Kick-start your Chinese New Year dinner party with an elegant cocktail. A lychee martini is sophisticated, cool, and festively flirty. When you sit down to dinner offer guests a dry Riesling, fruity Sauvignon Blanc, or crisp Chenin Blanc; all would pair nicely with the menu. If you really want to serve a red, look for a light, smooth Pinot Noir. Don't forget water and sparkling water. A refreshing option for non drinkers is lemonade. To see the recipe for the lychee martini, read more.
Lychee Martini
From InStyle magazine
1 14 oz. can lychees
2 cups vodka
1/2 cup cranberry juice
- Drain the lychees, reserving 1 cup of the lychee syrup.
- In a large pitcher combine the reserved lychee syrup, the vodka, and the cranberry juice. Refrigerate until very cold.
- Fill cocktail glasses with ice water.
- To serve, empty ice water from glasses. Place one lychee in the bottom of each glass, and fill with a cocktail.
Serves 8.
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I found this tasty recipe on about.com's cocktails page. (I know I don't have cachaça in my liquor cabinet, so I'll try this one with rum. Yumm!
Kumquat-Ginger Caipirinha
From Leblon Cachaca
Place the Kumquat-Ginger Caipirinha on your list of drinks to try at least once in your life, it is a divine flavor experience. It is a flavored version of the popular Brazilian rum drink, the Caipirinha, in which fresh kumquats and ginger flavor the sugar and cachaça. It is refreshing and complex and, since it is so dependent on fresh flavors, should be made with a premium cachaça. Good cachaça can be hard to find, but brands like Leblon are becoming more common.
INGREDIENTS:
2 oz Leblon cachaça
5 kumquats, sliced
1 1/2 - 2 Tbsp superfine sugar
1 tsp chopped, fresh ginger
slice of kumquat for garnish
PREPARATION:
Place the kumquats, ginger and sugar into an old-fashioned glass.
Muddle well.
Fill the glass with ice, then add the cachaça.
Stir well or shake it.
Garnish with a slice of kumquat.