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This May 24 long weekend, dont settle for the standard 2-4 of lager. Instead, step up your fancy cocktail game with two special recipes from Whitney Rorison, co-author of Craft Cocktails and hospitality manager of Dillons Small Batch Distillers.

The Tea Party is the perfect cocktail for brunch if youre tired of the old mimosa, says Rorison. Plus, its so fitting for a weekend that celebrates Queen Victoria. You can use either gin or vodka depending on your preference, along with some of your favourite Earl Grey tea, simple syrup, fresh lemon juice, bitters and lavender. Its even one of those drinks that you can prepare ahead of time and chill in the fridge if youd rather have a lie-in on the long weekend.

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This is the ultimate spring cocktail using fresh rhubarb, says Rorison. It takes a bit more time to prepare as you need to make a rhubarb syrup and candied rhubarb garnish (completely optional garnish option, though), but the flavour combinations and taste are unbelievable. The Rhubarb Sour is gin-based, but you can easily sub in vodka, and it has the most refreshingly sweet but not-too-sweet taste. I would drink these all year if rhubarb was available in the dead of winter!

1. Prepare the candied rhubarb. Preheat the oven to 440 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Trim the ends off the rhubarb stalks, wash them (but dont dry them), and cut them into finger-length pieces. Pour the sugar onto a small plate. While the rhubarb pieces are still damp, roll them in the sugar, making sure that they are covered evenly. Arrange the sugar-coated rhubarb on the baking sheet, leaving space between each piece. Bake for 1 hour, or until almost all of the liquid from the rhubarb has evaporated and the stalks start to look crisp. Let cool on the baking sheet. The rhubarb pieces can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

3. Make the rhubarb syrup. Combine the rhubarb, sugar and water in a medium pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Remove the pot from the heat and leave the rhubarb to steep in the liquid for at least 1 hour, pressing the rhubarb occasionally with a wooden spoon to extract additional flavour. Once cooled and steeped, the liquid should have a pink hue to it. Strain the syrup into an airtight container. Stored in the refrigerator, it will keep for up to 2 weeks.

4. Make the cocktail. Add the gin, syrup, lime juice and bitters to a cocktail shaker. Add the ice and shake for 10 to 15 seconds.

5. Strain the cocktail into a rocks glass or a mason jar filled with fresh ice. Top with soda water and garnish with a piece of the candied rhubarb.

Keep them simple and fun. Crafting cocktails at home should be easy and relaxed. If you have a well-stocked bar cart and some fresh citrus, fruit and fresh herbs at home, there are so many wonderful cocktails you can make. If the weather is warm, its the perfect way to spend a long weekend: enjoying a tasty bevvie outside in the sun. Gin and/or vodka with some muddled fruit and herbs in a highball with loads of ice and a topping of soda water or sparkling wine sounds pretty good for a relaxing long weekend.

Balance. Making sure that your cocktails have a good balance of flavours on the palate is the most important thing. Make sure you have a sour and/or bitter component, a sweet note, and you definitely want to taste the spirit in the drink, too. Having a nice versatile set of bitters at home is always a smart option; you can change the flavour and balance in a cocktail so easily with the additions of a few dashes of bitters.

A well-curated home bar should have the basic spirits and the ones you use most often: gin, vodka, whisky, some sort of aperitivo (like Aperol or Campari), vermouth (sweet and dry), a nice rum and a good tequila/mezcal, a few liqueurs like our Rose Gin, Cassis or a sweeter schnapps and bitters. For tools, you should invest in a few pieces like a jigger (to help measure), cocktail shaker and mixing glass (although even a mason jar can work in a pinch), some fun vintage-style glasses and cocktail picks for garnishes. A good peeler from the kitchen comes in handy too for citrus peel and twist garnishes, because you want the drink to look as good as it tastes!

Prepared cocktails, whether in a can or bottle, even in kegs are big right now. We released a bottled Negroni last year and its been so well received. We took a different approach with our first prepared cocktail and went down the stirred cocktail road, which you dont see as much of quite yet (there are so many great light spritzy ready-to-drinks on the market right now). A well-crafted, balanced RTD cocktail allows the consumer to enjoy the best of the best, without all the fuss or work. I also think we are going to see more cocktails with a drier, bitter or acidic flavour profilemore salty, umami-like vibes. I personally love cocktails that focus on deep flavours with less sweetness. Adding anise and fennel notes to cocktails with fruit or citrus, garnishing with coarse salt, something like that is what Id love to see.

Link:
Fancy Cocktails You Can Make at Home This Long Weekend - The Kit