This post comes to us courtesy of food writer and editor James Schend, blogger at Dairy Freed. 

 

The bartenders at Bourbon & Branch in San Francisco are experts at mixing some of the most creative cocktails you’ll ever taste. This cocktail is aptly named because it’s the epitome of a Southern gentleman:

• It has a distinct charm that puts everyone at ease.
• Sweet, but not overtly so, and always refreshing.
• It camouflages its wild streak behind the guise of old-world gentility.

 

Watch as bartender Jayson Wilde prepares this perfect summer cocktail.

 

The Southern Gentleman

3 fresh peach slices

2 oz. (1/4 cup) Wild Turkey Rye

1/2 oz. (1 Tbs.) brown sugar-cinnamon syrup (recipe follows)

1/2 oz. (1 Tbs.) fresh lemon juice

1/4 oz. (1 1/2 tsp.) fresh orange juice

Ice

Fresh mint sprig for garnish

Grated cinnamon for garnish

 

Place 2 fresh peach slices in a cocktail shaker and lightly muddle. Add the rye, brown sugar-cinnamon syrup, lemon juice and orange juice. Fill the shaker with ice and shake vigorously.

 

Add fresh ice to a rocks glass and strain the rye mixture into the glass through a fine-mesh strainer. Garnish with the remaining peach slice, mint sprig and grated cinnamon. Serves 1.

 

Brown Sugar-Cinnamon Syrup

 

2/3 cup water

1 cup brown sugar

4 cinnamon sticks

 

See video for recipe. Makes about 1 cup.

 

Music: Kevin MacLeod, Incompetech.com

 

About the author: A graduate of The Culinary Institute of America, James Schend’s culinary career began when he won his first cooking contest at 8 years old. He’s gone on to write and develop recipes for national magazines and culinary websites. His own blog Dairy Freed focuses on the challenges of dairy-free cooking.