The RECIPES
The years that followed the release of The Craft of the Cocktail in 2002 were important to the growth of the craft cocktail movement. A new generation of bartenders added their voices and their creativity to the art of making drinks, tinkering and retooling the classics, and borrowing both ingredients and techniques from the culinary world. That opened the door to a new era: the cocktail as a companion to the explosion of creativity in the culinary world and a love affair with big flavor. In this chapter, you will find many of these talented men and women and their recipes represented with this + symbol. Some of these recipes are destined to be the modern classics that will endure.
Today the offerings from drinks companies have grown exponentially. Rather than a separate list of recommended brands as I did in the original edition, I have branded many of the recipes with my recommended favorites, and labeled my original recipes or variations on classics with this * symbol. This is an opportunity to introduce you to quality and sometimes unique brands from the vastly expanded repertoire of spirits. The result is a much tighter focus on flavor and a better drink. Time to roll up our sleeves and shake, muddle, stir, and roll some great cocktails.
DRINK NAMES, RECIPE SEQUENCE & INDEX
Some drinks go by many different names. What one person calls a Buck’s Fizz, another calls a Mimosa. It’s usually a matter of opinion as to who’s right or wrong, and often they are both right. Sometimes it’s impossible to even guess. So I have used the name that has the widest use, and that’s where you’ll find the recipe. I created a number of special features—such as Manhattan, Martini, Fizz, and Bloody Mary variations—to group together all the members of these tightly knit families, so if you don’t find it alphabetically, check those sections.
All drinks are listed alphabetically in the index.
STRAIGHT UP
The straight-up recipes are between 3 and 4 ounces before shaking or stirring. Proper shaking or stirring should add about 1 ounce water. Water is as important as any other ingredient to the flavor of a proper cocktail. With the water content, the “up” recipes are all designed to be served in a 5½- to 7-ounce cocktail glass.
HIGHBALLS
Highball recipes generally contain between 1½ and 2 ounces total alcohol.
ON THE ROCKS
Drinks on the rocks should contain between 2 and 3 ounces alcohol, with Martinis and Manhattans in the upper range, and spirits on the rocks in the lower range.
FLAMING
Throughout the recipe library, I call for flamed orange and lemon coins. This is a neat trick that was a regular part of the drink service at the bar of the Rainbow Room. It brought a little theater and added a wonderful burnt orange or lemon flavor to the drinks. The technique is easy to master: just follow the instructions on this page.
ABBEY COCKTAIL
Aviation gin, created by bartender Ryan Magarian, is a nice example of the “new Western” style; it’s more floral, with juniper in the middle of the aroma instead of on top.
1½ ounces Aviation American gin
¾ ounce Lillet Blanc
1 ounce fresh orange juice
Dash of Regan’s Orange Bitters No. 6
Flamed orange zest coin (see this page), for garnish
Shake all the ingredients (except the garnish) with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with the flamed orange zest coin.
ABSINTHE DRIP
The drip technique is critical to the success of this absinthe classic. The louche, or clouding, happens when the alcohol content is lowered and the bonds between the essential oils and the alcohol molecules are broken. Shocking the absinthe by pouring in water all at once will cause the essential oils to clump together. This manifests as “scales” that float on top of the surface of the drink, which is definitely not the way we want to present the drink. Finally, the sugar that is used traditionally is not necessary with fine absinthe, and I recommend using the reservoir apparatus to deliver the water that does not employ sugar.
4 ounces spring water
2 ounces Jade 1901 Absinthe Supérieure
Fill the reservoir container with the water and place it on top of the glass, then watch as the magic happens. Note, the resevoir apparatus is a glass or metal container that sits on top of an absinthe glass and delivers water to the absinthe drop by drop through a fine hole in the bottom of the container.
ABSINTHE SUISSE
In his book the Roving Bartender, 1946, Bill Kelly suggests orgeat as a replacement for anisette, which was more popular; others recommend French vermouth.
1½ ounces Jade 1901 Absinthe Supérieure
¾ ounce Dolin Blanc vermouth
¼ ounce orgeat
¾ ounce emulsified egg white (see this page)
Grated Marcona almond, for garnish
Shake all the ingredients (except the garnish) very well with ice, making sure to completely emulsify the egg white. Strain into a coupe glass and top with the grated almond.
