3 Summer Cocktail Recipes Made with Milwaukee Spirits

The local baseball club won’t be changing its name. But almost overnight, Milwaukee has uncorked a craft distillery scene to complement its beer-brewing roots. When Great Lakes Distillery came fully online in 2006, the reward was Wisconsin’s first commercially produced spirits since Prohibition, a line that today includes vodka, gin, whiskey, rum and absinthe. Central Standard Craft Distillery joined the party in 2014, featuring gin, vodka and white whiskey. And late that same year came gin and rum from Twisted Path Distillery. We asked how they’d toast the summer. Audience participation is encouraged.

Twisted Daiquiri

• 2 ounces of Twisted Path Organic White Rum

• 3/4 ounce of fresh lime juice

• 3/4 ounce of simple syrup

• 7 drops of Bittercube Jamaican No. 1 Bitters

• 7 drops of Bittercube Jamaican No. 2 Bitters

Shake all ingredients on ice, then strain and serve.

“A lot of people have never had a daiquiri that’s not from a mix bottle. This is the real deal.”- Brian Sammons, Twisted Path owner/distiller

Ruby Soho

• 2 ounces of Rehorst

• Barrel Reserve Gin

• 1 ounce of fresh grapefruit juice

• 

  1/2 ounce of fresh lime juice

• 3/4 ounce of Chambord raspberry liqueur

• 1/4 ounce of Campari liqueur

• 1 ounce of club soda

Shake all ingredients except club soda with ice. Strain onto fresh ice in a Collins glass and top with club soda. Garnish with a grapefruit twist.

“It’s not one where the gin is going to be front and center, but it’s kind of the backbone that makes it work.” Matt Tunnell, assistant manager, Great Lakes tasting room

Walker’s Point Sling

• 1 1/2 ounces of Central Standard White Whiskey

• 1/2 ounce of fresh lime juice

• 

  1 ounce of turmeric ginger- infused simple syrup*

• 3 drops of Bittercube Bolivar Bitters

• 1 drop of Bittercube Orange Bitters

Shake well with ice, top with club soda and ginger beer, and serve in a Collins glass. Garnish with a lime wedge and a maraschino cherry.

*To make turmeric-ginger simple syrup, steep 4 teaspoons of Rishi turmeric ginger tea in 32 ounces of boiling water for five to six minutes, then remove the tea and add 32 ounces of sugar to the water. Let the sugar dissolve and the water cool.

“The turmeric plays really well with the ginger beer. It’s not overpowering. And with our whiskey a bit more on the sweet side, it mellows out any overpowering spiciness from the ginger beer.” – Edgar Perez, general manager, Central Standard tasting room

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‘In the Spirits of Summer’ appears in the June 2015 issue of Milwaukee Magazine.
Purchase a copy on newsstands at one of 400+ locations throughout Wisconsin.

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