Reviving a Corpse, and Other Tales

Posted: July 9th, 2010 | Author: alison | Filed under: Food History, Recipes | 10 Comments »

Kevin has been making an awesome ‘new’ drink lately.  He takes gin, lemon juice, cointreau, and absinthe–gives it a good, hearty shake, and I’m telling you, creates my new favorite drink of the summer!  What is this magic drink, you ask?  A corpse reviver!  And I promise you, this drink will (as this 1867 publication on London Life suggests) “fill us with extraordinary courage and determination.  Our self esteem rose by fifty percent, and with it, our indignation!”  Yes, that quotation is actually referring to a drink called a Corpse Reviver, but I’m not sure it’s the same drink to which Kevin keeps returning.

As I’ve posted previously, Seattle has been a rainy mess.  Spring came and went without a real hint of sun.  It’s only the past week that we’ve seen any hot weather.  This California girl is loving the 90 degree temperatures (and our tomato crop is as well).  We actually have a ripening tomato, folks!

Isn’t it beautiful?  Tonight, we sat in our backyard, sipped a Corpse Reviver, and marvelled in the changes our garden has gone through in the past few week.  Our garlic is finally growing scapes that are turning in their familiar circles, like little kitchen timers.

But back to the fabled drink!  There are two distinct recipes for Corpse Revivers.  One, involves maraschino cherry juice.  We will not speak of that one.  The second, based on a recipe from the 1930s Savoy Cocktail Book, comes from a recipe I found in the Washington Post.

Corpse Reviver #2 for Two

4oz. gin

4 oz. cointreau

4 oz. lemon juice

4 oz. Lillet Blanc

1 1/2 tsp. absinthe (we’re big fans of Pacifique Absinthe by Pacific Distillery)

1. Add ingredients to cocktail shaker along with ice and pour into cocktail glasses of choice.  We used our favorite Libby old-fashioned glasses we found at a local estate sale.

**Don’t be alarmed if your drink gets a little cloudy!  Absinthe reacts with water (much like unfiltered whiskey) and forms the infamous la louche.


10 Comments on “Reviving a Corpse, and Other Tales”

  1. 1 Kindra said at 10:10 pm on July 9th, 2010:

    Thank you! A different way to put my Absinthe to use!

  2. 2 jasmine said at 11:30 pm on July 9th, 2010:

    Can’t wait to try one!

  3. 3 Susan @ The Spice Garden said at 9:07 am on July 11th, 2010:

    They’re alive! They’re alive! I’ve missed your blog entries … you must be a busy person this summer! Ha! And I think it’s funny that with the hot weather the cocktail recipes start popping up on the food blogs! I’ve posted Bellini Cocktails … which I’ve been all about in our hot corner of the world!

    I am curious about absinthe. I have some wonderful Hendrick’s gin. Don’t know what Lillet Blanc is … help!

  4. 4 alison said at 1:12 pm on July 11th, 2010:

    Hi Susan –

    I purchased Lillet Blanc from my local wine shop. It’s a fortified wine, so basically an aperitif. Surprisingly, it’s used in the recipe for a martini a la James Bond!

  5. 5 Susan @ The Spice Garden said at 3:52 am on July 12th, 2010:

    Thanks! I’ll look for it when I’m in the liquor store … as these little cocktails look really thirst-quenching! Def soup-up lemon-aid!

  6. 6 Tweets that mention A Bit of Butter » Blog Archive » Reviving a Corpse, and Other Tales -- Topsy.com said at 12:21 pm on July 13th, 2010:

    [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by chowhound. chowhound said: A different way to put Absinthe to use – Reviving a Corpse, and Other Tales http://ow.ly/2aBH1 #drink [...]

  7. 7 Marc Bernhard/Pacific Distillery said at 11:37 am on July 14th, 2010:

    I’m glad to hear that our absinthe has found a home in your Corpse Reviver. It has been a favorite of mine for years now. Since we make both absinthe and gin, this drink was a natural for us at the distillery.
    Cheers,
    Marc

  8. 8 sippitysup said at 10:43 am on July 17th, 2010:

    I love the thought of this drink and must make it more then a mere thought very soon. GREG

  9. 9 Karen said at 3:00 pm on July 17th, 2010:

    Beautiful tomatoes! I’ve got garlic in our garden, but no scapes yet… I’m waiting for them!

  10. 10 Sophia said at 8:16 am on July 20th, 2010:

    Wow, great job here. Awesome picture too! You should really consider submitting this to Recipe4Living’s Summertime Sipper Contest- http://www.recipe4living.com/articles/the_summertime_sipper_recipe_contest.htm

    It looks delicious!

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.