Dinner for Two is a Santa Fe bistro that offers locally sourced dishes, global wines, and a uniquely ‘funky’ cocktail menu that will keep you coming back. And did we mention their killer happy hour? Katie Valdez’s enchanting Unicorn Tears cocktail owes its ethereal hue to a truly unique moment of inspiration. While traveling through Thailand, Dinner for Two’s owner, Andy Barnes, experienced something… otherworldly. Let’s just say a mythical encounter led to a burst of vibrant color, captured perfectly in this magical concoction. We’ll leave the details to your imagination.

What Turns Empress Gin Lavender in This Cocktail?

If you look at a bottle Empress 1908, you’ll find the butterfly pea blossom gives it a deep, dark indigo hue. However, this same blossom also means that the color gets a shake up when mixed with other ingredients. For instance, since we add the acidity of lemon juice to the Empress Gin, it turns our cocktail a bright lavender shade. Other chemical reactions can also cause a variation of colors from soft pink to fuchsia depending on the mixer’s acidic content.

Unicorn Tears

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• Author: Katie Valdez
• Yield: 1 Cocktail 1x

Print Recipe

Description

This cocktail bring the magic to summer.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 2 oz Empress gin
• .5 oz lemon juice
• .5 oz simple syrup
• Topped with Fever Tree grapefruit sparkling soda

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Instructions

1. Add all ingredients into a Collins glass, add ice and top with grapefruit soda.
2. Garnish with decorative leaves (not edible).

Recipe by Katie Valdez, Dinner for Two
Story by Andrea Duran
Styling by Anna Franklin
Photography by Laura Petrilla

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