Victory Drink of the Month: Belle Vodka’s Belle Appletini!

The Race: Longines Breeders' Cup Turf

The Venue: Santa Anita Park

The Date: Nov. 2, 2019

The Winner: Bricks and Mortar

The Toast: To the final touch on what will most likely be a Horse of the Year campaign. Bricks and Mortar rallied late to edge longshot United in the Longines Turf, scoring his sixth victory without a defeat in 2019, all coming at different tracks. If he wins Horse of the Year in January, he’ll be the first turf horse to do so since the great Wise Dan took back-to-back honors in 2012 and 2013. To read a recap and view a replay of the Longines Turf, click here.

Bricks and Mortar is also nominated for the 2019 Secretariat  Vox Populi Award, which is voted on by fans and is part of America’s Best Racing’s Fan Choice Awards. To learn about the finalists and to vote (closes Nov. 20), click here.

After the Race: Add some Granny Smith tartness to your martini with Belle Vodka’s creative recipe, and enjoy during a night on the town in Louisville, Del Mar, or the Big Apple itself after a late fall day at one of the tracks mentioned below.

What’s Next: The four-day Thanksgiving holiday weekend is stacked with stakes races in multiple divisions, mainly at Churchill Downs, Aqueduct, and Del Mar. Churchill Downs’ card on Saturday, Nov. 30, is especially exciting for followers of the Road to the 2020 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve, as the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes offers 10 Derby qualifying points to the winner and is expected to attract leading contender Tiz the Law from New York.

The Ingredients:

• 1.25 ounces of Belle Vodka
• 1 ounce Calvados
• 1.25 ounces Granny Smith apple juice
• .25 ounce fresh lemon juice
• .25 ounce simple syrup

How to Make It:

• Add crushed ice to a cocktail glass and set aside to chill
• Add all of the ingredients to a shaker with cubed ice, shake 10 seconds
• Empty the ice from the cocktail glass, double-strain the mixture
• Garnish with apple slices