When Vallozzi’s of Pittsburgh developed their Christmas cocktail for “Five Golden Rings,” they immediately thought of their liquid gold: Limoncello! They decided to use five “golden” ingredients with lemon as the star flavor. They used their very own their housemade limoncello, but there are lots of great, pre-made brands: Il Tramonto Limoncello and Sogno di Sorrento Limoncello are two of them. Lucky Signs makes a lovely version, too. Limoncello, lemon sherbet, and yellow chartreuse combine to create a golden delight in this limoncello cocktail.
Five Golden Rings?
Many of the lines in “The Twelve Days of Christmas” seem somewhat nonsensical. This is one of the few that is a gift that most people would actually want, as opposed to partridges, milkmaids, or geese. Five golden rings is a lot of rings, though. Are you just supposed to wear one on each finger of your hand? In any case, some people think that the Five Golden Rings reference the five wounds of Jesus Christ, or the Five Books of Moses. Honestly, it’s more significant because of its place in the song. Maybe you hear the refrain in your head: “Five gooooolden rings,” which is a sign to rush through the repetition of gifts one through four! Whether you’re celebrating Christmas or not, this limoncello cocktail is an uplifting sip for all.
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Five Golden Rings Limoncello Cocktail
Description
Go for the gold this Christmas with this limoncello cocktail from Vallozzi’s.
Ingredients
For the cocktail:
- 1.5oz Limoncello
- .5oz Chartreuse yellow liqueur
- .5oz lemon juice
- .5oz lemon sherbet (see recipe & substitution below)
- 1oz egg white
For the lemon sherbet:
- 4 Lemons
- 1.5 cups granulated sugar
- 12oz fresh lemon juice
Instructions
For the cocktail:
- Combine all ingredients and dry shake (no ice) first to get a nice froth from the egg white.
- Add ice and shake again. Strain into your favorite chilled coupe or martini glass.
- Garnish with 5 drops of extra virgin olive oil to get Five Golden Rings floating in the froth!
For the lemon sherbet:
- Add JUST the lemon peels to the sugar, none of the white pith, by using a Microplane grater or a vegetable peeler.
- Squeeze the peeled lemons to get the required juice for the recipe. Use a muddler or a heavy wooden spoon (or other heavy utensil) to firmly press the peels into the sugar. This will extract the tasty oils from the peels and incorporate them into the sugar.
- Let sit for 30 minutes to bring out all the oil. Mix.
- In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and lemon juice over medium heat.
- Stir until sugar is dissolved and remove. Do not boil. Strain to remove peels.
Notes
If you need to streamline this recipe to better fit your format, we understand. We would say to make a syrup with a 2:1 sugar:lemon juice ratio. This will give you a sweeter outcome, but still make it a little thicker than a normal simple syrup which is necessary. Making the full lemon sherbet recipe, however, brings out some really incredible lemon flavor and gives it a different mouthfeel.
Check out the rest of our “Twelve Days of Christmas” cocktails or make the whole set!
Recipe by Stephanie Yarup & Laura Karner of Vallozzi’s
Styling by Anna Franklin
Photography by Laura Petrilla
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