Cocktails

If two spirits were ever meant to get married, this would be the happy couple. I was first introduced to Crown Royal Maple Finished late last year, and it was love at first taste. The sweet, subtle tones of the maple finish added another element to an already cherished whisky. Whether consumed neat, or with added cola, this is the whisky for people who don’t like whisky.

Over the past year or two, there has been a trend to develop spirits based on dessert flavours, like Three Olives Cake, and the sales of these spirits seem to be flourishing. Over the past few months I have noticed some of the following new flavours: whipped cream, glazed donut, assorted sorbets, and red licorice just to name a few. When I first spotted Blueberry Pancakes by McGuinness, I took very little notice. I first began to think what I could use as mix, and then I had my revelation. What is the one thing you need for a big stack of blueberry pancakes? Maple syrup.

The more I thought about it, the more mixing the two drinks together made sense. A couple of weeks later, as I was hosting some friends, I was asked if it was better to mix the Crown Royal Maple with cola, or to have it neat. I was about to state that it didn’t matter, as either would be a fine drink, before I remembered the bottle of Blueberry Pancakes in the cupboard. I leaped out of the chair, grabbed a number of shot glasses and started pouring. The reaction was unanimous, these two were made for each other.

• 1 oz Crown Royal Maple Finished
• 1 oz McGuinness Blueberry Pancakes

The drink it self is easy enough to make, put equal parts in a shot glass, and make it disappear. I’ve only served the drink with the two spirits at room temperature, but chilling the pancake liqueur may make the drink a little more palatable for those who are not drinkers of strong spirits.