RITE OF SPRING

RITE OF SPRING

2 measures vodka

1 measure green Curacao

4 measures lemonade

Lemon rind for garnish

In honor of Earth Day and Springtime — and despite the fact that it is 42 degrees and snow is in the forecast for tomorrow —I had to try a RITE OF SPRING cocktail. But to make it, I first needed to find the Green Curacao called for in the recipe. The book I got it from (750 Cocktails) said that Green Curacao would be hard to find, and it was right. Though Blue Curacao is in every liquor store in town, the green version was nowhere to be found.

Luckily, I talked to right person at the grocery store. She told me that when she was a bartender, she would just put a few drops of yellow food coloring into Blue Curacao to get Green Curacao, since yellow plus blue equals green. Those skills you learn in Kindergarten remain useful for life. Since Curacao is a general term for orange-flavored liqueur made from dried oranges found on the Caribbean island of Curacao, all variations have the same, slightly bitter, flavor. There’s orange, blue, green and clear Curacao, but blue is the one I see most.

The beauty of the RITE OF SPRING cocktail extends beyond its green look. To make it, just put Green Curacao and vodka into a pitcher, fill it with ice, then stir briskly to chill. Strain the mix into a cocktail glass half-filled with ice and top it off with lemonade and a lemon rind, if so desired. I ended up squeezing some juice from a fresh lemon in as well.

The RITE OF SPRING cocktail was cool looking, but plain tasting, since neither vodka nor Curacao is very flavorful. Still, it’s a rare green cocktail that doesn’t taste like mint or melon. The RITE OF SPRING is beautiful in its smoothness and simplicity. It’s beautiful as you stir it to the perfect chill, and I am fond of cocktails that are stirred, not shaken. In the end, this cocktail is so pretty that it will make you want to tiptoe through the tulips — with a RITE OF SPRING.

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie