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Contest stirs up respect for the kumquat

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By LAURA KINSLER

lkinsler@tampatrib.com

Published: July 5, 2009

Updated: 07/06/2009 12:29 pm

DADE CITY - Growing up in Darby, Drew Long had tasted his share of kumquats.

He wasn't a fan.

The tiny, tart citrus fruit may be the pride of Dade City, but to a little boy who tried it on a dare, it was just plain bitter. A few more tastes were enough to leave him with an ingrained bias against the fruit.

Tastes change and evolve as we grow older, however, and Long developed an appetite for exotic flavors and a love for cooking.

It led to a career as a food writer in North Carolina, and earned him a reputation as one seriously fabulous party host.

Now living in Washington, D.C., Long is singing the praises of the little fruit he once despised. He invented a contest-winning cocktail featuring the kumquat and named it the "Darby Flower" as an homage to his hometown.

The inspiration hit while Long was taking a bartending class with celebrated mixologist Derek Brown. He and his classmates were separated into teams and told to create a new drink using gin and their choice of cordials and citrus. He went for the kumquats on a lark.

"Having grown up in Florida - hating them my whole life - I thought, 'What can I do with this?'" he said.

Long, who works for the Government Accountability Office, described the process for his column on www.DCFoodies.com.

"It really was dumb luck," he said.

The true revelation came when he realized he could use the sweetness of the zest to offset the fruit's natural sourness.

He mixed in some simple syrup, a dash of bitters, a sweet French liqueur called "elderflower cordial" and some nice, herbal gin - nothing too piney.voila! It was something totally different and delicious.

"It's the perfect balance of sweet and tart," he said. "It's so easy to drink, you have to be careful or it will sneak up on you."

Long has served the Darby Flower to numerous guests and earned rave reviews. Finding the Dade City exports in the nation's capital was surprisingly easy.

"I'm actually amazed at how easy it is to find pints of kumquats up here," Long said. "I always wondered who bought them, because grocery stores wouldn't stock them if they didn't sell."

Long certainly isn't the first to dream up a kumquat cocktail. Chantal Ecklof, bartender at Kafe Kokopelli, is a regular pro. Every year during the Kumquat Festival she serves up hundreds of kumquat margaritas. She also had developed kumquat vodka martinis and wine spritzers, which are only on the menu in February, she said.

"I always try to change it up," she said. This past year, she concocted a tasty drink special blending Southern Comfort and kumquat juice. "It was crazy good," she said.

The secret to making drinks in large batches is buying kumquat juice directly from the growers, she said.

Long said he's tempted to try more kumquat recipes.

"It's worth exploring. But I've hit a note with the kumquat," Long said. "I don't want to push my luck."

The Darby Flower

2 oz. of gin (the drier the better, but Hendricks is fine)

1 oz. of elderflower cordial

1/4 oz. of honey simple syrup

Zest of 2 kumquats

Juice of 2 kumquats

3 dashes of angostura bitters

Combine the ingredients in a shaker, including the juiced kumquats, and muddle. Add ice, stir and shake (Yup, both. Trust me.). Serve neat with a thin slice of orange or a twist.

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