5 Cocktail Recipes with Zodiac Black Cherry Vodka!

Vodka

Being gluten-free, people are often surprised that I need to choose my libations selectively. Yep, it is true. Hard liquors like whiskey, gin and beer are off the list for me. Flavored goodies like vodkas and rums are usually alright, but, alas, if I am offered a coconut or vanilla cake infused martini, out comes my iPhone to google if it is said to be safe.

Luckily, one of my favorites, vodka, is commonly, a safe bet for me, and you can imagine how happy I was when Zodiac Vodka asked me if I would like to try out their Black Cherry vodka. Not only is it delicious, but, there are many cocktail recipes perfect for Valentine’s Day weekend, and, if you’re at all like moi (procrastinate and wait til the last-minute), you’ll be happy to know this is a very easy drink to prepare and knock the socks off your Valentine!

Zodiac Vodka is an all-natural, true craft spirit. It employs a Single Source Distillation method, as the potatoes are regionally sourced and the entire distillation and bottling process occurs at the company’s Rigby, Idaho-based distillery.  The water for Zodiac is drawn from the Snake River Aquifer which runs beneath the distillery.  The product is produced using 4-column fractional distillation and is filtered using hand-cut Canadian Birch Charcoal.  Zodiac is distilled once – by design, allowing the vodka to retain a naturally sweet, distinctive taste. Zodiac is produced from non-GMO ingredients and as a 100% potato vodka, is gluten-free!

This first recipe was recommended to me from Zodiac:

Black Cherry 75

1.5 oz. Zodiac Black Cherry Vodka

1 oz. DeKuyper Raspberry Liqueur

.5 oz. Simple Syrup

1 each. Orange Wedge Half-Squeeze & Discard

—Shake and strain into Tulip glass

4 oz. Top with Prosecco

Garnish with a Lemon Twist

Vodka2

Some other great options to try out to try out is a Dirty Shirley (Remember sipping a Shirley Temple when you were a kid, feeling so grown up?!):

1 1/2 oz Zodiac Black Cherry Vodka
3 oz club soda
1 tsp Grenadine syrup
Pour grenadine into bottom of short cocktail glass. Fill to top with ice. Pour vodka and soda at same time gently over ice. Garnish with a Maraschino or better, a black cherry.
Or, give The Madonna a try, you really cannot get more easier than this:  1 shot black cherry vodka, and a glass of 7 up.
Pour vodka into a whiskey-sour glass. Fill with 7-up, and stir gently. Garnish with a maraschino cherry, and serve. Ba bam!
If your weakness is Cherry Cola, grab 3.5 ounces of it, an ounce of Zodiac black cherry vodka and .5 ounces of grenadine, and you’ll have yourself a big people’s take on a favorite.
And, last, but not least: The Dark Cherry Cream Soda! You can go crazy if you really want a sweet treat and make this a float with vanilla ice cream, but, I love it with just half a can of your favorite cream soda, a shot of Zodiac black cherry vodka, ice and some cherries to garnish. Voila! 😉
These are just a few of the variations I was able to dream up with the help of some Google searching and Zodiac’s black cherry vodka. Are you already a cherry vodka connoisseur? I would love to hear your recipes, and make sure to visit Zodiac HERE! xo

(*Disclosure: I was provided with a bottle of Zodiac’s Black cherry vodka on behalf of this review. All opinions are my own. Please drink responsibly, and remember: this post is intended for my readers 21 and over!)