Making my own Grenadine and the Lima Ocho
I began making my own grenadine over a year ago, but the results have been somewhat mixed(my first batch came out brown). I’ve learned a quite a bit, and made some really good stuff for a 7X7 event at the Brixton where I was making the classic Ward 8 with Four Roses Small Batch, Orange Juice, Lemon Juice, and Grenadine. I tooled it to bring out a bit more spice with cinnamon, allspice, and clove. The drink was a hit that night.
When we decided to switch to the classic Moscow Mule, we needed to replace the Pisco Mule on our menu. I decided to do a Ward 8 variation with Pisco, calling it the Lima Ocho. However, the grenadine for the Ward 8 wasn’t suited towards use with the Pisco. I went back to the drawing board and decided to use hibiscus, white tea, rose bud, and orange peel to better incorporate the flavors. The results are a much better cocktail, and I hope you’ll come into to check it out.
The process of making grenadine is taking 2 parts pomegranate juice to 1 part sugar and letting it soak for a couple hours with whatever flavoring agents you want to add. Then over a low heat reducing it down to 50% of the original volume. The key is to make sure you don’t caramelize the sugars, since it turns it brown and takes away the fresh pomegranate flavors.
