Cherries are a welcome addition to gin rickey recipe

The rickey is a cocktail with a long history going all the way back to the 1880s.
   The base recipe is gin, or bourbon, or rye whiskey + lime juice + sparkling mineral water.
   And there can also be cherries, as it turns out.
   Cherry-Lime Gin Rickey (click for the recipe) from Eating Well magazine is a delicious twist on the basic rickey recipe.
   The cherries make the hard-nosed cocktail more summery, and, for some cocktail drinkers like me, a lot more palatable.
   It’s the kind of cocktail that can be served before dinner, but will work nicely with the main course as well.
   Since I prefer the taste of club soda, that’s what I used in this recipe rather than seltzer or carbonated water.
   The rickeys are very easy to make.
   Sugar and water are brought to a boil in a small saucepan or the microwave, being stirred until the sugar is dissolved. (This simple sugar syrup can be made ahead and refrigerated.)
   Pitted sour or sweet cherries, fresh or frozen, are pureed in a blender with lime juice. The sugar syrup is added, along with the club soda or seltzer, gin, and 12 dashes of bitters. The mixture is pulsed to combine.
   Glasses are filled with ice, and topped with the cherry-lime rickey.

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