Honey, Drink This!

Hello and welcome to my Drink of the Week. First question. Is it wrong to concoct a Drink of the Week at 8:15 Friday morning? I hope not, because that is what I just did. Last night after my shoot I took myself on a field trip over to BevMo. Drink of the Week heaven. I didn't even bother with their awesome 5 cent wine sale. I just b-lined it over to the liquor aisle (actually liquor aisles - - there's lots of them). I was talking to my friend Bobbi at the time and she mentioned a great liqueur called Aperol. She said it was quite similar to Campari, but a bit more flavorful and fragrant. I just so happened to be standing in front of the last bottle of Aperol as she was telling me this, so I grabbed it. A touch of fate in the liquor store. I read the label, "based on an infusion of orange, rhubarb, china and gentian." Which means very little to me (how is something based on an infusion of china?), but I was intrigued. Just a hop, skip and a jump (and no, i didn't hop, skip or jump in there . . . it's for storytelling purposes) down from the Apertol was the sweetest bottle of booze I have ever seen, Barenjager honey liqueur. Outfitted in it's own little woven jumpsuit, it was too irresistible to pass up. So I bought that, too, thinking it may take care of some of my "honey not dissolving in cold alcoholic beverage" problems. I also grabbed some simple syrup. My last bottle went bad. Apparently you are supposed to refrigerate after opening. If not, bad, bad things happen. And then I found the missing link, in the form of the cutest little soda bottles you have ever seen (even cuter than that damn sanbitter). Tart Cranberry Soda comes in a four pack of little glass bottles with solid red caps. It's all natural cocktail soda with cranberry essences and "champagne" bubbles. How good does that sound? I got some bitter lemon flavor as well (and they have cute solid yellow tops). I paid for my things and rushed home, but by the time I got back I was just too tired to concoct. My usual tasters were nowhere to be found, so I just went to bed instead. I woke up early this morning with my Drink of the Week juices flowing (literally and figuratively) and produced this little gem of a cocktail. . .

Honey, Drink This!

1 6.3 oz bottle of Tart Cranberry Soda

Ok. Before I go any further, I know you may not be able to get this stuff, so be creative. Use club soda or tonic water, cranberry juice and maybe a splash of Champagne (if you are sophisticated enough to have splashes of Champagne just laying around). Oh, and please, please let me know if you do get creative and in the process come up with something amazing. I'll be sure to post it.

1 oz Barenjager Honey Liqueur
2 oz Aperol
2 oz white wine ( i used some pinot grigio i had open, try whatever you like and let me know).

Combine ingredients in a glass, stir and fill with ice. Garnish with a blood orange slice (not because it's relevant, but because you can. remember, you are a foodie)
drink and enjoy.