this drink pink—watermelon, pink flamingo pink. The aroma is very herbal, from the chartreuse, though there is a hint of the pisco's smokiness, too. The tanginess of the rhubarb comes across first, followed the lime flavors, which dominate most of the drink. The herbal character of the chartreuse reappears on the swallow while the grape flavors of the pisco and its funkiness linger on the palate. This drink is quite refreshing and a perfect summer cocktail. Tracy though that a thyme garnish would be an appropriate addition to really accentuate the herbal aromas.