Our BOURBON CHERRY SMASH is a whiskey cocktail with the wonderful flavors of cherry that’s brightened up with Meyer lemon simple syrup!
I am so very much into bourbon at the moment. On my travels, I have seen bourbon cocktails everywhere. It is very trendy now, and perfect for a winter cocktail that’ll warm you up!! So born from observations is this Bourbon Cherry Smash. This is a great sipper of a cocktail, a fun way to start off a memorable dinner party and one that men and women will enjoy. If you like it a little lighter you can always just let the ice melt a bit or add a little sparkling water.
For this cocktail, I wanted some special cherries. So in my search, I came across these natural maraschino cherries. They are bing cherries with natural flavors and colorings. They taste like the traditionally bright red cherries but have a deeper more natural taste to them too. Have a look around in your stores or specialty markets to see what you can find.
After I got the cherries and bourbon I started to concoct this libation. I poured half of the juice out of the cherries and replaced it with a really good bourbon (well the best I could find in my local liquor store). I then let the cherries sit at room temperature for about a week. Longer they sit the more flavor they will take on.
After I felt good about my cherry choice and had them infusing, I started to think about simple syrup. I didn’t want just a plain simple syrup but something with a little more flavor. Again in my travels, I found some Meyer lemons and grabbed one for the syrup. I used the zest and the juice to make the sweet addition. If you don’t know what simple syrup is, it is equal amounts of sugar and water and can be infused with so many flavors for cocktails.
Sexy and simple, the Bourbon Cherry Smash can be your next cocktail celebration!!
Ingredients
- 8 oz. good quality bourbon plus more to soak cherries
- Good quality pitted cherries
- Ice
Simple Syrup
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 Meyer lemon zested and juiced
- Added water to make half cup of liquid with the lemon juice
Instructions
- Drain off half the juice the cherries are in and add bourbon, let sit for at least one week. Longer the better as the bourbon will be more infused into the cherries.
- When the cherries are ready make a simple syrup with the sugar, lemon juice, water and zest. Heat in a small saucepan until simmering and sugar has dissolved. Strain, set aside to cool.
- To make one cocktail, take two cherries and remove the stems. Smash them into the bottom of a glass. Fill with desired amount of ice. Add 2 oz. bourbon and 1 oz. lemon simple syrup. Stir and serve with an additional infused cherry.
Matthew Bull says
Bourbon cherry smash, oh my. That looks so good!