Mountaintop Meadow

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Cocktail History

The Mountaintop Meadow is a spring cocktail that was created by Alex Sukopp, former bartender of Sips From Scripts, for an Instagram cocktail challenge. Instead of going the traditional route, he took inspiration directly from posts by his assigned Instagram’s profile, many of which featured photos of summer cocktails and scaling mountainsides. In homage to the user’s two hobbies, he chose a refreshing mix of vodka, bubbly, fruit, and floral flavors that together taste like the moment you first smell a beautiful mountaintop wildflower field after climbing up a cliff on a warm summer day.

Cocktail Ingredients

To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following ingredients:

Sparkling Wine: This is a carbonated wine made with white or red grapes. I used Villa Bellezza Winery Brillante.

Vodka: This is a spirit made with grains, vegetables or fruits, and alcohol. I used Russian Standard Gold Vodka.

Elderflower Liqueur: This is a liqueur made with elderflowers, citrus, herbs, sugar, and alcohol. I used Edinburgh Gin Distillery Elderflower Gin Liqueur.

Simple Syrup: This is a sweetener made with white sugar and water. I made mine using this stovetop recipe.

Lavender Bitters: This is a food product made with lavender buds, botanicals, herbs, and alcohol. I used Scrappy’s Bitters Lavender Bitters.

Pineapple Slice: This is pineapple flesh that has been cut into a wedge shape.

Mint Sprig: This is an herb. I used fresh Mojito mint.

Bartending Tools

To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following bar tools:

Jigger: This is used to measure and pour ingredients. I used the Japanese jigger from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.

Bar Spoon: This is used to stir ingredients. I used the Barfly Stainless Steel Teardrop Bar Spoon.

Pineapple Corer: This is used to remove the core of the pineapple before it’s juiced. I used the OXO Good Grips Stainless Steel Pineapple Corer.

Chef’s Knife: This is used to cut larger fruits and vegetables into slices for the garnish. I used the OXO Good Grips 8-Inch Chef’s Knife.

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Tasting Notes

This cocktail has the following flavor profile:

• Appearance: Fizzy yellow color

• Aroma: Florals, mint, and fruit

• Taste: Dry wine flavor mixed with distinct elderflower and lavender notes

• Finish: Wine aftertaste with more slightly bitter florals

Kendall’s Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Kendall’s Take: “At the time of this tasting, this was probably the most floral cocktail I’d ever tried outside of maybe an Aviation, but the more my palate develops, the more that recipe becomes too cloyingly sweet for me. The Mountaintop Meadow, on the hand, has a dry and earthy flavor that still manages to be very refreshing despite featuring very little sweetness. In my opinion, this drink really does encapsulate what I imagine a flower field would taste like in drink form.”

Recipe