A Dinner Party with Fonseca Siroco

Ever since the weather has gotten warmer, I've been looking forward to enjoying dinners on our porch and in our backyard. Usually it's just my husband and I taking advantage of these springtime evenings, but I've always thought an outdoor party with friends would be a lot of fun. So when I was invited to host a dinner party with cocktails made with the Fonseca Siroco White Port, I jumped at the chance to throw the backyard soiree I'd always wanted. I had big plans: white tablecloths, candles, cafe lights, flowers, the works.

Then it rained.

Looking on the bright side, at least this meant we didn't need to carry all our food and supplies down three flights of stairs. It did mean a bit of frantic apartment cleaning and shoving baby gear into closets. But that evening, our friends braved the weather and joined us for a beautiful dinner party with Portuguese food, cocktails, and plenty of Fonseca Siroco.



Let's quickly talk about Port, since it's not something I've used in any recipes on the blog yet. Port is a fortified wine made in the Douro Valley of Portugal. Fortified means that a distilled spirit has been added to the wine, which increases its alcohol content, extends its shelf life and affects its flavor. Other common fortified wines are vermouth, sherry and Madeira. Fonseca is one of the most widely available brands of Port, and their products are consistently very high quality.

When you think of Port, you probably picture a red Port like a tawny or ruby port, which are quite sweet and typically enjoyed after a meal. But white Port like the Fonseca Siroco is generally quite dry. Fonseca Siroco is crisp, fruity, and bright, perfect as an aperitif or with a meal. It's also fantastic in cocktails. The simplest option is just to mix it with tonic water and serve it with a slice of lemon, as it is commonly served in Portugal. Using it instead of vermouth is another easy way to work it into some of your favorite recipes.



For my Port 'n' Party, I made two cocktails with the Fonseca Siroco that I batched ahead of time so I wouldn't be mixing while my guests were here. The first was a simple spritz made with white Port, Aperol, club soda, and an orange slice. Bright, citrusy and just a bit bitter, it made a great pairing for appetizers. For the second cocktail, I wanted to make something more spirit-forward but still appropriate for spring, so I made a martini with gin, white Port, St. Germain, and chamomile citrus bitters. I absolutely love this one - it's just the kind of cocktail I enjoy sipping on. The St. Germain lends this drink a bit of floral sweetness, but it's still dry enough to have before dinner. We also made some white Port and tonics. The recipes for all three cocktails are below!



For dinner, we had Arroz de Tamboril, a rice stew made with monkfish and shrimp that reminded me a lot of the Shrimp Creole we make at home in Louisiana. It's easy to prepare and great for a crowd. Dessert was Serradura, a spectacularly simple combo of sweetened whipped cream and shortbread cookie crumbs. Both recipes came from The Girl Loves to Eat. Our friend Chris of Socktails also brought Pasteis de Nata, which are amazing Portuguese custard tarts. We had plenty of Fonseca Siroco with dinner, and it paired very nicely with the seafood. It had been a long time since we had hosted a party like this one, and we really enjoyed the excuse to get together with friends, even if it was indoors! Maybe a garden party will have to happen later on in the summer. There will definitely be Port cocktails involved.

White Port and Tonic

1 1/2 oz. Fonseca Siroco White Port

3 oz. tonic water

Build in a glass over ice, stir gently, and garnish with a lemon slice.

Porto Spritz

1 oz. Fonseca Siroco White Port
3/4 oz. Aperol
1 oz. club soda

Combine Port and Aperol in a mixing glass with ice and stir until chilled. Strain into a rocks glass over one large ice cube. Top with club soda and stir gently. Garnish with an orange slice.

Lisbon Martini

2 oz. gin (GrandTen Wire Works)
1 oz. Fonseca Siroco White Port
1/2 oz. St. Germain
1 dash Bittermen's Boston Bittahs

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice and stir until chilled. Strain into a coupe. Twist a lemon peel over the cocktail, rub it along the sides of the glass, and discard. Garnish with chamomile flowers.