ABSOLUTELY BANANAS+
David Thompson of the Capital Hotel in London won first prize with this drink in the first annual London Absolut Vodka Cocktail contest in 1996. If this cocktail is shaken very hard to a slow ten count, a handsome layer of foam from the pineapple juice will float on top of the drink and make a great presentation.
1½ ounces Blue Shark vodka
½ ounce Tempus Fugit Crème de Banane liqueur
1½ ounces pineapple juice
Shake all the ingredients very well with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
ADAM & EVE*
This recipe is my original, created for the now-closed Gin Lane bar in New York City.
1 ounce Pama pomegranate liqueur
1 ounce Żubrówka Bison Grass flavored vodka
4 ounces fresh apple cider
Dash of Dale DeGroff’s Pimento Aromatic Bitters
Slice of green apple, for garnish
Build all the ingredients (except the garnish) in a highball glass over ice and stir. Garnish with the green apple slice.
ADONIS COCKTAIL RETOOLED
The original Adonis Cocktail was created in 1884 and named after a Broadway musical. The ingredients as listed in most books are simply sherry, vermouth, and bitters. I substituted a couple of my favorites.
2 ounces Lustau fino sherry, or your favorite fino
1 ounce Martini Riserva Speciale Ambrato vermouth
3 dashes of Dale DeGroff’s Pimento Aromatic Bitters
Orange zest coin (see this page), for garnish
Stir all the ingredients (except for the garnish) with ice and strain into a chilled Nick & Nora glass. Garnish with the orange zest coin.
AIR BAlLOON+
Recipe by Ms. Franky Marshall. Franky Marshall is an accomplished craft bartender, educator, and unrepentant hedonist.
1½ ounces Clément Premiére Canne rum
¾ ounce Nardini Acqua di Cedro liqueur
¼ ounce green Chartreuse
½ ounce fresh lime juice
¼ ounce Simple Syrup (this page)
Sage leaf, for garnish
Dehydrated lime wheel, for garnish
Shake all the ingredients (except the garnishes) gently with ice. Strain into a fine stemware over pebble ice (see this page). Garnish with the sage leaf and lime wheel.
AIR MAIL COCKTAIL
1 ounce Clément Premiére Canne rum
½ ounce fresh lime juice
¼ ounce Simple Syrup (this page)
¼ ounce Honey Syrup (this page)
4 ounces Champagne
Shake the first four ingredients with ice. Strain into a large cocktail glass and top with the Champagne.
ALABAMA SLAMMERITOS*
Makes 4 shooters
This is a trip back to your salad days, so you want to take it easy—keep to small doses, served as shooters. This recipe makes four shooters, so find three fellow travelers to accompany you on this bit of time travel.
¾ ounce Southern Comfort 100 Proof
1½ ounces Tito’s Handmade vodka
¾ ounce Plymouth sloe gin
3 ounces fresh orange juice
Shake all the ingredients hard with ice, then strain into four 1½-ounce shot glasses. Bottoms up!
ALAMBIC FIZZ+
This original cocktail is from Jeff Bell at PDT (Please Don’t Tell) in New York City. Jeff and sommelier Thomas Pastuszak were the consulting blend masters for Bertoux brandy, a pot-distilled California brandy that is a blend of brandies from three- to seven-year-old that are aged in French and American oak.
2 ounces Bertoux brandy
¾ ounce Blandy’s 5-year-old Bual Madeira
Dash of Dale DeGroff’s Pimento Aromatic Bitters
1½ ounces Lindemans Pêche Lambic Belgian beer
Shake all the ingredients except the beer hard with ice, strain into a chilled coupe glass, and top with the beer.
ALEXANDER
This may be served “up” or as a frappé over snow ice.
1 ounce gin or Cognac
1 ounce Tempus Fugit crème de cacao
2 ounces heavy cream
Freshly grated nutmeg, for garnish
Shake the ingredients (except the garnish) with ice and strain into a small cocktail glass. Garnish with the nutmeg.
ALGONQUIN
Ted Saucier collected drinks from around the world in his 1951 book Bottoms Up. The Blue Bar at New York City’s famous Algonquin Hotel offered the following recipe.
2 ounces Banks Island Blend rum
½ ounce Marie Brizard No 21 blackberry liqueur
¼ ounce Bénédictine
½ ounce fresh lime juice
Bordeaux cherry, for garnish
Shake the ingredients (except the garnish) with ice and strain into a small cocktail glass. Garnish with the cherry.
