Category Archives: Cocktails & Recipes

Boiled Slivovitz or Sumadija Tea

Sumadijski caj

Boiled Slivovitz

Ingredients: 1/2 cup sugar, 1 1/2 cups rakija and 3 cups water

Directions:  pour the sugar into a medium stainless-steel pot and watch carefully. Once it turns brown, remove it from the heat with great care, stand back and pour in the rakija and water. The sugar will harden and some of the liquid may explode out of the pot, so be careful! Return the pot to the heat and watch until it comes to a boil and the sugar has melted completely. Serve hot or warm.

Most people prefer to drink rakia heated during the cold winter months. The recipe is simple but it has to be done in a precise way to get the distinct flavours and also requires constant attention.

Spiced Brandy – Pear Punch Recipe

by chow.com

pear brandy

This punch uses the flavors of pears, cinnamon, and brandy to create a cocktail that screams autumn. It’s slightly fizzy from the pear cider, has a touch of sweet spice from the cinnamon schnapps, and has a gentle bite from the Courvoisier. Serve it up or enjoy over ice at a Thanksgiving gathering or Christmas party.

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 cups Courvoisier, chilled
  • 4 cups 100 percent pear juice, such as Knudsen or Santa Cruz, chilled
  • 1/2 cup cinnamon schnapps, such as Goldschläger
  • 4 (12-ounce) bottles hard pear cider, chilled
  • 1 ice block (optional)
  • 1 medium pear, cored and thinly sliced
INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Place the Courvoisier, pear juice, and cinnamon schnapps in a 5-quart punch bowl and stir to combine.
  2. Gently stir in the pear cider (do not overmix or your punch will be flat). Float the ice block in the punch and add the pear slices. (Alternatively, the ice block can be omitted and the punch served over ice.) Serve immediately.

Pear Ricky Cocktail

by discoginferno.wordpress.com

pear brandy

1½ ozs. dry pear brandy (birnebrande)

¼ large lime
Iced club soda
2 wedge slices fresh ripe pear
Put three ice cubes into 8-oz. glass. Add pear brandy. Squeeze lime above drink and drop into glass. Add soda. Stir. Fasten the pear slices to a cocktail spear and place across rim of glass. Munch pear piecemeal while you drink.

For this recipe I used Okanagan Spirits Poire Williams Pear Brandy, which I picked up on a recent tour of their Vernon distillery.

This is a very refreshing summer drink, light and dry and aromatic. The delightful pear flavour of the Poire Williams shines through, but is also nicely balanced by the lime. This is one I will definitely make again.

The Rickey dates back to the late 19th century, but the PH&BB is the earliest reference I’ve found so far to the pear variety. It shows up a few places online, occasionally calling specifically for ½ oz. lime juice, and sometimes including a bit of simple syrup.