Canary Flip (Difford's Guide Recipe)

This is a simple and delicious dessert drink that breaks from the Flip format of whole egg, cream and nutmeg. This cocktail uses the creamy egg yolk advocaat liqueur in place of raw egg and opts for a citrus zip from lemon juice and tart sauvignon blanc.

While I've had Port and Sherry Flips in the past, this flip was probably the best for enjoying more than one. It isn't that it is less rich--there's plenty of sugar and richness there--it is just a little thinner and goes down quickly with a wine and vanilla finish. No nutmeg means that it isn't a winter spice cocktail, so it feels appropriate for dessert any time of the year.

• 2 oz. advocaat liqueur (homemade used)
• 2 oz. sauvignon blanc
• 3/4 oz. lemon juice
• lemon twist garnish

Combine all liquid ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Twist lemon zest over the glass and drop it in. 

 

Spritzer

This is another one of those drinks that is arguably not a cocktail at all, but it is still a mixed drink. A weak one at that. The Spritzer is a summer wine and soda drink when a glass of wine would be too much. It is mostly for people who don't feel like drinking, but would like a taste of wine in a refreshing soda cocktail. You can drink these all day, if that's the kind of thing you like to do.

The Spritzer does what a cocktail is meant to do, however: it spreads out the expensive alcohol with other additives. Soda makes your wine choice like champagne, and you still get to have the experience of drinking an elegant-looking drink from a wine glass with half the alcohol. So go ahead, make a Spritzer with your best white or red, or go cheap. It doesn't matter. No one's getting drunk today anyway.

• 6 oz. red or white wine
• club soda
• lemon twist

  Pour wine over ice in a wine goblet (stemless shown) and fill with soda. Garnish with twist.