ALLEGHENY
I found this in The Ultimate A-to-Z Bar Guide, and I include it here with a thank-you to the authors. For extra flavor, muddle in a piece of lemon.
1 ounce bourbon
1 ounce Noilly Prat Original dry vermouth
½ ounce Marie Brizard No 21 blackberry liqueur
½ ounce fresh lemon juice
Lemon zest coin (see this page), for garnish
Shake the ingredients (except the garnish) well with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with the lemon zest coin.
ALLIANCE*
Tony Abou-Ganim, aka the Modern Mixologist, and I collaborated on this cocktail for the Trade Board of Peru to feature the iconic Peruvian brandy, pisco.
1 strawberry, for garnish
¼ ounce strawberry purée (see Note)
½ ounce lychee purée (see Note)
1½ ounces BarSol Primero Quebranta pisco
¼ ounce Ginger Syrup (this page)
¼ ounce Simple Syrup (this page)
1 ounce fresh lemon juice
2 ounces Champagne
½ lemon wheel, for garnish
Hull the strawberry and slice it lengthwise (through the stem end) to get heart-shaped slices. Set aside.
Add all the ingredients (except the Champagne and garnishes) to a large wineglass and stir. Fill the glass with ice about one-third full and slowly top with the Champagne; stir very gently. Add the strawberry slices and half lemon wheel to the glass as you would for sangria.
Note You can premix the two purées in bulk to expedite service of the drink. Source the purées from the Perfect Purée of Napa Valley (www.perfectpuree.com).
Trying Is for Students!
In early 1989, just months after we had opened the Rainbow Room, I was called to the executive floor at 30 Rock for a one-on-one with Joe Baum—that was not good news. As I entered, Joe threw a magazine across the desk and said, “Read this.” The magazine was Gastronome. The article by Karen MacNeil was “Cocktails? Of Course.” Though I didn’t know I’d be quoted, it was my first real ink, and I was smiling, but that did not make Joe happy.
He underlined the spot he wanted me to read: “Here [at Rainbow] we’re trying to re-invent the feeling, style, and professionalism…” Joe slapped the desk so hard that I jumped out of my seat. He shouted, “TRYING IS FOR STUDENTS. WE DON’T TRY, WE DO! GET THE HELL OUT OF MY OFFICE.”
It was actually a good meeting. I never heard the words “you’re fired.” And I got my first and most important lesson on how to handle the press. It was also sloppy fact checking. The Rainbow Room Bronx Cocktail, in our beautiful retro Nick and Nora glass, was attributed to Gordon’s in Chicago, and the Blond Bombshell from Gordon’s was attributed to the Rainbow Room.
ALPHONSO COCKTAIL
This retooling of the classic Champagne Cocktail (this page) was served at the French resort of Deauville in Normandy around 1920.
1 sugar cube soaked with Angostura bitters
1 ounce Dubonnet Rouge
Champagne or sparkling wine
Lemon zest coin or spiral (see this page), for garnish
Place the bitters-soaked sugar cube in a white-wine glass with a couple of ice cubes. Add the Dubonnet and fill with Champagne. Garnish with the lemon zest coin or spiral.
AMBER DREAM
The Amber Dream is a Bijou cocktail with dry vermouth and sweet and yellow Chartreuse instead of green Chartreuse.
2 ounces Beefeater gin
1 ounce Dolin dry vermouth
¼ ounce yellow Chartreuse
Dash of orange bitters
Flamed orange zest coin (see this page), for garnish
Place the ingredients (except the garnish) in a bar glass with ice and stir. Garnish with the flamed orange zest coin.
AMERICAN BEAUTY
¾ ounce Argonaut brandy
¾ ounce Dolin dry vermouth
¾ ounce fresh orange juice
¼ ounce grenadine, homemade (this page) or store-bought
¼ ounce Marie Brizard No 33 white crème de menthe
½ ounce Sandeman Founder’s Reserve ruby port
Food-grade rose petal, for garnish
Shake all the ingredients (except the port and garnish) with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Float the port on top. Garnish with the rose petal.
AMERICANO HIGHBALL
This cocktail was bottled and sold around the world by Martini & Rossi in the 1890s. Note that most aperitif, sherry, and vermouth drinks should be served in stemware, but the Americano Highball should obviously be in a highball glass.
