A small note for those who want to play bartender at home: I've prepared a ready-made ingredient list with everything required. Now let me tell you how it all began.
The Russian Spring Punch was created in 1984 by Dick Bradsell (yes, him again, the prolific father of the Espresso Martini and the Bramble), at the Soho Brasserie in London. Bradsell was in the middle of an extraordinary creative season that was reshaping European cocktail culture, and the Russian Spring Punch was conceived as a celebratory cocktail, easily drinkable and elegant.
The name is a Cold War nod: "Russian" for the vodka, "Spring" for the freshness of the citrus, and "Punch" because it's served topped with sparkling wine. The drink became a favorite of late-1980s London nightlife, when the British capital was reborn as a global nightlife pole. Today it is a modern IBA classic, with black currant, lemon, sparkling wine and vodka.
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