And Now for Something Suze

Serve in a

Garnish:

Lemon zest twist (discarded) & fresh thyme sprig on floating dehydrated lemon wheel

How to make:

STIR all ingredients with ice and strain into chilled glass.

Recipe contains the following allergens:

• Strucchi Dry Vermouth – Sulphur Dioxide/Sulphites

Review:

Gary's original recipe for this dry and spirituous aperitif cocktail calls for Navy strength gin but we found it punchy enough with a gin at 40 – 43% alc./vol..

History:

Adapted from a recipe created in 2017 by Gary Elliott at Dorcol Distilling and Brewing Co., San Antonio, USA.

Gary's original recipe calls for Plymouth Navy strength gin, a "premium dry vermouth such as Carpano", Suze Suze gentian liqueur and Bigallet Thym. He says, "I fell in love with Suze at first taste. The full-bodied citrus and herbs and the long spicy, bitter finish had me! I frequently use it as a modifier to add richness and a little herbal bitterness to various cocktails. Almost a secret ingredient.

I created this cocktail to highlight the flavors of Suze. After trying multiple styles of gin, I settled on Navy Strength Plymouth Gin. Various London dries and Botanist were also very good. I further experimented with vermouth. Sweet vermouth alone does not work well. A premium dry or a "perfect" with dry and bianco are best. I've been making variations of this cocktail for a few years.

Only recently have I added Bigallet Thym. While totally optional, the Thym enhances the woody notes of the Suze and prolongs the herbal flavors into the finish. Just remember that the Thym is the modifier here. More than 3 or 4 drops will result in a powerful taste of thyme. The nose is lemon and faint herbs. The first flavors are herbal and a touch woody. Juniper follows with continued herbs and just a hint of thyme. The finish is herbal, spicy and clean."

Nutrition:

One serving of And Now for Something Suze contains 192 calories.

Alcohol content:

• 2 standard drinks
• 25.69% alc./vol. (51.38° proof)
• 27.6 grams of pure alcohol