Having Cocktails With Lady Germain

I have been OBSSESED with St. Germain since first experiencing it as a St. Germain Cocktail at Hanny’s,  in downtown Phoenix last summer.  It is a beautiful floral elixir that enhances anything you mix with it.  Soooo, since it was Sunday, and it was hot and we have a pool, I declared it Pool Day with Lady Germain!

St. Germain is a liqueur made from elderflower blossoms that have been hand harvested in the Alps of France.  The entire crop is harvested in a few weeks and this becomes the supply for the entire year. Because of this, some years may yield more than others which could limit its production.  These blossoms are transported via bicycles to collection stations and from there, to the distillery.  Once the Elderflower has been coaxed to give up its amazing essence a proprietary process is used to create this delicate spirit.

I don’t know what to think about the bicycle story, but I’m sure there were some sort of four-wheeled vehicles involved.  Otherwise, how would this beautiful concoction appear on the shelf at your local store like magic?

Also note, each bottle is individually numbered, reflecting the year the flowers were picked…..pretty cool!

The flavor is a bit elusive for explanation but I’m going to give it a go.  On the nose it’s sweet, almost like nectar with a baking spice finish (vanilla mixed with pear??). On the palette it’s very sweet, much like nectar that coats the tongue.  They claim it has a low sugar content, roughly half that of other liqueurs, but man I’m feeling a buzz from just these few sips!!  I keep thinking pear….again, it’s not an actual taste I’m getting but more of an impression.  It is complemented by pear vodka so maybe that’s my bias.  Because St. Germain is all natural and has no preservatives, it should be consumed within six months after opening for optimum flavor.  Like I need an excuse to finish this lovely libation!

So finally, onto the Lady Germain….My obsessive trolling of Pinterest yielded this beautiful recipe that I’m sharing from YumSugar  which was originally from Imbibe Magazine so here you go:

Lady Germain from yumsugar.com

Lady Germain

This delicious cocktail from New Orleans bartender Chris McMillian was created for the 2009 Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Dinner at Antoine’s.

3/4 oz. gin
1/2 oz. fresh lemon juice
1 strawberry, muddled
1/2 oz. St. Germain elderflower liqueur
3 oz. Champagne
Tools: shaker, strainer

Glass: flute

Shake first four ingredients and strain into flute. Top with Champagne and serve.

Chris McMillian, Bar UnCommon, New Orleans

**My notes on this recipe:  I used New Amsterdam Gin which has more Juniper flavor than I like.  I would have preferred Bombay Sapphire but I used what was in the booze cabinet!  Also I decreased the gin from 3/4 oz to 1/2 oz and bumped up the St. Germain to 3/4 oz.  So it all worked out and every drop was drunk…

Keep in mind this yummy liquid nectar easily pairs with a variety of spirits and the St. Germain website has many great recipes to try.  At my Fiftieth birthday (yes, that’s 5-0, I still don’t know how the hell that happened!) we served it with pear vodka and a splash of champagne and everybody loved it!  Keeping along those lines,  Happy Birthday to my favorite sister Melissa!!

So, have any of you tried St. Germain?  If so, what’s your favorite cocktail or favorite way to drink it?  If not, what are you waiting for???

Cheers to you! Cheryl

Great flick for a hot summer day!

****Totally unrelated, but I was reading a post from one of favorite bloggers,  and realized I have never seen the musical “The King and I” with Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr!!!  So that’s on my To See list this week….