Will taste as good. Or better.
Especially if its name is "Provence," as in the southern France region, and it’s shaken up by the bartender at La Marmotte in Telluride, Colorado.
Last week on a particularly cold, blustery night, I arrived at La Marmotte craving a “warming” cocktail. No gin ‘n tonic night, this. Even my usual Campari & Soda seemed too summery and too “Mediterranean.” The last item on La Marmotte’s specialty cocktail menu got my attention real fast. The Provence: Maker’s Mark Bourbon, fresh lemonade, fresh lemon juice, ginger simple syrup. Served on the rocks in a low-ball glass, it was divine, lip-smacking divine.
It never occurred to me that this was a from-yonder-year "whiskey sour" until one of my friends took a sip and proclaimed it such. Some thirty years ago I was a whiskey sour kinda girl. Loved ‘em. Have vivid, and, I might add, endearing memories of whiskey sours that I bought in the late ‘70s at Carl’s Pharmacy in Aspen Colorado. Canned whiskey sours. From a drugstore’s refrigerated case. How retro is that? How far away from today’s 20-buck Cosmos, celebrity mixologists, and Lagavulin snobbery?
But, alas, tastes evolve and I abandoned what the WSJ called “The Katherine Hepburn of Cocktails.” Now, after three decades and one "Provence" cocktail, I’m back on the whiskey sour train. I’ve searched out Ginger Simple Syrup – available on Amazon.com from Sonoma Syrup Company; and found a good recipe for homemade lemonade on AllRecipes.com. Simply Lemonade works well too. I find this version of the classic more interesting, more refreshing, and less boozy than the original. (Photo from the Wall Street Journal.)
Now, lest anyone think that I drank my dinner at La Marmotte, let me mention chef Mark Reggiannini’s sensational braised beef short ribs, fragrant from their winey bath, falling from the bone, and teamed with parmesan mashed potatoes and a snappy pistou of fresh basil and mint. And the savory Onion Goat Cheese Tart served with crispy bacon and carrot ginger sauce. And the heavenly gratin of heirloom tomatoes that was dotted with Roquefort cheese (and served with Hangar Steak au Poivre). For more about this Telluride eatery that’s been charming folks for more than 20 years, check out my earlier blog.
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