Velvet Elderberry

 The velvet elderberry cocktail is inspired by this Bath and Body Works fragrance:

About the fragrance

I purchased this foaming hand soap in 2023. It is currently unavailable online, but it will hopefully be back at some point.

The scent notes listed for this fragrance are:

Ripe elderberry

Raspberries

Sweet musk

Designing the cocktail

I used club soda for the mixer. For the raspberry note, I used Chambord. For the musk note, I used white rum. The elderberry note was the most important one to perfect since it was the note from which the fragrance (and cocktail) got its name. Most commercial elderberry syrups are advertised for medicinal use, so I decided to make my own. I purchased dried elderberries at a local health food store and prepared a syrup by combining them with water, bringing the mixture to a boil, and reducing, following this recipe from Grow Forage Cook Ferment. Honey was added at the end for sweetness, as elderberry syrup is bitter on its own. Since elderberries are typically associated with health foods and natural medicines, most elderberry syrup recipes call for raw honey as the sweetener, but my elderberry syrup turned out fine with processed honey, and other sweeteners would likely work too.

Recipe

1 oz Chambord

1 oz white rum

1 oz elderberry syrup

6 oz club soda

Place two ice cubes in a glass. Add Chambord, white rum, and elderberry syrup. Pour in club soda. For a non-alcoholic version, omit the Chambord and white rum and add raspberry simple syrup.

The finished cocktail

I would give this cocktail an average rating. I had concerns about the elderberry syrup, since I had to add quite a bit of honey to overcome its bitterness. I was afraid that too much honey would overpower the flavor of the elderberries. Even with honey, the syrup had a medicinal taste. However, when combined with Chambord and white rum the overall taste was earthy rather than medicinal. The flavors balanced one another well. The cocktail was visually interesting too, as the elderberry syrup and Chambord made it purple (my favorite color.) I would recommend this cocktail to anyone who is interested in the health benefits of elderberries.