Drink of the Week: Shrub & Co. Grapefruit

April 05, 2013

In the drinks world, what’s old tends to be new again, one example of which is the resurgence of shrubs. Enter today’s Drink of the Week—the Grapefruit Shrub—which comes from newly launched Shrub & Co. Dating back to Colonial days, shrubs are traditionally a combination of fresh fruit, vinegar and sugar, and Shrub & Co. modernizes the method using all organic, California-grown Ruby Red grapefruit, organic white wine vinegar and organic cane sugar. The results are bright and zingy—definitely more tart than sweet—with fresh grapefruit flavors (including a friendly hint of pith), palate-sweeping acidity and a kiss of sweetness on the finish. And while they’re delicious mixed simply with a glass of seltzer, co-creator Deborah Marskey says they’re also formulated with cocktail mixing in mind: “We pair each with everything from bourbon to gin to mezcal to make sure it works.” Try it in the Bitter Ruby with gin and a splash of chocolaty Cynar. $22/16 oz. shrubandco.com

Bitter Ruby

1 1/2 oz. gin

1 oz. Shrub & Co. Grapefruit

1/2 oz. Cynar

Tools: mixing glass, barspoon

Glass: cocktail or coupe

Garnish: grapefruit twist

Combine all ingredients and stir with ice. Strain into a chilled glass and garnish.