The Cobbler Cocktail: Vodka with Grapes Macerated in Monastery Herbal Liqueur & Pandan Simple Syrup for the International Incident Cobbler Party

You may be wondering what the heck I'm doing posting a cocktail for the September International Incident Party - hosted as always by our lovely foundress, Penny aka Jeroxie - when the theme is cobbler. Have I lost my mind? Is this an alcoholic's coded cry for help? Is there nothing I won't do to get out of making dessert?

Well, yes, no, and yes, but that's beside the point. You see, I did a little cobbler research and discovered that while it can certainly be a fruity dessert wth a crumbly topping ("pie for the unmotivated,"  stated one definition) there is an older and more arcane definition: An iced drink made with wine, sherry, sugar, and lemon. Bingo!

So I decided to combine the fruit element with the wine element and incorporate macerated grapes into my cocktail, which I have dubbed "The Cobbler." Drink enough of it and its name changes to "The Bobbler."

I have also been itching to use an amazing ingredient sent to me by the incredibly thoughtful, creative,  and sassy Maya of Foodiva's Kitchen: fresh pandan leaves. This is the second of four inspiring  ingredients that somehow found their way to me, the first being those cute little finger limes. I don't know what I have done to deserve it all, but I hope I keep doing it!

Pandan is often described as the vanilla of Asia, and it is that but so much more - nutty, complex, and amenable to sweet and savory preparations. I decided to make a simple syrup with it, by boiling 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup sugar, and then steeping the pandan in the hot liquid to infuse it. This is the first of a few applications I have for my lovely pandan, and it was a huge success - a subtly scented simple syrup with notes of vanilla, macadamia nuts, and something I can't quite put my finger on.

For my macerated grapes, I covered roughly 2 generous handfuls of seedless red grapes with this herbal liqueur that I got at a Prague monastery:

If you don't happen to have any of this lying around .... I think you could go with Benedictine. To this I added a generous squeeze of lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of honey. I let all this sit around and macerate for a couple of hours:

To assemble the cocktail, I filled a chilled martini glass with ice-cold vodka and stirred in 3 teaspoons of the pandan simple syrup, and then plopped in 3 grapes along with a tablespoon of the liqueur/lemon/honey liquid:

I don't normally go for sweet cocktails (I am a dry gin martini kind of gal - or should I say dame?) but the pandan imparted its savory nuttiness, while the liqueur lent an almost bitter quality to the drink, so the sweetness was more than balanced. Thank you Maya for helping to inspire it!

This is, above all, a quite dangerous drink, but then, the best ones always are, aren't they? Make sure to check out what everyone else brought to the cobbler party - the dishes will be posted by 9 pm EST (for once I have come to the party a bit early).

Cheers!