Sharkbait’s Cocktail of the Week: Happy Festivus

Happy Festivus! I’ve got a lotta problems with you people, and now you’re gonna hear about it!

That’s a lie. I have no problem with you fine folks. It’s just a really good line, and needed to be said. Today, I’m bringing you another seasonal cocktail. This one is from a small gin distillery from Brighton, Sussex. I had it when I visited there in the before times. I never made it to the distillery, but had more than a few G&Ts using their local gin, and grabbed myself a bottle before we left. We’ve been rationing it since I don’t think it can be purchased stateside, so I still have plenty. When I saw their Instagram post about this drink, I knew I had to make it.

Santa’s Whiskers

50ml (1.69 [nice] oz.) Brighton Pavilion Gin

20ml (.67oz.) White (dry) vermouth

20ml (.67oz.) Red (sweet) vermouth

10ml (.33oz.) Triple sec (or pimp it up with Grand Marnier)

30ml (1.01oz.) Orange juice

Combine all ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Shake and finely strain into a chilled coupe glass. Run an orange peel around the rim of the glass and use as garnish.

I also added a cranberry as a little bit of a local seasonal flare. Plus I have a ton of them leftover from last week’s drink and need to use them. Plus it makes it look even more festive. Also for those that don’t have Brighton gin, a London dry gin will work as a replacement.

The aroma is very mild, but it does have a subtle orange scent thanks to the peel rubbed on the rim and dropped in the coupe. I’m a little surprised almost none of the gin comes through. Though the Pavilion gin is a bit lighter and softer than a normal gin, so it would appear the softness has a hard time cutting through other ingredients in a cocktail.

This is excellent. It starts out with the orange juice base, but the twin vermouths and the gin keep it from going too far over the top with juice flavor. The more sips you take, you can start to pick up deeper flavors added by the vermouths and the gin. Those flavors really keep this one on the drier side, which I like. Another facet of this cocktail that I like a lot is just how drinkable it is. You can tell there is booze in it, but it doesn’t hit hard at all. You could easily have 2 or three of these in one sitting. I’d even serve this to a person who says they don’t like gin and see what they say about it after the fact.

I highly recommend making this for any seasonal parties you may be hosting. It’s easy, tasty and festive. All the things you want this time of year. If you’ll excuse me, I have a pole I need to get out of the crawl space. Happy weekend and Happy Christmas to you all!

(Banner image courtesy Matthew Tetrault Photography)