Lovely Lillet

I have a confession to make; I don’t have a bar. It’s true. The only alcohol floating around my home at the moment is a bottle of vodka. I just don’t have the room. So, when I get the urge to try something new, I’ll give any bottle I buy a good home at the DnU HQ, in care of Fervere. And that’s what I did when I purchased a bottle of Lillet.

I was looking for wine, one day, for my aunt’s holiday party when I came across this very interesting bottle. I’d never heard of Lillet before but I was lured by its label design and yellow-pinkish color, and ok, the price was right. I’ve since seen it on the web for $17.

Fast-forward to a fabulous barbecue last weekend at the DnU HQ. In my pocket, three recipes for Lillet cocktails. Instead of going to some book or googling for ideas, I asked my fellow cocktail-loving tweeters for some ideas. The first suggestion was by @Fbombedgirls: A simple and refreshing drink using Lillet.

Fashionably Bombed Lillet Spritzer

• 1 part Lillet Blanc
• 1 part fresh lime juice
• 2 parts seltzer
• cubed ice to fill cup

Fill cup with ice, add lime juice and Lillet, and top with seltzer.

Don’t be fooled by the umbrella. It was clean, crisp, and perfect for the 90-degrees-plus day.

After some charred flesh, with nighttime creeping in, I ordered a cocktail suggested by @MyAmericanDram: A modified Negroni with Lillet instead of vermouth. One problem—no Campari. But that didn’t stop Fervere and me from brainstorming. Instead of Campari, we used Cointreu. With some modifications, Fervere made a drink, which I named:

Demeter’s Dream

• 2 part gin, in this case Bombay Sapphire
• 1 part Lillet Blanc
• 1 part Cointreu
• 1 part seltzer
• cubed ice to fill cup

Fill cup with ice, add gin, Lillet, and Cointreu, and top with seltzer. Note: A classic Negroni, even one substituting Lillet for the vermouth, would not be served over ice, but this was a day spent in the sun at a barbecue, so we kept the ice in, so Melba wouldn’t dehydrate.

This was very strong but it was very, very good. It was a mix of three delicately-flavored liquors, and none overpowered the others. There was no strong alcohol-burn, and the hint of honey and citrusy note surprised me. The big mistake was making it to fill the same 12-ounce cup as above. It was just too much. Such a delicate, but high-octane, cocktail belonged in a martini glass or a highball.

Unfortunately, I did not get to @TheMartiniDiva’s cocktail suggestion: The Vesper, the classic James Bond cocktail but, to tell you the truth, I probably wouldn’t have survived it.

The Vesper

• 3 oz. London dry gin
• 1 oz. vodka
• 1/2 oz. Lillet Blanc
• enough ice to fill 1/3 of a French shaker

Combine all ingredients in a French shaker, and shake, of course. Strain into Martini glass and add lemon twist garnish. Note: Most recipe books will call for Kina Lillet, but this hasn’t been made for over 25 years. Get over it, and use the Blanc.

After this weekend, I would absolutely recommend adding Lillet to one’s bar for experimentation. I was worried that it was going to be one of those dusty bottles of booze, never used at the back of the cabinet, but when I saw the bottle was suspiciously 3/4 empty before I came to the barbecue, that fear went away.