Wine Cocktails, A.J. Rathbun

I’m a cookbook addict.  I purchase them, read them, prepare recipes that sound delicious, and keep them on my bakers rack in the kitchen for future reference.  My cookbooks are always handy so they can lift me out of the food doldrums for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert.  What does this have to do with wine you ask … because of my addiction, to both cookbooks and wine, I purchased Wine Cocktails by A. J. Rathbun. 

All I ever considered doing with a bottle of red or white wine (aside from drinking it) was to make Sangria or I'd use sparkling wine for Mimosa's.   Wine Cocktails provided  a change from a bottle of wine to a refreshing, relaxing cocktail.  The recipes in this book are fun and they have a nice mix of ingredients that sound delicious.

To date, I’ve  prepared three recipes:  

        “Blue Wave” a delicious blend of Hpnotiq, Riesling, orange juice, and muddled fruit,  

        “Vanilla-Pear Mimosa” a mixture of vanilla-flavored vodka and pear nectar, topped with Prosecco, and 

“Cactus Berry”.  

All taste like MORE.  Since I LOVE Margaritas here is the “Cactus Berry” recipe. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Cactus Berry

Ice cubes

3 oz. Merlot*

3 oz. white Tequila

1 ½ oz. Cointreau

1 oz. fresh lime juice**

2 lime slices for garnish

1.      Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes.  Add 
    the Merlot, white tequila, Cointreau, and lime juice.  
    Shake exceedingly well (as if you were shaking cactus 
    thorns from your hands).

2.      Strain the mix into 2 cocktail glasses. Garnish with the 
    lime slices and serve.

 (Reprinted with permission from WINE Cocktails: 50 Stylish Sippers that Show Off Your Reds, Whites, and Rosés, A. J. Rathbun, pg. 26,  The Harvard Common Press, Boston, MA 2009.)

     * Do  not use an expensive bottle of wine.  Purchase one that is mid-range and it will work perfectly.  

     **I enjoy a sweeter Margarita and substituted bottled sweetened lime juice.

There are many more recipes I want to prepare from Wine Cocktails plus I plan on purchasing A. J. Rathbun’s Champagne Cocktails (I do enjoy the bubbles), but … so many wine cocktail recipes, so little time. 

Champagne Cocktails: 50 Cork-Popping Concotions and Scintillating Sparklers, A. J. Rathbun, The Harvard Common Press, Boston, MA, 2010