Toasting Earth Day With Organic Spirits and Cocktails
Contributed by on Apr 17, 2013
Two readers love this post.
April 22 is Earth Day, and people around the globe will be demonstrating support for the environment and generally celebrating Mother Nature.
But you don't have to hug a tree or wear hemp clothes to show how much you love the planet. You can show support for this Big Blue planet of ours by mixing up a cocktail with one of these certified organic spirits.
Created using ecological and sustainable farming methods, without harmful pesticides or synthetic chemicals, each of these spirits is made with a single goal in mind: to have minimal impact on the environment while delivering a spirit worthy of the premium ingredients used to make them. And who wouldn't drink to that?
CASA NOBLE TEQUILA
The ultra-premium, hand-crafted Casa Noble Tequila is double certified: It's earned an Organic Certification from the US Department of Agriculture and a Green Certification from the Mexican Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection for its planting, harvesting and distilling methods. But besides looking out for the environment, their methods result in an exceptionally smooth, rich, flavorful tequila that's spicy and full of fruit. And just like the environment, this is tequila is meant to be sipped and savored, not slammed.
Casa Noble Organic Margarita
Ingredients:
2 oz Casa Noble Crystal
1 oz Fresh Organic Lime Juice (or the juice of 1 whole lime)
3/4 oz Organic Agave Nectar
Garnish: lime wheel and kosher salt rim (optional)
Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake, strain and serve up or on the rocks. Garnish with a lime wheel. To salt rim – moisten rim of glass with lime and gently roll in a plate of kosher salt.
AMERICAN HARVEST VODKA
Handcrafted in small batches from organic American winter wheat, certified organic ingredients and water from deep beneath the Snake River Plain, American Harvest Vodka was created with the promise to deliver a premium, silky, clean spirit without compromise to the environment or our natural resources. In fact, one third of the power needed to run the distillery in Rigby, Idaho is supplied by wind and the 100% recyclable bottles are printed with organic inks. All that attention results in a vodka that's so crisp and light that it's perfect for mixing into any cocktail, or simply enjoying chilled all by itself.
Local Harvest
Ingredients:
2 parts American Harvest
4 fresh basil leaves
3 lime wedges
3 thin slices of cucumber
1/4 part agave nectar
How to mix this cocktail
Muddle basil, lime and cucumber. Combine with American Harvest and agave nectar in a cocktail glass filled with ice. Shake hard and strain over fresh ice in a rocks glass. Garnish with basil leaf and a slice of cucumber.
PAPAGAYO RUM
Distilled from organic sugarcane grown on a single plantation in Paraguay, Papagayo Rum is committed to not only sustainable agriculture, but to fair trade as well—it's the only rum in the US that's Fair Trade Certified. They create their deep, rich, flavorful rums by traditional estate distillation, but without using pesticides, chemical agents, or sewage sludge fertilizers. (Which isn't exactly something you'd want in your cocktail.) Barrel-aged in the tropical heat, this rum is spiced with vanilla and chili pepper. (Now that we do want in our cocktail.)
The Turning Leaf
2 oz Papagayo Spiced Rum
4 oz organic apricot nectar
Squeeze of lime
Fresh ground allspice
Fill a highball glass with ice cubes. Add the Papagayo Spiced Rum, apricot nectar and lime juice. Stir. Grind fresh allspice on top. Garnish with a wedge of lime and cinnamon stick swizzle.
SQUARE ONE INFUSED VODKAS
Made from 100% organic American rye and a proprietary organic distillation process, Square One Organic Spirits offers artisanal Cucumber, Basil and Botanical vodkas—all infused with organic botanicals that contain no artificial flavors, modifiers or added sugars. The bottles are also made with protecting nature in mind: they are not screen printed, instead they get a "tree-free" label made from bamboo pulp, sugarcane and cotton printed with soy inks. They don't just leave a lighter footprint on the Earth, their herb, floral or fruit qualities meld seamlessly in cocktails or on their own, straight up or on the rocks with a twist.
Basil Watermelon Refresher
1 1/2 oz. Square One Basil
1 1/2 oz. watermelon juice
1 barspoon Campari (optional)
1/2 oz. fresh squeezed lime juice
1/4 oz. agave nectar or simple syrup
small basil leaf for garnish
Combine all ingredients with ice and shake for 15 seconds. Strain the liquid into a rocks glass filled with fresh ice.
FARMER'S BOTANICAL GIN
Gin is typically a literal botanical garden of a spirit, but Farmer's Botanical Small Batch Organic Gin takes it a step further. This 93.4 proof gin celebrates Mother Nature's bounty by mixing a selection of juniper, elderflower, lemongrass, coriander, angelica root and other botanicals from farms in the upper Midwest to create a natural spirit that's bright, off-dry and floral. Mother would be proud.
Farmer's Runway
2 1/2 parts Farmer's Organic Gin
3/4 part lime juice
1/2 part lemongrass syrup
2 dashes maraschino liqueur
1 dash crème de violette
Combine the first 4 ingredients in an ice filled shaker and shake vigorously. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and add a dash of liqueur de violette. Garnish with a lemon grass stalk.
HIGHLAND HARVEST SCOTCH
A certified organic Scotch whisky?Highland Harvest Organic Scotch Whisky is the world's first. Using a blend of three organic single-malt whiskies, it's matured in natural charred oak Bourbon barrels for at least 8 years and the resulting Scotch doesn't suffer from being environmentally conscious—it has not only won several awards and medals, but it was honored with the Royal Warrant of His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. Apparently the Prince also enjoys a sip of the good stuff that's good to the planet.
The Scotch Sidecar
4 ounces Highland Harvest Organic Scotch Whisky
1 ounce fresh-squeezed orange juice
1/2 ounce fresh-squeezed lemon juice
Orange wedge for garnish
Place the Highland Harvest Organic Scotch Whisky in a shaker. Add orange juice and lemon juice. Shake over ice and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with an orange wedge.