It’s time for another whisky based post! Recently, we had a Code Red/Mayday (insert any other disaster expression you’d like) situation in my house. No, the house wasn’t on fire - what we experienced in my house was an alcohol emergency.
I was out of Whisky Sour Mix! If you read my previous blog post on how to create a perfect Whisky Sour, you’d know my extreme affinity for Whisky Sours. However, I was out of Mix! So, I did what any self-proclaimed amateur mixologist would do. I immediately took inventory of my fridge and liquor cabinet to somehow salvage the atrocity of the lack of Sour Mix.
I knew my emergency cocktail had to have Whisky - and of course I always have Whisky on hand. I grabbed my trusted Canadian Mist (sponsorship pending 😊) and some pre-made red Sangria. The sweetness of the Sangria and the dryness of the Whisky created a solid combination, but there was something lacking. I looked for something to give it a tangy finish and took my trusty OJ - which previously had been exclusively for Sunday Screwdrivers - and added just a splash.
Feel free to use pre-made Sangria or make it fresh - whatever you prefer.
My emergency cocktail has now become a signature in my drink repertoire. But I soon realized: every cocktail needs a name. I very well couldn’t call my drink “The Whisky, Sangria, Orange Juice Splash.” Well, I theoretically could, but there’s no incentive nor benefit to doing so. The redness of the Sangria immediately reminded me of my adopted home, Canada.
For those of you who don’t know, I lived in Canada for three years while I attended and graduated from McGill University in Montreal (Go Redmen!).
The redness also reminded me of a sunset. Two terrific things: Canada and a beach sunset. Hence, the Canadian Sunset cocktail was born! There is no relation to the popular song by the same name.
Steps to Create the Perfect Canadian Sunset Cocktail
1. Get a whisky glass, or any short and wide glass.
2. Fill the glass ¾ of the way with ice cubes. Cubed, not crushed. Never crushed; that will water down your drink too quickly.
3. Get a standard one ounce shot glass.
4. Pour one shot of whisky into the shot glass and subsequently pour the contents into the whisky sour glass. Again, I prefer Canadian Mist, but any whisky you have will do the trick. Whenever mixing liquor with any mixer, you always want to choose rail alcohol, as you’re mixing anyways.
5. Repeat step 4.
6. Fill your glass with red Sangria, but only enough so that it is approximately 80 percent full. This is important because you want to have enough space for the orange juice.
7. Use the same shot glass you previously used and fill the glass with orange juice.
8. Pour the orange juice into your drink.
9. Stir the drink and enjoy!
And there you have it. The Canadian Sunset cocktail.
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