Strawberry Infused Bourbon

So this is my first official post featuring photography in my new space  With most of my boxes unpacked, I’ve reached the “buy new stuff” phase of my move, trying to fill in bare spots in my living room and kitchen.  After assembling the dining table shown above, I almost immediately felt compelled to use it as the setting for my next photo shoot.  I just love how the stainless steel surface gleams in the light flooding in from my kitchen window.

To my dismay, I opened my fridge earlier in the day to notice a bounty of ruby red strawberries looking all sorts of bruised and battered.  After a quick scalping, I popped a small, slightly soft strawberry into my mouth.  Sweet, tart and perfectly ripe.  With no chance of winning the prettiest produce award, the rest of the strawberries were promptly sliced and tumbled into a large mason jar.  You see the great thing about alcohol infusions is that prettiness is not required.  Everything looks good after a healthy dose of bourbon  Continue reading for the recipe.

Try using this Strawberry Infused Bourbon to put a twist on some classic cocktails:

• Strawberry Old Fashioned (in a glass, dissolve 1 tsp. sugar in 3 dashes Angostura bitters and a few drops of water, add 2 oz. infused bourbon, stir to combine, finish with ice, garnish with a strawberry)
• Strawberry Mint Julep (muddle 2 tsp. simple syrup and 8 mint leaves in a cocktail shaker, add 2 oz. infused bourbon and ice, shake until chilled, strain into a glass piled high with finely crushed ice, garnish with mint)
• Strawberry Manhattan (add 2 oz. infused bourbon to a cocktail shaker with 1 oz. sweet vermouth, 2 dashes Angostura bitters and ice, stir until well chilled, strain into a chilled martini glass, garnish with a lemon twist)
• Strawberry Sour (combine 1 1/2 oz. infused bourbon, 3/4 oz. simple syrup, and 3/4 oz. lemon juice in a cocktail shaker with ice, shake until well chilled, strain into a glass with ice, garnish with lemon wedge)

Enjoy