L’Intensite De L’Amour — The Intense Ginger Love

Do you like Valentine’s Day?  Do you think it’s a Hallmark holiday?  Regardless of your answers, the Intense Ginger Love will hit your liver like Cupid’s arrow hits a person’s heart.  This holiday themed cocktail isn’t vaguely contrarian like the Amaro Amore, but it is just as tasty.  The Intense Ginger Love comes from my friends at Barrow’s Intense (full disclosure — I am a very small investor).

The Intense Ginger Love

1.5 ounces light rum
1 ounce Barrow’s Intense ginger liqueur
2 strawberries cut in half
Sparkling wine

Combine everything except the sparkling wine in a shaker, muddle the strawberries, add ice, shake as if you’re with the one you love, strain into a chilled champagne flute, and top off with the sparkling wine.

The original Intense Ginger Love specifically calls for Caliche rum from Puerto Rico. I’m not familiar with Caliche, so I used Don Q, which is my favorite Puerto Rican rum.  As far as I’m concerned, just use your favorite light rum.  If, like me, you’re more into cocktails than sparkling wine, use more Barrow’s Intense and/or rum in the cocktail.

Even if you think Valentine’s Day is a Hallmark holiday (I do), the Intense Ginger Love pairs nicely with music from artists such as Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and Louis Armstrong. And if your Valentine’s Day is going really well, play some Marvin Gaye or Barry White while you make an Intense Ginger Sutra.  You’re welcome.