Keep Calm and Cherry (Limeade) On

I'm not a big drinker, and am okay admitting I don't really like the taste of alcohol. Though there are certain times when I wish I more enjoyed drowning my sorrows with some Pino or celebrating with a bit of bubbly, the occasion is rare. Very occasionally, however, I get the urge to have an alcoholic beverage. And since they stopped making Zima in 2008, I've had to get creative. (Remember Zima and wine coolers? Oh to be an 18-year-old wannabe rebel again.)

There was this one extra dirty martini to end all martinis, made at a now defunct bar in Keene, New Hampshire by which I compare all alcoholic drinks. Few, if any, compare. I think the key is smoothness. (That miracle martini was like buttah.) Sweet drinks are good if not too sugary, but seldom are they not too sweet. I suppose there are worse things to be picky about.

Recently I got one of those rare wild hairs and decided to order a hard cherry limeade from a restaurant. And would you know, I enjoyed it. Which prompted me to perfect it at home. You should, too.

Grownup Cherry Limeade

(Makes 1 pint)

Ice

1.5 oz cherry flavored vodka

1 oz maraschino cherry juice
3-4 (or 10) maraschino cherries

lemon-lime soda

1/2 lime, sliced

Fill pint jar (or glass) with ice. Add vodka, cherry juice and cherries. Squeeze limes into the jar, then throw the slices in as well. Swirl. Fill to the neck with lemon-lime soda (I use Sprite). Swirl with a straw.

Then... put your feet up, watch reality television and ignore the cat hair tumbleweeds rolling across your floor. (Just me?)