Cocktail of the month: sherry cooler

I'm a little bit late getting this post up. Eat Cambridge was so delightful and so busy I haven't had a moment to get my Flavour ramblings down on the page. I'm going to be tying those pieces much more closely to the blog from now on so expect to see more "Cocktail of the Month" blog posts as they come up on Flavour. Don't forget to tune in or subscribe to the podcast, it's lots of fun to chat directly to you.

This month I had a great chat with Alan Alder about sherry and how it might be possible to use it in a light summer cocktail. I do love a good sherry, particularly the light crisp Finos and Manzanillas. At first I thought it might be sacrilege to mix sherry with anything as vulgar as water but with a little bit of research I discovered that sherry has formed the basis of many punches and cobblers throughout cocktail history. Another newsflash for me was that sherry in combination with 7up/sprite (a Rebujito) is an extremely popular drink in Spain. All things considered it was time to try my own version.

When I first started experimenting with this drink, elderflower was just beginning to show its pretty face in the hedgerows near me. By now it should be in full bloom. It really is the perfect time to make some elderflower cordial or perhaps some elderflower liqueur. Or you could just be lazy, like I was this time, and buy some; I won't judge. Either way you need some for this drink.

I was quite surprised just how delicious this drink was when I tried it. The delicious flavour of the sherry comes through but it's well balanced by the lemon and elderflower. It's light and refreshing, the perfect drink for a sunny day in the garden. I'd highly recommend scaling the proportions and making a big jug.

sherry cooler (serves one)

100mL fino sherry

25mL eldeflower cordial

30mL freshly squeezed lemon juice

ice

sparkling water

mint, lemon balm leaves or elderflower blossom to garnish

Combine the sherry, cordial and lemon juice in your glass of choice. Taste at this point and add more lemon juice or cordial as needed. Add plenty of ice and top up with sparkling water. Add any pretty garnishes you have handy.