Rainbow Cocktails

We’ve had the rain, and plenty of it, but fortunately after the rain, comes the rainbow, and some well deserved sunshine and warmth.

Rainbows are optical illusions, symbolising peace or a new beginning; a sign of good luck and fortune on its way.

With that in mind, a ‘rainbow’ of fizzy cocktails should cheer us all up as spring begins to take hold, transforming our sodden landscape into something bright and beautiful.

I prefer my champagne unadulterated (sacrilegious to use it as a mixer), so I use a good quality brut cava or prosecco. If having a party you could provide the ingredients, all readily available in most supermarkets, allowing guests to have fun mixing their own.

The first recorded use of the word cocktail is thought to be in The Morning Post and Gazetteer in London, England on March 20, 1798, and the first publication of a bartenders' guide which included cocktail recipes was in 1862, giving 10 recipes for drinks referred to as "Cocktails".

The first "cocktail party" was allegedly given by Mrs. Julius S. Walsh Jr. of St. Louis, Missouri, in May 1917. She invited 50 guests to her home at noon on a Sunday. The party lasted an hour, until lunch was served at 1 pm.

In all cases I would recommend adding between 25cl. and 50cl. (according to taste) of each of the key ingredients listed to a champagne flute, simply topping up with sparkling wine, garnishing as you see fit.

RED – CHERRY BRANDY

The Crown Inn, Sarre, a pub in the heart of Kent cherry-growing country, launched a cocktail called 'By`George' to toast the birth of Prince George of Cambridge.

Locally, the pub is known as The Cherry Brandy House because of its secret recipe for cherry brandy brought over by the Huguenots fleeing religious persecution in France under Louis XIV. It was acquired by distiller Thomas Grant who began making liqueurs in Kent in 1774. Grant’s Morella Cherry Brandy was a favourite with Queen Victoria, holds a Royal Warrant from the Prince of Wales and is mentioned by Charles Dickens in The Pickwick Papers. If you have difficulty obtaining this, just use any other cherry brandy. It can also be served over ice, and garnished with a cherry.

ORANGE – BUCK'S FIZZ or MIMOSA

This cocktail is frequently on offer as part of popular Sunday brunches - part breakfast, part lunch, a good excuse for indulgence. Made by mixing 2/3 freshly squeezed orange juice to 1/3 champagne, it is named after London's Buck's Club, where it was invented as an excuse to begin drinking early, by barman Mc Garry in 1921. He also features in the works of P.G. Wodehouse as the barman of Buck's Club. and the Drones Club. The true recipe, which includes more than just champagne and orange juice, is only known by the barmen of Buck's Club. The Mimosa, invented in Paris four years later, also contains sparkling wine and orange juice, but in equal measures.

YELLOW – LIMONCELLO

Many of us who have visited Italy will have sampled Limoncello, and it should come as no surprise that a cocktail has been invented using this popular liqueur. For each serving place a strip of lemon peel in the glass and ½ tsp. fresh lemon juice, before adding the Limoncello.

GREEN – MIDORI MELON LIQUEUR

Spring is the time when the wedding season kicks off, and the bright green colour of this cocktail should help put a spring in the step of any young bride-to-be if served at a hen party.

Adding just a dash of lime juice will take the edge off the sweetness, and garnish with a sprig of mint.

BLUE - CURACAO

The flavour of this orange liqueur derives from the dried peel of the laraha citrus fruit, and gets its name from the island of Curacao where it is grown; a descendant of the Valencia oranges brought to Curacao in the 1500s by Spanish explorers. It is too bitter to be eaten, but in making the liqueur the peel is dried, releasing its sweetly fragrant essential oils.

INDIGO – WILD BLUEBERRY
This liqueur, made from a mixture of wild and cultivated fruit, is made locally by Lyme Bay Winery and provides an interesting new take on the traditional kir, made with cassis, that is so popular, giving a lovely purple hue. Why not plonk a few fresh blueberries in the glass first?



VIOLET – PARFAIT AMOUR
Nicely finishing off our rainbow, a cocktail made from Parfait Amour, the dark purple liqueur with a complex flavour of rose and violet petals, vanilla, orange peel and almonds. Adding it to sparkling wine turns the colour a fetching shade of pale violet. It is popular served at weddings, adding a festive feel to the occasion. As an alternative you could use Crème de Violette, used to flavour drinks for centuries.

.