It’s Oscar time! Have you seen Brooklyn? The coming-of-age period drama about a young Irish immigrant blossoming in 1950s New York City was one of my favourite films last year. As an expat, I loved and related to the delicate way the film covered the immigrant experience and in a sea of rather bleak movies I appreciated the optimism of its characters. Also, Montreal plays the title role of Brooklyn! The boarding house where Saoirse Ronan’s character, Eilis, lives in Brooklyn is actually the Memorial Chapter House of Montreal’s Alpha Delta Phi fraternity, on McGill University’s campus!
The perfect drink to celebrate this best picture nominees is the classic cocktail that shares its name: the Brooklyn. It’s not as well-known as its classic neighbour, the Manhattan*, but it’s just as good. Here what you’ll need for one cocktail:
2 ounces whiskey (Jameson or Teeling would be a perfect nod to Ireland here)
1 ounce dry vermouth
1/4 ounce maraschino liqueur (I always love Leopold Brothers small batch liqueurs)
Dash of angostura bitters
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker over ice. Shake and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a maraschino cherry. I used Luxardo cherries, and the brand also makes a great maraschino liqueur. In keeping with the slight cherry theme, I’ll be serving Brooklyns along with a twist on Pepperidge’s Dried Cherries Pecan and Rosemary Brie en Croute, a not-so-subtle homage to best actress nominee Brie Larson.
Sláinte and good luck to Brooklyn tonight! Will you be watching the Oscars? What film(s) will be cheering for?
* While the Manhattan is the most famous, there are actually 5 five classic cocktails named after New York’s borough: the Brooklyn mentioned in this post, the Queens (a variant of the martini with pineapple juice), the Bronx (another variant of the martini but with orange juice) and the Staten Island Ferry (malibu rum and pineapple juice). Now you know 😉
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