Happy Birthday, Blog!

Tempered Spirits is officially one year old! Huzzah! Cue the music!

The site has come a long way since the first post, which covered the Martini, and to celebrate the fact that the blog has survived a trip around the sun — I’ve never been one for keeping journals, logs, or web sites — I mixed up a new drink that’s fresh out of Seattle and perfect for long, hot summer afternoons. Let the cocktail remain ever-green!

Evergreen Swizzle

1 1/2 ounces Edinburgh Gin
1/2 ounce Yellow Chartreuse
1/2 ounce Zirbenz Pine Liqueur
1/2 ounce Fresh Lime Juice
1/2 ounce Simple Syrup

Shake with ice, then pout into a Collins glass filled with crushed ice. Stir with a spoon or swizzle with a swizzle stick, top off with more crushed ice, and garnish with a sprig of rosemary. Serve with a sip-spoon or a straw.

Tall, cold, and herbaceous, with the perfect amount of sweetness, the Evergreen Swizzle is built for long-term sipping. As a bit of a birthday present (for the site, you understand) I picked up a bottle of Edinburgh gin (dig the Art Deco bottle), allowing me to make the drink as the estimable Jamie Boudreau intended. In a way, the E.S. reminds me of the Last Word transformed into a tall drink, though the maraschino is nixed in favor of Zirbenz, emphasizing the gin’s pine notes. Pine liqueur is interesting stuff, should you be able to locate it — it’s not nearly as “piney” as gin — juniper can get rather harsh; instead, it has a kind of nutty, resin-like flavor combined with the sweetness of a liqueur, not to mention a beautiful, reddish amber color, which turns drinks pink (combine it with gin and citrus and you have a drink that’s sure to please).

There you have it: a short, celebratory post. ‘Scuse me while I sip my swizzle in the shade.

—

Photos by IJL.

—

PS: As you know by now, I’m a big fan of the Small Screen Network and their cocktail shows, and Robert Hess and his videos played a major role in my cocktail education (searching for the perfect margarita recipe is what lead me to them, initially). That being said, I find it fitting that we celebrate the anniversary of the blog with a drink pulled from SSN’s catalogue. I hate to sound like I’m plugging the site, but I really am enthusiastic and grateful.

—