1½ ounces Italian sweet vermouth
1½ ounces Campari
Soda water
Flamed orange zest coin (see this page), for garnish
Pour the vermouth and Campari into an ice-filled highball glass and top with soda water. Garnish with the flamed orange zest coin.
ANOTHER SHADE OF GREYHOUND*
I created this variation on the theme for Holland America Line’s ships.
1½ ounces Blue Shark vodka
½ ounce St-Germain elderflower liqueur
4 ounces fresh grapefruit juice
Dash of Bitter Truth grapefruit bitters
Grapefruit zest coin (see this page), for garnish
Build all the ingredients (ecept the garnish) in a highball glass over ice and stir. Garnish with the grapefruit zest coin.
AñEJO HIGHBALl*
I created the Añejo Highball as a tribute to the great bartenders of Cuba, in particular Constantino Ribalaigua Vert, from Havana’s El Floridita bar, one of the leading bartenders of the twentieth century.
1½ ounces Bacardí añejo rum
½ ounce Pierre Ferrand dry curaçao
¼ ounce fresh lime juice
2 dashes of Dale DeGroff’s Pimento Aromatic Bitters
2 ounces ginger beer, homemade (see this page) or store-bought
Lime wheel, for garnish
Orange slice, for garnish
Build the first four ingredients over ice in a highball glass and fill with the ginger beer. Stir and garnish with the lime wheel and orange slice.
APERATIVO CALIFORNIA*
This was a menu item I created for Keith McNally’s Morandi Italian restaurant.
1½ ounces China Martini liqueur
¾ ounce fresh orange juice
¾ ounce fresh grapefruit juice
2 dashes of Regan’s Orange Bitters No. 6
Lime wedge
Thin English cucumber wheel, unpeeled, for garnish
Build all the ingredients (except the lime and the cucumber garnish) with ice in a double old-fashioned glass. Stir. Squeeze the lime wedge into the drink and discard it; garnish with the fresh-cut cucumber wheel.
APPLEJACK COCKTAIL
This is adapted from a drink served at the Ritz Bar in Paris and published in The Artistry of Mixing Drinks by Frank Meier (1936).
2 ounces Laird’s Straight Applejack 86
¾ ounce Pierre Ferrand dry curaçao
¼ ounce fresh lime juice
2 dashes of Bitter Truth orange bitters
Apple slice, for garnish
Orange zest coin (see this page), for garnish
Shake all the ingredients (except the garnishes) with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with the apple slice and the orange zest coin.
APRICOT COCKTAIl*
I started playing with the recipe for a Bermuda Rose (gin, apricot, lime, and grenadine) and came up with the Apricot Cocktail. It’s a good match for either spicy tuna tartare or spicy tapas.
1½ ounces Hendrick’s Orbium gin
¾ ounce Marie Brizard Apry liqueur
¾ ounce fresh orange juice
½ ounce fresh lemon juice
Flamed orange zest coin (see this page), for garnish
Shake the ingredients (except the garnish) well with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with the flamed orange zest coin.
AQUEDUCT
I can’t resist a drink named after a racetrack.
1½ ounces vodka
½ ounce Marie Brizard No 1 triple sec
½ ounce Marie Brizard Apry liqueur
¾ ounce fresh lime juice
Thin lime wheel, for garnish
Shake all ingredients (except the garnish) with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Float the thin lime wheel on top of the drink.
ARANCIO AMERICANO*
This was a menu item I created for Keith McNally’s Morandi Italian restaurant.
¾ ounce Aperol
¾ ounce Martini & Rossi sweet vermouth
1 ounce fresh orange juice
2 ounces Mionetto Prosecco Brut Valdobbiadene
Half orange wheel, for garnish
Build the Aperol, vermouth, and orange juice in a highball glass filled three-quarters full with ice cubes. Stir and top with the prosecco. Garnish with the half orange wheel.
ANGEL’S SHOOTERS
“Angel” drinks are the original shooters created during the Jazz Age. The following recipes are designed, as they were originally, to be layered in a one-ounce pony-style glass. If you wish to serve this drink in a larger glass, the recipe amounts need to be adjusted accordingly.
ANGEL’S KISS
The layers are achieved by pouring the alcohol slowly over the back of a spoon held against the inside of the glass (see Pousse-Café, this page).
