Julie Sopuck, general manager of the Vancouver restaurant Burdock & Co, is behind this earthy, refreshing drink that features organic apple cider and honey. Organic cider is a source of antioxidants, vitamin C and potassium, while lime juice has vitamin C, too. Make your own honey syrup by combining two parts honey to one part water in a small saucepan. Simmer and stir until honey is dissolved. Cool and store in fridge in an airtight container.
Make infused gin by adding 100 grams of Grand Fir tips to a 750 mL bottle of gin. Blend in blender on medium speed for 30 seconds and let infuse in fridge for 24 hours, then strain. The gin will thicken — “It’s a bit slimy,” Sopuck says — and turn green, but once it’s in a cocktail, no one will notice, she adds. Most importantly, you must use just the tips, that first spring growth, not the older branches, for the right flavour. You can use the tips from other fir or spruce trees.
Or, if that’s too much work, try a commercial brand such as Stump Coastal Forest Gin from Phillips Fermentorium in Victoria, B.C. And the name Abies Grandis? It refers to a type of fir tree found in the Pacific Northwest.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ oz. grand fir tip-infused gin
- 1 oz. organic, unfiltered apple cider
- ½ oz. lime juice
- ¼ oz. Lifford apricot liqueur
- ¼ oz. honey syrup
Shake and double strain into a coupe. Serves one.
