Venningen is a quaint village in the Rhineland-Palatinate region of Germany. It’s what you expect of a picturesque European countryside. Timber houses and gardens outlined in stone walls, vineyards stretching over hills, with flower baskets adorning windows along narrow streets and alleyways.
Venningen is also where I was introduced to Weinessiggut Doktorenhof, a vinegar estate run by a family that has produced wines in the region for hundreds of years before focusing on vinegars. Their drinking vinegars, especially the Ficus fig wine vinegar, blew my mind. It also renewed my interest in finally producing my first vinegar cocktail shrub when I returned home.
Photos by Brandon Withrow
The Tour
Weinessiggut Doktorenhof vinegar tasting tour puts on an incredible show. Tour guests are led to a back room where they don hooded monk cloaks. More than just giving a secret society vibe, the robes protect your clothes from the vinegar scent of the tour. The smell of vinegar is strong at first, but with a few deep breaths, it levels out. Guests are led by candlelight through a dark catacomb-like cellar lined with oak barrels, and past the vinegar mother sitting in a jar in a dim room, to learn about vinegar history. Small details throughout, like vials and jars filled with herbs and spices and old books laid out on tables, help to sell the experience. Guests are taken to the tasting room to sample vinegars and then to the storefront.
Photo by Brandon Withrow
A Shrub Was Born
The tour may have ended with a tasting in a cozy room before exiting to the store, but that was where my interest in creating my first shrub took off.
What is a shrub?
A shrub has three elements to it: fruits that are sometimes combined with other plants, sugar, and vinegar. Shrubs have been around for centuries to create vibrant drinks that can easily be stored. During prohibition they served as non-alcoholic cocktail substitutes. Recently, the rise of creative mocktails has given new life to shrubs. Combined with a spirit, they can produce a fantastic cocktail, too.
Photo by Brandon Withrow
Cold Blackberry and Thyme, Fig Vinegar Shrub Cocktail Recipe
My shrub combined some of my favorite flavors of blackberries and thyme to give it a sweet, but also earthy flavor. I combined that with fig vinegar for a depth that complimented them both. The mixture is a 1 to 1 ratio. This cocktail was modified after a French 75, with the shrub replacing the simple syrup and lemon juice.
Ingredients
- 1 cup of blackberries (or fruit of choice)
- Thyme or herb of choice (to taste)
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1 cup of balsamic fig vinegar or vinegar of choice
- 1.5 oz. of gin or vodka
- Top with Prosecco, Champagne, or soda water
- Garnish with blackberries
Directions
Combine whole blackberries, thyme, and sugar into a mason or jam jar, stir, and then refrigerate for 48 hours to 7 days. More time allows for a richer, thicker flavor as the sugars dissolve. Open and stir periodically, while lightly macerating the berries. When ready, strain out the fruit and combine with a fig vinegar. You can also use apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, or champagne vinegar. Some suggest only a splash of balsamic, but you can use whatever works with your flavors. Shake the mixture. It will keep for a month.
For a Cocktail
Fill a glass with ice. Add 1 ounce of shrub and 1.5 ounces of gin or vodka. I used a juniper forward gin that I distilled at the Dancing Goat Distillery Gin Academy. Top with Prosecco, Champagne, or soda water and garnish.