This post was made in partnership with Fonseca Port. All recipes and opinions are my own.

Dillionaire

I came across the Dillionaire while looking for recipes that used Bittermen's Boston Bittahs. When I saw the ingredients, I knew I had to try it. Any recipe that mixes Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur with fresh dill has got to be interesting. Plus, an adorable name? Sold.

Dill is not something you see in cocktails very often. Or in anything else, for that matter. I've only used it once in my entire life, when I made pickles. But a small packet of dill seeds came with a set of herb seeds I bought, and I figured why not plant them? I'd find a use for a dill, or else just make a bunch more pickles. I didn't expect it to end up in a cocktail, but I'm glad to put my little shrub of dill to good use.

I had to make some substitutions in order to pull this one together. I don't have any tonic syrup and wasn't really ready to spring for a bottle, so I replaced the 1/2 oz. tonic syrup and 3 oz. club soda with 3 1/2 oz. tonic water (Fever Tree). I also don't have Hendricks Gin, so I used Wire Works. Finally, I don't have Cocchi Americano, so I substituted Lillet. I don't think any of these changes affected the final cocktail too grievously.

The Dillionaire has a decidedly savory flavor and aroma. The tonic and dill flavors comes in strong at first, but then give way to sweetness in the middle of your sip. That's when you taste the maraschino liqueur and the chamomile. Then it's all bitterness. A really complex, interesting cocktail. And very refreshing! It's a really unique twist on your average Gin & Tonic.

History: The Dillionaire was invented by Nick Caruana, who writes the awesome cocktail blog The Straight Up - be sure to check it out. I want him to teach me how he takes those awesome cocktail photos.

Dillionaire

2 oz. gin (Hendricks recommended)
1/2 oz. Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
1/2 oz. Cocchi Americano (I used Lillet)
1/2 oz. lime juice
2 droppers Bittermen's Boston Bittahs
3 slices cucumber, 1 reserved for garnish
3 sprigs dill, 1 reserved for garnish
3 1/2 oz. tonic water

Place two cucumber slices and two sprigs of dill in the bottom of a shaker. Add Luxardo and muddle. Add Cocci Americano, gin, one dropper of Bittermen's, lime juice, and ice. Shake until well chilled. Double-strain into a rocks glass filled with ice. Add tonic water and the second dropper of Boston Bittahs. Garnish with the remaining cucumber slice and sprig of dill.

Recipe adapted from The Straight Up.

#42

When we first bought our apartment, one of the things I was the most excited about was the balcony. After living in a place with no natural light where every plant I tried to cultivate withered and died, I couldn't wait to grow some herbs and veggies outside. The first warm weekend of the spring, I went out and bought all kinds of herbs and seeds. It started reasonably enough: five little pots of herbs and a rectangular planter of tomato seedlings. When nothing died, I transplanted the herbs into bigger pots and planted some more seeds. Those sprouted, and my tomatoes made fruit. So I added zucchini, eggplant, and some more herbs.

Now I basically have a jungle on my balcony. It has definitely gotten out of hand. Buying pots got expensive, so I started swiping plastic pots out of neighbors' trash cans. It literally takes gallons to water everything. I may have a problem. But I love going right outside for fresh herbs, and it's so exciting seeing new veggies appear. Next year I might try building some planter boxes so the jumble of pots isn't so chaotic.

When I participated in my first Mixology Monday, I invented a cocktail I called the Perfect 10 that included Bittermen's Boston Bittahs, which have flavors of citrus and chamomile. I commented that the best garnish for the cocktail would have been chamomile flowers but, and I quote, "who has those just lying around?"

I'll tell you who: crazy potted plant lady. Days after I wrote that post, I bought some chamomile seeds, and I now have a steady supply of chamomile flowers! I made this recipe specifically for a chance to use them, but boy am I glad I tried it. It is just lovely. A basic gin martini recipe is made unforgettable by the addition of a bit of honey simple syrup and a dash of Boston Bittahs. It's just a little sweet, with beautiful notes of honey and chamomile. It's one of the best new recipes I've tried in a while.

