Vampire Bite

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Cocktail History

The Vampire Bite is a Halloween cocktail that was created in 2018 by Kara, the recipe developer behind Kara Creates. The original recipe was meant to be a boozy black cherry lemonade with a bright red hue, but this version by Alex Sukopp, former bartender of the retired Instagram account Sips From Scripts, kicks up the complexity by calling for cherry brandy and aquavit in place of the vodka. It also uses a unique sparkling sangria instead of cherry soda.

Cocktail Ingredients

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

Sangria Soda: This is a carbonated beverage made in Mexico with wine flavors, sugar, and carbonated water. I used Sangria Senorial Non-Alcoholic Sangria Soda.

Sparkling Lemonade: This is a soda made with lemon juice, sugar, and carbonated water. I used IZZE Sparkling Original Lemonade.

Cherry Brandy: This is a type of brandy made with cherries, spices, sugar, and alcohol. I used Door County Distillery Cherry Brandy.

Aquavit: This is a spirit made with grains or potatoes, star anise, caraway, spices, and alcohol. I used State Line Distilling Aquavit.

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

Red Food Coloring: This is a dye that adds color to foods or drinks. I used Watkins Assorted Food Coloring.

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.

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Tasting Notes

This cocktail has the following flavor profile:

• Appearance: Dark red color

• Aroma: Cherry and other fruits

• Taste: Dry cherry flavor with slight wine notes and fizzy lemonade

• Finish: Anise from the aquavit

Kendall’s Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Kendall’s Take: “The creator of this souped-up version of a usually silly Halloween drink did some serious heavy lifting turning a really simple vodka and soda cocktail into something interesting that even has a hint of unexpected complexity. I noticed the recipe does use food coloring to get the red just right for a vampire-inspired cocktail, but it turned out both fun and tasty regardless I really enjoyed the Vampire Bite and think most Halloween fans will too!”

Recipe