Beet Cocktails & Class from Back Forty’s Michael Cecconi

Whipping up the same tired pitchers of Sex on the Beach every soiree and then not expecting to wake up on the bathroom floor, crusted in vomit and peach schnapps, is the definition of batshit crazy. Luckily, the seasonal sages at Back Forty are looking to help a drunk out, offering professional guidance on three weekends in November. Starting this Saturday, November 7, Michael Cecconi, the cocktail ace at both Back Forty and its landed gentry cuz Savoy, will lead classes on DIY-ing his fancy fresh creations at home. Students will learn to shake that thing, muddle like it’s hot. Not one to acknowledge boundaries between liquor store and Whole Foods, Cecconi will also help participants face their fears of squash plus vodka.

Lessons start at 4pm sharp, to be followed by a farm feast prepared by chef Shanna Pacifico, which you may or may not be coherent enough to enjoy. Contact Back Forty for reservations; $130 covers everything. Bonus point: teacher’s pets can get a jump on the scholarly competition by test-running Cecconi’s candy-striped beet concoction, the Root Cause, which he shares with us below. Highlighters ready!

A riff on the Manhattan, this rosy beauty gets its flush from the infusion of candy-striped beets, which are not only adorable, but according to Cecconi, “have a fantastic natural sweetness and are more balanced and less intensely earthy than their larger, purple brethren.”

Michael Cecconi’s Root Cause
2 oz Dickel Tennessee Whisky
1 1/2 oz beet liqueur
3/4 oz Punt e Mes (a widely available Italian vermouth)

Combine ingredients in pint glass or mixing tin and fill with ice. Stir 100 times, then strain into chilled martini glass. Garnish with a paper-thin beet slice.

Beet Liqueur
6 candy-striped beets
1.75 liters vodka
Pinch of salt

Clean beets and wrap individually in foil. Roast at 350˚ until fork tender. Let beets cool, then peel off skin and slice into 1/4-inch rounds. Add to a pitcher of vodka and let steep 4-7 days at room temperature, stirring daily.