Your favorite spring farmers’ market has just opened for the season and you’ve had your generous shopping basket sitting by the door for weeks, reluctantly toeing it away on occasion to make room for that old towel to catch those last snow- and sand-covered footprints.
Upon your first visit to the market, you’ll want to buy nearly everything at the maple stand, but remember to take a step back. Case the place. There are beets and rhubarb to your left, a great fennel grower a few tents down. Sniff around…is that mint and fresh thyme behind that woman’s giant canvas bag? Or is it the familiar oregano and sage that’s survived the cold, still hanging around from the winter market?
As you browse the bounty, take a page out of Maine’s spring crops playbook; don’t rush. This is your time to gain the inspiration that you’ll carry back to your kitchen and your countertop to prove that cocktails deserve fresh ingredients, too. Using vegetables in your snifter may not qualify as getting your recommended daily dose of vitamins and minerals, but they can add that slightly earthy, colorful achievement that sings spring.
I didn’t say don’t buy anything at the maple stand, so be sure to make your way back, as it is a quintessential spring gift. The Maine Maple Producers Association hosts the perfect segue into spring the fourth Sunday of every March, officially designated Maine Maple Sunday. Sugar houses all over the state open their doors to the public to show us how maple syrup is made and offer delicious samples.
The Maine Maple Mashup is the perfect cocktail to handle a transition from winter into spring. A twist on an old fashioned, this sturdy beverage is full of wonderful aromas that keep you pining for the next sip with its roasted clementine rind, black walnut bitters, a touch of complex amaro, and maple syrup.
Fennel is one of the first vegetables to make its appearance in the garden and the green color it imparts in a simple syrup is reminiscent of fresh spring grass. Thus, the Fennel Spring Fling was created. The sweet, herbal notes in this pale green cocktail are balanced with citrus. And don’t discard the fennel that you’ve cooked in the simple syrup—the candied fennel bits that garnish the cocktail are addictive.
Perhaps the earthiest of spring vegetables, beets, add a stunning ruby red to the Beet and Elderflower Collins. By using a combination of the beet-infused simple syrup and vodka, the former subtler than the latter, this cocktail offers a taste of beet without too much sweet, while the citrus and floral liquor join the party for an ideal pairing. Word to the wise: While the color of beets can be splendid, you may not feel that way when it stains your skin and clothes. Wear dark clothes or a full apron, and gloves, when prepping this cocktail.
Thyme is readily available in early spring and until Maine’s most popular berry is ready for harvest, frozen blueberries are fine to use in the Thyme for Blueberries cocktail. In this beverage, the thyme is subtle, the blueberry simple syrup sweet and beautiful, and the citrus and soda a lovely balancing act. It just might be the cocktail to convert a gin naysayer. Add club soda and it can be repurposed for summer, especially when the fresh berries are available.
