The Andean Dusk Cocktail is a combination of pisco, grapes, lemon juice, sugar syrup, and rosé champagne. It was invented by bartender Meaghan Dorman in 2012 in New York City.
With pisco and sparkling wine both being grape-based, this recipe has a beautiful way of highlighting this base ingredient without making it too one-dimensional.
Quick Facts Andean Dusk Cocktail
- Method: shaken
- Flavor profile: dry, slightly fruity
- How to serve it: straight up
- Best glassware: champagne flute
- Alcohol content: ~ 15% ABV, 19.5 grams of alcohol per serving
Equipment
- 1 Cocktail Shaker
- 1 Jigger
- 1 Hawthorne Strainer
- 1 Muddler
- 1 Champagne Flute
Ingredients
- 2 seedless red grapes
- 1 oz Pisco
- 0.5 oz lemon juice - freshly squeezed
- 0.25 oz simple syrup
- 3.5 oz Rosé Champagne
Instructions
- Gently muddle the seedless grapes in your cocktail shaker2 seedless red grapes
- Add freshly squeezed lemon juice, simple syrup, Pisco, and plenty of ice into your shaker. Shake well for 10 - 15 seconds.0.5 oz lemon juice, 0.25 oz simple syrup, 1 oz Pisco
- Strain the mix into a champagne flute and drop in one whole red grape
- Top up with Rose Champagne. Salut!3.5 oz Rosé Champagne
Nutrition
Ingredients of the Andean Dusk Cocktail
The drink is a sophisticated mix of grapes, a sweet component, and obligatory lemon juice. It's a nice sip, complex enough to make it stand out.
- Pisco: a grape-based, mostly colorless spirit from South America. Since all other ingredients in the Andean Dusk are so versatile, it does not call for a specific type. Go with your preferred bottle. If you're new to pisco, try one of the classic brands, like BarSol or Macchu Pisco. They're easy to get and great value for money.
- Champagne: To earn its name, the Andean Dusk calls for a rosé version. If you don't want to go for champagne, rosé prosecco is way more affordable and works perfectly fine.
- Grapes: Fresh red grapes are the third grape element in the cocktail. Because you muddle and mix them into the drink, they should be seedless.
- Syrup: Simple syrup and lemon juice are necessary to balance the flavors in the cocktail.
- Lemon Juice: As always -to achieve the best results - you should freshly squeeze your lemon juice. Combined with simple syrup, it takes away the alcoholic edge and adds complexity.
Tips & Tricks for the Andean Dusk
The Andean Dusk Cocktail is not an overly complicated drink to make. Still, there are some details that you should pay attention to:
Expert Tips for Preparing the Drink:
This cocktail is served straight up - chilled but without ice. To keep the temperature of your drink low for as long as possible, all ingredients and the glass must be chilled properly.
Also, don't stir once you have poured the bubbly because it will quickly lose its carbonation, and your drink will fall flat.
Last, but not least, I recommend to double-strain your grape-syrup-lime mix, to ensure all grape pieces are filtered out.
Advice for Selecting Your Bubbly:
Champagne is a premium sparkling wine with a premium price tag. The reason so many cocktails call for champagne instead of other, more affordable sparkling wine is that, for a long time, there was nothing comparable readily available.
Today, however, things are very different. Thus, it is no problem at all to go for a prosecco or a cava. Just make sure to buy an extra dry or brut bottle. Semi-dry and dry are too sweet - despite their names.
In case you opt for prosecco, go for spumante, though, as you need a good dose of fizz in mixed drinks. Read more about prosecco and its different types.
A Tip for the Grapes:
As mentioned above, buy seedless grapes. You don't want tiny pieces of grape seeds in your drink. Plus, grape seeds release an unpleasant, bitter taste when crushed.
Since you muddle the fruit, it's likely you will crush some seeds during the process, which could spoil your drink.
Related Cocktails
If you want to try other drinks made with pisco or champagne, here is a list of cocktails we recommend to try:
- When replacing the bubbly with egg white and a few drops of Angostura bitters, you will get a beautiful Pisco Sour.
- Another option is the Pisco Collins. For that, you substitute the bubbly with sparkling water, change the ratios, and create a refreshing riff on the classic John Collins cocktail.
- The Death in the Afternoon, made with sparkling wine and absinthe, is another unique way to surprise your guests.
For more Pisco drinks, check out this overview of the best Pisco Cocktails, and for more inspiration on festive champagne drinks, head over to our list of Champagne Cocktails for New Year's Eve.
More About Pisco
Pisco is a grape spirit of Peruvian or Chilean origin. Both countries claim the invention of the spirit for themselves. However, so far, there is no conclusive answer to the debate.
Even today, Peru and Chile apply different production procedures that lead to notably different results. You can read the whole story in our guide to Pisco.