If anyone can successfully shift the reputation of shooters from college dive-bar staple to sophisticated post-party nightcap, it’s Paris-based author and food stylist Rebekah Peppler. “There’s something so celebratory and connecting about taking a shot,” she says. By using low-ABV spirits and wines like vermouth, Campari, Suze, and amaro, Peppler makes composed miniature cocktail shots for guests to cheers with and knock back, without overindulging.
Peppler’s digestif cocktail shots — for which she shares recipes in her newest cookbook, À Table: Recipes for Cooking and Eating the French Way—are intended as pleasant punctuation on a night of merriment. In lieu of cheap shot glasses, Peppler suggests using sake cups, espresso sets, and even vintage port glasses to infuse these cheerful chasers with an extra bit of creativity. “You’re leaving people with a good taste in their mouths, but also the nostalgia and thrill of a shot,” she explains.
Here are a few of those cocktail shots:
Digestif Shot Un: Martini Miniature Shot
By Rebekah Peppler
TOTAL 5 MIN; SERVES 8
Clean and herbal with a slightly sour note at the finish, this shot mimics the flavour of a dry and dirty gin martini. The salty, buttery olives on the side cut through the alcoholic heat of the drink.
1/2 cup (4 ounces or 118 ml) dry gin
1/2 cup (4 ounces or 118 ml) fino sherry
1/2 cup (4 ounces or 118 ml) dry vermouth
Green olives, for eating after shooting
Combine gin, sherry, and vermouth in an ice-filled mixing glass or shaker. Stir with a cocktail stirrer until cocktail is very cold, about 15 seconds. Strain into shot glasses. Serve shots with olives.
Digestif Shot Deux: Bitter Orange Shot
By Rebekah Peppler
TOTAL 5 MIN; SERVES 8
With a balance of spicy and citrusy notes from the blend of Amer Picon, an orange-based bitter aperitif, and sweet vermouth, this cocktail shot is nicely bittersweet, with a warming, but not hot, finish.
1 cup (8 ounces or 236 ml) Amer Picon
5 tablespoons (21/2 ounces 74 ml) sweet vermouth
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
10 dashes orange-flavoured bitters
Combine Amer Picon, vermouth, lemon juice, and bitters in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Cover with lid, and shake vigorously until very cold, about 15 seconds. Strain into shot glasses, and serve.
Digestif Shot Trois: Amaro Negroni Shot
By Rebekah Peppler
TOTAL 5 MIN; SERVES 8
This throat-warming, rich, and delicious shot is reminiscent of a full-strength Negroni. Amaro, red bitter, and sweet vermouth round out its pleasantly bitter edge.
1/2 cup (4 ounces or 118 ml) amaro
1/2 cup (4 ounces or 118 ml) red bitter
1/2 cup (4 ounces or 118 ml) sweet vermouth
1 (1- x 2-inch) orange peel strip
Combine amaro, red bitter, and vermouth in an ice-filled mixing glass or shaker. Hold orange peel by its long edges, skin facing down into the glass, and pinch peel to express citrus oils; drop the peel into glass. Stir with a cocktail stirrer until the cocktail is very cold, about 15 seconds. Strain into shot glasses, and serve.
Digestif Shot Quatre: Cognac-Almond Shot
By Rebekah Peppler
TOTAL 5 MIN; SERVES 8
A pleasantly strong almond flavour permeates this sweet shot from the orgeat syrup, a nutty, creamy syrup made with orange flower and almonds. It’s citrusy and faintly bitter, with light floral notes and a smooth finish.
3/4 cup (6 ounces or 177 ml) cognac
6 tablespoons fresh orange juice
3 tablespoons (11/2 ounces or 44 ml) orgeat syrup
3 tablespoons (11/2 ounces or 44 ml) orange liqueur
6 dashes Angostura bitters
Combine cognac, orange juice, orgeat, orange liqueur, and bitters in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Cover with lid, and shake vigorously until cold, about 15 seconds. Strain into shot glasses, and serve.
This story first appeared on www.foodandwine.com
(Main and Feature Image Credit: Image Credit: Photo by Christopher Testani / Food Styling by Margaret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Thom Driver)
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