2023 Let’s Get Blitzen: Cocktail Advent Calendar – Day 20 – Pear Tree Highball. Your classic rye and ginger gets a major upgrade this Christmas. Pear, persimmon, and fresh citrus liven up the party.
This is one of the most easy-drinking cocktails in this year’s calendar and one of my personal favourites. It doesn’t take much for me to fall in love with a cocktail containing ginger liqueur but this one is truly exceptional.
Thinking about “rye and ginger” got me reminiscing about my misspent youth buying $4 bar rail drinks at grimy clubs in my university days. I’m embarrassed to admit that my go-to drink when clubbing was vodka cranberry. At one point I would drink screwdrivers (vodka and orange juice) but got so drunk off those one night at the campus pub that I was turned off them forevermore. Few things are worse coming back up than orange juice and cheap vodka.
I guess there are still worse choices – vodka water for instance. This choice seems to be prevalent amongst hockey players and other calorie conscious types. To which I say, choose joy – your drink shouldn’t taste like printer paper and a cocktail is meant to be savoured, not mindlessly consumed.
By contrast to these options, a rye and ginger would be a world of flavour. If you loved rye and gingers, or avoided them because of the “calories” but secretly craved them, this Pear Tree Highball is its sophisticated cousin.
This is also decidedly better than more flavourful drinks you may have downed in your misspent like Jägerbombs. I’ll never forget my 19th birthday when my girlfriends took me out to Pier 21, an East Coast themed bar in the Byward Market, now long closed. After queuing for a seeming eternity at the sticky bar, my friend insisted on ordering a round of Jägerbombs in spite of my vehement protestations.
“I’ll throw up if I have a Jägerbomb,” I said. To which she replied, “That’s okay, I’ll hold your hair back if you do.” And true to her word, after a quick and regretful consumption of the drink in question she trotted behind me into the bathroom stall and held my hair back.
If you, unlike me, were a proponent of the Jägerbomb in your college days, may I gently suggest you sample my Fernet Festivus from an earlier iteration of the calendar. It’s refined and boozy while still embracing the bitter, bracing quality of an herbal liqueur.
Regardless of what past cocktail shame you’re trying to forget (or recreate), I hope you’ll join me on my Instagram Stories tonight at 5 p.m. Eastern to shake up this tasty drink.
Cheers, friends!
Pear Tree Highball
Your classic rye and ginger gets a major upgrade this Christmas. Pear, persimmon, and fresh citrus liven up the party.
- 1½ oz rye
- ¾ oz ginger liqueur
- ¾ oz lemon juice
- 2 oz pear juice
- ½ oz persimmon syrup
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- Fever-Tree Premium Club Soda to top
- Garnish: star anise
- ¾ cup water
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup persimmon chopped
-
Add all ingredients to a shaker with ice and shake until well-chilled.
-
Strain into an ice-filled highball glass. Top with club soda and stir briefly.
-
Garnish with star anise.
-
Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a low boil, stirring frequently.
-
Reduce heat to medium low and let simmer for about 15 minutes until syrup is slightly thickened.
-
Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
-
Remove solids and fine strain into an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
