I realized yesterday that it had been a month since the “stay home, stay safe” order was issued by Governor Jay Inslee. As the past month wore on, I certainly noticed that my wine and spirit consumption increased, my exercise routine diminished, and my patience wore thinner by the day. I am one half of a couple, outnumbered by three kids. Our children are ages, 15, 17 and 23.. and we are ALL suddenly quarantined with “love”. (cheers!)
This Monday marked the third week of April and the fifth week of social distancing. While in quarantine, I have done things like clean and organize all of my closets, weed gardens, plant flowers, pressure wash the patio and driveway, and I ordered a few sets of new wine glasses.
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It’s like Groundhog Day, but feels really rewarding to be able to spend more time with my family. I have not struggled with feeling bored and I am never lonely. Virtual Happy Hours have helped ward off isolation from friends.
Today, with the dramatic about-face in weather conditions, I found myself feeling as if I was stuck in quicksand. Despite sleeping in until 8:30 AM, I found myself sluggish, unmotivated and frankly down in the dumps! My typical day begins at 5:00 AM. I wake up, feed the unyieldingly incessant cat, make coffee and read the news. In “normal” times, I usually head to the gym and then I start blogging and creating content for our social media feeds.
This morning, I spent more time than usual searching for inspiration. As I was pouring over our Instagram feed, I came across several stunning and creative cocktail and wine recipes! Typically spring is a time when Carrie and I are about to begin a season of hosting parties, attending food/wine/jazz festivals, and driving to Lake Chelan to chat with winemakers for our sister wine blog, Lake Chelan Wine Blog. This year everything is on hold. It occurred to me that this might be the perfect time to try out some of the cocktail recipes and see if we can later build a party theme around any of them.
I wanted to utilize what we already had in our liquor cabinet, and avoid going to the grocery store. Luckily, I have many bottles of Rosé wine, and most of the ingredients to re-create this delicious Frosé that I found on the Best Cocktails Instagram feed. It also calls for Gin and Aperol. I normally struggle to drink Gin, but Bothell distillery, Wildwood Spirits makes their Kur Gin that is really clean and tastes good. It has a bit of Seville orange in it and I thought it would pair perfectly with the Aperol.
There is a little bit of prep work that is required in making this frozen Rosé but it is so worth it! You take Gin, Aperol, Rose and freshly squeezed lemon juice, add Agave, ice, fresh strawberries and blend. I garnished ours with a lemon wedge and strawberry slices because I was feeling festive. I also used adorable paper straws that I forgot to photograph (I guess I will have to make these again!).
We LOVED these and it is going to be a recipe used in frequent rotation whenever we can safely entertain again. Here is the recipe, including my substitutions for the items I did not have at home in my pantry.
Froze:
4 oz. rose (I used one from Canoe Ridge, in honor of Walla Walla Wine month!)
1 oz. Gin
1 oz. Aperol
1.5 oz. fresh lemon juice
1/2 oz. Agave ( I used 1 oz. of simple syrup)
3-4 strawberries
Ice
In a blender, add Rose, Gin, Aperol, lemon juice, sweetener, ice and strawberries. Blend until smooth. Enjoy!!
Let us know if you try this cocktail recipe out and what you think! Cheers!
~Jen
