New England Cocktail Terroir and my Beet Syrup Recipe

    Concepts of sustainability are ever-present in our modern discourse.  I find many of the discussions to be lacking in a number of ways.  Many discussions I see in the media are simply about impact and sustainability, for example how damaging a the supply chain of a favorite food is to the environment.  While this is useful information to be out there, there are a few key concepts typically missing from the dialogue.

    There are only a few, often catastrophic examples where civilizations slide backwards.  It is unlikely guilt over an indulgence will modify consumer habits enough to impact the carbon foot print of imported or unsustainably produced goods.  Regulation, innovation, and desirable substitution seem to be the ways in which progress occurs regarding sustainability.  Regulation and innovation tend to be slow.  As a bartender, I am aware that my profession is inundated with exotic ingredients and storied imported products from around the globe.

    I do ask myself from time to time, what can I find in my regional terroir that I can use to make an incredible cocktail. I'm not looking to guilt people for their preferences in imported wines, or exotic liqueurs.  It is my job to concoct beverages for people, and that means there are a range of tastes, perceptions, and expectations that are adopted from our cultural experiences.  I do really enjoy making cocktails that challenge these expectations, but I also revel in making cocktails that fit people's tastes using regionally available produce.

    All produce goes through a Darwinistic gauntlet to find its place in the modern cocktail zeitgeist.  Whether by mean of flavor, acidity, bitterness, juiciness, uniqueness, or sweetness; all ingredients are compared and dabbled with in usage with some clear winners becoming the standard ingredients.  There are some great ways to work with forgotten or passed over ingredients with some modern modifications.  Rounding and balancing the flavors
and preserving freshness is very doable with some of my most used modifiers.  When I am reaching into under cocktailed local produce to make a cocktail ingredient (such as a syrup or cordial), my most used modifiers are: water, sugar, salt, citric acid, MSG, malic acid, and wine tannins.  The idea is to up the acidity, sweetness, bitterness, or to round the flavors in a way that allows the natural flavor of the ingredient to shine once the cocktail is built out.  

    One of my all time favorite syrups that lives up to this idea is my beet syrup recipe.  The salt, citric acid, MSG round out the flavor is a very desirable way.

• 4-5 medium - small beets washed and cut into 1/2 in pieces
• 1 cup water
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp msg
• 1/8 tsp citric acid

Simmer the beets, water, and modifiers for about 30 mins.  Blend and measure the mixture, measure double the volume of the blended mixture in sugar, and bring back to a boil.  Once sugar is dissolved, strain out beets, and bottle the syrup.  The strained out beets is also a delicious treat on its own or as a condiment!