Kir's Lookin' at You
Last night at the Governor’s holiday party, I was delighted to be offered a Kir Royal, a bubbly cocktail of sparkling wine and black-currant liqueur. I had not had a Kir Royal—or its non-bubbly cousin, Kir—for years, and I’m going to make an effort to bring them back into my boozy repertoire. First of all, Kir and Kir Royal are great ways to neutralize lousy white wines. Second, they’re pretty. And third, they’re good conversation starters. Last night, for example, the crimson-hued cocktail temporarily diverted a room full of media and lawmakers from questions such as “Does the state need a $4 million underground party room?” and “Who considers food critics to be media?” to the more pressing query of “Why’s my champagne pink?”
The answer to the last question is crème de cassis. A liqueur flavored with black currants, crème de cassis was first reportedly mixed with white wine by Félix Kir, the mayor of Dijon, after World War II. Kir married cassis with white Burgundy and served the combination to out-of-town guests as a way to showcase two regional products. (Using that logic the governor might consider introducing a cocktail of Jack Daniel’s and meth. Beware if anyone ever offers you a Bredesen.)
The recipe for Kir is simple: Pour a small amount of crème de cassis into the bottom of a glass and fill the glass with white wine. The more elegant variation, Kir Royal (pictured in this photo swiped from Drinkalizer.com), substitutes sparkling wine and often adds a lemon twist. The result is a bubbly, colorful and slightly sweet concoction that goes down smooth enough to make you beer-goggle a Republican. And if a Kir Royal looks as festive as it did last night, under the flickering fluorescent lights of the third-floor meeting room in the Tennessee Tower, just think how glamorous it would be at the governor’s 2009 holiday party in a $4 million underground bunker.
Comments
For the record, Jeff Woods, looking quite dashing with a freshly shaved skull, blue blazer and tie, sipped a Kir Royal. Liz Garrigan mumbled something about "pansy-ass shit" and scuttled off to the bar for a man's drink.
Posted 12/19/2007 at 02:55:05 PMThe difference between me and Jeff is that he jumps at the first sign of alcoholic beverage. I will at least look over the server's shoulder to see if there's a real bar. There was, and I hit it. When Woods heard this news, he commenced to drink his weight in beer.
Posted 12/19/2007 at 03:05:31 PMJeff Woods wearing a tie and sipping a Kir Royal? I must see a photo to believe it.
Posted 12/19/2007 at 03:06:31 PMI knew a really pretentious girl in New York—her parents were collectors of fine Chinese textiles—who used to drink those all the time. In the middle of the day. And talk about how she learned to do it in France.
Posted 12/19/2007 at 03:10:35 PMWoods is a sissy boy. He even got panties in his office stocking today.
Posted 12/19/2007 at 03:22:17 PMdid they have a room key attached?
Posted 12/20/2007 at 09:07:24 AM