Instead of cranberry juice, this irreverent Cosmo variation from Austin’s Elementary uses fermented Kool-Aid to add sweet-tart flavor. Specifically, Chris Arial brews a honey mead that’s flavored with the childhood-favorite powdered beverage. For a home-friendly variation, simply bypass the mead-making process and use an ounce of Kool-Aid.
Fermented Kool-Aid Cosmo
Chris Arial | Austin, Texas
Ingredients
Serving: 1
- 1 1/2 ounces vodka, preferably Tito’s
- 1 ounce Kool-Aid mead (see Editor’s Note)
- 3/4 ounce Cointreau
- 3/4 ounce lemon “super juice” (see Editor’s Note)
- 3 drops saline solution (4:1, water to salt, or use a pinch of salt)
Garnish: lemon peel
Directions
- Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake until chilled.
- Double-strain into a Martini glass.
- Twist the lemon peel to express the essential oils over the top of the drink and the glass’s rim and stem. Then drop the peel in the glass.
Editor's Note
Kool-Aid Mead
3 quarts hot water
1 quart honey
25 grams/5 packets cherry Kool-Aid
1 packet dried Champagne yeast
In a sanitized container, combine the hot water, honey and Kool-Aid. Stir until the honey is dissolved and the mixture is homogeneous, then let cool to room temperature. Once it’s cool, add the Champagne yeast, then transfer to a sanitized gallon container. Secure with a one-way fermentation air lock and set aside for 7 days. The mead is ready to use when the alcohol content measures 6 percent. Transfer to the refrigerator to slow the fermentation process.
Lemon “Super Juice”
Yield: 1 quart
65 grams lemon peel (from about 10 lemons)
65 grams citric acid
1085 milliliters water
Add the lemon peels and citric acid to a blender. Let the lemon peels macerate with the citric acid until they release most of their oil (about 15 minutes). Add the water and blend until the peels are as fine as sand, then strain the mixture and refrigerate. Use within 2 weeks.