MacKenzie Wallace got her start in banquet bartending, slinging simple drinks for the rubber chicken crowd and knew she wanted more, quickly discovering the craft cocktail realm. “Pouring basic drinks was boring, but I still try to keep my drinks simple and don’t lean on simple syrup,” she says. Her philosophy? “Let the ingredients do the talking and keep it down to four ingredients…If you don’t want to taste the spirit, why not just have a glass of lemonade?”
Click the image below to vote for A Slice of Summer:
The Drink
“Mixing drinks at Oquirrh, we incorporate what Angie and Drew [Angie and Andrew Fuller, the chef-owners] are using in the kitchen,” Wallace says. “Drew keeps it seasonal and our cocktails reflect that. He’s been using a lot of watermelon in his dishes so I thought about late summer and early fall and how I could keep that fresh taste of summer going.”
A Slice of Summer
1.5 oz. Sugar House Distillery rum
2 oz. lime juice (or to taste)
2 oz. watermelon shrub (below)
2 oz. soda water topper
Combine ingredients and shake, strain over two scoops of watermelon sorbet. Top with soda water and garnish with a watermelon slice and mint.
Watermelon shrub: Mix equal parts water and sugar in a saucepan and simmer. Let cool and add 3 cups pureed watermelon and lime to taste. Add the equivalent of the sugar-water ratio of rice vinegar and store in the fridge for two days before using.
Try it at Oquirrh
368 E. 100 South, SLC
801-359-0426
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