602174 Sun Mar 08 18:51:12 -0700 2009 2 36 Spirits 0 4485672 I bought a bottle of Charbay Blood Orange-flavored vodka Friday night. Opened it up last night, with no clue how to mix it (I'm NOT an accomplished mixologist - I've only recently branched out into mixing drinks at home). First beverage was just a bit of the vodka mixed with club soda, to get the taste of the spirit. It was much more bitter than expected. I didn't make another drink with the stuff, but I did one for a guest that was a bit of the blood orange vodka, a splash of vanilla vodka, some soda water. At his request, I added some sugar, which he said improved the taste. Has anyone in Chow-land experienced this or any other blood orange-flavored vodka? What do you mix it with? Do you have any good cocktail recipes? It was kind of an expensive bottle, so I'd like a beverage where the blood orange is the predominant flavor. I'm willing to buy additional ingredients, but this is what I have in stock in my liquor cabinet right now. I'm listing everything in order to spark your creativity, not necessarily because I think it would go well with blood orange vodka. Club Soda Coke Ginger Ale Milk Tart Cherry Juice Limes (lots of them!) Martini i Rossi Asti spumante Bottle of Zinfandel 1/2 bottle of Boujelais-Villages Brugal anejo (aged Dominican "gold" rum) Absolut vanilla (vodka) Firefly Sweet tea (vodka) Sun Mar 08 18:51:12 -0700 2009 153129 Antithesisofpop 1 4485700 I've never come across a blood-orange vodka before, and I'm not a vodka fan, but here are some suggestioons from just thinking what might work! Mix it with a good tonic instead of soda, orange peel is often used in gin distillation and it could give a G&T like quality but without all the juniper, etc. Muddle some ginger in simple syrup with your blood orange vodka and a spash of sweet vermouth - shake and strain, with a little soda/seltzer ( I don't understand the American terms! Sparkles with neutral taste) Try combinations with other spirits/liquers with similar flavour profiles - Aperol seems like a good starting point, or possibly Campari? Sun Mar 08 19:00:59 -0700 2009 4485672 228878 Steve_K 1 4488030 Yes, the flavor is quite different from "regular" orange juice - tart and a bit bitter. Me, I love that taste in a mixed drink, though I usually mix in a sweet component (juice or sugar syrup). As an acknowledged Blood Orange Vodka addict, I've posted a few recipe links in this thread: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/599455#4487581 . But to summarize here, Blood Orange Vodka is fabulous in a Cosmo - see the recipe on Charbay's web site ( http://www.charbay.com/category.aspx?categoryID=661 ). It would make a good "orange drop", too - make a lemon drop but use orange juice instead of lemon juice. In your listed ingredients, the Asti Spumante is a winner: In a champagne flute, pour in a small splash of the vodka and a big splash of orange juice, then fill the glass with the sparkling wine. Voila, a Blood Orange Mimosa! It might work with the cherry juice, too, though I'm not sure about this. If you feel like experimenting, try half-and-half vodka and cherry juice, with some lime juice and a splash of club soda. If necessary sweeten with sugar syrup (or just a spoon of sugar, mixed well to dissolve it). Basically, try it with anything that would taste good with orange juice. If it's too tart, add a splash of sugar syrup or granulated sugar, and have fun! Anne Mon Mar 09 13:11:06 -0700 2009 4485672 12541 AnneInMpls