Brightest Young Things

The Cherry Blossom Festival begins this weekend to its usual March fanfare of crisp weather and overcast skies (for the past few years, anyways). Don't let that bring you down  - fill your flask with some of these cocktails and skip on down to the Mall to see the trees before hordes of sweaty tourists in fanny packs elbow you to death.

Japanese Cherry Blossom Margarita

• 1 1/2 oz Tequila
• 2 oz sake
• 1 oz cherry syrup
• 1 oz sour mix
• 1 oz lemon juice (approx. 1 lemon)
• sugar for rimming
• cherry and lemon twist for garnish

Rim a chilled margarita glass with sugar. Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and strain into the glass. Garnish with a cherry and lemon twist.

Cherry Blossom

• 1 1/2 oz brandy
• 1/2 oz cherry brandy
• 1 1/2 tsp triple sec
• 1 1/2 tsp grenadine syrup
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 cherry

Moisten rim of a cocktail glass with cherry brandy and rub rim in powdered sugar. Shake all ingredients (except cherry) with ice and strain into the sugar-rimmed glass. Garnish with cherry.

Fizzing Cherry (This is a great alternative to a mimosa on Saturday morning before you check out the Mall)

• 1 1/2 oz  De Kuyper Cherry Brandy
• 2 oz Orange Juice
• 1 oz Lime Juice
• Lemonade
• 1/2 oz Sugar Syrup

Shake first four ingredients with ice and strain into a glass half filled with ice. Top off with lemonade and gently stir. Garnish with a wedge of orange or lime.

For cherry drinks you don't want to make yourself, head over to any number of great places (Jackson 20, Gibson, Tabard Inn, Urbana, etc.) for cherry blossom inspired cocktails that require no effort on your part whatsoever.