kingsbury

1/2 oz Campari
1/2 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
1/2 oz Licor 43
1/2 oz Lime Juice

Shake with ice for 5 seconds and strain into a flute glass. Top with brut prosecco (Gruet Blanc de Blancs) and garnish with a long thin slice of cucumber.
Two Fridays ago, I had picked a cucumber from the garden and remembered that there was a recipe I had eyed in Left Coast Libations that called for one as a garnish. The drink was the Kingsbury created by Eric Alperin from Los Angeles' Varnish. Luckily, I did not skimp on the cucumber slice for it contributed herbal notes to the aroma and taste. In addition to the cucumber on the nose, I got fruit-Campari and Andrea got sparkling wine notes. The sip was a crisp, carbonated wine and lime flavor, and the swallow contrasted Campari's sharper bitterness with Licor 43's sweeter vanilla and other spices. After a few sips, the cucumber elements began to infuse into the drink and added to the flavors in the sip. Overall, the Campari, citrus, and sparkling wine notes reminded me somewhat of Tyler Wang's La Passeggiata.