aloe pera

I’m finally back for a Mixology Monday!

I love this cocktail making event but for the longest time I have either missed the deadline, couldn’t find the theme and date or haven’t had the necessary liquor to take part.

The theme for January, hosted by The Scribe from A Mixed Dram, is new horizons and so I’ve used two ingredients I’ve never used before: the first is Absolut’s intensely pear flavoured vodka and the second is a strange, bright green juice from New Zealand made from kiwifruit and aloe vera.

Absolut Pears was released in 2007 and Absolut claims that like all its vodkas it is “made from water and winter wheat . . . exclusively from natural ingredients and doesn’t contain any added sugar”. They describe is as “fresh and delicate, with a smack of mellow pears and a long fruity aftertaste”.


In my opinion, Absolut Pears is not a subtle flavour. There is no mistaking the pear in this and when mixing with other ingredients it’s very difficult not to overpower everything with the pear flavour. Midori is a good match since it often has the same effect.

Absolut Pears was a good choice to match to the Nekta as well, which has its own strong kiwi punch but also the strange grapey-bubblegum flavours of aloe vera.

And since there's aloe vera in it, surely this drink is healthy? Right? Surely?

Actually this drink is pretty powerful but it tasted good and was easy to drink. I’d be pleased to mix it again.

The vibrant green colour is quite confronting so it’s best used on jovial occasions or in warm weather for a tropical feeling. It might even make a good pitcher drink for a small, casual dinner party.

Aloe Pera

Anna's very own recipe. Makes 2.

Ingredients:
3 parts Kiwi & Aloe Nekta
1 part Absolut Pears
1 part Cointreau
½ part Midori
½ part lemon juice

Method:
1. Shake with ice until chilled.
2. Serve in martini glass.

I am sure many of my MxMo colleagues have noticed this, but every time Absolut releases a new flavour they always write or spell the name in a strange way that most people don’t seem to pick up on.

For instance most people ask for Absolut Vanilla but it’s actually Absolut Vanilia, their mandarin vodka is written as Absolut Mandrin, and their peach as Absolut Apeach.

Since I’m married to a Swede, and can speak a fair amount of Swedish myself, I can tell you that the majority of these kooky names are not the equivalent Swedish words but a fanciful Absolut language cooked up in a marketing department somewhere.

The full range of flavours, and correct Absolut spelling, are as follows:
Absolut Apeach
Absolut Citron
Absolut Kurant
Absolut Mandrin
Absolut Mango
Absolut Pears
Absolut Peppar
Absolut Raspberri
Absolut Ruby Red
Absolut Vanilia

I quite like Absolut’s flavoured vodka range, but I’m not a fan of their plain vodkas. Frankly I think the elegant design of the bottle and witty advertising campaign does more to drive sales than any flavours from the lighter fluid inside.

But as I said, I enjoy the flavoured vodkas, particularly the lemon (citron) and black currant (kurant). They’re great for mixing and usually add good strength of flavour to many cocktails.

The Absolut Drinks website has some great cocktail suggestions for using all their flavoured vodkas so I checked out what they had for Absolut Pears. Some are as simple as mixing with lemonade or ginger beer and garnishing with a lime wedge, but here are three of the more interesting suggestions:

Pears Garden
4 parts Absolut Pears
2 parts lemon juice
2 parts simple syrup
1 part black currant liqueur
2 parts cranberry juice
Shake on ice and strain into chilled martini glass.

Absolut Appearance
1 part Absolut Pears
1 part apricot brandy
1 part simple syrup
1 part lemon juice
1 part grapefruit juice
Fill a shaker with ice cubes. Add all ingredients. Shake and strain into a chilled rocks glass filled with ice cubes.

Chocolate Pear
1 part Absolut Pears
1 part cream
1 part chocolate liqueur
2 parts hazelnut liqueur
Chocolate
Fill a shaker with ice cubes. Add all ingredients. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with 1 whole chocolate.

poll by twiigs.com

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