Sharkbait’s Cocktail of the Week: Taking a gamble

So it’s school vacation this week, so House Sharkbait has been busier than usual with both kids around full time. Thankfully I was able to take a couple days off from work and we decided to head down to the Cape for a longer weekend while the kids were off.

While I like to think the bar at the Cape is well stocked, it’s not as diversely supplied at home so my options for cocktails have been somewhat limited. Mostly the stuff for variations of martinis and the like. I did discover an older bottle of Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur, which sparked some research into using that. I found a recipe for a Casino and went for it. The unfortunate thing is, it turns out after I had finalized my summary of the drink, I discovered I already made this. Granted it was way back in 2023, but still, I’m not one to repeat drinks, but in this case, I’ve got no choice.

Casino 

1.5 oz Gin
0.75 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
0.5 oz Lemon Juice
2 dashes Orange Bitters
Luxardo Maraschino Cherries garnish
Lemon Peel garnish

Pour all ingredients into a mixing glass with plenty of ice. Stir until the drink is well-chilled. Strain into a coupe or Nick and Nora glass. Garnish with a Maraschino cherry and lemon peel.

Cherry nose for sure. Been a while since I’ve used luxardo liqueur, forgot how strong it is. I was hoping for a bit more lemon. Maybe it’ll come through in the flavors

It certainly does, though not as much as I’d hoped. It starts out very citrus forward, but the luxardo can’t be held back for too long before it starts to dominate the palate. It’s not terrible, but I think it’s a little much for me.

The dry gin is completely covered by the lemon and the luxardo. If you didn’t tell me gin was in this, I don’t know if I would be able to tell what the base spirit is at work here. Though Im thinking that’s the point. The two powerful flavors in the lemon and the liqueur would be hard to overcome, even with the most formidable bases.

The finish is a combination of lemon and cherry flavors, with a little aftertaste from the lemon, as well as a slight palate coat from the luxardo

While good, I don’t know how often ill come back to this. The cherry liqueur is a bit too strong for me, and the residual flavor is a little too much. It was a good break from having a regular dry martini that I’ve been enjoying recently

(Banner image courtesy Matthew Tetrault Photography)