Drink the Kool-Aid

Monday, June 23, 2008

Okay, it's not really Kool-Aid, but I found a new drink that I find surprisingly good.

First, I have to admit I'm not a hard liquor drinker. I enjoy a Jack and Coke or a Long Island iced tea from time to time, but usually if I'm going to drink, it's either beer or something tempered, like a whiskey sour. Neither am I a wine drinker. Champagne is fine, and I'm okay with a white or blush, but the darker the wine, the less I care for it.

In case you haven't figured it out at this point, I prefer my drinks on the sweet side.

We were out shopping the other night, and looking through the, ahem, beverage aisle I spied a bottle of Oliver Winery black cherry wine. Because we used to live in Bloomington, Oliver wines are mildly evocative, as wines go. Again, as a largely non-wine drinker, I have enjoyed a fair number of their products. So I was excited to find the black cherry wine. I also chose to pick up a bottle of Smirnoff Vanilla vodka because I'm a sucker for vanilla.

So getting home, I took a swig of the vodka. Good stuff. Again, not being a heavy drinker, swigs don't often go down easy, but the vanilla makes it smooth enough that it lessens the burn a bit. Did I mention I'm a sucker for vanilla?

I took a swig of the black cherry wine. Also good stuff. Sweet without being bitter, which is mainly all I ask for in a wine. Plus it's black cherry. You gotta love black cherry. I used to get the black cherry generic cola from the grocery all the while wishing Coke would come out with a black cherry variant. (But they'd probably call it Cherry Coke Extreme! or something.)

So thinking about cherries and vanilla, I proceeded to mix them. I wasn't too articulate in my mixing, I was only interested in a full glass.

Wow.

The cherry and vanilla flavors mixed beautifully. It had neither a wine-y nor a vodka-y taste, but definitely had a kick. The flavor could best be described a reminiscent of that cherry cobbler you find on buffets where if it's hot and fresh goes terrific with some of that self-serve soft ice cream. Incredibly good stuff.

For what it's worth, because the black cherry wine doesn't seem much like wine, I think this concoction would go great on the rocks (haven't tried that yet). It's a drink that's refreshing in summer and, I imagine, appropriate for the Christmas season as well. Cheerio!