Those of you who know me well, know that although I respect the sweet liquors, I reserve disdain for those who drink them exclusively. It is a personality defect, I think. However, in early March of this year, a succession of drizzly days brooded upon me. One morning I took my coffee on the porch, and my eye alit upon the thorny brambles that cover the garden wall. Nothing is such a promise of summer as blackberries. And I realized that Chambord was that promise distilled.

I sought an elixir to capture that moment of simultaneous patience and expectation that one exists within those days before the sakura bloom, overcast days of early Spring.

  • 2 oz gin
  • ½ oz dry vermouth
  • ¼ oz Chambord
Pour ingredients over crushed ice and shake.
Strain into a cocktail glass.
Garnish with a twist of orange peel.

The Chambord tints this drink a shade between pink and lavender, adding a scent of blackberry sweetness that blends with the aromatics of the gin. The dry vermouth knits together the herbal notes in the Chambord with the dusky spices in the gin. I caution against a heavy hand with the Chambord, overmuch and this drink becomes insipid. Rigorous testing indicates that this drink is best founded upon the juniper flavors in Tanqueray.

AudieMcCall asks with trepidation I fear I may provoke your gin-drinker's ire by asking, would this work with a nice vodka as well?
RESPONSE- Yes, if you use the best dry vermouth ever (essentially turning the vodka into a juniper-less gin), it might come close to an approximation of the balanced flavor of this drink.

Qeyser suggests one pour the Chambord down the side of the glass so that it settles on the bottom.
COMMENT- Such less a mixed drink is nearly a shot, similar to my Purple Haze.

A 1/4 oz is a 1/2 tablespoon, a difficult to obtain measuring spoon.
This is not a drink you will be able to order in a bar without calling out the proportions to a steady hand.
I have no doubt that this is not an original cocktail, or even its accepted name. There are many possible combinations of the aforementioned ingredients. To create this drink, I started, from the suggestion of m_turner, a drink called martini rouge, which consists of 2 oz gin and ½ oz Chambord. I found it too sweet, although the interaction with Tanqueray gin was very pleasant.

possibly An Ouroboros original
gin drinks
purple drinks
Everything Bartender