bourbon-soaked cherries.

one of my favorite drinks is a manhattan. whiskey, sweet vermouth, bitters, maraschino cherry and usually a twist of orange peel= YUM. one of the best manhattans i've ever had was made with maker's mark whiskey and instead of super sweet maraschino cherries, they had maker's mark bourbon-soaked cherries. talk about delicious! boozy but still slightly sweet...such a delicious addition. so, i went on the hunt for a drunken cherry recipe. i found something better during my search! cherry bourbon liquor WITH bourbon-soaked cherries. double-whammy! so without further ado, the recipe (from foodwoolf.com):

Cherry Bourbon Ratios

* Fill a quarter of your canning or jelly jar with pitted cherries (a quarter of a pound for an 8-ounce jar). Be sure to capture as much cherry juice in that container as possible.

* Fill the rest of the jar with a great tasting bourbon, like Elmer T. Lee

* Shake the container and leave out on a shelf (at room temperature) for a month. Lightly shake your jar every couple of days. After three weeks to a month, taste your results. If you like a sweeter flavor, add a small amount (one fifth to your ratio) of sugar to your mixture.

SUGGESTIONS:

Pour a splash of this macerated bourbon on ice to experience the subtle flavors, or add an equal amount of Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth to your glass for a mind blowing (and slightly sweet) Manhattan. Finish your cocktail off with one of the bourbon infused cherries for an unsweetened, bourbon soaked Brooks cherry garnish. Use your cherry-infused bourbon to make a super-charged version of my Master Cherry Cocktail.

OTHER IDEAS:

If you have a sweet tooth and love the classic Aviation cocktail, I highly recommend buying up an extra bundle of cherries and soak them in a jar with some Luxardo as well. The sweetness of the cherry liqueur infuses the fresh cherries with an almost candy flavor, which makes for a delightfully sugared fruit garnish, without adding any sugar!