Zesty Cocktails Women Will Love

There's nothing ordinary about these cocktails created by resto-bar chain The Finch's flamboyant mixologist Ron Ramirez.

For people who are lucky enough to have a smoking machine at home, here's your time to use it.

Worry not if you don't have such a gadget, use a cocktail shaker and just go with the basic flow.

These cocktails are great to cure mid-week blues and will add a fancy touch to your Women's Day celebration.

The Cure

Serves: 1

Ingredients

• 30 ml vodka that was used to  infuse dehydrated grapes or raisins, please see the note below
• 15 ml fresh lime juice
• 30 ml litchi juice
• 30 ml white wine, ideally a fruity wine
• 30 ml ginger ale
• 20 ml rose syrup, preferably Monin
• Ice cubes

Method

• Combine all the ingredients in a large carafe or a large glass jar. 

• Optionally, if, by some miracle, you have a smoking cocktail infuser machine, you can smoke the ingredients.

• Otherwise, transfer all the ingredients into a cocktail shaker and shake with ice cubes.
  Serve.

Editor's Note: To infuse the dried grapes/raisins into a vodka, add them to a small bottle filled with vodka, fasten the lid tightly and store on the countertop for a week. Once in a day, you'll need to shake the bottle.

Outbreak

Serves: 1

Ingredients

• 30 ml whiskey that has been infused with cherries, preferably the overripe variety, please check the note below
• 30 ml red wine, preferably a fruity variety
• 45 ml pineapple juice
• 30 ml raspberry juice
• 20 ml melon syrup
• 15 ml lime juice
• Splash of soda water
• Dehydrated fruits, to garnish
• Ice cubes
• Stick cinnamon
• Mixed dried herbs
• Dried rose petals

Method

• Combine all the ingredients in a shaker. 

• Optionally, if you have a smoking machine, you can smoke the ingredients and then shake with ice cubes.

• Transfer the cocktail into an air-tight jar filled with dried rose petals and cinnamon.
  You may use dried herbs as well.
  Add smoke inside the jar, optional and shut the lid.
  Open the lid to serve and relish the smell of infused bloom of roses, cinnamon and herbs.
  If you are not using a smoking jar, let the alcohol rest in a container with the dried rose petals, herbs and cinnamon. 
  Strain and serve in a glass of your choice.

Editor's Note: To infuse the dried cherries, add them to a small bottle filled with whiskey, fasten the lid tightly and store on the countertop for a week. Once in a day, you'll need to shake the bottle.

Ron Ramirez, who hails from the Philippines, has been dubbed Asia's magician of spirits. Ron is the mixologist at The Finch, a trendy cafe-resto bar in Sector 26, Chandigarh.

• REDIFF RECIPES