Oh Clementine

Our new crystal Contour Highball Glasses are a fitting vessel for Oh Clementine mixed with ginger ale. See all barware.

Clementines the fruit aren’t sad at all, unlike the folksy ballad about a miner's dying daughter. Instead, they're a medium-size member of the mandarin orange family, usually seedless, slightly sweet, and sometimes called the "Christmas orange" or the "Algerian tangerine." They are generally available in wooden crates in the market from late summer past Christmas.--A.J. Rathbun

Makes about 2 1/4 pints

5 clementines
10 mint leaves
3 cups vodka
1 1/2 cups Simple Syrup (see below)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Wash, dry, and peel the clementines, trimming away any white pith. If the peels slip right off, scrape the inner side of the peel to remove the pith. Put the peels and the mint leaves in a glass container with a tight-fitting lid. Using a muddler or wooden spoon gently muddle the mint leaves and peels until the leaves are slightly mashed.

2. Add the vodka, stir, and seal. Place in a cool, dry spot away from sunlight. Let sit for 2 weeks, stopping to say "howdy" and swirl a couple of times a week.

3. Add the simple syrup and vanilla, stir well, and reseal. Return to its spot and let sit for 2 more weeks, swirling a couple of times a week.

4. Strain the liqueur through a double layer of cheesecloth into a pitcher or other easy-pouring vessel. Strain again through 2 new layers of cheesecloth into 1 large bottle or a number of small bottles or jars.

A Cocktail Suggestion: I like this best served solo and ice cold, but it also plays well with ginger ale over ice in a highball glass.

SIMPLE SYRUP

Though it's not liquor, simple syrup is perhaps even more important in these recipes, as it’s an ingredient found in nearly all of them. Some liqueurs have special syrups (using brown sugar, for example), and instructions to make these not-quite-as-simple-syrups are detailed in the specific recipes that use them. But when a liqueur just calls for an amount of basic simple syrup, use this recipe. I like to have simple syrup around at all times, for liqueurs, for cocktails, and for lemonade and other drinks. It’s easy to make and stores well in the refrigerator. Having simple syrup around also means that you don’t have to rush a batch when you realize you’re at the simple syrup step in one of the liqueur recipes.

Makes 4 1/2 cups

2 1/2 cups water
3 cups sugar

1. Combine the sugar and water in a medium-size saucepan. Stirring occasionally, bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat a bit, and keep the mixture at a low boil for 5 minutes.

2. Turn off the heat, and let the syrup completely cool in the pan. Store in a clean glass jar in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.

ABOUT A.J. RATHBUN

A seasoned party host and master mixologist, A.J. Rathbun is the author of Good Spirits (winner of an IACP Cookbook Award), as well as Luscious Liqueurs, Party Drinks!, Party Snacks! (all from Harvard Common Press), and a collection of poetry, Want. He has worked as a bartender, a waiter, a rock-band roadie, the director of the Poetry After Hours Program at the Seattle Art Museum, and more.

In addition to his books, A.J.'s essay “Rummie” is featured in the anthology Food and Booze: A Tin House Literary Feast, and he has written for Everyday with Rachel Ray, Fine Living, and other on- and offline magazine. And his poetry has been published in numerous national literary magazines, including Crazyhorse, Gulf Coast, The Poetry Miscellany, The Indiana Review, The Sonora Review, The Southeast Review, The Spoon River Poetry Review, Third Coast, Tin House, Willow Springs, ZYZZYVA, and others, and has had poetry anthologized in Pontoon: An Anthology of Washington Writers, Volumes III and V. Learn more on his website at www.ajrathbun.com.