The first long weekend of summer is upon us in Canada and yes, that means it’s time to garden and barbeque. But it’s also time to sip drinks on the patio in the sun! Provided this seemingly endless stretch of rain breaks, you can find me in my backyard this weekend sipping this elderflower sidecar. It’s a CHOW recipe, and there’s a comment on their site that questions the authenticity of this as a sidecar. I’m not a sidecar purist and I didn’t care to debate it after I tasted it. It’s delicious, floral and speaking as someone who prefers a bitter cocktail, it’s not too sweet at all.
My bottle of elderflower liqueur was smuggled in from the US last year, but for those for those of you in Toronto, the LCBO finally carries St. Germain now. I highly recommend grabbing a bottle, it’s worth it just for its looks. Aside from cocktails like this, it’s nice sipped on its own and a splash at the bottom of sparkling wine is an easy apéritif.
1 part freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 parts brandy
3 parts St-Germain* elderflower liqueur
Ice