You may notice that I’ve added a little something to the series title here. Henceforth, I’m going to be calling the recipes I make up (that are original rather than classic recipes) “OG.” So that’s what that means.

Today I’ve been playing with Kachka’s new horseradish vodka. Kachka’s drinks menu contains a long list of vodka infusions, and they decided they’d bottle their horseradish vodka in partnership with Portland’s New Deal Distillery. The vodka featured in a few cocktails on their menu right now… but I asked them for a bottle to bring home and play with. 🙂

Of course, this stuff would be brilliant in a Bloody Mary (and some day I will actually post about Bloody Marys, I promise). But today I wanted to do something a little more unique. And I was craving pickles.

The vodka is fun to sip – and, at a recent media event, we drank dirty martinis featuring the specialty spirit. Both are great ways to use it, too.

For this cocktail I used beet juice as the base – a classic flavor pairing with horseradish. But to balance a cocktail, one must also have a little bit of sour flavor and a little bit of sweet. So I incorporated a little bit of lime and honey.

The end result, I think, is a pretty nifty blend of the bitter, sweet and sour. I’ve garnished the cocktails with some quick pickles (I love David Chang’s recipe). And the punny name is a nod to that balance. I think this relatively light cocktail could be great for anytime from brunch to dinner.

You can pick up this vodka at select Oregon liquor stores this month. And if your place doesn’t have it, you can ask them for it!

The Cocktail Diaries OG Recipe: The Beet Poet featuring Kachka’s Horseradish Vodka

Ingredients

• 3 oz. beet juice
• 1.5 oz. Kachka Horseradish Vodka
• 1 oz. fresh lime juice
• 1/4 oz. honey syrup (equal parts honey and water)
• Black pepper, pickles and dill to garnish

Instructions

1. Shake the beet juice, vodka, lime juice and honey until icy cold. Strain into a collins glass filled with ice. Garnish with pickles and dill. Shake a little black pepper right on top of the drink.