Manzanilla highlighted by the best of the season, this cocktail is a stunner. Don't feel like you need to copy the shrub recipe. It's best to use whatever fruit is at the peak of the season now, whether that's elderberries, strawberries, peaches, apples,...
Stir shrub and Sherry gently over ice and strain into a small, tight-lipped, sherry glass. Garnish with shave of lemon zest.
Shrub base:
1 quart fresh elderberries, trimmed from stems
1 cup fresh huckleberries
5 cups evaporated cane sugar
1 quart cider vinegar
1 oz. kosher salt
5 brown cardamon pods
1 oz. jigger of white pepper corns
In a large bowl, mildly press fruit with bottom of shaker tin till every berry is at least bruised. Muddle spices in a mixing glass till all the corns are at least cracked. Add sugar, cover and let sit 5 hours or until a good syrup has formed (this should happen in a cool place, refrigerate if not available.) Add salt and vinegar and stir till salt has dissolved, cover and return to cool storage and let age for at least a week. Then filter successively through a china cap then a cheesecloth. Bottle in clean, sterile bottle leaving a few inches of air under the cap. It is now ready to use, but another week of aging allows for a deeper, more lingering flavor.
Manzanilla combines perfectly with fish and seafood, as well as with salted fish and cured meats.
Thanks to its low acidity, it is, together with Fino, the perfect choice to accompany salads, cold soups and dressings.
Use an ice bucket with both ice and water to serve chilled between 6 & 8º C.
Perfect with fish, seafood and all styles of food from the sea.
In traditional wide rimmed catavinos or in a white wine glass.