If you don't have a bottle of Boston Bittahs, I think this could be a nice recipe to showcase other flavors as well. For example, orange bitters plus an orange twist.

History: The #42 was invented at the Hungry Mother in Cambridge, MA, which is now closed. But I think the same folks opened State Park, which is a great place.

#42

2.5 oz. gin (Greylock recommended, I used Wire Works)
1/4 oz. dry vermouth
1/4 oz. honey simple syrup*
1 dash Bittermen's Boston Bittahs

Combine ingredients in a shaker. Add ice and shake until well chilled. Strain into a coupe glass. Twist a lemon peel over the cocktail and rub along the sides. Garnish with the lemon twist or discard and garnish with chamomile flowers.

*Honey simple syrup = equal parts honey and water. Heat in a saucepan or in the microwave until honey is dissolved. Let cool before using. Store in the refrigerator.

Recipe adapted from the Hungry Mother via Bittermen's.

Mixology Monday: Perfect 10

I'm really excited to be participating in Mixology Monday for the first time! This internet-wide cocktail challenge is open to everyone. There's a different theme each month. Aspiring mixologists like myself take a crack at inventing their own new recipe or digging up an appropriate existing one, and then all the results are rounded up on a different host blog.

This month's theme is Walk of Shame. The challenge is to take a cocktail that you are now ashamed you ever drank and re-vamp it to be something respectable. It's going to be interesting seeing what cocktails are considered to be in need of rehab. In the announcement, Whitney of Tipicular Fixings mentions the Mudslide, which is one of my upcoming posts! Well, I may not be a sophisticated tippler just yet, but I can definitely improve upon a drink or two.

I briefly toyed with the idea of choosing Sex on the Beach (I would call my version Maybe a Just a Brief Makeout Session on the Beach Because the Sand Would Get Everywhere Am I Right?) but I ultimately decided on the 7&7. If you're not familiar, this is a highly sophisticated mix of America's finest whiskey, Seagram's Seven Crown, and the bubbly, in no way artificial citrus flavor of 7-Up. It was my mom's drink of choice when I was younger. We have now both moved on to more sophisticated libations, but when I first started drinking it was an easy go-to. I remember it pretty fondly. I'd love to recreate the flavors in a more refined way.

First we need to switch out the 7-Up with the real thing: fresh lemon and lime juices, simple syrup, and club soda. Then we need to swap out the Seagram's for some decent whiskey, or at least as decent as I can afford. After a brief taste test of what I had on hand, I chose Redemption bourbon, which is a high-rye bourbon.

Once I had something resembling a 7&7 in taste but oh-so-much-better in ingredients, I wanted to elevate it a little further. The combination of bourbon, citrus, and club soda is basically a Whiskey Collins, and not all that new. Besides, I've seen past Mixology Monday roundups, and I was a little intimidated. Surely I'd better add some Fernet Branca or smoked pineapple or something. So I used my recipe in progress as an excuse to buy something I've been eyeing for a while: Bittermen's Boston Bittahs. Let's be honest, they basically had me at the name. But I thought a bit of bitterness would round out the recipe, and the flavors of citrus and chamomile sounded like a perfect compliment to what I had cooked up. And I think it really works.

Finally, a garnish. The perfect one would be a chamomile flower, but who has those just lying around? So I had to settle for an a lemon slice and a sprig of thyme, the scent of which I thought went nicely with the cocktail.

From the 7&7, I give you... the Perfect 10. I like it, and I hope you guys do too.

UPDATE: The MXMO roundup is here!

Perfect 10

1 3/4 oz. bourbon
1 oz. simple syrup
3/4 oz. lemon juice
1/4 oz. lime juice
12 drops Bittermen's Boston Bittahs
4 oz. club soda

Combine bourbon, simple syrup, lemon and lime juices, and bitters in a shaker. Add ice and shake until chilled. Strain into a collins glass filled with ice. Top with club soda. Garnish with a chamomile flower or a lemon slice and a sprig of thyme.