Ingredients
Brandied Cherries
- 1 oz of sugar
- 1 fl oz of water
- Good squeeze of fresh lemon juice
- Zest of one orange
- 1 small cinnamon stick
- 4 fl oz of brandy
- 12 oz pounds dark, sweet cherries, pitted
Place the sugar, water, lemon juice, orange zest and cinnamon stick in a medium saucepan. Place it over a medium heat and bring to the boil. Once the syrup has boiled, reduce it to a low heat and add the cherries. Simmer for five minutes. Remove from the heat, discard the cinnamon stick, and stir in the brandy. Allow to cool completely, before placing cherries and brandy juice in a jar. Leave to cool overnight in the fridge. This recipe makes one standard jam jar of cherries.
Manhattan
- 1 fl oz of Vermouth
- 2 fl oz of bourbon / Jack Daniels (Tennessee whiskey works fine too)
- 2 dashes of Angostura Bitters
- 1 teaspoon of cherry brandy juice (from above)
- Brandied Cherry on a cocktail stick
Method
Chill a martini glass with a few ice cubes. Place the vermouth, bourbon, bitters and cherry/brandy juice in a cocktail shaker with some ice. Remove the ice from the martini glass and dry with a dish towel. Strain the cocktail into the glass. Place the brandied cherry on the cocktail stick into the bottom of the glass and serve.
