Pisco is a truly great spirit, which I have described a little closer in conjunction with the world famous Pisco Sour. Nevertheless, Pisco often leads a miserable existence in European bars and therefore its usage is really seldom. Because of this, today I want to introduce a cocktail which is prepared with pisco. However, the main ingredient of the drink actually is the French elderflower liqueur St. Germain, a very smooth and refreshing liqueur I like very much, which belongs to the liquor giant Bacardi.
I learned of this cocktail from the social media presence of the St. Germain-marketing department, where it was presented as a fresh idea for a fruity-tangy summer drink. Since the list of ingredients sounded very interesting and I was curious about the result, I simply tried to mix the drink on my own and was very pleased with the result. It comes up with a nice citrus complexity of orange, grapefruit and lemon, which is enriched by orange blossom water and the essential oils of orange peel. The Pisco emphasizes these citrus tones very nicely with its tangy grape notes, while the St. Germain raises the cocktail on a light and harmonious level.
As a non-French-speaking person I could unfortunately not find out the real meaning of the name “Colquiche”. So if anyone of you knows what this word means (and hence the name of this cocktail) I would be very happy about some information (maybe in the comments section).
Recipe (in ounces):
1 ¼ oz Pisco
2 oz St. Germain
½ oz Orange Juice
½ oz Grapefruit juice
¼ oz Lemon juice
1 Dash Orange blossom water
Preparation: Mix all ingredients and shake vigorously on ice, then strain into your chilled glass. Finish by spraying a little oil from the orange zest onto the surface of the drink and finally add the zest into the cocktail.
Glass: Coupette or Martini
Garnish: orange zest
Buying Sources: Pisco and St. Germain can be found in specialized stores or online of course. The same goes for orange flower water, which at times can also be found in the bakery department of well-stocked supermarkets or in pharmacies.