Red Russian with Rosemary Simple Syrup
Our little red cocktail, made with fresh raspberries, vodka, and rosemary tastes even better than it looks. I know that is hard to believe because these photographs are particularly amazing. Jackie is really finding her way around the camera, bringing great life to this drink we created: our Red Russian.
Rosemary simple syrup is something I have been seeing around a lot. I have been toying with ideas as to how we could integrate it into some recipes. We happened upon some beautiful, plump raspberries at the market the other day, and a light bulb went off in my head. The ingredients for a Red Russian Cocktail were coming together.
I love the idea of serving this cocktail in a martini-type glass. I coated the rim with a mixture of sugar, salt, and a bit of finely chopped rosemary for color. A sprig of fresh rosemary finished the presentation beautifully.
Just as we finished the pictures for this, we heard a knock at the door. We opened it to find our neighbors, who immediately eyed the colorful drinks with curiosity. Thinking quickly, we handed them the drinks and I ran to the kitchen to make two more for Jackie and me. Now Jackie is biased; she likes practically everything I put in front of her. So I was happy to get the "thumbs up" from our friends for this newest concoction. Moral of the story: make a pitcher.
Red Russian with Rosemary Infused Syrup
A beautiful fresh alcoholic drink made with fresh berries and rosemary. Very smooth and full of flavor.
- Total Time: 15 mins
- Yield: 2 drinks 1x
Ingredients
- 1 pint fresh raspberries
- ¾ C water, divided
- ½ C sugar
- 3 sprigs rosemary
- 4 oz Vodka
- 8 oz club soda (or raspberry sparkling water)
- ¼ C coarse salt
Instructions
- To make rosemary infused simple syrup:
- In a small sauce pan combine ¼ C water and ¼ C sugar and heat over medium heat until sugar is dissolved.
- Remove from heat and drop 1 rosemary sprig into solution for 2 minutes.
- Remove rosemary and refrigerate until cool.
- To make raspberry juice:
- In a small sauce pan, combine 1 pint fresh raspberries, ¼ sugar and ½ C water and cook over low heat and stir to break down berries for 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and strain mixture thru fine mesh strainer to remove seeds. (discard seeds)
- Refrigerate to cool mixture.
- To assemble drinks:
- In a shaker add vodka, 2 oz simple syrup, 4 ounces raspberry mixture, and 1 C ice.
- Shake until well combined and mixture is cold.
- Strain into 2 glasses with a rim mixed with sugar and salt.
- Add 4oz club soda to each drink and garnish with a sprig of rosemary
- Simple syrup and raspberry mixture can be stored in refrigerator for up to a week.
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Category: Beverage
That is a gorgeous drink! I love the flavors and the look of it. Compliments to both for the recipe and the pictures!
thanks so much Nicoletta!! You are too sweet.!!
These images are mouthwatering and look fabulous!
Thank you so much, I love the pictures she took. Some of my favorites
Yum! Can't wait to make this 🙂
thanks Lorraine! Let us know how it turns out!!
Made this today, it is absolutely delicious! However, I think the “4oz of Rosemary simple syrup” is a typo, we used a scant 4 tsp (per 2 drinks) and it was plenty sweet!
Thanks Tiffany, We appreciate you giving this a try, Thanks for the feedback. I did make a slight adjustment to the recipe and think its generally an option based on taste preference, however i agree it could be cut back a little. We hope you give some of our other recipes a try.