The Euphoric Stage is a modern cocktail that was created by Alex Sukopp, former bartender of Sips From Scripts, for a cocktail challenge. It was inspired by the music video for "Tonight Tonight" by Celeste, which aims to capture the euphoric feeling of being in a new relationship. The short film is often dark and moody with lots of red and black and the occasional bizarre goings-on, so it uses an equally unique list of ingredients. To start, elderberry shrub was chosen for its distinct bittersweet taste and dark color as well as cherry liqueur as a nod to the cherry red themes throughout. It then pairs both with gin, lemon, hibiscus, lavender, oak, and ginger.
Fill a highball glass with crushed ice.
Add gin, elderberry shrub, cherry liqueur, lemon juice, and bitters to highball glass.
Using a bar spoon, stir for 5-10 seconds.
Top with seltzer.