CORDIALS

GRENADINE, the real kind, is miles above the typical turbo-red artificial goop. Mix one cup of unsweetened pomegranate juice (POM is preferred) with one cup of white sugar. Cook over low heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. When it’s cool, add one-and-a-half teaspoons of orange flower water and one ounce of 50% ABV vodka. Keep refrigerated. Will last about six months.

LIME CORDIAL is Jason Schiffer’s homemade, fresh, and far-superior replacement for Rose’s Lime Juice. Start by grating the zest of five limes and chopping a half-cup of ginger (no need to peel the ginger). Set aside. After zesting, juice the limes and strain through a fine-mesh strainer, to yield one and a half cups, juicing more limes if necessary to make that volume. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the lime juice with one and a half cups of white sugar. Watch and stir regularly to dissolve the sugar. Remove the saucepan from heat just before it comes to a boil. Rest the hot mixture for five minutes, then add the reserved lime zest and ginger. Let it infuse for 20 minutes, then strain through a fine-mesh strainer into your storage vessel. Add one ounce of 50% ABV vodka. Keep refrigerated. Will last about three months.

This GRAPEFRUIT CORDIAL recipe comes from Jammyland in Las Vegas, where the locals love it in a frozen Papa Doble and other tropical drinks. To start, peel one quarter of a Ruby Red grapefruit, then roughly chop the peeled grapefruit into chunks. In a saucepan, add the peel and chopped grapefruit to two cups of freshly-squeezed juice from additional grapefruit. Bring this to a boil, then lower to a gentle simmer and slightly reduce, about 10 percent. Fine-strain the juice, then whisk in two cups of white sugar until dissolved. Add one half-ounce of Wray & Nephew overproof Jamaican rum. Keep refrigerated. Will last about four weeks.