On this side of the planet, holiday parties are starting to kick off. It’s great – you get to relax with people you work alongside all year. You get see friends that you are always too busy to hang out with the rest of the year. Maybe you are just in a cocoon at home by yourself, which is also great.
All that said, there are a lot of opportunities to drink too much. Regardless of the occasion, we have a cocktail for you and this is where Fonseca White Port comes into play! The movement towards no- and low-alcohol cocktails continues to have a hold on the drink making and drink drinking communities. By using White Port as the base of this cocktail, immediately the alcohol percentage is pulled back.
There is a perfect balance of acidity and sweetness in Fonseca White Port and so for this drink I stuck to grapes (brandy) and things that compliment the stewed apple and bright nectarine notes in the port (cinnamon, cranberries).
Despite the fact that there is a pretty great indie rock band with the same name, Golden Curtain got this name because of the colour of the drink as well as the filter that I swear they put over the lenses in every Christmas movie.
GOLDEN CURTAIN
2oz Fonseca White Port
0.5oz French Brandy
0.25oz Simple Syrup (1:1)
3 crushed Cranberries
Drop your cranberries in your mixing glass. Pop and crush them with your muddler (be careful not to also pop and crush your mixing glass). Add all liquid ingredients and fill the mixing glass with ice. Stir for about 30 seconds and strain into a chilled cocktail coupe. Garnish with grated cinnamon and another cranberry.
Note: Cranberries on their own don’t taste like much of anything except for “sour” so even though we are adding a cranberry as garnish, maybe don’t bite into it until after the drink is finished…or at all.
