Rosso Dolce Cocktail

I was enjoying a bottle of Lambrusco the other evening but didn’t finish it and decided to experiment with the remaining wine. Using the wine to fill some new King ice trays I had received earlier in the week I wasn’t sure exactly how the Banfi Bell”Agio Lambrusco would freeze but it was worth a try.

A day later and the ice cubes were still a little slushy as the alcohol content made it hard for them to solidify but after an additional 24 hours, I was happy with the results. I wanted to make something a little different with these giant cubes but remembering the deliciousness of the Gin Lambrusco Cocktail I made earlier in the year I decided to play around with a variation on that cocktail. With the Lambrusco ice cube ready to go I quickly mixed some lemon juice and gin together in a shaker and poured it over the top of the King cube. The liquid was immediately mixed with the flavor of the Lambrusco and the gin and lemon juice mixture turned a deep purple as soon as it came into contact with the ice, which was really cool. Italian Lambrusco like many wines gets its name from the principal grape used in production and is a great wine for cocktails as it is a red wine with a slight effervescence and is commonly served chilled.