Reba McEntire Cocktail Recipe

The Reba McEntire cocktail is a bittersweet, tropical riff on a basic, combining Westward American single malt whiskey, pineapple-infused Campari, candy vermouth, and some drops of absinthe.

This authentic cocktail was created at Portland, Oregon restaurant G-Love by beverage director Quintin Scalfaro. “It’s primarily a Boulevardier, which is a whiskey-based riff on a Negroni,” he says.

The Boulevardier originated in Twenties Paris and noticed a spike in recognition after it was included in Harry MacElhone’s 1927 ebook Barflies and Cocktails. Nevertheless it was largely forgotten for 80s years, in contrast to its rye whiskey (and dry vermouth) counterpart, the Outdated Pal, which remained common by means of the mid-century. 

A standard Boulevardier is made with bourbon, Campari and candy vermouth. Whereas some recipes name for the substances in equal proportions, just like the Negroni, many others enhance the quantity of bourbon to amplify the whiskey qualities, as this variation does with American single malt.

This drink is called for the fiery, redheaded “Queen of Nation Music,” Reba McEntire, little doubt due to its vibrant candy-apple hue.

Why does the Reba McEntire cocktail work?

Cocktails just like the Negroni, Boulevardier and Outdated Pal, made with so few substances, rely closely on the standard of the substances used. Due to their easy builds, these drinks are additionally bartender favorites to riff on. A slight tweak to one of many conventional spirits usually leads to a profoundly completely different drink.

On this Boulevardier variation, Scalfaro swaps bourbon for Westward Whiskey Unique, the model’s flagship American single malt expression. Produced from malted barley grown within the Pacific Northwest as an alternative of bourbon’s majority corn mash invoice, this whiskey renders a really completely different taste profile: barely much less candy with wealthy fruit notes and a toasty high quality.

To rework this easy cocktail riff right into a shiny, Tiki-inspired creation, Scalfaro revamps bittersweet Campari aperitivo liqueur with recent pineapple in a two-day infusion. This fruity metamorphosis helps to convey out the tropical notes within the whiskey.

“Westward Unique harmonized so effectively with the bitter taste of Campari, however it’s the coconut, vanilla, and stonefruit notes within the whiskey that make it ideally suited to show this basic cocktail into an ‘aperitiki’ sipper,” says Scalfaro.

Wealthy, herbaceous candy vermouth provides complexity and additional notes of dried fruit and vanilla. And the few drops of absinthe lend simply sufficient botanical notes of anise and licorice to combine the tropical flavors within the whiskey and Campari.