Sunset Magazine is THE magazine of the West, a stunning pictorial and literary trip up and down our coast and across our Mountain passes, and color me purple, we're IN IT!
Poured myself a Simple goodness Sisters lemon Herb spritzer and settled in for an afternoon of pinch myself "is this real?!" readingIt is a highlight of my month when the magazine arrives at my door, and the hours I spend perusing its pages are a trip to a life I imagine myself having: adventurous escapes through PNW wonderland, small garden transformations to beautiful backyard oases (this has been an ongoing quest of mine for two years, just ask my friends who have grown very tired of my constant ask for their opinion on one outdoor rug to the next), themed dinners with seasonal fare and all scratch cooking (ok, that one I do manage to bring into my real life occasionally, though perhaps with a little less editorial fanfare.) The pages are alive with color, texture, talent, variety, and utter quality. It has always been apparent to us that the editors strive to put forward only the best to their readers, and take pains to collect the fine, the unique, the local. So, to be featured among their pages, is definitely a career "bucket list" for us.
And, we've found our suspicions to be entirely true. Not only is our product beautiful, high quality, unique and local (*pats self on back) but the editors made sure that they actually liked it. We sent several emails introducing ourselves, because we have learned that whether it is a preschool pickup line or a magazine, multiple introductions are key to getting someone to remember you. Then we sent samples. Then they asked for more samples. Then they sampled the syrups, all together, I imagine in that incredible Sunset Test Kitchen I drool over pictures of each year. And then a while later, we heard we'd be featured. We actually did not know anything about the feature beyond that it would be out before September and be in the Pantry Section of the magazine.
It was a pleasant surprise to us to be included in an ice cream round up. While we delight in using our syrups at every meal, every opportunity, we're often in a cocktail/mocktail/drink syrup box. We specifically wrote our excerpt on the syrup bottle label to address this versatility: "This is a drink syrup. This is also whatever you want it to be. it may not be a baby goat, but it could be a breakfast syrup, dessert syrup..." The good people at Sunset are pretty smart people, and must have figured this out in that pristine test kitchen of theirs. Marionberry Mint absolutely S-I-N-G-S in multiple flavors of ice cream: from Tillamook's Marionberry Pie ice cream to Frankie and Jo's vegan Chocolate Date to Snoqualmie Creamery's dinner mint to a cold brew coffee gelato by Talenti to a simple vanilla ice cream, it's a dream topping. Our Marionberry Mint syrup on ice cream is cravable, delectable, easiest hosting dessert ever goodness, while still being incredibly quick, convenient, and just a fridge reach away. But you don't even have to take our word for it, you can take the word of Sunset Magazine, the premier resource for achieving the ultimate Western lifestyle.
…(Pats Pats, pinches self on back....)
5 Creative Toppings to take Your Ice Cream Sundae to the next Level
That magic moment before you open the pages of a Sunset Magazine
The classic Vodka Collins has infinite opportunity for variation, but none so delicious as a pairing of two Simple Goodness Sisters’ Syrups: Rhubarb Vanilla and Berry Sage. Freshly picked and washed whole strawberries join raspberries and fresh sage leaves to make the Berry Sage syrup. Paired together in this vodka Collins with a little bit of fresh lemon juice, the result is part fresh squeezed lemonade stand at a country fair, and part your great Aunt’s strawberry rhubarb pie.
The Jack Rose is a pre-prohibition (like, seriously OG) New Jersey classic cocktail we're re-imagining to be solidly West Coast. It's a little known drink (and surprisingly has NOTHING to do with our favorites from the Titanic) that will be widely popular with your friends once introduced. It's fairly sweet but still pretty stiff, so it packs a pretty little punch. Speaking of punch, PUNCH describes the drink as so:
According to David Embury’s The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, the Jack Rose was, during the mid-20thcentury, a pillar of basic cocktail-mixing knowledge. The origin of its name is disputed: some credit it to an early 20th-century hit man called “Bald Jack Rose,” while others connect it to Jersey City bartender Frank J. May, who was also known as Jack Rose. What is certain is that the Jack Rose is a New Jersey cocktail through and through. Its American apple brandy base, applejack (a.k.a. “Jersey Lightning”), is one of the country’s oldest continuously-produced spirits and Laird’s in New Jersey remains its largest producer to this day.
As this article makes clear, this is a New Jersey cocktail that goes way back. The original version calls for grenadine, lemon juice, and applejack. We're more interested in bringing it back to the future, and rooting it firmly in our own region's splendor with the addition of locally grown rhubarb simple syrup from Sumner, WA, the rhubarb capitol of the world. To bring the cocktail all the way back around to the apple state, we recommend also trying a locally made apple brandy.
Where there are cider companies, brandy distilling is sure to follow, and as cider making is exploding in Washington, several distilleries in the state have released apple brandies as well. I may just have to plan a personal tasting tour of the options next Spring, because just writing this blog post has me thirsty for more history and more brandy!
The history of cider and brandy making in America is absolutely fascinating, as the two used to be the most prevalent and common alcohol consumed, during a time when our young nation consumed an estimated THREE times the amount of alcohol that we do today. The temperance movement, prohibition, modern farm practices, and urban growth have all affected the apple industry significantly, even more so the growth of cider apples (a more bitter variety than those grown for juice and fruit.) The result was, for a long time, we didn't drink very much cider in the USA, and the long tradition of brandy making was upheld by only a few purveyors.
Thankfully, as PUNCH mentioned above, one of these was Laird's. For a quick trip into apple brandy land, if you've never tried it before, a bottle of Laird's will totally do the trick. It's readily available and inexpensive at places like Total Wine and More so you can try this recipe right away. Just be sure to sub in the rhurbarb vanilla syrup for the grenadine, or at the very least, make your own grenadine. Commercial grenadines such as Rose's that you may have in your fridge will taste far too sweet.
Speaking of sweet, it doesn't get cuter, or more questionable in appropriateness, than Hayes playing mixologist with the jigger as I try to make this drink in the video below!
To Make the Cocktail:
Add 1 dash bitters, Laird's applejack, rhubarb vanilla syrup, and fresh squeezed lemon juice to a cocktail shaker full of ice. Shake until the outside of the shaker is chilled and strain the cocktail into a fresh, chilled glass. Finish by twisting a lemon peel over the glass to release citrus oils into the cocktail. Garnish with an edible flower sugar rim or fresh edible flowers if available.