1 part Tempus Fugit crème de cacao
1 part Cognac
1 part heavy cream
Layer the crème de cacao and Cognac in a pony glass. Pour the cream over the back of a bar spoon to float on top of the other two ingredients.
ANGEL’S TIP
1 part Tempus Fugit crème de cacao
1 part heavy cream
Pour the crème de cacao in a pony or cordial glass and pour the cream over the back of a bar spoon to float on top.
AVIATION COCKTAIL
The Internet cocktail crowd has breathed new life into this chestnut.
2 ounces Fords gin
½ ounce Luxardo maraschino liqueur
½ ounce fresh lemon juice
Splash of Simple Syrup (this page; optional)
½ ounce Giffard crème de violette
Bordeaux cherry, for garnish
Shake the gin, maraschino liqueur, lemon juice, and simple syrup with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass; pour the crème de violette through the drink. Garnish with the cherry.
B-52
This was one of the first disco-era layered shooters, and it is still one of the best. See Pousse-Café (this page) for help with layering.
¾ ounce Kahlúa
¾ ounce Baileys Irish cream
¾ ounce Grand Marnier
Layer the ingredients in a cordial glass in the listed order, starting with the Kahlúa.
BACARDÍ COCKTAIL
The Bacardí Cocktail was the cosmopolitan of the 1930s. Add orange juice and you have the Robson; add dry vermouth for Frank Meier’s version from the Ritz Bar in Paris. Stork Club bartender, Johnny Brooks, created the Cubanola by adding fresh orange juice, pineapple juice, and egg white to the regular Bacardí Cocktail. I added my own touch with less grenadine and some simple syrup, which is not without historical precedent.
In the mid 1930s Bacardí waged a lawsuit against a New York hotel that was making the drink with another rum; the New York Supreme Court ruled that the Bacardí Cocktail must be made with Bacardí rum. The ruling was unenforceable but worth a fortune in publicity.
2 ounces Bacardí light rum
½ ounce fresh lemon juice
½ ounce Simple Syrup (this page)
4 dashes of grenadine, homemade (this page) or store-bought
Bordeaux cherry, for garnish
Shake all the ingredients (except the garnish) with ice and strain into a small cocktail glass. Garnish with the cherry.
BAHAMA MAMA
¾ ounce light rum
¾ ounce añejo rum
¾ ounce dark rum
¾ ounce Clément Mahina Coco liqueur
¾ ounce Tempus Fugit Crème de Banane liqueur
2 ounces fresh orange juice
2 ounces pineapple juice
¼ teaspoon grenadine, homemade (this page) or store-bought
Dash of Dale DeGroff’s Pimento Aromatic Bitters
Bordeaux cherry, for garnish
Pineapple slice and pineapple leaf, for garnish
Orange slice, for garnish
Shake all the ingredients (except garnishes) with ice and strain into a boca grande or other specialty glass. Garnish with the cherry, pineapple slice and leaf, and orange slice.
BAKUNIN
This drink was created at Pravda bar in New York, which, next to the bar at The Odeon, was Keith McNally’s most successful bar.
1½ ounces Stolichnaya Ohranj vodka
¾ ounce Grand Marnier
1 ounce fresh orange juice
½ ounce fresh lemon juice
Dash of Bitter Truth orange bitters
Shake all the ingredients well with ice and strain into a large coupe glass over crushed ice.
BALM COCKTAIL
If you can find fresh lemon balm, shake a leaf with this cocktail and use a sprig as an additional garnish.
2 ounces Dry Sack Medium sherry
¾ ounce fresh orange juice
½ ounce Cointreau
2 dashes of Angostura bitters
2 orange slices
2 sprigs of lemon balm, for garnish
Flamed orange zest coin (see this page), for garnish
Shake the sherry, orange juice, Cointreau, bitters, and orange slices with ice. Fine strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with the lemon balm and the flamed orange zest coin.
BANANA DAIQUIRI (Frozen)
I use only a small amount of banana liqueur so I get the flavor from the fruit itself.
1 ounce light rum
1 ounce amber rum
1 ounce Tempus Fugit Crème de Banane liqueur
¾ ounce fresh lime juice
2 ounces Simple Syrup (this page)
½ small banana, sliced
Pulse the ingredients in a blender with cracked ice and serve in a Boca grande glass.
BANSHEE
A Grasshopper made with crème de banane liqueur instead of crème de menthe.
