I have partnered with Coopers’s Craft to create a beautiful seasonal drink. Scroll down to read about my Strawberry Bourbon Cocktail.
I cannot think of a better way to welcome April than with a spring libation. When I was asked to create a cocktail for Coopers’ Craft Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, incorporating North Carolina strawberries was a no-brainer for me. While I am a bourbon whiskey novice, I was thrilled for the opportunity to learn more about Coopers’ Craft.
Honoring the men and women who raise the barrels, Coopers’ Craft celebrates Brown-Forman’s more than 70 years of barrel-making and wood expertise as the only major distiller that owns its own new barrel cooperage.
Coopers’ Craft has two expressions, the 82.2 proof, and the 100 proof Barrel Reserve! The original Coopers’ Craft bourbon is aged in a traditional American White Oak barrel. After it is aged, the bourbon runs through a special beech and birch charcoal filter finishing process, creating a smooth and gentle bourbon. In contrast, Coopers’ Craft Barrel Reserve is aged in a unique chiseled and charred American White Oak barrel that allows the whiskey to interact more deeply with the wood, creating a robust and more complex flavor profile.
Coopers’ Craft Barrel Reserve has a gorgeous rich red topaz coloring and has a flavor profile that consists of caramel, cotton candy, apples, pears and citrus fruit. The spirit’s finish is an assertive cinnamon with softened lingering notes of apples and clean oak.
I love taking risks when building cocktails and this instance was no exception. When I first tasted Coopers’ Craft Barrel Reserve, I immediately thought that the flavor profile would pair beautifully with a strawberry shrub. While strawberries and bourbon may seem unorthodox, I could not be happier with my recipe.
Before you begin this recipe, you will need to build a Strawberry Shrub. Don’t fret, I have a fantastic recipe which incorporates champagne vinegar into the fermented strawberries. Click here for the recipe! Now that I have shared the mixer that I will use in my Strawberry Bourbon Cocktail, let’s get to the recipe!
Strawberry Bourbon Cocktail
Strawberry Bourbon Cocktail
Ingredients
- 2 oz Coopers’ Craft Barrel Reserve
- 2 oz Strawberry Shrub
- 1 oz Elderflower Liqueur
- 4 oz club soda
- 1 cup ice
- 1 strawberry optional
- 1 mint sprig optional
Instructions
- Add Coopers’ Craft Barrel Reserve, Strawberry Shrub, Elderflower Liqueur and ice to a cocktail shaker. Shake for 15 seconds.
- Pour the mixture into a rocks glass. Top the drink with 4 ounces of club soda. Stir the concoction gently with a cocktail stirrer.
- Optional: slice the middle of a strawberry to garnish the edge of the rocks glass. Add a mint spring to accompany the strawberry. Now that you have prepared the drink, get ready to sip and enjoy the Strawberry Bourbon Cocktail.
Tools used for this Strawberry Bourbon Cocktail recipe:
I hope that you enjoy this Strawberry Bourbon Cocktail as much as I do.
I could not be more in love with this spring inspired libation. Coopers’ Craft Barrel Reserve not only works beautifully with all of the ingredients in this recipe, but it lends a beautiful finish to the Strawberry Bourbon Cocktail. Coopers’ Craft Barrel Reserve is readily available in North Carolina and can be purchased at select ABC stores. #ad #CoopersCraft #CallforCoopers
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