Boy, we are lucky to live in Oregon. For so many reasons… but readers of this blog/people that know me will know that one of my favorite things is our amazing food and beverage industry. There are so many awesome things that come from our state. If for some reason Oregon had to sustain itself without imports, I think we’d be pretty darn good at it. Mostly because we would be well stocked with beer, wine and liquor. Heh.

This year if you recall my Oregon Bottle Gift Guide, I had the pleasure of trying the Clear Creek Reserve Apple Brandy. I was delighted – it’s a bottle of fresh apple flavor, which has not always been my experience with other apple brandies.

It has a lot of tang to it, so using it in cocktails requires the use of a little syrup, and a little bit of bitters. But properly balanced, it makes a cocktail that tastes like a day in the orchard.

Apple Brandy Sour

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 oz. apple brandy (recommended: Clear Creek Reserve)
• 1/2 oz. lemon juice
• 3/4 oz. simple syrup
• 5-6 dashes Angostura bitters

Instructions

1. Shake all ingredients with ice in a cocktail glass. Strain into a fun cocktail glass and enjoy!