1 ounce Tempest Fugit Crème de Banane liqueur
1 ounce Tempest Fugit crème de cacao
2 ounces heavy cream
Shake well with ice and strain into a large coupe glass.
BARCELONA (Frozen)*
I created this for the James Beard House in New York City during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. The frozen Barcelona was served with dessert.
¾ ounce Gran Duque d’Alba Spanish brandy
¾ ounce Dry Sack sherry or your favorite medium sherry
¾ ounce Cointreau
¾ ounce fresh orange juice
¾ ounce heavy cream
1 ounce Simple Syrup (this page)
¾ cup ice
Ground cinnamon, for garnish
Blend all the ingredients (except the garnish) in a blender. Serve in a large coupe glass. Garnish with a light dusting of cinnamon.
BATIDAS (Frozen)
These Brazilian milkshakes are made in many flavors; choose your favorite fruit purée or nectar.
2 ounces cachaça
2 ounces tropical fruit purée or nectar
1 ounce sweetened condensed milk
1 ounce Simple Syrup (this page)
Grated nutmeg, for garnish
Blend all the ingredients (except the garnish) with ice and serve in a stem glass. Garnish with grated nutmeg.
BEE’s KISS
This is modified from a recipe from the Ritz Bar in Paris as printed in Frank Meier’s The Artistry of Mixing Drinks (1936).
1½ ounces Bacardí rum
1 ounce heavy cream
¾ ounce Honey Syrup (this page; see Note)
Shake all the ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled coupe glass.
Note Honey already has a strong presence in drinks when used as a sweetener, so it’s a good idea to choose a mild honey like clover blossom over a strong flavor like buckwheat. I always look for a local producer; it helps with my wife’s allergies.
BEE’S KNEES
2 ounces gin
¾ ounce Honey Syrup (this page)
¾ ounce fresh lemon juice
Lemon zest coin (see this page), for garnish
Shake the gin, honey syrup, and lemon juice with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with the lemon zest coin.
BELFAST COCKTAIL+
This was created by Francis Schott, partner in the landmark New Brunswick, New Jersey, restaurant Stage Left Steak—purveyors of fine food and drink for thirty-seven years as I write this.
1½ ounces Sandeman Founder’s Reserve ruby port
1½ ounces Pierre Ferrand Ambre Cognac
½ ounce Trimbach Poire William brandy
½ ounce Cinnamon Syrup (this page)
Dash of Bitter Truth orange bitters
Dash of Dale DeGroff’s Pimento Aromatic Bitters
Orange zest coin (see this page)
Freshly grated Ceylon cinnamon stick, for garnish
Combine all the ingredients (except the orange zest and cinnamon) in a cocktail mixing glass with ice and stir to chill. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and express the oil of the orange zest coin over the top of the drink and discard. Garnish with the cinnamon.
THE BELLINI
The Bellini was invented by Giuseppe Cipriani in 1948, at Harry’s Bar in Venice. Originally the drink was made only during four months of the year, when the sweet white peaches used for the purée were in season. But when the Cipriani empire spread to New York City, Giuseppe’s son, Arrigo, found a flash-frozen peach purée that he could use year-round. He colored the purée slightly with raspberry juice or grenadine to create the perfect Bellini color.
2 ounces of colored and chilled white peach purée (see Notes)
3 ounces dry prosecco, such as Mionetto Prestige Collection DOC Treviso Brut
½ ounce Marie Brizard No 11 peach liqueur float (optional)
Put the peach purée in the bottom of a mixing glass without ice. Slowly pour in the prosecco while gently pulling the colored peach purée up the side of the glass to mix with the prosecco; stir gently to avoid losing the effervescence. Strain into a champagne flute and float the peach liqueur, if desired.
Notes I recommend flash-frozen purée from the Perfect Purée of Napa Valley (www.perfectpuree.com). I bought frozen peach purée by the liter, thawed it for use, and then colored the whole liter with 1½ tablespoons of raspberry juice or grenadine syrup for use in Bellinis.
Bellinis are often made by the pitcherful. To do so, choose a pitcher that is wider at the top than at the bottom and fill it one-third full with colored peach purée. Slowly pour prosecco down the side of the pitcher, and using a long bar spoon, pull the purée up the side of the pitcher. Stir gently to avoid losing the effervescence of the prosecco.