The Forgotten Pearl

THE FORGOTTEN PEARL

"These pearls make you forget the troubles of yesterday."

A cheesy-ass quote I just made up starts my newest post! Welcome aboard gents and hold fast, it's going to be a long ride to the unknown...

...just kidding. The story behind this cocktail goes somewhat like this: I go to the grocery store with my wife and her sister I see some passion fruits and I decide I want to make a cocktail using them. In addition, the coaster you see (has a bit of an "earthy" feel to it and fits absolutely perfectly with the kitchen table) was given to me by a good friend of mine. "It has to have rum in it" I thought. Also some exotic fruit of some kind (besides the passion fruit). The Forgotten Pearl was born:

• 2 cl aged rum
• 2 cl gran marnier
• 2 cl martini bianco (sweet clear vermouth)
• 4 cl pineapple juice
• 4 cl orange juice (I used freshly squeezed)
• 1-2 dashes angostura bitters
• 2 passion fruits (for the actual cocktail only 1½ is used, the rest ½ is used for garnish)
• 1 bar spoon D.O.M benedictine "float"

First spoon pearls from the 1½ passion fruit in the shaker. Add the juices and alcohols except for the benedictine. Add ice and shake vigorously. Double strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish by scooping the ½ passion fruit left over. Finally add a bar spoon of your herbal liqueur onto the drink. Enjoy.

Quite the drink I say! It has a velvety smooth texture, it is plenty of notes of citrus, the "roundness" from the rum and the complexity from the vermouth/gran marnier. Especially towards the end I could experience an ocean of herbal-like tastes, which made this cocktail...just wonderful.