My husband got so excited when he heard that his hometown, Waco Texas, had recently opened a distillery. Whiskey hasn’t been distilled in Texas since prohibition. I, on the other hand, was a little sad to find out that this new Texas hooch came just a little too late for my Godfather, Bruce.
You see, Bruce Watkin Barrick was unlike anyone else has ever been or ever will be. He was without a doubt the most eccentric person I have ever met, and that is really saying something. He loved art, history, music, telling stories, whistling, cooking, playing RISK with his best friends, and a good bourbon and Coke. He was also completely “pro texana”. He would have LOVED Balcones Distillery and Rumble. That’s why I named this drink after him.
Now you can’t call Rumble a true bourbon because it is not composed of at least 51% corn. Balcones does make products made from blue corn, which I can’t wait to taste, but this isn’t it. Rumble is distilled from Texas wildflower honey, Mission figs, and turbinado sugar. These flavors come together to make a lovely, sweet, and floral shot of liquor. You could easily sip this if that was your thing but I prefer my alcohol mixed into something refreshing. It gets dang hot here in Texas. (it will be upper 80s later this week!)
Bruce might have mixed his Rumble with a little Diet Coke but I thought it might sing a little sweeter mixed with blood orange juice. Blood oranges have a lightly citrusy orange flavor mixed with floral and berry notes that make it more mellow than a standard orange. They also have their trademark red color that makes for a gorgeous cocktail. I decided bringing out the wildflower honey flavor in the Rumble would be great too so I made a local North Texas honey simple syrup too. These components and a little ginger ale, to lighten things up, created a beverage Bruce would have loved. He would have been proud it was from Texas.
The Watkin
1 oz honey syrup
2 oz blood orange juice
2 oz Balcones Rumble
ginger ale
ice
garnish
To make the honey syrup put 1 Cup water and ¼ Cup honey in a sauce pan and heat over medium high heat until the honey has melted into the water. I prefer local honey because it seems to help with my allergies. If you can’t find honey local to your home then Texas honey is always a good way to go.
Add the honey syrup, fresh squeezed blood orange juice, and Rumble to a cocktail shaker with ice and give it a good shake. Strain into a high ball glass over ice and top with ginger ale to fill the glass. Garnish with a slice of blood orange or an edible wildflower.
Maybe I'll have to name the next drink I create after this rock, The Ripple Mark sounds yummy doesn't it?
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