Collaborations can lead to such creative, layered results, like the recent gin release from Bay Shore’s Fear City Spirits with intuitive input from Greenport’s Matchbook Distilling. Not only is this excellent spirit a Long Island original, it uses locally sourced sugar kelp as one of the original botanicals in the mix.
But even collaborations lead to collaborations, like this lovely cocktail that uses Fear City’s spirited ingredient as the main event. “This particular recipe was a collaborative effort between my wife and me,” says Fear City Spirits owner Chris Davis. It hits all the right notes this time of year — herbaceousness from the gin and sage for garnish, a little late fall fandango via apple brandy, and some moody-fruity depth using muddled blackberries. It’s not a difficult drink to put together, but those extra little layers of flavor make all the difference in taking this riff on a sour to a particularly punchy, alluring level.
You can nab a bottle directly from Fear City Spirits or, if you happen to be on the North Fork (day trip!), hit up Bogey’s Bottled Goods (54655 Main Road, Southold) for $39.99. Cin-cin!
Midnight Orchard
Ingredients
- 2 oz Fear City Gin
- 1 oz apple brandy, such as Laird's
- 1 oz blackberry syrup or muddled fresh blackberries
- 1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
- blackberries and a sprig of fresh sage, for garnish
Directions
- In a shaker with ice, add in the gin, yapplebrandy, lemon juice and blackberry syrup. Shake well, until very cold and frothy.
- Strain into a coupe glass and garnish with two blackberries on a skewer and a sage sprig. Cheers!
