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Loganberry Ginger Ale
1 cup sugar 1 cup water 3 lemons (juice) 1 cup loganberry juice 1 1/2 pints ginger ale 1 orange mint leaves Make a syrup of sugar and water by simmering for about five minutes. When cold, add one lemon and loganberry juice. Just before serving add ginger ale; if too strong, a little water may be added. Garnish with slices of orange and mint leaves. Yield 6 glasses.
A simple syrup-based punch that comes together in minutes once the syrup has chilled. Everything except the ginger ale can be mixed hours ahead.
- The syrup must be coldAdding ginger ale to warm or even lukewarm syrup drives off the carbonation immediately. Chill the cooked syrup thoroughly, ideally overnight, and keep the ginger ale refrigerated until the moment of pouring.
- How much lemonThe ingredient list calls for the juice of three lemons while the method mentions only one. Three lemons yields roughly 1/2 cup of juice, which balances a cup of sugar well; start with one lemon's worth and taste, since loganberry juice varies a great deal in sweetness.
- Loganberry juiceThe loganberry is a raspberry-blackberry cross, and bottled loganberry juice can be hard to find today. Unsweetened black raspberry or a blackberry-raspberry blend is the closest substitute; avoid sweetened cordials or reduce the sugar syrup accordingly.
- 1 1/2 pintsThree cups, or 24 fl oz. A single 750 ml bottle of ginger ale is close enough.
- Ginger ale then and nowGinger ales of this period are generally described as drier and more sharply spiced than most mass-market brands today. A dry ginger ale keeps the drink from turning syrupy, and the instruction to thin with water suggests the recipe assumed a fairly assertive product.
- Yield and glassesSix glasses from roughly six cups of finished punch, so about 8 oz each. For a party of eight or more, scale the whole thing rather than stretching it with water.
- GarnishSlice the orange thin and add it at the last minute; left to sit in the punch it turns bitter as the pith steeps. Bruise the mint lightly between the palms before dropping it in.