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Cocktail History
The Partridge in a Pear Tree is a Christmas cocktail that was created by food writer and author Jessica Strand and was first published in her book Very Merry Cocktails: 50+ Festive Drinks for the Holiday Season. It’s a simple variation of the classic French 75 template that calls for a unique pear eau de vie in place of the gin and mixes it with homemade pine syrup, woodsy bitters, and refreshing bubbly.
Cocktail Ingredients
To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following ingredients:
Sparkling Wine: This is a carbonated wine made with white or red grapes. We used Champagne Moutard Père & Fils Brut Prestige because it’s smooth and flavorful. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Gruvi Non-Alcoholic Prosecco in place of the sparkling wine.
Pear Liqueur: This is a liqueur made with Bartlett pears, quince, sugar, and alcohol. We used Maison Ferrand Mathilde Poire Liqueur because it has a rich fruit flavor. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Monin Premium Pear Syrup in place of the pear liqueur.
Pine Syrup: This is a sweetener made with pine tea, white sugar, and water. We made ours at home using Alex’s stovetop recipe.
Spruce & Birch Bitters: This is a food product made with spruce, birch, botanicals, herbs, and alcohol. We used Crude Bitters & Sodas “Apothecary” Spruce & Birch Bitters.
Pear Wedge: This is a pear slice that has been cut into a wedge shape.
Bartending Tools
To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following bar tools:
Jigger: This is used to measure and pour ingredients. We used the Japanese jigger from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.
Bar Spoon: This is used to stir ingredients. We used the Barfly Stainless Steel Teardrop Bar Spoon.
Paring Knife: This is used to cut ingredients. We used the OXO Good Grips 3.5 Inch Paring Knife.
Tasting Notes
The Partridge in a Pear Tree features light fruit aromas and has a taste that marries the dryness of the wine with the fruity sweetness of the pear and the slight woodsiness of the bitters, and it all goes down leaving plenty of delicious pear flavor in the throat.
Our Opinion of This Cocktail Recipe: While this one didn’t quite break either of our top fives for sparkling drinks, we did agree that its tasty pear and pine flavors do make it stand out, and it’s about as true to the song as a cocktail could get.
Which of our palates is yours most like?
Find out if your palate is most similar to Alex’s or Kendall’s by answering five questions.
Which of our palates is yours most like?
Find out if your palate is most similar to Alex’s or Kendall’s by answering five questions.
Alex’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐
“While a fairly inspired conceptual cocktail, this one wasn’t exactly a favorite of mine; the combination of sweet pear, pine, and champagne did create a very interesting flavor but not one where any of the elements really stood out or would be noticed by somebody who didn’t read the recipe. As with many champagne cocktails, I really did enjoy and appreciate it, but I do think that a good sparkling wine simply does best when standing on its own.”—
Kendall’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐
“I’m typically a huge fan of mixing sparkling wine with pear, but this recipe just didn’t blow me away like a few other bubbly cocktails have. Even with the addition of pine and spruce flavors, which were prominent, in my opinion, I didn’t get much complexity from this drink overall. It could’ve been the liqueur or the sparkling wine we used that made me find it a little bland, but I would request a Minute to Midnight or Santa Baby before revisiting this one again.”
Recipe
This cocktail recipe was adapted from Very Merry Cocktails: 50+ Festive Drinks for the Holiday Season by Jessica Strand.
Add pear eau de vie, pine syrup, and bitters to a cocktail glass.
Stir gently for 3-5 seconds.
Top with sparkling wine.
Garnish with pear wedge.
Ingredients
Directions
Add pear eau de vie, pine syrup, and bitters to a cocktail glass.
Stir gently for 3-5 seconds.
Top with sparkling wine.
Garnish with pear wedge.
Make It a Mocktail: Use Gruvi Non-Alcoholic Prosecco in place of the sparkling wine and Monin Premium Pear Syrup in place of the pear liqueur to try a booze-free version of this drink.
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More Christmas Cocktails
If you like this Christmas-inspired cocktail recipe, here are a few others we’ve tried that you may enjoy:
Poinsettia Cooler: A tequila cocktail made with cranberry juice, cranberry shrub, lime juice, and cranberries
The Little Donkey: A vodka cocktail made with gingerbread syrup, lime juice, ginger beer, and a cinnamon stick
Kohler Mint Cocoa: A chocolate mint brandy cocktail made with milk, white peppermint schnapps, dark crème de cacao, cocoa powder, whipped cream, and grated chocolate
Cranberry Cobbler: A sherry cocktail made with cranberry syrup, orange slices, a mint sprig, and cranberries
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