Better known as the San Francisco Favorite, this cocktail is named in honor of the historic Bay Area import, Lotta Crabtree, who was once the highest paid female performer in America. In this variation from Crooked City Cider Tap House, the finessed delight features ingredients solely from female-owned drinks companies in the bar’s Bay Area home.
With over 25 taps of cider around the world, plus wine and beer, owner Dana Bushouse also creates cider cocktails for the Oakland bar. This mixed drink features her own own Straight Up Oakland Dry and is packed full of natural spice and elegant complexity. Focusing on the cider instead of complementary spirits, the apple flavors shine and meld with ginger beer, lime and floral bitters.
Bushouse makes this with Lil’ Sweet Spot, an alcoholic ginger beer from G’s Hard Ginger Beer to give it an extra kick, but a nonalcoholic ginger beer will still bring on the spice of the root.
Lotta Fit & Ginger
Makes 1 cocktail
3 ounces Crooked City Cider Straight Up Oakland Dry
2 ounces ginger beer
3 dashes Monarch Bitters Rose Petal
½ teaspoon lime zest
Juice from ¼ lime
Garnish: cinnamon sugar, plus extra for rim
Pour a mixture of cinnamon and sugar onto a plate. Rim a cocktail coupe with lime to wet it, then dip the glass into the mixture and set aside. In a cocktail shaker or pint glass, add the cider, ginger beer, bitters, lime juice and lime zest, then fill with ice. Gently stir to combine and strain into the coupe. Finish with a dusting of cinnamon sugar on top.
