The Delia — A Coastal Grandmother-Inspired Cocktail
Though we may be a little extra and are in the truest meaning behind the name of this blog “a bit Moore”, we love crafting all sorts of beautifully creative cocktails. We can’t help ourselves, it’s all really just so much fun! That said, if you know our family then you’ll know how much we enjoy an afternoon cocktail. We’ve mentioned it before, but as Aussies, afternoon cocktails are kind of a way of life. We like to share beloved practices, like that of a beautifully crafted afternoon cocktail, with guests at our Moore House properties in the form of a wonderfully styled bar setup, or a basket of Prosecco filled with mint blossoms and fresh citrus — we’ll even go as far as bringing in a professional mixologist/bartender for the evening to shake up custom cocktails… if the occasion calls for it… which in our opinion, it always does! Since not everyone who reads our newsletter, follows our Instagram, or even reads this blog has had the opportunity to experience this Aussie tradition firsthand, we’ve taken the time to document a recent signature cocktail for you all, just in time for the weekend.
We first made this cocktail on a picturesque summer afternoon at our Coaster’s Chance Cottage in Maine and have been ruminating about the creation ever since. It’s a relatively simple “mixy” as far as craft libations go, but it’s sure to satisfy all those sultry end-of-summer cravings. We named her after the woman who is pretty much as close to the spirit of the village of Cutler as you can get in a worldly form. She’s the Coastal Grandmother, a wealth of maritime knowledge, and one of the sweetest “Mainers” we’ve come to know yet — she is, none other than our lovely neighbor Delia. We created this drink in Maine, so it’s only fitting that it’s named after her. She’s sweet, tart, and can definitely come on a bit strong — if we can be so bold, it’s basically a Coastal Grandmother in a cocktail.
Keeping with our secret ingredient trend, this drink has a little twist to it, which grew only out of necessity — we were low on ice cubes at the time so we plopped a scoop of blackberry sherbet into each glass to chill things up a bit. A bit of a happy accident, but… like the infamous “mega pint”… We “thought it necessary”.
Here’s how to make it at home…
“The Delia”
Ingredients You’ll Need
1 Cup of Fresh Blackberries
1/2 Cup of Frozen Maine Blueberries
1 Bottle of Prosecco — The Dryer the Better
1 Scoop of Raspberry Sorbet — We Used Talenti’s Roman Raspberry
A Handful of Fresh Mint, but Basil Works Nicely Too!
Note: We like to use cocktail shakers and stirrers, but don’t worry — makeshifts like a cleaned spaghetti or olive jar (with lid) will work just fine for shaking.
Step No. 01
We love ourselves a chilled glass, so we like to pop our glassware in the freezer while we’re mixing. We prefer the freezer over the fridge method because frozen glasses will keep your cocktail cold even longer. Simply place your glasses in the freezer for at least 30 minutes prior to pouring time — depending on the glassware you can leave them in longer if you like!
Step No. 02
Now that your glasses are straight chillin’ you can move on to the mixing! For added freshness, start by infusing your gin with some additional fruity flavor. In a cocktail shaker combine 1/4 of the blackberries and 1/4 of the blueberries with 3-4 oz. gin. Then lightly shake to cool the gin and slightly muddle the berries.
Step No. 03
Grab your nicely chilled glasses from the freezer and add one scoop of sorbet to each glass. Unseal the shaker and then strain equal portions gin into each glass over the sorbet. We say strain, but we ended up adding the muddled berries back in anyway — so really whatever you’re feeling.
Step No. 04
Lastly, top with Prosecco and garnish with fresh mint (or basil… the more we think about herbaceous garnishes for this one, the more we feel like any herbs would be welcome) and fresh berries if you’re in the mood for them!
Enjoy! Let us know if you have any questions about how to recreate this. Don’t be shy — please comment your go-to cocktails in the section below. Our family loves to switch it up so we’re always looking for new mixology creations to try.
*Any glass will work for this cocktail, but we’ve been on a coupe kick as of late and think they work swimmingly for this creation in particular!! While these Bormioli Rocco bodega glasses from West Elm are our standard water and wine glasses — here are a few coupe-picks for you to shop. There’s nothing better than a fun cocktail AND a fun glass right?
“Cheers to the freakin weekend…” ♫♪
Photography by Erin McGinn
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