LIBATION: Beergarita
LIQUID TRAVEL DESTINATION: Banff, Canada
LEGACY: Staying at the princess palace aka the Fairmont Banff Springs, since many Swiss-Germans settled the area, I thought the Waldhaus Restaurant was an apropos place to dine for genuine wiener schnitzel, fondue and spatzle. As I was rolling up my sleeves ready to greedily drown hunks of bread into the gooey truffle cheese fondue pot, a bizarre cocktail in this former hunting lodge laden with lederhosen caught my eye.
A beergarita? My curiosity was piqued and I went for it. My beergarita was exactly what you would guess it was… some kind of crossbreed German-Mexican delight. The Mexican part was a large light green frozen orb floating in the middle of my gigantic mug of German beer. As the tequila laced ice ball began to melt, the drink got more intriguing with the sweet tangy margarita fusing with the honeyed hop notes of the beer – essentially an adult slurpee.
Both the cuisine for its Swiss-German authenticity and the cocktail for it ingenuity will have me returning to Fairmont’s Waldhaus Restaurant on my next adventure in the stunning Canadian Rockies of Banff, Canada.
LOWDOWN: When you need more than just a beer, many beergarita recipes direct you to make a blended margarita and mix it with beer. I believe this approach is to rob yourself and your guests of a good time. The flavor evolution as the margarita ice ball melts is a taste bud thrill.
Instead invest in Prepara’s ice ball molds, a pack of 4 is around $10. Fill the ice balls with potent margaritas made of fresh lime juice, freeze the night before along with your beer mugs. Plop those ice balls in your frosty mug of German beer and you have the ultimate melting ‘float’ cocktail! Available on Amazon.