Seven sparkling cocktails inspired by seven US cities

Bar: The Roosevelt Room (winner of Best Bar TO Austin 2017)
Name: Justin Lavenue
Professional Title: Owner/operator
Cocktail: Cooler than a Cucumber

Ingredients:
1.5 oz dry gin
1 oz cucumber juice
.75 oz Texas tarragon syrup
.5 oz aloe juice
.5 oz grapefruit juice
2 oz Segura Viudas Brut Cava

Recipe:
Combine all ingredients in a 12 oz Collins glass
Add crushed ice and stir
Garnish with a tarragon leaf and a cucumber tongue spun around the glass to resemble a green belt. Serve with a straw.

Why does this cocktail represent Austin?
This cocktail embodies what Austin summers are all about. It utilizes a crisp gin– and the addition of ruby red grapefruit juice and Texas tarragon brings it all together. It’s exactly what I want to be drinking when I’m catching some sun at Barton Springs.

Bar: The Whistler
Name: Julieta Campos
Professional Title: Beverage director
Cocktail: Chicago Chicano

Ingredients:
1.5 medium-dry vermouth
.5 suze
.5 lime juice
.5 simple syrup
.5 cactus juice (juice cacti in blender)
Segura Viudas Brut Cava

Recipe:
Combine all ingredients in a glass
Top off cocktail with Segura Viudas Brut Cava
Double strain into a coupe glass

Why does this cocktail represent Chicago?
This cocktail is Chicago waking up in the summer. It packs a bright punch and is an easy sip for the day drinkers. Cactus is commonly used in Mexican cuisine but has yet to become mainstream. I think of this ingredient as a representation of the multitude of cultures that make up this city.

Bar: Good Housekeeping and Fundamental DTLA
Name: Lauren Pool
Professional Title: Bartender
Cocktail: Life Story

Ingredients:
3.5 oz Segura Viudas Brut Cava
1 oz Benedictine
1 oz Ambrato Vermouth
Spritz of chamomile-infused Carpano Bianco Vermouth

Recipe:
Combine benedictine and vermouth in a wine glass over ice
Stir and top with Segura Viudas Brut Cava
Garnish with chamomile flowers and a piece of honeycomb

Why does this cocktail represent LA:
I created this cocktail with sunsets at Griffith Park in mind. I love the hidden treasure that is Amir’s Garden. It’s the volunteer-run garden and picnic area that is not far from Dante’s View. It’s a beautiful spot to take in a golden LA sunset and its stunning skyline. Just like LA the ingredients are diverse representations of cultures that meld together to create something wonderful: Ambrato is a return to the Torino style of vermouth and Benedictine is an old French liqueur.

Bar: Bar Nancy
Name: Adrian Gonzalez
Professional Title: Bartender
Cocktail: Smooth Sailing

Ingredients:
.75 oz Aperol
.75 oz Ziami Ruby Red Rush Rum
.75 oz Lillet
75 0z fresh lemon juice
1-1.5 oz Segura Viudas Rosé

Recipe:
Combine all ingredients (except Cava) in a brandy snifter
Add ice and sir
Add Cava and grapefruit peel to garnish

Why does this cocktail represent Miami?
Miami is an eclectic town with changing likes and moods. This cocktail represents that “melting pot” mentality with a classic feel and contemporary influence at the same time.

Bar: Goldbar
Name: Remi Shobitan
Professional Title: Head bartender
Cocktail: The Gala

Ingredients:
1 oz butterfly pea flower-infused gin
.5oz lemon juice
.5oz simple syrup
2 dashes of lavender bitters
Segura Viudas Brut Cava
Edible orchid

Recipe:
1. Infuse approximately 10 butterfly pea flowers in your bottle of gin for 20 minutes or until it reaches the desired color. This will impart a beautiful purple color without altering the flavor of the cocktail
2. Combine gin infusion, fresh lemon juice, simple syrup and 2 dashes of lavender bitters
3. Shake and strain into a flute and top with cava. Garnish with an edible orchid

Why does this cocktail represent New York?
New York City is a diverse melting pot, and the ingredients used represent the juxtaposition of this amazing city. It is both elegant and robust, and is bursting with colors and flavors from around the world, all living harmoniously in one glass.

Bar: Walnut Street Café
Name: Samantha Germani
Professional Title: Bar manager
Cocktail: St. James Fizz

Ingredients:
2 oz gin
½ oz cucumber juice
½ oz pear juice
Segura Viudas Brut Cava

Recipe:
Combine gin, cucumber juice and pear juice in a shaker
Add ice and shake
Fill a Collins glass with fresh ice
Strain mixed drink over ice and top with Cava

Why does this cocktail represent Philadelphia?
If you have ever taken a stroll down St. James Street you understand why it’s one of the most unique and beautiful blocks in Philly. It looks like an old English village. I took a classic English cocktail, The Fizz, and added Bartlett Pears and English cucumber cold press juices with a crisp Cava to round it all out.

Bar: Horsefeather
Name: Dzu Nguyen
Professional Title: Bar manager
Cocktail: California Cooler

Ingredients:
Gin
Celery juice
Sauvignon blanc
Thyme syrup
Fresh lime juice
Segura Viudas Brut Cava

Recipe:
Shake all non-cava ingredients over ice
Pour into a Collins glass over ice
Top with Cava

Why does this cocktail represent San Francisco?
San Francisco is a green city: innovative, full of life, full of money, and I think this cocktail really represents that energy. The addition of a young Cava really takes this drink into the summer-in- the-city category. In this cocktail we are highlighting savory balanced with citrus. The wine based syrup really highlights those tropical fruit flavors you can find in the Cava and sauvignon blanc.